The Golden Shell

by Paula Harrison

  “She thought it was real!” gasped Summer.

  “I bet she’ll tell everyone she saw the biggest bee in the world!” snorted Lottie.

  “It was a shame the bee had to buzz off in the end!” giggled Ella.

  Still laughing, they made their way out of school and across the garden to the pet barn. Lottie ran off to the stables to see her pony, Strawberry, while Ella and Summer went to visit the rabbits. The barn was dark and cosy. Animals rustled in the hay and now and then the lambs bleated.

  “Rebecca’s not here,” said Summer, looking around. “Maybe she’s busy in the fields.”

  “I hope Daisy still remembers me,” said Ella.

  “Of course she will,” replied Summer. “It’s only been a few days. She wouldn’t forget you that quickly.”

  They crouched down next to the rabbit run. The two grey rabbits were asleep in a corner and the brown ones were nibbling on some hay. Daisy was standing by the side of the pen, her little pink nose tilted upwards as if she’d been waiting for them.

  “Hello, Daisy.” Ella leaned over and stroked her honey-coloured fur.

  Daisy twitched her nose at Ella’s hand and hopped up and down the run in excitement. Ella laughed. Then as soon as the little bunny stopped jumping, she lifted her out of the run for a cuddle.

  “Aw, she’s lovely!” Summer rubbed Daisy’s ears. “I’m just going to see the hens. I want to know if any chicks have hatched today.”

  Ella smiled. “Call me if you see any.” She sat down on a hay bale and rested Daisy in her lap. “Next time I come I’m going to bring you a treat,” she told the little rabbit. “Would you like some carrots? I wish you could live in my bedroom with me. That would be so awesome.”

  Suddenly Daisy pricked up her ears. Then she stood up on her hind legs, sniffing the air.

  “What is it?” said Ella. “Can you smell something strange?”

  Daisy huddled up and hid her nose under Ella’s arm.

  Puzzled, Ella got up, holding tight to her rabbit. She crossed to the barn window and looked out.

  Molly was striding across the lawn with a huge frown on her face.

  “Oh no!” whispered Ella. “She must have worked out that we sneaked away. We have to hide!”

  Ella hurried down the barn, calling to Summer as loudly as she dared. Summer poked her head out of the henhouse.

  “Molly’s coming,” hissed Ella. “We’ve got to do something!”

  “I’ll go this way.” Summer pointed to the back door. “I’ll find Lottie and we’ll meet you back at Seahorse Tower.”

  Ella nodded. Through the window, she could see Molly getting closer. She dashed out of the main door and ran along the side of the barn until she came to a wooden bench. She crouched down behind it, hoping that Molly hadn’t spotted her running from the barn.

  Daisy wriggled in her arms. Ella stroked the rabbit’s soft ears. In her panic about Molly, she’d almost forgotten that she was holding the little bunny.

  Molly marched straight inside without looking in the direction of the bench. Ella got up from her hiding place and tiptoed back to the barn door. Molly was leaning over the rabbit pen, counting the number of baby rabbits. Then she sat down on a hay bale and folded her arms.

  She’s waiting till I come back, thought Ella.

  Nervously, she pushed a black curl behind her ear and wondered what to do. She had to talk to the others. They would have some ideas for a ninja move. With one last look at the barn, she rushed across the garden, darting behind the privet statues and hoping she wouldn’t be seen.

  Luckily, the castle entrance was empty. Ella hurried towards the stairs, stopping when she heard Lady Eggley’s voice drifting down from the balcony. “There’s such a terrible draught in this castle! Why must the princesses always leave the front door wide open? I shall close it myself!”

  Ella’s eyes widened. If a teacher caught her bringing a rabbit into the castle, she’d be in big trouble. And Lady Eggley was the very last teacher she wanted to be caught by! Looking left and right, Ella darted through the nearest open door into the Throne Room.

  She heard Lady Eggley’s high-heeled shoes tapping on the stone floor outside. Where could she hide? The room was quite bare, with just a strip of red carpet leading to the magnificent golden throne. Pictures of kings and queens hung on the walls and the shelves had rows of silver trophies.

