Anna, Banana, and the Magic Show Mix-Up

by Anica Mrose Rissi

  I picked up the plastic bucket and tilted it toward Banana. “This top hat is completely empty too,” I said. I tossed the bucket into the air to prove how empty it was. It slipped through my hands on the way back down and landed on its side.

  “Whoops. I guess I’ll need to practice that part, too,” I said. I threw it a few more times and focused on catching it perfectly. Banana thumped her tail against the carpet with each catch. Already I was getting better!

  I put the “hat” on the table. “This is the tricky part,” I said. Banana’s eyes opened wider. “I’m going to pick up the hat and wave it around again. As I pick it up, I’ll use my other hand to scoop up the rabbit pouch and put it inside the hat. The idea is to do it quickly and smoothly so nobody sees it happening.”

  I held the “hat” in my right hand, and used my left hand to lift the rabbit pouch and place it inside as I flipped the hat over. It felt a little clumsy. I did it again, watching my reflection in the mirror, and noticed the problem. I needed to lift the pouch right behind the hat if I didn’t want people to see it. I tried it again. And again. And again. And again.

  Banana watched closely every time. Finally, after so many practice-tries I’d lost count, I felt like I was getting the hang of it. I did it one more time, waved my wand in the air, said “Presto, Fluffybutt!” and pulled the rabbit out of the hat.

  Banana went up on her hind legs to see it. I tossed the toy across the room and she ran to catch it. She trotted back happily and dropped the rabbit back into the hat. I knew what she was saying: Again!

  Chapter Sixteen Poof!

  Banana and I practiced the trick a dozen more times, and I got better and better at it. Banana was the perfect audience. She always looked excited to see her bunny at the end. Each time I finished the trick, I tossed the toy across the room and she fetched it, brought it back, and dropped it into the hat. No matter how many times I did it, she always wanted to see the trick once more. We practiced and practiced until Dad called us downstairs to set the table for dinner.

  When I got to school the next morning, Isabel and Sadie were waiting for me. “I brought the hat!” Isabel called as I walked toward them on the playground. She pulled it out from behind her back and placed it on Sadie’s head. Sadie giggled.

  “I’m glad you finally got here. Isabel wouldn’t show me her trick until you did,” Sadie said. She took off the top hat and handed it to me. I tried it on and it slid down over my eyes. It was too big for me to wear, but it would be perfect for the bunny.

  “Show us!” I said.

  Isabel dug what she needed out of her backpack. She stood and showed us a quarter in the palm of her hand. “As you can see, I have here an ordinary quarter,” she said in a serious voice. Sadie and I looked at the coin and nodded.

  Isabel used a square of paper to cover the quarter in her open hand. “I will now make the quarter disappear,” she announced. She waved her other hand over the paper and said: “Disappear-o coin-o!”

  She lifted the paper off her hand. The coin was still there.

  My stomach sank, but Isabel didn’t look too disappointed. “Oh,” she said. “Sorry. Let me try that again.”

  She placed the paper back over the coin, waved her hand above it again, and said the silly magic words even more dramatically than last time: “Disappear-o coin-o!”

  She lifted the paper. The coin sparkled in the sunlight. Isabel’s shoulders dropped. “Whoops,” she said.

  Sadie and I glanced at each other. I wasn’t sure what to say.

  “It’s okay, Isabel. Maybe you can—” Sadie said, but Isabel shook her head and interrupted.

  “Let me try just one more time,” she said. She put the paper back on her palm and waved her other hand in the air. “Disappear-o coin-o! Poof!” she shouted. She squeezed her hand into a fist. When she opened her fingers, the paper was crumpled in a tiny ball, and there was no sign of the quarter.

  Sadie squeaked in surprise. “Where did it go?” she said.

  I looked down at the ground in case Isabel had dropped it. The coin wasn’t there.

  I looked at the crumpled paper in her hand. “Did you just crush the coin?” I asked. Isabel grinned and bobbed her head yes. “But how?” I asked.

  She straightened out the paper ball and showed us the shiny foil inside it. “The coin was fake. I made it by covering a quarter with a circle of tin foil and rubbing it on the top and edges to make an impression. When I took the foil off the coin, it looked like a real quarter,” she explained.

