Jane held Artemis’s wrists as though she was arresting her and announced, “You are being arrested for… uh…” She looked over at Sean and Eva. “I don’t think leaving a hospital without permission is against the law.”

“Well, make something up, then,” Eva replied. “Some cops do it in real life.”

“Fine,” Jane said, rolling her eyes. Turning her attention back to Artemis, she continued, “You are being arrested for… uh… smuggling plutonium.”

“What?!” everyone cried out.

“Best thing I could think of,” Jane responded, looking embarrassed. “Give me a break, I’m not creative like you guys are.” She turned her attention back to Artemis once more and continued, “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be held against you in the court of law.”

“Chocolate cookies and fuzzy kittens,” Artemis said jokingly. Nathan smirked a little, and Sean let out a low chuckle. Eva and Leah both grinned.


Rolling her eyes, Jane continued, “You have the right to an attorney. If you do not have one, one will be appointed to you by the court of law. But he’ll probably be really lousy and get you put in jail for, like, fifty million years or eighty life sentences, whichever is longer.”

“And then, I come to save her!” Leah spoke up. Striking a superhero-like pose, she announced, “All this time, I have been secretly pretending to be a cute little girl, when in reality, I am the greatest superhero of all, El Zappo! Why do you think that plutonium was being smuggled? To give me power!”

She ran over to Artemis and Jane and pretended to fight with Jane. The two girls made appropriate comic book-style sound effects, complete with zaps and booms. Finally, apparently defeated, Jane sprawled on the ground, pretending to be hurt. “You win, El Zappo,” she said. “Except for one thing.”

“What’s that?” Leah asked.


Rising and striking a dramatic pose, Jane announced, “I’m not a celebrity or cop! I’m your arch nemesis, Hot Lips!”

“Oh, no!” Leah cried out, pretending to be frightened. “She is capable of spitting fire as far as fifty feet!” She looked over at Artemis. “Run for safety! I’ll protect you!” Making elaborate gestures, Leah announced, “I have created a fire-proof force field! Take that, Hot Lips!”

Sean leaned over and whispered to Eva, “Do they do this often?”

“Actually, no. This is one of the few times I’ve seen them actually play together without trying to kill each other or cover each other in paint or makeup,” Eva replied. “Better not spoil it by pointing it out.”

“They’re really getting into this,” Nathan added, pointing at the girls, who were bouncing on the sofa, pretending to have a dramatic aerial battle. “I wish we could record this.”

“Did Leah just do a flip?” Lisa asked, watching. She nodded, definitely impressed. “Next time I want to play Superheroes, I’m inviting them over.”

Finally, Jane lay sprawled out on the floor, while Leah stood on the sofa, laughing. “You win, El Zappo,” Jane gasped out as she crawled away. “But mark my words… I’ll be back!”

“And I’ll be ready to kick your butt again!” Leah replied, laughing dramatically.


Jane laughed also and helped her sister down from the sofa. “This was a really good idea,” Jane admitted. “I had a lot of fun.”

“I think we all did,” Leah replied. “Except for Eva… she got cranky about having to be so many people.”

“Yeah, well, you try it and see how you like it,” Eva responded, messing up her younger sister’s hair.

Artemis spoke up, “Do you think the grownups are going to finish with their party soon?”

Sean checked the clock on the wall. “It’s only been about half an hour,” he announced. All of the others groaned in disappointment.

With a grin, Nathan suggested, “Who’s up for a game of pirates?”