‘Well, how do you feel?’ demanded Sooze. ‘Oh, I bet it worked, you look all flushed!’ She shot a few inches off the floor, bouncing up and down in the air. ‘Come on, Twink, fly! You can do it now, I know you can!’
Twink took a deep breath. Almost everyone in the first year stood to one side, watching her. At least Mariella and Lola weren’t there!
‘What are you waiting for?’ demanded Sooze, hovering above her.
‘Nothing!’ Twink grit her teeth, concentrating hard . . . and then suddenly SWOOSHED up into the air.
‘Agh!’ she cried, arms and legs flailing. She banged wildly about the room, knocking drawings off the wall and overturning a mug of nectar. Sooze shrieked and ducked out of her way.
Crack! Twink slammed into the ceiling at full speed. She fell back to the floor, where she lay in a crumpled heap.
‘Are you all right?’ cried Zena. She and Pix rushed to Twink’s side, helping her up.
‘Ooohh . . . that hurt,’ moaned Twink.
Sooze landed beside her. ‘Try again,’ she suggested. ‘Come on, do it now before you lose your nerve!’
Twink shook her head, tears stinging at her eyes. ‘Didn’t you see me? I almost went through the ceiling! It’s hopeless! I’ll never fly.’
‘Of course you will!’ Sooze patted her shoulder. ‘Twink, all fairies can fly.’
‘Agnes Leadwing couldn’t,’ whispered Twink.
Silence fell over the Common Branch. Pix cleared her throat. ‘Well . . . the books think that maybe she was a special case –’
‘I don’t want to hear another word about that stupid Agnes!’ Sooze rubbed a pink wing against Twink’s lavender one. ‘You’ll learn to fly, and that’s the end of it.’
Pix nodded eagerly. ‘I’ll think of something, Twink, I promise!’
Twink managed a smile. ‘Really?’
‘Of course!’ cried Sooze. ‘Twink, you have to learn to fly; you’re missing out on too much fun otherwise.’ She pulled Twink to her feet. ‘Like the Flying Exhibition, for instance! You don’t want to stay on the ground for it, do you? We have to get you flying!’
.
Chapter Five
Nobody, though, had any bright ideas in the weeks that followed, and Twink stayed on the ground. Mrs Lightwing kept giving Twink extra lessons, but nothing the Flight mistress tried seemed to work.
‘Relax!’ she kept ordering. ‘You’re thinking too much, my girl. Don’t think, just fly!’ And Twink would clench her fists, mutter don’t think, don’t think to herself – and promptly fly into the tree again.
Meanwhile the flying teams practised every day, swooping high overhead during Flight class. Twink sat on the ground watching them, trying to be a good sport and not to feel too sorry for herself.
‘Go, Sooze!’ she cheered as her friend’s team looped the loop in perfect formation.
Sooze grinned and waved as they flew past. ‘That is so much fun!’ she called.
Twink watched as Sooze’s team zoomed over the pond at the far end of the field, scattering blue and green dragonflies as they went. One of the insects landed on a bulrush, beating its bright wings. The reed dipped down close to the ground, springing up again when the dragonfly flew away.
Twink groaned despite herself. Even the dragonflies flew better than she did!
Mrs Lightwing hovered up above, shouting instructions to the teams. ‘Now just carry on practising for a bit,’ she bellowed through cupped hands. Gracefully going into a dive, she skimmed through the air and landed on the ground beside Twink.
‘Well now, my girl,’ she said, patting her blue hair into place. ‘I think the time has come to work out what you’re doing for the exhibition, don’t you? It’s only a week away now.’
Twink blinked. ‘But how can I do anything? I can’t fly.’
‘You can’t fly yet,’ corrected Mrs Lightwing with a frown. ‘But you’ll still be taking part in the exhibition. I’ve a very important part in mind for you.’
‘You do?’ gasped Twink.
Mrs Lightwing nodded. ‘I’ve been talking to Madame Brightfoot, and we have just the thing. While the teams are flying, you’re going to do a special dance on the ground.’
A dance on the ground? Twink’s cheeks caught fire as she imagined it.
‘Do I have to?’ she blurted.
