by Ahmet Zappa
Clover designed a flyer announcing the circus to the Star Darlings: COME ONE, COME ALL! COME TO THE SHORES OF LUMINOUS LAKE AND SEE THE GREATEST SHOW AT STARLING ACADEMY! She added a date and time and grinned. It would be starmazing!
Next Clover placed orders for the cloud candy machine, the galliopes, the special starwire, and more. But the holo-request for the machine never went through. Another energy blip. The galliopes were already booked for a wee Starling’s Bright Day party. And when the starwire came, Clover realized it was all wrong. The company had accidentally sent a firewire, a replacement part for micro-zaps!
How could she tell everyone the circus was canceled? She couldn’t. The day of the big event, she trudged to Luminous Lake. Any starmin everyone would arrive, and all she had were some star balls to juggle and clown makeup and accessories her mom had sent by lightning delivery.
Clover was going to let everyone down—again. The circus would have proven she could do something besides lead them on wild glowgoose chases for energy. She’d been waiting and waiting for a chance to make a difference—to go on her own Wish Mission, to be a true Star Darling. And now she wasn’t even a true circus performer.
“Hello, Clover.” Piper appeared out of nowhere. “Where’s the circus?”
Clover bit her lip. “You’re looking at it.”
“Really?” Astra said, walking over with the others. She kicked a star ball to Clover. Automatically, Clover ducked under the ball so it landed on her head. The ball spun around twice, then dropped into her waiting hands.
“That’s starrific! Can you do more tricks?” Sage asked.
“Of course she can!” Astra said encouragingly.
So Clover juggled all the star balls. She bounced them off trees, off a fence, and even off the lake with a bit of energy manipulation. Then she showed everyone else how to do it, too. Soon all the Star Darlings were laughing and participating.
Meanwhile, Leona wandered over to the clown supplies and started playing around. Before Clover knew it, all the girls had big glowing noses and twinkling stars painted around their eyes, and were wearing suspenders and giant shoes. They pushed each other around playfully, tripped over their big feet, and tossed buckets of starfetti, pretending it was water.
Finally, they collapsed on the ground in fits of giggles. “That was more fun than Light Giving Day!” Libby said, still laughing. And everyone agreed.
Later that starnight, lying in her hammock, Clover couldn’t fall asleep. She was very glad the circus had turned out so well. Who would have thought that star balls and clown makeup could be just as much fun as a three-star circus! But still, she felt like the event had been missing something—or someone.
Lady Stella.
Clover knew Lady Stella—or the Lady Stella she remembered, anyway—would have been pleased that everyone had fun and proud of Clover for pulling it off against the odds.
Clover had been close to giving up, just like when she had first come to school and had a starmendously tough homework assignment. It was a project for her Wish Energy Manipulation class, and the deadline was looming.
She was new to Starling Academy, and expectations couldn’t have been too high. But Clover wanted to prove herself right away. She’d already spent starhours tinkering around with ideas for a basic manipulation demonstration. The assignment was to use a starsack of groceries. But the assorted fruits and vegetables were just so uninteresting! And she couldn’t come up with anything special. So she’d moved to a picnic table outside the Illumination Library, hoping for a fresh perspective.
At the table, she’d set her Star-Zap to record. She was ready to take a holo-video to hand in. But ozziefruit? Garble greens? Plantannas? Dull, dull, dull.
The bag stood there doing nothing, totally uninspiring. She looked at it through narrowed eyes. Should she transfer the food onto dishes? Boring. Separate the groceries into food groups? Glo-hum.
“I can’t do this!” she’d said out loud.
“Clover?” Lady Stella had said, gliding over in her graceful way. “Are you having trouble with homework?”
“Um.” Clover was at a loss for words. The headmistress was so lovely and kind, and of course Clover wanted to impress her. But she couldn’t even speak. All her circus training, and she was starstruck!
Finally, she’d managed to tell Lady Stella the problem. It helped to look into her eyes and feel her concern.
“Well,” Lady Stella had said, “what’s the worst that could happen with this project?”
