A Head Full of Magic, page 16
“Beginners’ luck!” she replied, but she was smiling. An actual friendly smile.
“At your next school, if you spot anyone with a magical gift, maybe you could strike up a pleasant conversation for a change? You might not love being Spyalator, or a Hexter, but it might be cool to be a good friend.”
“Yeah maybe,” Celeste said, smoothing her fringe.
“I hope your parrot turns up before you leave,” I said, to doubly, triply, ensure she didn’t know where Dame Genevieve was.
“I doubt it.” She shrugged. “Mum wouldn’t have hurt it, but I don’t expect I’ll see it again. Her and Dad are Springalators and Magnalators, you see.” Celeste paused to gauge my reaction.
I tried hard not to move my eyebrows, but they automatically zipped further up my fascinated forehead; my sudden intake of breath was a dead giveaway too.
“But they’re only interested in two things,” she continued. “Their own magic, and whether my second gift has appeared. It’s exhausting! I don’t suppose I’ve got time for a parrot anyway. Not if there are as many after-school activities as Mum says there are in America, and that’s without the shopping malls, swimming parks, and cheerleading classes.”
She was doing her best to make it sound fun and exciting, but I wasn’t convinced. Ruby and Anais shouted over for her before we reached the classroom.
“Well, I hope it all works out for you.”
“Hope you figure out how to control what you’ve got too, and if I ever see you again, I hope I won’t need sunhats, gloves, wellies, and umbrellas!”
I laughed. “So do I! Look, you’re already a true Hexter you know, even if your second gift hasn’t appeared yet. Maybe if you used your Spyalator gift in a more positive way, it could help? It’s got to be worth a shot, right?”
“Maybe. . . it doesn’t sound as much fun, but you could have a point.” She looked down at the ground before staring back at me. “Listen, I still think libraries are boring, and I don’t get the obsession with chess but, I was wrong about you, Fleur, and I’m sorry. You’re not so bad after all.”
I snorted. “Thanks. . . I think.”
It wasn’t the most gushing apology ever, but at least she had had the guts to say it to my face.
“I suppose, I was a bit jealous of you and the fact you’ve got two gifts. You don’t have to constantly try to impress or overcompensate for something you don’t have. You’re naturally gifted on your own and if anyone suggests otherwise then—”
“Then what? Tell someone, as long as it isn’t Mr Augustus?!”
We both smiled. I wasn’t trying to make her feel bad or slate our teacher, but she had said enough, and I was ready to move on from the drama of everything.
“No, well, yes, sort of. What I’d actually do is ignore them because they probably don’t fully know what they’re on about anyway.”
I nodded and so did she. A warm feeling floated throughout my body because I knew that things were going to be very different after today. For both of us.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Show and Tell
It was stifling in the classroom after our match. Not only because we had worked up a glow on the pitch, but because our parents had squeezed into the back of the classroom for our last ever Show and Tell.
This Show and Tell was special because Mr Augustus had asked us to each bring in an item that reminded us of our time at primary school. The only catch was, we had to explain why it was special to us. It was a bit like having a giant memory box made up from the whole class.
Although my mind had been on other things this last term, I had chosen my Show and Tell item weeks ago.
“Thank you, Lydia, now it’s your turn, Celeste.” Mr Augustus nodded to the space in front of the SMART Board where she proudly displayed her hockey stick.
I was convinced it held lots of girls’ blood DNA within its fibres due to the years of ankle whacking.
“This is my favourite hockey stick and it’s special to me because it’s got a sticker from every school I’ve ever attended.”
I had always been too busy running away from Celeste to notice the little stickers that were proudly lined up along the bottom of her hockey stick. There were at least fifteen of them scattered along the wood, each representing a different school that she had attended over the years. It was incredible to think that she had moved around the world so much and at such a young age, it must have been tough at times settling in to a new place and a new school, trying to make new friends, but that didn’t seem to matter to her right now, as she proudly paraded her stick in front of everyone in the room, delighted to be talking about the sport she loved the most.
