Peter asked for, and received, permission from his parents to go swimming in the pool (apparently one in their backyard). While he's swimming, his parents bring the family fish tank outside and place it near the edge of the pool so Peter could watch them as he swims. Two of the fish lep from the tank and into the pool. Peter dives underwater to retrieve them. Upon resurfacing, he discovers that the one remaining fish is missing from the tank and has obviously been stolen
[This is as far as he had written. Thinking the story was almost over, I asked him how it ends.].
Peter then searches all the houses on his block for his fish, but is unsuccessful. When he returns home defeated, he discovers that the other two fish have also been stolen. He calls the police, who respond and investigate the fishnapping. They leave without discovering anything.
That night Peter sees a robber stealing fish from his neighbor's house. He knew it was a robber because of the robber mask he was wearing. Peter follows the robber to a house around the corner and then calls the police again. The police arrive in full force, prepared to charge the house. Unfortunately, the robber had barricaded the door. Also, the house was made of concrete so they couldn't use a drill to break through a wall. They tried to use another tool, but the house was brick inside the concret and that too failed.
Having failed, the police left again. Peter commandeers a jackhammer from somewhere and drills under the house and busts in from the basement. He spots the robber getting prepared to kill the fish.
......................
That's where I stopped him, it dawning on me that maybe he's making it up as he goes and doesn't really have and endgame planned. I struggle to explain to him why this isn't realistic fiction, but it's difficult. Nothing in that story is physically impossible. Unlikely characters and motivations, sure, but far from fantasy. Eventually I had to ask him about the robbers mptives.
"Why," I asked, "was the robber stealing fish?"
"Because he's hungry" he answered matter of factly.
"But if he's breaking into houses, why didn't he steal food from the fridge?"
"Because he liked fish."
"So why didn't he just steal money so he could buy fish from the grocery store?"
"Because he wanted them as pets, too."
Fair enough, I guess?