  Ella spotted a small door in the corner of the room. She thought it must be a store cupboard. She ran to it and pulled the handle. It was locked. Quickly, she ducked down behind the golden throne before she was seen. Her heart thumped and she hugged Daisy tightly.

  “Lady Eggley, I have some bad news.” Molly’s voice rang out clearly.

  Ella peeked round the throne and looked through the open doorway. She saw Molly standing next to the teacher in the hallway outside. She watched the older girl curtsy perfectly. Ella stifled a sigh. Why couldn’t she curtsy like that?

  “What is it, Molly?” said Lady Eggley. “Nothing serious I hope.”

  “I’ve just seen a new girl bring a rabbit into the castle,” said Molly in a shocked voice. “Her name is Ella. I’m afraid that as a captain in her tower I find her very badly behaved.”

  Lady Eggley’s eyebrows rose and she tutted.

  “And her fingernails are really dirty,” added Molly.

  Ella looked at her fingernails. She had to admit they were quite grubby.

  “Well, there is no excuse for that!” declared Lady Eggley. “Find her and bring her straight to me. I shall wait here.”

  Ella peered round the edge of the golden throne again. She could still see Lady Eggley standing in the hallway outside. The teacher frowned and smoothed her perfect hair.

  Ella shifted uncomfortably. Her legs were aching and Daisy was wriggling, but she knew if she stood up she’d be seen. She hoped that Lady Eggley would get tired of waiting in one place and walk off, giving her the chance to escape.

  Summer and Lottie came running through the front door into the hallway.

  “Princesses! You must not run inside the Academy,” said Lady Eggley.

  “Sorry!” Summer dropped a curtsy.

  “Have either of you seen a princess named Ella and a runaway rabbit?” demanded Lady Eggley.

  “No, sorry!” said Lottie. “We don’t know where she is.”

  “Well, if you see her please send her to me. I shall not permit animals and princesses to run wild!” said the teacher. Then she muttered to herself, “This is what comes of turning Harebell Castle into a pet club.”

  Ella heard Lottie and Summer walk away but Lady Eggley remained in the hallway, tapping one high-heeled shoe. Ella looked down at Daisy and saw that she’d fallen asleep.

  To try and take her mind off her aching legs, Ella gazed at the ornate carvings on the golden throne. Being so close, she could see every shape and swirl. Little red rubies sparkled along the throne’s arms and green emeralds glistened on the top. A red velvet cloth wrapped around the lower part of the throne and reached down to the floor.

  Ella gazed at the small shells carved into the back of the throne. They were so beautiful! One shell gleamed more brightly than the others and she traced her finger across its fan-like shape.

  Then, suddenly, the shell moved.

  Ella paused; surely she must have imagined it! Slowly, she touched the golden shell again and pushed it.

  The shell moved smoothly to the side. There was a muffled clunk from the corner, and the door of the cupboard swung slightly open.

  Ella turned and stared. Golden light poured through the crack in the door. It couldn’t be a cupboard… But then, what was it? And how had this golden shell unlocked it?

  A tingle ran down her back.

  “What’s that noise?” said Lady Eggley.

  Ella peered over the top of the throne. The teacher was looking all around the hall. She must have heard the clunking noise as the door opened! What if she came into the Throne Room? Ella’s heart thumped and she pu
shed the shell again. She had to close the door quickly.But the door wouldn’t move.

  Ella tried again. She put Daisy down on the floor so that she could use both hands. The little rabbit woke up and twitched her nose. Ella pushed the shell with all her strength.

  This time it moved a little. The door swung back until it was almost shut and only a tiny glint of light could be seen. Ella was just about to reach across and close the door completely when Lady Eggley marched into the room.

  “Who’s there?” said the teacher. “I demand that you come out at once.”

  Ella’s heart sank. Quickly, she hid Daisy underneath the red cloth that circled the bottom of the throne. Then she took a deep breath and stood up. “Hello, Lady Eggley.” She gave a wobbly curtsy. “It’s me, Princess Ella.”

  Lady Eggley looked Ella up and down, a deep frown creasing her forehead.

