7 Chapter 7

7 Naomi looked stressed. "We haven't had time to practice!"

"We'll be okay," said Azmina, hoping it would be okay. "Let's do your routine, Naomi. You know, the one we did on the way here." "The one where you and Willa got your tails caught and nearly fell out of the sky?" said Naomi, one eyebrow arched. "Well, yes," said Azmina. "But this time we won't get tangled. Right, Willa?" Willa gave a nervous nod. "It's a pretty wild plan." Naomi sighed. "But it's also the only plan we've got. So let's go for it!" "Your turn now, dragons," buzzed the bees. "One, two, three!" The three Dragon Girls took off, heading for the first tree. Once, twice, three times they circled it, leaving a multicolored glitter trail behind them. Because they were a lot bigger than the bees, their circles had to be bigger. The first circle was also kind of wobbly. But the second loop was perfect. On the third trip around the tree, Azmina felt her

wing graze the edge of a hive. To her relief, the hive did not move and no angry glow bees came flying out. "We're halfway!" Azmina roared to Willa and Naomi. "Yeah, but this is the hardest part!" Willa pointed out. "Just do what I do, Dragon Girls!" said Naomi, swooping to the left. Azmina and Willa copied Naomi. And they did it perfectly! Then Naomi flipped back to the right,

with Azmina and Willa doing the same. Azmina thought she could hear the bees humming in an impressed kind of way. Flying together like this was actually pretty fun. Azmina just wished they'd had time to practice the torpedo roll. Naomi tucked in her tail and began the final move. She spun at top speed toward the ground below. Willa and Azmina exchanged a look. "Ready … go!" called Willa. Azmina was spinning so fast that she couldn't see Willa beside her, but she could sense her there. "Wooo!" cried the bees. And then, just as they began to slow down, everything went wrong. "Something grabbed my paw!" cried Willa. Azmina turned to see Willa plummeting toward the ground. Disappearing off between the trees were two thin gray shapes. Shadow Sprites! Without thinking, Azmina swooped down after Willa. She felt someone by her side, and for a horrible moment, she thought it was another

Shadow Sprite. But then she saw a burst of rainbow glitter. Naomi! "Catch her!" roared Naomi. With one last turbo boost of energy, Azmina managed to grab ahold of Willa's left wing. At the same moment, Naomi took hold of Willa's right one. "Thanks, guys," said Willa, sighing, as Naomi and Azmina lowered her gently down. "I'm so sorry. I messed everything up. We'll never get the honey now."

Azmina shrugged. "The most important thing is that you're okay." "Exactly," agreed Naomi. "Maybe there's something else we can use instead of glow honey in the potion?" "There is no replacement for glow honey!" corrected President Bee, who was now hovering before them. Suddenly Azmina had an idea. "Is it true that working together is the most important thing for bees?" "Absolutely!" buzzed the president. "As we bees always say, 'The key to productivity is to always work in harmony.' " "Teamwork is important to Dragon Girls, too," said Azmina pointedly. "Really, really important. And if one of us is in trouble, we help her out. Even if it means messing up a routine." "Huddle!" called President Bee, and instantly the other bees flew around her to form a big, buzzing ball.