  Sadie still looked amazed. “So those first two tries where the trick didn’t work—you were just pretending?” she asked.

  “Yup!” Isabel said. “Like Anna said, magic is a performance. I figured pretending to mess up first would make it an even better show.”

  “It definitely added suspense,” I said.

  “And made it extra surprising,” Sadie agreed. “You really had us fooled.”

  “Speaking of fooling people… look,” I said. I pointed across the playground. Justin was performing his magic trick for some kids gathered near the merry-go-round. He held up a card I couldn’t see, but I could tell from the kids’ faces he had guessed it correctly. I could imagine how smug his face looked.

  I couldn’t wait for my trick to go better than his. That rabbit and I were going to steal the show.

  “One more day before we see his trick again,” Isabel said.

  Sadie nodded. “One more day, and we’ll figure out his secret for sure.”

  Chapter Seventeen So Many Secrets

  The school day passed quickly, and soon it was time to board the bus to Sadie’s house. Isabel and I gave the driver our permission slips and followed Sadie to the middle of the bus. It was Sadie and Isabel’s turn to sit together. Sitting three to a seat isn’t allowed, so I settled into the seat in front of them. I put the top hat in the empty spot beside me and opened my library book.

  “Is that the hat for Miss Fluffybutt?” Justin’s voice interrupted my reading. I looked up to see him peering over the seatback in front of me.

  I closed the magic book so he wouldn’t see what I was reading. “Yup,” I said.

  “Do you really know how to pull her out of an empty hat?” he asked.

  I grinned. “I do.”

  “Awesome. Will you teach me?” Justin’s face looked as hopeful as Banana’s when she sees me eating a taco.

  “Maybe,” I said. “Will you teach me to do your card trick?”

  Justin frowned. Before he could reply, the bus driver shouted, “Butts in seats! I need everyone facing forward before this bus can move.”

  Justin dropped out of sight. I didn’t think he would say yes to the trade, but with luck—and Sadie’s list—we might not need him to. I liked that he wanted to know my trick’s secret, too.

  Justin’s stop came before Sadie’s. He stood, gave me a quick wave, and said “See you tomorrow!” before bouncing off the bus. I looked out the window but didn’t see any sign of Miss Fluffybutt.

  When we got to Sadie’s house, we went straight to the kitchen. I like going over to Sadie’s dad’s place because he lets us drink soda and always has tasty snacks. We never get soda at my house.

  Sadie took three root beers out of the fridge and put a bag of popcorn in the microwave. When the popcorn was popped, we brought it up to Sadie’s room so we could share it while practicing our tricks.

  The afternoon flew by like a turbocharged magic carpet. We practiced over and over, until our tricks went perfectly every single time. Soon I barely even cared about seeing Justin’s trick again—I was too excited about everyone seeing mine.

  Before we knew it, Isabel’s grandmother had arrived to drive Isabel and me home. We climbed into Abuelita’s minivan and buckled our seat belts.

  As we pulled out of the driveway, I realized something. “Hey,” I said. “We never finished our story about the tiny dragon who couldn’t fly.”

  “Oh yeah! Where were we?” Isabel asked.

  �
�The dragon just told the unicorn her embarrassing secret. The unicorn replied with a secret of his own, but we don’t know what that is yet. It’s your turn to add a sentence,” I said.

  “Hmm.” Isabel tugged on her braid while she thought. “The unicorn told the dragon his secret, which was the secret to all magic: It only works if you believe,” she said.

  Abuelita smiled at us in the rearview mirror. I smiled back and added to the story. “The dragon closed her eyes and pictured herself flying across the mountain,” I said. “She thought, ‘I believe.’ ”

  “When she opened her eyes, she realized she was flying,” Isabel said.

  “She could have been scared but she wasn’t, because her best friend the unicorn flew beside her,” I said.

  Isabel grinned. “She’d discovered another secret: that friendship is magic, too. The end.”

  I couldn’t wait to tell Banana the whole story.

