The One and Only Willa Bean

by Cecilia Galante

  “Can you sing the first two lines?” Mr. Sunhorn asked. “Just by yourself?”

  Mr. Wingston sat up straighter and ruffled his chest feathers. “The sun is warm,” he rumbled. “The moon is bright.”

  Lucy beamed.

  “Oh, bravo!” Mr. Sunhorn clapped loudly. “What a voice! Mr. Wingston, promise me that you will sing extra loud on Noble Nimbus Day. I want everyone to hear that beautiful baritone of yours!”

  “With pleasure,” said Mr. Wingston.

  Willa Bean watched as Lucy petted Mr. Wingston’s long ear tufts. She watched as she gave him a squeeze and then an eyelash kiss.

  It wasn’t fair. Snooze had a wonderful voice, too, but Mr. Sunhorn had only said something to Mr. Wingston.

  Maybe Willa Bean had spoken too soon about that stomachache of hers.

  It was back again. And now it wasn’t just her stomach.

  She had a headache. And a wing-ache.

  And maybe even a heartache, too.

  Willa Bean felt a little bit better when the time came for the cupids to practice their twirly-wing dance. Dancing made her happy. And doing the twirly-wing dance made her even happier.

  She got in line behind Harper and tried not to wiggle.

  “Line up against the wall, cupids!” Mr. Rightflight blew his silver whistle as the cupids filed into the arena. Mr. Rightflight was the flying teacher at the Cupid Academy. He had red wings and not much hair. When he wanted to get the cupids’ attention, he blew the silver whistle around his neck.

  Willa Bean’s stomach did a little flip-flop when she heard Mr. Rightflight’s whistle. She was crazy about that silver whistle. It was bright and shiny and loud, too. It was super-treasure-plus.

  “First of all, I’d like to welcome all the flying friends!” Mr. Rightflight walked back and forth as he talked. “Having them here will add a lot of excitement to our Noble Nimbus Day celebration.”

  Class A cheered.

  Willa Bean jumped up and down.

  Miss Twizzle beamed.

  “Wizzle-dizzle-doodad!” said Harper. “It’s going to be the best Noble Nimbus Day ever!”

  “Wonderful,” said Mr. Rightflight. “Now, flying friends gather over here, next to Miss Twizzle, please.”

  Harper took Octavius out of her cloudsack. “I know you’re nervous,” she whispered, “but you have to go with everyone else, little buddy.”

  Octavius yawned. He looked around the big arena, but he didn’t move a wing.

  “He can come with me.” Snooze put a wing around the little bat. “Stay close, Octavius. We’ll do this together.” He flew off with Octavius at his side. Mr. Wingston followed. Soon they had joined the other flying friends next to Miss Twizzle.

  Mr. Rightflight walked back and forth in front of the flying friends. “Now, Miss Twizzle has told me that the long-eared owl is going to be our flag flier,” he said.

  Mr. Wingston took a step forward. He straightened the spectacles on top of his beak. “At your service,” he said.

  “After Mr. Wingston comes in with the flag,” said Mr. Rightflight, “the other flying friends are going to follow. They will be holding beautiful purple scarves and will spell out the letter N, for Nimbus, in the air. We need to practice a few times, of course, so let’s line up now from biggest to smallest. Buttercream Thistlepopper, let’s start with you. Your wings are enormous!”

  Vivi beamed as her butterfly scooted in behind Mr. Wingston.

  “After that, we’ll have Octavius,” Mr. Rightflight said.

  Octavius gave a squeak and hid behind Snooze.

  Mr. Rightflight read off a list of flying-friend names. “And then Bobo, Click, Ranger, and finally Snooze,” he finished.

  Willa Bean stood up. “But, Mr. Rightflight!” she shouted. “You said biggest to smallest! Snooze isn’t the smallest! Why is he last?”

  Mr. Rightflight closed his eyes.

  “Willa Bean!” Miss Twizzle called gently. “If you have a question for Mr. Rightflight, please raise your hand.”

  Willa Bean sat back down on the bench. She twisted a curl around her finger and gave it a good yank. Was she the only one who saw how unfair things were?

  Mr. Rightflight opened his eyes again. “I think this will work out quite nicely, Willa Bean,” he said.

  Harper leaned in next to Willa Bean. “I hope Octavius does all right. Group activities make him nervous.”

