Davy scurried over, and we all laughed as Garrett picked him up.
"Perfectly balanced!" Ida shouted as one of the reporters from the newspaper snapped photos.
"What's with the onions?" Garrett asked me as we went to watch the next competition. "It seems random."
"Oh, it’s a big surprise. You'll see!" I said as we watched them measure and weight the onions. Art had the largest onion.
"He just had one giant pot, and all he grew was an onion," Ida said into the microphone as Mayor Barry handed him the trophy, "but there you go. Concentrate on one thing, and ye shall be rewarded."
Up next was the pie contest. Jemma won with her beautifully decorated apple pie. She had carefully cut out a fall scene from the piecrust.
"This is so pretty!" Hazel said as we admired it. "I love the detail. You should come work at my shop!"
Hazel won the cake contest, which was no surprise. But I was the runner up. The newspaper reporter took pictures of us with our cakes.
"You won this cake," Ida said to Sebastian.
"Which one?"
"Both!" Ida exclaimed.
"What are you going to do with two cakes?" I asked.
"Eat them!" he said.
"A man after my own heart!" I turned to Garrett. He was scowling. "You should have bought me some cake."
"How about I eat your cake later," he whispered in my ear, making me blush.
64
Garrett
It was late afternoon, and the costume contest was starting soon. Penny and I went back to the Victorian house to change. Remy had driven the horses to the house. He didn't like crowds but was happy to help on the periphery. We dressed and made sure the horses were happy in their costumes. Then we assembled at one end of Main Street. The mayor was up on the grandstand in the town square to announce the contestants as they passed.
"First up, we have Josie and an unnamed number of Svenssons as Ms. Frizzle and the Magic School Bus."
The horses snorted as the old school bus trundled down the street. Josie and my brothers had painted it and added fins to make it look like a rocket ship. Periodically, the boosters would shoot flames. Tristan was driving. Josie and several of my little brothers were on top of the bus on a little balcony. Josie's dress was festooned with rockets. Adrian was seated next to her dressed as a lizard, though he looked more like Godzilla.
The crowd cheered as they waved.
"Next, we have Snow White, the Seven Dwarfs, and Prince Charming," Mayor Barry announced.
"I should have taken one of those horses," Archer said as he passed us.
"I almost didn't recognize him," Penny said to me. "He dyed his hair."
Archer was dressed like a Disney prince with a cape, brown boots, and sword. He bowed and mugged for the crowd. But they only had eyes for Hazel. She was dressed in the bright sapphire bodice and golden skirt of Snow White. She danced down the street, and seven of my youngest brothers, dressed in little fake beards and carrying pickaxes, scampered after her like ducklings.
Eli, dressed in a witch’s costume with a large fake nose and heavy theater makeup, crept after them.
"That is so adorable!" Penny said, applauding. "I should have taken one of your brothers as Frodo."
"Next we have Hunter and Meg as Bonnie and Clyde," the mayor announced over the PA system.
Meg had been helping Hazel keep the seven dwarfs in line. She looked around in shock when her name was called and shook her head.
But Hunter pulled up in a pristine Ford Model T. He was carrying a fake old-time machine gun and a bag full of chocolate money. He was dressed very suavely in a pin-striped suit. Meg also looked the part in her felt hat and flapper.
