by Ahmet Zappa
“Good idea!” Adora paused a moment, composing the mantra in her head, then said, “Star a are you. Logic your use.”
Nothing.
Then she tried another approach. Instead of looking in the mirror, she turned her back to it and said the mantra again. But Adora could tell by Cassie’s expression that that hadn’t worked, either. Neither did saying it backward while facing backward.
“Maybe we should go back to the bathroom,” Adora said.
“I don’t think we should take a chance that anyone sees you,” Cassie said. “We can try a few more things first. I know the Power Crystals didn’t make a difference on Starland, but on Wishworld, Astra’s really did open a door. Say your Mirror Mantra, Adora, and I’ll wave my crystal.”
Cassie held out her lunalite, a cluster of teardrop-shaped jewels glowing with pink moonlight.
This has to work! thought Adora. She closed her eyes and said her Mirror Mantra one more time while Cassie waved the crystal all around her. Then she held her breath, expecting to feel the change from the tips of her glittery toes to the top of her sky-blue head.
Nothing!
Just then, Hannah walked into the tent. She and Cassie gasped at the same time. “Who is that?” they both cried.
“It’s okay, Cassie. It’s my Wisher. I told her everything,” said Adora. Then she turned to Hannah. “This is my friend Cassie,” she explained. “She’s a Star Darling who’s here to help.” She filled Hannah in on what they’d been trying to do to reverse her appearance.
“Hmmm.” Hannah thought a moment. “What did you do to look human?”
“I recited the ‘Star Light, Star Bright’ poem,” Adora said. She grinned. “Good thinking, Hannah! Let’s try that.”
Adora recited the poem, but there was no change. “Should I say it backward?” she asked Cassie.
“Let’s try the Power Crystal again while you say it the regular way first,” said Cassie.
That time it worked! Once again, Adora looked like a Wishling—no glow, no sparks.
Quickly, she hugged Cassie, then Hannah. “You are the best Wishling ever!” she cried.
“Well, you’re the best Starling,” Hannah replied. She smiled at Cassie. “No offense.”
Once again, Adora and Hannah burst into giggles. “I don’t know why I’m laughing like this!” Adora said, clucking like a glow-hen and snorting. She had never been much of a giggler before she’d met Hannah.
Hannah pushed Adora so she faced the mirror and could see her own laughing expression. “Has anyone ever told you you’re Adora-ble?” she asked.
Adora laughed so hard her sides ached.
“Okay, okay,” Cassie finally said. “Your appearance is fixed. Now we can concentrate on the wish.”
Immediately, Adora sobered.
“If you don’t mind my asking, what is it?” Cassie said.
Adora and Hannah exchanged looks. “You tell her,” said Adora. “It’s your wish.”
Hannah nodded. “I wish I had the confidence to make new friends.”
Cassie gazed searchingly from Adora to Hannah. “You mean you don’t want to be afraid to talk? You want to feel secure enough to be friendly and open? So you can make friends with people you don’t really know?”
Hannah sighed. “That’s it exactly. How did you know?”
“Because I know exactly how you feel.” Again, Cassie glanced from Adora to Hannah. “And I have great news for you!”
Adora knew Cassie had had a hard time when she first got to Starling Academy. An orphan without siblings, Cassie had traveled often with her uncle, a best-selling novelist, and had a private tutor. So when she’d arrived at Starling Academy, she hadn’t felt comfortable with other students—at first. Hannah and Cassie really have a lot in common, Adora thought. But right then, she just wanted Cassie to get to the point.
“So?” she prodded.
“Adora, you’ve already helped grant Hannah’s wish. It’s just that neither of you realize it.”
Adora gripped Hannah’s hand. “What is Cassie talking about? Did you make friends at the bonfire? You’ve been spending so much time with me, how did you even manage it?”
Hannah’s eyes opened wide. “I didn’t make friends at the bonfire. I made a friend right here.”
Cassie grinned. “You bet your stars you have! Adora, you granted Hannah’s wish by opening up to her and needing her friendship. You gave Hannah confidence. And just look at you two!”
She pointed down, and the girls noticed they were still holding hands. “You’ve bonded. You’re real friends.”
