Dancing Queen (Zodiac Girls) Read online

  After Grace was Mary. I had to stop myself giggling as she had no sense of timing or rhythm. This is like watching auditions for the X Factor, I thought, as Mary almost tripped over her own feet.

  After Mary was Phoebe, who was OK but not really Ice Queen material. There was something about her that was too timid. After her was Ellie the goth, then Tara. Tara was pretty good, the best so far.

  ‘Carol. You’re next,’ said Mrs Pierson, and Carol got to her feet, took up first position and went into the routine. I had to admit that she danced gracefully, light as a feather. How can I make my audition stand out? I asked myself as I watched her pirouette around the gym. What would mark me as the Ice Queen above the others? I thought about what I knew about the play so far. It had been written by a boy in the Sixth Form called James O’Malley, and the dance sequence was to be in the second act when the main character, played by Ollie (swoon, swoon), gets stranded in a forest in winter in the snow. As he battles on, his life slips away and he falls into a trance and dreams of an Ice Queen and her princesses who try to lure him to his death. A bit like how mermaids used to try and lure sailors to their death in some legends. It’s a totally dramatic story and I couldn’t help but think that Carol’s performance, although good, was too lightweight. She looked like a fairy princess who wouldn’t harm a fly.

  Carol finished and the other girls clapped. She flushed a little and smiled at them. It ain’t over yet, I thought as Mrs Pierson called me to go next.

  I took up first position as Carol had done and breathed deeply into my abdomen the way that I’d been taught when I used to do ballet. Stand tall, I told myself. Remember that you’re a queen. And not just any queen, you are the Ice Queen with a heart that is cold and cruel.

  I went into the routine and, as I did, I narrowed my eyes and I glared at Mrs Pierson and the other girls as if they were beneath me and I was thinking about killing them. My heart is full of icicles, I thought, as I danced and tried to convey that I was dangerous as well as queenly.

  ‘And a one, two, three, excellent, lovely,’ cooed Mrs Pierson as the music came to an end. As they had for Carol, the girls clapped for me. I noticed that Carol didn’t clap, though. She gave me a fake smile when I glanced over at her.

  ‘That was so cool,’ said Phoebe. ‘You looked scary. Like, in control but there was an air of don’t mess with me.’

  ‘Good,’ I said, ‘because that’s what I was going for.’

  Mrs Pierson clapped her hands. ‘Now, class,’ she said, ‘I want you all to watch Marsha Leibowitz and then do the routine exactly the way she does it and then I will decide who gets the part.’ She gave me a nod and a smile. ‘Go ahead, Marsha dear.’

  I went through the routine again and, soon after, the others copied me and I could see Carol narrowing her eyes and glaring with all her might, but instead of looking evil she looked as if she had just sucked a lemon.

  After we’d done the routine once more, Mrs Pierson clapped her hands again. ‘OK, girls. I have made my decision. Marsha Leibowitz, you shall be our Ice Queen and Carol, Tara and Phoebe the princesses. Mary, Ellie and Grace, I am sure we can find you something to do. So rehearsals start next Wednesday after school.’ She glanced in my direction and gave me a wink.

  There were a few sighs of disappointment, but Tara and Phoebe came over and congratulated me. ‘Thanks,’ I said. ‘And I’m so glad you got parts too.’

  I looked over at Carol who was staring at the floor. She didn’t look up or make any comments. I shrugged and turned to leave when Mrs Pierson clapped her hands again. ‘Attention, girls in the show, hang on a second. There’s someone I want you to meet.’

  She motioned to someone at the front of the gym and when I turned to see who it was I saw a tall black man wave back and begin to make his way over.

  ‘Hubba hubba,’ Phoebe whispered in my ear as he got closer. He was very handsome with a square jaw and cheekbones to die for. As he crossed the gym, everyone turned to look at him. He radiated charisma like he was a Hollywood movie star.

  Mrs Pierson flushed pink. ‘Girls, this is Mario Ares,’ she said in a curiously squeaky voice. ‘He’s going to be working here part time and taking some classes after school in fitness and self-defence. If any of you feel you’d like to sign up, I think that would be an excellent idea.’

  Mr Ares stared at me as if he knew me from somewhere and was trying to remember. ‘Ice Queen,’ he said.

  Mrs Pierson nodded. ‘And the other girls will be her princesses. Marsha is our star PE pupil, aren’t you, Marsha dear?’

