The Third Movement

by Neil Patrick Harris

  “At least she’s with her mom,” said Carter. “If she’s feeling sick—”

  “Ridley never calls her mom when she feels sick,” Theo said, cutting Carter off. “She thinks it is better to tough it out.” He faced the twins. “Please tell us what you heard in the auditorium!”

  “We could,” said Olly, “but then we’d have to kill you.”

  “Lay off the jokes,” said Carter. “Can’t you see he’s upset?”

  Izzy tugged on her brother’s elbow. “Come on, Olly. We have to go feed the mice.”

  “Yeah, I think the Magic Misfits should take the rest of the day off, especially after what you said about the Golden family,” Olly said. And with that, the twins gave an angry pirouette and disappeared through the resort’s revolving door.

  Theo flinched. “Wait, we said what about the Golden family?”

  “I’m confused,” said Leila.

  “Someone wants us to be,” Carter answered. He pulled out a deck of cards and began to shuffle them, as if that might help him sort out a problem in his head.

  Theo felt for the magic bow that was folded inside his pant leg. He wished he could levitate himself and fly away from here.

  Leila led the boys back inside, and Theo asked to use the phone at the concierge desk. Enough time had passed for him to call Ridley at home.

  Eventually, someone answered. “Yes?”

  “Hello, Mrs. Larsen,” said Theo. “May I please speak with Ridley?”

  “Theo,” she said. “I don’t know if it’s a good idea right now.”

  Ridley’s words from the auditorium hummed in his memory. His performances have suffered. Those stupid birds. And then the twins saying that they had heard him bad-mouthing them!

  Anger flashed, but Theo tamped it down. “It is a matter of great importance,” he managed. “Please.”

  Seconds later, Ridley’s voice came through the phone. “What do you want?”

  “I want to find out what is going on with you,” he said, forcing the tremble out of his voice. “The twins told us that you were upset about something you heard us say.”

  “So, you’re calling to apologize.”

  “Apologize for what?”

  “Theo,” Ridley growled, sounding like she might transform into a tigress. “You know what.”

  “I really do not.”

  “I heard you!” she exploded. “You told Carter my tricks are boring compared to the rest of the Misfits! Olly, Izzy, and I heard it all through the vents in the auditorium!”

  Theo was speechless. She was not making sense. He turned to find Carter and Leila behind him, looking concerned. He shook his head.

  “I do not know who you heard through the vents, but it was not any of us.”

  Ridley paused. “What do you mean?”

  “I promise you I never said such a thing to Carter. Or to anyone.”

  “I heard you!”

  “You heard someone,” he whispered. “But it was not me.”

  Ridley was quiet for some time. Then she said, “Fine.”

  “Do you believe me?” he asked.

  “I mean… I have to, don’t I? You’re my best friend.”

  “We heard something in the auditorium too,” he said. “Carter, Leila, and I heard you and the twins saying that my doves are stupid. That none of us should perform the finale during the talent show. But that you should.”

  Ridley scoffed. “I never said that! And neither did the twins.”

  “I am glad,” Theo said, relieved that Ridley seemed to be calming down. “But this means someone wants us to think that we have been criticizing one another.”

  Ridley gasped. “Mr. Whispers.”

  “You think that the ventriloquist—”

  “Wants us to fight with each other? Yes. I think exactly that.”

  “Can ventriloquists do that?” Theo asked, glancing at Carter and Leila. They looked like they were beginning to understand. “Sound like other people, I mean. I thought they only sat on stage with dummies and talked through their teeth.”

  “Ventriloquists can throw their voices,” Carter said grimly. “Like in the hallway with Dean—making his voice sound like it was coming from underneath the serving dome.”

  “And if he can do that,” said Leila, “with enough practice, he can probably also imitate anyone he likes.”

  “Then this is Wendel Whispers’s plan,” Ridley spoke up. Theo held out the phone so the others could hear. “He knew we were there. And he made us hear things that would upset us.”

