Free Georgia's Greatness by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

to freeze her was Zinnia's, because, as we all knew, Zinnia was the only one of us that couldn't be frozen.
    "Come on," Annie urged Durinda, who was for some reason reluctant. "It's been a long time since you've frozen anybody. You should practice up a little bit first; you know, so you'll be ready when the big moment arrives."
    "Very well," Durinda at last agreed.
    Durinda tapped her hand against her leg three times rapidly, then sharp-pointed at Rebecca.
    We couldn't blame her for wanting to freeze Rebecca first. Rebecca could be annoying.
    But nothing happened.
    Rebecca remained unfrozen.
    Durinda stared at the tip of her own finger as though it had somehow betrayed her.
    "Must be rusty," she said with a nervous laugh and a shrug.
    Then Durinda tapped her leg three times rapidly and sharp-pointed her finger at Petal, who was the second-most annoying among us.
    Again, nothing.
    "This is so odd!" Durinda cried.
    She tried freezing Marcia.
    She tried freezing Jackie.
    She tried freezing Annie.
    Nothing, nothing, and nothing.
    In her desperation, she even tried to freeze Zinnia.
    She was about to try freezing the McG when Annie reached out a hand to stop her.
    "I don't think it's going to work," Annie said gently. "It's no use."
    "You mean my power's all gone?" Durinda said, horrified.
    "No," Annie said. "I just think that whichever Eight's month it is to get her power and gift has to figure out how to get us out of whatever jam we're in."
    "So my power is temporarily on hold?" Durinda said.
    "Yes," Annie said. "I think so."
    "But what about you?" Durinda persisted. "You've still got your power. You're still smart."
    "Yes," Annie said. "But I was already smart before all this started."
    "Would someone please tell me," the McG said, "just what is going on."
    But no one did, partly because we didn't know where to begin—our story was getting so involved, sometimes we didn't believe everything that was happening to us!—and mostly because we heard the sound of a series of locks clicking open.
    Crazy Serena was back.
    Behind her floated a sheet of paper.
    Georgia!
    Quickly, Annie circled behind Crazy Serena, snatched the floating sheet of paper out of the air, and hid it behind her back before Crazy Serena could see it.
    "You must all be very tired by now," Crazy Serena said, using her sweet voice again. She was like Bad Cop and Good Cop all rolled into one person. "You must be hungry—thirsty, too. So I'll ask you again. And then, once you've given me the answers I want, we can all have that pizza I promised you earlier. Tell me what I want to know! "
    For the first time, we realized that every time she said the word pizza, she said just the singular word pizza, not pizzas. Did she really think she could feed eight growing girls with just one pie? What a stingy person.
    We stared back at her, silent and stony-faced. If we'd been made out of wood, we would have looked like totem poles.
    "Still not talking?" Crazy Serena said, heading back to the door. "Well, let's see how good you are at keeping silent when morning comes and you haven't eaten anything since lunchtime the day before!"
    Again, she was gone.
    We waited a moment, then:
    "Georgia," Annie whispered, "are you still here?"
    We had no way of knowing if Georgia had remained with us or if she'd followed Crazy Serena back out of the room.
    And then— poof!— Georgia was back with us.
    The McG blinked. Then she put her fingers under her glasses and rubbed her eyes.
    "I didn't just see that," the McG said. "A moment ago there was no Georgia and now— poof!— Georgia."
    But there was no time for explanations.
    "Just look at this," Georgia said hurriedly, grabbing the sheet of paper Annie had been holding, the better to show us what she was talking about.
    "But this just looks like a normal letter," Annie said after reading it, "that hasn't been sent yet."
    "But look at the signature!" Georgia said. "It says right there Serena Smith. Harkness isn't her last name! I found