“Thank you, Celeste,” Mr Augustus said. “And here’s a little memento to remind you of your time here at Buxworth Primary when you leave for your big American dream tonight.”
Ruby wiped the corners of her puffy eyes when Mr Augustus mentioned Celeste leaving. She had burst into tears earlier when I overheard Celeste telling her and Anais that she was leaving, and I wondered how they would both function without her. Celeste blushed as Mr Augustus pressed a smart gold sticker firmly onto her hockey stick next to the others.
“And last but not least, Fleur! It’s over to you.”
I walked to the front of the class and reached into my pocket, finally able to pull out the offending item, which had dug into my thigh all through the match. I glanced at Mum and Nan who stared back in return with glazed eyes. Nan had already reached for her hanky to wipe a small tear from her eye.
Nan’s chess piece was a work of art. Every leaf hand-carved within the soft wood, and its enchanting castle doors that had led to endless games and hours of fun. This was precisely the reason I had chosen it.
“This is a chess piece from my home set where I play with my nan all the time. She’s much better at chess than I am, even though she is eighty-nine, but I love playing it with her. I’ve loved every minute of playing chess here at school too, but I haven’t played much recently.” I saw Ruby and Anais shuffle sheepishly on the carpet. “I’ve made brilliant memories over the years and I’m really looking forward to making some new ones, maybe with some of you again too if we’re in the same class at Shepson High after the holidays. If I’ve learnt anything though, it’s to enjoy all games. Even the ones you think you dislike, because you never know, they might lead you on an exciting adventure that you didn’t know was possible.”
Leena, Beau, and the rest of the reds were the first to cheer.
“Bravo!” Mr Augustus clapped alongside all the parents. “That was brilliant, Fleur. What a wonderful way to finish the celebration of all our lovely school memories. Right, children, if your grownup is here, you may leave!”
It was like a gun had been fired, as children and parents alike leapt up from their chairs, gathered their belongings, and raced to the door as fast as they could. Mum waited patiently near the craft-drawers, a hand gently supporting Nan’s elbow. She threw her arms around me and planted a huge smacker on my cheek.
“Well done, Fleur! You were fantastic! I’m so proud of you,” Mum said.
Nan squeezed my hand as I made my way to my locker. “That’s my girl!” she whispered gently.
I was happy. Not because it was the last day of primary school or because I had survived the hockey tournament, but because I felt stronger and free.
“Right then, as a special treat for a special win, how about we have something special for tea. Something like. . . ”
I cringed at the thought of what Mum was about to suggest. My tastebuds weren’t up to her three-bean bouyon, jerk chicken and goats’ cheese quiche, or anything else engineered by her fair hands for that matter.
“Takeaway pizza!” she announced.
“At last, something decent!” Nan blurted as Mum’s mouth dropped open. “Sorry, what I meant was that sounds like an excellent idea!”
“Yes please!” I said.
Celeste tried to look busy in the corridor as she waited for her mum to pick her up. A lorry containing a load of brand-new hockey sticks wouldn’t have altered the look on her face.
“See you later then, Celeste,” I said softly, as Nan shot around and gave Celeste a parting glare. Mum held her by the elbow and guided her out ahead of me. “Hope your flight goes okay.”
“I’m sure it will,” she replied. “The forecast isn’t suggesting anything unusual, so we should be perfectly fine.”
Even if Celeste had stayed around here, I doubted she would ever let me forget my fear-generated thunderstorm in her garden.
I waved at her as I followed Mum and Nan to the exit. Ruby and Anais approached me as I stepped outside and into the warm air.
“Fleur wait up!” Anais called, with Ruby beside her.
I glanced at Nan, who nodded at me. I didn’t have anything to say to them, but I was going to be the bigger person.
“Well done for the match. You played really well.”
“Thanks,” I said. “It was a close one, but we got there in the end.” I tapped the clasp of my bag because I didn’t really know what else to say. Thanks for joining forces with Celeste and making this term a misery?
Ruby sidled closer too. “We’re hanging out at the park on Saturday afternoon, if you fancy joining us. It’ll be like old times.”
