by Lou Kuenzler
“That will give us plenty of time to ride to the Gemstone Glade and see what’s going on,” Grace said to Billy. She jammed her riding hat on her head and grabbed a spare one in case she met Hetty along the way. She leaped on to Billy’s back and turned him towards the gate. Her tutu stuck out all around her like a circus rider as she galloped away.
Grace was only halfway to the Glade when she saw Hetty dashing through the woods towards her.
“Quick,” panted Hetty. “Have you heard? My uncle says he has to work in the Gemstone Glade to get it ready for the Ballet of the Flowers. That’s where the show is going to be.”
“I know,” said Grace. “Jump on!”
She grabbed Hetty’s arm and swung her up on to Billy’s back.
“Hold tight,” she said, putting the hat on the little girl’s head. The two girls clung tightly to the unicorn as they galloped away.
Then, Chalky appeared beside them from nowhere.
“Hello, have you come to help us?” cheered Hetty.
“If only he could,” said Grace.
Both girls fell silent as they skidded to a stop in the glade.
“Oh, no!” Grace gasped. “What do we do now?”
The flowery clearing was filled with a hundred shiny gold chairs all lined up in rows.
“They’ve blocked the entrance to the cave,” said Hetty. “Look.”
A huge wooden stage had been built against the rocks. A billowing red silk tent hung above it like a theatre curtain and a backdrop painted with garlands of spring flowers rose high into the ivy above.
“Poor Huffle,” cried Grace. “He’s trapped out on the ledge. He can’t fly away, remember? He’s still too young for his wings to work.” She thought desperately of the branch they had used to block the crack. He couldn’t even come into the cave.
“It’s good he’s stuck out there,” said Hetty wisely. “At least while the ballet is on.”
Grace nodded. “I suppose you’re right. But we still need to get to him. We need to feed him. We’re the nearest thing to a mother that he has.”
“The workmen must have gone for lunch,” said Hetty. “Uncle Falcon came home to get a sandwich. That’s how I found out he was helping to get ready for the show.”
“Come on, then,” said Grace. “We don’t have long. We have to find a way to squeeze behind this wooden backdrop and check that Huffle is all right.”
The girls ran to either side of the big stage.
“It’s hopeless over here,” cried Grace. “They’ve pushed the boards snug against the rock.”
“There’s a tiny gap here,” said Hetty. “Come and see.”
Grace scrambled over the stage pushing the billowing red curtain aside as she jumped down the other side.
Hetty was pointing to a round hole at the bottom of the boards, not much bigger than a dinner plate. Squinting through it, they could just see the darkness of the cave beyond.
“Let me try to squeeze in,” said Grace. But the gap didn’t even reach her knees. “I’ll never fit through in this thing.” She wriggled out of her big, ruffled tutu and threw it to the ground.
“You’ll never fit through even without it,” laughed Hetty, as Grace tried hopelessly to wedge her shoulder into the narrow space. “But I can! I’m only half your size.”
Without another word, she popped herself through the tiny gap and grinned back at Grace from the other side. “See?”
“Brilliant!” cheered Grace.
“I’ll go to Huffle,” said Hetty. “Don’t worry. You head back to school. Bring milk in a small jug later so it will fit through the gap.”
Grace could hear the sound of crunching stones as the little girl scuttled away into the cave. She thought how dark it must be with the entrance blocked.
“You’re so brave, Hetty,” she shouted.
“I’m fine,” came a tiny call in reply. But then Grace heard the sound of voices coming through the woods. The workmen must be returning to finish work on the stage. She knew she had to go.
As she turned back to the glade, she realized she had forgotten to tie Billy up. The shaggy unicorn was wandering among the rows of empty chairs with Chalky. They were pushing them over with their noses.
“You naughty boys,” said Grace, but there was no time to put anything right. She grabbed her tutu and pulled it over her head like a ruffle. Then she vaulted on to Billy’s back and galloped away from the glade.