  “Don’t worry,” Vivi said loudly. “My flying friend will take care of everyone. She’s a queen. That’s her job.”

  Mr. Rightflight’s whistle sounded.

  Willa Bean jumped.

  “Oh!” said Lucy. She clapped her hand over her mouth. Her blue eyes were very wide. They followed Mr. Wingston as he flew through the air. Willa Bean watched, too. The big owl soared to the top of the arena. He held the purple-and-white flag in his claws. It fluttered and flapped as he turned and hovered high in the air.

  “Beautiful!” shouted Mr. Rightflight. “Now the others, please!”

  Slowly, the rest of the flying friends followed.

  Buttercream Thistlepopper.

  Octavius.

  Another flying friend.

  Then a couple more.

  Bobo was next.

  Then Click.

  And Ranger.

  And finally, Snooze.

  “I need Bobo and Click to stretch their wings out a little more!” said Mr. Rightflight. “That’s right! Terrific! Hold it there!”

  The animals hovered, floating above Mr. Wingston in the shape of a giant N. Their purple silk scarves fluttered out beneath them.

  “YAY!” Sophie shouted.

  “You look gorgeous, Buttercream!” Vivi shrieked.

  “Awesome, Click!” shouted Raymond. “You’re doing great!”

  “Don’t be nervous, Octavius!” Harper yelled. “And try not to fall asleep!”

  Lucy gave Willa Bean a nudge. Her eyes were shining. “Don’t they look great?” she whispered.

  Willa Bean stared up at the flying friends.

  Mr. Wingston looked great. Buttercream Thistlepopper looked great.

  Octavius looked nervous, but great, too.

  The other flying friends all looked great.

  But Ranger’s purple scarf kept blowing in front of Snooze.

  In fact, Willa Bean thought as her eyes began to fill with tears, she could hardly even see her little owl at all.

  That night at dinner, Willa Bean made a big mountain out of her peas. She had already scooped out the middle of her mashed potatoes. It looked like a lake. A piece of carrot stuck out of the middle of it. It was a carrot-fish.

  “What’s the matter, Willa Bean?” Mama asked. “You’ve hardly eaten a thing tonight. Aren’t you excited about your big day tomorrow?”

  Willa Bean kept making a mountain out of her peas. “Yes.” She sighed. “I’m very excited.”

  “Noble Nimbus Day!” Daddy said. “With all your flying friends! You certainly don’t sound very excited.”

  “It’s just that I don’t understand something,” Willa Bean said. “You told me that all the cupids get different flying friends.”

  “They do,” said Mama, shoveling a spoonful of peas into Baby Louie’s mouth.

  “Goo!” Baby Louie stuck a pea into his nose.

  “Every cupid always gets a completely different animal,” Daddy said. “That’s how it works.”

  “But that’s not what happened today,” Willa Bean said. “Lucy Summerbreeze has an owl, too. Just like me.”

  “Who’s Lucy Summerbreeze?” asked Ariel.

  Ariel was Willa Bean’s sister. She was in one of the older-cupid classes. Sometimes she could be a real pain in the wing.

  “She’s new,” Willa Bean answered. “She came today. And she has an owl, just like Snooze.”

  “Exactly like Snooze?” Daddy asked.

  Willa Bean nodded.

  “Lucy’s owl is a pygmy owl?” Daddy pressed. “From France?”

  “Well, no.” W
illa Bean piled some more peas on top of her pea-mountain. It was getting super-high. “Her owl is a long-eared owl. He wears glasses. I forget where he’s from.”

  “Well, there you have it!” Daddy said. “You don’t have the same flying friend at all. Long-eared owls are as different from pygmy owls as humans are from cupids.”

  “But I’m supposed to have the only owl,” Willa Bean said. “All the other cupids have onlies. Raymond has the only lightning bug. Harper has the only bat. Even Meany-Mouth Vivi has the only butterfly.” She sniffled back tears. “It’s not fair! I’m the only one without an only!”

  Ariel rolled her eyes. “Willa Bean, there are only so many flying animals in the world, you know. It’s not that big a deal that someone else has a different kind of owl. Don’t be a baby.”

  “Ariel,” Daddy warned, “be kind to your sister, please. And, Willa Bean, I do not want to hear you calling anyone in your class a ‘meany-mouth.’ Remember the Cupid Rule.”

