by Ahmet Zappa
Abruptly, Tessa stopped laughing.
“I’m sorry!” Lizzie said. “Did I go overboard with the packing peanuts?”
“Huh?” said Tessa. She was staring into space, confused.
“What’s going on?”
“Shhh! Just give me a starmin.” Tessa didn’t bother to correct herself and say minute. She was too busy concentrating. Just before Lizzie had poured the peanuts, she’d picked up some sort of signal. It was a cry for help that sounded strangely like a bark. She was hearing other thoughts, too: a kitten mewling in panic, another dog shouting for someone, anyone, to get her.
“Tessa?”
Tessa blocked out Lizzie and all the sights and sounds around her. She was not going to be distracted—not now, when it was so important. She heard more—roof, danger, help—again and again, and realized it was Tiny. No, not only Tiny—it was all the animals at the shelter. They were in trouble.
Tessa grabbed Lizzie’s arm. “There’s some sort of emergency at the animal shelter. Don’t ask me how I know. I just do.”
“Let’s go,” said Lizzie without hesitation. “I’ll let Penny know so she can get over there, too.” She paused. “And I’m calling 911. Just in case.”
Who is Nina Wonwon? Tessa wondered. And what does she have to do with anything? But it didn’t matter. They just had to get to the shelter.
The girls raced down block after block. Tessa had no idea where they were going, but Lizzie led her through back alleys and side streets to save time. “My mom hates when I take these shortcuts,” Lizzie panted, “especially when it’s getting dark. But it’s the quickest way.”
Tessa nodded, trying to save her breath.
They reached the shelter just as Penny’s car squealed into the driveway. Tessa saw a large red vehicle with ladders on the sides pull up beside her, lights flashing and sirens squealing.
It’s chaos here, Tessa thought, trying to take it all in. People jumped off the truck, wearing funny hats and heavy black raincoats and boots. Tessa was too concerned about the animals to pay those people much mind. She started to run to the door, but Penny leaped out of the car and pulled her back. “No! We can’t go in yet.”
“We have to,” Tessa cried. “The poor animals!”
She turned to Lizzie, beside her, pale with concern. “Tiny! Snuggles!”
“I know,” Lizzie said.
Just then a man came over. “I’m the fire captain,” he said.
Fire captain? Tessa blinked. There wasn’t a fire. That was clear.
“Everyone needs to stay outside until we make sure it’s safe,” the captain said. “I’m sending my crew in now.”
More than anything, Tessa wanted to go, too. The thoughts in her head had quieted, and she didn’t know what was going on. She stared at the animal shelter building. Part of the roof had caved in, right in the middle. It looked like someone had taken a giant shovel and scooped out the shingles. Again, she started forward. This time, the fire captain held her back.
“Stay here, young lady.”
“It looks like most of the damage is over the lobby,” Penny said. “That’s good.” She sighed. “That darn roof. I should have known there’d be trouble after the storm last night.”
The captain’s communication device squawked. He listened, then said, “The animals are okay. The place seems secure. But we can’t be sure.”
“We still need to get the animals out,” Penny said determinedly. “There are other shelters nearby. We can divide them up until we decide what to do.”
Yes, Tessa thought. Yes, a plan.
Penny turned to Tessa and Lizzie. “You two call volunteers and staff and organize a car- and vanpool.” She handed her phone over with the contact list on the screen.
Tessa whipped out her Star-Zap, ready. While she and Lizzie made calls, the firefighters began to bring out the animals.
Then she heard Tiny’s voice. He was thinking, Watch out! She couldn’t take it anymore!
Tessa raced through the door, then stopped short. The lobby was flooded. Beams had fallen across the desk and the donation table. Bits of plaster sprinkled down. Looking up, she could see the sky.
A firefighter was just stepping into the room, carrying Tiny. The big dog squirmed out of his arms and raced to Tessa, almost knocking her over. Quickly, she took him outside. “You stay right here,” she said, leading him down the path. Then she went again to the door, where another firefighter handed over a small puppy. She held him tightly, carrying him away.
