Libby and the Class Election (4 page)

However, I have both good and bad news. The good news is that the mission was successful and we collected a significant amount of wish energy. The bad news is there was a glitch in initial
Wisher identification and the amount of wish energy that was collected was not quite as large as we had anticipated.

What have we learned from this? It is clear we must continue to diligently support and train our Star Darlings so that the remaining eleven missions go seamlessly and we will be able to collect
the most wish energy possible.

When will the next mission happen and who will be chosen? Only time will tell. But I am cautiously optimistic that Operation Star Darlings will be a success.

Thank you for your help. And your continued discretion.

Starfully yours,

Lady Stella

The first thing
Libby noticed when she blinked awake was the delightful scent that permeated her dorm room. She sat up in bed and inhaled the perfumed
air.

“Smells amazing, doesn't it?” asked Gemma.

Libby looked over at her roommate lying in bed across the room. Gemma's bright orange hair, messy from sleep, formed a wild halo around her head as she lay there, sniffing deeply. The two
girls turned their attention to the vase of coral-colored flowers that had been waiting for them in their dorm room when they returned from dinner the evening before.

“I still can't figure out what kind of flowers they are,” said Libby. “I don't recognize them, but they smell just like blushbelles.” Blushbelles were her
favorite flower. They were pink, released puffs of sparkling stardust, and had a sweetly spicy scent that she thought was simply the loveliest smell on all of Starland.

“Blushbelles?” Gemma snorted. “What are you talking about?” she said. “It smells like orange-and-vanilla ice pops—just like chatterbursts. I can't
believe we're even having this conversation!” She gave Libby a quizzical look.

Libby liked to keep the peace. She usually carefully weighed her words before she spoke. But for some reason, she sat up in bed and heard herself say, rather forcefully, in fact,
“You're crazy.”

Gemma blinked in surprise. “No,
you're
crazy,” she retorted. “You're as crazy as a bloombug.” Libby gave her roommate an annoyed look. Bloombugs were
small purple-and-pink spotted bugs that went wild every time there was a full moon during the warmer months of the Time of Lumiere, hopping up and down and squealing with delight at the warmer
weather and longer daylight hours the season brought. Gemma sniffed. “Well, no matter how crazy you are, you have to admit that this is the sweetest thing you've ever…”

Her voice trailed off as she noticed that Libby had pulled her soft pink blanket over her head, obviously ignoring her. Gemma threw back the covers and nimbly hopped out of bed. She opened her
closet and grabbed her bathrobe. “I call first stars on the sparkle shower!” she cried.

Libby sighed. Gemma had called first stars on the sparkle shower every day that week. They were supposed to take turns. She removed the covers and took a deep, calming breath. Then another for
good measure. She smiled, feeling much better. There. No reason to get annoyed. She and Gemma were the perfect roommates, the envy of all the other Star Darlings. They got along well, accepting
each other's idiosyncrasies, easily working through any issues that came up, and never letting resentments get in the way of their respect and affection for each other. Sure, Gemma had a
mercurial personality, and Libby sometimes had difficulty making even the smallest decision without carefully weighing the pros and cons (deciding what to order for dinner sometimes required the
thought process others reserved for major life decisions). But they had similar live-and-let-live personalities that served them both well. So it really confounded Libby that she was feeling irked
that morning. And over something as silly as a vase of flowers that would probably be wilted by the afternoon!

Libby yawned and stretched. She slipped her feet into a pair of fluffy pink slippers and shuffled to the mysterious bouquet of flowers, which was sitting on her pink desk, exactly where the two
roommates had discovered it the night before to their delight and surprise.

She leaned over and took a deep sniff. She shook her head. The smell was actually more spicy than sweet, in her estimation. Just like blushbelles, no question about it. Maybe Gemma was teasing
her. She sighed with happiness as she surveyed her half of the double room. She, like all incoming students at Starling Academy, had filled out an extensive questionnaire about her dorm room
preferences. The results were spectacular. Her half of the room was pink, pink, and more pink as far as the eye could see, just as she had requested, from the round bed, with its padded fabric
headboard, to the sumptuous rug, recessed wall lights, desk/vanity, and sparkling crystal chandelier. (The lovely white lacquered dresser with spindly legs that stood in the corner was the sole
nonpink touch.) And the wide, low pink table was surrounded by luxurious floor cushions. It was the perfect place for friends to gather, and Libby often invited her classmates over to hang out
during their free time.

Luckily, Gemma was very social and fun-loving, too. But on the occasional day that she wasn't in the mood for company, she would just draw the starry curtain that ran along the middle of
the room, climb into bed, and read or listen to music. But she could usually be coaxed to join in when the conversation got too good to ignore.

Gemma stepped into the room. Her skin glimmered, covered in a fresh layer of sparkles from her shower. Star Darlings were born with glittery skin and hair, but a daily sparkle shower helped keep
them as luminous as possible. Libby headed in next, and the sparkle shower, invigorating and refreshing, cleared her mind and improved her mood. She applied her toothlight, first to the top row,
then to the bottom. Starlings used their toothlights twice a day, in the morning and the evening, to keep their teeth as clean, white, and sparkly as could be.

Libby put her toothlight back in the mirrored cabinet, closed it, and stared at her reflection for a moment, taking in her long pink hair, alabaster skin, rose-colored eyes, and dimpled chin.
She smiled at her reflection and headed back into the other room. She found Gemma sitting on her bed, tying her yellow shoelaces. She had put on an orange mesh three-quarter-length-sleeved shirt
over an orange tank top and matching capri pants and pulled her hair into two cute pigtails. She looked effortlessly hip, as always. As soon as she spotted Libby, she launched right back into the
conversation, as though no time had passed. “So wouldn't you agree that they are the most delicious-smelling flowers ever? I mean, I have never smelled anything so sweet in my entire
life. No lie. Have you?”

