“Gyrvel — Welcome. I’m your buddy for the day,” she said, in a soft voice. “My name is Ta’al.”

  “Ta’al will show you around until you are comfortable,” Ms. Yuko said. “Have a productive day.”

  She disappeared back into her office.

  “Are you Sulux?” Belle asked as Ta’al led her down the hallway.

  “Oh no!” Ta’al said. “I’m Nabian. The Sulux don’t really like —”

  Before she could finish her sentence, someone ran past them, shoving Ta’al against the wall. Before he disappeared into the last room on the left, he turned back to look. It was Lucas Walker. He had a strange expression on his face as he looked at Ta’al and then at Belle.

  “Hey!” Belle said. “Watch where you’re going.”

  Ta’al straightened out her long tunic and continued to lead Belle to the room Lucas had just entered.

  “Are you all right?” Belle asked. “That wasn’t nice of him.”

  “It was just ivusyxd — an accident,” Ta’al said. “This hallway is very narrow.”

  Belle wasn’t so sure of that.

  Ta’al introduced Belle to their teacher. She was a tall, dark-haired human with green-blue eyes ringed by a circle of red.

  “Good morning, I’m Ms. Polley,” she said. “Welcome to our class.”

  The classroom was a lot smaller than at Belle’s old school. There was one large table for four students in the middle of the room. Four other small desks were scattered about the room. A holo-screen computer lay in front of every seat. Screens along the walls alternated posters for all the different ages of students that occupied this room.

  Lucas, two boys, and a girl sat around the large table. They were all human, except for Lucas. They were very tall for sixth graders, which made Belle feel like a kindergartner. They also had red ringed irises, just like their teacher. Was this a trait of Martian-born people?

  “You will be our sixth student,” Ms. Polley said. “A nice even number.”

  A bell rang from somewhere outside. Ms. Polley clapped her hands, and everyone turned to look at her.

  “This is Isabelle, our latest addition,” she said. She dragged two individual desks together and added, “You and Ta’al will be table buddies this term. I’ll rotate you all next term.”

  Lucas and his table friends moaned. They stuck two fingers on their foreheads in some kind of secret signal. Ta’al looked away and took her seat. Belle glared at Lucas.

  The lessons that day focused mostly on agricultural topics. Belle learned about the latest methods for growing meat in a lab and the needs of cross-bred animals. The class also discussed advancements in plant modification and the advantages of micro-algae. She wondered when they’d be learning math, or her favorite subject — space science.

  Through most of the classes, Ta’al was silent. As the other students raised their hands and asked questions or gave comments, Ta’al seemed content to sit quietly and listen. She only spoke when Belle asked her questions. Even the teacher left her alone.

  At lunchtime, Ta’al led Belle to a small cafeteria shared by the middle school classes. They sat at their designated class table. Belle met Trina, the other girl in their class, who seemed nice. Pavish, Brill, and Lucas made up the rest of their table. They all spoke to Belle, asking her questions about her family and where she came from. Lucas even managed to ask her about the games she played. But no one spoke to Ta’al. It made Belle uncomfortable.

  After lunch, the others invited Belle to join them outside. The weather was nice enough to be outdoors, and Martians took every chance they could to get some sunshine. They played a disc throwing game that Belle found too hard to keep up with. The Martian-born humans were taller and faster than her. She did her best but wasn’t very good at the game. After watching for a few minutes, she wandered off by herself.

  She spotted Ta’al sitting next to a tall tree stump. All its branches had been sawed off.

  Belle sat down beside her. “Hi Ta’al. Why are you sitting by yourself? Don’t you like the games we’re playing?” she asked.

  Ta’al closed the book on her datapad and looked over at the others.

  “I prefer to read,” she said.

  “I do too,” Belle said with a big smile. She liked Ta’al, and she hoped they could be friends. “Tell me about your book.”

