Stardust by Linda Chapman Page A

people. It helps her fit in when we move to new areas. Others her age are keen to be her friend. Adults are interested inher. She doesn’t get picked on or bullied.’ She looked from Lucy to Allegra. ‘I never want her to go through the awfulness of that…’ Her voice trailed off.
    Lucy frowned. It sounded like Joanna was speaking from her own experience.
    â€˜People can be cruel,’ Joanna went on slowly. ‘When I was at school I was bullied by a group of girls. Nothing really bad. They never hit me or anything, but they made my life miserable. My parents were older than normal parents. I wasn’t into clothes or music. I worked hard and tried to do well. The girls who picked on me teased me and called me names. I hated it.’ She glanced at Allegra. ‘Your mum used to stand up for me, but the only thing that made it bearable was knowing that each night I could becomea stardust spirit. I’d do anything to help Robyn avoid being bullied like I was.’
    Lucy felt bewildered. She would never have imagined that Joanna had been bullied, or that her determination to make Robyn practise her magic had anything to do with her wanting Robyn to fit in. But now she knew, she could see that it made sense – Joanna’s insistence that Robyn made friends, her pride in Robyn’s magic, Robyn’s cool clothes and perfect appearance. She frowned. ‘But why have you been doing stuff to me?’ she asked.
    Joanna sighed. ‘Your magic’s so strong, Lucy. I knew it would be much harder for Robyn to impress people with her magic here. That first night, when we were fighting the storm, I suddenly realized that if I could stop your magic and if Robyn used her powers, well then people would be interested in her and impressed with what she could do. So I blocked the magic coming into you. I did it a few other times too – just to help her.’
    Lucy didn’t know what to say. In one way it was a huge relief to realize that it hadn’t been a dark spirit or something going wrong with her magic, but it was still weird to think that it had been Joanna, an adult spirit, who had stopped her magic from working.
    â€˜I’m so sorry, Lucy,’ Joanna said, stepping towards her. ‘I was just trying to help Robyn fit in. I promise I haven’t been meaning to harm you or hurt you in any way. I’m not a dark spirit.’ Her eyes searched Lucy’s face. ‘I really
am
sorry. I shouldn’t have done it.’
    â€˜It’s OK,’ Lucy said slowly as she tried to get her head round it. ‘I guess I should have known it wasn’t a real dark spirit. It felt odd, but not as if I was in real danger like when I’ve met dark spirits before. I did feel like I was being watched though and that was creepy.’
    Joanna frowned. ‘That’s strange. Robyn’s felt she’s being watched too, but that wasn’t me.’ She turned to Allegra.
    â€˜Have you felt anything strange, Allegra?’
    â€˜No,’ replied Allegra.
    â€˜So it’s just you and Robyn,’ Joanna said to Lucy. She looked worried. ‘Can you describe how you felt?’
    â€˜Just strange,’ Lucy said, shivering as she remembered. ‘Like there were eyes on me. It made me feel cold. Sometimes I thought I saw something move in theshadows, but when I looked it was just an animal.’
    â€˜Or maybe not just an animal,’ Joanna said. ‘Maybe it was someone travelling in an animal’s mind.’
    â€˜A real dark spirit?’ Allegra said in alarm.
    Joanna nodded uneasily. ‘I wonder where Robyn is. I hope she’s waited in the next clearing like I told her to. We’d better go and find her!’ She rose into the air. ‘Robyn!’ she called. ‘Robyn!’
    Allegra and Lucy followed her into the next clearing. The clouds were pressing down and the air felt heavy and thick. Lucy’s heart sank as they