“Oh, my stars,” said Adora, finally realizing it for herself. “We do have fun together.”
Hannah giggled. “We are real friends,” she agreed. “So what happens now?”
“Now your wish energy is supposed to fly through the air in a colorful stream, straight into my Wish Pendant.”
Everyone looked at the watch expectantly.
When nothing happened, Adora rubbed her hands together, pacing back and forth. “Maybe you’re not entirely there yet,” she finally said to Hannah. “You need proof you’re a friend worth having.”
Hannah groaned. “So now I have to knowingly make a friend?”
Adora grinned. “Yup! But let’s wait until morning. It’s so late now everyone must be sleeping. You’d only make enemies if you tried now!”
That night, Adora stayed up for hours, thinking things through. If everything worked out, she’d be back on Starland before too long. And she still didn’t know what to think about Lady Stella.
By the time the sun rose the next morning, she wasn’t any closer to a conclusion. So finally, she closed her eyes.
She and Cassie slept through breakfast and well into the day while Hannah worked at the arts and crafts cabin. Right before lunch, the Starlings met her at the agreed-upon spot: a picnic table outside the mess hall.
Adora was so certain Hannah’s wish would be granted that she’d packed up her tent and all her belongings.
“Okay,” she said, getting right down to business. “Here come Jess and Allie. Call them over.”
“Right now?” said Hannah. “Can’t we have lunch first?”
“Now,” Adora said firmly.
Hannah ducked her head, leaning down to scratch her knee. A nervous gesture, Adora thought, and her heart went out to her. This was difficult for Hannah. Just because Adora could march right up to the girls and start talking didn’t mean it was easy for someone else.
“Do it fast,” she advised. “It will be easier that way.” She glanced at the girls. “And they seem to be in a hurry.”
“Hey! Allie! Jess!” Hannah called loudly.
The girls stopped and looked at her in surprise.
Hannah sidled closer. “Um…what’s going on?” she said much more softly.
“We have to see the nurse.” Allie’s voice sounded strained. “Look!” She and Jess held out their arms. Red blistery rashes streaked their skin. Jess scratched hers, making it look even worse.
“It’s so itchy,” Jess complained. “It’s got to be poison ivy.”
She glanced at Adora and Cassie curiously. “Oh,” said Hannah, “Adora and Cassie are visiting for the day.” She smiled. “They’re my friends.”
Jess nodded absently. “Well, that’s nice. But we’ve really got to run. We must have gotten poison ivy at the bonfire. We woke up with the rash this morning, and we should get it taken care of as soon as possible.”
The girls started to edge away.
Adora looked around, hoping for an idea, a way to get them to stay, and she noticed Hannah’s knees. They were red and blotchy, too. “You have that poison ivy thing, too,” she whispered loudly. “Tell them!”
“Oh!” said Hannah, raising her voice even louder than before. “I have it, too! On my knees!”
Everyone bent closer to look. “You’re right!” said Allie. “Isn’t it awful?”
“It is,” Hannah agreed. “But you know, Adora has some amazi
ng lotion for rashes and bug bites.” She winked at Adora. “Maybe it would work on poison ivy, too.”
The sunscreen! Hannah wanted her to pretend to use it so she could heal the rash—and maybe help the girls bond even more. Luckily, Adora had the bottle in her backpack. She’d been planning to examine its chemical makeup back on Starland. There wasn’t much left. She hated to use it. But it had to be done.
She rifled through her backpack, feeling around for the bottle, pushing aside the tent, the camp T-shirt, and other Wishworld specimens she’d picked up. “Here it is!” she said triumphantly.
She poured out just a smidgeon.
“Is that enough?” asked Jess anxiously.
“Enough for all of you!” Adora said cheerfully.
She crouched down and applied the lotion to Hannah’s knees first, then to Allie’s and Jess’s poison ivy patches. She made sure to hold her hand over each spot.
Starsecs later, all three girls were smiling. “Thank you!” Allie said. “That is amazing stuff!”
“I know, right?” said Hannah. “By the way, be careful by the canoes. There must be a beehive nearby. I got stung there yesterday.”
