Fabulous Five 030 - Sibling Rivalry

THE
FABULOUS FIVE #30

SIBLING RIVALRY

BETSY HAYNES

A BANTAM SKYLARK
BOOK®

NEW YORK • TORONTO •
LONDON • SYDNEY • AUCKLAND

RL 5, 009-012

SIBLING RIVALRY

A Bantam Skylark
Book / March 1992

Skylark Books is a
registered trademark of Bantam Books, a division of Bantam Doubleday Dell
Publishing Group, Inc. Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and
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James Haynes.

All rights
reserved.

Copyright
©
1992 by Betsy Haynes and James Haynes.

Cover art
copyright
© 1992 by Andrew Bacha.

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ISBN 0-553-15875-9

Published
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OPM      0 9 8 7 6 5
4 3 2 1

Beth Barry slumped back against the middle seat in her
family's station wagon and rested her cheek against the cool windowpane. As she
glanced absently at the snow-covered countryside rushing by, she tried to tune
out the babble of happy conversation swirling around her in the crowded car.
She wished she could be as excited as the rest of her family about spending
their winter vacation skiing at Stony Lookout Resort. But the truth was, she
was miserable. She closed her eyes, remembering the scene at the dinner table
when her parents had broken the news.

"But, Mom! Dad! We can't possibly go away
then
!
"
she'd cried, letting her fork drop and clatter into her plate. "That's
Winter Carnival! Remember? The whole town will be there, and they have snow
sculpture contests, and a tug-of-war between kids from Wakeman Junior High and
the high school. And then there's the Ice Skaters' Ball on the last night, when
everybody dances on skates at the rink in the park and they crown the Snow
Prince and Princess. We can't
possibly
miss
that!
My friends and
I have been planning to go for weeks!"

"Personally, I can't wait to go skiing," Brittany,
her sixteen-year-old sister, had said dryly. "There are bound to be tons
of gorgeous guys at Stony Lookout. Besides, don't worry, little sis. You aren't
going to be crowned Snow Princess at the Winter Carnival, anyway."

Mr. Barry had put his coffee cup down slowly and looked at
Beth. "Sweetheart, of course we know it's Winter Carnival," he had
said patiently. "And Winter Carnival is certainly a big event around here.
But a ski vacation is special. Remember how you've always said you wanted to
learn to ski? Well, now's your chance."

From the chair beside her, Beth's twelve-year-old brother
Todd had piped up, "Wow! This is going to be the best vacation we've ever
had. I can't wait to get my skis on, and wait'll you see me streaking down
those slopes! VROOOOM!" He had plunged his left arm down an imaginary
slope, stopping his hand an instant before it could crash into Beth's plate.
Then he'd given her a devilish grin.

Beth had scowled back, thinking how immature twelve-year-old
boys could be. "You'll probably break your neck," she had muttered.

"Here, look at the brochure," her mother had said,
handing it across the table to Beth.

"Let me see, too," six-year-old Alicia had cried,
jumping off her chair and crowding in between Beth and Todd for a closer look.
"Can Agafa come, too?"

Her father had chuckled. "I'm afraid there are no dogs
allowed, Alicia. We'll have to leave Agatha here in the kennel."

"I could stay home and take care of her," Beth had
offered hopefully, even though she knew how her parents would respond.

"Don't be silly, Beth," her mother had replied.
"You know we would never allow you to stay home alone."

"But the rest of The Fabulous Five could stay with
me," she had pleaded.

"Will you please just look at the brochure?" her
mother had asked with a trace of irritation.

Beth had sighed and glanced at the pamphlet. It was full of
photographs of both adults and good-looking teenagers in bright ski outfits
standing in groups on the ski slopes, swimming in the indoor swimming pool, and
having dinner in a quaint, rustic dining room. One especially beautiful picture
had caught her eye. It showed skiers coming down a slope at night holding
bright lanterns.

