The Crystal Rose, page 4
The girls exchanged anxious looks. They now knew their aunt was ready to do anything to stop them.
Ida tucked the blue orb safely inside her coat. “Let’s get back as quickly as we can!”
The girls hurried back towards the tunnel with Hanna and Oskar leading the way. “Keep up!” Hanna urged her sisters.
“I can’t!” Ida wanted to run fast but her legs felt like they were filled with lead. She was tired after a night of riding and running and climbing and no sleep. “I really can’t go any faster, Hanna.”
“Me neither,” said Magda. “In fact, I don’t think I can run much more.” Magda flopped down on the ice, rubbing her aching legs. Using her magic to turn into the fox had completely exhausted her.
“You have to,” cried Hanna.
Oskar bounded in front of them, blocking their way as he grew to his full size.
“What are you doing, boy?” asked Hanna.
Oskar looked round at his broad white back and made a barking sound. Then he flopped down.
“Whatever is he doing?” said Ida in surprise.
Oskar looked at his back again and then looked at the girls. “I think he wants us to ride on him,” said Magda.
“Could he do that? Could he carry us all?” said Hanna. “He’s never carried all three of us before!”
Oskar wuffled softly again and so they carefully climbed on to his back – Hanna first, then Ida, then Magda. The polar bear stood up and they buried their hands in his soft white fur as he leapt forward. Ida gave a scared squeak. It felt very different from riding a horse. For a start there was no saddle and the polar bear bounded rather than cantered, throwing them up and down and side to side. Ida flung her arms round Hanna’s waist and hung on tightly.
“Good boy, Oskar!” cried Magda as the polar bear raced into the tunnel. The crevasse was still there. They squealed as he took a flying leap over it and speeded onwards! The blues and silvers blurred around the girls as Oskar carried them safely round the twists and turns of the tunnel and back to the surface. They emerged from the cave and Oskar finally stopped at the edge of the glacier.
They all slid off his warm back and hugged him. “That was wonderful!” Hanna told him.
“Thank you so much, Oskar,” said Ida, kissing his head. “I couldn’t have walked much further.”
He nuzzled her and quickly shrank to his small size. He looked worn out.
“Look, the ponies are still there!” Magda said in delight, spotting the three ponies from her viewpoint on top of the glacier. “And our climbing ropes. Come on!”
Oskar was so small and looked so tired that Hanna put him into her bag with his head poking out of the top. He looked very sweet! Then the girls slipped and slid down the icy side of the glacier using the ropes to help them. It was much easier going down than it had been getting up! At the bottom they raced over to the ponies who were looking out of the cave. The girls greeted them with pats and kisses.
“Let’s get the ponies saddled up,” said Hanna.
Ida’s muscles groaned at the thought of a long horseback ride. “I’ve got a better idea,” she said. “Wait a moment.” She took a shard of rock and scratched a simple sledge into the ice. She remembered to draw a harness for the ponies and some warm blankets. She was so tired that it took a long time for the shimmering magical feeling to flow through her. But finally everything she had drawn appeared beside the ponies. The girls harnessed the ponies to the sledge, tucked Oskar in and made themselves comfortable. And then they were off.
“Yah!” cried Hanna, who was holding the reins. “Back to the castle!”
The ponies leapt forward in a flurry of snow crystals, pulling the sledge easily through the newly fallen snow. While Hanna drove with a rug over her knees, Magda and Ida snuggled down under the warm wool blankets with Oskar sleeping soundly between them.
As the sun started to rise in the sky, the sledge swept across the flat Arctic tundra. The island was waking up – birds were starting to sing and red squirrels were scampering up tree trunks. A family of Arctic hares ran beside the sledge for a while before falling back to tumble and play in the snow. The golden sky grew brighter and brighter. But it was still only early in the morning. Maybe, just maybe, they would get back in time!
But as they entered the snowy pine forest a bitter wind started to blow, making the trees’ branches rattle and shake.
“What’s happening?” said Ida uneasily. “That wind’s come from nowhere.”
Icicles fell from the branches overhead, plummeting towards the girls. The ponies whinnied in alarm as the wind gathered in intensity and ice crystals flew in all directions. The wind built to a shriek and a familiar voice hissed through it. “You have not escaped from me!” The sound echoed around them, seeming to merge with the howling of the wind.
“Aunt Veronika!” gasped Ida, sitting up straight.
“We have to get out of these woods!” cried Magda as more sharp icicles rained down from above, hitting their backs and heads.
“Come on! Gee up!” cried Hanna, slapping the reins to make the ponies move faster.
The ponies leapt forward, just as keen as the girls to get out of the woods. But as they did so, Ida squealed. Ahead of them the trees’ branches were sweeping downwards to block their path.
The ponies forged ahead bravely, galloping on through the branches. Oskar woke up and whimpered in fear.
“We’ll protect you, Oskar,” cried Magda, reaching to pick him up. But she was too late. A branch was already sweeping through the air straight towards the little polar bear.