“We should bring them to the dog run,” she told the captain, “and get the leashes, too.” Penny agreed. And as other volunteers and staff arrived, along with Lizzie’s parents, they formed an animal-rescue brigade, passing dogs, cats, and cages from one pair of arms to another in a relay to safety.
Hours passed. Someone brought over pizza for dinner. By then, most of the animals had been delivered to other shelters. Only Tiny and Snuggles remained, refusing to budge from Tessa’s side. “I want to take them home so badly,” Lizzie whispered to her. “But we’re leaving tomorrow. I just can’t.”
Tessa’s heart sped. She had to complete her mission before time ran out. But she had to take care of Tiny and Snuggles, too. She turned to Penny and said, “You should take Tiny and Snuggles home with you.”
“I should take Tiny and Snuggles home with me,” Penny dutifully repeated. Then she added, “You and Lizzie, her parents, and anyone else who wants to should come to my place. We can discuss more plans. Yesterday I bought lots of raisin cinnamon buns. So we can have dessert, too.”
A small group was gathered at Penny’s apartment. They were snacking on buns, making lists, and figuring things out. Penny was calculating the shelter’s budget on her laptop, hoping to find money somewhere to fix the roof.
“Do you have an emergency fund?” Mrs. Bennett asked.
“We used that a few months ago to replace the wiring. Remember, Lizzie, when we had the power outage?”
Immediately, Tessa’s thoughts flashed to the power outages at Starling Academy and the odd thing she thought she had heard Lady Cordial say. She had to make this wish come true so she could return home to find out what in the stars was going on.
Me, me. Tiny sent the thought straight to Tessa as he nosed her palm.
Tessa wished she had a treat for Tiny, a doggy snack or a bone. Maybe they could stop off at the general store again and pick up some things. The shop owner had been so nice, giving Lizzie a bone for Fiona. Tessa felt sure she’d be happy to help Tiny.
Suddenly, Tessa jumped to her feet. Maybe she would even donate to the shelter!
“We should let people know about the roof,” she said. “Shopkeepers, neighbors. They’d probably want to help.”
Penny snapped her fingers. “You’re right! We can do a fund-raiser. Something quick and easy, online.”
Lizzie leaned forward eagerly. “Yes! We can reach out to so many more people that way, not only in Hillsboro!”
“I’m going to set it up right now,” said Penny. Tessa and Lizzie peeked over her shoulder as she pulled it all together, adding a link to the website and a donation tracker with a thermometer chart to measure incoming pledges. A green bar would rise with every donation until they reached their goal.
“We can post about it, too,” Lizzie suggested, “and tell people to check the site.”
“That’s a good idea, honey,” said her dad. “But we really need to get going. I’m sorry we can’t stay longer,” he told Penny. “We have to be ready to leave by tomorrow afternoon.”
It was late, so everyone went their separate ways, promising to meet back at Penny’s apartment early the next morning.
“I’ll stop by, too, first thing.” Lizzie glanced at her parents to make sure it was okay. “So I can say good-bye—again!—before we go. And I’ll write those donation posts when I get home.”
That night, Tessa again set up her tent in the shelter’s dog run. It made her feel better to be nearby, just in case something e
lse happened to the shelter. She spent a restless night. And the next morning—after a quick breakfast of slightly stale astromuffins and mushy starberries—she hurried over to Penny’s, hoping it wasn’t too early.
Luckily, the shelter director was up and dressed and happy to see her. “You’re the first one here,” she told Tessa. “The last time I checked the donations thermometer, we hadn’t raised much. But let’s look right now.”
She tapped a few keys on her laptop and gasped.
“What?” said Tessa, straining to see the screen.
Penny turned the laptop to face her, and then Tessa gasped, too. The donations had topped their goal!
“Let’s see where all these came from,” Penny said, hitting some more keys. She looked over the page. “Hmmm. There are some local donations. But most of the pledges are from places I’ve never heard of, and lots from out of the country, too.”
“Really?” Tessa peered at the laptop. London, England. Bridgetown, Barbados. Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. Zurich, Switzerland. The names sounded vaguely familiar. Why would she even know them? Then she realized they were places Lizzie had lived.
