11 Flying Solo - My Sister the Vampire (11 page)

‘Help me,’ she whispered, but Petra was frozen.

Ivy listened. A bat darted through the air, skimming past their noses. Then slow, confident footsteps crunched towards them. She knew who it was even before she heard the figure speak.

‘Well, well,’ said Miss Avisrova, as she approached Petra.

‘S-s-sorry,’ said Petra, bowing her head. ‘I-I-I don’t know what I was thinking.’

Ivy stared down at the severe parting in Miss Avisrova’s hair. Their teacher curled her fingers around the back of Petra’s neck. ‘You will accompany me back to the girls’ dormitory immediately.’ She started to guide Petra down the path.

Petra looked upwards. ‘Miss, there’s someone else up –’

Avisrova cut her off and repeated herself, more forcefully this time. ‘You
will
accompany me back to the girls’ dormitory. Immediately.’

‘But –’

‘But nothing,’ Avisrova snapped. ‘I don’t know what you are talking about. Honestly. A girl on her own in the Gauntlet at night . . . No girl from this academy could possibly make it through the Gauntlet.’

Petra’s mouth worked, but no words came out. Ivy couldn’t believe it. Avisrova had to know that someone else was in the forest. She was a vampire, with vampire senses, and she had caught Petra red-handed. No, Miss Avisrova was
choosing
to let Ivy dangle alone in the Gauntlet.

Petra glanced back anxiously at Ivy, as she was led away. She shrugged and Ivy’s chest heaved with fury. Her eyes narrowed. Ivy knew Avisrova wanted her to call for help, but too bad. That evil teacher was going to be sorely disappointed, because no way was Ivy Vega giving her that satisfaction.

No girl can make it through the Gauntlet, huh?
Ivy’s blood boiled. Was that what Avisrova thought? Well, apparently Miss Avisrova did not know the first thing about Ivy.

As soon as her teacher was out of sight and earshot, Ivy began swinging back and forth like a pendulum. Her muscles strained and the cord around her ankles cut into her skin. It took a few minutes, but finally she got enough momentum and grabbed hold of the rope.

Take this, Avisrova
. Ivy’s arms trembled as she held herself right side up. She ripped into the rope with her teeth, gnawing at the threads with her newly grown fangs until she heard a
snap
. Moments later, she landed on the ground with a loud
kerthump
.

She lay on her back, waiting for agonising pain to shoot up one of her limbs, but . . . nothing. Tentatively, she felt the ground beneath her and lifted up a fistful of soft, brown leaves. She sat up and looked around her.
Woah! How lucky am I?
Ivy had landed in a pile of foliage that had broken her fall. The leaves were gathered in a neat circle, almost as though someone had arranged them there.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ivy noticed Petra’s envelope. It was half covered in dirt. She picked it up and dusted it off. Whatever it was, Petra must have worked pretty hard on it to go to this much trouble just to make a delivery. That meant she would definitely want it back.

Ivy checked to make sure nothing had fallen out of her own pockets while she’d been dangling by her feet. She was about to follow Petra and Avisrova out of the woods when she paused and looked back over her shoulder. She could only imagine the hidden grass snakes, the hairy spiders and, of course, the tripwires which lay in the forest beyond. She remembered the story about the girl whose hair turned white on entering the Gauntlet. What had she seen? But another thought wormed its way up Ivy’s brain . . .
Could I complete the obstacle course?
That would prove a point to Avisrova and to the entire school. Ivy shouldn’t let silly ghost stories put her off! If one student was able to emerge on the other side of the Gauntlet, Wallachia Academy might drag itself into the twenty-first century.
Maybe
.

‘I mean, the whole Gauntlet thing is ridiculous,’ Ivy said out loud, trying to talk herself into being brave. ‘I need to show this school how stuffy and old-fashioned things like this are – and prove that it doesn’t even work!’ If a girl like Ivy could get across . . . perhaps the school would give up on keeping the boys and girls apart and Petra might even get to talk to – instead of stare at – her beloved Etan.