  “But why?” asked Leila. “What would he get out of being mean?”

  “The important thing is,” Carter said, “we’re onto him.”

  Ridley answered from the receiver. “We’re onto him, sure,” she said. “But right now he knows more about us than we know about him. And we need to stop that plan in its tracks. I say we start collecting as many of those dolls from around town as we can. That way there’s no more listening in on us.”

  “And no more listening in on the rest of the town,” said Leila. The others nodded in agreement.

  Ridley sighed. “Ugh, I’m sorry I left you guys there.”

  “Maybe that was his plan,” said Carter. “To split us apart. It worked.”

  A chill surged through Theo’s veins. “We have to remember what Mr. Vernon said to us at the train station.” One day, something will fall inevitably out of place. Do not be caught unaware. Think things through. And try to keep control away from those who would wrest it from you.

  “It was good advice,” said Carter.

  “It always is,” Leila agreed.

  “I feel really bad,” Ridley peeped. “Should I come back to the resort?”

  “Yes, let’s start tracking down the Darling Daniel dolls,” said Leila. “We’ve already found another one in the theater lobby. Let’s do some snooping around the resort.”

  “You can if you like, but I… I should get home,” said Theo. “I need to practice my violin.” He was not sure this was even true. What he did know was that after a morning with so much fighting and anger, he needed a break.

  “But what about the dolls?” Leila asked. Carter crossed his arms, looking worried. Ridley was silent.

  “The way today is going, I am sure to pass some on my way home.”

  ELEVEN

  It was the first time Theo had ever ventured out from the resort by himself.

  The long road was steep and winding, and every sharp turn made him realize how disorienting it felt without his friends to keep him company. Home seemed so far away. He could not shake the idea that there was some truth to what he had heard while hiding over the stage.

  Were his friends doubting his talent?

  Should he doubt as well?

  Then he wondered: Was all this even important anymore? After Ridley’s discovery of the transmitter, maybe questions about talent needed to take a back seat.

  With the summer sun beating down on his shoulders, Theo found himself craving the lemonade Emily had offered to the group yesterday. Usually his tuxedos made him feel as though he was important, and his jackets and slacks were necessary because they contained many hiding places for his magical supplies. But was all that worth his current discomfort?

  He slipped out of his jacket and slung it over his shoulder. For the first time, Theo wondered if he should consider a different sort of outfit.

  He soon came upon someone walking in front of him in the road. Someone with long blond hair. Someone dressed in a black cotton shirt, capri pants, and ballet flats.

  “Emily?” he called out, and the girl turned around.

  “Theo!” She waved. “I was just thinking about you.”

  Theo made his way down the hill to where she was waiting for him. “I was thinking about you too! How odd.”

  Emily’s cheeks turned red. “I mean, I was thinking about all of you. The Magic Misfits.”

  Now it was Theo’s turn to be embarrassed. “Well, I was thinking of your lemonade from yeste
rday,” he added, as if that might correct his mistake.

  “Come to the music shop. We still have a great big jar in the icebox.”

  Theo considered it, but was too exhausted from the events of the day. “Thank you, but I have to get home. Another time?”

  Emily shrugged. “Sure thing.”

  “Were you just up at the resort?” he asked.

  Emily shook her head. “I was walking that way to see if I could find you all, but then…” She pointed at her feet. “I realized I wasn’t wearing the right shoes for this hike. So I turned back. I forgot how steep it is.”

  Theo wiped sweat from his forehead, nodding in agreement. They continued onward toward the town.

  “I lied just now,” Emily added a moment later. “I’m sorry. It wasn’t my shoes that made me turn back. I… got worried that Ridley would yell at me if I showed up.”

  “That is understandable,” Theo said with a nod. “She can be blunt.”

  “How did everything go this morning? Did you get some good spying in?” she asked with a wry grin.

  “We did some spying. Though I doubt anyone would have called it good.”

