Friends Forever Read Free Page B

worried she felt. ‘I just need to – to do a bit of research, that’s all.’
    The wasp seemed relieved. Humming, he climbed into Twink’s lap. The faint dawn streamed through a hole in the ceiling, showing his yellow and black stripes.
    .

    .
    Twink stroked his soft back. ‘You need a name, don’t you?’ she said. ‘Or do you have one already?’
    The wasp stopped humming and looked blankly at her. Twink grinned. ‘All right, let me think . . . I know! I’ll call you Stripe.’
    Stripe seemed to approve of his new name. He buzzed loudly, tickling Twink’s face with his good wing. She laughed. ‘Stripe it is, then!’
    Suddenly Twink realised that it wasn’t as dark inside the stump as it had been. Oh, wasps, it was almost daylight!
    She leapt up. ‘I’ve got to go – I’ll be back later with some food!’
    The wasp looked at her with a worried expression. ‘It’s all right, I’ll be back,’ said Twink. ‘But I’ve got to go now.’
    Had he understood? She couldn’t tell. With a final hasty stroke of his back, Twink flew from the stump. Pausing only to pull the grass back over the entrance, she zoomed back to school as fast as she could.
    â€˜I’ve been thinking about our project,’ said Bimi at breakfast. Her blue eyes sparkled with excitement. ‘We could do a tapestry.’
    â€˜Um . . . a tapestry?’ Twink gazed at the oak-leaf platter of seed cakes with a worried frown. What did wasps eat, anyway?
    â€˜Yes, it’ll be glimmery!’ Bimi poured herself some fresh morning dew from the almond-shell pitcher. ‘I thought we could do a sort of history of fairies. I mean, nothing brainy like Pix is doing – just a story in pictures, with lots of glitter and sparkle. What do you think?’
    â€˜Hmm? Oh! Yes, that sounds great.’ Twink tried to look as if she had been listening to every word. Across the table, she saw Sooze drizzle honey on to her seed cakes. Of course! she thought with sudden relief. Wasps liked sweet things, didn’t they?
    Bimi’s wings tapped together. ‘Twink . . . is everything OK?’
    Twink jumped, and nodded vigorously. ‘Fine!’
    Bimi gave her a funny look. ‘You seem sort of distracted.’
    â€˜Oh, I’m just tired.’ Twink’s lavender wings fluttered as she gave a wide yawn. She didn’t have to pretend much. She had only just managed to slip back into her bed before Mrs Hover came into Daffodil Branch to wake them all up.
    â€˜Oh.’ Bimi looked down at her lap. ‘Well . . . I just thought I’d tell you about my idea, that’s all. I guess it’s probably not very good.’
    Feeling bad, Twink squeezed her friend’s arm. ‘No, it’s great! Honestly, Bimi, a tapestry sounds like a wonderful idea. We’ll have loads of fun doing it!’
    A shy smile crept across Bimi’s face. ‘Do you really think it’s a good idea? I mean, really ?’
    â€˜Really!’ Twink assured her warmly. ‘It sounds completely glimmery! It’ll be the best project of all, wait and see.’
    Eyes shining, Bimi nibbled on her seed cake. ‘Well, where do you think we can get the materials from? I thought Mrs Hover might be able to help . . .’
    Twink tried to forget about the wasp as she chatted with Bimi about the tapestry. It wasn’t easy. Her thoughts kept straying to him, alone and hurt in the old stump. Had he understood that she was coming back?
    A river of brightly coloured butterflies swept into the Branch, stirring the air with their wings. Twink rose with the others, trying to look casual as the butterflies began clearing the tables. Pretending to finish her last swallow of dew, she hung back, heart pounding.
    When she was sure no one was looking, she quickly grabbed the honey pot and tucked it into her petal bag. Slinging it over her shoulder, she