  Ella suddenly realised how dusty her skirt looked and that bits of hay were sticking to her jumper. “Um, I can explain—” she began.

  “You can explain!” screeched Lady Eggley. “Nothing you say can excuse such unruly behaviour! This is not what we expect of our princesses.”

  Ella’s cheeks flushed. “I’m really sorry.”

  “Hiding like that – such cheek! And just look at the state of you!” Lady Eggley took hold of Ella’s hand and examined her fingernails.

  Just then, Molly ran into the room. “Oh, Lady Eggley. You’ve found her.” She cast a mean grin at Ella behind the teacher’s back. “But where’s the rabbit?”

  Ella hoped that Daisy was still hidden under the red cloth behind the throne.

  Lady Eggley’s attention was still fixed on Ella’s fingernails. “You must learn to scrub these nails thoroughly. Do it at least twenty times a day!” She let go of Ella’s hand. “Now, unless you have some good reason for being in here, I shall have to find you a punishment.”

  Molly’s grin widened.

  “Did someone say punishment?” Rebecca walked in. Her eyes flicked from Ella’s worried face to Molly’s grin.

  “I’m afraid that Ella has been very naughty.” Lady Eggley brushed a speck of dust from her sleeve. “She came in here by herself without permission. She hid from me and she is not clean and tidy. Therefore I shall be deciding on a suitable punishment for her.”

  “Excellent!” said Rebecca firmly. “I need someone to help me carry lots of bags of hay. That can be Ella’s punishment. I’m sure you won’t object, Lady Eggley; I really need the extra help.”

  “Of course!” said the teacher graciously. “I will leave her in your charge. And remember, Princess Ella, I shall be checking your fingernails from now on.” She nodded to Rebecca and swept from the room.

  Molly glanced round the room again and Ella knew she was still looking for Daisy.

  “Run along then, Molly,” said Rebecca.

  Molly looked annoyed but had no choice but to go.

  Rebecca turned to Ella and smiled. “Are you all right, Ella? I saw your friends outside the pet barn just now and they told me all about how difficult Molly has been. I’d started to think you didn’t want to look after your little rabbit but I hear that isn’t true.”

  “It isn’t true at all!” cried Ella. “I really do want to take care of Daisy. It was awful when Molly wouldn’t give us time to come down to the barn.” Her eyes flicked sideways, expecting to catch a glimpse of the rabbit. Where was Daisy?

  “Well, Lady Eggley is expecting you to help me so we’d better head to the barn,” said Rebecca. “Moving the hay is actually quite a nice job, I think! And you’ll be able to say hello to your bunny again.”

  Ella flushed. She knew she should explain to Rebecca that her rabbit was here in the Throne Room but what if the pet keeper was really shocked? What if she was so cross that she wouldn’t let her keep Daisy any more?

  Ella decided she should be honest. “Um, the thing is,” she began. “I left the pet barn in a bit of a hurry and—”

  “Oh, don’t worry!” said Rebecca. “If you’d rather help carry the hay tomorrow then that’s fine. It doesn’t have to be done today. I won’t tell Lady Eggley if you don’t!” She gave Ella a wink.

  Ella swallowed. Rebecca hadn’t really understood.

  Just then, Lottie, Summer and Rosalind ran in. “There you are!” said Rosalind. “We were beginning to think you’d vanished.”

  “Hello, girls! Well, I must get on.” Rebecca marched to the door. “There are ponies to feed and groom, hamsters to clean out and goodness knows what else!” And she was gone before Ella could say anything more.

  “What happened, Ella?” said Lottie. “We couldn’t see you anywhere.”

  “I was here all the time but I had to hide when Lady Eggley stood outside in the hallway.” Ella dived behind the throne to look for her rabbit.

  “Are you OK?” said Rosalind, watching her in surprise.

  “I have to find Daisy. She’s somewhere round here.” Ella pulled up the red material that circled the bottom of the throne and felt around underneath. Her fingers swept across empty floorboards. She crouched right down behind the throne and put her head under the red cloth.

  There was nothing there.

  “Daisy! Where are you?” Ella looked around frantically. “I put her here. She can’t have just disappeared!”