“You did?” said Allie. “I am totally afraid of bees.”
Adora and Cassie stepped away as the three Wishlings compared their camp histories of bites, stings, and rashes. Then they moved on to camp plays, swim tests, and Color War.
Color War? Adora didn’t remember that one from Wishling History class. Hopefully, the war was pretend, since this was just camp, after all.
Then Hannah turned to Adora and smiled so widely that Adora knew her Wisher’s wish had come true. Right on cue, wish energy streaked through the air, streaming into her Wish Pendant. Adora and Cassie watched, openmouthed. It was startastically beautiful.
“Let’s all go to lunch together!” Hannah said, waving at the Starlings to join the group.
“Great!” said Allie.
“Hannah, I need to talk to you for a minute,” said Adora.
“We’ll save seats, Hannah,” Jess said as she and Allie headed toward the mess hall.
“Well, that went great!” said Hannah happily. “I just know I’ll be friends with those guys.” She looked at Adora. “You don’t seem very excited.”
“Oh, I am,” Adora said. She sighed. There was another of those little light lies. But that would be her last on Wishworld. “It’s just that now my mission is over and we have to leave.”
Hannah’s face fell. “You won’t even stay for lunch?”
Adora was about to say yes, but Cassie elbowed her. “It’s time to go back,” Cassie said gently.
“Of course.” Adora tried to sound brisk and unemotional, the way she normally would. But her voice broke. “You are a true friend, Hannah,” she told her Wisher. “I haven’t laughed this hard since I was a wee Starling.” Two big tears rolled down her cheeks. Again! thought Adora. That was really too much. “I’ll always remember you.”
“And I’ll remember you,” said Hannah.
Adora knew that wasn’t true; Hannah wouldn’t remember a thing. All Adora had to do was hug her Wisher and Hannah’s memory (and everyone else’s) would be wiped clean. She’d have no idea who Adora was and would certainly not remember anything about Starland. Adora thought it kinder not to tell her.
“I almost forgot!” Hannah said. “I made you something in arts and crafts.” She reached into her pocket and drew out a long multicolored braid. “It’s a friendship bracelet,” she explained.
“I love it!” exclaimed Adora. She held out her wrist and Hannah fastened the bracelet.
“It’s time to go,” Cassie reminded her.
Half smiling, half frowning, Adora hugged Hannah. When she moved away, Hannah looked at her blankly.
“Are you new at Moose Lake?” she asked.
Adora shook her head. “No, we’re just visiting to see if we’d like to work here next summer.” Oops! That was definitely the last little light lie.
“Oh, you would love it here!” Hannah said, smiling. “Everyone is so friendly!”
Who knew? Maybe Adora hadn’t lied. Maybe somehow she’d find her way back. She could be one of Hannah’s summer friends who came back year after year.
Adora wanted to believe it so badly she almost did.
“Good-bye, Hannah,” she said as she and Cassie walked away.
“Wait!” called Hannah. “How do you know my name?”
It took all her strength, but Adora didn’t turn around. She just looked ahead toward the clearing, where she and Cassie would unfold their shooting stars and take off for home.
Adora was sitting between Cassie and Tessa in Lady Stella’s office. Somehow, she’d wound up by the two Star Darlings with whom she’d shared missions. Fitting for the Wish Orb ceremony, she supposed.
Adora noted the mood around the table. Everyone was subdued. They all spoke in hushed tones, even when they congratulated her, as if acting too happy would make the Starland situation worse.
Adora was quiet, too, thinking wistfully of Hannah and Moose Lake Camp. She touched her bracelet. Why do they even call it Moose Lake? she wondered. She hadn’t seen any actual creatures that looked like the camp logo. Uncle Hal should really change the name to Bee Lake Camp. Or Clover Lake. Or even Poison Ivy Lake.
“Star greetings, Star Darlings,” said Lady Cordial, interrupting Adora’s thoughts as she glided into the room. Everyone nodded in a tense way, not quite meeting her eyes.
Abruptly, Adora was brought back to Starland. “What happened while we were gone?” she whispered to Tessa.
