But then, exactly as if a light had switched on in my brain, I remembered Fairy Mary telling us we could learn more by making mistakes than if we always got everything right.
Could that be true, I wondered? If it was, then maybe, just maybe, if we stopped worrying about being the best and worked together with Team Starlight, it would be OK in the end… But how?
I turned away from Melody and the others, looked in the opposite direction – and my eyes opened wide.
Walking down the road was Pipsy, and behind her was her mum pushing Baby in his buggy. Behind them was another family, and on the other side of the road were more parents and children – and they were all heading for The Nag’s Head. And then I noticed the sign outside on the pavement: Children’s Christmas Party! TODAY!
A tiny little hope crept into my mind, and I nudged Melody. “Look!” I whispered.
Melody swung round. She was blinking away tears, and I knew she’d been thinking the same as me – that we were failures.
“What? What is it?” She glanced down at the sign, but it didn’t mean anything to her. “Jackson! What are we going to do?” she whispered, and her voice was shaky … but my head was suddenly buzzing. I’d had another of those light-bulb moments. A really REALLY brilliant one! We could still be the best! ABSOLUTELY the best. We could be the best at making a mistake and getting over it and showing that we’d learnt from what had happened. And I knew how to do it!
“It’s OK,” I whispered back. “I’ve had an idea … but you’ll have to trust me.”
“Melody? Jackson?” Emma was puzzled. “Are we meant to be helping those kids in the garden?”
“No,” Melody said. I gave her the smallest nod, and she went on, “but Jackson knows what we’re going to do. She’ll tell you. Won’t you, Jackson?”
“Yes.” I stood up straight. “But first I want to say that I’m sorry, really sorry. Mel and I got it wrong about Jenny and Joe.” I saw Madison and Ava exchange glances, and I guessed they’d worked that out for themselves. I didn’t care, though. Fairy Mary was giving me the biggest, beamingest smile ever.
“So what are we going to do instead?” Sophie asked.
“I’m asking you to help us,” I said. “I’m asking if you’ll help us to find somebody who needs us—”
And then I had to stop, because there was a sudden explosion of the twinkliest little stars. The Travelling Tower was so full of them I couldn’t see a thing. Something brushed against me and, just for a second, I thought I heard a voice breathing, “SUCH a clever petal.” But it was so faint that I decided I must have imagined it. I was even more certain I’d imagined a “Tsk! Tsk!”
I blinked and rubbed my eyes – and the stars were gone. And there was nobody in the TT except for Fairy Mary and us Stargirls, so I knew I couldn’t possibly have heard Fairy Fifibelle and Miss Scritch.
“Jeepers creepers!” Lily said. “What happened there?”
Fairy Mary shook her head. “Who knows, my dear. Jackson, I’m so sorry you were interrupted.”
“It’s OK,” I said. “So, is that agreed? You don’t mind helping us?”
Olivia stepped forward. “Of course not,” she said. “We’re really pleased to be asked.” She looked at Sophie. “Aren’t we?”
“Yes,” Sophie said, and so did Ava, Lily and Emma.
“It’ll be our pleasure.” Madison took off her glasses, wiped them clean, put them back on and grinned at me. “Especially as I don’t think you’ve ever asked us for help before. Have you got any ideas about where we can begin?”
“We are all,” I announced, “going to go to The Nag’s Head Children’s Christmas Party. Fairy Mary told us that lots of people need help at this time of year, and it’s just the kind of place to find someone.” I pointed out of the window. “I thought we could take the TT down into the garden, tap our pendants so we’re invisible, and creep inside. Then we can shrink ourselves so we can listen and watch without bumping into anyone and scaring them—” I saw Olivia’s expression, and went on, “But it would be sensible if one or two of us waited in the Travelling Tower in case of emergencies.”
Olivia gave a sigh of relief.
“The rest of us can have a look round for ten minutes,” I went on, “then report back on what we’ve seen and heard … and decide what to do.”
Madison grinned. “Sounds good to me.”
“Me too,” said Ava. Emma and Lily nodded.
