by H. S. Norup
“Then you can give it to her when she comes home on Monday.”
“On Monday?” Tessa felt a smile growing across her face. She hugged Mum tight.
Gawion was waving to Tessa, from where he stood by the pine. He waved her closer. Behind Mum’s back, Tessa made hand signals, trying to gauge whether Mum was allowed to see him. He nodded.
“Come,” Mum said, taking Tessa’s hand, “Let’s go inside and give Annie the good news.”
“I’ll be right there, Mum. I just have to say goodbye to the barbegazi.”
Mum’s face fell.
“Tessa, no. Don’t start that again.”
Tessa swung Mum around, so she faced Gawion.
Mum just stared at him.
“Another miracle,” she mumbled.
Tessa ran over to Gawion, crouched and embraced him.
“Thank you,” she said, trying to cram all her happiness into those two words.
“Thank you, Tessa. Papa said I can bring you to see our caves.” Gawion clung to her, making her shiver with cold. “If you had not found us, Maeg would not have survived.”
She drew back, new anxiety rising inside her.
“But what if other humans find you?”
“Just bring them to me. I am getting quite adept at memory charms.”
Tessa giggled. Part of being a secret barbegazi protector meant she’d become a specialized mountain guide. The kind who arranged covert excursions for people who knew about the barbegazi. Until suddenly they didn’t.
Above them, the sky exploded in red sparkles. The year was ending, but not the winter. Tomorrow she’d visit their caves, and, before the snow melted and the barbegazi hid away to aestivate, surely she’d see Gawion surf on an avalanche.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I’m immensely grateful to Sarah Odedina for her encouragement and high expectations during the last couple of years, and for helping me find and shape the heart of this story. To Tilda Johnson for her thoughtful line and copy edits. And to the wonderful team at Pushkin Press for transforming my barbegazi tale into a beautiful book.
Massive thanks to my friends in SCBWI, Cafe Schreiber in Zurich and The Singapore Writers’ Group for helping me learn and grow as a writer. I’m especially indebted to my early readers and those who listened to my endless barbegazi monologues: Jo Furniss, Sherida Deeprose, Helena Ryan, Rebecca Foreman, Catherine Carvell, Emma Nicholson, Annette Woschek and Dorte Sidelmann Rossen. A special thanks to the Asian Festival of Children’s Content for creating inspiring conferences and providing brilliant opportunities for writers and illustrators, such as the one that connected me with Sarah Odedina.
An avalanche of hugs to the dedicated ski coaches, enthusiastic parents and tireless ski-club kids from my time in Trainingsgemeinschaft Stanzertal and all my other friends in St Anton. This book would not exist if I had not spent hours on the Schöngraben T-bar lift, watching my sons at race practice and gazing at the white wilderness (without binoculars), daydreaming about encounters with fantastical creatures. Any resemblance to real people and buildings is purely coincidental, but I have tried to stay faithful to the wondrous landscape on Arlberg, with the minor addition of a small glacier in the vicinity.
Last, but not least, infinite thanks to my father, who raised me to believe I could do anything, and my mother, who fed me fairy tales and passed her love of books on to me. To Marcus, who heard about this story first, for his suggestions, and August, who read it first, for his ski racing insights. Finally, to Claus, my teammate in life, who listens to all my implausible plans and supports most of them. Even when I had doubts, he always believed in my dream of becoming an author.
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About the Author
H. S. NORUP was born in Denmark and lived in the US, the UK, Austria and Switzerland before moving to Singapore. Now, she has returned to Switzerland with her husband and two teenage sons. This is Helle’s debut novel and very much draws on her love of the Alps, her passion for skiing and her belief that magic is all around us – particularly in the love, trust and companionship found in families.
Copyright
Pushkin Children’s
71–75 Shelton Street
London WC2H 9JQ
Copyright © H. S. Norup 2018
The Missing Barbegazi was first published in
Great Britain by Pushkin Press in 2018
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ISBN 13: 978 1 78269 182 2
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