Free Daisy Takes Charge by Jodie Wells-Slowgrove Page A

excused? I’m too jumpy to eat right now. I’ll eat double at dinner.’
    â€˜I’ll hold you to that,’ warned Nen as Efa waved Maggie away.
    Looking worried but excited, Maggie flew to her bedroom.
    â€˜Where are
you
going?’ asked Nen as Daisy moved to follow.
    â€˜I’m going to help Maggie get ready.’
    â€˜Maybe you shouldn’t bother her,’ said Efa. ‘Maggie is very nervous right now and she may not have much patience for her little sister.’
    â€˜I’m not going to bother her, Dad, I’m going to help her,’ Daisy explained.
    â€˜I see,’ said Efa with a knowing look. ‘Well, don’t say you weren’t warned.’
    Daisy shook her head as she flew to her sister’s room. Parents could be so dense sometimes.
    Maggie was at her writing desk, furiously scribbling notes onto a piece of paperbark.
    â€˜I’ve been thinking all through lunch,’ said Daisy, striding purposefully over to her. ‘And I know exactly what to do.’
    Maggie stopped writing. Her shoulders slumped and she let out a great sigh. ‘Please don’t interrupt me, Daisy,’ Maggie implored. ‘I have so much to do and so little time.’
    â€˜I know,’ said Daisy. ‘That’s why I’m making you a timetable.’
    Maggie started to write again. ‘Whatever! Just do it somewhere else, okay?’
    â€˜Excellent!’ Daisy headed back towards the door. ‘Don’t worry about a thing, Maggie. I’ll have you organised in no time.’
    There was no desk in Daisy’s room so she headed to the study. Efa was there, working on his healing potions. ‘Got kicked out already, did you?’ he grinned.
    â€˜Not at all,’ said Daisy, grabbing a pile of paperbark, an inkpot and a quill. ‘I have an important job to do.’
    With Efa’s chuckles ringing in her ears, Daisy flew down to the kitchen table. Having just finished his lunch, Vu buzzed over to join her. He chittered a question.
    â€˜I’m creating a timetable for Maggie. But first I have to list all the things she’ll need to do,’ said Daisy as she began to write.

    Vu chittered that Maggie would need food and sleep, and time with her ladybird, Nelli.
    â€˜Good thinking,’ said Daisy, adding them to the list. ‘Though I might make Nelli your job tomorrow. You can play together while Maggie practises. Then Nelli won’t get lonely.’
    Daisy wrote a list of times on another piece of paperbark. ‘We could have a flying race at sunrise, to get Maggie’s heart pumping and wake her up then space out her rehearsals throughout the day.’
    With Vu’s help, Daisy organised and changed, reorganised and shifted around the timetable. It needed to be perfect, as Maggie had no time to waste.
    Much later that afternoon, Daisy looked at the page with satisfaction.

    â€˜We’ve done it, Vu!’ Daisy beamed. ‘Let’s go and show Maggie.’
    Daisy and Vu raced to Maggie’s room, almost crashing into her as she flew out of her doorway.
    â€˜Here’s your timetable, Maggie,’ Daisy beamed. ‘Vu and I worked all afternoon to make it perfect.’
    Maggie’s eyes widened in dismay to see her whole day mapped out. But with Daisy’s excited face in front of her and understanding how much work her sister had done, Maggie knew she couldn’t disappoint her.
    â€˜Okay, Daisy,’ she sighed. ‘We’ll give it a try.’

‘T ime to wake up!’ Daisy bellowed the next morning as Maggie lay snoozing.
    â€˜It’s still dark,’ Maggie moaned, hiding in her hammock under the covers.
    Daisy took her wand from the sheath on her belt and waved it over Maggie. ‘Cuddly blankets warm and snug, release my sister from your hug.’
    Maggie grabbed at her blankets but they lifted into the air, twisting out of her grip to hover near the