by Julie Sykes
“We’ll bring you back as soon as you’ve worked your magic on the lake,” promised Ava.
Sophia had just hooked a frog from a lily pad when she heard a twig snap behind her.
“Who’s there?” She spun round, her eyes searching the tree line.
“I didn’t hear anyone,” said Rainbow.
Sophia’s eyes raked the woods. They were empty, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching. She carried on catching frogs but every now and then she glanced round, just in case.
“That should be enough,” said Ava, when each bucket was half full of frogs. She and Sophia jumped back on their unicorns and set off back to the school.
The woods seemed darker after the brightness of the clearing. Sophia couldn’t wait to be out of them. The rustling bushes were making her nervous. She stared around. What was that? Sophia’s heart drummed as she caught sight of a figure moving through the trees.
Goosebumps prickled along Sophia’s arms. The figure was dressed in dark clothes with a mask covering their face, just like the person she’d seen earlier tipping something into the lake! “Rainbow,” she whispered. “Follow that figure!”
Rainbow changed direction, plunging into the trees with Star following silently behind. The person hurried along an uphill path. At the top, they momentarily disappeared from view. The unicorns sped up and found themselves on the brow of a grassy hill. The path went down a steep slope into a valley. The mysterious figure had disappeared.
“They must be further down the hill!” said Rainbow.
“We’ve got to catch them up!” said Sophia. “Come on!”
“We need to be careful,” Star called anxiously. “Remember the woods are dangerous.”
But Rainbow and Sophia were already cantering towards a heap of rust-coloured leaves at the bottom of the valley. Ava and Star raced after them. As they approached the pile, Sophia frowned. Something wasn’t right. What was it? As Rainbow reached the leaves, she suddenly realised.
“Rainbow, stop!” cried Sophia, as Ava and Star came racing up behind them. “How can these be here? There aren’t any trees!”
But it was too late. As Rainbow’s and Star’s hooves touched the leaves the ground beneath them gave way. Air rushed past as all four friends plummeted into a trap!
They landed, with a jolt, in a dark pit.
“Are you OK?” Sophia asked Rainbow.
“I think so. Are you?”
“Yes,” said Sophia, checking the frogs weren’t hurt. “But where are we?” As her eyes adjusted to the gloom she could just make out Ava and Star a step away.
“The person we were following must have set this trap for us,” said Ava. “If only we could see more.”
A green spark flashed above Rainbow’s head then fizzled away.
Sophia stared around. Where had the spark come from? A second later, a flash of silver lit the air.
“What happening?” she said.
“I don’t know.” Rainbow shook his mane and more coloured sparks swirled around him.
“It’s you!” said Sophia. “You’re making the sparks!”
“Am I?” Rainbow tossed his head, creating more flashes of light. “You’re right. It is me! I feel all tingly!”
“It’s your magic powers!” said Star in delight.
“Can you use the sparks to light everything up so we can see?” asked Sophia eagerly.
“I can try.” Rainbow drew breath and held his eyes tight shut as he concentrated. There was a crack, and a ray of white light cut through the darkness.
“Rainbow, that’s brilliant!” Sophia was thrilled. She had wanted Rainbow to have healing powers but being able to create light was amazing. A bright white beam shone from Rainbow, illuminating everything like an enormous floodlight. Sophia saw they were trapped in a pit with steep sides.
“What’s that hissing sound?” asked Ava suddenly.
“Snakes!” squeaked Sophia in dismay, spotting several pythons hissing furiously at the far end of the pit.
Their bodies writhed and they began to slither towards the girls and the unicorns.
“Get back,” said Rainbow, his voice wobbling. He shone his light at the snakes and they reacted angrily, tongues flashing, muscular bodies constricting.
Rainbow trembled. “I … I don’t like snakes.”
His light got fainter. Sophia breathed deeply, taking control of her own fear. She could feel his sides starting to heave with panic.
“Don’t worry. I’m here,” she said, frantically wondering what they were going to do. She kissed Rainbow and stroked his neck. “I won’t let the snakes hurt you.”
Suddenly the smell of burnt sugar filled the air, followed by a sharp crack.
Magic!
