The halls were filled with students who were all chattering and laughing. People
said “Hello” and “Happy Birthday” as Cleo, Destiney, Ty, Celest, Kay, and Pete
passed. They soon reached their lockers and started to put their books away
when someone spoke.
“Morning,” said a female voice. They all turned and there was Parkaya, a cloud
Gelert, standing right behind them. She belonged to Prettyfacemaid who was also
known as Rachael.
“What’s up Parkaya?” asked Cleo with a smile. Parkaya was one of Cleo’s best
friends. They had met on their first day of school. Parkaya was invited to Cleo’s
party and there was a rumor that she had bought an extraordinary gift.
“Nothing except that all of the seventh graders are a buzz about your party,"
Parkaya said with a sly grin. “So, what is Lauren going to get you?”
“I’m hoping that I’ll get a Desert Paint Brush but Lauren said that she couldn’t
afford it. But Kay thought that I could go to the Rainbow Fountain. I sent Lauren
a Neomail on the bus, telling her about the idea," Cleo said with a large
smile. Parkaya gave Cleo a look that meant that something was wrong.
“I’ve talked to people who have used the Rainbow Fountain and they said that
the water level keeps receding every week. The fountain is beginning to dry
up. If you’re going to use it, you had better use it soon or it’ll be gone.”
Parkaya looked worried as she said this. She kept her eyes on Cleo for her response.
“If I use the fountain, I’ll probably use it tonight," Cleo said casually,
but there was a slight tone of worry in her voice.
At that moment, the first bell rang. Everyone started to head for their classes.
“Gotta go,” said Parkaya, Kay and Pete as they headed for Chemistry Lab A.
Cleo, Destiney, Celest, and Ty headed toward the third floor for Science.
Mrs. Scornia was their Science teacher. She was an old Scorchio with a very
hot temper. She was waiting by the door as the students entered, barking at
the ones who lollygagged. As soon as everyone had arrived, she closed the door
with a snap. She glared at the students as she walked back to her desk.
“We will be starting the pollination process of plants today. You will need
to open your books to page 105,” she said as she pushed a projector into the
middle of the room. She turned on the projector and turned off the lights. Suddenly,
a picture of a flower appeared on the wall. The flower looked like it had been
cut in half and it had been magnified several times.
“As we should all know, bees and birds help pollinate flowers and trees. Bees
help pollinate flowers by landing on them…” Mrs. Scornia drawled on about how
plants and flowers were pollinated. Every student in the school knew that she
could go on like this for hours at a time. She began to tell what happens after
pollination when a knock on the door cut her short.
“Celest, go answer the door please," Mrs. Scornia said absentmindedly. Celest
walked to the door and opened it. She looked confused.
“Umm… nobody’s there,” she said looking at the hallway. Mrs. Scornia looked
at the hallway with uncertainty.
“Must be some kids playing a practical joke,” she said stiffly. She then closed
the door and walked back to the projector but stopped short. She turned around
and stared at the bookshelf.
“Someone’s there,” she said as she walked toward the bookshelf and put her
paw out. She made a grabbing motion and yanked her paw upward. There in her
paw was a Purple Invisihat. Then, a blue Peophin appeared before them, her face
contorted with a look of horror.
“You’re late Joobie," Mrs. Scornia said strictly. Joobie flinched as she said
her name.
“Uh… I missed the bus today because I got locked in my garage. It took Tiff
thirty minutes before she figured out that I was in there," Joobie said with
a very small smile. The class roared with laughter.
Joobie made a small smile but Mrs. Scornia’s eyes narrowed and her mouth thinned.
Everyone stopped laughing at once.
“You may all think this is funny but this is nothing to laugh about,” said
Mrs. Scornia in a threatening voice. She then turned to Joobie who was looking
quite pale.
“I am not all that angry at you for being late for class, but you know the
rules. No Battledome items allowed in school! Not even defence items!” Mrs.
Scornia said eying Joobie who was beginning to open her mouth to speak, but
Mrs. Scornia held up one clawed paw to silence her.
“Go take your seat Joobie. We’ll talk about this after class,” she said calmly
as she turned back to the projector. Joobie quickly walked to her desk, which
was right by Cleo’s. She sat down and heaved a sigh.
“That was really close. I don’t think anyone has gotten off the hook that
easily with her before," Joobie whispered to Cleo. Cleo smiled at Joobie. Lil_Joobie
was one of Cleo’s friends and she loved to wear makeup just like her owner lil_tiff88.
She too was invited to Cleo’s party and everyone had an idea of what she was
going to give to Cleo.
Class went on with no other interruptions. Though everyone groaned when Mrs.
Scornia gave them homework; a one-page essay on how plants are pollinated. The
whole class filed out of the classroom except for Joobie who was asked to stay.
Cleo waited for her until she was allowed to go. When Joobie came out she didn’t
look too happy.
