professor."

[Illustration]

"Then," the professor said, in a tenser voice, "you think it might be
dangerous. You think you might be hurt, or that things might not work
out right, or--"

"Gee," Charley said, "I never thought of anything like that, professor.
I know you wouldn't want to hurt me."

"I certainly wouldn't," Professor Lightning said. "I want to help you. I
want to make you normal. Like everybody else."

"Sure," Charley said uncomfortably.

"Then you'll do it," Professor Lightning said. "I knew you would,
Charley. It's a great opportunity. And I offered it to you because
you--"

"Gee, I know," Charley said, feeling more uncomfortable than ever. "And
don't think I don't appreciate it. But look at it my way, professor." He
paused. "Suppose I had two arms--just like everybody else, the way you
tell me. What would happen to me?"

"Happen?" Professor Lightning blinked. "Why, Charley ... why, you could
do anything you liked. Anything. You'd have the same opportunities as
anybody else. You could be ... well, my boy, you could be anything."

"Could I?" Charley said. "Excuse me for talking about this, professor,
but I've had a lot of time to think about it. And it's all sort of new
to you. I mean, you weren't born the way I was, and so you just don't
understand it."

Professor Lightning said: "But, my boy--"

"No." Charley said. "Let me explain this. Because it's important." He
cleared his throat, sat down on the ground and fumbled for a cigarette.
He found one in his shirt pocket, carried it to his lips with his right
foot, and lit a match with his left. When he was smoking easily, he went
on.

"Professor, do you know how old I am?" he said. "I'm forty-two years
old. Maybe I don't look it, but that's how old I am. Now, I've spent all
my life learning to do one thing, and I do a pretty good job of it.
Anyhow, good enough to get me a spot with Wrout's show, and probably
with anybody else I wanted to work for."

"But your arms--?" the professor said.

"That's what I mean," Charley said. "I don't have any arms. I never had
any. Maybe I miss 'em, a little--but everything I do is based on the
fact that I don't have 'em. Now, professor, do you know what I am?"

Professor Lightning frowned. "What you are?" he said.

"I'm an Armless Wonder," Charley said. "That's a pretty good thing to
be. In a carny, they look up to an Armless Wonder--he's a freak, a born
freak, and that's as high as you can go, in a car