A Special Surprise (5 page)

‘Oh!’ gasped Pippa. She slid from Star
dust’s back and stood with her hand around her neck. ‘It’s really creepy.’

This castle was nothing like Stableside. It was smaller and mostly in ruins. Ivy grew everywhere, blackening the outside with its thick woody stems and dark green leaves. The turrets were crumbling and through the tumbledown walls Pippa saw a dismal round room with plants growing through the floor. The massive front door was covered in cobwebs. Pippa shivered and clamped her jaws together to stop her teeth from chattering. A thin curl of smoke rose from the back of the building.

‘Someone’s home,’ said Pippa. Her arms broke out in goosebumps. Taking a deep breath she added, ‘Shall we find out who?’

Stardust nodded. Her eyes were round and her nostrils flared. On the tips of toes and hooves Pippa and Stardust crept closer and round the side of the building. The ivy grew thicker here, covering the window slits. Pippa tore it aside. Dirt flicked in her face and something pricked her finger.

‘Ouch,’ she said as she sucked it to stop it from stinging. This time she was more careful as she ripped the ivy from the walls. The first few rooms they looked into were empty save for dust and cobwebs that hung from the ceiling like thick, grey curtains. They found the kitchen, a vast room with a huge stone fireplace. There was a stone feeding trough draped with a few wizened carrots and another for water.

‘
Eeew
! I wouldn’t drink from that,’ said Stardust.

They carried on until they reached almost the end of the building. Pippa had a hard time pulling the ivy from the window slit. She was about to give up and go round to the back of the castle when she heard a noise. She put a finger to her lips to warn Stardust. With extra care Pippa pulled back the ivy. A familiar voice drifted through the air.

‘Volcanica was mine . . . stole it from me . . . if I can’t have it . . . so you see . . . pony world . . . here . . . mine . . . all MINE!’

Pippa stared at Stardust. ‘She’s power crazy. Listen to her, mumbling to herself.’

‘What did she mean by “pony world”?’ asked Stardust.

‘I don’t know.’ Pippa pushed her face right up against the window opening. It was dark inside and it took her eyes a while to adjust. A sour smell drifted towards her. Pippa’s throat constricted. She swallowed hard, choking back the cough that threatened to give her away.

‘Can you see anything?’ hissed Stardust.

Pippa’s eyes swept the room. It was set up as a laboratory. A complicated piece of glassware, supported with a metal stand and clamps, sat over a small fire. A vile yellow liquid bubbled inside a round bottomed flask. Clouds of smoke billowed from the opening and over to the window slit. Pippa turned her head away, took a deep breath of fresh air then looked through the window again. Her pulse raced as she spotted Divine, dressed in her long dark cloak, leaning over a sturdy oak table. Her lips were moving and suddenly Pippa realised she wasn’t talking to herself after all.

‘No!’ she gasped. ‘It can’t be.’

‘What?’ asked Stardust, bumping Pippa as she tried to look.

Pippa stepped to the side. ‘Mini ponies,’ she breathed. ‘On the table. They look like . . . but that’s impossible.’ She rubbed her eyes with her fists then stared again. ‘Oh no! It’s worse than we thought. That tiny, white pony is Snowdrop.’ She stared at the ponies. They were the same size as the animals in her brother’s farmyard set. ‘Divine has shrunk all the riding school ponies.’

‘No way!’ exclaimed Stardust. She stared into the room. Divine stood over the table. Her eyes gleamed with madness as she talked to the tiny ponies huddled together next to a battered satchel. ‘How did she get to the human world? And why would she steal the riding school ponies? What’s she up to?’

Pippa pulled away from the window. Stardust followed and they crept back to the front of the house where Divine wouldn’t hear them.

‘Maybe she followed you,’ Pippa said.

‘But she’d have needed wings to fly after me,’ said Stardust thoughtfully. ‘What do we do now?’

‘Confront her,’ Pippa said, boldly, even though she was trembling at the idea.

