Caw! Awk! Awk! Awk! Jack slowly came out of his dream. He opened his eyes with a start. He was surrounded by hazy sunlight. Where am I? he thought in a panic. Then he remembered—he was in India, on an elephant’s back! He sat up. Through the haze, he saw that Saba was standing on a muddy stream bank. Jack yawned. Where was Annie? The other elephants were upstream. They sprayed water on each other with their trunks. Teddy, Kah, and Ko were at the edge of the forest. Teddy sniffed the tall grass. The langurs ate flowers. “Good morning!” called Annie. She was sitting on a big black rock downstream. She was barefoot and soaking wet. “Hi,” said Jack. “How did you get down?” “Teddy and I slid off Saba into the mud,” said Annie. “Try it. But throw down your sneakers and backpack first.” Annie went to Saba’s side. Her feet were buried in mud up to her ankles. Jack threw his things to Annie. Then he patted Saba’s rough, wrinkled skin. “Thanks for the ride,” he said softly.