“No!” Ida screamed, and without a second’s thought, she flung herself in front of the cub. The branch hit her full in the chest, knocking her half over the side of the sledge. For a moment, hanging over the edge, all Ida was aware of was the thundering of ponies’ hooves and snowy ground whizzing past just a few centimetres away from her face. A tree trunk loomed ahead of her. She was going to collide with it…
She felt Magda grabbing her and hauling her up on to the blankets. The next moment, she felt Oskar licking her face and then Magda was helping her sit up. “Ida!” she gasped. “I thought you were going to die.”
Hanna was looking over her shoulder from the driver’s seat, her face pale. “Are you all right?”
Ida’s heart was racing and she was short of breath. “Y-yes,” she managed to stammer.
Oskar snuffled her face and climbed into her arms.
“That was so brave!” said Magda.
“Me? But I’m not brave,” said Ida.
“Oh, you are, you really are!” said Magda, hugging her.
“Watch out, everyone!” yelled Hanna as another branch swept towards their heads. They all ducked just in time.
The ponies increased their speed and burst out of the forest on to the plains. As they galloped away from the trees the wind dropped. “We’ve got away!” said Magda.
The ponies raced on across the snowy ground. In the distance the girls could see the welcoming turrets of the castle.
“Gallop, boys, gallop!” Hanna urged, glancing back. She was sure she could hear the howl of wolves in the distance. Was Aunt Veronika sending wolves after them now? They had to get into the castle grounds as quickly as possible.
Come on, come on, she thought as the ponies thundered over the snow.
The castle gate was shut. There was no time to stop and open it by hand. Hanna drew on her magic. Open! she thought.
The gates flew open with a bang. The ponies swept through and came to a stop by the stables. Their sides were heaving and their nostrils flaring.
While Hanna shut the gates and bolted them, Magda and Ida leapt off the sledge and hugged the tired ponies.
“Thank you so much for getting us home,” Magda murmured.
Working together, the girls unhitched the sledge, put the ponies in the stables and gave them water and hay. Then they let themselves into the castle through the servants’ entrance.
“We made it,” whispered Hanna in relief as they reached the main staircase. As she spoke the library door opened and Madame Olga emerged.
“Girls! Where have you been?” The sisters froze in front of their stern-looking governess. They were in so much trouble!
“Um … we … um…” Magda stammered, hugging Oskar tight.
“We’re … we’re sorry!” Ida burst out.
“We really are,” said Hanna.
“I should think so too!” Madame Olga sniffed. “Going outside at this time of the morning? Before you have even had your breakfast? This is really not the behaviour I expect.”
The triplets looked at each other. Madame Olga hadn’t realised they had been out all night. She just thought they’d got up early and been out in the garden!
“So, what have you been doing?” Madame Olga demanded.
“We … we went out looking for flowers, Madame,” said Hanna.
Ida and Magda exchanged a quick look. Well, they had been looking for crystal roses, although they couldn’t tell Madame Olga that!
“Ah, I see, for your nature lesson this morning,” said Madame Olga, her face clearing. The girls looked at her innocently. “Well, I am glad you were doing something useful and applying yourselves to your studies. Now please go and change your clothes!”
She swept away.
The girls’ shoulders sagged with relief.
“I’d better draw us some flowers to take to our lesson later!” whispered Ida.
Exchanging grins, they carried on up the stairs.
As soon as they were in their bedchamber they shut the wooden door and pulled off their boots. Hanna took the petal of the crystal rose she’d picked in the ice field out of her bag and held it up. It sparkled brightly in the early-morning light.
“It’s so beautiful,” said Magda softly, thinking back over their adventure and everything they had seen and done that night.
“I never thought I’d see a real crystal rose,” said Ida.
“Or that we’d walk under a glacier or survive an avalanche!” said Hanna. “It’s been an incredible night.”
“And all for this,” said Ida, taking the blue orb carefully out of her coat. Looking at the iridescent light inside it, all three girls brimmed with happiness. They had had an amazing adventure and completed their task. The second orb was safely back at the castle.
Ida carried it over to the snow globe. As if sensing the presence of the orb, the globe began to glow and the snow inside it began to swirl faster.
“Mother?’ said Ida hopefully. “Can you hear us? We found the blue orb.”
There was no reply but the globe shone even more brightly. Ida held the orb out to her sisters. They each put their hands on it and then slowly moved it towards the snow globe. The light grew brighter and brighter, then suddenly the orb vanished and the snow globe changed, flickering into beautiful swirls of pink and blue.
“The blue orb is safe,” Hanna said happily. “We did it.”
“You did, my dears.” Their mother’s voice echoed faintly around the room, making them all jump. “I have not got enough power left to appear in the globe but I hope you can hear me.”
“We can!” said Magda eagerly. “Oh, Mother, are you and Father all right?”
“I am growing weaker by the day.” Freya’s voice grew fainter. “And the more of my magic Veronika steals, the more powerful she becomes and the more she finds out about the orbs. But if you can find the final purple orb by the Day of the Midnight Sun, there is still hope. Once you have all three, you will be able to free your father and me and help triumph over the Shadow Witch.”
“We’ll find it, Mother!” said Hanna.
