7 Magician’s Assistant

Chapter 7 Magician's Assistant magician's assistant (n) the person who helps the magician perform onstage; the assistant is a highly skilled performer who often executes the most difficult maneuvers of an illusion Usually Jessie loved school, especially on Mondays. She loved walking into the classroom first thing and finding the morning worksheet of math problems waiting for her on her desk. She loved talking to her teacher, Mrs. Overton, and hearing about what her cat, Langston, had done over the weekend. She loved reading and writing and science and social studies. Most of all, she loved taking quizzes, because she always got one hundred percent, and that was the best you could get. Jessie liked knowing she was the best at some things. It helped even out the other

things she wasn't so good at. But today she couldn't wait for the school day to end. The day had gotten off to a bad start. Her father hadn't gotten up early enough to make breakfast for them. In fact, he hadn't gotten up at all by the time they headed out the door. It's not that Jessie needed anyone to make her breakfast. She knew how to pour herself a bowl of cereal. She was allowed to put toast in the toaster. But her dad had bought these special bagels from a deli several towns away, almost in the city, and she had wanted one, cut in half and toasted with cream cheese. But Jessie wasn't allowed to cut a bagel by herself. Even Evan wasn't allowed to use the heavy, serrated bread knife. If her mom had been home, she would have had the bagel ready for Jessie by the time she came downstairs dressed and with her hair combed. Then her mom would have helped her with her ponytail. Instead, she'd gone to school with several weird bumps in her hair. Jessie also wanted the day to end because she

wanted to get home and work on the latest edition of The 4-O Forum. She thought the front-page story about the magic show would drum up business for ticket sales. Plus there was going to be a special section on the weather, including an article on how to prepare for a storm emergency. Jessie always included the month's weather statistics in The 4-O Forum. She loved collecting the data from the school weather station. At the beginning of the year, the fourth-graders used to fight about who got to climb out onto the flat roof of the gym and write down the data from the thermometer, barometer, weathervane, anemometer, and rain gauge that were mounted there. But now that the school year was almost over, she and David Kirkorian were the only two who still vied for the privilege.

Mrs. Overton had told them that the weather instruments were going to do some very strange things because of the tropical storm forming over the Bahamas and that they should all "keep a weather eye out." Already the air was hot and sticky, and there was no wind at all. It was as if the air had been sucked out of the atmosphere, and everything was heavy and still. Mostly Jessie wanted the day to end because she wanted to ask Evan if he would let her be in the

magic show. Yesterday she'd told him that she wanted to be his assistant, and he had said, "We'll see." So today she wanted to see. "I'm home!" she shouted as she came in through the front door. Nobody answered. Usually her mom was in the kitchen, waiting for her to walk in the door. But of course, her mom wouldn't be there today. She was in San Francisco and wouldn't get back until Saturday at noon. Today was only Monday. That meant five more days. Jessie checked the kitchen counter for a note. No note. Evan, she knew, was helping his friend Ryan carry home his social studies project: a Lego recreation of an Abenaki village in 1700. It took two people to carry the thing or all the wigwams would slide off the edge of the foam core. Jessie turned on the kitchen computer, then pulled a black-cherry Jell-O cup out of the refrigerator. She'd had an idea in school that day about how she could convince Evan to let her be his magician's assistant for the show. She sat down at the computer

and typed her question into Google: How do I catch a rabbit? Jessie didn't really like animals. She didn't like the way they smelled, or that they peed and pooped unexpectedly, or the way they would sometimes growl or hiss even if you were trying to be nice. When she saw a dog walking down the street, she crossed to the other side. When she was at the house of someone who had a cat, she kept her arms crossed and her hands tucked under her armpits, safe and out of the way. And horses? Jessie wouldn't get within twenty feet of a horse. One kick and you'd be in the hospital with a broken cranium. But Evan needed a rabbit, and Jessie wanted to be in his show. Maybe they could work something out. The front door groaned open and Evan walked into the kitchen, slinging his backpack to the floor in the front hallway. "Mom says put it away," said Jessie. "Mom's not here," growled Evan. "Still, you should," said Jessie. She wouldn't tattle