Edwina Pilkington's Computer School of Magic

Elizabeth Barber was born on the east coast of Tasmania and from a young age had a fascination with fairytales. She loved to read Enid Blyton books and write her own short stories about faraway places.

Over the years, many of her short stories found their way into local schools, taking many young children into her world of magic.

Elizabeth is a lover of dogs and a keen golfer.

Published in Australia by Sid Harta Publishers Pty Ltd,

ACN: 007 030 051

23 Stirling Crescent, Glen Waverley, Victoria 3150,

Australia

Telephone: + 61 3 9560 9920, Facsimile: +61 3 9545 1742

E-mail:
[email protected]

First published in Australia 2009

This edition published 2014

Copyright © Elizabeth Barber 2009

Cover design, typesetting: Chameleon Print Design

The right of Elizabeth Barber to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

This book is a work of fiction. Any similarities to that of people living or dead are purely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

Barber, Elizabeth

Edwina Pilkington's Computer School of Magic

ISBN: 9781742984452 (eBook)

Digital edition distributed by

Port Campbell Press

www.portcampbellpress.com.au

Conversion by
Winking Billy

To Paul

for the great times we share, and to Jack who heard this story first

E.B.

The Stone Castle

Chapter 1:
 Grandma

Chapter 2:
 The Vanishing Spell

Chapter 3:
 The Halloween party

Chapter 4:
 The fire

Chapter 5:
 The Witches Book of Timeless Memories

Chapter 6:
 The cathedral

Chapter 7:
 The return of Gorum and the Gargoyles of Darkness

Chapter 8:
 The four-legged giant

Chapter 9:
 Edwina's birthday

The Sand Dragons

Chapter 1:
 Professor Frogsley's Computer School of Magic

Chapter 2:
 Witches Cozmo

Chapter 3:
 The Sand Dragons

Chapter 4:
 The Guardian of the Bloodstones

Chapter 5:
 Miss Prudence Pugwort

Chapter 6:
 The heart of the sandstorm

Chapter 7:
 Celebrations

‘L
ook, Grandma, it's snowing for Halloween,' said the little girl as she snuggled up close to her much loved teddy bear.

‘Snowflakes are magic,' said the old woman as she slowly rocked backwards and forwards in her rocking chair, ‘and so is Halloween, a time for witches and wizards. So come, child, and sit by the warm fire with your old Grandma and I will tell you a magical story about a place where the sky is covered in rainbows, a place called Tasmania where a very special little girl lives, a little girl called Edwina Pilkington.'

The old woman sat back in her rocking chair with a worried looking grand-daughter sitting on her knee. ‘Grandma,' said the little girl, ‘Edwina is a big girl, and she doesn't live in Tasmania; she lives in Rainbow City.'

‘Rainbow City is in Tasmania, so shoosh now, child, or Grandma will not tell the story.

And so the story begins …

E
dwina and her best friend Gabriella were on their way home from school on a bright, sunny Friday afternoon. There was nothing to suggest that there was something strange and mysterious about to happen in Rainbow City, even though the local newspaper,
Stone Age
, had been full of strange and interesting articles written by Mr Pickwicks, the reporter.

Mr Pickwicks was a plump little man who liked to collect rare and unusual stories. He often wrote the strangest articles about the Pilkington family. One of his latest stories, titled ‘Rare and unusual', was about Edwina's pet pig, ‘Thirty-four', who was suppose to have been seen at the green and purple post office wearing large, red glasses and rubbing his back against the lamppost while reading the mail. Another reporter, Ms Esmeralda, was convinced they saw Edwina riding a unicorn past the old cathedral.

Small towns – their imaginations do run wild. Well, this night would be no different. It was Halloween and the Pilkington family were celebrating with their annual fancy dress party. Everyone in Rainbow City was invited, even the not so popular Mrs Whatmore. She was a local shop owner, a large woman with a scaly face and pointy nose. Nobody knew much about her, except that on the day she arrived in Rainbow City, the previous shop owners strangely disappeared.

Edwina didn't like Mrs Whatmore because she was always sticking her pointy nose in where it wasn't wanted. Mrs Whatmore had just finished delivering lots of balloons up to Stone Castle for the Halloween party when she noticed Edwina with her long, blonde hair and Gabriella; with her short, red, curly hair, running up along the narrow path towards the castle.

Mr Gummylegs, the gardener, was also watching Edwina and Gabriella make their way home from school. Mr Gummylegs had just finished decorating Stone Castle with hundreds of fairy lights and was on his way back to the garden to get more pumpkins when Mr Philpott the postman pulled up on his motorbike and started babbling about being followed by large, bat-like creatures.

Mr Gummylegs could not believe what he was hearing – such nonsense coming from the mouth of such an important man – so he just shook his head, grunted and went on about his business. What else could he do after hearing a story like that? He was now beginning to wonder if his old friend, the postman, had finally lost his mind.

Edwina's mother, the beautiful Lady Lilly Arna, was sitting by the fireplace in the Great Hall of Stone Castle reading the newspaper,
Stone Age.
Lady Lilly Arna would sit down at about the same time each day with a cup of hot chocolate and catch up on the local news. She enjoyed reading the rare and unusual stories that Mr Pickwicks wrote, especially the ones about her own family, the Pilkingtons. It always made her laugh. But today was different; the headlines on the front page read: