Moon Princess by Barbara Laban Page B

The passengers were stirring; people were hunting for their luggage, tugging it down from the racks on to the floor, and the great jostling match to be first off the carriage had already begun.
    At the other end of the carriage she spotted a guard in a dark green uniform. He was leaning over one of the passengers, an elderly Chinese woman, who was speaking to him animatedly. She was looking in Sienna’s direction, and now she pointed to her too.
    The man looked at Sienna and Feng sternly. He came towards them, and suddenly Sienna realized that he wasn’t a guard – he was a policeman! She felt her face grow hot and flushed. She stared down at the little dragon on her lap. She mustn’t be discovered and returned to Shanghai: she had to find her mum!
    Zou stood up and blocked the policeman’spath to Sienna. He told the policeman that Sienna was his goddaughter, who was now living in Shanghai. But then the policeman began to address his questions directly to her. The other passengers had stopped fiddling with their luggage and Sienna felt as though the whole of the train was staring at her.
    Suddenly Sienna felt Bai sitting on her shoulder. The air seemed to be full of the glitter that covered his fur. She suddenly felt full of confidence. Turning to the policeman she bowed her head politely and said, ‘ Wo shi Pingdingshanren, zhu zai Shanghai – “I come from Pingdingshan, and I live in Shanghai.”’ She didn’t recognize her voice any more. She sounded like a real Chinese girl!
    After asking her how her journey had been and receiving a polite response, the policeman appeared satisfied. He wished Sienna a pleasant stay in the city with her godfather and disappeared, not forgetting to give the woman at the other end of the compartment a dirty look as he went.
    Zou burst out laughing and Feng looked at her open-mouthed. The white hare nodded brieflyto Sienna.
    â€˜ Xiexie – thank you,’ she whispered.
    â€˜ Buxie – you’re welcome,’ Zou replied. ‘As I said, Bai tuzi is a rather special hare and he loves his little performances! Now, time to get off the train. I suggest you two follow me; Bai tuzi believes we have our destination in common.’
    Sienna and Feng looked at each other. Sienna meant what she had said to Feng: she felt they could trust Zou. Anyway, what were their options? Sienna was only twelve years old and she thought Feng was a bit younger. They had no money and nowhere to stay. They needed help to find her mother and Gege.
    She also had to find out what had happened to Rufus and Minka. She hoped fiercely that they were all right – she didn’t know what she would do without Rufus – and Zou seemed to know all about invisible friends.
    Nodding at Feng, the two friends followed Zou off the train. Feng pulled both the bags behind him, while Sienna carried the small dragon – still fast asleep – carefully in her hands.

8 Long – Dragon
    S ienna and Feng walked behind Zou through the dense crowd on the platform. Outside the station, Zou flagged down a rickety old green-and-white bus.
    The new friends squeezed themselves inside. It was so overcrowded that they could hardly find room to stand. Sienna was afraid the little dragon might get crushed in her hand, but he seemed to be deeply asleep.
    The bus jolted through the dusty city. Siennasaw rows of small shops above which one-storey houses were stacked like tin boxes. In every garage it seemed someone was selling something, and all the streets looked the same. After a while the bus started to empty out and she gratefully slid on to one of the slashed plastic seats.
    â€˜We’re here!’ Zou finally announced. They got off the bus and Zou rummaged in his pockets for his key. He went to one of the small shops, which had a garage-style door, opened the lock and pushed the door up with a squeaking noise. ‘Come in. I’ll make some tea.’ He smiled at