The Book of Masks (Abridged)

A Conspiracy of Two

CALEB FROWNS as he studies the book, trying to turn its pages while fingering the mask. "Pretty freaking weird," he says for the fifth or sixth time that afternoon.

"I'm not making it up."

"I'm not saying you are. I mean, here's this thing," he says of the mask, "and a pretty damn good likeness it is too."

Actually, it's just a generic face, with a brow and nose and cheekbones and chin and the faint impression of a mouth. Still, it is far more subtle than anything you could have made on your own.

"The thing is," you say, "it's not good for anything until it's been polished, and I keep rubbing it and nothing happens."

"What, like Aladdin's Lamp?" Caleb asks sarcastically. "Maybe it's like getting scratches out of plexiglass. You have to rub it forever before it's smooth."

"Fuck, I haven't got time to work at it that hard."

"Whoever said magic would be easy? Look at computers and how much programming goes into them."

"Are you volunteering to polish it until it finally works?"

"Nah, let's make another one." He starts pulling out the ingredients you'd shown him. "I wanna see this magic stuff in action."

"Hang on," you sigh. "I got in trouble when I made this one. It makes a horrible smell." You think a moment. "Let's do it at the clubhouse."

Caleb blinks, then grins.

The "clubhouse" is actually the basement of an abandoned elementary school a few blocks away. Two years ago you found an outside door leading down into a basement storeroom. No one seems to go in there—though parts of the old school are now used as a community center—and you padlocked the door with a lock of your own. You'd shown it to Caleb and few others, and last Halloween you guys even hung out down there, telling ghost stories and drinking cheap liquor. It's been many months since you've been back, but it would be the perfect place to experiment.

Quickly you gather the supplies and take them out to Caleb's car. Your dad's face shows relief as you pull out of the driveway.

The basement is undisturbed, and Caleb watches as you set up tables and fans under the windows that peek out just above ground, but he stops you before you can begin. "Lemme try," he says. "I wanna see if this magic stuff only works for the guy who owns the book."

So under your guidance he mixes the ashes and pumice and other whatnot; he leaps back as it smokes and pops; you hold your noses and gag at the stench. Caleb dumps the mix over the upturned mirror and puts the match to it; he picks up the shell after the flames wink out, and it twists in his hand just as yours had.

He's breathing heavily. "I said I believed you weren't making it up. But actually I kind of didn't." He gulps. "But now I really do."

To be honest, part of you regrets he can also do the spells. But mostly you are relieved to have someone to share it with—and to help you decide what to do with it.

* * * * *

"You know, if these things work, we could pull some awesome pranks," Caleb says.

It's Wednesday, and you're sitting in the elementary school's semi-abandoned playground, each with a mask, polishing away. You'd discovered that intense rubbing at a single spot would buff a mask from a dull gray to a brilliant blue, so you and Caleb have gotten together each day after school to talk, horse around, watch a movie, or otherwise waste time while finishing off the masks. It's tedious work, but when you are done you will have two masks, doubling the amount of fun you can have.

"Except the books' really vague about how they work," you remind him. "I mean, how do we copy people into them?"

"I assume they're like a mold," Caleb says carelessly. "Like, you get up close to someone—" He mimes shoving his mask into your face.

"That's another thing," you reply. "How do we get close to the people?"

"Depends on who it is. Got any ideas?"

We'll there's Geoff Mansfield for a start; he's been hanging around Lisa lately and it would be nice to ruin his chances with her. There's also lots of guys at school you could pretend to be, so as to get close to their girlfriends: Marc Garner, Ricky Golia, Ethan Nieves—

"What about Jeremy?" says Caleb.

"Richards? Why?"

"Because he's a dick."

Well, there is that. Jeremy Richards was one of your friends in middle school, until he hit a growth spurt and tried out for the basketball squad. Now he hangs out with the jocks. He doesn't jeer at you and his other former friends, exactly, but he treats you like you're not cool enough for his company any more.

"And we could use him to get close to some other guys," Caleb continues, warming to his idea. "Like, clone yourself as Richards, then get close to Javits and clone him." He leans back with a grin. "Then call Cindy. So hey, wanna come over and suck my cock tonight?" he says, dropping his voice to imitate the basketball player's.

