Gemma and the Ultimate Standoff

by Ahmet Zappa

  Gemma’s thoughts wandered back to her Wish Mission and she pricked her finger with the needle. “Ouch!” she cried. If this was what life was like on Wishworld every starday, she had no idea why Scarlet wanted to live there so badly. Everything was so much harder without the hands-free benefits of utilizing wish energy. But the rest of the girls laughed and sang as they worked and seemed so happy to be there. They never complained that they were bored or that their fingers hurt. They didn’t seem to have a care in the world. Why are they so excited about Starshine Day and I’m not? Gemma wondered.

  By the middle of the starweek Gemma felt more irritable than ever. Each and every one of her fingers was sore. And every time her Star-Zap vibrated, she snatched it up, hoping to find a message about Lady Stella or the Wish Orb. But it was always a useless Starshine Day update from Lady Cordial. And while the temporary headmistress was in constant communication via her Star-Zap, she was nowhere to be seen.

  The hydrongs of briteflower garlands were finally done, and it was time to begin the arduous task of hanging them. Since the Starlings couldn’t use their wish energy manipulation to effortlessly fasten the garlands, someone managed to find an ancient ladder from the old days and dragged it out. They carried it over to the first lamppost, set it up, and then stared at the contraption warily. It looked rickety and unstable and no one wanted to climb it. Tansy finally took a deep breath and ascended shakily to the top. Another girl produced an old-fashioned tool kit. Gemma rooted around in it until she found a sparklehammer and a solar-metal spike (both of which she was vaguely familiar with from the toolshed on the farm) and handed them to Tansy, who looked at the tools in confusion. “I…I’m not sure what to do,” she said. Gemma took pity on the Starling and motioned for her to climb down, switching places with her. When she reached the top, she looked down—she was pretty far off the ground—and got a bit dizzy. She wasn’t quite sure how to position the spike so she wouldn’t smash her finger with the sparklehammer, but then, after some adjusting, she figured out the correct angle and did the job. There! She climbed back down and took a look. Her proud moment was cut short as the briteflower garland promptly fluttered to the ground.

  Gemma sighed and climbed back up the ladder. From her vantage point she saw a passing Bot-Bot. They were programmed to help with all sorts of issues around Starling Academy, so she waved and called it over.

  “Star greetings,” she said as it got closer.

  “Star greetings, I am JR-Y6,” the Bot-Bot said.

  “Would you help us hang this garland for Starshine Day, JR-Y6?” Gemma asked politely.

  “Negative. I am currently solely in guard mode,” said the Bot-Bot. “My directive is to serve Lady Cordial. I am not programmed to help you.” He nodded briskly and zoomed off.

  “Starf!” said Gemma. With a shrug, she climbed back to the top of the ladder and hammered in the spike again. To her relief, this time it stayed put.

  She climbed down, carried the ladder to the second post, and climbed back up. She carefully positioned the garland, admiring it as it hung between the two posts, twinkling prettily. She was just about to pound in the spike when she spotted JR-Y6 heading off in the distance. That was when she realized that if a guard was around, Lady Cordial must not be too far away. Without hesitating, she put down the sparklehammer, jumped down from the ladder, and took off after the Bot-Bot.

  “Gemma, wait!” called Tansy. It was only then that Gemma realized she was still holding on to the end of the briteflower garland. As she ran, the other end of it ripped off the first pole, scattering blossoms every which way.

  “Star apologies, Tansy!” she called. “I won’t be long at all.”

  The girl looked distraught. “But Starshine Day is coming!” she said.

  Don’t I know it, thought Gemma. “I’ll be back soon! I promise!”

  Gemma followed the guard all the way to the ozziefruit orchard, where it set off on a winding path through the trees. Eventually, to her astonishment, she discovered Lady Cordial sitting on a bench, about to bite into a star-sandwich, a fine picnic lunch spread out around her.

  “Oh, Gemma!” Lady Cordial cried, jumping up to greet her. Gemma grimaced as the fine china plate that had been sitting on her lap smashed into smithereens on the stone walkway. “Oh, dear,” Lady Cordial said sheepishly. “How clumsy of me.”