  Chapter Eighteen Meet Miss Fluffybutt

  The next morning, I woke up bright and early, too excited to sleep any longer. I leaned over the side of my bed and peeked at Banana. She was snoring softly in her doggy basket on the floor.

  “Banana,” I whispered. She opened one eye. “Today is the magic show!”

  Both her eyes opened wide, and her tail thumped against her pillow in the basket. This was the day we’d been waiting for!

  No one else in the house was awake yet. I brushed my teeth and put on my purple leggings and a black top with white glittery stars all over it. “How do I look?” I asked Banana. She twirled in a circle at my feet.

  Banana and I practiced my trick again. I’d done it ten more times after dinner last night, and I did it ten more times now. “I’ve practiced so many times, I could probably do this in my sleep,” I said.

  Banana wiggled her whole backside. “You’re right,” I said. “That would be pretty funny.”

  I pulled her squeaky bunny toy out of the hat and tossed it across the room. She ran to fetch it, put her paws up on the table, and dropped it back in the top hat.

  “The book says if you practice a trick enough times, your fingers memorize it. So even if your brain gets stage fright, your body will still know what to do. Just like magic!” I wasn’t worried about getting stage fright, though. I couldn’t wait to perform the trick for Mrs. Shirley with a real rabbit and make this her best birthday ever.

  After a breakfast of pancakes for me and kibble for Banana, we helped my parents set up for the potluck. Mom and Dad carried my desk downstairs and put it in the living room, where the magic show would be. I covered the front and sides of the desk with a long dark tablecloth. I tucked my wand, the top hat, and the cloth that would hold Miss Fluffybutt on the floor underneath. I also put Mrs. Shirley’s giraffe cards there, in case Sadie or Justin needed them.

  Chuck helped me move Dad’s favorite armchair to the perfect position for watching the show. It would be Mrs. Shirley’s seat of honor—her birthday throne!

  “I thought of another magic trick to add to the show,” Chuck said.

  “You learned a magic trick?” I asked.

  “Not yet, but I’m sure I can do it,” he said. From the mischievous look on his face, I knew a joke was coming. I narrowed my eyes and waited for the punch line. “I can saw you in half!” he said.

  I put my hands on my hips. “I’m the magician, so I’ll saw you in half.”

  Dad walked past us, carrying a giant bowl of stew. “That’s enough, you two,” he said.

  “What? It’s a classic magic show trick! I’m offering to help!” Chuck said.

  Dad rolled his eyes. “Why don’t you help by finding the ladle for this chili?” he suggested.

  Before Chuck could protest, the doorbell rang. Banana and I ran to open it. Sadie and Isabel were here! Banana barked to greet them.

  They walked in followed by Abuelita, who carried a large casserole dish. “That smells delicious,” I said. I took the dish from her and carried it to the long table we’d set up in the dining room.

  The doorbell rang again and Justin and his parents came inside. Justin’s dad held a dish for the potluck, and Justin was carrying a small plastic cage that Banana sniffed at eagerly. She wagged her tail the fastest I’d ever seen it go. I was excited to meet Miss Fluffybutt too!

  I showed Justin, Sadie, and Isabel where I’d set up the table for our magic show. “This area is the stage. Mrs. Shirley will sit over there, in the seat of honor. The show will happen after dinner but before dessert. When our tricks are done, Dad will bring out the cake and everyone can sing ‘Happy Birthday.’ ”

  “Perfect!” Isabel said. “We can unroll our banner right before the show starts, so it doesn’t give away the surprise.” We’d made a banner yesterday that said MRS. SHIRLEY’S BIRTHDAY MAGIC SHOW. Sadie, Isabel, and I had decorated each letter with different colors and patterns. It looked really great.

  “That’s what I was thinking too,” I said. “All my props are set up under the desk. You can put your things there too. Sadie and Justin, I’ve got a pack of cards you can use.”

  “Thanks!” Sadie said, but Justin shook his head.

  “I’m using my own cards,” he said.

  Sadie nudged me and winked. I knew what she was thinking. That might be a clue! If Justin couldn’t use just any old cards, there might be something special about his deck or the way he’d arranged it. “Sure, no problem,” I said. I kept my voice casual so he wouldn’t suspect we were onto him.