  I nodded. ‘It’s my favourite subject.’

  Mr Ares smiled. ‘It would be. Aries are good at sport.’

  ‘Wow! How did you know that I was an Aries?’

  Mr Ares smiled. ‘I’m good at spotting star signs.’

  ‘What am I?’ said Phoebe.

  ‘Pisces,’ he replied, and looked at the other girls. ‘And you two are . . . Libra and . . . Cancer.’

  ‘And me?’ asked Mrs Pierson.

  ‘Capricorn,’ said Mr Ares without a second of hesitation. He flashed her a smile. ‘Hardworking.’

  Mrs Pierson sighed. ‘Tell me about it. Gosh, you really have a gift for this.’

  ‘Ah, but did you know that I am not just an Aries,’ I said. ‘I am also . . .’ I jumped around in a circle ending with a karate kick. ‘Zodiac Girl.’

  ‘As a matter of fact, I did,’ said Mr Ares.

  ‘Yeah, right,’ I said. I knew he didn’t. He couldn’t. He was just being clever. ‘So what does that mean, then?’

  Mr Ares looked up over my right shoulder as if reading an invisible screen. ‘It means . . . Mars, Saturn and Pluto are conjunct. It means you have a major life lesson to learn. Oh, and an encounter with Uranus, so that means it may come about in an unexpected way. The planet Uranus is unpredictable, to say the least.’ He said it with such seriousness and then looked directly into my eyes as if he were looking right into the core of me. It sent a shiver down my spine.

  ‘Oo. Major life lesson? Don’t we all?’ asked Mrs Pierson with a giggle. ‘OK, girls, on your way. And we’ll see you Wednesday.’

  Three planets conjunct and an encounter with another. That does sound major. Superyummingdoopah, I thought as I pulled my eyes away from Mr Ares and headed for the door. Lois was still busy up on the stage, but I managed to catch her eye and gave her the thumbs up. She gave me the thumbs up back.

  When I glanced over my shoulder, Mr Ares was still watching me. I gave him a wave. He wasn’t going to intimidate me with his intense looks and mysterious sayings.

  Chapter Three

  Unexpected!

  As I walked out of the gym, in my mind’s eye, I could see exactly how it was going to unfold. It was going to be SPECTACULAR! Opening night, an audience buzzing with anticipation, boys in Year Eleven taking photos of the stars of the show for the school magazine, me me ME and Ollie being the centre of attention, all my family in the front rows, Mr Blake seeing my performance then asking, ‘Who’s that girl?’ He’d get my number. I could feel myself getting more and more excited by the prospect of it all. Superyummingdoopah. Being chosen to be a Zodiac Girl was such a good omen and this was only the beginning of my star-studded month. Luckily the rain had stopped and the skies had brightened, reflecting my mood. I took a deep breath of the fresh air. As I continued on my way across the school playground and out towards the gates, I heard footsteps behind me.

  ‘Hey, Marsha,’ a voice called. I turned to see Sophie King running to catch up with me. She was in Year Ten at our school. A large girl with frizzy dark hair who hung out with the geeky set from her year.

  ‘Hey,’ she panted when she reached me. ‘I . . . I . . . just got to catch my breath. Wuff, puff. I . . . I heard you got the part of the Ice Queen?’

  ‘Yeah. Yeah, I did.’

  ‘I saw you across the gym. You were brill.’

  ‘Thanks, Sophie.’

  ‘Thing is, I’m organizing a charity event to be h
eld at the end of the month and I wondered if you could help.’

  ‘Charity? What for?’

  ‘My cousin works at the hospital out near Osbury and she’s asked me to help her raise money for a recreation wing in the children’s section.’

  ‘Oh, OK. Of course.’ I reached into my pocket. ‘I . . . I’m really sorry, I haven’t got much money on me,’ I said as I drew out a twenty-pence piece. ‘I could maybe give you some more next week after I’ve got my pocket money.’

  ‘No,’ said Sophie. ‘I don’t want your money. I want your talent.’

  ‘Talent? What do you mean?’

  ‘We need acts for the show to draw in the crowds and when I saw you I thought you’d be fantastic.’

  ‘Oh! Who have you got so far?’

