facts spoke for themselves. And so did the cheer that Kate and Ella started on the bus ride:
Two, four, six, eight, who do we appreciate?
Sophie!
Sophie!
Sophie the Hero!
A t school, Sophie dropped Ella off at her kindergarten classroom. (Ella clung to her arm the whole way there, which was kind of cute … and kind of not.) Then she and Kate hurried to their third-grade class in room 10.
Sophie was just about to walk through the door when she stopped short.
“Oof!”
grunted Kate as she bumped into Sophie’s backpack. “Why did you stop here?”
Sophie pulled Kate away from the door. “You need to introduce me!” she told her.
Kate’s forehead made a wrinkle. “But everybody already knows you,” she said.
Sophie lowered her voice. “Not as Sophie the Hero,” she said.
“Oh, right!” Kate waggled her eyebrows and grinned. Then, slowly, her grin got smaller.
“What?” Sophie asked.
“Well …,” Kate began. She shrugged. “It’sjust … it’s great that you’re a hero. But I feel a little left out.”
“Oh, don’t!” Sophie said. She put her hands on her friend’s shoulders. She had never thought that her being a hero would be hard for Kate.
“Don’t forget,” Sophie told her, “you’re the
best friend
of a hero. In fact —” A thought suddenly hit her. “You’re like my … What do they call them?”
“Sidekick?” said Kate.
Sophie beamed. “Exactly! You’re like my sidekick!” And how perfect was that? Every hero needed one of them!
Kate thought about it for a second and her grin came back even bigger.
“Feel better?” said Sophie.
“Much better!” Kate said. “Sidekicks get the coolest jobs, and they’re funny, like me. Now for that introduction!”
With that, Kate left Sophie in the hall and stepped into room 10.
“Ladies and gentlemen! And everyone else, too,” Kate declared. (Sophie bet she was talkingto yucky Toby Myers and Archie Dolan.) “May I have your attention, please?”
Sophie heard the class get quiet, no kidding. Wow! How lucky was she to have Kate for a sidekick? Kate was very good at it already!
“What is it?” someone said.
That was when Kate grabbed Sophie and pulled her into the room.
“I’d like you to meet the one, the only … Sophie the Hero!” Kate cried.
“Sophie the who?”
“Sophie the what?”
Sophie took a bow and cleared her throat. “Sophie the Hero,” she said.
And just as Sophie had hoped, she and Kate got to tell the Slinky story all over again.
And again!
“Wow, you
are
a hero!” said Eve, Mia, Sydney, and Grace when it was over.
“Maybe we should call you Sophie H. instead of Sophie M.,” said Sophie A., the other Sophie in her class. “For ‘Sophie the Hero.’”
Sophie thought about it for a second, then shook her head. No. “Sophie the Hero” was better. She was pretty sure of that.
“I am happy to sign autographs,” Sophie said. “Does anyone have a pen?”
“Wait a minute,” said a snooty voice. It belonged to Mindy VonBoffmann. Her name would be Mindy the Meanie if Sophie had anything to say about it.
“What happened to the Slinkys?” Mindy asked. Sophie shrugged. “Mrs. Dixon picked them up.”
“Then isn’t
she
the real hero?” Mindy said. She crossed her arms and made a face that Sophie’s mom would have called sassy.
“Yeah,” Lily Lemley chimed in. She liked to copy Mindy, so she made her face look just the same. “If Mrs. Dixon saved the Slinkys, she’s the real hero,” Lily said.
“What are you talking about?” Kate said. “Sophie saved a kindergartner! Who cares about the Slinkys?”
“They only cost a dollar or something,” Ben added. “Kindergartners cost a lot more.”
Good old Ben. Sophie turned to smile at him.
She truly felt like a hero. And that felt really good!
But Mindy just shrugged. “I guess,” she said. “Still, it’s only one kindergartner. It’s not like she saved five kittens from a burning building, like Scarlett the cat.
Two, four, six, eight, who do we appreciate?
Sophie!
Sophie!
Sophie the Hero!
A t school, Sophie dropped Ella off at her kindergarten classroom. (Ella clung to her arm the whole way there, which was kind of cute … and kind of not.) Then she and Kate hurried to their third-grade class in room 10.
Sophie was just about to walk through the door when she stopped short.
“Oof!”
grunted Kate as she bumped into Sophie’s backpack. “Why did you stop here?”
Sophie pulled Kate away from the door. “You need to introduce me!” she told her.
Kate’s forehead made a wrinkle. “But everybody already knows you,” she said.
Sophie lowered her voice. “Not as Sophie the Hero,” she said.
“Oh, right!” Kate waggled her eyebrows and grinned. Then, slowly, her grin got smaller.
“What?” Sophie asked.
“Well …,” Kate began. She shrugged. “It’sjust … it’s great that you’re a hero. But I feel a little left out.”
“Oh, don’t!” Sophie said. She put her hands on her friend’s shoulders. She had never thought that her being a hero would be hard for Kate.
“Don’t forget,” Sophie told her, “you’re the
best friend
of a hero. In fact —” A thought suddenly hit her. “You’re like my … What do they call them?”
“Sidekick?” said Kate.
Sophie beamed. “Exactly! You’re like my sidekick!” And how perfect was that? Every hero needed one of them!
Kate thought about it for a second and her grin came back even bigger.
“Feel better?” said Sophie.
“Much better!” Kate said. “Sidekicks get the coolest jobs, and they’re funny, like me. Now for that introduction!”
With that, Kate left Sophie in the hall and stepped into room 10.
“Ladies and gentlemen! And everyone else, too,” Kate declared. (Sophie bet she was talkingto yucky Toby Myers and Archie Dolan.) “May I have your attention, please?”
Sophie heard the class get quiet, no kidding. Wow! How lucky was she to have Kate for a sidekick? Kate was very good at it already!
“What is it?” someone said.
That was when Kate grabbed Sophie and pulled her into the room.
“I’d like you to meet the one, the only … Sophie the Hero!” Kate cried.
“Sophie the who?”
“Sophie the what?”
Sophie took a bow and cleared her throat. “Sophie the Hero,” she said.
And just as Sophie had hoped, she and Kate got to tell the Slinky story all over again.
And again!
“Wow, you
are
a hero!” said Eve, Mia, Sydney, and Grace when it was over.
“Maybe we should call you Sophie H. instead of Sophie M.,” said Sophie A., the other Sophie in her class. “For ‘Sophie the Hero.’”
Sophie thought about it for a second, then shook her head. No. “Sophie the Hero” was better. She was pretty sure of that.
“I am happy to sign autographs,” Sophie said. “Does anyone have a pen?”
“Wait a minute,” said a snooty voice. It belonged to Mindy VonBoffmann. Her name would be Mindy the Meanie if Sophie had anything to say about it.
“What happened to the Slinkys?” Mindy asked. Sophie shrugged. “Mrs. Dixon picked them up.”
“Then isn’t
she
the real hero?” Mindy said. She crossed her arms and made a face that Sophie’s mom would have called sassy.
“Yeah,” Lily Lemley chimed in. She liked to copy Mindy, so she made her face look just the same. “If Mrs. Dixon saved the Slinkys, she’s the real hero,” Lily said.
“What are you talking about?” Kate said. “Sophie saved a kindergartner! Who cares about the Slinkys?”
“They only cost a dollar or something,” Ben added. “Kindergartners cost a lot more.”
Good old Ben. Sophie turned to smile at him.
She truly felt like a hero. And that felt really good!
But Mindy just shrugged. “I guess,” she said. “Still, it’s only one kindergartner. It’s not like she saved five kittens from a burning building, like Scarlett the cat.
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