19. Who Is Wedgie Magee

CHAPTER 19 WHO IS WEDGIE MAGEE? George and Harold stopped by the thrift store on their way home to buy a bunch of supplies for Tuesday. The checkout lady gave them a very strange look as they walked up to the cash register. "What are all these dresses for?" asked the lady. "They're for school," said Harold. "Oh," said the lady.

When they got home, the two boys sat in George's bedroom and counted Kipper's stolen money. It totaled $916.00. "I feel like Robin Hood!" said George. "What should we do with all this dough?" "I think we should use it to buy lunches for all the kindergartners!" said Harold. "That's what it was supposed to be used for in the first place!" George agreed. He picked up the phone and called the Piqua Pizza Palace. "Can you guys deliver pizzas to the elementary school around noon tomorrow?" he said. "Really? Awesome! We'll take five large cheese pizzas, five large pepperoni, and five large black olive and pineapple." George discussed the details and arranged to drop off the payment in the morning. "We're all set for lunch tomorrow," said George. "Cool!" said Harold.

The next morning on the way to school, George and Harold walked by the Piqua Pizza Palace. It wouldn't open until 11:00 A.M., but that didn't matter. George took out an envelope filled with money, coupons, instructions, and a tip for the delivery guy, and dropped it through the mail slot on the front door. George and Harold had a very busy day ahead of them. They got to school early and unlocked the door to their secret restroom stall. As the two boys unloaded their supplies and arranged their stilts, they heard the sounds of the other students beginning to arrive. Today sounded just like any other day, but things at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School were starting to change.

Kipper stood by the entrance of the school like normal, but he wasn't just stealing money from the kindergartners like he usually did. Today he also wanted information. He seemed a little anxious, and shaky—like he hadn't gotten a lot of sleep the night before. Kipper's three buddies (who usually stuck close to his side) were keeping their distance from him. Loogie, Bugg, and Finkstein all watched Kipper with worried looks on their faces. Kipper grabbed every kid who came toward the door and asked them all the same question: "Who is Wedgie Magee?"

Nobody outside the school had ever heard of Wedgie Magee. But inside the school, George and Harold were busy spreading rumors about this mysterious stranger. "Did you hear about Wedgie Magee?" George asked Harold loudly near a group of gossipy girls. "Yeah!" said Harold, even louder. "I heard Wedgie Magee is a GHOST!" "Me, too!" said George. "I heard Wedgie Magee haunts the hallways of this very school, looking for REVENGE!"

"Revenge against who?" asked Harold intensely. "Against Kipper Krupp!" cried George in a booming whisper. The gossipy girls listened closely as George continued. "I heard that Kipper Krupp got CURSED by the ghost of Wedgie Magee!" "Heavens, no!" cried Harold. "What for?" "For being mean to kindergartners!" said George. "Wedgie Magee is the patron ghost of kindergartners!" "I did not know that," said Harold. "Oh, poor Kipper! Poor, poor Kipper!"