  Emily chuckled. “Oh, you’re too hard on yourself. I’m sure—”

  “No, really,” Theo interrupted. “It was bad.” He did not feel like he should explain why. Ridley’s discovery of the transmitter was a secret at the moment.

  “No one ever said being a sneak was easy,” she answered.

  Theo laughed. “Do you think we are being creepy? Sneaking around? Tracking a man and his dummy?”

  “Well, when you put it like that…” She chuckled. “I guess I don’t know what to think. With the rumors about the Magic Misfits floating around Mineral Wells all summer, who knows what to believe?”

  Theo laughed again, but now he felt rather uncomfortable. “What kinds of rumors?”

  As the two strolled, Emily told Theo the stories of the Magic Misfits that she had overheard from customers in the music shop. As she spoke, he added a few corrections, filled in gaps, and made her promise not to tell anyone else. Emily looked enraptured, as if she could not believe that adventures such as these were possible in their sleepy small town.

  “That’s amazing,” she concluded. “You guys are practically superheroes!”

  Theo’s skin tingled. “Superheroes?” he echoed. “Hardly.” His flying dreams blinked into his head. Emily had just nailed one of his greatest wishes right on the noggin.

  His muscles twitched as he considered what it meant when you wanted to hold someone’s hand. The feeling made him want to learn how to tap-dance like the Golden twins. But he would not dare do so in front of Emily.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to come to the music shop?” she asked. “I bet my dad would be happy to see you again. Sometimes I think he stays cooped up in that place a little too much.”

  “My siblings are only in town for a little while longer before they scatter back to their lives all around the world. I should spend at least some time with them.”

  “All around the world?” she echoed. “What do they do?”

  “They are musicians. Like me. Only they are professionals. My oldest brother, Leo, says I need to stop playing around with magic and focus on my violin.”

  “My mother can be similar,” Emily went on. “She’s always on me about my grades, even though I never get anything lower than a B. Living up to other people’s expectations is exhausting.”

  “Agreed.”

  For some reason, the faces of his friends popped into Theo’s mind. Then he realized that their expectations of him were sometimes exhausting too.

  Emily smiled and said, “Will you show me how you levitate things?”

  “A magician never reveals his secrets,” Theo answered, removing the magic bow from the pocket of his pants. “But a magician also never turns down a request to perform.” He ran ahead of her, then turned back. “Stay right there,” he said. She paused in the middle of the road.

  He angled his body toward her in just the right position, then raised his bow over his head. “This is taxing. I might need you to catch me.”

  “Catch you?” Emily answered worriedly.

  Theo began to mutter some magical words to himself. “Sim… sala… bim!” And with that, he appeared to rise up several inches from the gravel road and hover there. Emily shrieked as he managed to bring his heels back down to earth. Theo bowed deeply.

  “That was freaky!” she proclaimed. “What the heck were those words you said?”

  “Sim sala bim?” Theo mentioned. “Oh, it’s just something that Mr. Vernon is always reciting. The words must have some mystical powers, because they almost always work.” He grinned, slipping the bow back into his pocket.

  “Maybe if I say them to my mom, she’ll stop fighting with my dad all the time.”

  “I thought you said that they were not—”

  “Oh, they’re still married,” Emily answered quickly. “But Mom decided to take a job up north a few years ago to help support the music shop. I’m supposed to split my time between them. Summers with Dad. School with Mom up north. It’s weird.”

  Theo suddenly felt bad for complaining about his own family, who were all still very much together. “I am sorry.”

  “I’m used to it at this point. I don’t let it get me down.”

  “Good!” said Theo. “And if you ever do feel down, just let me know, and I shall levitate you back up again!”

  Emily smiled. She took his hand. It happened so fast that he almost yanked it away. “Thanks, Theo.”

  Her palm was warm against his own. He had to force himself to keep breathing. “You’re—” His voice was gritty, so he cleared his throat. “You’re welcome.”