  Willa Bean stared down at her pea-mountain. The Cupid Rule went like this:

  The very best way

  To spend your day

  Is to try to be kind—

  All the time.

  It was a short rule. But it was hard to follow. In fact, sometimes it felt like one of the hardest rules of all.

  Daddy patted Willa Bean’s hand. “Ariel is right about one thing, little love. There just aren’t enough flying animals to go around. Sometimes cupids have different species of the same animal.”

  “What’s a species?” Willa Bean asked.

  “It’s just a type of animal,” Daddy said. “Like elf owls and spotted owls and long-eared owls and pygmy owls. So none of them are really the same at all.”

  Willa Bean rolled another pea onto her mountain. She stared sadly as it rolled off and slid to the other side of her plate. She didn’t understand what Daddy was talking about. Not even a little bit.

  Besides, what did species have to do with onlies?

  Nothing, that’s what.

  Nothing at all.

  After dinner, Snooze and Willa Bean took a pajama flight. The sky was a soft blue with a little bit of gray underneath, and the sun was almost gone. Willa Bean flew ahead, trying to think.

  It was hard.

  She had a lot on her mind.

  Mostly about onlies.

  And Snooze. And Mr. Wingston, too.

  “Willa Bean?” Snooze called from behind. “What’s the matter? You haven’t been yourself all day.”

  Willa Bean shook her head. How could she tell Snooze that she felt bad that he wasn’t an only anymore? And how could she tell him that she was worried because Mr. Wingston was bigger—and maybe even better at owl things—than he was? She did not want to hurt Snooze’s feelings. Not even a little bit.

  “Willa Bean?” Snooze said again. “Don’t you want to tell me?”

  Willa Bean shook her head.

  “I think you’re a little nervous about tomorrow,” Snooze said, flying in close. “There will be a lot going on. Maybe you’re feeling overwhelmed.”

  “What does overwhelmed mean?” asked Willa Bean.

  “It means that something feels like a lot,” Snooze answered. “Maybe too much at the moment.” He tugged on one of Willa Bean’s curls. “But remember, ma chérie. No matter how overwhelmed you feel, I’ll be with you the whole time. Right next to you.”

  Willa Bean leaned in and gave her little owl an eyelash kiss.

  She knew how lucky she was to have a flying friend like Snooze.

  But for the first time in her life, she wished he was a little bit bigger.

  And that he wore spectacles, too.

  “Good-bye, Mama!” Willa Bean waved from her seat as the cloudbus pulled away. “Good-bye, Baby Louie!”

  “Good-bye, sweetheart!” Mama called. “Good-bye, Snooze! We’ll see you both in a little while!”

  “Au revoir!” Snooze adjusted the black hat he was wearing. It was called a beret and was from France. Snooze liked to get fancy on special occasions.

  Then Snooze looked at Willa Bean. “What are you doing, Willa Bean?”

  “Looking at myself.” Willa Bean stared at herself in the cloudbus window. “I want to look beautiful for Noble Nimbus Day. And especially for the twirly-wing dance.”

  “You look sensational,” said Harper.

  “Thank you.” Willa Bean patted her hair on the right. She patted her hair on the left. She pushed it down on top and tried to squish it flat. Mama had tried the same thing that morning. But her hair only boinged out again. Well, she just couldn’t help it. Her hair had a mind of its own.

  Next, she stood up and smoothed down the front of her uniform. Mama had ironed it that morning, so there were no wrinkles. Plus, it was very clean. Willa Bean had found a few cloud treasures on the way to the cloudstop. She had put them in her hair instead of her pockets so that her uniform wouldn’t get dirty. Now she just had to try to keep it clean.

  Suddenly she heard her name being called. Her long name. The one Mama used when she was not pleased with something Willa Bean was doing.

  “Wilhelmina Bernadina Skylight!” Mr. Bibby called from the front of the bus. “Sit down, please!”

  Willa Bean sank down into her seat. She could feel Mr. Bibby watching her in his rearview mirror as he brought the cloudbus to a stop.

  “I’d like to talk to you for a moment, Willa Bean,” Mr. Bibby said. “Please come up here.”

  “Wizzle-dizzle-doodad!” Harper stared at Willa Bean. “Take a deep breath, Willa Bean!”

  “Let’s go, ma chérie.” Snooze fluttered his wings.

  Willa Bean walked slowly up to the front of the bus. Everyone was watching her. She pulled at the hem of her uniform and took a deep breath.