But it isn't Winter Carnival, she had thought miserably. And
none of my friends will be there. They'll all be here, having the time of their
lives
without me.

"It says in the brochure that they have dances at
night, too. I'll bet Brian and I will really enjoy those," Brittany had
added, giving Beth a superior look. "They aren't for
kids
, you
know."

Beth had blinked in anger. "I'm not a kid, Brittany! I
can do anything you can do."

"Yeah, right." Brittany had smirked and nudged
seventeen-year-old Brian, who sat beside her.

Beth had been furious at Brittany. Her older sister always
called her a little kid and treated her that way, too. It wasn't fair. After
all, Beth was only three years younger than Brittany. Occasionally Mrs. Barry
tried to console Beth when Brittany was particularly nasty, saving that it was
just normal sibling rivalry and Beth shouldn't let it get to her. Well, normal
or not, I'd love to show Brittany just how wrong she is, Beth thought angrily,
but
not
if it means missing Winter Carnival and having fun with my
friends.

Now, as her father turned onto an asphalt road, Beth forgot
her anger and sucked in her breath at the sight of the beauty all around her.
Flanking the road were tall pine and white paper birch trees, and in the
western sky the sun was dipping toward a pink-and-blue frosted mountain. Beth
wished the other members of The Fabulous Five had been able to come along with
her to see the spectacular view of the mountains. The five of them—Jana Morgan,
Christie Winchell, Melanie Edwards, Katie Shannon, and Beth—had been best
friends for as long as Beth could remember. They had done everything together,
until recently, when Christie had moved with her family to London. The rest of
The Fabulous Five missed her terribly, and now were planning to visit her in
England over spring break. They were all saving every penny they could to help
cover expenses.

"I believe we've arrived," Mr. Barry suddenly
announced.

They had just pulled out of the woods, and the resort came
into view. A large, two-story wooden building drew Beth's attention first.

"It's huge," said Todd.

Mrs. Barry nodded. "It used to be a dairy barn. See the
two wings on either end of the building?"

The kids murmured yes.

"The cows were kept there, in stalls. That's where the
guest rooms are."

Todd leaned forward and yanked on a strand of Beth's short
hair. "Moooo! Beth will fit right in."

"Todd, you're incredibly immature," Beth answered.
"Mom, tell him to shut up."

"Kids," Mrs. Barry warned, "we want this to
be a very pleasant vacation, so please try to get along."

Mr. Barry pulled the car up next to the lodge.
"Everybody stay put while I register. Then we'll go to our rooms and
unpack."

Beth waited impatiently while her father was gone. She
watched several young people go by, hoping to spot someone close to her age.
She didn't see anyone who fit into that category, but there sure seemed to be a
lot of little kids about Alicia's age running around. This definitely was a family
place.

Mr. Barry returned a few minutes later. He drove slowly
around the lodge to one wing and parked next to the entrance in the middle.
"Everybody take a suitcase," he ordered.

The family piled out of the station wagon, everyone hauling
out a piece of luggage, and followed Mr. Barry inside and up the stairs. He led
them to the end of the hall and unlocked one of the doors. When the door swung
open, Beth could see that the room was paneled in yellow knotty pine and
decorated in blue. There were two double beds.

"Brian and Todd, you take this one," said their
father.

The boys nodded and shoved their suitcases into the room.

"This will be your room, girls," said Mrs. Barry,
opening a second door. "Beth, you share the far bed with Alicia, and
Brittany can take the other bed."

"But Alicia thrashes in her sleep!" Beth
protested. "She kicks me every time I sleep in the same bed with
her."

"I don't mean to kick you, Bethy," Alicia told
her.

"Of course you don't, honey," her mother said.

"I didn't mean she was trying to hurt me," Beth
insisted. "But I have a hard time sleeping when she socks me in the face
and kicks my legs all night."

"You'll survive," Mrs. Barry assured her.