  Sophie grimaced. ‘Not many, to tell the truth. In fact, only my younger brother doing a magic act, which between you and me is rubbish, and a few deadbeats from Year Seven who want to read their poetry, which is so bad it makes me want to lie on the floor and tear my hair out. That’s why I’m asking you. Someone with a bit of charisma to pull in the crowds.’

  Although I felt flattered, I was reluctant to get involved. Most days were packed with activities: tennis on a Monday, badminton on Tuesday, there would be rehearsals for the show on Wednesday evening from now on, karate on Thursday, and Fridays I had to use to catch up on homework. My life was very full. ‘Um . . . I . . . Um, listen, Sophie, can I think about it and get back to you?’

  Sophie gave me a strange look and I realized that I must have sounded a bit precious. ‘I . . . getting the part has only just happened and I don’t know what’s involved yet, you know, in the way of rehearsals as well as Wednesdays. Time wise I will have to put in extra to make it work. And, besides, life is pretty full on at the mo.’

  Sophie’s expression registered weariness. Even her shoulders had slumped as if she had the weight of the world on them. ‘Whatever,’ she said. ‘It’s really hard to get anyone to do anything like this.’

  ‘I bet loads of people will want to get involved when you ask them?’ (Just not me, I thought.) ‘Um, let me think about it, yeah?’

  Sophie turned away. ‘Yeah, sure. Later, then.’

  As we continued our separate ways, I think we both knew that I wasn’t going to be taking part in her non-event. I did feel a twinge of guilt, though, and was grateful when I went to wait at the bus stop that Lois joined me soon after. She was as excited as I was because she had got the part she wanted in the play and after we’d both relived every moment of our auditions to each other I filled her in on Sophie’s request.

  ‘Are you going to do it?’ she asked.

  ‘Don’t think so. I don’t want to. My life is like, soooo busy. That’s OK, isn’t it? I mean, she’ll find people. It’s, like, celebrities get millions of requests every day and they have to pick and choose which they do and don’t do.’

  Lois creased up laughing. ‘Celebrities! Get you. It’s only the school play we’re in, Marsha.’

  ‘So? One day I am going to be very famous, you watch, so you may laugh, but you’ll see. In the meantime I have to learn to protect my talent and not let people drain me.’

  ‘Drain you? It’s a charity show! Get real.’

  ‘Ah, but you say yes to one, you say yes to them all. Anyway, I heard Savannah Macauley—’

  ‘Who’s she?’

  ‘Duh? Don’t you know anything? She’s a Hollywood A-list star, as in mega. I heard her do an interview on the telly. She said that she got drained by all the constant demands on her time and she also said that she had made some bad choices in the beginning of her career by saying yes to everyone. I took note for when I hit the big time.’

  Lois collapsed with laughter and slid down the wall next to the bus stop as if what I’d said was so funny that she could hardly stand up. ‘Marsha Leibowitz, you really are something.’

  ‘I know,’ I said, but I gave her a big grin to show that I wasn’t really full of myself. I couldn’t say yes to everyone who asked me to be in their shows. I was going to be in demand and I had to be choosy whether Lois understood or not. ‘I will send her a donation from my pocket money.’

  ‘How very generous of you,’ said Lois.

  ‘Aye thought so,’ I said in a posh voice that sounded like the queen and made Lois laugh even more. ‘But isn’t it fab? We’re both going to be in the show and Mr Blake will be there . . .’

  A few moments later the bus came and we spent the rest of the journey gossiping about who else had got parts and sharing our fantasies about the show and the after-show party and what we were going to wear. By the time I got off at my stop I was feeling on top of the world, so I went into the post office corner shop to buy a curly chocolate chew to celebrate.

  Mr Singh, who ran the shop, glanced up when I walked in. ‘Hi, Marsha,’ he said.

  ‘Hey, Mr Singh,’ I replied.

  ‘I’m glad you came by,’ he said, and slipped off his stool to reach into a huge postbag behind the counter. ‘I got a package for you.’

  ‘For me?’

  He handed me a parcel wrapped in deep red paper with a white label. ‘Marsha Leibowitz, Zodiac Girl,’ it said clearly in bright red letters.

  ‘Oh, what is it?’ I asked.

  ‘Why don’t you open it and find out?’ Mr Singh replied, and then turned to serve a customer who had come in behind me.

