suddenly realized that despite its spider problem, the basement was actually the perfect place to do somemagical cheerleading. And if she used her powers to move the boxes, she would have plenty of time to practice. Plus, after all the chaos Malik had been causing around the house lately, the very least Sophie could do was help out.
âOf course,â she said as she followed her mom downstairs, while trying to ignore the fact that Meg was lounging around in front of the television, not even pretending that she was going to help.
The basement was just as dark and musty as Sophie remembered, but her mom didnât seem to notice as she led Sophie over to a huge pile of boxes that was sitting in the middle of the floor. Sophie flipped the lid on the first box and was greeted by a bag of marbles and Megâs old Barbie dolls, which all had bite marks on the legs. Then she caught sight of a hideous green sweater that she vaguely remembered loving when she was five years old. She turned to her mom.
âI didnât know we still had all of this stuff.â
âI guess I shouldâve sorted through everything sooner, but the idea of throwing away memories all seemed too difficult,â hermom said as she opened up another box and held up a pair of flared jeans that looked like theyâd walked straight out of the seventies.
âReally?â Sophie raised an eyebrow as she pulled out a long white T-shirt, which had a picture of a lion on the front of it. âIt doesnât seem like it would be too hard.â
âHey, cheeky child, I will have you know that this was considered to be the height of fashion at the time,â her mom protested as she studied the T-shirt for a moment before ruefully putting it back in the box and shutting the lid. âBut it wasnât until I needed more space that I realized just how much junk we have down here. Besides, memories donât exist in clothes and possessions, they exist in our minds. So, will you be okay to carry the boxes up to the garage?â
âOf course,â Sophie readily agreed, since she knew she had magic on her side.
She waited until her mom disappeared back upstairs before she turned her attention to the boxes. There were at least fifteen of them, and she closed her eyes and wished for all of them to move to the garage. A second later she felt a tingle go racing through her, and when she opened her eyes, the boxes were gone. Now she just had to check that they had actually turned up where they were meant to.
A couple of minutes later she was standing in the garage, grinning. Not bad for a few seconds of work. She couldnât help but think how great it would be if the Djinn Council wanted to test her box-moving skills. Still, she was sure that by the end of the afternoon she would be just as good at transcendental conjuring, and with that thought, she made her way back down to the basement and got to work.
An hour later Sophie stared at herself in the large mirror she had magically conjured up. Her transformation was amazing. Sheâd probably been eight years old the lasttime sheâd attempted to do a high kick, and the result had been a bruised butt and some major embarrassment. But now all she had to do was visualize it in her mind and then her legs seemed to take on a life of their own. She held up her newly wished for pom-poms and decided to have one last practice.
âGimme an M,â she mouthed, before picturing herself doing a backflip. A second later her body leaned back and her spine formed a perfect arch before her legs kicked off the ground and came down on the other side of her head like sheâd been doing it for years. Amazing! However, before she could attempt it again she heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs.
Sophie quickly wished for the large mirror and the pom-poms to disappear, just as her mom walked in. It was obvious by the smile on her face that sheâd already seen the large
âOf course,â she said as she followed her mom downstairs, while trying to ignore the fact that Meg was lounging around in front of the television, not even pretending that she was going to help.
The basement was just as dark and musty as Sophie remembered, but her mom didnât seem to notice as she led Sophie over to a huge pile of boxes that was sitting in the middle of the floor. Sophie flipped the lid on the first box and was greeted by a bag of marbles and Megâs old Barbie dolls, which all had bite marks on the legs. Then she caught sight of a hideous green sweater that she vaguely remembered loving when she was five years old. She turned to her mom.
âI didnât know we still had all of this stuff.â
âI guess I shouldâve sorted through everything sooner, but the idea of throwing away memories all seemed too difficult,â hermom said as she opened up another box and held up a pair of flared jeans that looked like theyâd walked straight out of the seventies.
âReally?â Sophie raised an eyebrow as she pulled out a long white T-shirt, which had a picture of a lion on the front of it. âIt doesnât seem like it would be too hard.â
âHey, cheeky child, I will have you know that this was considered to be the height of fashion at the time,â her mom protested as she studied the T-shirt for a moment before ruefully putting it back in the box and shutting the lid. âBut it wasnât until I needed more space that I realized just how much junk we have down here. Besides, memories donât exist in clothes and possessions, they exist in our minds. So, will you be okay to carry the boxes up to the garage?â
âOf course,â Sophie readily agreed, since she knew she had magic on her side.
She waited until her mom disappeared back upstairs before she turned her attention to the boxes. There were at least fifteen of them, and she closed her eyes and wished for all of them to move to the garage. A second later she felt a tingle go racing through her, and when she opened her eyes, the boxes were gone. Now she just had to check that they had actually turned up where they were meant to.
A couple of minutes later she was standing in the garage, grinning. Not bad for a few seconds of work. She couldnât help but think how great it would be if the Djinn Council wanted to test her box-moving skills. Still, she was sure that by the end of the afternoon she would be just as good at transcendental conjuring, and with that thought, she made her way back down to the basement and got to work.
An hour later Sophie stared at herself in the large mirror she had magically conjured up. Her transformation was amazing. Sheâd probably been eight years old the lasttime sheâd attempted to do a high kick, and the result had been a bruised butt and some major embarrassment. But now all she had to do was visualize it in her mind and then her legs seemed to take on a life of their own. She held up her newly wished for pom-poms and decided to have one last practice.
âGimme an M,â she mouthed, before picturing herself doing a backflip. A second later her body leaned back and her spine formed a perfect arch before her legs kicked off the ground and came down on the other side of her head like sheâd been doing it for years. Amazing! However, before she could attempt it again she heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs.
Sophie quickly wished for the large mirror and the pom-poms to disappear, just as her mom walked in. It was obvious by the smile on her face that sheâd already seen the large
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