‘Now, none of that!’ said Mrs Lightwing sternly. ‘We can’t have you not taking part with the rest of your year, can we?’
Twink didn’t see why not. She shrugged, looking down.
The Flight mistress tipped up Twink’s chin with a firm finger. ‘I don’t want you feeling sorry for yourself, my girl. Where’s your Glitterwings spirit? You’ll do the dance Madame Brightfoot assigns you, and you’ll do it as well as you possibly can!’ Mrs Lightwing took to the air in a flurry of wings. A moment later she was shouting instructions to the teams again.
Twink clapped her wings together, blinking back tears. A dance! A stupid little dance on the ground while everyone else flew!
Sunny hopped over from where he had been pecking for worms, and nudged her arm with a concerned chirp. Twink pressed her hot cheek against the smooth feathers of his wing, wiping her tears away.
‘Oh, Sunny,’ she muttered. ‘I’ll feel like such an idiot! In front of the whole school, too. I’m so glad my parents won’t be there – that would make everything ten times worse!’
Mariella’s team swooped past. ‘Dearie me, there’s trouble on the ground,’ called Mariella. ‘Poor Twink, are you upset that you can’t do this?’
Quick as a hummingbird, Mariella zoomed into a loop-the-loop. Lola followed, snickering wildly. Only Bimi stayed behind. Colouring up, she crossed her arms over her chest and fluttered in place, not looking at Twink.
Twink glared up at Mariella. Why couldn’t she just leave her alone?
Just then Lola came out of her loop, flying wildly and much too fast. Thump! She crashed straight into Bimi.
‘Oh!’ shrieked Lola as she fell.
Twink sprang to help without thinking, sprinting across the grass. She reached the struggling fairy moments before she landed, cushioning her fall with her arms.
‘Oomf!’ grunted Twink as they thudded to the ground together. She slowly sat up, rubbing her head. ‘Are you all right?’
Lola looked dazed. ‘I – I think so. I got a wing cramp when I crashed into Bimi, that’s all.’
‘Is it better now?’ Twink helped Lola to her feet.
Lola fluttered her pale blue wings, peering behind her. She nodded, and looked shyly at Twink. ‘Um – that was – I mean, you really –’
Mariella landed beside them, her pointed face flushed. She took Lola’s arm. ‘How nice that we have such an efficient ground crew,’ she said loudly, tossing her silvery-green hair. ‘Isn’t it, Lola?’
She scowled at Lola, who swallowed hard. ‘Oh, yes! Yes, it is!’
‘It’s really just as well you can’t fly,’ said Mariella, smirking at Twink. ‘We need you on the ground!’
She took off in a rush of wings, with Lola following behind her. Twink glared after them. Oh! Couldn’t Mariella even say one nice thing to her? Glancing up, she saw Bimi hovering a few inches away.
‘What do you want?’ she asked crossly.
The pretty fairy’s cheeks blazed. ‘I just – oh, Twink, I’m sorry! She’s so –’
‘Teams together now!’ bellowed Mrs Lightwing, swooping past and clapping her hands. ‘Quickly, I want to do a full run-through.’
Bimi’s face was like a bright red poppy flower. She flew slowly away, looking back over her shoulder. Faintly, Twink could hear Sooze laughing with Sili and Zena. Nobody else had even noticed what happened.
Twink perched on a dandelion leaf with her chin cupped in her hands. A lad
ybird trundled down the flower’s stalk, and Twink patted it glumly on the head.
‘You know, ladybird . . . I’m not enjoying school as much as I thought I would.’
Before dinner that evening, the school butterflies fluttered into the Great Branch with letters and packages from home. A yellow butterfly hovered gracefully above Twink, dropping a rolled-up rose petal into her lap.
‘Ooh, look, Mum’s sent me a new leaf pad,’ said Sooze beside her, tearing open a package. ‘I suppose Winn told her I lost my old one!’
‘You always lose things,’ pointed out Twink with a grin. She unrolled the pink petal curiously.
Dear Twink, said the shimmering silver ink.
Your father and I were so disappointed at the thought of missing your Flying Exhibition that we’ve decided not to go to the Fairy Medics’ Meeting after all. We’ll be at Glitterwings Academy with all the other parents and families, and we’re going to bring Teena along, too. She’s so excited she can hardly keep still!