  Two Bot-Bot guards zoomed closer, then hovered nearby. To Gemma’s starprise, one of them winked at her. Gemma realized it was MO-J4, otherwise known as Mojo—Sage’s special Bot-Bot friend. She winked back.

  “How can I help you, my dear?” Lady Cordial asked as the smashed china and lost star-sandwich disappeared, as messes always did on Starland.

  “I need to talk to you,” said Gemma. “I am feeling this tremendous pull to go to Wishworld, but my Wish Orb is still not ready.” She looked up at the headmistress searchingly. “Or is it? Have you checked?”

  “Every day,” said Lady Cordial earnestly. “I’m just as anxious as you are. But I have this feeling, this very s-s-s-strong feeling, that we are all worrying and getting upset for no reason. I can’t shake this feeling that everything is going to turn out exactly the way it is s-s-s-supposed to. And I also have this feeling, a premonition almost”—she leaned closer to Gemma, as if she was about to tell her a secret—“that it’s your mission that will turn the tide for S-s-s-starland. That you, my dear, will be the one to return S-s-s-starland to the way it should be.”

  Gemma gasped and felt a glimmer of hope in her chest. “Do you really think so?” she asked eagerly. “That’s exactly what I was hoping for!”

  “I do,” said Lady Cordial. “Just you wait and s-s-s-see. We just need to be patient.” She closed her eyes, concentrated for a moment, and nodded. “Yes,” she said, “I think it will all work out just in time for S-s-s-starshine Day.”

  “But that’s only three days away!” Gemma said anxiously. She had a sudden realization. “So that means I’ll be sent down on my mission any day now?”

  Lady Cordial nodded. “It’s almost ready, I’m sure of it,” she agreed. “So rest up and s-s-s-start getting ready for the mission of a lifetime!”

  Gemma walked back to the dorm in a daze, completely forgetting about Tansy and the decorating committee. She had to mentally prepare herself for this most crucial mission. Her mind was racing. I’ll keep this news to myself, she thought. No need to discuss it until it actually happens. Yes, it would be good for her to sit on the information and digest it slowly. Everyone would know soon enough, at the Wish Orb reveal. She was pleased with herself for coming to that conclusion, which she felt showed great maturity and composure.

  She bumped into her sister just outside of the dormitories.

  “Hey, Gemma,” said Tessa.

  “I’mgoingonamission!” Gemma nearly shouted, all in a rush.

  “Slow down,” said Tessa. “Say that again?”

  Oh, starf, there goes maturity and composure, Gemma thought. She looked around furtively to make sure no one had overheard, and repeated her message. “I’m going on a mission! Any day now. Lady Cordial just told me.”

  Tessa bit her lip.

  “What’s wrong?” said Gemma. “It’s what we’ve been waiting for. This is good news for me—and for Starland.”

  “It’s great news for Starland,” Tessa replied slowly. “You, I’m not so sure. I’m worried. The last thing Mom said to me before we left for Starling Academy was that I should always look out for you.”

  “Really?” said Gemma. “She told me I should always look out for you.”

  The two girls laughed. That was just like their mother—trying to make them both feel useful and trusted (and carefully looked after, of course).

  “But seriously, Gemma,” said Tessa, “we’re having a crisis. Things keep going wrong. Adora’s mission nearly was ruined because her secret Starling identity was compromised. It all turned out okay in the end, but it could have been a disaster. Not to mention Leona’s messed-up mission. She almost d
idn’t make it home.”

  “I’ll be careful, Sis. I promise,” said Gemma. “But I’ve got to go on this mission. The fate of Starland is hanging in the balance, you know.”

  “And on that dramatic note,” said Tessa, “I’ve got to go. I’ll see you later.”

  She turned and made a glitterbeeline toward her dorm.

  “Wait a minute, where are you going?” Gemma cried. She had been hoping they could pick a few outfits together with the Wishworld Outfit Selector.

  “Why, to my room, of course,” Tessa called back over her shoulder. “To bake. You can’t go to Wishworld without the proper amount of snacks, now can you?”

