Free Scarlet Discovers True Strength by Ahmet Zappa Page B

floppy green leaves. Near each stalk bloomed tight tubelike flowers nearly the size of Scarlet’s arm, each with dark silky threads spilling from its top.
    They gave off a distinct sweetish scent, too, which made Scarlet’s nose begin to twitch….
    She stepped forward and bumped right into something.
“Starf!”
she said, stepping back. She stepped forward again. Same thing. As she reached out into the air in front of her, Scarlet’s hand encountered a smooth surface. Aha! A smile spread across her face. It was the smooth surface of an invisible tent!
    â€œOphelia?”
    Scarlet knelt down and cautiously parted the flaps of the glitter-covered tent—Ophelia’s glitter-covered invisibility-cloaked tent, to be exact. As she did, a glittery, wide-eyed, freckled face peered out with a tiny panicked squeal.
    â€œ
Eeh!
Oh!
Oh,
thank
stars
you’re here!” Ophelia gasped, bursting out of the tent and into Scarlet’s arms.
    Scarlet fell backward onto the star-studded back pockets of her jeans.
    â€œStar apologies!” said Ophelia, clambering off her. “It’s just so good to see a friendly—oh…um…to see a familiar face, at least.”
    Indeed, Scarlet’s face was far from friendly then. She could feel the irritation hot beneath her sneer. “What in the stars are you doing in your tent, Ophelia? And please tell me you’ve changed your appearance and you don’t still look like
that
to everyone here….” Scarlet knew Starlings always looked glittery to each other, no matter where they were or what form they assumed. Something, though, about the way Ophelia was flashing and hiding made Scarlet think she just might look glittery to Wishlings, too.
    Ophelia looked down at her shimmering skin and wrung her hands, which only amplified their glow. “Those answers go together, I guess.” She looked up miserably and gulped.
    â€œYou were supposed to change your appearance and find your Wisher!” Scarlet said, disgusted. “Did you try to do
either
of those things?”
    Ophelia nodded meekly. “I tried. But I don’t know…nothing seemed to work….” She pulled out her Star-Zap and showed it to Scarlet. “This was supposed to help me change my appearance, right?”
    Scarlet nodded.
    â€œWell, nothing happened….”
    â€œWhat do you mean ‘nothing’? It’s so easy….No Wishworld Outfit Selector, either?”
    Ophelia shook her head. “And when I asked it to take me to my Wisher…”
    â€œWhat? What did it say?”
    â€œIt said, ‘Reply hazy. Ask again.’”
    â€œSo did you?”
    â€œOnly a hydrong times,” Ophelia groaned. “Finally, I just tried to go and find her in that little town on my own.”
    â€œLike
that
?” Scarlet asked, looking Ophelia up and down.
    â€œWell…what else could I do?” she said meekly. “But I didn’t try for very long. Everyone was staring and asking me questions like ‘Is there a circus in town?’ and ‘Are you a clown?’ What’s a circus and what’s a clown, anyway?”
    â€œUm, they’re like royalty,” Scarlet guessed, since she didn’t know.
    â€œOh.” Ophelia nodded. “So, anyway, I gave up because of that. And because of this thing, too.” She held her hand out toward Scarlet. On her wrist was a thick yellow bracelet studded with star-shaped jewels.
    â€œIs that your Wish Pendant?”
    Ophelia nodded. “Pretty, isn’t it?” She sighed.
    â€œDid it ever glow?”
    Ophelia shook her head. “Not even a little,” she replied. “I thought it was because I couldn’t find my Wisher, but now I’m not so sure that it’s not broken, too….But anyway, that’s why I’m here.” She gazed at the field around her tent. “I didn’t know where else to go, and at least my