Ivy knew the plan was reckless, but wasn’t that what she was known for at Wallachia? That was it – her mind was made up. The only real question left was how to conquer the Gauntlet successfully. She thought back to Helga’s advice in the classroom. What was it she’d said? ‘Knowledge and strength are a person’s most important assets.’ Ivy had some knowledge of plants and she could dig deep for the strength she needed.
I can do this!
But what first?
OK, how to avoid those booby-trap tripwires on the ground
. . .?

Ivy walked over to one of the largest trees in the forest. Without hesitating, she reached for the lowest branch and pulled herself up until she was straddling it. She clambered higher, using the sturdier limbs as a makeshift ladder. Luckily the forest was dense and the trees so close together that she could move from one to the other, making her way through the forest without touching the ground. Carefully, she grabbed hold of a long branch from one of the trees nearby, then swung herself to the neighboring trunk, as if she were a pirate boarding an enemy ship.

Ivy hopped and jumped from one tree to the other, panting with the exertion. This was worse than Physical Education back in Franklin Grove! But after a while, she reached the edge of the woods, just as the sun was beginning to peek out over the horizon. Ivy watched as oranges, pinks and yellows spilled out over the clouds. She had to admit, Transylvania did have one of the most beautiful landscapes in the world.

The morning glow curled around the trunks, illuminating several patches of the
Oxynamon
plant Helga had shown them in class. Ivy had never seen it grow like this in the human world. Here in the forest it looked as though it were growing out of the tree and wrapping itself round the bark. She tore off two bunches. If anyone saw her, she could say she had been doing some extra credit work for Herbal Science. She stuffed it in her pocket, took out Petra’s envelope and jumped down from the last tree.

I did it!
She had to stop herself from squealing. That would definitely not suit the cool-girl Ivy persona she was trying to build. But here she was on the other side of the Gauntlet, standing in the shadow of the boys’ dormitory. Stone walls, high-rising turrets . . . It looked just the same as the girls’ dorms to Ivy.
What’s the big deal, exactly?
She leaned her head to the side, to view it from another angle. Vampires and their ideas of romance – it would never make sense to her.

A handsome face appeared in one of the frosted windows of the boys’ dormitory. Ivy squinted to try and make it out. The boy held up one finger and then disappeared.

Seconds later, he came rushing out on to the dew-stained lawn. Ivy didn’t know which was more amusing, his bedhead or his look of sheer amazement.

‘Where’s Petra?’ he cried, stumbling to a halt. ‘What are you doing here?’ He looked past Ivy hopefully, scanning the forest, before his gaze settled back on her face. He cleared his throat. ‘Um, there seems to be a misunderstanding. You’re very nice and everything, but Petra’s my true love. I mean, I’m sure some boys would find you attractive, but . . .’

‘Don’t kid yourself!’ Ivy erupted. She couldn’t believe it. Etan thought she’d made her way through the Gauntlet because, because . . .
He thinks I have a crush on him!
Ivy pulled her shoulders back. ‘I have the best boyfriend in the world waiting for me back in Franklin Grove. I’m not here because I “heart” you!’ She drew a little heart in the air with her forefingers, grimacing. ‘I’m here to help Petra.’

Before Etan could open his mouth to say sorry, there was the sound of a twig snapping. He jumped and darted back inside. Ivy looked round.

That was weird. Why was everyone around here so jumpy?
Thank goodness I have a normal boyfriend
.
Just not here in Transylvania
. Ivy sighed. Maybe she had made the wrong –

A slow clap started up behind her. ‘Bravo, bravo.’

Bats alive!
Ivy’s heart jolted. She turned to see Miss Avisrova, wearing an ugly frown. How did her teacher get here so fast?

Ivy’s jaw clenched.
Here it comes
.

‘You know –’ the Etiquette teacher began circling her – ‘I smelled you, Miss Lazar, there in the forest, from a mile away. And I knew that you would have the insolence to try to complete the course.’

‘I
did
complete the course,’ Ivy corrected.

Miss Avisrova ignored her. ‘That ostentatious American fragrance creates an unmistakable stench.’

