"Perhaps," Ms. Harkness said, "she is too sick to write."
Did we just see Ms. Harkness's candy-apple lip curl as she said that last thing to Mandy? Well, we could hardly blame her. Mandy did have that effect on people.
"I'm sure you'll hear from her just as soon as she's feeling well enough," Ms. Harkness added, her usual sweet tone back in place. Then, before Mandy could say any more annoying things, Ms. Harkness clapped her hands together. "Today is March tenth," she said, "yes?"
We all shot our hands up.
"Yes." Ms. Harkness answered her own question without giving us a chance. "And that means that just one week from today, there will be a very important holiday. Can anyone tell me what that holiday is?"
"St. Patrick's Day!" Will shouted without raising his hand.
"Very good, Will," Ms. Harkness said.
"I didn't know St. Patrick's Day was an important holiday," Mandy said. She was puzzled. Then she looked sad. "But I'm sure that if Mrs. McGillicuddy was here, she'd enjoy it."
Ms. Harkness ignored Mandy. We could understand why.
"I'll bet you all like holidays," Ms. Harkness said.
Yes and no, we thought.
We always used to love holidays. And we had enjoyed Valentine's Day back in February. That's when we realized that Will loved all of us just as much as we loved him, plus it had been nice when Carl the talking refrigerator's romance with robot Betty had begun. But we'd been stranded by a snowstorm last Christmas and then our parents had disappeared—or died—on New Year's Eve, so we knew that a holiday could turn on a person without notice.
But we couldn't tell Ms. Harkness all of that, so for once, we kept silent.
"What do you normally do here at the Whistle Stop to celebrate St. Patrick's Day?" Ms. Harkness asked.
"Do?" Mandy was puzzled again. "If it falls during the week, we come to school. I mean, it's not like it's Christmas or Thanksgiving or anything."
Ms. Harkness looked shocked. "You mean you've never had a St. Patrick's Day parade in school before?" she asked.
"No," Zinnia said, her eyes going round as saucers. "But we would like one. A parade is almost as good as getting presents."
"I'm glad you feel that way," Ms. Harkness said. "Because this year, the Whistle Stop is going to have a parade! And guess what else."
We all leaned forward.
"The third grade is going to lead the parade," Ms. Harkness said.
This truly was amazing news! The Whistle Stop ran from kindergarten through twelfth grade, and yet we would be marching ahead of the whole school!
"Will this all be in the Tuesday folders?" Mandy asked without raising her hand. "You never sent Tuesday folders home last week. Tuesday folders are red and contain Important Papers. Will you be sending Tuesday folders home this week?"
"No," Ms. Harkness said. "Why would I do that when I can just tell you and then you can tell your parents?"
Mandy's jaw dropped. This, to Mandy, was chaos.
"Now, do you know what else?" Ms. Harkness asked.
We couldn't imagine, but we were very eager to learn.
"Georgia," Ms. Harkness announced, "is going to be Grand Marshal!"
"Congratulations!" we all cried, and we gathered around Georgia to give her high-fives.
Georgia looked very proud, as well she might. Then:
"But what does the Grand Marshal do?" Georgia asked.
"Why, she walks ahead of everyone else," Ms. Harkness said, "and she carries the biggest flag of all."
We thought Georgia might faint dead away from the sheer thrill of it all.
Ms. Harkness clapped her pretty hands once more.
"Now, everyone get your raincoats on and we can head over to the gymnasium. You can practice your marching and flag-carrying, so you'll all be ready for next Monday's parade."
"But surely Mrs. McGillicuddy will be back by next Monday," Mandy objected.
"She might be," Ms. Harkness said. "But then again, she might not."
"But what if it's still raining next Monday?"
Mandy could be such a pest.
"Oh, I'm sure the rain will stop for that one day," Ms. Harkness said.
And somehow, we were all convinced that even the weather couldn't say no to Serena Harkness.
***
In the gymnasium, we were all very excited to get our flags and our marching assignments. Georgia's flag really was the biggest, and she put the grand in Grand Marshal, marching up ahead of us.