“I’d get a D for Dim or G for Gloomy.”
“I’d say the worst thing would be if you ate all the food and couldn’t do the assignment at all.”
Was Lady Stella kidding around? Clover couldn’t be sure. But she felt her shoulders relax.
As if she’d read her mind, Lady Stella said, “I’m trying to help you relax, Clover, because I think you need to figure out a fun approach. I hear you like to joke around.”
“Is that a good thing?” Clover asked.
Lady Stella smiled. “You make people laugh and you lift their spirits. Of course that’s a good thing. Perhaps you can add more of your personality to the project.”
While Lady Stella waited patiently, Clover thought about the groceries, funny things she could do with the items, and what would make her laugh if she was watching it on holo-video.
Finally, she took one plantanna—a curved tubelike glowing yellow fruit. She placed it on the table. Then she stepped away and, using her wish energy manipulation skills, peeled it completely in one long motion. Slowly, she guided the peel to the ground.
Whistling nonchalantly now, Clover walked closer to the plantanna, into the video frame. “Whoa!” she cried, slipping on the skin. She flew through the air, twisted her body into a flip, and landed with her feet solidly on the ground.
“Was that a-peeling?” Clover joked.
Lady Stella laughed and clapped. “I believe you nailed it, Clover.”
Clover had, in fact, received an I for Illumination on the project, and her holo-vid was the hit of the class. Right after, she’d run to Lady Stella’s office to show her the grade. The headmistress had been as delighted as Clover, repeatedly saying how proud she was of her.
But had Lady Stella really been proud and delighted? Or had she been pretending? How could someone who seemed so supportive, kind, and open have been secretly plotting against her students?
A purple-tinted tear trickled down Clover’s cheek. It was all so very sad.
“Come on, Clover! You’re supposed to be lighting me up for the game! Not bringing me down.”
“I know, Astra! I know! Star apologies!”
Clover and Astra were on their way to a special star ball game, held at night, under the stars. It was the Glowin’ Glions versus their biggest rival, the Bright Horizons. Astra had asked Clover to walk over early with her, to help her drum up some energy.
Clover knew she wasn’t doing a very good job. But now she was outside on a beautiful evening. The temperature was a mild ten degrees Starrius, and the stars twinkled brightly. Rainstorms were called for later. But if everything proceeded on time, the game should be over well before they hit.
And really, rain was a good thing, Clover remembered. With hydration machines not working properly, crops were drying out. But right then Clover wanted to push any thoughts about the energy shortage out of her mind. It felt good to look forward to a night of pure enjoyment.
“You’ll knock those players’ starsocks off!” Clover said encouragingly. “Who’s the best? Astra’s the best!” she cheered loudly.
Astra grinned. “That’s way better.”
Together, the roommates walked to the locker room, where Clover gave Astra a quick hug for good luck.
“Remember when all you did was hug me?” Astra said with a smile. “That was starmazingly annoying.”
Clover smiled back. Her odd behavior—caused by the poisonous nail polish—seemed like ancient history. So much had happened between the
n and now. “Tell you what,” she told Astra. “If you win—which I’m sure you will—I promise not to hug you!”
Astra disappeared between the rows of brightly colored lockers while Clover made her way to the stadium. It was still early. The stands were empty; Clover had her choice of seats.
She walked to the midfield, then up a number of rows so she’d have a perfect view of the action. Then she counted off eleven seats, reserving ten for the other Star Darlings, and settled into one at the end. Immediately, it transformed into a swift train seat, the most comfortable chair Clover could imagine—one that always made her feel at home.
Slowly, the other seats filled up. In ones, twos, and threes, the rest of the Star Darlings arrived. A nervous-looking Cassie, clutching a large bag at her side, slipped in beside Clover, and the stadium seat turned into a reading chair, complete with headrest. Leona, next to Cassie, sat regally on a padded golden throne.
The stadium was packed now, every seat taken.