"Oh, God." You close your eyes and put your head back. The thought of that bosomy, willowy cheerleader slurping all over you, even if it's because she thinks you're her boyfriend ... "But how do we get the original people out of the way while—?"

Caleb shrugs. "We'll think of that when the time comes."

* * * * *

The time comes, as far as you're concerned, the next day, when you stumble onto Geoff and Lisa outside the cafeteria. You instantly take in the scene: Her, gazing into his face with the kind of rapt expression you wish she had looked at you with; him, gazing back with a cool half smile. "Guys," you mutter, and try to dodge past.

"Hi Will. Have a good weekend?" Lisa asks with careless grace.

"It was four days ago, I don't remember," you growl.

"What a busy life you must lead," Geoff says with light sarcasm.

The hair on the back of your head goes up. "What're you doing next weekend?" you ask Lisa; you'll be damned if you're going to let Geoff just scoop her up. "Wanna see that new CGI movie with me?"

"You don't want to see a cartoon, do you," Geoff sneers.

"I'm really not into those," Lisa says, and your jaw clenches.

"How about golf," Geoff suggests to her. "My uncle has a membership at the country club."

"Can Will come along?" she asks.

"I can only bring one guest."

"That's okay, I don't know anything about golf," you blurt out, then mentally kick yourself hard.

"We could all go see a movie on Sunday," Lisa suggests brightly. "That'd leave Saturday for something else." She smiles up at Geoff.

"We'll give you a call," Geoff tells you. He starts to leave, then pauses to look expectantly at Lisa. She follows him without even saying "Bye" to you.

* * * * *

You're at the clubhouse furiously buffing a mask when Caleb catches up. "Got an idea for who you wanna use it on, huh?" he says with gentle irony. You tell him of your encounter with Lisa and Geoff. "Jesus, Will, this is bigger than them. You need to expand your thinking. What's a little revenge—"

"It's not revenge! It's about saving her from him! The guy's a jerk and she's a— a fool if she can't see that. "

He laughs. "So you're gonna clone yourself as Geoff and act like a really big jerk, so she'll understand that he's a big jerk."

"Yean!"

"Oh, Christ."

"Look, don't try giving me advice! It's not like you've been a lot of help."

"Shut up." His tone catches your attention, and you look up to find him glowering at you. "I've been on your side, you know, so don't give me any shit."

His tone suggests there is more here than just anger at the way you snapped at him. "What do you mean?"

He looks at you steadily, and when he speaks he very calm, with none of the stuttering tone he's used before when discussing Lisa.

"She was never into you," he says matter-of-factly. "She just thought of you as someone to hang out with over the summer. But now school's back, and it's her senior year, and she's looking for a real boyfriend."

"Well, if that's your opinion—" you say, face flushing.

"It's not my opinion. Lisa won't tell me anything, but I've talked to Eva—you know, her best friend—and that's what she says."

"Well, Eva is a cunt."

"Maybe, but that's what she says Lisa told her."

You and Caleb stare at each other without blinking. When you look away, it's because you have to blink back hot tears of rage and humiliation.

Caleb leans forward. "Look, dude. Lisa's not worth it. I know she's pretty and she's usually nice. But there's something missing inside her. It's weird, but she'd be nicer if she were an actual bitch, like Kelsey and them. But she's not really that different."

You toss the mask away. It suddenly seems pointless. If Lisa really is that kind of girl, then who are you to come between her and Geoff? They deserve each other.

Caleb puts the mask back in your lap. "So she's not worth it," he says. "We can have fun with other people with these."

* * * * *

Caleb hasn't finished his mask when you meet in the clubhouse on Saturday, but yours is done, and he whistles appreciatively at it. "So who do we try it on?"

You've been giving it some thought, now that the point has come. "We don't know how they work. It could be dangerous."

"So who—?"

"Let's try it on Geoff. We could do it in the movie theater in the dark."

"You said it could be dangerous!"

"Well—"

"And I wont let you throw it away on Mansfield. Let's call Richards."

"So if it's dangerous, let's try it on ourselves."