  Ta’al seemed happy to talk about the story she was reading. Belle told her about her own favorite books. Before long, the two girls were laughing like old friends. When the bell rang, it was time for class to resume.

  “I have an exciting announcement,” Ms. Polley said as they took their places. “The schools of Olympia are having a science fair, and we’ve been invited to compete.”

  At the words “science fair” Belle perked up. This was her kind of thing.

  “I’m going to pair you up with a classmate, and you’ll come up with a project to work on,” Ms. Polley continued. “One winning pair from each grade will be chosen to represent our school in Tharsis City, the Martian capital of Olympia, next summer.”

  Belle’s mind was whirling with ideas. She looked at Ta’al.

  “I hope we can be partners,” she whispered.

  “Teyqarro.” Ta’al crossed her fingers.

  “First, I’d like us to discuss what we’ve done in previous years,” Ms. Polley said.

  Belle was too busy coming up with ideas for projects to listen to her classmates. Besides, no one asked Ta’al about her ideas, so Belle almost didn’t care. The others were polite enough to Belle, but she didn’t understand why they ignored her new friend. She really hoped that Ta’al could be her partner. Together, they would come up with something amazing for the Fair. Belle was certain that the other kids would then want to be friends with them both.

  “Isabelle,” Ms. Polley called. Belle looked at her, realizing that she hadn’t heard anything the teacher had said. “Tell us what you’ve done before.”

  Belle sat up straight. She loved talking about her science projects. She was an expert. “Well, my latest invention was a defensive weapon that I call Petripuffs. They’re covered with gel and are shaped like a ball that fits in your hand. You throw them at an enemy. If the ball hits, the powdered ingredients inside puff out to paralyze the target for about a minute. This gives the thrower the time needed to get away to safety.”

  Everyone gaped at Belle. Ms. Polley coughed into her hand.

  “I see.” She spoke slowly, as if Belle didn’t understand English. “In Olympian towns, we try to confine our science projects to those with agricultural applications. Perhaps you may have grown a plant in varied environments? Or extracted the DNA of a fruit?”

  “Sure,” said Belle, puzzled by the way her teacher was speaking. “Back when I was in kindergarten.”

  “Hmm. I see.” Ms. Polley walked around her desk and sat down. “I suppose you are new to our planet, so I can’t expect you to be aware of… our priorities.” She looked down at her computer screen. Looking back up, she seemed to have come up with an idea. “Since you live so close to Lucas, I think it would be best if you were paired with him for the Fair. What do you say to that?”

  The expression on her teacher’s face told Belle that she’d better say it was a great idea. But inside, Belle was horrified.

  “As neighbors, you should be able to work together easily.” Ms. Polley leaned back in her chair. “And Lucas is an experienced student. He can help guide you in how we do things.”

  Belle couldn’t look at Lucas, or at Ta’al. This day turned out as badly as she’d expected — just when things had begun to look more hopeful.

  Sol 115/Summer, Cycle 105

  All we learn in school is farm stuff. It’s all SO boring!

  I met a really nice girl. Her name is Ta’al. She’s Nabian, a different alien race from Lucas and Myra. The others in class treat her like she’s weird, but I think she’s pretty. And she’s fun to talk to. I think we could be best friends. I don’t understand why the others don’t like her.

  Our teacher is odd too. She wasn’t impressed by my Petripuffs. Why not? They won the science fair last year.

  I can’t believe I’ve been partnered with Lucas for the science fair. Even worse — the projects all have to be related to FARMING!!! Ms. Polley said it’s because we’re from Sun City and farming is our “primary industry,” whatever that means.

  Aaaaaaaggghhh! It makes me want to scream! I really wanted to be partnered with Ta’al. She got Brill, and looked as horrified as I was. Poor girl.

  At least Lucas seemed pleased to be my partner. He didn’t stop talking all the way home. I was too busy thinking about Ta’al to hear what he said. We’re meeting in the big barn tomorrow. I hope he’s ready to hear my ideas.