Lizzie’s friends had come through! Excited, Tessa read some of their posts: “Remembering our good times volunteering at the Zurich shelter, and your friendship. Love, Sonja.” “This is for you, Lizzie. Come back to Barbados soon. Pamela.” And one from Lizzie’s dear friend Nola: “London isn’t the same without you. Happy to help any way I can. xx Nola.”
This was starmazing! The shelter would get a new roof. The animals could move back to a safe place. And even more starmendous? This could make Lizzie’s wish come true. Once Lizzie realized she had loyal friends around the world, she’d see that moving so often was a blessing in disguise. That was the one good thing!
She wanted to tell Lizzie in person, so she texted: COME TO PENNY’S PLACE QUICK! GOOD NEWS!
In the meantime, other shelter workers arrived. The room buzzed with excitement. Where is Lizzie? Tessa wondered, growing anxious. If she didn’t come soon, she wouldn’t be able to come at all. It was almost afternoon, and Lizzie had a flight to catch.
Just then the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it!” Tessa cried, rushing for the door. She swung it open.
“Oh,” she said, disappointed. “It’s you.”
“Gee,” said Adora, standing on the other side, her hand on her hip. “Star greetings to you, too.”
Tessa pulled Adora inside and gave her a quick hug. “I was just expecting my Wisher, that’s all. And if you had waited a starhour or so, I would have finished my mission—successfully, I might add—and been on my merry way.”
“Well,” Adora noted, “we can’t actually see what’s happening here. We just know when a mission is in trouble. Lady Cordial wasn’t kidding. Lady Stella admitted to us that there is a wish energy crisis. She said she didn’t want to worry us, that’s why she kept it a secret. But now everyone is going supernova, thinking Lady Stella is hiding something. And frankly, it seemed like you could use all the help you could get. Besides, maybe I can still make a difference.”
“Maybe,” Tessa said doubtfully. Adora looked like a muted version of herself, but her eyes were still an exquisite shade of sky blue, and really, Tessa was thrilled to see her.
How funny to see the Starling she basically shared a home with there when her Wisher was upset about leaving her home.
Quickly, she filled Adora in on Lizzie, the shelter, and the situation.
Adora shook her head. “Your Wisher sounds like a very emotional Wishling. I hope this isn’t clouding your judgment, Tessa. Are you sure you have all the facts?”
“Yes, I have the facts!” Tessa said forcefully. “And once Lizzie gets here, you can analyze the situation yourself.” Hopefully, she added to herself, that will be soon.
The Starlings were still standing just inside the door, not quite arguing, when the bell rang again. This time it was Lizzie.
“Lizzie!” Tessa cried. “Listen—” She stopped. Lizzie’s eyes were swollen. Her skin was blotchy and her mouth quivered. Clearly, she’d been crying.
“Don’t be upset! You don’t have to worry anymore!” Tessa told her excitedly.
“Ahem,” Adora said.
“Oh, this is my room—I mean, my friend Adora. She came to surprise me from…from my old hometown. After she heard about the shelter.”
“Hi,” said Lizzie, trying to smile. “It’s nice that you came to help.”
“See?” said Adora, turning to Tessa. “Everyone knows why I’m here!”
“But that’s just it!” Tessa exclaimed. “I don’t need—I mean, we don’t need—any more help. We’ve gotten enough donations to build a new roof!”
“Really?” Lizzie’s smile turned genuine. “That’s incredible.” Then she burst into tears.
“Are you okay?” Adora asked. She shot a look at Tessa.
“No!” Lizzie shook her head furiously. “Fiona is missing. We can’t find her anywhere. And we’re leaving soon! What are we going to do?” She flung her arms around Tessa, then reached into her pocket. “Look!” She pulled out Fiona’s favorite chew toy, a squishy pink pig that oinked when you pressed it. “She doesn’t even have Mr. Piggy!” she wailed.
Tessa reached out to hold hands with Lizzie. Then she asked Lizzie to recite a mantra with her. Lizzie looked at her through her tears, thoroughly confused.
“I think it will make us both feel better,” Tessa told her.
A moment later, the two girls said, “Let your heart lead the way.”
Almost immediately, Lizzie calmed down.
“We’ll find Fiona,” Tessa promised, feeling energized.