  It was a full starday later and there was still no message from Lady Cordial about Gemma’s Wish Orb. So, as usual, the twelve girls assembled in the Star Darlings classroom. This time, anticipating the free hour they would most likely have, they decided they had no choice but to start preparing for the Battle of the Bands. They brought in their musical instruments, sewing supplies, and what seemed like mooniums of sequins, especially created by Adora, which they would sew onto their outfits—a striking golden pantsuit for Leona, its legs wide and flowing; a pink minidress with enormous bell sleeves for Libby; a flowy purple tunic over leggings for Sage; a bright blue bolero jacket and matching shorts for Vega; and a hooded black sweatshirt dress for Scarlet. Gemma’s sewing skills had improved dramatically after her experience with the briteflower garlands, and she chose to work on Scarlet’s dress, adding hot-pink sequins to the dark material. It was going to look startastic when she finished. The only way to do it without wish energy was to pull a needle and thread through the center of each sequin, thread a tiny bead onto the needle, then push it back through the sequin, knotting the thread on the other side—over and over and over again. It was time-consuming, mindless work, but Gemma was finding it to be oddly soothing. It helped to calm her nerves. She was both bursting with excitement and trembling with apprehension, an uneasy combination. Being nervous made her chattier than ever. It soothed her a bit to keep up a constant stream of words, which she was sure entertained the other Star Darlings as they sewed on sequins, too. Meanwhile, the Star Darlings band members rehearsed. The room had been soundproofed to keep their special lessons private, so they didn’t have to worry that they would be disturbing any classes while they rocked out.

  After a while, the band took a break. Leona took the time to try to reach Lady Stella. Gemma held her breath as Leona holo-dialed, but there was no answer. Again.

  Gemma turned to Sage, intending to ask if she had heard from her mother. Cassie, sensing her question, shook her head and leaned over to whisper to Gemma. “No word yet,” she said. “And when she last spoke to her grandmother and her father, she could have sworn that they sounded a little worried. But they assured her that everything was fine.”

  With break time over, Vega, Sage, and Libby picked up their instruments and Scarlet settled in behind her drums.

  “Let’s take that one from the top again,” said Leona. “We have to be totally perfect.” She looked determined. “I just have to beat Vivica.”

  Scarlet reached over and poked her in the side with a drumstick.

  Leona jumped. “Oh, sorry. I mean the Star Darlings just have to beat Vivica and the Visionaries,” she said, correcting herself.

  Scarlet nodded. “That’s more like it,” she said.

  That evening, as they walked back to their dorms after dinner, Piper spoke up. “I have an idea,” she said. “We’ve been under a lot of pressure the past few days. Anyone want to join me for a little meditation?”

  It was the last thing Gemma wanted to do. She was envisioning herself slipping on a pair of comfy pajamas, crawling under the covers, and holo-calling her two best friends from home for a chat before she fell asleep. She glued her eyes to the ground and kept walking toward the dormitory.

  When none of the Star Darlings responded, Piper pressed on. “We’ve all been working so hard. We’re under a lot of stress. Some simple meditation will work wonders. It will center us, take our minds off our worries about Lady Stella and our concerns about this ridiculous festival. We’ll all sleep really well afterwards, too.”

  Gemma was just about to politely bow out when she glanced over and noticed the disappointed look on Piper’s kind face. She mentally changed her plans for the evening.

  “I’m in,” she said, a note of fake cheer in her voice. Her sister, with a barely audible sigh, followed suit. And before long, each and every Star Darling was on board. No one wanted to be the one to disappoint Piper. They made a plan to go first to their rooms and put on their comfiest clothes. Half a starhour later they were all knocking on the door to Piper and Vega’s room. Gemma had dressed to relax in a silky bright orange pajama set with red trim and knotted buttons, and she had pulled her hair into two pigtails (adorable, if she did say so herself). She sniffed the air appreciatively as she stepped inside, enjoying the smell of glowball incense that wafted through the air. It brought a smile to her face, reminding her of the bouquets her father would handpick to starprise her mother. She giggled, remembering the time her mom had leaned in to sniff a blossom and had come nose to nose with a glitterbee. The fuzzy little creature had taken a starshine to her mom and became her little pet, following her all around the house and settling on her shoulder as she read holo-books in the evening. Gemma looked over at Tessa, who also had a wistful little smile on her face, and Gemma wondered if she was sharing the same memory. Thinking of her parents, alone on the farm, struggling to keep things going in the face of the energy shortage, brought a lump to Gemma’s throat. How she wished that Wish Orb would just start glowing.

