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We’d been practising for half an hour, and they still wouldn’t stop arguing with me.
    â€˜So I can’t kick her in the face?’ Carrie complained. I was beginning to think it was her default tone.
    â€˜It would be hard to look realistic without actually kicking her in the face. Especially since – you’ll be wearing shoes, right?’
    â€˜Boots,’ Carla supplied, looking apprehensive. ‘Like those ones Reka was wearing.’
    I shook my head. ‘Bare feet can do more than enough damage.’
    â€˜I’d be careful,’ Carrie insisted.
    Muscles bunched in my jaw. ‘If you made contact, you could break her nose, cheekbones, teeth, jaw, or the orbit of her eye, give her concussion or make her bite through her tongue. And if you missed very badly, you could crush her windpipe.’
    â€˜And you probably wouldn’t even see it from the fifth row back,’ Kevin added.
    Carrie dropped her gaze. ‘I just want it to look good,’ she said, tugging her polar-fleece hem with short, sharp motions.
    â€˜Let’s practise the shoving again,’ Carla said quickly, going to stand between the boys. ‘Um, right. Lysander, whereto tends all this?’
    â€˜Away, you Ethiope!’ Lysander scowled and gave her a hearty shove that sent her stumbling halfway across the room.
    â€˜No!’ I shouted. ‘Lysander—’
    â€˜Patrick.’
    â€˜Right, Patrick – you can’t just push her like that. The movement comes from her. You okay, Carla? Then let’s try it again, slowly .’
    My brief temper tantrum had at least shut Carrie up for a while. We went through the rest of the scene until the bones of some decent work were there and I was sure they weren’t going to hurt themselves or each other accidentally, then called a break.
    On stage, Reka Gordon was cooing over the stocky, dark boy who played Bottom. She was really, really good, and I didn’t want her to be. I knew it wasn’t fair to dislike her without giving her a chance, but my skin crawled unpleasantly when I thought of that meeting on the hill and her creepy eyes. We waited in the wings until she yawned delicately and curled gracefully into sleep around the boy. She raised her head and shot us an irritated glare when we came in anyway.
    Iris was taking notes in her neat handwriting, but she immediately turned to me when I sat beside her.
    â€˜Did it go okay?’ she whispered.
    â€˜It needs more practice,’ I whispered back. ‘It’s pretty rough-looking up close.’
    Iris waved behind us at the vast expanse of the auditorium. ‘The forty-foot rule can take care of a lot of it,’ she said. ‘So, what do you think? Can you make it to the next three rehearsals?’
    I nodded, and felt ashamed of myself for not liking her more when she looked so grateful. ‘You’re the best, Ellie!’ She jumped to her feet. ‘Guys, it’s costume-fitting time! Come on back.’
    Everyone perked up and bounced toward the greenroom – except Reka, who apparently did not bounce; me, who was largely uninterested; and Kevin, who lagged behind to speak to me.
    â€˜Don’t you want to play dress-up?’ I asked.
    â€˜Oh, I do,’ he said, grinning. ‘I was holding out for Theseus in a feather cloak, but none of the local elders wanted to lend a taonga that precious to a bunch of ignorant students.’
    â€˜Theseus is Mori?’ I wondered.
    Kevin pointed at his chest. ‘Duh. It’s a reimagining of Shakespeare’s classic comedy for extra extreme relevance to modern New Zealand audiences. Come on, I told you this. Last night.’
    â€˜Oh, last night,’ I said pointedly. ‘I think I remember bits of it, before someone got me drunk and nearly expelled and dragged me into his play.’
    â€˜Come on, don’t lie. You love it.’
    I sighed and surrendered. ‘Okay. I like