2 Musical mix-up

Chapter 2 Musical mix-up Not long ago, Rosa had watched the Olympics on TV. Now she was here, in ancient Greece, where the Olympic Games had begun! It was hot in the sun, so Rosa was glad her long hair was tucked under a wide-brimmed floppy hat. She realized

lots of the spectators were wearing similar hats—through strangely, they were all men and boys. She couldn't see any women or girls at all. Tempo liked the hat, too. She perched on Rosa's shoulder, in the shade of the brim. "Kingsley, I think I should pretend I'm a boy," Rosa said. "The History Hub dressed me like one, and it always gets that kind of thing right." He nodded. "There will be a reason."

"Koo!" said Tempo, bobbing her head. "See? She agrees," said Kingsley. Rosa laughed, and looked around. "No sign of DeLay," she said. "Let's join the spectators and see if we can spot any clues about where he might be." They threaded through the crowd of men and boys, and sat down in a space on one of the grassy steps, looking down at the track. Tempo tucked herself into Rosa's bag, next to the olive oil. In the center of the stadium, a parade of important-looking people dressed in colorful robes were making their way to a large, shallow bowl, which contained burning logs. Rosa gasped. She nudged Kingsley and pointed to it.

"The Olympic flame! We still have one today, as a link to the ancient Games," she whispered. "It's amazing seeing one of the originals!" A large group of men and boys was standing near the fire bowl. They weren't wearing many clothes—most just wore short skirts, a bit like kilts, and many were barefoot. Rosa guessed that they were athletes.

Kingsley nodded. "They're nothing like modern competitors, are they?" he said. "No tracksuits or sneakers." "Let's begin, priest," called a tall man with a curly beard, who was standing beside the fire bowl. The priest stepped forward, his long, yellow robe swirling around him. The crowd stopped chattering, and leaned forward to listen. "In the name of the great god, Zeus," the priest announced, "let this new day of the 93rd Olympic Games begin. Athletes, remember the oath you swore before Zeus, that you will compete with honor."

"He must mean, no cheating," whispered Kingsley. The priest continued. "Remember the ekecheiria—the sacred Olympic truce. You are from different city-states, and some of you are at war with each other. There must be no fighting for the three months of the truce, so all may travel safely to and from the Games." There was some grumbling in the crowd. Rosa noticed two men beside the fire bowl glaring at each other. "I bet they're from warring states," she said to Kingsley.