Chalky refused to follow. He pawed the ground and whinnied desperately, looking longingly towards the stage at the place where his beloved Hetty had disappeared.
The following day, Grace stood in the Gemstone Glade with the rest of her class, ready to take part in the dress rehearsal.
She had made plans with Hetty; everything was arranged. Hetty had promised that as soon as she’d fed the peacocks that morning, she would come back to the cave and squeeze through the tiny gap under the stage.
She should be out on the ledge with Huffle by now, and she would stay there until the dress rehearsal was over. If there was any problem – any real problem – she would blow her horn and Grace would try to find a way to help. But both girls agreed that there wouldn’t be a problem. There was no way that Huffle could get out into the glade, for a start. He was far too big to fit through the gap under the stage, and he couldn’t fly up the cliff face either because his wings still didn’t work. Hetty had three jugs of milk with her, so Huffle wouldn’t go hungry. They’d do the same thing all over again tomorrow for the real show.
All Grace had to do was concentrate on her dance. This was her very last chance. She had to find something – anything – good enough to perform at The Ballet of the Flowers in front of a full audience. All she had so far was some stomping, some tramping and some wiggly-jiggly arm waving. It was going to be a disaster: a total disgrace.
“I’d much rather look after a baby dragon,” she groaned under her breath.
Grace glanced around the glade. It was beautiful. The magical ring of jewel-bright flowers were at their springtime best. Every bud was open, glistening in the sun. And up on the stage, the other princesses in her class looked just as dazzling.
There was Scarlet, in chiffon as red as her name, and as vibrant as any poppy; Izumi in a delicate, water-lily-white tutu fringed with pale pink; even Precious looked magnificent in a gown of purple and black sequins, like her poison orchid.
Grace looked down at the shabby costume she’d been given.
“It’s my own fault,” she sighed. She’d been so busy running around the glade and making secret plans with Hetty that she hadn’t had time to visit Fairy Godmother Pom for her fitting. The yellow-brown smock was much worse than she thought: it was far too short above her knees, but so wide that there was room for three of her inside it.
“Ha! Look at Princess Disgrace,” sneered Precious, spinning past. “She looks like a long-legged ostrich in a sack.”
For once Grace had to agree with her cousin.
“Come,” said Madame Featherlight, raising her arms so that the scarf around her shoulders spread out like an emerald peacock tail. “Now that everyone is in their costumes, I want to see you all up on the stage together beginning to warm up.”
“Right,” Grace said to herself as they gathered under the beautiful red silk canopy. “This is it … no more disasters … no more distractions … no more dragons… All I am going to think about until tomorrow is this performance.”
She bit her lip in concentration and rose up on to her toes. She wished it wasn’t too late to find the perfect dance to please her wonderful, creative ballet teacher. She longed somehow to become that dragon’s heart weed. Grace waved her arms in the air in a way she hoped might look like ragged petals in the wind, as Madame Lightfeather brushed past her.
“Lovely,” grinned the teacher. Then Grace overbalanced.
“Whoa!”
She fell to the floor with a crash that was more like a falling tree trunk than a flower stem.
“Look ou
t!” she cried as she bumped against Trinket, who bashed into Truffle, who banged into Precious, who collided with Christabel, Emmeline and Visalotta, who sent Latisha, Martine, Rosamond and Juliette tumbling like dominoes along the front of the stage until they landed in a heap on top of Scarlet and Izumi.
“Now look what you’ve done! You’ve knocked over the whole class,” wailed Precious. “That’s a record even for you, Grace.”
“Clumsy idiot,” squealed the twins.
“I really am sorry,” said Grace, as Scarlet and Izumi poked their heads out from under Rosamond and Juliette’s tutus.
“To your feet. Dance on!” cried Madame Featherlight, adding, “So long as no one is hurt.”
Grace was relieved that some of the girls had even seen the funny side and were giggling as they clambered to their feet. Martine and Latisha were holding each other up, they were laughing so hard. But Precious silenced everyone.
“We won’t be laughing if Grace does something like that tomorrow in the real show,” she sneered.
