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Chapter 11 continued...

"I have an idea," said XL, "I will help you with your homework and you will be able to get it done faster."

"You can't do it for me," said Beeba. "I need to learn how to do it."

"Absolutely!" said XL. "It is a proven fact that a person can learn faster with a tutor. It's faster than with a classroom teacher, and it's faster than learning from a book. Let me be your tutor. Anytime you get stuck, I'll explain to you exactly what to do."

"So you think we'll have enough time after we swim?"

"I guarantee it!" replied XL.

"We're here!" chimed in XL's dad, as Saucer 1 came to a stop.

"Then let's go!" exclaimed Beeba, grabbing a bag with his swimsuit and towel inside.

Saucer 1 was parked over a street in front of the spa. The spa building was located in a small village beside a lake. It was just across the street from a beach, except now the beach was covered with snow. The spa had two buildings joined together: one for the spa's indoor pool, and the other for a hotel.

Max set Saucer 1's controls to hold its position, and the three of them went down in the elevator. They went inside to the front desk, where Max paid their entry fee. They entered the change room, and five minutes later they walked into the pool area in their bathing suits.

The pool was divided into two sections. The closest section was laid out kind of like a maze. Immediately in front of them the water was very shallow, starting only a few centimeters deep. Entering the water there, they followed a path about 2 meters wide that gradually got to about waist deep. This then divided into two other paths, each wider than before, with underwater ledges on each side for sitting on. The water was nice and warm, so it was very comfortable as they walked into the water. It was saturated with minerals, especially salt, and it had a gold-coloured tinge to it.

Just beyond this pool there was a deeper pool, in a more traditional rectangular shape. "There's my little sister!" exclaimed Beeba, as he saw her in that pool, next to Anna, who was in the water with her. Sophie was only 5 years old, so it was good that Anna was taking care of her.

Sophie waved at Beeba and began swimming toward him.

"I didn't know your sister was such a good swimmer," said XL.

"She isn't," replied Beeba. "Let's go into the deep pool and you will understand."

XL and Beeba climbed out of the water, leaving Max behind. They crossed a short deck and entered the deep pool by a ladder at one end. Initially the water was only a little deeper than the other pool, but as they walked away from the edge the water depth soon exceeded their height. They weren't worried because they were both good swimmers. Moreover, as XL quickly demonstrated, real swimming wasn't necessary.

"Look at this!" said XL. He was standing in the water. His head was out of the water, and he was holding each of his hands out of the water too, completely still. "I'm not moving my feet either," he said. "I'm just floating, standing up straight."

"Me too!" Beeba exclaimed. Then Beeba leaned back, kicked his feet underwater a few times, and ended up lying face up, with his body just below the surface. He was lying flat out, with his face out of the water at one end, and his toes sticking out of the water at the other.

Just then there was a splash of water over Beeba, coming from the direction of his little sister, Sophie, who laughed. "Hi Beeba," she said. "Welcome!"

Beeba had water on his face, and he was about to rub his eyes when XL warned him to stop. "You don't want to get salt water in your eyes," he cautioned, "because it will sting. Put on your goggles."

Both boys already had goggles strapped on loosely on their heads; they pulled the lenses down over their eyes. Beeba turned to Sophie. "You really shouldn't splash, Sophie," he said. "You might bother someone."

"But look, Beeba, nobody else is in the deep end right now." She was right. There were a few kids floating at the shallow end, but at that moment most people were in the shallow pool near the entrance. It had warmer water, and many of the adults were relaxing there.

"I'll bet you can't swim to the bottom!" Sophie taunted her brother.

"I sure can!" said Beeba. "According to the sign, it's only 3 meters deep." He had swam that deep before, so he thought it would be no problem. With a swish of his arms and a few kicks of his feet, he dove under that water in an attempt to go to the bottom.

A moment later he was back at the surface. "I can't do it," he said. "The water just keeps pulling me back up."

"I'll show you how it's done," said XL. "Stand clear!" He swam to the end of the pool where there was a small diving board mounted on the deck. He got out of the water and hopped on the board. A moment later he was diving head-first into the water, with his arms outstretched in front of him.

Two seconds later, his head popped out of the water. "I did it!" he exclaimed.

Meanwhile, Sophie had swum to the edge, where she had fetched a beach ball. "Play with me!" she said to Beeba.

"OK," said Beeba.

"I'll play too," said XL and Anna simultaneously.

The four of them played catch with the ball for a while. It was very pleasant. Sunlight streamed in through large windows on the west end of the building, which was adjacent to the deepest end of the pool. Inside it was like being in the tropics; outside it was snowy like the North Pole.

After playing catch for a while, they switched to playing "keep away." One of them would float in between the others while the others passed the ball back and forth to each other. The one in the middle would try to snatch it away from the others. When the ball was successfully intercepted, the person who threw it would take their turn in the middle.

After a while, Max joined them. "Where's mom?" asked XL.

"Guess," answered Max.

XL looked around and found his mom lying on a lounge chair not far from the windows, reading a book. Larissa loved to swim, but only for a while. What she loved more was relaxing.

After a while the light coming in from the windows began to take on a reddish tinge, as the sun began to set. It was time to depart.

They each went to the change rooms (separate for males and females, of course), and they met back in the entry to the spa. There was a snack bar nearby that served hamburgers and hotdogs. Larissa placed an order, and soon they were all at a table eating supper.

"XL, did you discover anything about Fred at Blarney Island?" asked Anna.

"Yes," answered XL. "He used to live there, but it looks like he moved away. His yard has a play set for small children. Apparently he has a family."

Beeba joined in the conversation: "At the post office, the clerk said Fred had moved to a place with sea lions, so he could fix submarines, but that it was far from the sea."

"It makes no sense," added XL.

"Maybe it does," said Anna. "I know a place where there is a huge indoor water-park, complete with waves big enough to surf on, and a beach. In the same complex there are sea lions, and also a lake with an old sailing ship. At one time, it used to have submarines too. You should know. We've both been there."

"The West Edmonton Mall!" exclaimed XL. "I should have thought of that before!"

They finished their meal, and soon all six of them were back in Saucer 1, returning home. XL was thinking about Fred. They were one step closer to finding him, but it would take a while longer.

It was pretty flying over the country side with the sunset fading on the horizon. But XL didn't have time to enjoy the sight. True to his word, he was sitting with Beeba, each of them seated by a fold-up table looking at the math questions. The table had a lamp mounted on it, just bright enough to cast light on the surface. Saucer 1 flew smoothly and quietly through the air, and it was no problem for Beeba to concentrate on his work.

By the time their home town was in view, Beeba had finished. And XL also got an unexpected benefit. As a result of helping Beeba with a particularly difficult question, XL realized that he had done it wrong when he did his own homework. He would fix that tomorrow, and no doubt that would bring his assignment grade up to 100%.

"Thanks very much, XL," said Beeba as he finished. "In return, I'll help you on the subjects I'm best at."

"That seems like a very good bargain," answered XL. "After all, there is no rule against doing homework together. We'll both learn more by helping each other when we need it."

Soon Saucer 1 parked over Beeba's house. XL accompanied Beeba and Sophie in the elevator, and said goodbye to them as they entered their home. Then he went back up to Saucer 1, to return home with his own family.

Copyright Arthur de Leyssac, 2017. All rights reserved.