Libby had indeed smelled something sweeter. For her sixth birthday, her parents had taken her and eleven of her closest friends on a behind-the-scenes private tour of the Floffenhoofer Candy
Factory. The very air in the jellyjooble processing room had nearly knocked her over with its fruity deliciousness. Just thinking about it made her mouth water. “Well, once I went on
a—”

“Come to think of it, we had an orchard of goldenella trees on the farm,” Gemma continued, as if she had never asked Libby her opinion. “You know, the kind that bloom nonstop
for one week straight, and the flowers pop off the tree just like popcorn. When they bloomed, Tessa and I would just drop to the ground and roll around in the flowers. The smell was intoxicating!
They positively carpeted the grass.” She shook her head. “But even that was nothing like this delicious fragrance.” She sniffed again.

“Well, I once—” Libby tried again.

“And when I call it a carpet of flowers, I am talking wall-to-wall,” Gemma pressed on. “Nothing but lemon-yellow blossoms as far as the eye could see. And they didn't
fade at all. It looked like a sea of sunshine. I remember one time when Tessa and I decided to…”

Libby, who usually listened with pleasure to Gemma's stories, found herself tuning out. Gemma's older sister, Tessa, was a third-year student and also a Star Darling. The sisters had
been raised on a farm far out in the countryside, in a place called Solar Springs. There wasn't even a real town nearby, Gemma had told her, just a dusty old general store, where they did
their very occasional shopping. They grew nearly everything they needed on the farm. Libby, who'd had a completely different upbringing in Starland City, had heard countless stories about
their life and thoroughly enjoyed each one. It was such a different existence from hers, and she found it quite fascinating. And Gemma loved to talk about it. She liked to talk in general,
actually. When she was in the mood, she could talk all day long, from the moment she woke up to when she went to bed. Libby had even been woken up in the middle of the night by Gemma talking in her
sleep! But Libby had just laughed, rolled over, and gone back to bed. The truth was that Libby loved a good discussion and relished a friendly argument. But for some reason she was not enjoying it
that day.

Libby finished getting dressed in a pink dress with star-shaped pockets and white tights embroidered with pink stars. She hung her Wish Pendant, a necklace that resembled a constellation of
golden stars, around her neck and fastened the clasp. Her signature look was sweetly stylish. She stood in front of the mirror in her closet, brushing her long pink hair. The exact shade of cotton
candy and jellyjoobles, it rippled down her back. Her silky, flowing rosy-hued hair was her secret pride.

“So who do you think sent us the flowers?” Gemma asked. “There wasn't a holo-card. Why would anyone be so mysterious? If you're sending such a nice gift,
you'd think you'd want to get credit for it. That reminds me of the time I—”

“That's a good question,” interrupted Libby. She sifted through the evidence. Neither of them recognized the glittery flowers, so they must be rare (and, most likely,
expensive). Receiving them had been a pleasant, unexpected surprise. And anything rare, beautiful, thoughtful, or extravagant in Libby's life always came from one place. “My parents
must have sent them,” she said with a smile. “They love surprises.”
Especially expensive ones,
she thought.

Gemma, who was the secondary beneficiary of many a care package from Libby's parents, Erica and Miles, nodded. “Hey! I think you're right!” she exclaimed.

As if on cue, Libby's holo-phone rang and an image of her mother, drumming her fingers impatiently on the Starcar's dashboard, was projected in the air. She hesitated because she
wasn't sure she felt like talking to her mom at the moment, but she accepted the call with a swipe of her hand.

“Sweetheart!” said her mother, appearing as a live hologram in front of Libby. She was sitting next to Libby's father on their way to work. Libby's parents worked hard as
investment bankers at a large firm and liked to enjoy the best life had to offer, showering their daughter with pricey gifts and one-of-a-kind experiences. Of course these rare fragrant blooms had
come from them!

“Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad!” said Libby.

Gemma popped her head into the frame. “Hi, there!” she shouted.

Libby's dad put down his holo-reader and smiled. “Hello, girls. How's school?” he asked.

“Fine,” said Libby, not looking at Gemma. It was a weird feeling not to be able to share everything that was going on at school with her mom and dad. But the Star Darlings had to
keep their new duties top secret, even from their parents. Libby changed the subject quickly. “So we got the flowers you sent. They're beautiful. Thanks a lot.”

“Yeah, thank you!” Gemma called out. “We love them.”

Libby's mom looked confused. “Flowers? We didn't send you any flowers,” she said. She turned to her husband. “Miles, we should have sent the girls flowers!
That's such a nice idea!”

“Well, how about some glimmerchips?” offered Libby's dad. “We could send you a case or two.”

“Yes, please,” said Gemma automatically. She had never tasted the thin, crispy, salty, and, yes, glimmery chips before she had started at Starling Academy, and she had developed
quite a taste for them.

Libby shook her head. “We're fine, Daddy.” She still had an unopened case under her bed. “But thank you.”

“Starsweetie, the actual reason I called, besides to say hello, is to discuss your upcoming mid–Time of Shadows break,” Libby's mother explained, pulling up a
holo-calendar in the air in front of her. Libby could see that it was already packed with events and plans. Her parents always had a very full social calendar. “Daddy and I were thinking
we'd go to Supernova Island. Or maybe Glamora-ora,” she said, naming two exclusive vacation destinations. The holidays were still a ways off, but Libby's parents were so busy they
had to schedule everything months in advance.

Gemma's eyes were wide. “Wow,” she mouthed, stunned into uncustomary silence. Her parents didn't like to leave the farm for more than a couple of hours at a time, so the
sisters always spent their holidays at home.