Almost a minute into the marching, Georgia stopped and turned around.
"Do you think Ms. Harkness made me Grand Marshal," she said, whispering so our substitute teacher couldn't hear her, "because she thinks I'm special or impressive, like Zinnia said?" She looked worried. "Or is it because of what Rebecca said, that she thinks I'm trouble and if I'm at the head of the line it's easier to keep an eye on me?"
"Who cares why?" Annie whispered back before Rebecca could whisper anything nasty; Rebecca's mouth had opened. "I think you should just enjoy your moment in the sun."
So that's what Georgia did. We all did.
We marched up and down the length of the gym, with Ms. Harkness watching from the sidelines.
About five minutes into our marching, Ms. Harkness pulled out a cell phone and started talking on it.
"That's odd," Mandy muttered. "Mrs. McGillicuddy never talks on her phone when she's supposed to be watching us."
"Well," Rebecca pointed out with a sneer, "it's not as though we can hurt ourselves just marching with flags."
"I need to go to the bathroom," Georgia suddenly announced. "Here, Zinnia, take this big flag for me. You lead for a bit."
Before any of us could object, Georgia walked off toward the door that led to the girls' locker room.
Zinnia was the smallest of us, a full seven inches shorter than Annie. The huge flag nearly toppled her, but she did seem very proud, marching ahead of us.
We marched on.
Georgia was gone at least ten minutes. By the time she returned, Ms. Harkness had ended her phone call, told us all that we had earned a break from marching, and announced recess. When Georgia strolled up to us, we were all hanging upside down on the gymnastic equipment.
"Don't you have to go to the bathroom too?" Georgia said to Mandy.
"No," Mandy said. "I went before I came to school."
"That's funny," Georgia said. "Just looking at you, I was very sure that you must have to go."
A look of horror came over Mandy's face.
"Oh, no!" she cried. "Suddenly I do!"
And she ran off toward the girls' locker room.
"Gather round," Georgia whispered in an urgent voice once Mandy was gone.
"No," Rebecca said. "It's too much fun hanging upside down."
"All the blood is rushing to our heads," Marcia observed.
"And it feels really good," Durinda said. "It beats cooking meals for eight."
We knew that despite the praise it earned her, Durinda sometimes resented being our cook.
"Fine," Georgia said, "then I'll just have to talk to you like that. There's not much time."
"What are you talking about?" Annie said.
"I think Mandy is right," Georgia said darkly.
"I don't think anyone has said 'Mandy is right' in the history of the world," Annie said. "And right about what?"
"Do you think my brains will pour out of my ears if I keep hanging upside down like this?" Petal asked.
Petal's face was getting very red.
"When I went to the bathroom," Georgia said, "I didn't really go to the bathroom."
"Then why did you go there?" Jackie asked.
"I mean," Georgia went on, "I did go into the bathroom, but once inside, I made myself invisible. Then I came back out again, still invisible, and tiptoed over to Ms. Harkness."
"But why did you do that?" Zinnia asked.
"I don't know." Georgia shrugged, as though she hadn't had a good reason. "Because I could."
&nb
sp; "Wow," Marcia said. "Like climbing Mount Everest."
"And what did you learn?" Annie asked. "What did you learn that made you say Mandy is right'?"
"I didn't say 'Mandy is right,'" Georgia corrected. "I said 'I think Mandy is right.'"
"Hairsplitting." Rebecca yawned. "I knew you hadn't really discovered anything."
We all knew that Rebecca was jealous that she didn't have any special power yet. Or gift.
Georgia ignored Rebecca.
"I heard Ms. Harkness whispering into her phone," Georgia said. "I heard her saying to the person at the other end, 'I don't think they're as smart as you warned me they were. In fact, they don't seem very bright at all, F—'"
"So what does that mean?" Rebecca demanded. "And what is F—?"
"I'm not completely sure," Georgia admitted. "I got spooked that she might somehow hear me breathing, so I ran off. But something about the way she said it, I had this awful feeling that she was talking about us."