A fearful look crossed Stardust’s face then she drew herself up and said bravely, ‘Let’s do it.’

The front door was locked. In frustration Pippa shoved her shoulder against it but it didn’t even budge.

‘We’ll have to climb through a window,’ she said.

Pippa found one with loose bricks around the opening. With Stardust’s help she prised the bricks away until the window was large enough for her to climb through. Pippa was trembling as she ran along the dusty corridor to open the front door for Stardust.

‘Thanks,’ whispered Stardust as the door swung open.

They crept through the castle, stepping carefully to avoid the rubble littering the floor. A rat scurried across their path and Stardust reared up.

‘
Eeek
! I hate rats,’ she snorted.

‘I don’t like spiders,’ Pippa said, sympathetically.

‘Don’t look up then,’ said Stardust.

Pippa couldn’t help it and only just stopped herself from screaming when she saw an enormous spider dangling from the ceiling above her. Her heart was thumping so loudly she was sure Divine would hear it. Pippa clutched her hands to her chest to muffle the rapid thud. When they arrived outside Divine’s makeshift laboratory Pippa paused.

‘Ready?’ she asked.

Stardust nodded. Pippa pushed on the handle and the door creaked open. Divine was still hunched over the table. She looked up, startled.

‘You!’ she screeched at Pippa and Stardust. ‘Haven’t you interfered enough? This is my castle. Get out!’

‘Hello, Divine,’ said Pippa. ‘We’re not leaving until we get the riding school ponies back.’

‘They’re mine,’ said Divine, putting a hoof around them. ‘And soon I’ll have more!’

‘They’re not yours,’ Pippa stepped forward. ‘You took them from my world.’

‘How did you get there? Did you follow me?’ asked Stardust.

An evil smile spread across Divine’s face. ‘Of course I followed you. Silly little foal. I knew if I waited long enough you’d weaken and need to visit your
pet
girl.’

‘But how could you fly? Cloud would never have given you wings.’

Divine threw back her head and cackled with laughter. ‘Have you forgotten my ancestors? I’m a direct descendant of Nightingale. She was a genius. I took her scrolls and notebooks from Volcanica. I know all her secrets. I can make flying potions, growing lotions, shrink drinks. Her science and magic make me the most powerful pony on Chevalia! There’s nothing I can’t do now!’

‘So you shrank the riding school ponies!’ Pippa stared at the six tiny horses cowering on the table.

Divine gave a half bow. ‘I
saved
the riding school ponies. They didn’t want to stay in the human world, performing tricks for silly little girls and boys, so I freed them from their miserable lives. These ponies love me. They are the start of my new empire. I’m going back to the human world to collect more ponies.’

‘That’s not true,’ Pippa said, hotly. ‘The ponies love the riding school! Snowdrop’s always pleased to see me. She wouldn’t jump so well if she hated doing it. And Mrs Woods really cares for her ponies.’

‘Enough!’ Divine snatched up the satchel and hung it round her neck. With one quick move she flipped the end of the table with her nose. As the table tilted the six tiny riding school ponies slid towards her. Divine opened the satchel wider and caught the helpless ponies as they slid off the end.

‘Pippa!’ squeaked Snowdrop in alarm. ‘Help us. We want to go home.’

Pippa lunged for the satchel. ‘Give me that.’ But Divine reared up, forcing Pippa to jump back.

‘Goodbye, interfering girl, goodbye
Princess.
Let’s not meet again.’ With an evil cackle Divine sprang through the door.

‘Quick,’ shouted Pippa, racing after her. ‘We can’t let her get away.’

Chapter 6

Divine fled along a short corridor and burst through a door at the back of the castle. Once outside she kicked it shut with her back hooves. Pippa stuck her foot in the doorway just in time to stop it from closing.

‘Hop on,’ cried Stardust.

Pippa vaulted on to Stardust’s back and the pony took off. The narrow path climbed steeply up the mountain. Pippa felt a rush of fear and excitement as they hurtled over the rugged ground.