Grace flushed with shame.
“Perhaps it would be safer if everyone found their own space, somewhere around the glade,” said Madame. “Ignore all the other people around you. Find the dance within yourselves and try to bring that out. You have twenty minutes, then I’ll see you all back here on stage.”
The girls scattered in every direction, straightening their ruffled costumes and beginning to lose themselves in their own particular dance.
Grace hurried away, her cheeks still burning with embarrassment. The other princesses must think her hopeless. She couldn’t even look Scarlet in the eye, remembering how just yesterday her friend had been offering to help her. But Grace had been too busy with Huffle.
She slipped into the trees where no one could see her. It was dark, the ground was uneven and there wasn’t much space. But at least it was private. There was no time to feel sorry for herself. All that mattered was making this dance work.
Grace squatted as low as she could, then sprang high in the air, hoping it made her seem like the tough little weed, growing up through sharp rocks and stony soil.
“Is that the best you can do?” said a voice behind her.
Grace spun around. It was Precious. She was holding up her black and purple sequined gown to stop it from trailing on the rough ground.
“Go away,” sighed Grace. She didn’t have time to put up with Precious’s silly teasing or to get into a fight. “I just want to practise this dance. I’ve been stupid. I didn’t work hard enough and now I am trying to make up for it. So please, Precious, leave me alone!”
“I’ve got a better idea,” said Precious. “Why don’t you just say you’ve twisted your ankle? You’re so clumsy, everyone will believe you. That way you won’t have to take part in the show at all … and you won’t bring shame on our family! There’ll be school governors coming to the performance tomorrow who are connected to some of the most important royal households in the world. I don’t want anyone to know we’re related if you’re stomping around pretending to be a weed!”
Precious hurled herself forward, doing a spiteful impression of Grace trying to dance and waving her arms in the air.
“Stop it!” Grace jumped out of the way as Precious almost collided with her. “I really will break my ankle if you’re not careful.”
“Look at me! I’m a dancing weed!” laughed Precious, really enjoying herself now.
Grace took another step back.
“Whoa!” Suddenly, she felt the ground give way beneath her.
“Help!” she screamed. Grace felt herself toppling over … but she was skidding backwards down a slope at the same time. Earth and stones were sliding away beneath her thin ballet shoes. There were no more trees behind her: nothing to hold on to.
“Precious!” she cried, clutching desperately at the hem of her cousin’s dress. “Help me! I’m slipping off the edge of the cliff.”
Whoosh!
Grace felt herself slithering and sliding down the rock face.
Precious had fallen too.
“Save me!” she cried – her legs wrapped around Grace’s waist as if they were riding a toboggan backwards down a hill.
Grace tried to lean back and slow down. It was hopeless. The rocks sloped away beneath them.
“I really didn’t mean to push you off the cliff!” cried Precious, sounding truly horrified.
“I know,” yelped Grace. “I didn’t mean to drag you with me.”
Bam!
“Dig your heels in now!” Grace screamed and the two girls came to a stop. They were perched on a long, narrow ledge of rock no wider than a book shelf.
“Don’t look down,” panted Grace as she glimpsed the glistening sea beneath them.
But Precious was looking up at the cliff face above them. They could hear someone calling their names.
“Grace? Precious? Where are you?”
It was Scarlet and Izumi.
“We’re down here,” bellowed Precious. “Do something! Save us!”
“No,” said Grace. “Don’t call them! They won’t know the top of the cliff is hidden in the trees either. They’ll come too near the edge themselves.”
But it was too late.
“Help!”
There was a swirl of red and white, twisting together like a ribbon dance. A moment later Scarlet and Izumi were on the narrow rock beside them – all sitting in a row.
“We just wanted to know where you were!” gasped Scarlet, her face paler than Izumi’s water-lily costume. “We saw Precious following you into the trees and…”
“Thank you,” Grace squeezed her friend’s hand as they all caught their breath. She didn’t dare to lean out on the narrow ledge and reach over to Izumi who was on the other side of Scarlet. “Thank you both,” she said. “I’ve been an idiot lately. I don’t deserve for anyone to come and look for me … and certainly not for you to fall down a cliff for my sake.”