We all laughed at her, even Will, who never laughed at anybody.
"Never mind 'I think Mandy is right.'" Now even Annie was scoffing. "I'm beginning to think you should be saying 'I think that I, Georgia, am turning into Mandy'!"
"Why don't you hang upside down for a while," Rebecca suggested. "Maybe that will help you get your head back on straight."
Georgia opened her mouth to object, but then Mandy returned and all talk of whether Mandy was right or not ceased.
***
So that's how we passed the week: practicing our marching in the gym. This was our second full week without any homework. You would think we would be happy about this fact, but...
"I don't like it," Annie said, "never having any homework anymore. I mean, our parents are paying a lot of money for our education. Shouldn't we be getting one?"
CHAPTER SEVEN
Parade day!
It was Monday, March 17, and we were all so excited, we woke up a full hour early.
The Whistle Stop had never had a St. Patrick's Day parade before, but we were going to have one now.
We brushed our teeth and hair, rushed into our school clothes, and zipped downstairs for breakfast without Annie having to urge us to "Hurry it along!" even once.
But then, while we ate our pancakes, a sadness fell over the room.
"What's wrong with all of you?" Annie asked. "You should be so happy today."
"I know," Petal said, "but we've heard the other kids at school talking. Everyone else will have at least one parent there to watch the parade today."
"Oh," Annie said. "That is hard."
It was. We didn't want to be the only kids at the parade without anyone there to cheer for us, with no one but one another to be proud.
"Say," Annie said. "I have an idea. Come on!"
She rose from the table and we followed where she led: right to Mommy's private study.
We normally didn't like to go into Mommy's study unless it was an absolute emergency. Mommy had had a rule that we couldn't go in there, and we still tried to obey the rule even now that she'd gone to ... wherever she had gone to.
"What are you doing?" Durinda asked as Annie seated herself behind Mommy's desk and picked up the phone.
"I found this phone's instruction manual," Annie said, "and I realized it's also a speakerphone. It's the only one in the house that is."
Annie dialed a number and hit a button on the phone, and we listened as the phone of whomever she was calling started to ring.
"Who are you calling?" Jackie asked.
"Shh," Annie said as we heard a click; someone had picked up at the other end.
"Hullo," a man's sleepy voice said.
It was Pete the mechanic!
"Mr. Pete, this is Annie Huit," Annie said.
"Oh, hullo, Annie!" Pete sounded wide awake now. And somehow he seemed both cheerful and concerned. "You don't need your car fixed this early in the morning, do you, lamb? You haven't been sabotaged again?"
"Oh, no," Annie said hurriedly, "nothing like that. We were just wondering..." Suddenly, Annie sounded shy.
"Yes, Annie? How can I help?"
Annie spoke in a rush, as though worried that she'd lose her nerve if she didn't. "It's just that, at our school today there's going to be a big parade, for St. Patrick's Day, and we're going to be marching in it, and all of the other kids will have at least one parent there..." She ran out of steam as a sad expression came over her face. "Of course, it's a Monday, so you'll no doubt be working at Pete's Repairs and Auto Wrecking..."
"I do usually work Mondays," he said gently.
"Yes," Annie said, more sadly yet, "I did just realize that."
"What time did you say the parade was?" Pete asked.
"I didn't," Annie said. "But it's at two o'clock. It'll take up the whole hour before school ends. Of course, that's still in the middle of your workday, so—"
"I'll be there with bells on," Pete said.
We had no idea what that meant exactly, but it did sound good.
"I'm afraid Mrs. Pete won't be able to make it," Pete added. "She's off visiting her sister. But I'll be there—"
"Yes, with bells on!" Annie said excitedly.
"—because you can always count on me." Pete finished making his point. "I'd be honored to be your loco parentis."
We thought that maybe Pete was calling our parents crazy. But that didn't sound like something Pete would say.
"Thank you, Mr. Pete!" eight voices shouted into the speakerphone.
"No," Pete said right back at us. "Thank you, Eights."
