I looked around my house. It was nighttime. My sister had gone to bed, and my parents were in the kitchen. Perfect. I was dressed in dark clothing and thin rubber-soled shoes, and my hair was tied back. I was ready to go. Quietly, I opened the window of my room. The air felt cold. Slowly, I started easing the screen out of the frame. It was hard to not make a single sound because the screen was tightly fitted to the window frame. When the screen was halfway free, I silently climbed out onto the small roof overhanging the back door of my house. Then, I started sliding the two corners of the screen back into the frame. This time, the screen clattered against the frame loudly. I froze, straining my ears to see if my parents had heard the noise. I didn't hear any approaching footsteps, so I began walking down to the edge of the roof. When I got there, I cautiously peeked over the edge to see if my parents would notice when I climbed down. Good. They weren't in the kitchen anymore. Slowly, slowly, I slid off the roof and inched down a wooden post. I breathed a sigh of relief when I felt my toes touch the fence. I hopped off the fence and crept towards the shadows at the side of my house.

Checking both sides of the road, I dashed down my driveway and across the street. I ran a short way, keeping in the shadows until I reached a fence. Since my friend wasn't there yet, I sat down in the dark to wait for her. I wondered if she was still getting out of her house. Her house was difficult to "escape." She couldn't climb onto her roof like I could, she had to climb out her bedroom window and onto a tree branch. Then, she would have to close the screen while teetering on the tree limb and climb down the tree. She had a short distance to run, also, but her street had more trees to hide her. I laughed softly. There was no reason for my friend and I to sneak out of our houses like that. We could've just walked out the front door. There was no need for me to worry about my parents seeing me, either. They knew that I had an assignment to go on. The reason I had taken such precautions in getting out of my house was that I needed more practice in that field of my spying job. I usually had trouble getting in and out of buildings, especially if it was an unfamiliar one.

I belong to an organization called YES. It stands for Young Experienced Spies. At a young age, you are sent there to be trained. When you are about twelve or thirteen, you should have passed all the Secret Agent Training tests, which we call the SATs. This spy organization is kept a secret. How do your parents know to send you when you're a little kid? Well, all the parents of the kid spies now were former recruits. Their parents, also former recruits, sent them when they were children.

Suddenly, my acute hearing picked up the sound of footsteps. Oh, good. My friend had arrived.

"Well, Agent 13, it sure took you a long time to get here," I said to my friend with suavity.

"I know, I know, I had to read to my brother and sister. They insisted on it. They were jumping around and making these weird gesticulations," she replied.

"How are they doing in their training?" I asked curiously.

"Um, Ryan's passed the running test, and Katie's sharpening her senses," my friend informed me. "What's your sister doing?"

"Oh, Susan just earned her code calculator for passing the memory test," I answered.

"Hey, that's great! I remember, that test was so hard. I had to take it three times."

"Really? Susan passed it the first time. I sure don't doubt her sagacity." I declared proudly. "Hey, we don't have time for this. Where's the package?"

Agent 13 handed it to me. "Hey, Agent 71, I'm kinda glad Agent 00 found out about the NJHS agent working in the post office. It means we get to go on delivering assignments."

"Yeah, I guess so. Okay, now, you're going to Oyster Point to find Agent 15 and call him off duty, and I'm delivering this to Agent 50 in Plantation Colony, right?" I asked to make sure I had received my instructions correctly.

"Exactly. Now, going to Oyster Point will take me about ten minutes, how about you?"

"Well, let's see. From Riverbend North to Plantation Colony on foot. . .that would be about twenty minutes." I estimated. "Why don't you meet me at, say, Auto Check? Then, we could call Agent 00 for further instructions." I suggested.

"Great. Bring Agent 50 and I'll bring Agent 15." Agent 13 and I coordinated our Casio Illuminator watches and took off in opposite directions.

I sped across the road and ran along the sidewalk. Then, I reached a large clearing that was illuminated with traffic lights and street lamps. What could I do? Even though there was no moon tonight, I could be easily seen. I crouched in the foliage of a tree and sat very still. My heart was pounding from the hard running, but I was barely panting. I wondered how I could get across the field and into the shadows again.

Suddenly, I remembered a trick I had learned in Deception class. I pulled a very thin branch off a tree and held it as if I were walking a dog. I zoomed as fast as I could over the field, holding the stick in out in front of me. Anyone that saw me would think I had a small dog that was pulling me across the grass. The sleepy feeling in the air and the wind rustling in the tall grass probably helped create the illusion.

Once past the field, I dropped the limb and proceeded along the sidewalk. That trick had delayed me by one and a half minutes. I had to move faster. I ran quicker and quicker, the cold air catching in my throat and coming back in clouds of vapor. I ran past Plantation Bend and into Plantation Colony. Concealing myself in the shadows, I waited until a car had slowly passed by. The driver was probably member of NJHS, a rival spy organization. I looked around my surroundings carefully. If I could hide here, then so could other people. My senses detected nothing unusual, so I started in the direction of Agent 50's house. I ran up his driveway and looked through a crevice in the fence. Agent 50 was waiting for me, as planned. He took the package from me and hid it under a loose brick on the pathway. This package contained information about the next assignment. Agent 50 had to plan all the details.

Softly, he opened the gate and came out. We slipped into the safety of the shadows and ran. We darted out of Plantation Colony and past Plantation Bend. Then, we reached the clearing. This time, we didn't use my Deception trick. We just ran along the fences as invisibly as possible. Auto Check was right across the street. Seeing no cars or people, we dashed over and went in the door. Agents 13 and 15 were waiting for us. They were both drinking sodas.