Sophia recognised the smell from before, when Cherry had found her power. Rainbow’s light beam flared, then a rainbow arched from the top of his head to the top of the pit. Sophia reached out and touched it and realised it was solid – a rainbow bridge!
“Rainbow!” squealed Sophia in delight. “That’s amazing.”
“Go! I don’t know how long I can hold it,” Rainbow panted, touching his head to the ground and anchoring the end of the rainbow there.
Star galloped on to the rainbow bridge with Ava hanging on to her bucket of frogs. Rainbow followed hot on her heels.
The pythons hissed with rage and tried to follow them but the moment Rainbow’s hooves reached the top of the pit, the rainbow disappeared. The snakes spat with fury as they fell back into the pit.
“Hurrah for Rainbow!” cheered Ava. “I’m so glad you found your powers before we ended up a snakes’ breakfast.”
“Are you OK, though? Do you need a rest?” asked Sophia.
Rainbow stood up tall. “I feel amazing! Let’s get these frogs to the lake now, before it’s too late.”
The four friends galloped back through the woods and on to the school grounds. As they neared the lake, Sophia saw a figure hurrying towards them, arms waving angrily as it tried to cut them off. For a second, she thought it was the masked figure from before but then she realised her mistake.
“It’s Ms Nettles,” she said. “And she looks furious.”
“Stop!” shouted Ms Nettles, arms spread wide, blocking the path. “You know the woods are out of bounds. What were you doing in there?”
“There isn’t time to explain!” said Sophia. “We have to save the lake! Look at it, Ms Nettles!”
The lake, a sickly yellow, was now covered with an oily film.
“It’s stagnating,” said Star.
“But we can stop it!” said Ava. “We just have to get these frogs there as soon as possible.”
Magic sparked around Rainbow as he pointed his head at the lake. A rainbow soared above him arching right over Ms Nettles.
“Wait!” shouted Ms Nettles, but Rainbow galloped across the arch of coloured light with Star following.
“Sorry, Ms Nettles, I promise we’ll explain later!” Sophia shouted to the astonished teacher.
As Star’s hooves touched the ground, the rainbow dissolved, leaving a trail of coloured sparks hanging in the air. At the lakeside, Sophia slid from Rainbow’s back. With Ava’s help she carefully tipped both buckets of frogs on to the shore.
“Go, frogs, go!”
The frogs hopped and plopped into the water, croaking as they swam away. Sophia crossed her fingers and wished them luck. The waters fizzed and hissed, and sparks crackled off the surface.
Several agonising minutes later, the stagnant water was looking less yellow.
“It’s working,” gasped Ava. “Well done, little frogs.”
“Sophia! Ava! How dare you defy me!” Ms Nettles puffed up. Her long nose was pinched and her glasses rattled furiously. “When I tell you to stop you do so immediately.” She stabbed a finger at them. “Such behaviour will be punished––”
“The lake!” Ms Primrose called, seeming to appear from nowhere and cantering towards them on Sage. “Look at the l
ake!”
Sophia stared at the waters shimmering with every colour imaginable and her heart felt like it was bursting with pride. They’d done it. Not only had she cleared her name but along with Rainbow, Ava and Star, she’d stopped the lake from dying and the island being destroyed.
“Yes, well done, girls,” Ms Nettles said tightly.
Ms Primrose turned to Sophia and Ava. “What I don’t understand is where you got the frogs from and how you knew that this particular type of frog can purify water? They’re incredibly rare creatures.”
“We found some frogs hopping out of the woods one day,” Sophia said, stretching the truth a bit so as not to get Billy and his friends in trouble. “We took them back and found the pond where they live. We carried them in buckets and noticed they cleaned the water in them. I know we shouldn’t have gone into the woods but we wanted the frogs to be safe.”
Ms Primrose smiled. “I think we can overlook breaking the school rules on this one occasion.”
Sophia and Ava explained about the figure Sophia had seen tipping something into the lake that morning. Ms Primrose’s face grew grave as she heard the story. “This is very worrying,” she said. “We shall clearly have to be very vigilant from now on.” She looked round. A group of girls were running across the lawn. It was the rest of Sapphire dorm. “However, that is a problem for another time,” she said with a smile.
“What’s been going on?” gasped Scarlett as she charged up. “We woke up and saw Sophia and Ava out here.”
