Ziggy Fluffenscruff stood in the middle of the P.I. Pack office. He was wearing a cape and holding a hat. “Hey, everyone! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat!” The young detective reached into the hat and then lifted his paw high in the air. It was empty.
“Umm, is it an invisible rabbit, kid?” joked Rora Gooddog. She was one of the city’s most brilliant detectives.
“Well, now what did I do wrong?” Ziggy looked down into the hat.
“Hmm . . . for starters, that’s my hat,” Rider said with a smile.
“Then where’s my hat?” Ziggy asked.
Westie Barker walked into the room wearing a top hat. He had been fixing a gadget in his lab. Slowly, the hat lifted up and a rabbit peeked out.
“Psst, Ziggy. What’s my cue?” the rabbit whispered.
“Rita Rabbit!” Ziggy barked. “How’d you get over there?”
“Nice hare-style, Westie,” Rora said.
Everyone had a chuckle, except for Westie, who didn’t get the joke.
“There’s a hare on your head,” Rider explained.
“Of course there’s hair on my head,” Westie said. “I’m a dog. I’m covered in hair.”
“No, they mean ‘hare,’ as in rabbit, as in me,” said Rita. She hopped off Westie’s head and onto a desk. “Hi! I’m Rita, Ziggy’s magician’s assistant. And actually, I’m a rabbit, not a hare.”
“Ohhhh,” Westie said, still confused. He took off the hat and put it on a desk. “Nice to meet you?”
Rita hopped back into the top hat. “Do you want to try again, Zig?” Rita asked.
“Duh!” said Ziggy. “If I want to be a magician, I need to practice!”
“Well, we all know there’s no such thing as magic,” Westie said. “It’s all an act.”
“Bow-wowza, Westie! You sure know how to ruin a magic trick,” Ziggy said with a frown.
“What can I say?” Westie said. “I am a scientist. That means I believe in science and facts.”
The phone rang, and Rider answered it. Suddenly, his face turned pale. “I see,” he said. “Thank you, Mr. Mayor.” Then he hung up.