Friendship Dance Read Free

Glitterwings?’ asked Jena, putting away her mirror.

    Twink nodded. ‘How about all of you? You’re from Sparklelight, aren’t you?’ she added eagerly to Snow. ‘Our Fledge team played there last year. Your school is really pretty!’ The Sparklelight campus was set behind a woodland waterfall, with sunlight dancing through the curtain of water.
    Snow beamed. ‘Oh, thanks! We like it. And I’ve heard that Glitterwings is really glimmery, too.’
    â€˜I go to Forestglow,’ said Jena, rooting about in her bedside drawer. She pulled out a hair clasp. ‘It’s OK, but I’m going to try and change to Sparklelight for my last year. I’m studying Fairy Dust, and Sparklelight has a brilliant course.’
    Twink’s eyes widened. Despite her diminutive size, Jena was clearly several years older than the rest of them. The purple-haired fairy had an air of confidence about her, as if she knew exactly what she wanted.
    â€˜And I go to Emerald Leaf,’ grimaced Tilli. ‘Yes, I know, go on and say it! They’re all stuck-up little beetles there.’
    Twink burst out laughing. There was an ornate wooden cabinet next to her bed, and she began to unpack her belongings into it. ‘Well, I have heard that,’ she admitted. ‘Is Emerald Leaf really that bad?’
    â€˜Worse!’ said Tilli dramatically, flinging herself on to her bed. ‘There are only one or two normal fairies in the whole school. Everyone else is always talking about who their families know, and how terribly, terribly important they are . . . ugh!’
    â€˜It sounds awful,’ said Twink, liking the brightly coloured fairy already. ‘Can’t you change schools? There’s a girl in my branch who used to go to Emerald Leaf, and she’s much happier at Glitterwings.’
    â€˜Oh, who?’ asked Tilli, sitting up. When Twink told her, she grinned. ‘Kiki! She was in the year below me; we used to have really good moans together over how miserable we both were. Well, I’m glad she’s better off now!’
    â€˜But why can’t you change schools too?’ asked Snow. The white-haired fairy was exploring the common area of their room, peering into sparkling sapphire cupboards and sliding open drawers.
    Tilli sighed. ‘Oh, I don’t know. My mother went to Emerald Leaf, and my aunt’s a teacher there. They both seem really set on my sticking it out.’
    â€˜That’s too bad,’ said Twink sympathetically. She unpacked her petal books, along with a small box of fairy dust that she had brought along to practise with. Her teachers had all given her work to do while she was away, and Twink was determined that she wasn’t going to fall behind.
    Jena pulled her purple hair back into a ponytail. ‘Yes, but Emerald Leaf is still an excellent school, Tilli,’ she pointed out. ‘So at least you’ll get a good education.’
    Snow gaped at her in horror. ‘But we don’t just go to school to learn , we go to make friends, too! And anyway, Tilli, if you do change schools, you should go to Sparklelight, because – oh, look!’ Snow interrupted herself as she opened a little box. ‘Sapphire earrings!’ She dangled them in front of her ears with a pout, and everyone laughed.

    â€˜Do you know why you were chosen for the Friendship Dance, Twink?’ asked Jena. She tied a violet ribbon around her ponytail.
    Twink shook her head. ‘My school used a sparkle-seeker, but I think it must have made a mistake,’ she admitted. ‘I don’t see how I can bring anything to the dance.’
    â€˜None of us know why we were chosen either,’ said Tilli. ‘But I’m glad I was. A two-week holiday from Emerald Leaf, hurrah!’ She punched the air.
    â€˜I wonder what the boys will be like?’ said Snow. She bounced on to her bed, still playing with the