A New Beginning

by Sue Bentley

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  Chapter ONE

  Chapter TWO

  Chapter THREE

  Chapter FOUR

  Chapter FIVE

  Chapter SIX

  Chapter SEVEN

  Chapter EIGHT

  Chapter NINE

  Chapter TEN

  Chapter ELEVEN

  About the Author

  GROSSET & DUNLAP

  Published by the Penguin Group

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  To Cindy—first and best-beloved, who was happy in a doll’s pram.

  Prologue

  Storm whimpered as he crawled into the cave. Behind the young silver-gray wolf, stars glimmered in the purple sky.

  Suddenly, a piercing howl echoed in the night air.

  “Shadow!” Storm gasped, trembling with fear.

  The fierce lone wolf who had attacked Storm and the Moon-claw pack was close by. Storm knew he had to disguise himself, and quickly!

  There was a dazzling gold flash and a fountain of golden sparks that lit up the back of the cave for a brief second. Where the wolf cub had just stood, there now crouched a tiny, sandy golden retriever puppy with floppy ears and twinkling midnight-blue eyes.

  Storm’s little puppy heart beat fast. In that split second of light, he had seen his mother, the she-wolf, lying crumpled against a rock.

  “Mother?” he whined, plunging deeper into the cave.

  “Storm?” Canista lifted her head to answer him in a velvety growl.

  In the dim light Storm could see his mother’s heaving sides and hear her rapid breathing. He felt a new surge of panic. “You are hurt! Did Shadow attack you, too?”

  Canista nodded weakly. “His bite is poisoned. It drains my strength.”

  Storm’s blue eyes flared with sorrow and anger. “Shadow has already killed my father and my three litter brothers. I will face Shadow and fight him!”

  “Bravely said, my son. But now is not the time. You are the only cub left of our Moon-claw pack. Go to the other world. Use this puppy disguise to hide. Return when your magic is stronger. Then, together, we will fight Shadow.” Canista’s head flopped back tiredly as she finished speaking.

  Storm bowed his head. He did not want to leave her, but he knew his mother was right.

  The sound of mighty paws and a thunderous snarl echoed from the mouth of the cave.

  “Go, Storm. Save yourself,” Canista growled urgently.

  Storm’s sandy fur ignited with gold sparks. He whined softly as he felt the power building inside him. The golden light around him grew brighter. And brighter …

  Chapter ONE

  Lily Benson felt a leap of excitement as her dad pulled up outside Greengates riding stables.

  “Yay! I love Saturday afternoons. I get to spend hours and hours with ponies!” she cried, jumping out of the car.

  Lily went around to the open window and bent down to kiss her dad’s cheek.

  Mr. Benson laughed. “Careful you don’t get pony-overload!”

  “There’s no such thing,” Lily said. Her bedroom walls were covered with posters of ponies and her bookcase was crammed with riding books and magazines.

  “What a shame. I was hoping you might stop bugging your mom and me to buy you one!” her dad said.

  He was only joking, but Lily felt a pang. She was desperate for a pony of her own. But her parents were worried about the hard work and amount of time it would take to care for it. Lily knew they were hoping she’d be satisfied with having free rides in exchange for helping out at Greengates.

  “I’ll never stop asking in a zillion years. Ponies rule, Dad!” she said.

  “You’ve got a one-track mind, Lily Benson. Have a good time. See you later,” he called, steering away from the curb.

  Lily sighed. She waved good-bye and then went into the stable yard.

  The main stable buildings were built around two sides of a square. A large gate at one end led to the grazing field. Just beyond the field Lily could see the house where Janie Green who ran Greengates lived.

  Janie was outside the tack room with Treacle and Taffy, two of the smaller ponies. Two young children in riding gear stood waiting ready to mount.

  Janie looked up and smiled warmly as Lily approached. She had a round pretty face with twinkling brown eyes and was always cheerful. “Hi, Lily. I hope you’re feeling energetic. We’re fully booked this afternoon.”

  “Hi, Janie,” Lily said. She patted Taffy’s neck and stroked Treacle’s nose. “What do you want me to do first?”

  “You could give Don a hand with the cleaning, if you don’t mind. He’s over at Bandit’s stall,” Janie said.

  “Okay,” Lily said happily. Bandit was her favorite pony. She was a sweet-natured palomino with a golden-tan coat and a pale mane and tail. Lily would have loved to own a pony just like her.

  As Lily went off to find the stable boy she saw even more young riders arriving with their parents. It looked like it was going to be a hectic afternoon.

  Lily said hello to Bandit for a few minutes, before spending the next hour or so forking up droppings, wheeling them over to the pile, and spreading fresh bedding.

  Riders and ponies came and went. Lily lent a hand where it was needed. It was a hot day and she was soon red-faced and sweaty.

  “Why don’t you take a break and go and get a drink?” Don suggested as she helped him fill the hay nets and water buckets. He was tall and wiry, with dark-red hair, freckles, and a thin face.