Don’t be nervous about the exhibition, Twink. Just do your best and we’ll be as proud of you as we always are. See you soon!
Love from,
Mum and Dad
‘Oh, no!’ gasped Twink. She glanced quickly at Sooze, but her friend was chattering away to Sili and Zena about barrel rolls.
‘Twink, are you OK? What’s wrong?’ asked Bimi from across the table.
Dropping the letter, Twink buried her head in her hands with a groan. ‘Oh, nothing. Just the worst thing ever!’
‘Let’s think about this logically,’ said Pix. ‘Twink, why can’t you fly?’ They were all gathered in the Common Branch, sitting perched on mushrooms and on the mossy carpet.
‘I don’t know,’ said Twink. ‘Mrs Lightwing says I think too much. She says flying should be instinctive, but that I worry about it so much that my wings get all tangled up.’
She tried to sound calm, but her heart was racing. What in the world was she going to do? She couldn’t let her parents down in front of everyone. They were so proud of her! She had to learn to fly before the exhibition.
Pix nodded. ‘So if we’re going to get you flying by the time your parents get here, we need to help you not to think. You’ve got to be in a situation where you have to fly, and don’t have time to worry about it!’
‘I know!’ said Sooze with a wicked smile. ‘Let’s push her off a ledge!’
Twink tried to laugh with the others, but it didn’t seem very funny. Trust Sooze to make a joke out of it!
‘Hang on!’ said Pix, her eyes widening. ‘Sooze, I think you might be on to something.’
‘Of course I am,’ grinned Sooze. ‘I’m a genius, didn’t you know?’
‘Sooze, stop messing around! It’s really not a bad idea. If Twink were falling, somehow, so that she had to fly –’ Pix tapped her chin, frowning. ‘Come on, everyone, think!’
‘Maybe . . . maybe we could build a fairy pyramid,’ suggested Bimi. Her cheeks reddened as everyone looked at her. ‘Out on the front lawn, I mean. And then Twink could climb to the top and jump off.’
‘I don’t know,’ said Pix doubtfully. ‘I think she’d still have too much time to think about being scared. It has to be sudden.’
All at once Twink saw the dragonfly from that morning again, landing on the bulrush and springing off it. Of course! Her wings trembled with excitement as she leapt to her feet.
‘I’ve got it!’ she cried. ‘I’ve got the perfect idea!’
.
Chapter Six
‘Twink, are you ready?’ called Pix.
‘Ready!’ called Twink, clinging to the soft brown velvet of the bulrush. The greenish water of the pond lay underneath her. Looking down, she could see a wavering, wide-eyed reflection of herself.
I am not going to be scared, Twink told herself firmly. They had all discussed the plan over and over now, working out every detail. Nothing could go wrong.
‘OK, everyone, bring it down!’ ordered Pix, waving her arms. A flock of Daffodil Branch fairies zoomed to the top of the bulrush. Grabbing hold of it from all directions, they pulled it towards the water until it lay flat.
Looking worried, Pix flew across to Twink. ‘Are you sure you want to do this?’ she whispered.
Twink nodded quickly before she could change her mind. ‘Positive! We all agreed it’s the best plan.’
‘But if it doesn’t work . . .’
Don’t remind me! thought Twink. She straightened her wings. ‘It’s the only way! And it’s not dangerous – I’ll just fall in the water if you don’t catch me.’
‘All right,’ sighed Pix. ‘Now, Twink, on my count, you and the girls will all let go of the bulrush. It’ll whip back up in the air, and you’ll be aloft. And flying, with any luck!’
‘About time, too,’ added Sooze from her position a few inches away. ‘All this planning was giving me a headache!’
Twink bit her lip. She knew Sooze had been bored these last few days, but she couldn’t worry about that now.
Pix fluttered above the bulrush. ‘All right, everyone, on my count!’
The fairies got into position.
‘Three!’ called Pix.
Twink’s heart thumped like a woodpecker. She screwed her eyes shut.
‘Two!’
Get ready to let go, she thought. Get ready . . .
