Zina crept closer to the baby lemur. She didn’t want to leave him behind while she searched for his family. Would he trust her enough to let her carry him? She held out another guava, saying softly, “Are you still hungry?”
For Hannah and Ava Carp, who enjoy
many Rescue Princess adventures of their own
Zina crept out of the palace, shutting the door behind her. She crossed the garden, carefully holding a plate of fruit. Her bright-yellow dress swirled around her legs and an amber jewel on a silver chain hung around her neck.
The pale, glistening turrets of Ramova Palace stretched into the sapphire sky. Beyond the palace gate, tall rainforest trees swayed gently in the wind. Warm sunlight drifted through the leaves and birds called in the treetops.
It was early, and no one else in the palace would be awake yet, but Zina had been too excited to stay in bed any longer. Her friends Princess Lily and Princess Scarlett were coming to stay for a few days to take part in the Ramova Carnival – a festival with brightly-decorated floats and music and dancing.
Zina was excited about the carnival but she had another secret reason for wanting to see her friends so much. They had met a few months ago at Scarlett’s castle and together they had become Rescue Princesses.
This meant they’d promised always to help animals in trouble. They had already saved two baby animals! The first time, they had crossed a deep river to help a baby otter called Sparky. The next time, they’d saved an adorable little kangaroo and helped raise money for a kangaroo sanctuary. They’d even learned ninja moves so they could outsmart baddies and keep their rescues secret.
Zina climbed the steps that led to the top of the palace wall and set down the plate. She knew it would be a busy day so she wanted to make sure her most important task was done right away. Carefully, she spread the fruit along the top of the wall. Then she stood back and waited, tucking her long dark hair behind her ears.
The leaves shivered in the wind and the amber jewel on her necklace seemed to whisper back. Zina picked up the teardrop-shaped jewel and looked at it more closely. Amber from the Kingdom of Ramova was dark golden with little yellow flecks. The necklace had been given to Zina by her grandma, who had died four years ago. Her grandma had told her that amber came from tree sap and took millions of years to turn into a jewel. It holds the heart of the forest, she’d told Zina. Don’t ever forget that.
A chattering noise made Zina look up. A ring-tailed lemur scampered down a tree branch and jumped on to the wall. The creature gazed at Zina with bright yellow-brown eyes, its tufted white ears pricked up and its black nose twitching.
Zina loved lemurs. They were so playful and the ring-tailed ones had beautiful furry black-and-white-striped tails. “It’s all right.” She smiled at the animal. “I brought the fruit for all of you. Go ahead and eat!”
The lemur galloped along the wall and picked up a piece of orange. Suddenly more lemurs swung down from the branches and jumped over to the palace wall. Last to climb down was a mother with a little baby on her back. The lemurs ate the banana, orange and mango pieces, chattering noisily to each other.
“Zina! Where are you?” called Queen Tali.
“I’m here!” Zina waved to her mum, who was standing at the palace entrance. Picking up the plate, she hurried down the steps and ran back across the garden. “I was just feeding the lemurs,” she said breathlessly.
Queen Tali smoothed her long dark hair. She was wearing her finest dress, made from gold silk and tied with a green sash. “You haven’t forgotten that we have guests arriving today, have you?”
“No, I can’t wait to see Lily and Scarlett,” Zina told her mum.
Queen Tali smiled. “Good! They’ll all be here by lunchtime. Could you cut some flowers from the garden and put them into vases? We want the palace to look its best for our visitors.”
Zina beamed. “I’d love to! I’ll get started straightaway.”
Zina felt excitement rising like a balloon inside her all morning. She began to feel a little shy too – she hadn’t seen her friends for weeks and weeks. What if they didn’t like the Kingdom of Ramova or the palace very much? She frowned at her reflection in her bedroom mirror as she brushed her long dark hair and tied it up with a ribbon. She had to be braver, she told herself, and remember what good friends Lily and Scarlett were.