  Once they reached the town green, they said good-bye and parted ways. Theo turned the corner onto his street and realized that he felt like he was floating.

  And this time, no sim sala bim was required.

  When Theo reached the stone path in front of his home, he heard music echoing from the backyard—a melody as buoyant as a rainbow. Curious, he walked around to find his siblings gathered on the patio with their parents. They were each playing an instrument, creating a jazzy tune that twisted like starlings in an evening sky.

  Theo smiled and took out his violin. As he pulled the bow against the strings, his sister Fiona trilled her voice with happiness, welcoming him. His other siblings’ instruments grew quieter, wordlessly pushing Theo to take the lead.

  He closed his eyes as the music rose and fell, almost as if he and his siblings were playing a game together. Theo would slow the tempo and the others would follow, only for him to change the melody on them. They played and played, getting louder and faster until the family burst into a frenzied finale, followed by a long silence.

  Theo opened his eyes to the sudden sound of clapping.

  “Wonderful,” said his mother. “Just wonderful.”

  “You all make us very proud,” added his father.

  “Say,” said Leo. “Has anyone else heard about the Mineral Wells Talent Show?”

  “I’ve seen some signs,” Cleo piped up.

  “We should go,” Gio suggested.

  “Not only go!” said Fiona. “We should play in it.”

  “We would win,” said Leo. “Not to toot our own horns, but there’s more talent in this family than in all of Mineral Wells combined.”

  Theo’s smile disappeared. “The Magic Misfits are competing,” he said quietly. “We have been practicing for a while now.”

  He saw a look pass between his parents.

  “But, Theo, you’re so good,” said Cleo.

  “We’re all so good, especially together,” added Gio.

  “If you don’t realize that music is your calling, I don’t know what to tell you,” Leo chimed in.

  Theo wanted to say that they were wrong, that magic was as much his calling as music. He thought briefly of levitating himself, if only to see the looks of amazement on their faces.
But he knew he would just as likely see boredom and disappointment.

  “Come on, Theo, help us win the talent show!” Fiona cajoled him.

  “Let me think about it,” he answered, surprising everyone—most of all himself.

  TWELVE

  The next day, Theo’s brothers and sisters asked him to join them on a hike around one of the lakes at the base of the cliffs. Afterward, they went swimming and ate a picnic lunch, and in the afternoon they raced across the water in two separate canoes, Theo’s team winning by no more than the length of his violin bow.

  These outings continued all week, and Theo invited Emily Meridian to join the family on one of their treks. He wanted to ask to hold her hand again, but the looks his brothers and sisters were giving him and Emily were embarrassing enough. Still, it felt good to have Emily as part of their group. She was easygoing and friendly.

  She also reported that more and more of the Darling Daniel dolls advertising Wendel Whispers’s show were appearing around town, and if you found one, it felt like you had won a prize. People were placing them in windowsills and in the rear windshields of their cars. Children clung to them from atop their parents’ shoulders. The dolls were everywhere, watching the town from high in tree branches and from low behind bushes.

  It was downright creepy, and Theo knew the time had come to reconvene with the Magic Misfits. Almost a week after he had last seen his friends, he arrived at the Golden family’s suite to find a stack of Darling Daniel dolls piled in a corner of the mirrored living room.

  “You have been busy,” Theo stated. The others looked up at him in surprise. He had missed several practice sessions for the talent show.…

  “We have been extremely busy,” Ridley answered. “Carter and Leila found several dolls just outside the magic shop. Olly and Izzy located a bunch in the palm pots in the lounge, and a couple underneath the tables in the dining room. I gathered a few from the grocery store, and last night, I cracked open their heads and found a radio transmitter in each.”

  “Listen to this, Theo,” said Olly. He lifted two dolls from the pile and pulled their strings. One of them said, “You will not believe your eyes and ears.” The other said, “No time like now to get your tickets.”