Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN On the way back to school, all Violet could think about was Twinkle. Why was he being so secretive? And what had he meant when he said everything would be fine by the morning? Unease washed over her. It sounded like he was planning something– but what? In the dining room, Diamond and Topaz dorms were sharing a table. Although dinner was her favourite, lasagne, Violet only picked at it. She couldn't leave things as they were with Twinkle. Even if it was difficult and awkward, she had to go back and talk to him. Clearing away her half-empty plate, she slipped out. She put her coat and boots on and ran across the frosty lawn in the dark. As she

got close to the stable block, Twinkle came out. Her heart lurched. Where was he off to? "Twinkle!" Her voice sounded loud in the quiet night. He froze guiltily. "What are you doing?" she asked. Twinkle avoided her eyes. "Um… going out. For… For a walk." "At this time?" Violet forgot about not arguing with him– she'd had enough. She marched in front of Twinkle. "Stop lying to me!" she told him hotly. Twinkle's gaze flew to her face as she put her hands on her hips. "I mean it, Twinkle. I'm standing here until you tell me what's going on!" She was shaking with emotion. She didn't usually get angry, but this was too important, too big. She had to know what Twinkle was up to. She waited for him to argue but, to her surprise, he hung his head. "I'm meeting Daffodil," he muttered. "What? Why?" said Violet in astonishment. "She said she has something important to tell me, but she said we need to be outside in the starlight." Twinkle's dark eyes shone with excitement as he looked up. "Violet, I think it might be a way of speeding up the bonding process.

Daffodil knows a lot about magic and she knows how much I want to bond with you. I think she might be able to help me." Violet frowned. "But, Twinkle, Ms Rosemary said bonding happens when the time is right. If there was a way of speeding it up, then I'm sure she would have told us. There can't be anything Daffodil can do." Twinkle looked stubborn. "But I think there is. Why else would she say she had something important to talk to me about? I want to go and meet her, Violet." Violet hesitated. Something didn't feel right. "Please let me go," he begged. Violet didn't want to agree, but she also didn't want to upset him. "OK," she said reluctantly. "But I'm coming with you," she added. "You don't need to," Twinkle began. "It's really cold out tonight." "I don't care," said Violet. She gave him a firm look. "We either go to meet Daffodil together or you don't go at all, even if it means I have to stay in the stable with you all night." She blinked. For a moment, she'd sounded a bit like Rosa! But it seemed to work. Twinkle nodded. "All right. Let's go together.

I'd rather you came with me anyway, but we'd better hurry or we'll be late. Daffodil said to meet her at the edge of the woods." Violet vaulted on to his back and they set off at a canter across the frosty lawn. As they approached the woods, Violet saw a shadowy figure in a cloak moving across the grass ahead of them. She clutched Twinkle's mane and gasped. It was the hooded figure! But just then the moon came out from behind a cloud and showed the person more clearly. Violet breathed a sigh of relief. No, it wasn't. It was just Ms Willow. "Did

Daffodil tell you Ms Willow would be here too?" she said in surprise. Twinkle slowed to a trot. A note of uncertainty crept into his voice as he replied, "No." "Stop!" gasped Violet, suddenly spotting something on the ground. She stared in disbelief. A set of footprints tracked Ms Willow's progress across the frosty grass. Each footprint had a diamond-shaped pattern. "Twinkle! The footprints! They're just like the ones we found in the cave and in the secret room." An icy fear gripped her as Twinkle snorted in alarm and a horriblfe, almost unbelievable, thought struck her. Could Ms Willow be the cloaked figure who had been draining magic from the island?