Morning Star by Judith Plaxton Page B

around at the faces that now focused on him. “I haven’t got a title for it yet. I’m still organizing a few ideas.”
    â€œCan you tell us about it? Like, what’s the story?” Dodie asked.
    â€œI’ve been reading some myths for inspiration, so it’s set in ancient Greece. There are gods and goddesses, then these two main characters. I haven’t decided on their names yet, maybe Zeus and Diana, I’m not sure. They fall in love but their families don’t like each other. There’s lots of action and then a big mix-up at the end. They wind up dead in each other’s arms.”
    Sophie laughed. “Someone has already written a play like that. Ever heard of Romeo and Juliet?”
    â€œThis is totally different! It’s about Greek gods, and there are battles!”
    â€œSo let’s hear it.”
    Josh held the sheaf of papers against his chest. “It’s not quite ready. It’s a work in progress.”
    â€œI think we should do some stand-up comedy,” said Matt.
    â€œEasy for you. You’re funny, but the rest of us aren’t,” said Dodie.
    â€œI’ll provide jokes. Coach you. Like, here’s one: if a cat could talk…it wouldn’t. See? Come on everybody. It’ll be fun!”
    â€œExcuse me. We were talking about my play.”
    â€œBoring,” said Matt.
    â€œWe can make it interesting. I thought it could be interactive. Everybody can contribute. The dialogue would be really realistic.”
    The students looked at each other and shrugged shoulders.
    â€œI dunno.”
    â€œMaybe…”
    A buzzer signaled the return to class. They started their migration down the hall. Josh walked beside Felicia. “I was thinking of you, Felicia, for a part in my play.”
    â€œOh yeah?”
    â€œYeah. You could be Diana.”
    Felicia turned to Josh, open-mouthed with surprise. Josh’s face immediately flamed red. He ducked his head and fled to the classroom.
    Miss Peabody waited for them impatiently. “Come quickly and find your seats. The principal is going to make an important announcement to the whole school.”
    Mrs. Mackie’s voice crackled through the speaker high in the corner of the classroom.
    â€œStudents, this year marks the one hundred and fiftieth birthday of the school, and we are going to celebrate this special occasion with the production of a play.”
    Felicia turned to look at Josh as Mrs. Mackie continued. “Mr. Butler has kindly offered to contribute his very own creation. I pass the microphone to Mr. Butler.”
    Mr. Butler’s voice boomed into the room. “Hello, students! What a pleasure it is for me to share my play with you all. I’ve called it Happy Valley in honor of our community, as well as the school. It’s about our forebearers, the pioneers who came before us. Tryouts and casting will be next Monday in the cafeteria, then rehearsals start the following week. See you then!”
    Josh’s expression remained unchanged. Felicia admired his self-control. There wasn’t a glimmer of the disappointment he had to be feeling. She started to write him a note.
    Miss Peabody addressed her class. “Doesn’t that sound exciting? I know I can hardly wait. In keeping with this pioneer theme, I am giving you an assignment.” The collective groans did not dampen the teacher’s enthusiasm. “I want you all to research your family history. Talk to your parents and all of your relatives. Find out what you can about those people in your past. Then, I want you to write a speech and create a visual display to present your findings to the class. The format may vary. I would like to see objects and hear stories from your family’s past that can tell the class something about what life used to be like.”
    â€œHow long does it have to be?” asked Renate.
    â€œWhat if we find out something bad about our family, like we