“And me,” Sophie said.
Olivia gave me a grateful smile.
Chapter Ten
Sometimes I get fed up with Jackson being bossy, but sometimes she gets it really right. I’d been so certain we were going to fail that my mind had turned into mush, and I couldn’t think of anything useful … but her idea of going to the Children’s Christmas Party was brilliant.
As the Travelling Tower floated down to the garden below I felt loads better, and when we landed with a gentle thud I was just as excited as Emma and Ava and Madison and Lily. Sophie and Olivia said they’d stay in the TT; Olivia didn’t want to risk having to try the Shrinking Spell, and Sophie was happy to keep Olivia company.
The doors of the TT opened, and we waited for Fairy Mary to lead the way out, but she didn’t. “I’m going to stay here,” she said, “so there’s no need for you to stay unless you wish to, Sophie dear. It’s important that you Stargirls make your own decisions, and find your own way through any problems.”
“I’ll wait by the back door, then,” Sophie said. “I might be useful as a messenger, and I’ll still be near Olivia.”
Olivia put her hand on Sophie’s arm. “It’s OK. I’ve decided I’m coming too. Is that all right, Fairy Mary?”
“Of course, Olivia,” Fairy Mary said, “but what about the Shrinking Spell?”
“It’s true. I didn’t like shrinking,” Olivia admitted, “but I’m a Stargirl now. And I think Stargirls should do things even if they don’t like them much.”
There was a curious swirling in the air as if someone or something was waving wildly. I looked at Fairy Mary, but she didn’t seem to have noticed anything. She was smiling at Olivia as if she’d done something quite incredible.
The rest of us are going to shrink, but we’re not making a fuss about it, I thought. But all I said was, “The more the merrier.”
Jackson gave Olivia and Sophie a thumbs up. “Let’s go!”
We tapped our pendants to make ourselves invisible, and tiptoed out into the garden of The Nag’s Head. The grass was very wet and soggy, and when we reached the concrete path I noticed we were leaving a trail of footprints behind us.
“We’d better wipe our feet,” I whispered as we stopped outside the back door.
Lily giggled. “Imagine people’s faces if they saw footprints suddenly appearing out of nowhere!”
“I expect there’s a mat inside,” Emma said, and before any of us could stop her she put out her hand and opened the door wide – and we saw a group of children staring at us. Well, not exactly at us, because we were invisible, but at the door.
Jenny’s mum appeared. “Who opened the door, kids?” she asked. “You’re letting the cold air in!”
“It opened on its own!” said a tall boy. “I saw the handle turn, but there was nobody on the other side! Nobody! I was standing right next to it. It must have been a ghost, Mrs Gibbs!”
A couple of little girls let out a screech and rushed away, but Mrs Gibbs shook her head. “I expect it was the wind, love,” she said. “It’s a funny old building, but it doesn’t have any ghosts. Not that I know of, anyway, and I’ve worked here for years.” She pulled the door closed with a bang. “There! That’ll keep it shut. Now, let’s see what’s going on, shall we? It’s very nearly time for tea.”
She shooed the children down the passageway, and a moment later we were on our own.
“Phew!” Jackson let out a sigh of relief. “That was tricky.”
“Tricky?” I said. “It was STUPID!”
I was about to say a wh
ole lot more, but Jackson stuck her elbow into my side. “DON’T!” she hissed.
There was a muffled sob. I swung round and there was Emma, hunched up on the cold stone floor with her face in her hands.
“I’m so sorry!” she wailed. “I didn’t think what I was doing! Melody’s right! I’m stupid!”
“It’s OK. Don’t worry about it. Nobody guessed we were here.”
I could hardly believe my ears. It was Jackson who had spoken and, even more surprisingly, she went over to Emma and put an arm round her without saying a word about how silly she’d been. “Come on,” she said. “Let’s go and join the party!”
Chapter Eleven
We tiptoed down the passage. As we got nearer to the open door at the far end we could hear chattering and laughing. It sounded as if the party was going really well.
Lily put her hands over her ears. “Jeepers creepers! It sounds like a MILLION children!”