"Just this once, couldn't Brittany sleep with
Alicia?" Beth pleaded.

"We'll hear no more about it," Mrs. Barry said,
and left to go to her room across the hall. "Beth, help Alicia unpack,
will you?"

Brittany smiled triumphantly at Beth. "Just one of the
advantages of being older," she commented airily.

Beth let out a sigh of exasperation and angrily threw her
suitcase and Alicia's little travel bag on her bed and opened them. It just
isn't fair, she thought. Brian and Brittany get all the privileges, Alicia gets
babied all the time, and Todd's too busy playing Nintendo or shooting baskets with
his friends to care. And what am I? Just stuck in the middle! No privileges. No
attention. Nothing.

"I'll take the top two bureau drawers," Brittany
announced, "and you and Alicia can have the bottom two."

"Why should you get an extra drawer?" Beth demanded.

"Because, dear little sister," Brittany replied,
as if she were talking to a five-year-old, "I brought more clothes than
you did. Besides, I don't want to crush my things."

"Well, I don't want
my
things crushed,
either," said Beth. "We'll share the second drawer."

"No way," said Brittany.

Beth watched Brittany unpack, her blood boiling. If Brittany
got the bed all to herself, there was no way she was going to get an extra
drawer, that was for sure!

Beth unpacked, then helped Alicia put her things in the
bottom drawer, watching Brittany out of the corner of her eye the whole time.
Beth hung her clothes in the closet and stuffed the rest into the one bureau
drawer.

"Finished!" Brittany said after a few minutes as
she headed out the door. "See you later!"

As soon as the door closed behind Brittany, Beth stormed
over to the bureau, pulled open the second drawer, shoved Brittany's carefully
laid-out clothes to one side, and put some of her own things in the space she'd
made.

"There!" She smiled to herself. "Now
I'm
finished!"

"Me, too," added Alicia.

"Come on," Beth said, closing the door and leading
her little sister across the hall to her parents' room. Todd was sitting in the
middle of their bed playing his portable Nintendo. "Where are Brian and
Brittany?" Beth asked.

"Oh, they went to look for something to do," said
her mother as she hung up her ski jacket.

"Already? Why didn't they wait?" moaned Beth.
"I want to see the place, too!"

"Go ahead and explore with Todd and Alicia,"
suggested her mother.

I'm with the little kids again!
Beth fumed.
It's
not fair! I'm as mature as Brian and Brittany
,
but I always get stuck
with the babies!

She turned to her younger brother and sister. "Well,
come on," she said crossly. "Let's go."

This vacation has got to get better, Beth thought as they
left their parents' room and started down the hall. It couldn't possibly get
any worse!

Beth stomped downstairs ahead of Todd and Alicia.

Midway down, Alicia stopped and tugged at Beth's sweater.
"Bethy, I want to know something."

Beth sighed. "What?"

"Well, in the pictures sometimes the swimming pool was
outside and sometimes it was inside. Same with the tennis courts. How
come?"

Beth smiled in spite of herself. She started to answer, but
Todd interrupted.

"See, they're both outside in the summertime. Then what
they do in the winter is they roll up the tennis court like a rug and haul it
inside. Then they lift the swimming pool out of the ground and plug it into a
hole they've made especially for it inside," he said, grinning.

"Todd." Beth shook her head. "Todd's teasing
you, Alicia. But they do something almost as amazing. In the winter the
swimming pool and tennis courts are covered with huge plastic bubbles that are
filled with warm air. That way you can be warm inside while you swim and still
be able to see the snow and mountains all around you."

"Wow," said Alicia, her voice filled with wonder.
"Let's go find them. I want to see the bubbles."

"We'll see them in a little while," Beth assured
her.

Alicia's childish question had perked up Beth's spirits a
little, and she started down the steps again with Todd and Alicia following.
When they reached the bottom, Todd pointed down a long hallway and said,
"I bet the lodge is that way."