“Well…” Tessa settled in like she was about to tell a long, involved story. “Leona has been acting all strange and quiet. Gemma told me she even canceled band practice. Leona said she needed to think, of all things! Not sing! And there have been a few more blackouts. They’re happening more and more often. But really nothing major.”
Not too long before, one energy outage would have been news. Now it was almost expected. And the shortage would only get worse. Yes, Adora had had a successful mission. Yes, she’d collected wish energy. But with outages happening so frequently, it was clear it would not be enough.
Lady Stella gazed around the room. “Girls, your colors seem muted. Please know I am here for you. You can talk to me if you wish, anytime, anyplace.”
Next to Adora, Cassie stiffened. She doesn’t believe a word Lady Stella is saying, Adora thought. But she wants to.
“Adora,” Lady Stella said, “well done, despite the obstacles you faced. Starkudos to you. As you all must realize, though, as important as these energy-collecting missions are, they may not be enough to turn the tide that has begun. But let us not lose hope.”
Then Lady Stella brought out Adora’s Wish Orb. The glowing ball floated to Adora, then shifted into the loveliest flower Adora had ever seen: the blue skywinkle, its corona petals blazing like the Wishworld sun and glittering with stardust.
Slowly, a crystal rose from its center. It was a shimmering stone of blue cylinders hanging together like icicles under a golden dome. Just holding it made Adora feel stronger.
There were some halfhearted oohs and ahhs. Quietly, the girls filed out of the office. In silent agreement, they all returned to their rooms.
Adora stretched out on her bed, happy to be back. She eyed the sequins experiment still spread out over the lab table. Maybe she’d get to it later. Maybe she wouldn’t. Right then fashion could wait. Energy science would be her focus.
Across the room, Tessa pulled out astromuffins from her micro-zap. Absently, she put them aside, not bothering to take one—or offer Adora one, either. Everyone is trying to figure out Lady Stella and the energy problems, Adora thought. And it was taking its toll. Maybe that was why Leona was staying quiet, too.
As if she had summoned the Star Darling with her thoughts, Adora’s Star-Zap buzzed with a holo-text from Leona. It was to the Star Darlings group, and Adora read it quickly: Come to my room right this starmin! I have something
to tell you.
Adora sighed. Why couldn’t she have talked to them when they were all together at the ceremony? Leave it to the star-diva to make a big deal out of nothing. Forget about Leona thinking deep thoughts about wish energy, Adora thought, annoyed that she’d have to leave her room before she’d really relaxed. Leona probably wanted them to admire a new song or help choose an outfit for a performance.
Reluctantly, she and Tessa made their way to Leona’s room. Before they could even knock, Scarlet opened the door, eagerly beckoning them inside.
Now that’s surprising, Adora thought. Since when does Scarlet get excited about anything Leona does?
The rest of the Star Darlings were already there, gathered around the star-shaped platform as they’d been before Adora’s mission. But now Leona stood in the center of the star, no microphone in sight.
She began to talk before Adora could even sit down. “You might have noticed I’ve been quiet lately,” she told the girls. “I have been spending time on my own, thinking.”
Adora waited for Scarlet to make a starcastic comment. But the loner Starling, usually so quick to put Leona down, just nodded.
“I found something the other starday,” Leona continued, “when we snuck into Lady Stella’s office. And I need to share it with all of you. Scarlet and I have already discussed it. And we feel exactly the same way.”
“Did you see something in Lady Stella’s desk drawer?” Cassie asked. “When you said you were startled by a rainbow orb spider?”
Leona nodded. “Yes. I didn’t see a spider. I saw this.”
She opened her hand. And there, in her palm, sat her old, blackenedWish Pendant.
The pendant had been a beautiful golden metallic cuff. Leona had worn it proudly on her upper arm, the star at its center glowing brightly. Now it was burnt and ugly.
Scarlet looked directly at Sage and Libby, Lady Stella’s two biggest supporters. Then she turned to Adora. “There’s your proof. Leona’s Wish Pendant, hidden in her desk drawer. Lady Stella is guilty.”
“That’s right,” Leona said, her voice fierce and serious. “She never brought it to the lab or had a wish scientist examine it. She never tried to figure out why it burned or what happened. And she said she would! She lied.