Shaking her head, Leona leaned over Cassie to complain to Clover. “Can you believe I won’t be singing—I mean no one will be singing—the Starlandian anthem? They’re just having a parade of athletes. Like that’s appropriate!” She opened her glittery cropped blazer to reveal a microphone in an inside pocket. “I brought it along just in case there’s a change in plans,” she confided.
Cassie, meanwhile, kept looking inside the bag. Clover thought, She has glow-ants in her pants, as her great-uncle Octavius used to say.
“Are you okay?” Clover whispered.
Cassie nodded and closed the top of the bag, a guilty look on her face. “I just can’t seem to settle down. I think it’s because I miss Lady Stella.”
“I know,” Clover said sympathetically.
“I mean, I believed she was guilty. I guess I still do. The evidence is overwhelming. That’s why I pushed everyone to confront her. But Starling Academy just seems wrong without her.”
Cassie stopped talking as the teams ran onto the field for warm-ups. A cheer rose from the fans. Libby held up a holo-sign that read GLOW, GLOWIN’ GLIONS! GLOW, ASTRA!
Thirty starmins passed, then forty, then fifty. The players were still stretching and taking practice kicks. “Why isn’t it starting?” Cassie asked.
“We must be waiting for Lady Cordial,” Clover said. “The headmistress always kicks off the games.” She looked at Cassie to see if she got the joke. But Cassie was rearranging her bag again and hadn’t heard.
Thirty more starmins ticked by; then an announcer said: “Attention, fans! Lady Cordial, head of Starling Academy, will now welcome the athletes and lead the parade.”
And finally, there she was, on the field, in front of the crowd, looking anxious and frazzled. The two teams lined up on either side of her.
“Oh, my stars,” said Leona. “She’s tucked the back of her skirt into her stockings.”
Clover saw that sure enough, Lady Cordial’s rumpled skirt was hiked up in a very unflattering way.
Leona started waving at Astra and finally got her attention. She pointed to Lady Stella. Astra shrugged, then took a closer look. Her mouth, in an O of surprise, said it all.
“S-s-s-s-s-star apologies for the delay in getting s-s-s-started,” Lady Cordial said into a microphone. “It s-s-s-seems I had the wrong time on my S-s-s-s-star-Zap. But now—”
Astra had edged around the athletes, moving in back of the line until she reached Lady Cordial. Now she was whispering urgently in her ear.
Clover heard a loud gasp. Lady Cordial reached behind her to fix her skirt, and Astra slipped back into place.
“But now,” Lady Cordial continued, her glow flaring with embarrassment, “I’d like to introduce the teams.”
Somehow she got through the names, bungling only the longer ones and calling Astra Adora by mistake. Finally, sighing with relief, she led the procession in an awkward but uneventful march around the field. With a wave at the audience, she took a seat behind the team bench.
“I’m glad that’s over,” Clover told Cassie. “But at least Lady Cordial remembered the game!”
The referee flashed a holo-star, and the teams got into position on the field. Another holo-star signaled the start.
Astra passed the star ball back to a defender, then sprinted forward, waving her arms to show she was open. She used her wish energy manipulation to control the ball, then raced toward the goal. The Brights’ goalie bounced on her toes, ready to stop the shot. But Astra concentrated the ball high and into the corner of the net—impossible to deflect. Goal for the Glions! The crowd roared.
By the end of the second half, the Brights had come back with two goals, while the Glions had added one more. The score was tied. Now a girl on the Brights had the star ball and was making a run up the field.
Cassie gripped Clover’s hand. “It’s almost over!” she said, excited. “If they make this goal, the Glions won’t have time for another attempt!”
The player was closing in on the net, with a clear path ahead and no defender close by. Suddenly, the field lights sputtered out. Gasps and cries of surprise erupted throughout the stadium. The game came to a standstill.
The referee flashed a star. “Startime out!” she called. “Spectators, please set your Star-Zaps on flashlight mode so the game can continue.”
They all pulled out their Star-Zaps. It was becoming common procedure in a blackout.
Clover flicked her screen, but nothing happened. “I’m out of power,” she groaned.
“Me too!” said Cassie.
“Same here,” Leona chimed in.