He was right. They pushed open a glass door at the end of
the hall and found themselves in the great room of the lodge. There was a
roaring fire in the huge stone fireplace, and small clusters of sofas and
chairs were arranged around the room. Old-fashioned lanterns hanging overhead
created a soft glow.

"Neat," exclaimed Todd.

Yeah, agreed Beth, looking around the room. A man and woman
with a little boy about Alicia's age had just come in the front door and were
stomping snow off their boots. Their faces were red from the cold, and the
little boy was grinning from ear to ear as he hurried toward the fireplace to
warm. Beth felt an instant twinge of envy. Maybe by this time tomorrow she,
too, would be skiing. She would never admit it to her parents, of course, but
the idea of skiing was exciting.

"Hey, look over there," shouted Todd. He was
pointing toward Brian and Brittany, who were across the room talking to three
teenage girls. Two of the girls were blond, and the third had reddish brown
hair. They were all drinking hot chocolate and chattering away.

"It figures," Beth muttered under her breath.
Naturally, Brian and Brittany would find kids their own ages right away. They
didn't have to baby-sit Todd and Alicia.

She edged away from Todd and Alicia and moved closer to the
older kids, trying to hear what the girls were saying.

"This room is where all the skiers come to warm up
after a day on the slopes," one of the girls said, twirling a fat
marshmallow floating at the top of her cup. "And the fire is kept going
twenty-four hours a day."

"Wow," said Brittany. "That sounds
romantic."

The three girls and Brittany giggled.

"That's not all," a second girl added. "A
band plays every evening, and they're terrific. Then on Saturdays there's night
skiing, when everyone comes down the mountain carrying lanterns." She
smiled at Brian. "You're going to love it here."

"Gosh, it sure sounds like it," he replied.

"What a flirt," Beth murmured to herself, as she
watched Brian return the girl's smile.

"By the way," said one of the blond girls,
"I'm Julie, that's Sarah"—she pointed to the other girl who was
blond—"and that's Molly. The three of us met four years ago when our
families were here at the same time. We've come back every year, and this year
we were allowed to come by ourselves."

"We're having a
blast!
" said Molly,
brushing a strand of reddish-brown hair out of her eyes and looking straight at
Brian.

Beth listened enviously. Imagine coming here with a group of
friends,
without having your family around.
She could picture The
Fabulous Five schussing down the slopes together, sitting around the fire
drinking hot chocolate, and then dancing the night away with handsome skiers.
It sounded like heaven.

"Do you all ski?" asked Brittany, bringing Beth
back to the present.

"A little," Sarah answered. "We're certainly not
experts, though."

"Do you ski, Brian?" asked Molly.

Brian shook his head. "No, but I want to learn."

"Me, too," said Brittany. "We're going to
have to take lessons."

"Hey, join us," the girls said in chorus.

"First thing in the morning," Julie told them.
"We'll all go to the beginners' class together."

Brittany looked doubtful. "Are you sure? I thought you
were all skiers."

"Uh, we could use some more pointers," Sarah
replied, and the other two grinned at her knowingly. Beth wondered what that
was all about.

"Great," said Brittany.

Just then the door to the outside opened again, and a group
of kids about Beth's age stomped inside, bringing a blast of cold air in with
them. Beth searched their faces for a potential friend. Her heart sank. All of
them were boys, and not one looked the least bit interesting. They all had snow
packed onto their pants, wild, windblown hair, and red cheeks and noses. They
were talking in loud, enthusiastic voices about their skiing feats of the day.

"Hotdoggers," Julie commented, waving her hand
dismissively.

"Excuse me?" asked Brian.

"Hot-dog skiers," Julie said. "You know,
always trying crazy stunts on the slopes. You can spot them because their skis
are always longer than everyone else's, and they've got that kamikaze look in
their eyes. You'll usually find them coming down The Jaws of Death."

"What's that?" asked Brittany.

