Читать книгу Magic Ballerina 13-18 - Darcey Bussell - Страница 14

Holly and the others froze in fear. The Wicked Fairy yanked the lizards to a stop and jumped out. “I saw you in my crystal ball!” she cried, her black eyes burning as she brandished her wand. “I saw you trying to escape. Well, you won’t!” She pointed the wand at them again. “With this wand’s strongest power, I banish you all to my highest …”

She broke off as the end of a rope ladder came flying down from the sky and conked her on the head. “OW!” she shrieked.

“Lila!” gasped Holly, looking up.

“What’s happening?” hissed the Wicked Fairy, as Lila started flying in rapid circles, winding the rope ladder around the fairy. She flailed her arms and they got caught in the rope. “Help me, you fools!” she shrieked at her servants. But the lizards just stood there.

“Let’s see how you like being imprisoned!” Lila flew around her legs at lightning speed.

The Wicked Fairy screeched and fell over on her back. The rope ladder was wrapped around her like a cocoon. She looked like a giant beetle struggling on the ground!

“Oh well done, Lila!” Holly cried. “That was brilliant!”

“Get me out of here!” yelled the Wicked Fairy to her servants as she rocked from side to side.

“Well, shimmering whiskers, it looks like no one is going to help you,” said the White Cat with a grin. “Maybe you should have said please!”

The Wicked Fairy shrieked in fury and drummed her feet on the ground.

Holly looked at the sky and realised that the sun was setting. The Wicked Fairy might be trapped, but the dance had to be performed or her curse would still work. “Come on everyone!” she cried. “Let’s get back to the palace!”

The White Cat and Lila’s magic whisked them away. A crowd of dancers rushed towards them as they landed in the courtyard.

“It’s Red Riding Hood!”

“And Goldilocks!”

“Where have you all been? We were just getting worried about you!”

The hubbub of voices rose.

“We’ll explain later!” the White Cat exclaimed. “But the sun is about to set and we have to do the dance now!”

Holly realised there was music playing and the tables around the courtyard had now been laid out with plates of food and massive jugs of fruit punch. A trumpeter rang out a loud fanfare.

“Quick! Into your positions!” cried the cat. “There’s no time to waste.”

Everyone dashed to stand around the courtyard, hands held elegantly, faces turned expectantly to the palace doors. The door was opened by a page and the King and Queen stepped through.

The crowd all bowed.

Holly joined in with the White Cat and Lila. She didn’t have a clue what she was doing, but it was just so amazing to be here, watching everything.

The King looked in their direction. Lila nodded at him as if to say it’s all right. Holly saw him breathe a sigh of relief and his mouth moved in a silent thank you.

With a beaming smile, he led the Queen to where two golden thrones had been set. As they sat down there was another fanfare and Princess Aurelia and Prince Florimund appeared in the doorway.

Holly caught her breath. The princess had long dark wavy hair and big blue eyes. She was very beautiful. The music changed and the princess ran into the centre of the courtyard and turned a pirouette. With a leap, the prince was by her side. He took her hand and they began a graceful pas de deux. In the final moments, the princess turned with incredible speed on her pointes, moving round the courtyard and finishing with a dramatic dive towards the floor. The prince caught her and then Aurelia danced away, beckoning everyone to join in. The music changed again becoming bold and lively.

They all formed a circle and began to dance the graceful dance that Holly had seen them practising earlier.

The White Cat pulled her into the dance too. Holly eagerly joined in. With one hand holding the White Cat’s and the other extended elegantly out to the side, she ran and skipped, ran and skipped. He turned her under his arm and then they all jumped to the side …

Suddenly the sun set. There was a bright flash and silver sparkles rained down from the air. “What’s happening?” cried Princess Aurelia in astonishment.

Lila smiled and ran forward to clasp her hands. “It’s your happy ever after!” she said.

The music rose in volume. The White Cat hugged Holly. “We did it! We stopped the Wicked Fairy!” Holly laughed with delight. All around her were happy laughing people, dancing. Prince Florimund was swinging Aurelia round. Lila was dancing with Bluebeard, the King and Queen were joining in too. Holly had never known anything like it. The White Cat swung her back into the dance. “So are you glad you stayed and helped?” he cried as they skipped joyfully together.

“Oh yes!” exclaimed Holly. It seemed strange now to remember that she hadn’t wanted to, and just at that moment she felt her feet tingling. She looked down. Her shoes were glowing. “I must be going back,” she gasped. “I will come here again, won’t I?”

The White Cat nodded. “And I’ll be waiting to meet you when you do. We’re friends forever now!”

Friends. The word rang through Holly’s head.

The last thing she saw was everyone waving and smiling at her and then a cloud of bright colours surrounded her and she whirled away.