Everybunny Loves Magic by Aaron Reynolds

Author:Aaron Reynolds [Reynolds, Aaron]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2022-03-08T00:00:00+00:00

33

After much toddler dodging, a prerecorded fanfare finally announces the start of the magic show.

Children everywhere stop ricocheting off the padded fixtures and rush to find a seat before the stage.

Darvish plucks his sister from the ball pit and joins me.

“See anything hinky? Suspicious? Out of place?” I ask him.

“Only you,” he says, looking me up and down.

“Well, keep your eyes peeled,” I warn him. “The villains are bound to strike.”

The lights dim and the Astounding Isabel emerges, bedecked in her trademark red and silver. As I take in her show in its entirety, I confess that she lives up to her stage name. Her magic is astounding.

She dazzles the audience when she makes her surly assistant disappear before our very eyes.

She wows us all by making herself levitate.

Darvish and I get nervous when she reveals an empty top hat and threatens to draw something from it.

But no dead rabbits emerge. Only a pogo stick. And a sword. And another slightly smaller top hat. The audience cheers raucously at the spectacle.

Show ended, bows taken, the birthday cake is brought out and all the little sugar vultures scamper aggressively away. But Darvish and I approach the stage.

“Nice show,” I say.

“Nice outfit,” says the Astounding Isabel, looking me over. Her eyes dart to Darvish. “Hey,” she says. “You’re the kid from the banquet hall.” She points at me. “Who’s the clown?”

“The other kid from the banquet hall,” Darvish answers.

She grins. “What are you guys? My groupies now? Presidents of my fan club?”

“Something like that,” I say.

“Well spread the good word,” she says, packing the odd instruments of her craft into a big black case. “I need all the help I can get.”

As if on cue, her assistant brushes by with an armload of stuff. “No, that’s all right, Isabel,” he says, voice dripping with sarcasm. “You just stand there and talk to your fans. I’ll take care of all this junk.”

“I’m loading this case while I talk, Isaac,” she tells him tersely. “Relax!”

“Looks like your assistant is just as cheerful as ever,” Darvish says.

She shakes her head in frustration. “I don’t want to talk about him.”

“Then let’s talk about… oh, I don’t know… rabbits,” I say smoothly.

See what I just did there? It is a deft maneuver called a segue. It means an effortless, dare I say imperceivable, change in subject. Not to be confused with a Segway, which is a weird contraption for people who like to go places without moving their legs.

“Your spells are impressive,” I concede.

“They’re not spells, kid,” she tells me. “They’re called illusions.”

“Forgive me,” I say. “I am not up to speed on the jargon of your wizardly craft. But I notice you didn’t do the one where you pull a bunny out of the hat. Any particular reason?”

The Astounding Isabel turns to me, a steely glint in her eyes. “Is that a joke, kid? Are you messing with me?”

“No.” Darvish steps forward, ever the peacemaker. “We’re legitimately concerned.”

She considers him for a moment, then softens. “Well, so am I.

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