  “Phew! I think I will,” Lily said, pushing a strand of damp blond hair back from her forehead.

  She went to the stable’s kitchen and had a long, cold drink of orange juice.

  As Lily was walking back past the grazing fields, she noticed some trash blowing around on the grass and went to pick it up.

  “Thanks, Lily. You’re doing a great job!” Janie Green called, pausing to rest the heavy saddle she was carrying on the fence.

  “It makes me so mad when people leave stuff behind. Don’t they care that a plastic bag could kill a pony if it eats it?” Lily said indignantly.


  “I don’t think they give it a thought. Maybe they’d be more careful if they did—but not everyone’s into horses.”

  Lily shrugged. “That’s their loss, then!”

  “I’m with you on that!” Janie said, smiling. “Have you persuaded your parents to buy you a pony yet?”

  Lily made a face, thinking miserably of the earlier conversation with her dad.

  “I take it that’s a sore point,” Janie said.

  Lily nodded. “I still have to convince them that I can fit taking care of a pony around my schoolwork. Mom and Dad think it would be too much for me and I should wait until I’m older.”

  “They might be right, you know,” Janie said gently. “Looking after a pony is a big commitment and there are no days off.”

  Lily felt her spirits sink. She thought Janie would be on her side!

  “Do you want to take Bandit out? We just got a cancellation, so she’s free for a couple of hours,” Janie said.

  Lily brightened immediately at the thought of a longer free ride than usual. “Really? I can take her out by myself ?” she asked delightedly.

  Janie nodded. “You’ve ridden her plenty of times and she’s used to you. You can take her along the bridle paths, but don’t go beyond the woods. Okay?”

  Lily nodded, feeling proud that Janie trusted her. “Thanks, Janie! That’s awesome!”

  She dashed straight across to Bandit, who was already tacked up. “Hello, girl. We’re going for a ride,” she crooned, stroking the pony’s nose.

  Bandit gave a friendly neigh and nuzzled Lily’s palm. Lily buckled on her riding hat before mounting the palomino pony and using her heels to nudge her forward.

  They trotted out of Greengates and turned onto the bridle path that ran down the edge of a field. The path branched farther on and Lily took the way to the woods.

  Other riders from the stables passed her on their way back.

  As she and Bandit entered the shade of the trees, Lily’s mind drifted into a wonderful daydream. It was easy to imagine that Bandit was her own pony and they were alone. The sound of other riders was muffled and she was screened from them by the thick bushes. Sunlight filtered through the leaves and speckled everything with spots of light.

  “I wish you were mine,” Lily said dreamily, leaning forward to pat Bandit’s satiny neck.

  Suddenly Bandit stumbled on a tree root and the reins were jerked right out of Lily’s hands.

  “Oh!” Lily pitched forward and fell right over the pony’s neck. As the ground rushed up to meet her she closed her eyes, ready for the painful landing.

  Chapter TWO

  The collision with the ground never came.

  With a dazzling golden flash and a crackle of sparks, Lily found herself jerking to a sudden halt. Her eyes flew open in shock and she saw that she was caught inside a huge glowing golden net, in midair, half a foot above the ground!

  Very slowly, Lily felt herself float down and land gently on some leaves. With a fizzing noise, the glowing net broke up into golden sparks and then melted away into the leaves.

  Lily sat up, blinking confusedly. Her first thought was for Bandit. She whipped around and was relieved to see the pony nibbling some grass in a small clearing a few feet away.

  “Your riding creature is fine. I hope that you are not injured,” said a strange voice.

  Lily stiffened. “W-who said that?”

  A tiny puppy with sandy fur, floppy ears, and huge midnight-blue eyes crawled out from beneath a pile of leaves. “I did. My name is Storm of the Moon-claw pack. What are you? And what is the name of your pack?” it woofed.

  Lily’s jaw dropped as she stared at the puppy in utter amazement. She felt like pinching herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. But she saw that the puppy was looking at her quizzically as if waiting for her to respond.

  “I’m a g-girl. A human … I’m L-Lily. Lily Benson,” she found herself stammering. “But I don’t know what you mean about a pack.”

  “A human? I have heard of these.” Storm’s silky forehead wrinkled in a frown. Lily saw that he was beginning to tremble. “Can I trust you, Lily? I come from far away and I need your help.”

  Lily was still having difficulty taking this in, but she didn’t want to frighten this amazing puppy away. He was absolutely gorgeous with the brightest midnight-blue eyes she had ever seen and big soft paws that looked too big for his body.

  Very slowly she got up onto her knees and reached out her hand.

  To Lily’s delight, Storm edged closer and brushed her fingers with his damp little nose. His tail wagged nervously. Despite being so scared, the tiny puppy seemed to trust her.

  “Why do you need my help?” she asked gently.