  I ripped off the paper to find two small boxes inside tied with red ribbon. I opened the smaller first. Inside was a silver chain with a tiny charm hanging on it. On closer inspection I saw that it was a ram’s head, which I knew was the symbol for the star sign of Aries. Cute, I thought, and put it on immediately. Whatever was in the second parcel was wrapped in bubble wrap so took a bit longer to unwrap.

  ‘Wow! It’s a mobile phone,’ I said when I’d ripped off the last bit of paper. I held it up to the light. It was exquisite, with amazing colours – deep blood red and orange – like fire. At the top of the phone, above the screen, was a dark stone that looked black at first, but, if you looked closely, appeared to have layers of deeper colour shining through.

  ‘Bloodstone,’ said Mr Singh. ‘Very beautiful. Who’s it from?’

  ‘No idea,’ I replied. ‘I think I may have won it on an astrology website.’

  ‘Lucky you,’ said Mr Singh. ‘Shall I put the wrappings in the bin?’

  I shook my head. ‘No, I’ll take it in case there’s an address for the sender so I can thank them,’ I said. I pocketed the phone and headed out for the pavement.

  This really is my lucky day, I thought as I felt the smooth surface of the new phone in my pocket next to my old one. A part in the play, a present in the post and a curly chocolate chew. Life really doesn’t get any better.

  I couldn’t resist. There was a knee-high wall to my right. I stepped up and, putting one foot in front of the other, I pretended that I was on a tightrope. I put my arms out to my sides the way I had seen performers do in the circus.

  ‘You look happy,’ called a man on a cycle on the other side of the road. He seemed to have appeared from nowhere. I looked over and did a double take at his strange appearance. He had spiked-up white hair, a silver lightning fork painted on his forehead, shiny electric-blue clothes and his bike wasn’t a two wheeler – it was a unicycle. He looked as if he were going to a sci-fi fancy-dress party.

  ‘I am happy.’ I grinned back at him and the moment our eyes met a dog barked a short distance away. Seconds later, there was the sound of a cat screeching, frantic scrabbling and then a ginger tom, spitting and hissing, shot out in front of me. It sprang off the wall, down the pavement and round a corner. It all happened so fast.

  ‘Ee . . . yoh, wuh, arrgh . . .’ I cried as I lost my balance. I put my left hand out to stop my fall and landed in a crumpled heap by the wall.

  The man was off his bike and by my side like a shot. ‘Oops! Oh. Are you all right? Can you get up? Stupid cat. Did you see it?’

  ‘I . . . I . .
.’ Something was wrong. I put my hand out to try and push myself up on to my knees, but I yowled in pain as my left wrist crumpled like the bone had turned to rubber. ‘I-I’m OK, but . . . I think I hurt my wrist.’

  ‘Then don’t move,’ said the man. ‘Is there someone I can phone?’

  I nodded and with my right hand I pulled out my usual mobile. ‘It’s OK. I-I’ll phone my mum, but please don’t go.’

  The man looked at me with kind eyes. ‘I won’t leave,’ he said.

  And then the tears came. My wrist hurt badly.

  The man knelt down next to me. ‘Came out of nowhere it did,’ he said as he patted my shoulder. ‘Most unexpected!’

  Chapter Four

  Spook Night

  ‘Now this is how you do tightrope,’ said the man, who had introduced himself as Uri after I’d made my call to Mum.

  ‘No,’ I cried as he lifted his unicycle on to the wall, then got up and sat on the seat. ‘You’ll fall too.’

  He winked. ‘Me? Never. Just watch,’ he said, and he began to ride along the narrow edge of the wall. After a few moments, he sprang up and stood on the seat. I wanted to clap, but didn’t dare in case it hurt my wrist even more. It was throbbing like mad and I was worried that I might have broken it.

  ‘Whoa,’ I called as Uri bent over and did a handstand. ‘Whoa! Be careful!’ He was awesome to watch. A bit mad, I thought, not someone you’d expect to run into on the way home, but impressive nonetheless. I wonder who he is. ‘Are you going to a fancy-dress party?’

  He laughed and shook his head.

  ‘Children’s entertainer?’

  He shook his head again.

  ‘Who then?’

  ‘I am Uri, otherwise known as Uranus, ruler of Aquarius, planet of the unexpected.’

  I laughed and did a wibbly-wobbly salute with my good hand and crossed my eyes. ‘Yeah, right. And I’m Queen Zugula from the planet Zog. You’re winding me up.’