“We’re safe – for the moment at least – and no one was hurt,” said Izumi kindly.
“Should we call for help?” asked Scarlet.
“I’m not sure,” said Grace. “We don’t want anyone else to slip…”
“If only you two had gone for help in the first place instead of falling down the stupid cliff yourselves,” Precious sneered at Scarlet and Izumi.
“None of us would be here if it wasn’t for you,” said Grace, “and I think you should remember that, Precious.”
“Why? What happened?” asked Izumi.
“Nothing.” Grace shook her head. She was fed up with arguments and fighting and people blaming each other for one thing and another. There had been quite enough of that this term already. It wasn’t going to help anyone now. “Let’s just say Precious had a new idea for my dance and it didn’t quite work out the way that she planned.”
A seagull flew by, looping-the-loop in mid-air and doubling back to fly past again as if he couldn’t believe what he had seen.
“We must look like four china ornaments perched on a bookcase,” laughed Izumi.
“As long as we don’t fall and break,” shuddered Scarlet.
“We need to do something,” said Precious. “We can’t just sit here for ever. HELP! HELP! HELP!”
She didn’t seem to care that someone else might slip down the cliff, exactly as Scarlet and Izumi had. She just bellowed for all she was worth.
“The wind’s blowing in the wrong direction, anyway,” said Grace. “I don’t think anyone will hear us.” She tossed a blade of grass into the sky and watched as it blew away across the sea.
“HELP!” Precious screamed again.
Pom! Pom! A bright sound answered from somewhere just below.
“What was that?” asked Scarlet.
“It’s Hetty!” said Grace. “She’s blowing her dragon horn.”
Of course! The ledge at the back of the cave must come out below here.
Grace leaned forward and glanced over to her left, daring to look down at last.
There was the tiny figure of Hetty, waving up at them from the ledge just a little way beneath them. Huffle was beside her in his nest, of course.
“There’s something I need to tell you,” said Grace, turning towards Scarlet and Izumi. “I should have told you sooner. Hetty and I found a…”
Pommmm! Pommmmmmmmmmmm! Hetty was blowing the horn for all she was worth.
“A dragon,” gasped Izumi.
“Kill it!” screamed Precious.
“Don’t be horrid. He’s only very tiny,” said Grace.
Scarlet was tugging at the sleeve of Grace’s tunic, opening and closing her mouth as if trying to find the words to speak.
Grace saw a look of horror in her friend’s eyes.
“That dragon is not tiny,” gasped Scarlet.
Grace turned her head to see the dark shape of a great winged beast filling the sky.
It was the huge Coronet Crimson dragon she had seen all those weeks ago on the cliffs.
“Huffle’s mother,” croaked Grace. “She’s come back.”
The enormous she-dragon was thrashing her tail in the sky. Her sharp claws glinted in the sunlight as she swooped towards them from across the sea.
“She’s even bigger than I remember,” shivered Grace.
“HELP!” cried Precious, Scarlet and Izumi all together.
Please let someone hear us, thought Grace
Pommmmmmmm! Hetty was blowing her horn as if her life depended on it.
Suddenly, Grace realized exactly what was happening. Hetty’s life did depend on scaring the enormous dragon away. Or – impossible as it seemed – on calming her down somehow.
The little girl was alone on the ledge with Huffle. The mother must think she was trying to harm her baby.
“Run into the cave, Hetty!” screamed Grace, hoping her voice would carry down to the ledge below. “Squeeze through the crack and get away.”
But almost as soon as she spoke, the ragon’s huge tail thumped against the side of the cliff as she turned in wide circles, flying above her baby.
Rocks and boulders came tumbling down.
Hetty leaped out of the way, but even from up here Grace could see that her escape route to the cave was now blocked by rocks and rubble.