More shouts rang up and down the rows as everyone realized the same thing: none of their Star-Zaps were working.
Lady Cordial jumped up. “Don’t panic!” she cried in a voice that sounded quite panicky. “As long as we have the s-s-s-stars, we will have light.”
Just then a giant storm cloud rolled across the sky, dimming each and every star. A few raindrops fell, then more and more. The stadium was plunged into darkness.
Frightened and wet, girls rushed to the exits, pushing each other.
The Star Darlings stayed in their seats. Clover thought quickly. She knew the dangers of crowded venues: their big top tent had collapsed once, and the audience had barely gotten out in time.
“We have to do something,” she told the others. “Leona! Does your mic still work?”
“Testing, one, two, three. Yes!”
“Tell everyone to return to their seats. The rain is letting up now, so that’s better.”
“Everyone,” Leona declared into the microphone, “return to your seats!”
No one was listening. Instead, even more Starlings rushed into the aisles.
“Give them a reason,” Clover ordered Leona. “And be louder.”
Leona took a deep breath. “Starlings!” she said in a strong, commanding way. “Return to your seats. I will be raffling the chance to perform with the Star Darlings band by seat number.” Leona spoke with such force that each Starling stopped in her tracks.
Some did turn around. But most, Clover realized with dismay, didn’t seem all that interested in performing with Leona—at least when they were in the middle of a blackout. So Scarlet brought out her drumsticks to play a rat-a-tat-tat on the mic, and everyone stopped again.
At the same moment, Cassie opened up her bag and lifted out something furry and glowing. What is that? Clover wondered.
“Now is as good a time as any,” Cassie murmured. The creature lifted its head and Clover realized Cassie was holding a small pink glowfur. It was adorable, of course. They all were, with their big soulful eyes, delicate gossamer wings, and huggable plump bodies.
“She’s yours?” Clover asked in starprise.
Leona glanced over. “Oh, my stars, is that a glowfur?” she cried.
Cassie nodded. “I’ve had Itty with me since the first day of school,” she admitted. “I know we’re not supposed to have pets. But I was so nervous coming to a big school and being with so many
people I didn’t know, I just had to have her close by.”
Cassie paused as Itty nestled under her chin. “I brought her tonight because, well, you know how I feel, Clover. And she always makes me feel better.”
Clover nodded.
“But I can’t keep her a secret anymore. It wouldn’t be right.” Cassie held Itty close and whispered, “Sing the ‘Song of Calmness.’”
Leona held out her mic, and the glowfur began to sing. Her voice was pure and tinkling, the melody soothing. The panic subsided immediately. Slowly, carefully, everyone returned to their seats as if in a trance.
“Give it all you’ve got,” Leona instructed the glowfur, and Itty’s song swelled. It grew louder and louder, and it became a call to all her glowfur friends. In starsecs, the sky filled with the brightly lit creatures, all singing the same lullaby.
A feeling of peace swept through the crowd.
“Now lead the way out,” Cassie instructed, and the glowfurs flew to various sections of the stadium and guided the Starlings to the exits. The crisis was averted.
Later, swinging in her hammock when the events of the night had passed, Clover felt relieved. Everyone had gotten out safely. Astra was happy the game had ended in a tie, just before the opposing team surely would have scored. And in the commotion, no one but the Star Darlings knew where that first glowfur had come from. So Cassie’s secret pet was, luckily, still a secret.
“You know,” Clover told Astra, “I think we should offer to help Lady Cordial more. You had a team dinner, so you weren’t at the Celestial Café tonight. But all the Bot-Bot waiters stopped working at the very same starsec. Remember Lady Cordial had sent that holo-message, explaining she’d be putting them on power-save mode to conserve energy?”
“Mmmm-hmmmm,” Astra said sleepily.
“Well, it turns out that she accidentally switched them to hyperdrive instead,” Clover said. “They all had to be rebooted. But everything’s okay. At least for now.”
She waited for Astra to say something—about Lady Cordial, about the energy crisis, about her lead-off goal. But Astra must have been running low on energy herself. She was already fast asleep.