We sighed happy sighs as Annie switched off the speakerphone. It was tough sometimes to know whom we loved more in our world: Will or Mr. Pete.
Back at the breakfast table, we all finished our pancakes with relish. All except Georgia, that is.
Georgia wasn't eating at all.
"I'm afraid I'm not going today," Georgia said.
"Not going!" Jackie cried. "But how can you miss the parade?"
"Aren't you feeling well?" Durinda asked.
"Yes and no," Georgia said. "My body feels okay enough. It's just that ... this month! Everything has been about luck! What good luck: my gift arrives early. What bad luck: I send it away. What good luck: my cat discovers my power. What bad luck: my cat discovers my power before I do. What good luck: I get named Grand Marshal. What bad luck: I can't go."
"Yes," Annie said, "I do see that you've developed a theme there. But I still don't understand that last part. Why can't you go?"
"Because I feel funny about it," Georgia said, "and for once, I'm going to try to get things right."
"So what will you do instead?" Marcia asked. "Stay home?"
"Stay home alone," Rebecca said, "on what will probably be the most fun day we'll ever have at school?"
"I should get very lonely if I stayed home alone," Petal said. "I'd be scared too."
"No," Georgia said. "I guess I shouldn't have said before that I'm not going. I am still going ... only I'm going to be invisible. That means that you, Annie, need to do your Daddy impersonation in order to phone me in sick."
"I still don't understand," Annie said.
"I'm not sure that I fully understand either," Georgia said. "But it's what I want."
"Very well," Annie said.
"Just don't go around pinching me all day while you're busy being invisible," Petal said.
"But wait a second," Zinnia said. "If you're not going to be Grand Marshal—which you can't be if you're busy being invisible—then who will lead the parade?"
"You will," Georgia said, placing her hand on Zinnia's shoulder. "You're the only one besides me who's had any practice at it."
***
Pete didn't have any bells on, at least not that we could see, nor did he have on the Armani tuxedo jacket he'd worn that one time he'd bailed us out of trouble with Principal Freud and the McG. He just had on his navy blue mechanic's T-shirt and his loose jeans that hung down below his big belly. It didn't matter what he wore, th
ough. We were just so glad to see him as we paraded on past, his salt-and-pepper hair shining in the sun as though he'd used conditioner just for us. We were so happy to see the look of pride in his dancing blue eyes as he put his fingers to his lips, let out a long whistle, and then screamed, "Go, Eights!"
Right before the festivities had started, we introduced Mandy to Pete. We hadn't really wanted to, but she'd been just standing there when he arrived in his pickup. So we'd told her what we'd gotten in the habit of telling everybody: that Pete was our uncle. Pete didn't seem to mind, and Mandy seemed oddly impressed that we had an uncle who wore his jeans so low.
It was a beautiful day for a parade.
The weather, as Ms. Harkness had promised, was cooperating. The last trickles of rain had finally ended sometime in the night, and a powerful sun hung over the Whistle Stop. Zinnia, filling in for Georgia as Grand Marshal, led the entire student body around the school grounds.
Zinnia bobbed up ahead of us. Occasionally, the large flag she carried veered off to one side, threatening to pull her over with it, but then the flag would straighten up as though helped by some invisible force.
We knew what that invisible force was: Georgia.
"This is great," Marcia said as we marched.
"I feel as though we're part of a marching band," Jackie said.
"I feel as though we're marching off to war," Rebecca said with a gleam in her eye.
We all suspected Rebecca would enjoy a war.
"Are you sure we should be doing this?" fretted Petal.
"What do you mean?" asked Durinda.
"Aren't we Jewish?" Petal asked. "It's what Jackie always says."
"Who knows?" Annie shrugged. "It's been a while since we were in a church or a synagogue." She thought a moment before adding, "Or a mosque."
"But this is a St. Patrick's Day parade," Petal insisted. "Are we even Irish?"
"With a name like Huit?" Annie gave another shrug. "I don't think so. But I can't see any harm in marching."
So on we marched.
Zinnia said nothing. She was too busy trying to keep that flag aloft.
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