“You must be quick,” Freya said. “I am so proud of you, my darling girls. So very, very proud.” Her voice was now so faint they could hardly hear it.
“Where is the purple orb, Mother?” asked Magda.
“To find it you will have to go on a dangerous journey through…” Freya’s voice faltered. They heard her take a trembling breath. “The tapestry will help you,” she said desperately. “You must…” Her voice faded and the light dimmed.
“Mother!” Hanna cried.
There was only silence.
“Oh no,” Ida groaned.
“She’s too weak to speak any more,” Magda said quietly. “And now we don’t know where in Nordovia to find the purple orb.”
“And the Shadow Witch might know more than us,” said Hanna, remembering what their mother had said.
Hanna’s eyes met her sisters’. “Wherever we have to go, and whatever we have to do, we’ll find the orb before the Shadow Witch. We’ve got our magic powers to help us.”
“And we’ve got each other,” said Magda softly. “That’s the most important thing.”
“It is,” said Ida, thinking back to the adventures they had just had.
They squeezed hands and looked at the snowflakes swirling and dancing in the beautiful pink and blue snow globe. They would rescue their parents and save Nordovia.
They had to!
“We’re almost at the school!” exclaimed Sophia, seeing a sign just ahead. The swirly gold writing on it said Unicorn Academy beside a painting of a snow-white unicorn with a rainbow arching over its head. An arrow pointed up a long, tree-lined drive.
“Race you up the drive,” called Harry, Sophia’s seven-year-old brother.
Sophia couldn’t wait to see the school after five hours of riding, and she would have loved to gallop, but she slid from her shaggy grey pony’s back and patted his neck fondly. “Sorry, Harry, but Clover’s tired. I’m not going to make him race.”
Clover, who was old and couldn’t go fast any more, pushed his nose gratefully into Sophia’s hair. Her wavy black curls hung over his muzzle like a droopy moustache. Sophia giggled but there was a heavy weight in her stomach. Now she was ten, she was thrilled to be old enough to attend Unicorn Academy and finally get a unicorn of her own. But she was really going to miss Clover!
“All right, sweetie?” asked her mum, trotting up alongside. Solitaire, her unicorn, was fully grown and looked very elegant compared to short-legged Clover. “You’re going to have a fantastic time here at the school, but I expect it feels quite strange at the moment. Remember to be polite and please try to think first before rushing into things.”
Sophia grinned. “As if I’d do that, Mum!”
“Hmm,” her mum said, raising her eyebrows.
Then her expression softened. “Remember that all the other girls and boys will probably be feeling as nervous as you. But it won’t be long before you get to know each other.”
“I am a little bit nervous about making friends,” admitted Sophia, “but I’m more worried about Clover.” She stroked Clover’s neck. “Do you think he’ll be OK without me?”
“He’ll be fine,” said her mum. “He’s getting old and he’ll be happy having a quieter life. Harry and I will make sure he gets lots of cuddles and fuss. Don’t worry about Clover, just enjoy getting to know your own special unicorn, bonding and learning to work together to protect our island.”
Sophia’s heart swelled. She loved the thought of protecting Unicorn Island, their beautiful home. “I wonder what my unicorn will be like and what its magical power will be. I hope it can heal like Solitaire.”
Each unicorn was born with its own special magical power. There were many different powers and young unicorns usually found out what they could do in their first year at Unicorn Academy.
Sophia’s mum leaned down to push a stray black curl out of Sophia’s eyes. “I’m sure you’ll love your unicorn whatever power it has.”
Sophia fell quiet as she rode Clover through the green tunnel of trees towards the school. She really wanted her unicorn to be able to heal. With healing magic, maybe she could take away some of the aches and pains that Clover was suffering.
The tunnel ended and Sophia rode Clover out into the pale January sunlight. Excitement rushed inside her as she stared at the enormous building of marble and glass with a fountain sparkling in front of it. She’d dreamed of this moment for years.
“It’s beautiful.” She could hardly tear her eyes away from the majestic towers of the school and the perfectly kept gardens surrounding it that were filled with plants and flowers, even in winter.
In the distance, the multicoloured, magical water of the famous Sparkle Lake glittered in the sunshine.
“I wish I was old enough to come here,” said Harry longingly.
Girls and boys were rushing in all directions. Teachers called out instructions. A group of girls stood together at the bottom of the steps that swept up to the school’s front door. They looked like they’d just arrived. Sophia took a deep breath. This was it. Time to say goodbye to Clover and her family! She wrapped her arms round Clover’s neck, burying her face and tears in his soft mane.
Copyright
With special thanks to Linda Chapman
First published in the UK in 2018 by Nosy Crow Ltd
The Crow’s Nest, 14 Baden Place
Crosby Row, London SE1 1YW
Nosy Crow and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Nosy Crow Ltd
Text copyright © Working Partners Ltd, 2018
Cover illustration © Sharon Tancredi, 2018
Interior illustrations © Monique Dong, 2018
The right of Working Partners, Sharon Tancredi and Monique Dong to be identified as the author and illustrators respectively of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
A CIP catalogue record for this book will be available from the British Library
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