She quickly told Penny and the others, and soon everyone was working to find the lost dog. They made LOST DOG posters. They called friends. They set up search parties.
When they went back for a break, they saw Lizzie in the corner, talking on her phone. “Any news?” asked Tessa.
“No! And I have to go!” she told them. “My parents just told me the moving truck is here.”
Tiny bounded over just then, wanting attention. Absentmindedly, Tessa scratched him behind one ear. She looked at him a moment and said, “Oh, the other ear is itchy.” She paused. “And your tummy, too?” Tiny wagged his tail and rolled on the floor.
Meanwhile, Penny took Lizzie to the kitchen for a cup of soup before she left.
“How did you know the—what is it? a dog?—wanted to be petted that way?” Adora whispered to Tessa. “It seemed like you knew what he was thinking.”
“I can get glimpses of his thoughts, and some other animals’, too,” Tessa explained. “It’s my special talent.”
“Can you do it with Fiona?” Adora asked.
Tessa grabbed her arm. “Adora! I am starmendously glad you’re here. I don’t know if it will work, but I can try. Maybe if I had something of hers…” Her voice trailed off; then she raced into the kitchen.
Lizzie sat at the table, oblivious to everything around her, spooning up her soup. Mr. Piggy was propped up next to the cup. Tessa picked up the toy and held it tightly, picturing Fiona as clearly as she could. Where are you? she thought, trying to send a message.
There was no answer.
Tessa moved Mr. Piggy closer to her heart. She poured her love of animals into the little pig. Suddenly, she felt a jolt of energy course through her body, out her tingling fingertips, and straight to Mr. Piggy. For a moment, his pink nose glowed.
Tessa closed her eyes and felt something. Fiona was safe, waiting patiently for Lizzie to find her. But where?
Tessa concentrated harder. A small slit of light was falling on Fiona’s head. Soft, warm material surrounded her tiny body.
And that was all. Tessa groaned. It wasn’t enough.
“We’ll keep looking,” Penny was telling Lizzie. “And I’ll find a way to get her to your new home. But right now, you really need to go.”
“Come on,” said Tessa. “Adora and I will take you”—she almost said home but
stopped herself—“back to your parents.”
Outside Lizzie’s house, a huge moving truck was parked at the curb. Workers carried boxes and hefted furniture, taking everything up a ramp to the rear of the truck. Lizzie peeked in. “It’s full already!”
She rushed inside, shouting, “Mom! Dad! I’m not going without Fiona!”
“Oh, honey.” Mr. Bennett wrapped his arms around her. “We can’t stay much longer. Our flight leaves in a few hours.”
“We’re so sorry, Lizzie.” Her mom wiped away her own tears. “We’d wait if we could.”
Tessa felt terrible. Lizzie didn’t want to go to begin with, but to move without her best friend must be unthinkable.
“I know I’m acting like a baby,” Lizzie said, sniffling, “but I can’t do this without Fiona.”
The name Fiona echoed in Tessa’s head, and suddenly, she could hear Fiona’s thoughts: I don’t want to be left behind. I don’t want to be left behind. She saw more of Fiona’s surroundings, too: something that looked like a book…a brush…a soft, fuzzy sweater…
“It’s hard for all of us,” Mrs. Bennett said. “But the truck is ready. Do you have everything?”
“Yes,” Lizzie said in a trembling voice. “There’s just my travel suitcase left. And I’m taking that on the plane.”
“That’s it!” Tessa cried. “Fiona is in your suitcase!”
Everyone raced up to Lizzie’s room. The suitcase was on the floor, the top opened just a bit. Lizzie reached in, cried out in delight, and held up a wriggling, joyful Fiona.
“She was waiting in the suitcase,” Tessa said, “to make sure you took her with you!”
“You silly dog,” Lizzie gently scolded. “I would never leave you.”
Lizzie’s parents stroked Fiona, too, then left to talk to the movers. Grinning, Lizzie reached over to hug Tessa. “I am so happy! Thank you for being such a good friend.”
Friend! With all the excitement about Fiona, Tessa had forgotten about Lizzie’s friends’ donations.
“I’m not your only good friend,” she told Lizzie. “Do you know why the shelter raised so much money?”