"What are you boys doing in those silly hats?" Hands on hips, Megan Whitney stopped in front of the Bailey house to stare. The four neighbor boys were wearing their usual shorts, tee shirts, and tennis shoes. But on their heads, they wore brightly colored feathers attached to a band.

"These aren't hats, dumbbell." Tossing his head, Alex Bailey patted his feathers. "They're headdresses."

"Like Indians wear," added his three-and-a-half year-old brother Max.

"Why are you wearing them?" Megan asked.

"We're going to camp -- OUT!" George Maxel shouted.

Alex started whooping and jumping around. So did Max. George and Iggy Yuan joined in. "Camp, camp, camp," Iggy chanted, hop-stepping around Megan. The others joined in, circling and chanting. "Camp, camp, camp."

"I want to camp out," Megan shouted. "Can girls camp with you?"

The boys stopped circling and lined up to stare at her. "No! This campout is for Indian Guides only," George said.

What George didn't say was...the first real Indian Guide camp-out wasn't scheduled for two more weeks. But the boys couldn't wait! So they'd begged until their dads agreed to camp out just for fun.

"Guides is a father-son club that has meetings to learn about Indians."

"I know about Indians," Megan replied, turning up her nose. "They were the first people in America. That's why they're called Native Americans."

"We know a lot more stuff than you do," George said, getting down in her face. "Mr. White who lives at the end of Greenwillow is our leader. His grandfather was White Buck, a real Cherokee Indian."

"Besides, this campout is for males," Alex said, flexing his muscles. "Men and boys. Not girls."

"Huh! I could camp out good as you any day. And I could be an Indian Guide if I wanted. My mom said girls can be anything." Megan leaned her blonde head toward the boys and patted it. "All I need is a feathered hat."

"Headdress!" Max Bailey put his hands on his hips, and the other boys laughed.

Max was a little-little and wasn't old enough to be an Indian Guide. But he was going on the camp-out with the big-little kids. He'd had three heart surgeries and the scar on his chest to prove it. So the big-littles said that made him big and brave enough to be one of them.

"I want to play." George's little sister, Tabitha, came running out of the house next door to the Bailey's. Like Megan, she was six. So was Iggy. Alex and Jeffie were seven. George was eight. "What are you playing?" Tabitha demanded, looking from one boy to the other. "Why are you wearing feathers?"

"Those are headdresses, and the meanies are Indian Guides," Megan said, sticking out her lower lip.

"They're also smart alecks because they're going to sleep out and we can't."

"Why not?" Tabitha turned to her brother George.

"You're not a boy, and you don't belong to our club."

"I'm going to tell Mommy you won't let me camp," Tabitha warned.

"Go ahead, little baby." George started to whoop and dance around her.

"Stop it," Tabitha screamed. She and Megan started hitting him.

He laughed and they stopped.

"Mean boy," Megan said. "Your brother is mean, Tabitha."

"Let's get out of here. I want some cold pop to drink," George said, yawning.

"We can get some at our house." Alex led the way up the Bailey's walk. Max, Iggy, and George snaked along behind them, chanting, "Pop, pop, pop."

Rolling their eyes, Megan and Tabitha followed quietly.

Mrs. Bailey sat them all down at the kitchen table and gave them Dixie Cups of juice. "Jice is better than pop and a little will do. Your dads will soon be home for dinner. Then the boys will eat and drink at their camp out."

Megan stuck out her lower lip. "I wish the girls could camp."

"Tonight is for boys and dads," Mrs. Bailey said, patting her hand. "The girls can have an adventure another time."

"My dad wishes we'd have our adventure another night," George said. "He wants to watch the Cardinals play baseball on TV."

Iggy nodded. "Mine wishes we weren't camping on a play-off night. He wanted to rent a portable TV but my mom said no. We're supposed to be roughing it."

"I wish we were camping in a real woods. Not the one behind our house, but a big one with animals," Alex said.

Alex and Max lived at the top of the hill, on the curve where Greenwillow went around and started back again. George lived on one side of them, Jeffie, on the other. Their three backyards led downhill to the small woods where they'd camp.

"We have animals," Max said. "Squirrels and rabbits. And mipchunks."

"Chipmunks," Alex corrected him, grinning. "I mean wild, scary things."

Mrs. Bailey chuckled. "Don't worry, Alex. Our woods will seem big and real enough when it's dark. Maybe even scary."

Jeffie gulped. His eyes looked big behind his dark-rimmed glasses. "I wouldn't like a woods with bears and stuff."

"I would!" Alex boasted. "I'd like a scary woods." He made his voice shivery on the word 'scary' and Jeffie shivered too. "I want a real adventure!"

***