  Gentle music was playing and Gemma could already feel the tensions of the day easing from her tight shoulders. She lowered herself to the ground to sit on a soft orange cushion. There were colorful cushions in each girl’s signature color scattered on the floor, and Gemma watched as her friends sank onto theirs gratefully. They all switched their Star-Zaps to silent mode and placed them within arm’s reach, just in case. Gemma looked around and smiled. The lighting was muted and very peaceful.

  Piper sat facing the girls on her own seafoam-green cushion. She wore a long sleeveless tunic in varying shades of green over a pair of knit leggings. Her hair was pulled back smoothly into a rippling ponytail. She smiled at the girls, looking quite pleased to have them all there together. Gemma admired Piper for her serene demeanor. She was suddenly quite glad to be there, and she hoped that this meditation experiment might bring her some inner peace to replace the anxiety that had been troubling her.

  Piper pressed her hands together and brought them to her face, bowing her head at them in greeting. “Welcome,” she said. “I’m so starfully happy that you all have chosen to spend your evening with me in meditation. Through meditation we learn to become calm and at peace with ourselves. We will learn how to be more focused, how to transform our minds from negative to positive.”

  Sign me up! thought Gemma. I’m ready!

  “Now we’ll begin. Everyone, please sit up straight, but still make sure that you are feeling comfortable. Not quite so tense, Vega…no, no, oh, yes, that’s much better. Are you all sitting criss-cross starapple sauce? Perfect! Now place your hands on your knees, palms up. Close your eyes and concentrate on your breathing.”

  Gemma had never really thought about breathing before. It just happened; it was something you never considered. She concentrated on the action. In and out. In and out. Wait—was she breathing too fast? Or too slow? How many breaths were you supposed to take in a starmin, anyway? Were there rules for breathing that she didn’t know about? She had so many questions!

  “Now don’t change the way you are breathing, just pay close attention to the way that you inhale and exhale,” Piper said, as if she had heard Gemma’s thoughts. Actually, knowing Piper’s many talents, Gemma wouldn’t put it past her. “Think of your chest, rising and falling with each breath. Good! Now we’ll do this for two starmins.” />
  Gemma was trying really hard to just think about her breaths, but she found her mind wandering, not to energy shortages and missing headmistresses, as she might have expected, but oddly enough to briteflower garlands. Were they sparklehammered in properly? What if the night was windy? Would they fall? Had they hung them up too soon?

  Piper’s soft voice sounded in her ear. “If you find your mind wandering, get right back to your breaths. In and out, in and out.” Gemma’s eyes flew open, but Piper was still sitting on her cushion at the front of the room. Her words had the desired effect, nevertheless, and Gemma was once again where she needed to be, at least in terms of meditation.

  Piper’s voice grew more distant. “Through meditation we will learn to free ourselves from unnecessary worries and achieve peaceful minds. This is the way to experience true happiness.

  “Now,” she said when the two starmins of concentrated breathing were up, “we are going to introduce a mantra. This is a simple word or phrase we will concentrate on that will really help you to focus your mind. We will all think of a simple word or phrase to focus on. We will repeat this mantra silently over and over to ourselves. I’ll give you a moment to choose a word or phrase.” Gemma felt a slight ripple in the air as Piper passed by.

  “Has everyone chosen a mantra? Now it’s time to think of your word,” Piper said.

  “Wish Orb!” said Gemma.

  “Say it in your head, just to yourself,” Piper corrected gently.

  “Wish Orb!” Gemma repeated.