“Like … I don’t know,” Amy said. Then she launched into her prepared statement. “Technology offers us a lot of new ways of communicating with other humans around the world. Maybe there’s a way it can help us communicate with animals, too.”

Mom looked unconvinced, and said, “Okay … but maybe you should think about teaming up with a lab partner. They might be able to help with some ideas and planning.”

Amy stayed silent. This was part of Mom’s wish list for her—meet new people, overcome anxiety, make more friends. Amy had more important things to worry about. And she knew that if what she had in mind worked out, Mom would never suggest she needed a lab partner ever again.

First things first, though: Katie would have to stay out of her way.

After dinner, Amy took Rover into the garage to work on her project. Stormy was lying there when they came in—the labradoodle liked the cool concrete of the floor on her belly—but jumped to her feet and began barking and whining the minute Rover walked inside. When they were out of the doorway and past Dad’s workbench, Stormy darted around them and fled back into the house.

Amy felt bad for scaring the dog off, but she needed space outside the house to work on her project, and anyway, Stormy had to learn a little coexistence now that Rover was their dog, too.

Amy knelt in front of Rover and held up her iPad so that he could look at the screen.

“Rover,” she said, “can you turn this off? Turn it off, boy.”

Rover stared at her quizzically.

“You want a treat?” She pulled a dog treat out of her pocket. Rover sniffed at it and stood, but Amy quickly stood up and backed away. “No. No treat for now. You have to wait.”

Rover sat back down. Amy stared at her screen and waited.

Nothing.

She tried holding the iPad closer and farther away from Rover, but there was still no change. Had she imagined it? She’d hoped that Rover’s messing with their screens had been a proximity thing—the closer you were, the less technology worked. Maybe, she thought, he had a magnetic field around him. But right now Rover looked like an ordinary German shepherd to her, maybe a little confused as to why he was out in the garage. Mentally, she cursed herself for submitting this crazy idea to the science fair, and for getting herself all worked up when Katie had said Rover had shut off their …

Wait.

Amy wandered into the house and found Katie watching Kung Fu Panda 2 with Mom.

“Psst!” Amy said, and when Katie looked up, Amy motioned for her to come join her.

“How did you know Rover turned off our screens the other day?” Amy asked once they were both out in the garage with Rover.

Katie glanced at the door back to the house.