Eye of the Storm

I can’t do it? Marianne is so powerful. How can I possibly fight her? I really wish you were here…
    ‘Erin!’
    Erin broke off as she heard her dad calling her from the landing.
    ‘Time to get ready for bed!’ he called.
    Erin quickly shut the diary. ‘OK!’
    I don’t know how we’ll do it, but we’ll stop Marianne , she thought. We’ll get her out of Tor and Mistral’s kingdom.
    She looked out of the window. There were bands of clouds across the pale early-evening sky now. Swirling shafts of golden sun shot through the clouds like thin columns of light. It was a beautiful sight. But Erin felt as if an icy hand was running along her spine. It was as if she was seeing the magic flowing away from the sky horses down to the ground. She thought of the horses up there who would grow weaker and weaker, thought of the massive storms that might come, and bit her lip. She and Chloe would stop Marianne – they had to before it was too late.

CHAPTER
Two
    Erin changed into her pyjamas. She could hear her stepbrothers arguing about what TV channel to watch in the lounge.
    Jo, her stepmum, was in the kitchen, unloading the dishwasher. She smiled as Erin came in. ‘Hi, Erin. Would you like a hot chocolate?’
    ‘I’ll get it,’ said Erin, seeing how tired Jo looked. ‘Shall I make you a cup of tea at the same time?’
    Jo smiled. ‘Yes, please. I’ve been running around all day trying to get things packed up for the boys.’
    Sam and Ben, Erin’s two eldest stepbrothers, were going to Wales for a sailing weekend the next morning and Jake, her twelve-year-old stepbrother, had a tennis tournament in Birmingham.
    ‘So, how are you?’ Jo asked as Erin got two mugs out. ‘I’ve been so busy recently with all the boys’ sporting activities and you’ve been at the stables day and night it seems – I feel like I haven’t seen you at all. What have you been up to?’
    Erin wondered what Jo would say if she replied, Oh, you know, flying around at night, trying to find a hidden gateway that leads to the clouds, fighting a dark spirit…
    ‘Nothing much,’ she said, shrugging. ‘Just going to the stables and stuff.’ Erin rode at Hawthorn Stables. She had lessons there and helped with the ponies. Now she was eleven and the nights were lighter, her dad and Jo had started letting her cycle there after school too.
    ‘How’s Kestrel?’ asked Jo.
    ‘He’s great!’ Erin enthused. Kestrel was a grey, part-Arab pony. He was new to the riding school and Jackie, the owner of the stables, had asked her if she would help look after him because he was having trouble settling in.
    Jo looked at her. ‘I was talking to Jackie the other day and she was saying that she’s not sure he’s cut out to be a riding-school pony, but she seems very pleased with how you’re getting on with him.’
    Erin frowned. ‘He’s fine whenever I ride him. I’m sure he’ll soon get used to being ridden by lots of people. He just needs a bit more time. What else did Jackie say? Why were you talking to her?’
    ‘No real reason,’ Jo said, shrugging. She changed the subject. ‘So, how’s Chloe getting on with Ziggy? Her mum was saying she’s over the moon about him.’
    Ziggy was Chloe’s new pony. She had got him for her birthday three days ago.

    ‘Yeah.’ Erin tried not to sigh. She’d always longed for a pony herself, but she knew her dad and Jo couldn’t afford to buy one. She’d been trying very hard not to be jealous of Chloe having Ziggy. At least she had Kestrel, and Chloe kept saying that she could ride Ziggy as much as she liked.
    ‘It must be hard not to mind,’ said Jo, as if reading her thoughts.
    ‘It is a bit,’ Erin confided, handing her a mug of tea. ‘But I’m glad Chloe’s happy.’
    Jo smiled at her. ‘That’s because you’re a real friend. I’m proud of you.’ She gave her a quick hug. ‘Now, bedtime.’
    ‘Can I read for half an hour?’
    Jo nodded. ‘And then light off.’
    Erin went upstairs. In just a few hours she would be able to turn into her stardust self and go to meet up with Chloe, Tor and Mistral. She took a deep breath. What was the night going to hold?
    ‘I believe in stardust. I believe in stardust. I believe in stardust!’
    As Erin whispered the final word, she shot up into the air, her pyjamas becoming a glittering pale-blue dress as she turned into a stardust spirit. There were four types of stardust spirit – spring, summer, autumn and winter – and they each wore