  The other girls peered underneath the red cloth too.

  “She can’t be very far. There’s nowhere else to hide,” said Summer.

  The girls spread out, checking behind chairs and even on the trophy shelves.

  Ella suddenly remembered the golden shell and the mysterious door. “Oh, I nearly forgot!” She ran to the corner. “I thought this was a locked cupboard but when I pushed one shell on the back of the throne the door opened like magic. I tried to close it but…” She caught her breath. The door was only open a tiny crack but it was still large enough for a baby rabbit to squeeze through.

  “You mean the door opens with a magic switch?” said Lottie. “I’d like to see that!”

  Ella pulled the door open and golden light poured through. Inside was an alcove with an old-fashioned lantern. The light from the lantern shone on to a stone passage that curved away around a corner.

  “Wow!” Rosalind gasped, peering into the passageway.

  “I wonder where it leads,” said Summer.

  “Poor Daisy!” said Ella. “She must have squeezed through when no one was looking. We have to find her.”

  Bong! The castle bell rang out three times and then footsteps came down the hallway. Ella closed the mysterious door quickly and stood in front of it.

  Molly came in. “That was the bell for dinner,” she told them. “Hurry up – or I’ll tell Lady Eggley that you were messing around in here again.”

  Rosalind squeezed Ella’s hand and whispered. “Don’t worry! We’ll come back.”

  Ella followed the others out of the room. She knew Molly was watching her and she tried hard not to look back at the door. I’ll explore that secret passage once Molly’s not looking! she told herself fiercely. She won’t stop me finding Daisy.

  Dinner was a delicious cheese and tomato pizza with salad but Ella didn’t taste any of it. She gulped down her food, while the others whispered about fetching torches from upstairs.

  “That lantern inside the door might not light the whole passageway,” said Rosalind. “We need to take torches just in case.”

  Ella could see Molly sitting at a table nearby and caught the older girl looking at her a few times.

  When they’d finished, Summer went back for the torches. The other girls hung around the entrance hall, waiting for a chance to slip into the Throne Room without anyone seeing.

  Ella linked her fingers together, trying to stop her hands from shaking. She couldn’t bear the thought of Daisy all alone in the stone passageway. She hoped they would find her quickly.

  Summer returned with the torches but it took a long time for all the other girls to leave the dining hall and go upstairs to their towers. At
last the hallway emptied. The princesses slipped into the Throne Room without switching on the light, and closed the door behind them.

  Ella went behind the throne and fumbled for the golden shell. “Here it is!” She pushed the shell and it slid sideways. There was a muffled clunk and the door in the corner swung open. Light poured into the room from the old-fashioned lantern on the alcove inside.

  “Quickly!” hissed Rosalind. “Let’s go before someone comes in and finds us!”

  The girls bundled into the stone passage and Lottie closed the door behind them.

  “Wait, Lottie!” said Summer. “What if there isn’t a way to open the door from this side?”

  “There must be!” said Lottie.

  The girls looked at the door but there was no handle on the inside and no lever on the wall either.

  “Er…sorry!” said Lottie. “I didn’t mean to shut us in. But there’ll be a way out at the other end, right?”

  The others looked at each other worriedly.

  Then Ella said, “There must be another way out. Let’s just find Daisy.”

  Rosalind led the way along the stone corridor. After the first bend, the light from the lantern faded and the girls switched on their torches. Ella shone hers at the floor, hoping to see Daisy leaping along passage in front of them. She longed to find the little bunny and stroke her warm fur.

  The passageway twisted again and again. The princesses followed it left and right, and their feet began to ache.

  “I didn’t think we’d have to walk so far,” said Lottie. “It seems like we’ve been in here for a long time.”

  “Ooh, look at the ceiling,” said Summer, shining her torch upwards. “There are golden shells up there that look just like the one on the back of the throne.”

  The other girls looked up. “You’re right,” said Ella. “They have the same fan shape as the one that opened the mystery door. I hope that means we’re going the right way.”

  They came to some steps and followed them downwards. At the bottom Rosalind stopped suddenly, making the others bump into her.