She glanced at the diamond ring that she wore every day. The Rescue Princesses often used magic jewels when they needed to help animals in trouble. They all had special rings that let them talk to each other when they were apart. To use the ring, all Zina had to do was press the heart-shaped jewel. For a moment, she wanted to touch the diamond, watch it light up and talk to her friends. Then she reminded herself they would be here very soon!
Hurrying out into the garden, she cut some rosy periwinkle flowers and some bright-red zinnias. She checked the top of the palace wall and was delighted to see all the lemurs’ fruit was gone. Gathering up the flowers, she went inside to look for the royal vases.
Just before lunch, a black and gold carriage rolled through the gates. It drew to a stop in front of the palace steps and Scarlett burst out, her curly black hair bouncing. She ran to Zina, who’d been waiting by the front door, and hugged her. “Thanks for inviting us!” she said, beaming. “Are you ready for some more Rescue Princess adventures?”
“Shh, Scarlett! Someone will hear you,” said Lily. “Hi, Zina!” She came up the steps, her blonde hair falling over her shoulders.
Zina smiled shyly. “Hi, Lily. Hi, Scarlett.”
Queen Tali came hurrying out of the palace door. “Welcome to the Kingdom of Ramova. How was your journey, girls?”
“It was great!” Scarlett’s eyes sparkled. “I kept looking out of the window at the clouds and thinking that they looked like fluffy bunny tails or sheep or scrunched-up pillows … and when we went through the forest the carriage got really bumpy and I thought it was like driving a tractor round a track for racing cars. Not that I’ve actually done that!”
Queen Tali looked stunned for a moment and Zina couldn’t help grinning. She’d forgotten how chatty Scarlett could be! “Well, I’m glad you enjoyed the carriage ride,” the queen said at last. “I must say hello to your parents.” She went to greet the kings and queens as they climbed out of the carriage.
Looking at her friends, Zina felt her shyness melting away. “There’s so much I want to show you.” She linked arms with Lily and Scarlett. “We’re going to have the best time ever!”
Queen Tali bustled up the steps. “Shall we go inside, everyone? I’m sure you’d all like a drink and a slice of cake after your long journey.” She glanced at the palace gate. “Oh, this is a surprise! I wasn’t expecting the Carnival Master till tomorrow.”
A bright-yellow wagon drew up behind the carriage and a man climbed down from the driver’s seat. He was wearing a purple jacket, trousers made from multicoloured patches and a tall black hat. “Good morning, Your Majesties.” He took off his hat and swept a deep bow.
“Everyone – this is Mr Hazzam, who organises our carnival every year,” said Queen Tali. “Come inside and tell us how you’re getting on, Mr Hazzam.” She led them all into the parlour and rang the bell for refreshments.
Zina’s dad, King Tomas, came in and shook everyone’s hand. Then he began explaining to the other kings and queens all the detailed plans for the carnival. Mr Hazzam joined in, describing the banners and garlands that would be hanging along the parade route.
“I’ve really been looking forward to the carnival,” Lily said quietly to Zina as they sat down. “Will there be lots of music?”
“Yes, music and dancing, and the costumes are amazing!” Zina told her. “My favourite part is the floats. They’re carts decorated
with all kinds of things and they roll past the crowds one after the other.”
Mr Hazzam overheard her and smiled. “I believe you’ll be pleased with our floats this year, Princess Zina. The animal ones are especially good! The parrot float is brightly coloured and the ocean float has pretend jellyfish and lots of seashells. The only disappointment is the lemur float, which isn’t finished because the person in charge broke their ankle. I think we’re going to have to leave that one out this year.”
“That’s a shame!” Queen Tali thanked the maids, who had brought in a large cake with lemon icing, cups of tea and some glasses of cherryade.
Zina sipped her cherryade thoughtfully. It would be a shame not to have a lemur float in the parade. After all, lemurs were one of the best-known animals in Ramova. A sudden thought popped into her head. Maybe they could decorate the lemur float! She exchanged looks with Lily, who loved doing art and decorating things.