“Detention!” she wailed sadly as they walked to their next class. “I have to
stay two hours after school! That means that I’ll be late for your party! I’m
sorry Cleo,” said Joobie sadly. Cleo looked at Joobie with pity. She felt sorry
for her that she had detention.
“It’s okay if you’re late for my party. Don’t worry about it,” said Cleo reassuringly.
Joobie smiled weakly as they walked to Social Studies class.
The day went on and the homework kept piling on. The lunch bell rang at noon
and everyone scrambled out of their classrooms and headed for the cafeteria.
Cleo, Celest, Ty, and Destiney all sat down at one table. Parkaya, Kay, Pete,
and Joobie soon joined them. They all talked about their homework and ate their
lunch when a noise came from Cleo’s bag.
“Hey, that’s my laptop!” said Cleo as she stuck her paw into her bag and pulled
out her laptop. She put it on the table and opened it up. The mini computer
kept saying ‘You’ve got Neomail’ over and over again as the little mail icon
flashed. Cleo clicked on the icon to see who had sent her the mail.
“It’s from Lauren!” Cleo said as she clicked on the message and read. Her
friends watched her eagerly as they waited to hear what the message said. Cleo’s
mouth turned into a frown as she read. After she had finished she heaved a sigh.
“What’s the matter?” asked Kay with concern in his voice. Cleo looked at him
with somber eyes.
“I’ve got some depressing news from Lauren," Cleo said as she lowered her eyes.
“Here. Read this,” said Cleo as she pushed the laptop to Kay. Kay took it and
read the message aloud:
|
Cleo,
I’m sorry but Kay’s plan won’t work. I’ve
just been to The Rainbow Fountain and it’s dried up! I’m sorry Cleo.
Maybe I can get you the paintbrush in a couple of Months.
Lauren
|
Kay looked at Cleo, his eyes filled with pity. Parkaya slowly
shook her head. Nobody spoke for a while. Finally, Parkaya broke the silence.
“I’m sorry Cleo, but I told you that the fountain was drying up,” she said
quietly as to not upset Cleo more. Cleo looked at her and gave her a strained
smile.
“It’s okay. I guess I can wait a couple of months to get one,” she said with
a small sigh. The other pets looked at each other with concern. Cleo sounded
as though this was no big deal but they all knew that the news was tearing her
up on the inside.
Everyone kept reassuring Cleo all through lunch but it was no use. Cleo was
devastated about the news. Nothing could cheer her up, not even when her friends
asked her to play a game of Gormball at recess, which was her favorite game.
When the bell for second period rang, everyone trudged inside unhappily. They
would rather play outside than stay inside and receive homework.
The rest of the afternoon went smoothly. In second period, they had Math, English,
Literature, Biology, and Chemistry. Everyone was thankful that their Math, English,
and Chemistry teachers didn’t give them homework.
When the bell rang, everyone bolted out the classrooms, spilling into the hallways.
Cleo, Celest, Destiney, Ty, Kay, Pete, and Parkaya headed for the front doors
and climbed onto the waiting bus. As usual, they filed to the back and sat in
the last rows. They chatted excitedly about what was going to happen that afternoon
until they left one-by-one. The bus finally reached Cleo’s, Destiney’s, Ty’s,
and Celest’s stop. They jumped off the bus and ran inside.
When they entered the kitchen, they saw that the counter was covered with snacks
and drinks for the party. They dropped their bags and walked into the living
room, which had gone through a startling transformation. The floor was completely
covered with multicolored balloons and the ceiling was bedecked with lights
and streamers that were placed here and there. There was a huge stereo system
blaring music from Chomby and the Fungus Balls. Cleo’s mood brightened when
she saw this.
They were observing the room when the door behind them opened. They turned
around and saw Lauren standing in the doorway. She opened her mouth to speak
but no sound came out. Ty walked over to the stereo and turned the music down.
“Thanks, Ty,” said Lauren as she walked into the room and set down the plate
of cookies she was carrying. “So, what do you think of the decorations?”
“They’re awesome!” said Cleo with a smile. “I can’t wait for the party to start!”
“Well you’ll have to wait another two hours," Lauren said with a grin that
spread from ear to ear. “If you guys have homework I suggest that you get it
done now because there won’t be time after the party.”
“Hey, have you bought Cleo’s present yet?” asked Ty as they got their bags
and started up the stairs.
“Well, if you must know miss nosey, I am going out to buy it right now. I’ll
be back in half an hour," Lauren said as she grabbed her purse and walked out
the front door. The four pets walked up the stairs and headed for the study
room. They opened their bags and dumped their homework onto the floor. They
began to work, occasionally talking about what Lauren was going to buy Cleo.
Before they knew it, thirty minutes had past and they heard the front door
opened. They all scrambled downstairs to meet Lauren. Lauren spotted them when
they entered the living room and quickly put something behind her back. The
four pets looked at each other and grinned.
To be continued... | 