  Chapter 9

  NIGHTMARE PROJECT

  “I don’t want to experiment with turken chicks!” Belle stomped her foot at Lucas, as he put his tools down on the barn floor. He had an entire wheelbarrow full of mesh wiring, wooden stakes, and aluminum panels.

  “It’s our best chance of winning the science fair,” he said. It was the day after being paired with Lucas, and Belle felt that he didn’t hear a word she’d said. She had lots of great ideas, but he kept shaking his head.

  “Turken are so important to the economy of Olympia. We’ll definitely win if we can find a way to grow them bigger and faster, without artificial means.”

  He went on and on. Belle heard only one in three words. The chicks in her pen made so much noise, it made her squirm. She couldn’t bear the thought of getting scratched again.

  Lucas moved about the barn, setting up three separate pens. He hammered and cut, while Belle stood there and watched him. When he was finished, he opened his arms wide, like a presenter at a game show. “Here’s the future — Super Chicks!” he said with a big smile. “They’re all natural and more nutritious than ever before.” He looked like he was expecting Belle to applaud.

  She didn’t.

  “I don’t really like chicks,” she said.

  “You don’t have to like them to win the science fair,” he said. “Now let’s go look for bugs to feed one set of chicks.”

  “Bugs? There are bugs on Mars too?”

  Lucas gave her a funny look. “Duh. They hitched a ride in the earliest bags of seed from Earth. They’ve been here ever since.”

  Belle cringed and gave up trying to protest. It didn’t matter what she wanted. Lucas had already decided everything. What was the point of being his partner? He was a one-man show. She watched him lift rocks and scratch beneath tree trunks until he’d found dozens of insects. Her skin crawled each time he showed them to her.

  On their way back to the barn, he grew quiet. Belle was about to finally tell him why she would rather do something else for their project. But then he turned and said, “You’re not much of a partner, are you?”

  Belle couldn’t believe her ears.

  “What? You’re not much of a partner!” Her cheeks were burning.

  “I did everything today.” He crossed his arms. “Is this the way it’s going to be for the whole project?”

  “You didn’t even ask me if I wanted to do this,” Belle retorted.

  “You’re new here,” Lucas responded defensively. “You don’t know what sort of projects win. And I heard your parents say you’ve never been farmers before. I was trying to be helpful.”

  Belle didn’t have a chance to defend herself. Lucas stormed back into the barn, refusing to look at her. He poured his insects into one of the pens and then placed two turken chicks inside. He was spreading the bugs around with a stick when Belle marched up to him.

  “You’re not being fair,” she said. “We’re supposed to be partners, but you’ve made all the decisions.”

  He didn’t say anything. He wasn’t even paying attention to her. Belle grit her teeth and grabbed him by one shoulder. She tried to swing him around, so he’d at least look at her. She had to make him listen because he was being so unfair.

  But instead of swinging around, Lucas lost his balance and fell backward into the nearest pen. The posts holding it up fell over, which knocked down a second pen, and then the third. This terrified the larger turkens, which squawked and flapped their wings. One bird hopped onto Lucas’ chest as he lay on the ground, while another flew straight at Belle’s face. She screamed and turned her back on it, which scared it even more. It flapped and squawked again, scratching Belle’s arms and back. It landed on her shoulders and started pecking at her head. Belle ran around the barn, flailing her arms, trying to get the bird to leave her alone.

  Finally, the turken let go of Belle and fell to the floor. It clucked angrily and headed back to its original pen.

  “Just look at what you did!” She turned on Lucas.

  “What I did? You shoved me.”

  “I did not,” Belle shouted. “You’ve been nothing but a big bully.”

  Lucas stared hard at Belle, and then turned away from her. He got down on his hands and knees and gathered up the escaping bugs. He dumped them into a bucket nearby and then started to pick up the fallen posts.

  Seeing Lucas’ response, Belle realized that maybe she had taken things too far. “Careful not to cut yourself on those wires,” she said softly.

