A Whirlwind Vacation Read Free

guard laughed!” Katie heard a man say.
    â€œI saw him, too,” a woman agreed. “They’re not supposed to do that!”
    â€œLil! Get the camera!” Mr. McIntyre shouted. “We’ve got to get a shot of this!”
    Katie gulped. She had to stop laughing. Right away.
    But that wasn’t so easy. Once Katie got a case of the giggles, it was hard for her to hold them back.
    Just then a marching band entered the yard. Immediately, the other guards switched positions. They turned, and began marching toward the palace.
    A second group of guards lined up and began to march as well. The changing of the guard had begun.
    Cameras began clicking wildly. All of the tourists who had gathered at the gates of the palace were taking pictures of the ceremony.
    Katie gulped. She had no idea what to do. Where should she turn? Where could she go? She couldn’t just run away. Not with all these people staring at her.
    There was only one thing to do. She was going to have to try to follow what the other guards were doing.
    One group of guards was marching toward the palace. The other was marching toward the gate. Katie wasn’t sure which group she was supposed to march with. Finally, she clicked her heels together and joined the guards who were heading toward the front gate.
    â€œWhat are you doing?” one of the guards whispered to Katie.
    â€œI’m marching,” she whispered back.
    â€œYou’re supposed to be over there,” the guard told her. “Your troop is leaving. We’re the new ones coming in.”
    Oops. Katie had made a big mistake. Quickly, she turned and marched over toward the other end of the yard.
    But she wasn’t fast enough. Before Katie could reach the other line, the guards disappeared through a small door in the building.
    Katie was left all alone in the middle of the yard. Everyone was staring at her. A few people started to point and chuckle.
    Katie hated it when people stared at her. She hated it even more when people laughed at her. She was so upset, she forgot she was supposed to be a dignified guard at Buckingham Palace. Instead, she did what any fourth-grader would do.
    She ran off and hid behind one of the large stone walls of the palace.
    Phew. Katie breathed a sigh of relief. It felt good to be away from all those people staring at her. She adjusted the big, black furry hat and wiped the sweat from her face. Boy, those guards sure had a tough job. It wasn’t easy standing there, perfectly still. Especially not when you were sweating under a jacket and a hat.
    Just then, a gentle breeze began to blow. Katie was glad to feel a little wind blowing. The magic wind had returned.
    And that meant Katie was in for another change.
    The wind grew stronger and stronger, circling around Katie wildly.

    And then it stopped. Just like that. The magic wind was gone.
    Slowly, Katie opened her eyes. She looked around. She wasn’t inside the palace gates anymore. She was on the other side of the gate, looking in.
    Katie glanced down at her feet. There were her red sneakers. She reached up to the top of her head. Her hands touched strands of her own red hair. The hat was gone.
    â€œKatie, there you are!” Mrs. Carew shouted, rushing over to her daughter. “Did you get to see the changing of the guard?”
    â€œI had a really close-up view,” Katie assured her mom.
    â€œDid you see me make that guard laugh?” Annabelle asked.
    Katie nodded. “I’ll bet he was really embarrassed about it.”
    Annabelle shrugged. “Whatever. I still won our bet.”
    Katie sighed. She couldn’t believe Annabelle wasn’t the least bit sorry for making the guard laugh in front of everyone. She had no idea what it felt like.
    Then again, why would she? It was Katie who had turned into the guard.
    And it was Katie who felt just awful about it.

Chapter 4

LAUGHING GUARD OUT OF STEP AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE
    Katie stood in the lobby of