  Justin set the rabbit cage on the desk. Unfortunately, he kept his deck of cards in his pocket. I was itching to get a peek at them. “Do you want to meet Miss Fluffybutt?” he asked.

  “Yes, please! And I should practice the trick a few times with her too, so she knows how it will go,” I said.

  “Good idea,” Justin said. He opened the little door on the front of the cage and an adorable, long-eared rabbit hopped out.

  “Omigosh! She’s so cute!” Sadie squealed. Miss Fluffybutt’s nose twitched. She had round cheeks, bright eyes, and dark whiskers. She really was adorable.

  Justin scooped up the rabbit and showed us the best way to hold her. “You cuddle her against you like this, and keep one hand under her butt to support it,” he said. He held her out for Sadie to try. Miss Fluffybutt squirmed a little, then quieted against Sadie’s chest.

  “She’s so soft,” Sadie said. She stroked Miss Fluffybutt’s ears with her free hand, then passed the rabbit to Isabel.

  Isabel kept very still while holding her. Miss Fluffybutt held still too.

  Banana sat close to my feet and watched as Isabel handed Miss Fluffybutt to me. Sadie was right: She was really soft. Her whiskers tickled my arm and I giggled. It was my first time holding a real, live rabbit and I loved her. But she was much, much bigger than I’d expected. And heavier, too.

  “I thought you said she was mini,” I said to Justin. “She’s actually pretty big!” I was a little worried whether she’d fit comfortably in the hat. I was glad we had time to practice.

  He shrugged. “I told you she likes to eat,” he said.

  I looked down at Miss Fluffybutt. She wiggled her nose at me. “Okay, well, we should practice a few times before the guests arrive,” I said. But as soon as the words had left my mouth, the doorbell rang.

  Chapter Nineteen Let’s Get This Party Started

  My heart sped up and the rest of me froze. My friends and I looked at one another. Sadie and Isabel’s eyes were as wide as Banana’s. The guests were here already!

  “Quick, put the bunny away,” Sadie said. “We don’t want the audience to see her.”

  I handed Miss Fluffybutt to Justin. He helped her into her cage, and tucked it under the desk where no one would notice her. Banana stuck her nose under the tablecloth to look, but I shooed her away. She ran to greet the neighbors instead.

  “Now I don’t get to practice with Miss Fluffybutt!” I whispered to Sadie and Isabel. I tried to stay calm but I felt super panicked.

  Isabel put her arm a
round my shoulders. “You practiced a lot before this. We know you’re ready.”

  Sadie nodded. “Don’t worry, Anna. The show is going to be great.”

  I remembered the tiny dragon from Isabel’s and my story, and felt a little better. I can do it. And my friends will help me, I thought. I just had to believe. But my heart was still beating quickly.

  Justin grinned at all of us. “What are we waiting for? Let’s eat!”

  The house filled up quickly with neighbors and food. Sadie, Isabel, Justin, and I piled our plates with everything we wanted to eat. I piled mine with a little extra to share with Banana when no one was looking.

  Mrs. Shirley arrived, and I gave her a big birthday hug. “Thank you. How sweet of you to remember!” she said.

  Banana danced around and I held my finger to my lips to remind her not to give away the surprise. “Banana says happy birthday too,” I said. Mrs. Shirley bent down to pet her.

  After I finished my dinner, I was too excited and nervous to keep still, so my friends and I helped with cleanup until it was finally time for the show. When most people’s plates were cleared, Dad gave me a nod. I ran to the center of the room with Banana right by my side.

  “May I have your attention, please!” I said in my best announcer voice. The room quieted down. “Please join us in the living room for a special surprise show!”

  Chapter Twenty Showtime

  Banana led the way into the living room with her tail held high. The guests followed. They settled on the couch, in chairs, and on the carpet. Isabel guided Mrs. Shirley to the best seat in the house. “This chair is for you. It’s the birthday throne!” she said.

  “Oh my,” Mrs. Shirley said. But she still didn’t know what the surprise was. Nobody did! They were all watching and waiting to see what would happen next. My insides were jumping, just like Banana.