“Lily, do you think we should ask to decorate the float?” she whispered.
“Yes! Ask them, Zina,” Lily whispered back.
Zina swallowed and tried to think of the right thing to say. What if they thought it was a silly idea?
Scarlett nudged her with an elbow and nodded.
Zina took a deep breath. “Um … Mr Hazzam…”
The Carnival Master was busy talking to Lily’s mum and took a few moments to turn round. “Did you want to ask me something, Princess Zina?”
“Well, I was just wondering… Could we decorate the lemur float? I love lemurs and it would be awful not to have the float in the parade.” Zina’s cheeks grew hot and she felt as if everyone was looking at her.
“That’s a very kind offer!” exclaimed Mr Hazzam. “I’d be very grateful for the help. I could bring the float to the palace this afternoon and leave it here for you to work on.” He glanced at the kings and queens.
Queen Tali was nodding but Scarlett’s parents, the King and Queen of Deronda, looked doubtful. “Will it be very messy?” asked Scarlett’s mum.
“I’m sure it won’t.” Scarlett pushed aside her black curls. “Please, mum! It sounds great fun.”
At last all the kings and queens agreed that the girls could decorate the float ready for the carnival.
“But what do lemurs look like?” cried Scarlett, once the grown-ups had left to look around the palace. “I’ve never even seen one. Are they like leopards?”
“I think they’re more like monkeys,” said Lily. “I’ve looked at pictures of them in my geography book at home.”
“There are lots of different kinds but the ring-tailed lemurs are the most common ones in this part of the forest,” said Zina. “I could show them to you if you like?”
“Yes! Let’s go right now.” Scarlett jumped up, nearly knocking over the plate of lemon cake.
“Seeing them will give us ideas for the float,” agreed Lily.
Zina knew the lemurs wouldn’t return to the palace wall till breakfast time the next morning, so she led the other princesses across the garden and through the tall palace gate. Then she took them down a little winding path among the trees.
“There’s a cluster of tamarind trees not far away, where the lemurs like to play,” she told the others. “The tamarind fruit is their favourite food so they’re sure to be there!”
Soon the gate and the palace walls were far behind. The trees leaned close together, their roots jutting out of the dark earth. The leaves rustled and Zina thought she heard her amber jewel whispering back softly.
“This place is amazing,” gasped Scarlett. “Look at that parrot.”
The parrot whistled and ruffled its yellow feathers. Then a bright-green lizard darted up a nearby tree trunk, its tongue flicking.
“That’s a gecko,” Zina told them. “They’re cute, aren’t they? I don’t know where the lemurs have gone. There are usually lots of them in this part of the forest.”
They walked on a little further, stopping by a circle of trees with long, knobbly fruit hanging from the branches. A cluster of bright-eyed lemurs sprang down from the treetops. One of them paused to look at the girls, its beautiful black-and-white tail pointing straight up.
“If we keep still we won’t scare them,” Zina said quietly.
“They’re lovely,” whispered Scarlett, as three more lemurs jumped down. “Look at the baby!”
The mother lemur with the baby on her back reached the ground last. The creatures began looking around the forest floor for food, their tails all pointing upwards. The little baby clambered down from his mother’s back and began searching among the twigs and fallen leaves.
“They’re used to me because I feed them fruit for breakfast every day,” Zina explained.
“I didn’t think they’d be so furry.” Scarlett crept a little closer and one of the lemurs scampered across her shoe, making them all giggle.
“They have lovely golden-brown eyes too,” said Lily. “Have you ever touched one, Zina?”
Zina was about to reply when a roaring noise made her jump.
A rusty blue truck came crashing through the bushes, stopping just outside the clearing. The lemurs screeched in alarm and galloped away into the trees. A group of men and women wearing yellow helmets climbed out of the truck and one of them began marking the tree trunks with a thick red marker.
“Bring me the rope,” called a man with a thick beard. “We’ll come back and cut all these trees down tomorrow.”