"It's the toughest slope here," Julie replied.
"Only people who are
insane
go down it."

Out of the corner of her eye Beth saw Todd's eyebrows shoot
up, and an instant later he was eagerly approaching the boys. Alicia followed
him, staring at the boys in open-mouthed fascination. Todd ignored her as he
began talking with the skiers.

Beth was left standing alone. She glanced toward Todd and
Alicia. Their attention was fixed upon the hot-dog skiers, and they had
forgotten she was there. Next she looked in the direction of the teenagers.
Maybe she could hang around with them for a while, at least until she found
someone her own age.

"Why not?" she whispered. It might be a good
chance to prove to Brittany that she wasn't just a little kid. Actually, this
looked like the perfect opportunity to join in. Beth hurried to the hot
chocolate dispenser and filled a cup, then casually sauntered over to the group
and stood next to Brittany.

At first it seemed as if her sister didn't notice her. But
then she heard Brittany whisper harshly, "What do
you
want?"

Beth was determined to stay cool. "I'm having hot
chocolate. Do you mind?"

Brittany rolled her eyes toward the ceiling and then turned
back to the group.

"So what time do the lessons begin in the
morning?" Beth blurted out.

Brittany gave Beth a look that was absolutely meant to kill.
"Butt out, Beth," she growled. "Go find someone your own age to
play with."

"Is this your sister?" asked Julie.

Brittany nodded, but she didn't speak.

Beth felt a tight ball of anger form inside her chest.
Brittany is hoping that if she ignores me, I'll go away, she thought.

"Hi," Julie greeted Beth. Molly and Sarah smiled
and chimed in their hellos, too.

Beth forced a smile. "Hi, I'm Beth." Suddenly she
wanted badly to be one of them. They were obviously having such a good time,
and there wasn't
that
much difference in their ages. "I'm really
eager to learn to ski," she added hopefully.

Brittany turned to Julie. "Didn't I hear that there was
tiny tot skiing here at Stony Lookout? Beth could be part of that!"

Brian laughed. Beth felt her cheeks flush.

"Come on, Brittany," said Julie. "Don't give
your sister such a hard time. She's the right age for the beginners' lessons.
Anybody over six can take them."

Brittany threw back her head and laughed uproariously, as if
Julie's comment were the funniest thing she'd ever heard. Then Brittany snapped
her fingers. "Oh, well, Beth. It's too bad, but you're just over the age
limit for tiny tots."

Beth's blood was boiling, but she forced herself to keep her
mouth shut. She didn't dare let her temper get out of control and make a fool
out of her.

"You sure have a big family," Molly remarked.

"We sure do," Brittany agreed with a definite lack
of enthusiasm.

"There are five kids in the family," said Beth.

Brittany made a face. "I'm sure Molly can count,
Beth."

The girls laughed, and Julie looked at Molly. "Is this
what's known as sibling rivalry?" When Molly laughed and nodded, Julie
added, "I'm an only child, so I wouldn't know."

An only child!
Beth thought.
How lucky can you
get!

"How lucky can you get!" Brittany said, echoing
Beth's thoughts. "I can't imagine what it would be like not to have little
kids under foot all the time."

Everyone looked at Beth and laughed again.

Beth smiled back through clenched teeth. Keep your chin up,
she told herself. Show them you're as mature as they are.

Luckily her parents entered the great room just then and
approached them.

"Hi," Mrs. Barry said, glancing at the three girls
sitting with Brittany, Brian, and Beth.

"Hi, Mom and Dad," replied Brittany. She
introduced the girls to her parents.

"It's nice to meet you," said Mrs. Barry, and Mr.
Barry smiled and nodded. "But it's time for dinner so we'll have to pull
Brian, Brittany, and Beth away for a while."

"Great. I'm famished," said Brittany. "Brian
and I will see you guys later."

And me
,
too!
Beth thought, but she knew better
than to say it out loud.