On Monday morning, Remy was making his way through the hallway. He was looking at a book he had borrowed from the school library.

Without warning, he tripped over something.

"Ow!" he heard someone cry out.

Remy looked down to see an octopus carrying a folder. It wore a tie and toupee on its head.

"Be careful," it said. "And pay attention to where you are going. You stepped on one of my tentacles."

Remy was surprised. He had never seen an octopus in his school before. Even outside the ocean.

"Sorry," he said. "I guess I didn't see you there."

"Well, don't worry," said the octopus. "It's not the first time it's happened. If you want to read, don't do it while walking in the hallway. I trust you'll be more careful in the future?"

Remy nodded. "Yes, sir. I sure will."

"Alright, much appreciated. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to my tank before I shrivel up."


Remy and his class learned that their teacher, Mrs. Muskrat, was out sick with the flu. So a substitute teacher was called in.

When the bell rang, the class took to their seats. The door opened and the substitute stepped in.

It was the octopus that Remy had encountered in the hallway, which only added to his astonishment.

The class murmured in awe as he stood before them.

"Alright, alright, settle down." the octopus announced. "How is everyone doing? Good."

He picked up a red marker and wrote his name on the board.

"My name is Mr. Pearlstrom, and I will be filling in for your teacher for today."

He handed out sheets of paper and placed it on the desks at the front.

"Before we get started on our English, does anybody have any questions they would like to ask?"

Nearly everyone raised their hands. Even Remy had a few questions himself. He could tell it was going to be an interesting day.