I had spent weeks pining for the three of us to play together like we always had. Giggling, drawing, playing chess, but the thought of catching up with them had suddenly lost its appeal. Hexters and non-Hexters all make mistakes, but life was too short to waste it on mean people.
“Fleur!” Leena shouted from the doorway, drawing my attention. “See you Saturday afternoon?”
“Definitely!” I said. “See you later!”
I turned back to Ruby and Anais who both frowned.
“Sorry, girls, I can’t make this Saturday,” I said breezily. “I’m out with some friends!”
My feet were fizzing, although strangely not from all the running. I couldn’t quite describe it. Definitely not an ache, but possibly a throb, it was more of a prickly tickle than a twinge of pain. So the arrival of three delicious pizzas from Mission Impizzable were a welcome distraction.
“Squawk! Is now really the time for pizza? I thought we were going to follow Celeste as soon as we dropped your mum and nan off?” Sir Barclay had flown down from Nan’s attic-room and perched his feathery bottom on the banister nodule in the hallway. He watched me approach.
I nervously scrunched the neck of my T-shirt and felt a sudden pang of guilt. In the excitement of winning the match and leaving school on okay terms with everyone, I hadn’t thought about how I would break the news to Sir Barclay that Celeste’s mum had shifted Dame Genevieve somewhere, and even Celeste didn’t know where she was.
“Here you are, Sir Barclay.” I handed him a substantial piece of cheesy stuffed crust. “Listen, about that, I’ve got something I need to tell you.”
“Squawk! I’m listening,” he said between beakfuls.
“Hurry up, Fleur! Come through, it’s time for a toast,” Mum shouted.
I peered in the dining room and then back at Sir Barclay who had almost finished his stuffed crust.
“Give me two minutes and then I’ll explain.”
I returned to the table and quickly filled our cups with orange juice.
“Here’s to the summer holidays and new beginnings at Shepson High!” Mum said, raising her favourite hot air balloon mug.
“Here, here!” Nan said. “What would you like to do tomorrow, Fleur? It’s your first Saturday as a free agent with me in charge while your mum’s at work.”
“Actually, I’ve got the day off.”
Mum didn’t seem hugely ecstatic about her extra day off and I wondered why, but Nan beat me to it.
“Did Mr Bowland sack you?” Nan asked.
“Certainly not!” Mum replied. “Let’s just say, I agreed to take something off his hands, which was fast becoming a nuisance.” She sounded more guarded than usual.
“Thick gloves?” Nan chortled.
Mum shook her head in exasperation then stomped into the kitchen where she opened the back door and shut it again. She returned clutching a strange-shaped container covered with a purple, crushed velvet cloth.
“No, this thing!” She plonked it on the table on top of last night’s Evening Gazette. Although the headline was now obscured, I could still make out Case Dropped Due to Inconclusive Slipper Evidence.
“That’s a birdcage!” I mumbled from the opposite side of the table with a mouthful of pizza.
“Indeed, it is, smarty-pants! Mr Bowland insisted I try to rehome it, as it’s too noisy in the antique shop—he’s had a headache for days! Some snooty woman brought it in to us earlier in the week and refused to leave without us taking it from her. Something about moving to America and the cage being valuable.”
I quickly swallowed my pizza.
“Is it empty?” I asked leaning forwards animatedly.
My eyes narrowed and so did Nan’s as Mum lifted the purple cloth.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Another Exciting New Day
There was another African Grey parrot but this one had spotty tail feathers!
“Dame Genevieve!” I shouted as Sir Barclay flapped his wings in the hallway.
Dame Genevieve appeared utterly flummoxed inside the scratched, gold-painted cage. I bet she hadn’t expected to see us in a million years!
“Who?” Mum frowned.
“Oh, err, we’ve been learning about kings and queens in history lately,” I lied. “They had some really funny names! Don’t you think she looks like a Dame Genevieve?”
