"Thank you for volunteering, Adrienne," the Magician smiled as the slightly plump, mousey young woman, with chin-length, thick black hair, stepped up onto the stage.

"Sure! Though I'm not sure what you're going to have me do yet." Her voice had just a bit of a squeak to it. "That's just a low table," she observed, staring at the only prop on the stage. "There's a thin metal channel in it."

"Oh, you're already doing it. For now I just need you to examine everything." The magician smiled, and his assistants brought out some plywood pieces. Adrienne looked at each one, touching them as the Magician placed them onto the table- first a square one, then two more, each about three feet long. His blue-haired assistant, Skye, came out with a power drill, and quickly screwed the two pieces together, then into the base.

"Okay, they're all normal. What were you planning?" Adrienne pushed her glasses back on her small nose.

"I was just going to saw a box in half tonight, with your help."

"Okay! I like using tools. But not a person, right? Oh. It's not a box yet."

"Don't worry, we've still got a few more pieces to go."

The assistants brought out more pieces for the volunteer to examine, and Skye put one of them on the other side, leaving the front open.

"Adrienne, does everything seem normal?" the Magician asked cheerfully.

"Yes, it does," his volunteer chirped.

"Would you mind helping Skye attach this last piece? Could you hold the two boards in place?"

Adrienne stepped in front of the box and held the corners at the top, but Skye tapped her shoulder. "You're in the way."

"Oh! Sorry. Would it be better if I stood here?" Adrienne climbed up onto the table, turned around, and held the corners of the box.

Skye smiled. "Perfect," she said, and screwed the front of the box in place, leaving the volunteer standing inside.

"Are the walls solid, Adrienne?"

She shook them. "Yes, very. I hope the saw is sturdy."

"All right, just one more piece for you to examine."

An assistant brought out one last square piece, and Adrienne examined it from her spot inside the box. "This one has two holes."

"Why don't you stick your hands through them, Adrienne?"

The brunette did, and the Magician slid some cuffs with a long chain around her wrists.

"Hey! I didn't expect that! Um, I can't pull my hands out now."

"That's fine, Adrienne. I needed you to make sure the wood was just as sturdy as the rest-"

"It is." She held the board low in front of her, a good 18 inches separating her wrists.

"Adrienne, just for fun, let's see if someone could fit inside the box, all right?"

"Okay!" She crouched down, pulling the board with her shackled hands onto the top of the box. "Hey, I fit! But it's a little bit tight." She wriggled her hands as Skye moved the board square with the top of the box, and held it in place.

"Adrienne, if someone were inside that box when it was sawed in half, do you think they could get out or avoid any blades?"

"No, I'm pretty sure they couldn't. Good thing nobody will be, right?" Her voice squeaked a bit, still muffled by the wood.

Skye screwed the lid securely in place, as one of the Magician's assistants handed him a long-bladed chainsaw.

He stepped behind the box. "Adrienne, I'm going to saw the box in half now."

"Oh. Okay, let me get out so I can help!" Her hands wriggled in the stocks. "Wait- the lid's stuck... Oh." Her voice went from concerned to resigned. "Someone is going to be inside, aren't they?"

Adrienne's hands writhed frantically in the shackles as the Magician fired up the chainsaw. Both Skye and the Magician had been careful to make sure the view of them had been unobstructed the entire time.

The Magician bent over, and any further comments from his volunteer were inaudible as the blade emerged at the bottom front of the box, having slid along the metal channel in the table. Slowly he drew the chainsaw blade upwards, sawing the box in half, and presumably its occupant as well.

Skye stepped close to one side and picked up the chain between the shackles to keep it from colliding with the chainsaw, as the Magician drew the blade up through the lid. The blade had completely bisected the box. Adrienne's hands were limp in the cuffs.

The Magician turned off the chainsaw, set it down, and turned towards the audience. "And now to prove the box has been completely sawn in half!" He and Skye grabbed the sides of the box, and pulled the two pieces apart as far as the chain would allow, revealing their volunteer sitting intact in the middle.

Adrienne blinked in the light, looking out to the audience, then waved her shackled right hand. "Hi everyone!" She leaned forwards and looked up at the Magician. "I guess you did saw just the box, after all!"

The Magician smiled as he unlocked the cuffs and helped his volunteer stand up and step off the table. "I told you I would, didn't I?" He took her hand and turned towards the audience. "Let's give Adrienne a hand, shall we?"

Adrienne blushed as the applause rolled in.