That was where Stacey stepped in. "Hi . . . are you Rosie?"

"Yeah," said Rosie, still scowling.

"I'm Stacey. I'm going to walk you home."

Rosie answered with her two favorite words. "I know."

The girls said good-bye. Two of them were headed in the same direction as Rosie and Stacey, but they made sure to cross to the other side of the street.

Stacey felt bad for Rosie, but she knew how the other girls must have felt. Rosie was not easy to like.

»  "So, I hear you're a really good singer and tap dancer," Stacey said.

"Yeah," said Rosie.

"And good-in math and science," Stacey went on.

Rosie nodded. "English, too. I'm in the Grand Crossword Competition next week."

"Really?" said Stacey.

"Do you know what it is?" asked Rosie.

"Uh . . . no," Stacey admitted. "I guess it's a crossword puzzle contest, right?"

"The school finals," Rosie corrected her. "First I won the competition in my class, and then in the whole third grade. Now I go up against the fourth- and fifth-graders. It's going to be in the auditorium next Thursday. They put three huge puzzles on blackboards on stage, and we each work on one. The first person to complete one correctly wins."

"Sounds like fun," Stacey said. "Maybe I can help you prepare this afternoon."

"No," Rosie said. "Uncle Dandy's coming over. Didn't my mom tell you?"

"Uncle who?" asked Stacey.

"Uncle Dandy!" Rosie said. "You don't know about him?"

"No."

Rosie exhaled impatiently. "It was in all the papers. He's going to be the host of a talent show on TV called Uncle Dandy's Star Machine. It's going to be on Channel 3, with kids from all over central Connecticut."

"Wow," said Stacey. "Did he see you in a show or something?"

"No, my agent contacted him. She's bringing him over at four-thirty."