With a burst of flame and smoke, the Pock-Pickets vanished and were replaced by B. B. Bosso center stage. The large man with the white-powdered face wore a black silk robe that shimmered with shiny beads, and a wide and crooked smile. The angry blond monkey that Carter had seen the previous night was perched on his shoulder, wearing the same red fez.
“Greetings! I am B. B. Bosso and this is my show! All you see, you see because of me! All your fun is by my design! I’ve crisscrossed the globe to learn the mysteries of the mystics, the secrets of the swamis, the fabulosities of the fakirs. Why? It thrills me beyond all measure to entertain you, my beloved fans!”
The crowd clapped and laughed. Carter ducked a little lower among the others and tucked his hat down. He hoped his friends didn’t notice his behavior.
Bosso started the show with a SWISH by swinging a sword and chopping the heads off a bouquet of roses—dandelions popped up in their place. “Not bad,” Ridley said as the crowd oohed and aahed.
Then Bosso swung up his clenched fists and levitated a donkey fifteen feet above the stage. It thrashed its legs in the air, desperate to get away. “That poor animal,” Leila whispered as the crowd gasped.
For the next trick, a frightened-looking clown stumbled onto the stage, as though pushed from the wings. Bosso shut him inside a coffin-like box laid out on a table. The clown squeezed his eyes shut when Bosso held up a handsaw, its teeth as big as a shark’s. Bosso sawed the clown’s box into threes. First he cut at the knees, then at the neck. Bosso’s brow was shiny with sweat from the effort. Carter was flustered, worried that something might go terribly wrong. But after a few toe-curling moments, Bosso put the clown back together again. The clown staggered off stage in a daze.
Two cannons fired, shooting clowns across the stage into nets. Then Bosso flung doves into the air, which changed instantly into black crows, cawing loudly overhead like a bad omen.
“He has an interesting technique,” Theo said, his eyes fixed on the stage.
“You might wonder what it takes to run a carnival.” Bosso grinned. “Let me tell you.
“It takes strength!” He juggled four sledgehammers, then stepped away from them. They kept circling in the air.
“It takes money!” A giant safe was rolled on stage by the Tattooed Baby. B. B. Bosso spun it around, showing all four sides. When he opened it, a great explosion of bills rained over the crowd. The bills weren’t money, though—they were blank pieces of green paper.
“It takes flair!” From the sides of the stage, the Walrus tossed several white chairs to B. B. Bosso, who threw them together to create a tower, each new chair balanced atop the last. The Spider-Lady climbed up the side and crouched on top.
“It takes power!” With a snap of B. B. Bosso’s fingers, the tower collapsed. The Spider-Lady didn’t move. Instead she and the top chair floated in place.
Carter wasn’t sure but he thought that she might have smiled right at him. He slunk down even lower in his seat.
“It takes laughs!” B. B. Bosso returned to the safe, closed it, and opened it again. In place of the money, one Pock-Picket after another climbed out, waving to the crowd.
“It takes magic!” B. B. Bosso raised his arms and all of his lackeys—the Walrus, the Tattooed Baby, and the Spider-Lady—floated to the center of the stage. “And most important, it takes ALL OF YOU!”
Curtains fell around the stage from rafters overhead. A moment later they dropped to the ground, revealing giant mirrors surrounding the stage and reflecting the image of the crowd back at themselves. The mirrors appeared on the stage so quickly that people shouted in awe.
A spotlight swiveled toward center stage, and the mirrors became transparent, revealing Bosso with his monkey sitting on his shoulder. Everyone else who’d been with them had disappeared. The crowd went wild.
Bosso’s monkey clapped its tiny hands as the rest of Bosso’s crew rejoined him center stage. Finally, all of them took a bow.
“Thank you, one and all!” Bosso blared. “One last thing. As many of you know, the largest diamond in the world, the Star of Africa, will be traveling through this very town. I have arranged that it—all five hundred and thirty carats—will be part of a very special show, the Finale Fantastic. Tomorrow night at the Grand Oak Resort! Please come, invite your friends, and be prepared for my most amazing feat yet! Good night, and thank you!”
The spotlight flickered out for a brief moment and then came up fully again. But Bosso and his gang had vanished from the stage.
HOW TO…
Make a Color Prediction!
Hello again! I didn’t expect you back so soon. Someone is certainly a fast reader. Good for you. You want to learn more magic, eh? Brilliant. Pull up a seat. Oh, I see. You’re already sitting. Well, let’s go, then.
A big part of being a magician is performing in front of an audience. There isn’t anything quite like the feeling you get while amazing your friends and family (and pets!) with tricks you’ve practiced, practiced, and practiced some more. Seeing those faces light up with thrill and delight is worth all that hard work. (Plus, you might be able to get out of doing chores.) Thus, I thought you might enjoy a trick you can do for a crowd. Small kids love this one! It is perfect for younger siblings, cousins, or anyone who might have crayons lying around. Time to learn how to PREDICT A CRAYON’S COLOR BASED ON ITS WEIGHT!
WHAT YOU NEED:
A box of crayons
An audience
HELPFUL HINTS (PRACTICE!):
I highly recommend practicing this with a friend. Once you can pull it off with them, you can do better with a big audience.
Remember: Practice, practice, practice! (Then nap. Then snack. Then… You know the drill.… Let’s all say it together: KEEEEEEP PRAAAAAACTICING!!!!!! Very good, you clever creatures!)
STEPS:
1. Give a member of the audience a box of crayons. (You can also ask someone to bring crayons.)
2. Turn your back to the audience, placing your hand behind you.
3. Ask one audience member to pick a single crayon and place it in the palm of your hand.
4. This is a good time for you to say something like “Did you know every color has its own special weight? Only a practiced magician can tell the difference. For instance, green is heavier than yellow. Red is heavier than blue, and black is surprisingly light!” Of course, you can make up your own speech. The key is to keep your audience entertained.
**Secret magician movement: While you are talking, scratch a little off the crayon tip with your fingernail.
5. While you are still standing with your back to the audience, say something like “Okay, I’ve got it. I don’t want you to think I’m peeking, so take the crayon and put it back into the box.”
6. Now turn to face your audience members.
**Second secret magician movement: While turning, sneak a peek at the fingernail that scratched the crayon. You will see what color it was by the part you scratched off!
7. Announce the color of the crayon to your audience. They will be amazed and delighted!
8. Don’t forget to take a bow.
ELEVEN