A cold prickle ran down Zina’s neck. Cut down the trees? They couldn’t do that. This place was the lemurs’ home!
A man and a woman wearing yellow helmets began tying a rope around the circle of trees. Zina felt as if her voice was stuck in her throat. Why were these people here? And how had they got the truck through the forest? The trees grew so close together it should have been impossible.
Scarlett bounded forward. “Hold on a minute! This is where the lemurs live – don’t you care about them?”
The people with the rope looked round in surprise. “Where did you come from?” the woman asked suspiciously. “Ando, there’s some children here.”
The bearded man came over. “Stand back, please. We’re roping off this area so that tomorrow we can come back and cut down these trees.”
“But you can’t!” Zina burst out. “This part of the rainforest is the lemurs’ home.”
“I’m sorry, young lady, but the carnival will be passing this way. Part of the main road is flooded after all the rain last week so we’re making a shortcut for the floats. We’ve already cleared the trees up to this point.” He beckoned them to the edge of the clearing and pointed through the bushes. A line of tree stumps stretched into the distance and logs were piled up on the ground.
Zina’s heart sank. How could they destroy such a long stretch of beautiful trees?
The workman looked at Zina more closely. “Have I seen you before? You look very familiar.”
Zina blushed. “I’m Princess Zina from the palace and these are my friends, Princesses Scarlett and Lily.”
“I beg your pardon, Princess Zina. I didn’t recognise you at first. My name’s Ando.” The bearded man smiled and did a clumsy bow. “We really do need to clear these trees so that the carnival can get through. There’s too much water on the road.”
“But the lemurs live here,” said Zina. “These tamarind trees give them leaves and fruit to eat when the other trees are bare. And these are the only tamarind trees I’ve seen in the whole forest!”
“If this place is so important why aren’t the lemurs here now?” said the woman, tying the rope around the last tree.
Zina swallowed. “They were here just now but they ran away when your truck came along.” But the woman had turned away to gather up the spare rope and didn’t even answer.
Ando checked each roped-off tree. Then he called everyone back to the truck, giving the girls one last wave before they rolled away through the bushes.
“The poor lemurs!” said Zina. “No other trees in the forest prov
ide food all year round like the tamarind trees. The lemurs will starve without them.”
“You should have told them that, Zina,” said Scarlett.
“I tried!” Zina’s face grew hot. She wished she’d explained things better to the grown-ups but they’d left and it was too late. “I’ve been looking forward to the carnival so much. I never thought the parade would end up hurting the lemurs.”
Scarlett put her hands on her hips. “Those carnival people didn’t even listen to us! They just drove in and tied their rope and left.”
“I don’t think they understood how special these trees are,” said Zina sadly.
“Maybe we should go after them. Use ninja moves to follow the truck,” said Scarlett.
“Wait a minute!” Lily ducked under the ring of rope and ran into the clearing. “I saw something move.”
The others scrambled after her. “What did it look like?” asked Zina. “Was it an insect?”
“I think it’s a lot bigger than that.” Lily pointed to a bump sticking out of a nearby pile of leaves. The leaves quivered and a little furry head with tufted ears popped up.
“It’s the baby lemur!” cried Scarlett. “Why is he here by himself?”
“He must have been left behind,” said Zina.
Lily crouched down beside the baby lemur. The little creature shrank away from her and his stripy tail drooped. “Don’t be scared. We won’t hurt you.” She reached out to touch him but the lemur dashed away and hid behind the nearest tree trunk.
“He might be hungry.” Zina picked up a green guava that was lying on the ground and crept towards the lemur, trying not to startle him. The creature peeked at her with big golden-brown eyes. Then at last he scampered out from behind the tree and took the guava in his paws.
“That’s it!” Zina whispered gently. “You can trust us.”
“Isn’t he adorable?” cooed Lily.
“He’s lovely,” agreed Zina.
The Amber Necklace Page 1