  “That’s a very sharp bow tie you have on today, Mr. Bibby,” she said. “Red is definitely your color.”

  Mr. Bibby straightened his bow tie. “I take my job as a cloudbus driver very seriously, Willa Bean,” he said. “And I have rules on this bus for a reason.” He tugged gently on one of Willa Bean’s curls. “There is only one of you, Willa Bean Skylight. And I want you to be safe, to make sure it stays that way.”

  “All right,” Willa Bean whispered. “I’ll try harder, Mr. Bibby.”

  “Thank you.” Mr. Bibby turned back around. “Take your seat now. Miss Twizzle is not going to be pleased if I bring her cupids in late for Noble Nimbus Day.”

  The sound of buzzing and fluttering and flapping and hooting filled the room as Willa Bean, Harper, and Lucy walked into Class A.

  “Maybe Octavius isn’t the only one who’s nervous,” Harper said. She pointed at something across the room. “Look!”

  Willa Bean looked. Vivi was jumping up and down and reaching with her arms. Above her, Buttercream Thistlepopper flew in circles. Once, twice, a third time. “Come down, Buttercream!” Vivi shrieked. “It’s all right! Just come down!”

  “Hoo boy,” said Snooze. “I have a feeling today is going to be a very long day.”

  “You can say that again,” said Mr. Wingston.

  Harper hurried to her desk. “It’s almost time for the bell,” she said. “And I want to give Octavius a little pep talk before we start.”

  “If you can wake him up,” said Willa Bean.

  “Yes.” Harper sighed. “If I can wake him up.”

  Willa Bean sat at her desk with Snooze. She watched as Vivi got her butterfly to come back down. Then she straightened Snooze’s hat. “You look handsome, Snooze,” she said.

  “Merci,” said Snooze. “Good luck today, Willa Bean.”

  “Merci,” said Willa Bean. “You too.” She snuck a peek in Lucy’s direction. Lucy was smoothing Mr. Wingston’s ear tufts and straightening his spectacles. She didn’t seem worried because Mr. Wingston wasn’t the only owl in the room. But maybe that was because Mr. Wingston had so many important things to do.

  Snooze didn’t have anything important to do. Not even a little bit.

  “All rig
ht, cupids!” Miss Twizzle said. “I know everyone is excited, but we have to settle down! Parents are already starting to come into the building.”

  A murmur swept through Class A.

  Willa Bean’s knees hopped up and down under her desk.

  “We’ll bring them in here so they can see your artwork first,” said Miss Twizzle. “Then we’ll sing our class song for them and take them to the arena for our big finale!” She clapped her hands together once. “Is everyone ready?”

  “YES!” shouted Class A.

  “Are all the flying friends ready?” Miss Twizzle asked.

  “YES!” shouted all the flying friends.

  “Oui!” shouted Snooze.

  “Wonderful!” Miss Twizzle’s cheeks were turning pink. “Let’s make this a Noble Nimbus Day to remember!”

  Willa Bean waved wildly as Mama, Daddy, and Baby Louie came through the classroom door. They were in line with the rest of the cupid parents. Mama looked especially beautiful. She had curled her long blond hair and put on a golden necklace.

  “Over here, Mama!” shouted Willa Bean. “Here I am, Daddy!”

  Daddy waved.

  Mama smiled and put a finger against her lips.

  “Willa Bean,” Snooze warned.

  “I know, I know.” Willa Bean wiggled back down in her seat. “I’m just wriggly!”

  The next hour went quickly. Willa Bean showed Mama, Daddy, and even Baby Louie all the drawings she had done that year. It took a long time. There were a million-bajillion of them.

  “What’s that one, little love?” Daddy asked.

  “That’s me and Harper,” said Willa Bean. “We’re looking for cloud treasure.”

  “Ah,” said Daddy.

  “Your drawings are beautiful,” Mama said. “And so detailed! I love the piece of cloud treasure in Harper’s hand.”

  Willa Bean wrinkled her nose. “That’s not cloud treasure!” she said. “That’s a Snoogy Bar!”

  “Bah!” shouted Baby Louie.

  “Oh,” said Mama. “Of course.”

  After artwork, it was time for the cupids to sing their school song. Mama, Daddy, and Baby Louie followed the rest of the parents into Mr. Sunhorn’s music room. They sat down in chairs, while the cupids stood in the front of the room.