“Squawk!” Sir Barclay’s distant flapping became more ferocious as he made his way along the hallway and into the dining room. He brushed his wings repeatedly against the heavy door, his squawks now louder and more frenzied. He squeezed his head through the dining room door and swooped towards the table where he landed on top of the cage, squawking and clawing in desperation to get inside.
“Sir Barclay! You’re here!” Dame Genevieve said.
“Where did he come from?” Mum said, alarmed. “Fleur, did you let him out? Shoo! Sir Barclay! Shoo!”
“Open the cage, Mum!” I shouted above the manic flapping from the pair of reunited parrots, whose feathers were creating a vortex of wind around us. “Quick! Hurry up and open the door before they hurt themselves.”
“Or peck my pizza!” Nan added unhelpfully.
“Squawk! Get her out, Fleur!” Sir Barclay pleaded.
“Calm down, Dame Genevieve,” I whispered. “You’re safe now. We’ll have you out in a jiffy.”
Dame Genevieve tempered her wings and moved further back in the cage.
“We’ll look after you, I promise.”
“Thank you, Fleur! I know you will,” Dame Genevieve replied, clicking her beak.
I opened the metal latch. Dame Genevieve flew straight into the wings of Sir Barclay, and they both flapped around each other mid-air, ecstatic at being reunited.
“Well, I never!” Nan said. “What are the chances of finding Sir Barclay the perfect companion?”
She winked at me.
“I said I’d try to rehome it,” Mum said. “Not that we’re keeping another one! They’ll make too much mess, and I can’t cope with another fussy pineapple cheese and cracker eater.”
Was she serious? We couldn’t split them up again. They belonged together!
“How about you let her stay if I help Nan look after them both?” I asked. “It’s no trouble, and I’ll even do the shopping for them too if that helps?”
Sir Barclay and I were now a team. Who would have thought it possible?
Mum frowned. “But you can’t stand Sir Barclay! Why the sudden change of heart?”
He was beyond doubt the most infuriating parrot I had ever met. His ego was enormous, and the air of superiority he wafted around was akin to royalty, but we had come through for one another in the end.
“Well, he’s part of the family, isn’t he? We’ve got to look after each other or we don’t work properly, do we?”
Mum put the purple cloth on the back of the chair and scooped me into a hug.
“I was determined not to cry again today!” she said, sniffing. “I still can’t believe my baby is ready for high school, but with words like that, I know you’re more than ready. I love you my littlest Bottom!”
We both giggled as she kissed me on the cheek.
Nan settled back in her place at the table and winked at me as my eye caught hers before she finally finished the last slice of pizza.
It had been an extraordinary day. I waited until Sir Barclay and Dame Genevieve flew upstairs, then followed them both up to Nan’s attic-room to see how they were settling in together. They were nestled in the corner of Sir Barclay’s Birdrobe, their tailfeathers wrapped snugly around each other as though they had never been apart.
“What a day, Sir Barclay! Can you believe it? We actually found her,” I said, as Sir Barclay turned around, looking content, his feathers neatly groomed and his beak shining bright. “Well, I suppose technically Mum did, but it’s amazing, isn’t it?
“Squawk! Yes, it is, Fleur, and so are you.” Dame Genevieve kept her eyes shut, seemingly exhausted from the day’s events. “You should be very proud of yourself. It took real grit and maturity to do what you did on that pitch today, to face your fears and stand up to Celeste, and without magic too! Squawk!”
“If I’m going to win at something, I want to win it in my own right, without cheating or using any of my magical gifts. Plus, I’ve got you lot, haven’t I? Which is more than Celeste has, so the way I see it, we’ve all come out as winners, haven’t we?”
Sir Barclay pecked Dame Genevieve’s sleepy cheek before nodding at me in agreement.
“Can I get you anything, Dame Genevieve?” I asked. “Cheese, biscuits, nuts?”
“No thank you, Fleur. You’ve done more than enough for me and more than enough for both of us.”
Sir Barclay ushered me away from Dame Genevieve and flapped over to the wardrobe at the end of the wall, the one with a couple of Nan’s coats in, which he opened with his beak.