“Your friends and their unicorns have managed to save the lake,” said Ms Primrose. “Sophia and Ava can explain but don’t be too long, girls, or you’ll miss breakfast. I’ll make an announcement to the whole school at assembly and make sure everyone knows how amazing you four have been.”
When their friends heard what had happened, they hugged and congratulated Sophia and Ava, and made a huge fuss of Rainbow and Star. Surrounded by her friends, warmth and happiness spread through Sophia and she was really glad she hadn’t run away.
“You’re so lucky, having such an adventure!” said Isabel.
“We’ll have to sneak into the woods and explore too,” Scarlett told her.
Ava grinned. “Just don’t let Ms Nettles catch you!”
Sophia realised she was starving. “You go ahead and save us a seat at breakfast,” she told the others. “We’ll catch you up once Rainbow and Star are settled.”
Sophia and Ava cantered the unicorns to the stables and filled up their feed bowls with sky berries. Rainbow took a long drink from his water trough, which magically kept refilling from the lake until his thirst was quenched.
“Delicious,” he said, shaking the last drops of multicoloured water from his lips. He turned to Sophia and breathed gently on her arm. “I’ve been thinking,” he said. “I know you’re missing Clover very much, so I won’t stop you from leaving the school if that’s what you really want to do.”
Sophia threw herself at Rainbow, hugging him tightly. “I don’t want to leave the school any more – and I couldn’t bear to leave you. I just wish I could stop worrying about Clover. I’ve had him since I was tiny.”
“If only I could help you,” said Rainbow, stamping a front hoof. He snorted with surprise as a shimmery purple light suddenly swirled up from the ground. Golden sparkles fizzed around the edges as the purple light formed into a circle and the sparkles danced across the surface. “What’s happening?” he said.
Sophia gasped as a picture appeared in the circle of light. “It must be part of your power. That’s our field at home! Look, there’s the stable in the corner. And there’s Clover!” Her voice rose. “Look how plump he’s getting. Doesn’t he look happy?”
Clover pulled up a mouthful of lush green grass and chewed slowly, his eyes sparkling with happiness. In the distance, Harry and Mum were walking towards the field with a bucket of feed and a grooming kit.
Sophia felt happiness rush through her. “He looks as if he isn’t missing me at all! Now I can enjoy the school without feeling so guilty.” Sophia hugged Rainbow again but as she pulled away, Rainbow whinnied.
“Look at you!”
He put his muzzle into Sophia’s hair and lifted a curly ringlet. Sophia caught a flash of rainbow-coloured hair and laughed. “We’ve bonded,” she breathed, holding the ringlet out and comparing it to Rainbow’s mane. They were identical.
Rainbow whickered in delight and Sophia suddenly knew that she didn’t need to choose between her pony and her unicorn. Bonding with Rainbow didn’t mean she had to love Clover any less – the love she had inside her just doubled in size. Throwing her arms round his neck, she hugged him tightly.
Leaving Rainbow and Star hungrily devouring more sky berries, Sophia and Ava ran out of the stables. They were greeted by Olivia.
“Come with me!” she cried. “Ms Primrose said our dorm could have a special picnic breakfast down by the lake. Sage made us a sparkly slide to help us get there.”
Sophia turned and saw an amazing glittery slide swooping from the stables to the far side of the lake. At the end of it, Scarlett, Layla and Isabel were taking food out of a massive hamper. Sophia’s stomach gurgled hungrily.
“Let’s go,” she said, grabbing hold of Ava’s hand.
Laughing together, they jumped on to the sparkling slide and whizzed off to join the rest of their friends.
Copyright
First published in the UK in 2018 by Nosy Crow Ltd
The Crow’s Nest, 14 Baden Place, Crosby Row
London, SE1 1YW, UK
Nosy Crow and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Nosy Crow Ltd
Text copyright © Julie Sykes and Linda Chapman, 2018
Illustrations copyright © Lucy Truman, 2018
The right of Julie Sykes, Linda Chapman and Lucy Truman to be identified as the authors and illustrator respectively of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved
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A CIP catalogue record for this book will be available from the British Library.
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ISBN: 978 1 78800 158 8
eISBN: 978 1 78800 159 5
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