“Are we going to shrink before we go in?” Sophie asked.
“Do we need to?” Emma sounded doubtful. “Couldn’t we just walk round to begin with?”
“I’ll go and have a look.” Ava slid through the door, then shot back out again. “It’s STUFFED with kids,” she reported. “There’s hardly room to move. There are LOADS of tables and benches and chairs, all squeezed together.”
Madison chuckled. “I used to go to parties like that when I was little. They always ended with the boys throwing buns around.”
Sophie sighed. “Just like my little brother.”
“If it’s terribly crowded, it’ll be easier if we’re smaller,” I said. “We’ll creep under the tables.”
“It’s the only way we’ll get to the other end of the room,” Ava agreed. “Someone will notice if we try to squeeze past them.”
Melody had been to have a look as well. “Unless you want to crawl across the ceiling,” she said, “we’ll have to shrink.”
Everyone nodded, and we shut our eyes and began the spell.
“I wish to shrink,
To grow quite small.
I wish to be
A metre tall…”
And this time it was SO much easier! Even Olivia didn’t have any trouble … and it didn’t feel nearly as weird as it did the first time. What WAS weird was suddenly seeing the door handle at the height of my nose, and the ceiling looking as if it was miles away.
“Right!” I said. “Let’s go. We’ll meet back here in ten minutes’ time.”
We gave each other a thumbs up, and I led the way out of the corridor.
I’d been wondering if horrible Pipsy had been making a nuisance of herself. When we got to the doorway she was the first child I saw, and I stayed where I was to see what she was up to. She was sitting at the end of one of the tables; Joe and Jenny were at the other end, smiling and laughing. Every table had ten or eleven children sitting squashed along benches, and there was SO much food! I could see loads of different kinds of sandwiches and rolls, and there were sausages and bowls of crisps, and Mrs Gibbs and several other helpers were squeezing their way in between the tables with massive trays of pizza slices.
Baby was sitting next to Pipsy. Now I was closer I could see that he wasn’t really a baby. He must have been at least three, and as Jenny’s mum came nearer he started shouting, “Peeta! Peeta!”
Pipsy glared at him. “Say PLEASE, Baby!”
“Humph,” I thought. “I bet SHE never says please!”
Baby took no notice of his sister. “Peeta!” he yelled. “Want PEETA!”
The children’s mother came squeezing in between the tables. The mums and dads and other grown-ups were sitting in comfy armchairs at the back of the room, and she had a lot of trouble making her way through.
“Pipsy!” she said. “You’re not looking after Baby!” She gave the little boy a hug. “Don’t you worry, precious. Baby will have his pizza very soon.” She gave Pipsy a frosty stare, and began edging her way back to her seat.
Baby banged on the table with his spoon. “BAD Pipsy,” he crowed. “Pipsy’s a naughty girl! Naughty, naughty, Pipsy wipsy!”
Sophie hadn’t gone with the others either. She was watching Baby, and I could tell she was shocked. “He’s a horror, isn’t he?” she whispered, although there was so much noise I don’t think anyone would have noticed even if she’d shouted. “His poor sister! Their mum didn’t even smile at her! She just told her off! Pipsy’s not much older than he is, either.”
“She’s a spoilt little brat,” I said. “She wanted a purple fluffy dog – I think it was a dog – and she nagged and nagged until her mum said she’d get it for her.”
Sophie put her head on one side. “But did her mum actually buy it?” she asked.
“What?” I looked at Sophie in surprise. “I don’t know… She said she was going to.”
“My gran’s like that.” Sophie sighed. “If I ask for anything she always says, ‘Yes, Sophie, dear,’ just to keep me quiet, and then does nothing about it. But she absolutely adores my little brother Pete, and she gets him LOADS of stuff.” She shrugged. “I don’t mind now. I know it’s because she’s old, but when I was younger I used to get furious. She’s coming to stay this Christmas, and mum and I just KNOW Pete’ll be given masses of presents, and he’ll get all whiney and stroppy and keep asking her for more and more and more things. And he’s not really like that.”