"That's not a good idea, drinking liquids at a time like this," Agent 50 advised. "Agent 00 may have another assignment for us."

"Oh, I doubt it. It's such a quiet night, I bet nothing's happening," Agent 15 laughed in derision.

We called Agent 00. "Hurry! There's an emergency in the Highlands!" he told us. "Agent 29 has reported a strange disturbance at one of the swimming pools. Sounds like an NJHS agent is at work."

"Who is it?!!" we asked in unison.

"It's a girl in her early teenage years. She goes by the name "Shek" and has profound powers. Agent 15, please go with Agents 71 and 13. You will report back at twenty-three hours. Agent 50, return to your residence and work on the plans for your next assignment. Remember, all of you: proceed with dissimulation."

"Yes, sir! No, don't tell us. You were going to say, 'YES depends and YOU!'" We hung up.

"I hate those NJHS agents," Agent 50 said. "I'll never get done with my project for school at this rate!"

"What does 'NJHS' stand for?" asked Agent 15, who had just started this spying job.

"It stands for National Junior Handy Spies," I replied. "Now, let's go!" We all strapped our mini walkie-talkies to our heads. Agent 50 headed in the direction of Plantation Colony, while the rest of us started out for the Highlands. "Agent 13, I hope you know where we're going, because the Highlands are not my strong point. It's too large a neighborhood."

A few minutes later, Agent 15, 13, and I arrived at the swimming pool. We hid in the shrubbery outside.

"I don't see any thing, do you?" asked Agent 15.

Agent 13 and I both agreed that we didn't see any thing either. "Let's split up," I suggested. We moved along stealthily, trying not to make a sound. We quietly examined the pool and the area surrounding it, but we didn't see anything unusual. After checking one more time, we left and went to find a telephone so we could report to Agent 00.

Meanwhile, back in Plantation Colony, Agent 50 was having a little trouble. He was walking up his driveway when he heard a sound coming from his backyard. Instinctively, his ears went on alert. It sounded like someone was trying to get the loose brick in the pathway out! Agent 50 climbed over his fence quickly. He didn't want to alert the intruder by opening the gate.

In his backyard, Agent 50 looked around. At first, he couldn't see anyone, but then his eyes caught some slight movement in a corner of the yard. Agent 50 pretended he hadn't seen anything and went out the gate. He ran past two houses and found an opening in the fence. Noiselessly, he dashed through and sped to the back of his house. Agent 50 swung over the fence to where he had seen the intruder. He stopped in a defensive stance. When he saw the mysterious stranger trying to run across the grass and escape, he leapt in the air and delivered a snap kick. The intruder fell down. Agent 50 saw that the target of his kick was a very normal looking girl of about fourteen.

"Drop the package," he commanded sternly. The girl threw the package at his feet and stood up. Her head was down and her shoulders slumped. That was too easy, thought Agent 50. The girl looked up, and Agent 50 noticed a sly glint in her eyes. "Give me the REAL package, girl!"

The girl looked confused and mumbled something like "I just DID!"

Agent 50 rolled his eyes and said, "You asked for it!" He executed a roundhouse kick and knocked the girl down again. With a look of defeat, the girl handed him an identical package from her coat.

Agent 50 was getting irritated, but he didn't show it. On the outside, he looked calm and completely at ease. He took the second package and placed it with the first. He said, "Come ON! Hand over the REAL package!"

The girl stood up and hissed, "I DID!"

Agent 50 crossed his arms. "GIVE ME THE REAL PACKAGE!!" The girl sighed. This time, she pulled a similar package from the back of her coat. She thrust it in Agent 50's face. He blocked it with his arm and said, "Tell your boss she'll never get the best of YES!" With that, Agent 50 did a sweep kick and swept the girl out the gate.

This is what Agent 50 reported to Agents 13, 15, and I as we sat in my kitchen talking. Agent 00 had found Agent 50's story highly amusing. Suddenly, Agent 50 stood up and looked straight at me. He said, "Okay, Agent 71, hand me the REAL package!"

I gasped. "How did you know I had the real package?!!"

Agent 50 grinned and said, "I knew Agent 00 would be testing me sooner or later. I also knew Agent 00 would choose someone I trust for the job. You did a good job."

Agent 00 appeared. He came out of my pantry. "You were very clever, Agent 50. But I have had the real package all along!"

He smiled. "I gave Agent 13 a fake package. She passed it on to Agent 71. Agent 71 switched that fake package for another fake one and gave it to you. One of our own agents, pretending to be a NJHS agent, tried to steal it and outfox you at the same time. You weren't fooled, but you had the wrong package anyway." Agent 00 handed a package to Agent 50. "Good work. I can tell all of you will be valuable to YES for many years to come." Agent 00 opened the front door and left, laughing.

Agent 50 gazed at the three of us. He held up the package Agent 00 had given him and sighed with exasperation. "Okay. Which one of you has the REAL package?"

Agents 13 and 15 turned questioning eyes to me. I looked back at them, bewildered. Then, we all realized what Agent 00 and Agent 50 had been doing. "YOU have it!" Agent 50 started laughing.

"Yeah, I've had it all along. Every single package has been real. You guys are supposed to help me plan our next assignment." Agent 50 gave each of us a package and smiled. "This was YOUR test, not mine!"

We lunged at him jokingly. "And next time, it's YOUR turn!"

Much to my secret amusement, there was a community-service-oriented club called YES in my high school. I liked to picture the members going on silly spy missions whenever I heard the name mentioned. NJHS, of course, mocks the National Junior Honor Society which exists in middle schools. These lovely initiates usually grow up to be NHS members in high school.