 
Recrafted: 2018

Group Two

## Heaton Extension Writers Anthology

Edited by Beaulah Pragg and Fran Atkinson
Smashwords Edition (2018)

Copyright © respective authors (Lucy Munro, Helius Tee, Sienna Ford, Emelia O'Leary, Lucinda Thompson-Quinn, Lukah Bennett, Maggie de Their-Hunt, Daniel Prager, Bronson Reuben, Sithum Alahakoon, Mya Cawood, Charlie Walker, Xavier Stewart) 2018

Cover image by Beaulah Pragg using images from pixabay.com

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www.beaulahpragg.com
Table of Contents

Introduction  
by Beaulah Pragg and Fran Atkinson

Midnight Memories  
Lucy Munro

The Pickpocket in Poverty  
Helius Tee

The Dwarf's Rebellion  
Sienna Ford

Elf of the Year  
Emelia O'Leary

Goldi and the Penthouse Suite  
Lucinda Thompson-Quinn

Maleficent's Curse  
Lukah Bennett

The Runaway Princess  
Maggie de Their-Hunt

William's Nightmare  
Daniel Prager

The Wolf  
Bronson Reuben

Goldilocks and the Magical Gem  
Sithum Alahakoon

Awake  
Mya Cawood

The Story of Piper  
Charlie Walker

The Different Child  
Xavier Stewart

About the Editors

Other Titles

# Introduction

Welcome to this anthology of recrafted fairy tales by students at Heaton Intermediate School in Christchurch, New Zealand.  
Over ten weeks, students learned about the history and structure of fairy tales, along with how to craft a short story.

They then chose a fairy tale to recraft, using one of three approaches. First, they could pick a different point of view—eg. tell _Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs_ from a dwarf's point of view. Second, they could change the role of the main character—eg. make the Ugly Duckling a human boy. Finally, they could change the setting—eg. set _Rapunzel_ in a prison camp.

The class spent many weeks writing, story editing (making sure the plot made sense), and then copy editing (checking spelling, grammar and tense). After the course ended, Fran and Beaulah edited and proof-checked the stories, in preparation for publishing.

We were both deeply impressed by the willingness of these students to return to their stories again and again over so many weeks, patiently working through layer after layer of feedback to make their work shine.

We are proud of the stories they have produced and hope you enjoy reading them.

Beaulah Pragg and Fran Atkinson

#  Midnight Memories

## By Lucy Munro

Footsteps bounce off the walls of the concrete corridor. I pretend to be asleep as they approach my cell. The whisper from Kade's lips is barely noticeable, but my ears know the sound of each letter his mouth forms every night. "Rapunzel, Rapunzel. Let me be with you tonight."

I hear his keys collide with each other as he unlocks my door. All 143 keys hooked onto the one small loop, yet I'm the one he visits, I'm the one he is going to risk his life for in a few weeks time. I see through the bars in my door his dirty, blue uniform, once new and bright. That was when the Kade first joined the war, two years ago, thirteen years after the war began. The bolt from my door thuds, as Kade enters my cell. He sits next to me on my dusty mattress and unrolls the map of the camp we have drawn over the previous months. Our escape route is pencilled in faintly after being under development for many weeks.

I try to imagine what the world will be like beyond the camp. I have lived here since I was 4 and this camp has become my home. Life in a prison camp isn't as bad as you would think. The food is homemade, and we have the freedom to do what we like, within reason. Once you are old enough to work, you help out, looking after the little ones, working in the kitchens or gardens, or for the unlucky ones, get sent to fight. That's what happened to my mother. Our house was invaded by the soldiers, and she was dragged away from my small hands and desperate cries. Ever since that day, I've never left this camp. I've never seen her again either.

My memories swirl inside my head and fade to a dull grey. My thoughts are interrupted by Kade's deep, melodic voice, "If we left to the East Quarter at the same time, the guards could pick a trail and work out that we must be together, but if you stay in the East Quarter too long, then they'll come and check on us. Which one do you think will be safer, Zelly?"

"You're overthinking things, Kade. The more details you add, the more that could go wrong. People are going to connect the dots. I mean, it's not every day that prisoners or guards escape." To calm his nerves, I trace my fingers over his strong jaw and pull him into a loose embrace. We sit entwined with each other for a few minutes, taking long, slow breaths into the musty cell air.

