Chapter 8

CHAPTER EIGHT Rosa leapt into action as the air filled with alarmed whinnies and yells. "Pull!" shouted Rosa, her voice rising forcefully above the din. "Everyone pull together. Get behind me and pull, right now! Pull!" She leaned back, straining on the rope till her arms burned. The rope bit into her fingers, but she ignored the pain. The others heaved the rope too. The unicorns joined in, grabbing the rope with their teeth and pulling backwards. As the rope tightened, Rosa, the girls and the unicorns

took one giant step back and then another. Rosa gritted her teeth, leaning back and pulling with all her might. Come on, Freya! Come on! she willed. Suddenly Freya's arm appeared through the ice. "Again!" Rosa screamed. "Pull, everyone!" A second later Freya's head popped up, then the rest of her came with it, flopping on to the ground with icy water pouring from her clothes. Everyone gathered round while Freya coughed up the water she'd swallowed. Rosa was full of wonder. "We did it," she exclaimed shakily. "We did it!" Honey nuzzled up to Freya, breathing on her with her warm breath. The other unicorns did the same, but Freya was shivering badly. "Wait, I think I can help by using a twister!" said Crystal. "It might warm Freya up." She took a deep breath. "You can do it," Rosa told her, touching her

neck. Confidence flooded into Crystal's eyes. She stamped a hoof and a mini twister swirled around Freya, hiding her from view. The pink snowflakes worked their magic, warming Freya and drying her soaking clothes. As they faded, Rosa saw that Freya's cheeks were pink again and she had stopped shivering. "Thank you, Crystal!" Freya smiled. Rosa hugged Crystal. "Are you OK?" she said, seeing that she was breathing heavily again. Crystal nodded. "Making twisters is a lot of work, but it's fun!" Rosa helped Freya to her feet. The girls' eyes met and they hugged. "Thanks," Freya whispered in Rosa's ear. "I heard you shouting and telling everyone what to do. If you hadn't done that…" Her voice trailed off. "I'm just glad you're all right," said Rosa,

feeling a warm glow spread through her from her head to her toes. Maybe she and Freya could be friends after all– really good friends. Suddenly she remembered something. "The model!" "What? This, you mean?" Freya grinned and opened her right hand. The model of the academy was nestling safely in her palm. The unicorns whinnied and the girls whooped.

"There was no way I was going to drop it," said Freya, inspecting it. "It's a beautiful piece of engineering. Look at how the doors and windows all open." "Even better– it can get us back to school!" said Rosa. "How does it work?" asked Matilda. "I think we just tell it where we want to go," said Rosa. As she spoke the model started to glow. Freya pushed the model into Rosa's hand. "Go on. You do it. You had the idea for coming on this adventure. You should be the one to take us home." Everyone else nodded and Rosa felt her heart swell with happiness as she looked around at Diamond dorm, all united for once. Crystal nuzzled Rosa's cheek. "I'm so glad I'm paired with you." Rosa hugged her. "That makes two of us. I wouldn't want any other unicorn but you. Now let's go home." She raised her voice. "Unicorn

Academy!" she shouted. A fierce wind suddenly swirled around the cavern, whipping the girls' hair behind them. A second later they and their unicorns were all swept into the air and then Rosa's eyes blurred. With a chorus of squeals and whinnies, the girls and their unicorns were whisked away. Bump! Rosa landed on her bottom. I'm sitting on grass, she realised as the wind faded away and she saw they were on the lawn directly outside Ms Nettles' study. As they all scrambled up, Ms Nettles and pretty Ms Willow, the school nurse, ran out through the tall glass doors. "Girls, what is the meaning of this behaviour?" Ms Nettles exclaimed. "Ms Nettles, I…" Rosa began then, catching Crystal's eye, she grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I mean we– all the girls in Diamond dorm–