  “What do you care?” he snapped. “You didn’t lift a finger to help me build this.”

  “I really didn’t mean to ruin all your work.” She could see now how her anger had caused all of this mess. “Let me help you fix it. Please?”

  Lucas’ glare softened. Belle could see by the look on his face that he was trying to decide if he could trust her again.

  “Fine,” he said at last. “But let’s do it tomorrow. It’s getting late, and I have to get home for dinner.”

  All through dinner, Belle kept thinking about her terrible behavior. Lucas had actually been nice to her. He had done so much work for a project they would both get credit for, and she hadn’t helped at all. On top of that, he was coming back to fix the damage she had caused.

  “May I go back to the barn tonight?” she asked her parents. “I have some work to do on our science project.”

  Her parents beamed at her.

  “I knew you’d like it here once you went to school and made friends,” Yun said. “Would you like Melody to help you?”

  Belle shook her head. “This is my responsibility. I should take care of it.” She couldn’t bring herself to confess that it was her mess to clean up. And the less her parents knew of her bad behavior that day, the better.

  Sol 110/Summer, Cycle 105, night

  It took hours of work, but I fixed all the broken pens. It was hard putting the fencing panels together the right way, but I figured it out. I even put the chicks in their respective new pens. I barely got scratched this time. I think they still hate me, but I’m getting better at handling them.

  I’ll check on them again in the morning before Lucas comes. I hope the one I pushed off me isn’t hurt too badly. Lucas would never forgive me for that. What a stressful day!

  Oh shooting stars! I forgot to lock the barn door!

  Chapter 10

  MARTIAN DANGER

  Sneaking out of the house was hard when every movement alerted the home computer system. As soon as Belle’s feet touched her bedroom floor, the lights came on. As she headed to the door, every room she passed lit up. Luckily, her parents’ door was shut tight.

  “Where are you going?” Melody unlatched herself from her charging port and strolled over to her. “May I help you?”

  Belle put her finger to her lips. She told Melody about the barn door. Melody insisted on coming with her. Together, they made their way out to the barn. The night air was freezing so Belle ran. Melody hovered along behind her. She stopped suddenly.

  “Wait!” Melody said.

  “What is it?”

  Then Belle heard it. Something was making a shuffling sound inside the barn. There was a whimper and another sound she couldn’t describe. She tiptoed to the barn door. It was open. Belle swallowed the lump in her throat.

  “Something’s inside,” she whispered.

  “Throw open the door when I say so,” Melody said, as she positioned herself in front of Belle. “Now!”

  Belle swung open the door. Melody turned on her light beam. Staring back at them were four shining eyes. And two sets of sharp, gleaming teeth!

  Wolves!

  There really were wolves here. Like the llamas, these were much bigger than wolves on Earth.

  Belle froze. For the longest moment, the wolves stared at Melody and Belle. Belle stared back.

  “Step to the side, very slowly,” Melody said.

  Belle obeyed, moving over to the side. As she did, she saw the entire picture. Around the wolves’ mouths and at their feet was a pool of blood… and bloody feathers.

  Her chicks!

  “No!” Without thinking, Belle ran toward the pen.

  “Stop!” yelled Melody.

  Belle stopped. Her heart was racing, but not because she was afraid of the wolves. One of her chicks lay dead on the ground in front of her. And the pens were destroyed. Chicks were hiding everywhere in the barn, shivering and frozen in fear. Suddenly a fire seemed to light inside Belle’s chest. She screamed at the wolves and waved her arms at them.

  “How dare you! You ruined everything!”

  One of the wolves tilted its head to the side, making it look almost tame. Then the other wolf took a step forward. Belle heard a low growl coming from its chest. Slowly, it bared its teeth at her.

  Belle realized what was happening, and now she was scared. She wished she had some Petripuffs with her. But she hadn’t been able to make any. She was still waiting for the ingredients to be delivered.

 

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