Captain Nobody Read Free Page A

fountain . . .”
    â€œThat’s only happened eight or nine times,” she said quietly.
    â€œ. . . or what about in the cafeteria when they slide our food off the table and squeeze us out of our seats?”
    JJ and I exchanged a look. He had a point.
    â€œNobody pays any attention to us any other day of the year,” Cecil declared, waving a finger overhead as if he were preaching. “And I say that Halloween’s the one night we get to say, ‘Look at me! Look at me!’ And y’know what? People will.”
    â€œWhy?” I asked. “Who’re we gonna be?”
    â€œAnybody we want,” Cecil said firmly.
    JJ shook her head. “I don’t think you actually mean anybody. There are only a limited number of character costumes manufactured each year, and—”
    â€œI’m not talking about some costume in a box at Walmart! Shrek? Heck! Darth Vader? See ya later! I say we get personal. We gotta dig deep down inside and find our inner . . . other .”
    â€œOur inner other ?” JJ snorted. Despite her large vocabulary and extensive knowledge of books, JJ is generally suspicious about new ideas. Especially Cecil’s.
    â€œYeah! Our inner other is who we would be if we didn’t have to be us. ” Cecil was on a roll now. “Think of it like a . . . a personal hero.”
    â€œWhat if I don’t have one?” I asked. “A personal hero, I mean.”
    â€œWe’ve all got one.” Cecil whipped around to JJ. “You! Isn’t there anybody in those books you’re always reading, somebody witchy and wonderful you secretly wish you could be for one night?”
    Cecil’s question caught JJ by surprise. Ever since she read a ten-part epic called The Crystal Cavern Chronicles , JJ has been hopelessly hooked on stories about witches, wizards and dragons.
    â€œI don’t know . . . maybe,” she stuttered.
    â€œMaybe?” Cecil taunted. “That’s not the JJ I know.”
    â€œWell, okay, Mr. Motivation,” JJ fired back. “Who would you be?”
    â€œYeah. Who’s your hero, Cecil?” I asked.
    â€œMe?” Cecil squinted until a thought hit him, and he smiled. “Music! Music’s my hero.”
    JJ frowned. “But you can’t dress up as music. ”
    â€œWho says?” Cecil threw up his hands. “I can wrap myself in sheet music and come as a symphony!”
    â€œWhat about you, Newt?” JJ asked. “Who’s your inner other?”
    â€œYeah, you’re always whippin’ up those crazy cool crimefighters,” Cecil said, pointing to my Secret Superhero Sketchbook. “Which one of them is you?”
    I flipped through my drawing pad, but nothing caught my eye.
    â€œI . . . I have to give it some thought” was all I could manage.
    â€œOkay, how’s this?” Cecil’s eyes were sparkling. “We’ve got three days. We make our own costumes, and then, on Halloween night, we surprise each other.”
    JJ still seemed nervous. “But even if I knew who I wanted to be . . . ,” she stammered, “let’s just say . . . where . . . I mean, how do we get the clothes?”
    â€œOh, right. Where do we?” I wondered.
    â€œWhere’s your imagination, people?” Cecil cried. “Are these not the top three minds in the fourth grade?”
    We shrugged in agreement.
    JJ started again, “But what if I can’t—”
    Cecil held a finger up to her lips just as the first bell rang. “Hup! Zip it!” he ordered. “No more ‘can’t,’ ‘don’t,’ ‘won’t.’ We’re gonna think positive, heroic thoughts. And in three days, we’re gonna have our own Halloween parade. Whaddya say?”
    JJ and I smiled at each other as we gathered up our stuff and headed to class.
    â€œThat’d be so cool,” I said. “Let’s do it for