“Oh.” I had another look at Pipsy. Jenny’s mum had just come up to the table, and Pipsy was asking quite politely if she and her little brother could have a slice of pizza each, and Mrs Gibbs was smiling at her and saying that yes, of course she could. But when Pipsy put the pizza on her little brother’s plate, he crammed it all into his mouth at once, and then grabbed her piece.
“Oi!” I said, and I took a couple of steps forward.
“Jackson!” Sophie grabbed my arm. “What are you going to do?”
I’d been about to tell Baby that he was a little pig, and I think I MIGHT have been about to snatch his plate away as well, but Sophie stopped me.
“Don’t! He can’t see you and you’ll scare him!” she warned. “Anyway, we ought to get back to the others.”
Something jabbed me in the ribs, and I realised Melody was standing beside me. “Come on,” she hissed. “Everyone’s waiting for you!”
Chapter Twelve
I’d been all the way round the room, and so had Ava and Emma. Lily had been really clever; she and Olivia had found some stairs leading up to a little balcony overlooking the party, and they’d been watching from up there. They said they’d had to be careful as there was a huge net full of balloons hidden from the children and there wasn’t much room, but it had been a brilliant viewpoint. Madison had crept under the tables all the way to where the grown-ups were sitting.
“So,” I said, as we reached the corridor, “who should we be helping?”
Madison tapped her pendant to make herself visible, and we all did the same. “It’s easier if you can see who you’re talking to,” she said.
Ava sighed. “All the kids we saw were having a great time.”
Emma was rubbing her elbows. “I could do with being even smaller,” she complained. “There are an awful lot of legs and feet under those tables.”
I was beginning to worry. Had Jackson’s idea misfired? “Didn’t anyone see anything?” I asked.
Lily and Olivia looked at each other, and Olivia nodded. “You tell,” she said.
“There’s a nasty little boy,” Lily began, but Jackson interrupted her.
“Is he on the table near the door? Sitting next to a little girl in a pink velvet dress?”
Lily looked surprised. “Did you notice him too?”
“Yes. And Mel and I saw them in the shopping mall this afternoon,” Jackson told her. “They’re called Pipsy and Baby.”
“Eugh! We don’t want to help them,” I said. “They were disgusting. There must be someone else.”
I could tell Olivia didn’t agree with me, even before she said, �
��I thought the little girl was very unhappy.”
“Olivia’s right. She IS unhappy.” Sophie sounded very determined. “Her mum doesn’t take any notice of her, except when she’s telling her to look after Baby.”
“I saw her little brother pinch her,” Lily said. “He did it twice. He thought nobody was looking, but we were.”
“She probably deserved it.” I thought of the way Pipsy had hung on to her mother’s sleeve. “She whinges, and then she gets exactly what she wants. Honestly! It’s true!” And I thought of something else. “You should see all the stuff their mum had bought them… Isn’t that right, Jackson?”
Jackson didn’t answer, and when I looked round she wasn’t there.
“Where’s she gone?” I asked, and I tried not to sound cross, even though I was – just a bit. We were supposed to be working together, but she’d slipped away without saying where she was going.
“She muttered something about presents,” Sophie said, “and then she absolutely zoomed away.”
Emma was frowning. “So what are we going to do?”
“Why don’t we—” There was suddenly such a loud noise from the dining room that Madison never got to finish her sentence. We ran to the door, and the children were jumping up and down, waving their arms in the air.
“We want Father Christmas!” they were shouting. “Father Christmas! We want Father Christmas!”
Baby was louder than any of them. “Want Santa Claus! Want Santa Claus NOW!”
The adults were clearing away the chairs from one side of the hall, and it was obvious that something special was going to happen.
Lily was almost as wide-eyed as the waiting children. “What’s going on?” she asked.
“Father Christmas is about to arrive,” Madison told her. “I heard the grown ups talking about it. Everyone’s brought presents for their children, they’re going to be put in a big sack – and Father Christmas will give them out.”
Melody & Jackson's Christmas Spell Page 4