Sister Secrets (8 page)

Miss Twilight smiled slightly. ‘
I
shan't be doing any punishing – you're Mrs Lightwing's students, not mine. However, I shall recommend to her that you receive more of a punishment than Zuzu.'

Teena looked relieved. She and Zuzu exchanged a small smile.

‘But I'm afraid Mrs Lightwing might want to make an example of you both regardless,' added Miss Twilight. ‘You were told at the start of the year that the platform was strictly forbidden!'

‘Will they be expelled?' burst out Twink anxiously. ‘Oh, please – it wasn't
really
Teena's fault; it was mine! If I hadn't been such a moss brain all term, then this probably wouldn't have happened –'

‘I don't think you need to worry about their being expelled,' said Miss Twilight gently, gathering up the cups. ‘But there might be quite a bit of window-washing in their futures! Go to bed now, everyone – except for Twink and Sooze. I want to speak to you both.'

Bimi gave Twink a quick, reassuring smile as she left. Teena and Zuzu looked subdued, glancing worriedly behind them as they shut the door.

Miss Twilight sat behind her desk and laced her fingers together. ‘There seemed to be some sort of argument going on as I flew up,' she said mildly, looking from Twink to Sooze.

Sooze glowered at the ceiling, tapping her pink wings together.

‘Er – yes,' muttered Twink. Then she remembered Teena's earlier frankness, and she squared her shoulders. ‘It was my fault,' she said. ‘I – I've got everything all wrong this term.'

Miss Twilight listened quietly as Twink told her all that had happened. After a moment, Sooze stopped frowning at the ceiling and glared at Twink instead. Twink faltered, and soon found herself mumbling her story to the floor.

‘You did
what?
'
burst out Sooze when Twink described how she'd attempted to get Teena and Summer together. She leapt to her feet, wings trembling. ‘I can't believe you tried to stop Zuzu and Teena from being friends!'

Twink glanced at Miss Twilight, but their Star Magic teacher sat without speaking, watching them both carefully. Twink swallowed. ‘I know,' she said. ‘I was wrong, Sooze. I – I thought Zuzu was just like you, and that Teena might get hurt –'

She stopped in confusion. Sooze looked as if she had just been slapped. ‘Oh!' she whispered. ‘You mean . . .' Sudden tears sprang to her eyes, and she looked away, hiding her face with her wings.

‘Oh,
Sooze
!' gasped Twink, horrified. Sooze, who never cried!

She jumped up, wanting to comfort Sooze in some way, but afraid she'd be rebuffed. ‘I – I'm really sorry –' she stammered. ‘Sooze, you're one of my best friends now, you know you are! It's just that – you know, our first term together . . .'

Sooze wiped her eyes, and tried to laugh. ‘Yeah, I know – I
was a real wasp brain back then. Not as big a one as you've been this term, though,' she added fiercely.

Twink nodded. ‘I know,' she murmured. ‘I was stupid, Sooze, I really was! But – I was only trying to protect Teena.'

Sooze snorted. ‘Protect her! Why, Zuzu's one of the nicest fairies I know. Your sister's
lucky
to have her for a friend.'

‘I know that now,' said Twink. She put her hand on Sooze's arm. ‘I'm really sorry,' she said. ‘I'll apologise to Zuzu again, too. Can we still be friends, Sooze? Please?' She held her breath.

Sooze scowled at the wall for a moment, and then sighed and rolled her eyes. ‘Oh, I suppose so,' she said. ‘I've got used to having you around, Opposite, so we might as well keep on being friends – even if you
do
act like a total moss brain sometimes.'

‘Thanks,' said Twink softly, squeezing Sooze's hand. All at once she felt she couldn't have borne it if she and Sooze hadn't been friends any more – she needed her Opposite, in a way that even Bimi couldn't fulfil.

.

.

‘Good,' said Miss Twilight. Standing up from her desk, she stretched her wings. They glistened like pieces of evening sky.

‘I
do
like it when students solve their own problems – it saves me so much work!' she smiled. ‘Now get to bed, you two . . . before I remember that you weren't supposed to be up on that platform outside lesson time.'

As Twink and Sooze left Miss Twilight's office, a hissing whisper pierced the air.

‘Psst! Twink!'

Twink spun about. ‘Teena!' she said in surprise as her little sister emerged from the shadows.

Sooze grinned. ‘I'll see you up in Violet Branch, Twink. Looks like you've got some talking to do.'

As Sooze flew away up the trunk, Twink quickly drew Teena over to one of the moonlit windows. ‘What are
you
doing here?' she demanded. ‘You're supposed to be in bed!'

Teena lifted her chin. ‘Well, I'm already in so much trouble that I didn't think it would matter much. And – and besides, I wanted to make sure you were all right.'

Twink's eyes widened. ‘Make sure
I'm
all right? But that's what I'm supposed to do with you! I'm the big sister, remember?'

‘I'm supposed to look out for you as well,' said Teena firmly. ‘That's what sisters do for each other – even if I
am
younger!'

The two fairies gazed at each other in the moonlight. It suddenly hit Twink, hard, what it had taken her all term to work out: Teena was growing up. Her little sister was her own fairy now.

‘Yes, I'm all right,' she said in a low voice. ‘And Teena . . . I'm really proud of you for speaking up in there. I – I'm proud of you, full stop.'

Teena smiled and ducked her head. From the pink glow of her cheeks, Twink knew that everything was going to be all right between them. Relief flowed through her. She and Teena hugged tightly, fluttering their wings to stay aloft.

‘Come on,' said Twink as they pulled apart. She ruffled Teena's long hair. ‘I'll fly you up to Snowdrop Branch.'

‘OK,' said Teena with a grin.

The two sisters flew side by side up the shadowy trunk. Twink cleared her throat. ‘Teena, I – I'm sorry about how I've acted this term,' she said. ‘It was stupid of me to dislike Zuzu without knowing her. And trying to get you together with Summer . . .' She shuddered. ‘I was such an idiot!'

‘Yes, you were,' agreed Teena, bumping against her good-naturedly. ‘You're going to love Zuzu when you get to know her! But you know what else, Twink? I think
you
should be friends with Summer – you're the one who likes her so much.'

Twink made a rueful face. ‘Why would she want to be friends with me, after how I tricked her? I don't blame her a bit for helping with the prank.'

‘She'll forgive you,' said Teena. ‘So will Zuzu,' she added, tucking her arm through Twink's.

‘Thanks,' whispered Twink. Her little sister seemed so confident that Twink couldn't help believing it herself, and her spirits lifted.

The two fairies fell into silence, drinking in the tree's beauty as they fluttered upwards: the shafts of silvery moonlight angling into the dark trunk, and the flowers hanging over every ledge.

Tipping her head back, Twink thought how lucky she was to go to Glitterwings Academy, the best school in the world – and how much luckier still she was to have Teena for her sister.

Everything will be fine,
she thought happily, squeezing her sister's arm.
Just as long as we've got each other!

.

The End

.

Bloomsbury Publishing, London, Berlin, New York and Sydney

First published in Great Britain in 2009 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

36 Soho Square, London, W1D 3QY

Text copyright © Lee Weatherly 2009

Illustrations copyright © Smiljana Coh 2009

The moral right of the author has been asserted

This electronic edition published in August 2010 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

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ISBN 978 1 4088 1351 5

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