‘One –’
‘WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?’ boomed a voice. ‘GET THAT FAIRY DOWN FROM THERE THIS INSTANT!’ Mrs Lightwing buzzed about the bulrush like an angry wasp. ‘I do not believe what I am seeing!’ she huffed. ‘Twink, get down! Girls, fly that reed back into place and get on the ground!’
In no time at all, the bulrush was upright again and Twink was standing on the ground with the others. Mrs Lightwing hovered grimly in front of the shamefaced fairies.
‘Do you have any idea what a dangerous, silly thing you were about to do?’ she demanded.
The fairies gulped. Sooze slowly raised her hand. ‘We were only trying to help –’
‘HELP!’ roared Mrs Lightwing. The fairies cringed. ‘And what if she didn’t fly, and landed in the water? Are you aware that a snapping turtle lives in that pond?’
A snapping turtle? Twink felt herself turn pale.
‘I have NEVER, in all my years of teaching, seen such an absolute disregard of the school’s rules –’
‘Please, don’t blame them!’ cried Twink. ‘I asked them to help! My parents are coming to the exhibition, and –’
The Flight mistress’s wings were an angry white blur. ‘That’s no excuse, Twink! You and your classmates should have shown much better sense. You’ll all miss your next free afternoon, and spend it writing two hundred lines: I will not do silly, dangerous things!’
‘Oh, please, Mrs Lightwing, just make me do it, not the others, too!’ burst out Twink.
Mrs Lightwing’s eyes flashed. ‘Do you want to make it five hundred lines?’
Twink bit her lip and fell silent.
‘I thought not!’ said Mrs Lightwing. ‘The punishment stands. Now, get back to school this instant, all of you!’
Her tone left no room for argument. The Daffodil Branch fairies flew swiftly away, skimming over the grass.
Sunny chirped a friendly greeting as Twink climbed on to his back. The yellow and grey tit had been watching the proceedings with concern, and seemed relieved that Mrs Lightwing had turned up.
‘I suppose it was sort of silly of us . . . but what else was I supposed to do?’ muttered Twink, stroking his wing. ‘And now we’ve all got to do two hundred lines! Everyone’s going to hate me, and we didn’t even get to see if the plan worked.’
Mrs Lightwing flew across as Twink gathered up her reins. ‘Wait a moment, Twink. Did you say that your parents are com
ing?’
Twink nodded miserably. ‘They don’t know yet that I can’t fly. I know I should have told them, but . . .’ She trailed off.
A twitch of a smile lifted Mrs Lightwing’s mouth. ‘Well, I don’t think turning yourself into a fairy catapult will solve things,’ she said gruffly. ‘What you need to do is get in the air without thinking about it, somehow! Now, get back to school, before I make it five hundred lines after all.’
To Twink’s relief, no one seemed to blame her for the long afternoon spent writing lines – even though Mariella and Lola, who of course hadn’t been part of the plan, gloated over their punishment at every opportunity. Once it was over, the rest of the week sped past, until all at once it was the evening before the exhibition.
In the Common Branch, the first-year fairies drank fizzy nectar and chattered excitedly about the day to come. Twink tried to join in, but all she could think of was doing her dance on the ground while her parents watched.
Sooze nudged her with a wing. ‘Opposite! What’s the matter with you? You’ve hardly said a word all night!’
‘I’m fine.’ Twink managed a smile. She had promised herself that she wouldn’t say anything else about flying to her friends, not after getting all of them in trouble.
‘What is it?’ pressed Sooze. ‘Come on, you can tell me!’
Sudden tears pricked Twink’s eyes. She took her friend’s arm and led her to a quiet corner of the branch. ‘Sooze, what am I going to do? My parents will be here tomorrow, and I still can’t fly!’
Sooze blew out an impatient breath. ‘Oh, Twink, not that again,’ she groaned. ‘You’re no fun at all any more, you’re always moaning about flying! Wasn’t it bad enough that we all got writers’ cramp the other day? What else do you want us to do?’
Twink felt like she had been slapped. ‘But –’
‘Just do your dance tomorrow! It won’t be so bad. I’m going to go talk to Sili and Zena about our flight pattern.’ Sooze fluttered off without a backward look.
Flying High Page 4