  Storm’s deep-blue eyes flashed with anger and sadness. “A lone wolf called Shadow attacked us. My father and brothers were killed and my mother is sick and in hiding. Shadow wants to lead the Moon-claw wolf pack, but the others will not follow him as long as I am alive.”

  “Wolf pack? But you’re a pup—” Lily stopped as Storm held up a velvety sandy paw and began backing away.

  There was another dazzling bright flash and a burst of gold sparks showered over Lily, crackling around her feet on the ground.

  “Oh!” Lily rubbed her eyes, blinded for a second. When she could see again, she saw that the tiny sandy puppy was gone. In its place now stood a majestic young wolf with thick silver-gray fur and glowing midnight-blue eyes.

  “Storm?” Lily gasped, eyeing the wolf ’s large teeth and thick neck-ruff that glimmered with hundreds of gold sparks like tiny yellow diamonds.

  “Yes, Lily, it is me,” Storm said in a deep velvety growl.

  Before Lily could get used to seeing Storm as his magnificent real self, there was a final gold flash and he appeared once again as a cute sandy puppy.

  “Wow! You really are a wolf. That’s an awesome disguise,” she said, getting up from her knees.

  Storm began trembling again. “Not if Shadow’s magic finds me. Will you help me hide?”

  Lily’s heart went out to the helpless puppy. “Of course I will. You can live with …” She trailed off as she remembered her parents’ rules about having no house pets. They’d probably insist on taking Storm to the pet care center. There must be some way she could help the tiny puppy. “Maybe I could smuggle you into my house, but I don’t see how I can hide you for long,” she said thoughtfully.

  “Do not worry. I will use my magic so that only you will be able to see and hear me,” Storm woofed.

  “You can make yourself invisible? Wow!” Lily breathed. “No problem, then. You’re coming home with me. Just let me catch Bandit. By the time we get back to Greengates, it’ll be time for Dad to pick me up.”

  A few minutes later, as she cradled Storm in her lap on Bandit’s back, a big smile spread across Lily’s face. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined having a magic puppy for a friend!

  Chapter THREE

  “You should sleep in here in case Mom or Dad gets suspicious,” Lily told Storm, spreading an old coat in the bottom of her closet. “But when no one’s around, you can get on my bed.”

  Storm looked in the closet and then padded around her bedroom, sniffing everything and exploring. “This is a good place.”

  “Glad you like it!” Lily said, beaming at him. “Are you hungry?”

  The tiny puppy barked eagerly.

  “Okay. I’ll go and raid the kitchen to see what I can find. I won’t be long.”

  Lily dashed downstairs. Luckily her dad was in the garden cutting the lawn and her mom had just gone out to her yoga class. She found some leftover chicken in the fridge and quickly broke a piece off for Storm.

  Back upstairs, she watched as Storm ate hungrily and then sat back licking his lips. “That was delicious. I like human food.”

  “I’ll get you some dog food later,” Lily said.

  Storm nodded. “Good. We will go hunting together!”

  “I couldn’t do that!�
�� Lily said, horrified. “Anyway, there’s no need. The store at the end of the street sells dog food in cans. I’ll buy some with my allowance,” she told him.

  Storm yawned, showing his sharp little teeth. “I think that I will rest now.” Padding over to the closet, he curled up on the old coat with a contented sigh and promptly went to sleep.

  Lily watched the tiny puppy’s furry sides rising and falling. Almost immediately his paws twitched as he started dreaming. He must be exhausted from his long journey, she thought.

  Leaving Storm to sleep, Lily reached for a book of pony stories and stretched out on her bed to read.

  The book was really good and she hardly noticed time passing. She was halfway through an exciting story about a pony being stolen, when something leaped onto her bed and launched itself on top of her.

  Lily almost jumped out of her skin. “Storm! You scared me!” she said, laughing as she rolled over onto her back. “Did you have a good nap?”

  “Yes, thank you. I feel safe here with you,” Storm woofed happily. Plonking his big soft paws on her book, he leaned up and began licking her chin.

  Lily wrapped her arms around his plump little sandy body and gave him a cuddle. After a couple of minutes, Storm squirmed free and sprang onto the rug with a surprisingly loud thud for a tiny puppy.

  “I would like to go outside now!”

  “Okay,” Lily said, getting up off the bed. “Our garden’s not very big, but there’s a field nearby. I’ll take you for a walk over there.”

  Storm gave an eager little bark and followed her downstairs.

  As they reached the hall, her dad appeared at the living room door. He had a frown on his face. “What was all that thumping upstairs? It sounded like a herd of elephants.”

  “Dad! I … er … thought you were outside,” Lily gasped in panic.

  She quickly shifted around, trying to stand in front of Storm before she suddenly remembered that he was invisible. Then, realizing how strange that must look, she began bending and stretching her arms. “Whew! Whew!” she puffed for added emphasis. “Just doing some exercise. I’m trying to get in shape. I was about to come and tell you that I’m going out for a jog around the field!”