It’s got to smell better than Eau de Snob
, thought Ivy, but she just managed to bite her lip.
Do not say that out loud
. There was no way that would end well.

Miss Avisrova snatched the grubby envelope from Ivy’s hand. ‘What do we have here?’ she read the scrawling script. ‘Very well,’ she said sharply. ‘As is customary, the token of love will be passed on to the intended.’

Ivy frowned. On the one hand, she was glad that Petra’s letter would get to her true love. On the other hand . . . ‘What do you mean “customary”?’ she asked. Had the Gauntlet been conquered by love before?

Avisrova’s eyebrows nearly disappeared into her hairline. ‘I don’t have to explain my meaning to you,’ she said, her voice high and tight. Then she seemed to force herself to relax, her shoulders dropping. ‘But even I have a heart. Etan will get his letter.’ For a moment, Avisrova gazed off in the direction of the boys’ dormitory. ‘I was in love once, you know . . .’

In love?
Ivy could
not
picture that. But as fast as this softer side had come on, Avisrova’s stony expression returned. She cleared her throat. ‘As for you, Miss Lazar . . .’ The hairs on the back of Ivy’s neck stood on end. ‘You will report to my office after school.’ She glanced over towards the Gauntlet, a smile twitching at the corners of her mouth. ‘But you’d better be quick. I want you back in your dorm room before anyone wakes up.’

How utterly great
, thought Ivy, squinting into the rising sun as Avisrova walked off in the direction of the boys’ dorm.
Now I have to get back through the forest without my hair turning white and then wait for my death sentence
. She tried not to shiver in the chill dawn air and wondered what her sister was doing right now.
Olivia would never get herself into trouble like this
, she thought.
Why can’t I be more like my twin?

Chapter Eight

L
ow: 90°

High: 96°

Current Temperature: 92°

Olivia snapped shut the pink rhinestone cover on her phone. Of course the universe wouldn’t cooperate just so that she could pull off a lie. The best she could hope for now was to get out of her house without being spotted by anyone – especially her parents.

She clicked on her webcam and Ivy appeared at her desk on-screen. She and Ivy had been texting and Ivy had agreed to take a quick ten minutes during her lunch break to have a video call with Olivia.

‘Hey there, sister!’ Olivia waved to the camera. ‘How do I look?’

Ivy’s eyes grew wide. ‘Awful! What are you wearing?’

Olivia looked at the corner of the screen that showed her own picture as Ivy would see it through her computer. She had lined her eyes with dark eyeliner and coated her lips with a thick layer of Midnight Mauve lipstick. Her dark hair was pinned into a bun with two chopsticks.

Olivia shrugged. ‘You know what they say – “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”. And anyway, you look a bit – um – rough around the edges yourself.’ She didn’t want to say too much, but her sister looked as though she’d been dragged through a hedge backwards!

Ivy hastily patted down her hair. ‘Er, I had a bit of a midnight adventure,’ she said.

‘Oh, goodie!’ Olivia cried, clapping her hands together. ‘A midnight feast? I knew you’d make friends quickly. Tell me all about it!’

On screen, Olivia saw Ivy stifle a yawn. ‘It wasn’t a feast, exactly, more of an assault course.’ Olivia’s brow crinkled into a frown of curiosity as Ivy continued. ‘I’ll tell you about it some other time. Once I’ve had a good night’s sleep. You fill me in on what you’ve been doing. What’s with the goth make-up?’

‘Um, see, I may have got myself caught up in a
teensy
little lie.’ Olivia held her fingers a couple of centimetres apart. ‘The thing is, well, I made this new friend called Holly, and she really wanted to meet you and interview you about Transylvania. She’s training to be a journalist and she’s entered a travel-writing competition and . . . she thinks you’re back in the country.’

Ivy palmed her forehead.

‘What? I couldn’t exactly tell her you were at a vampire boarding school! Plus, she thinks getting pictures of you will help her win the competition, and I don’t want to let her down. The deadline is the end of this week.’