Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO "Freya!" A banging on the workshop door made Freya jump and drop her spanner. She glanced at the clock on the wall. She'd been working on her robot for two hours. The time had flown by! "FREYA!" Recognising Rosa's voice, Freya ran to the door and opened it a crack. "What is it?" she asked. "Can I come in?" Rosa demanded.

"No!" Freya held the door tightly. Seeing Rosa's frown, she added, "Sorry, it's just I want to keep this invention secret because it's Honey's birthday present." She didn't want to risk anyone accidentally telling Honey about the robot before her birthday and ruining the surprise. Freya squeezed out through the door and shut it behind her. "What's going on?"

"Matilda's had a brilliant idea," Rosa said. "You know everyone at school's been a bit freaked out and tense ever since the camping trip?" Freya nodded. The students had gone on a camping trip in Dingleberry Dell a couple of months ago. It had been really good fun until Diamond dorm had discovered that the ancient Heart Tree at the centre of the dell was being drained of its magic. A cloaked woman had appeared and attacked Matilda and her unicorn, Pearl. They had managed to scare her off, but who the figure was and why she had been draining the Heart Tree remained a mystery. It wasn't the only strange incident either. A few months before that, Diamond dorm had discovered that someone had been draining a magic waterfall in the forest. The teachers still had no idea who the villain was, and all the students were on edge. What if they struck again? "Well, Matilda thought that we should organise a big midnight party in the stables to help everyone relax and give them something else

to think about," said Rosa. "Just students and unicorns, no teachers. We could use the small barn by the stables. It's only got a few bales of hay in it at the moment and no one ever goes there. We're going to have a spooky theme– mix drinks to make a Witch's Brew, make googly eyeballs out of marshmallows and decorate the barn and stables with fake cobwebs. The boys in Topaz dorm said they'd help us organise it. Don't you think it's the best idea ever?" "It does sound awesome," Freya agreed. "When?" "On Wednesday night," said Rosa. "Three days' time." "But that's Honey's birthday," Freya pointed out. "Oh." Rosa thought for a second and then her face lit up with a smile. "Well, it can be a birthday party too! Honey would like that, wouldn't she?" "Yes, I'm sure she would," said Freya. Honey was really lively and loved parties and having fun. "I could give her my present at the party."

Rosa high-fived her. "Perfect! And we can all sing "Happy Birthday" to her at the same time. There's so much to organise!" Her eyes shone– she loved organising things. "We're going to have a planning meeting after dinner tonight in the lounge with Topaz dorm. All of Diamond dorm have to be there." She saw Freya start to open her mouth to object. "Nope, no excuses allowed," she declared. "You have to be there. Got it?" Freya sighed. "Got it, Rosa." After having lived with Rosa for ten months she knew there was no point arguing when she was in one of her bossy moods. Rosa beamed. "Great! This is going to be so much fun!" After dinner, Diamond dorm met with Topaz dorm to discuss the party. For a brief second, Freya considered slipping away to work on her invention. She was pretty certain she wouldn't be missed. But as she started for the door, Ariana

caught her eye. "You're not leaving, are you?" Busted! Swallowing back a sigh, Freya shook her head. "Course not." Rosa clapped her hands together. "Listen up now, everyone. This is a planning meeting for our party. Remember, it's a secret! We don't want the teachers finding out. Right then, let's start with food. What can you all bring?" "Chocolate!" shouted Himmat. "Biscuits," said Violet. "My nani just sent me a box." "Hang on. One at a time," ordered Rosa. "Ariana, please can you write a list of food ideas?" Ariana waved a notebook in the air. "Already on it." Once the food had been noted down, Rosa moved on to the other things they needed to do. Ariana turned the page to start a new list. "Let's pick some purple pumpkins!" said Matilda. "There are some massive ones in the vegetable garden. We could put them in the barn and have a leapfrog race with them."