Our haven is broken by Kade once again. "We should leave. Tonight. Right now."

"But how?" I reply, wary of the consequences of being caught.

"We just leave. As simple as that. Throw away the plan and just let the wind carry us away. I don't know if I can bear being away from you for any longer. I love you Zelly." We sit in silence for a while longer, and I finally speak.

"You know that I love you Kade, but it's too dangerous. Our escape is less than a month away, but it's too hard to leave now. The best I can promise is leaving a week early. If we leave on a Wednesday, then the guards should be on the same roster.

Kade kisses me gently on my hand and says, "I have to leave now. I don't want to worry you, but some of the guards have begun to get suspicious, especially Officer Miller. They often ask why I'm always in E Block. I'm not sure how frequent our visits will become. No matter what Rapunzel, and I mean no matter what, I will make sure we escape this place, even if it's the last thing I do.

"Goodnight. I love you."

"Night," I reply, my mood lifted by Kade's visit.

The next morning, Charlotte, Amelia and I begin to organise the supplies under my floorboards. We have three different piles on my floor; food, clothes, and everything else. We are sitting in a circle, all talking at once, at about three hundred words a minute. Other people wouldn't catch a single word we're saying, not only because of our uncountable inside jokes, but because of the flurry of words all at once. I'm really going to miss them. During our packing, I remind them of my promise to Amelia and Charlotte.

"You do know that once Kade and I escape the war zone, we're reporting this camp to the other side. I'm pretty sure they wouldn't be too happy about this. We're going to look for Kade's family and find anyone willing to help. If any of the soldiers or prisoners escape, we could liberate this camp or even other ones. Remember when Kade and I first planned to leave this camp, I said I'm getting you out of here? I'm keeping my promise."

I look around the cell, and Amelia and Charlie have tears welling in their eyes. We collapse onto the floor and lie in silence. I wish moment like these could last forever, but my longing to see the outside world is too strong to ignore.

Later that day I see Kade across the camp. He's surrounded by a group of girls, quite clearly complimenting him. In all honesty, I don't blame them. The thing about Kade is that he has absolutely no faults. He has messy light brown hair, too long to be short, but too short to be long. He is tall and muscular from all his work as a guard and ex-soldier. His piercing blue eyes and his sharp jawline could make any girl fall at his feet, but he is modest and pretends he doesn't notice their obvious attempts to gain his attention. For the slightest of seconds, Kade and my eyes lock, and the corners of his mouth turn ever so slightly up. I smile to myself and head off once again.

After dinner I sat in my cell thinking. This space has been my only place to call home for the past fifteen years. Every possible space in my cell is covered in drawings, each wall bursting with them. When I'm not with Amelia and Charlotte, who are practically my sisters, or busy with other chores, I am drawing on any scraps I can find with my precious HB pencil. Although I wish I could draw all day, I often work in the kitchens, cooking, organising food deliveries and occasionally helping the small kids to grow basic crops in the field. I could spend hours sitting inside my cell drawing, but we are encouraged to spend time outside during the day. I always seize the opportunity to spend time with Charlie and Amelia, especially now since I leave in tomorrow. My mind is constantly thinking about the number of supplies Kade and I have collected between us. Will it be enough? It's hard to know, but we've been preparing for months now. We aren't sure how far it is until the borders, but we have an old map from the start of the war with basic landmarks and directions. I can only hope we escape safely and somehow manage to find somewhere to stay.

I'm not sure if Kade will manage to visit tonight. I need to give him the last of my clothes I've been hoarding. I have a few pieces of fruit that Charlie, Amelia and I have also been collecting. I'm so lucky to have friends who will give up their minimal food so I can leave without them. They are going to be the hardest part of leaving. In my mind, I remember to always keep my promise to come back for them. No matter what.

Wednesday rolls around quicker than ever. Although Amelia and Charlie look just as usual, I can tell they are nervous for me. The remaining space under the loose floorboard is ever evaporating, but I'm still worried about the number of supplies Kade and I will have. We only will have one set each of Kade's old clothes and food that will last about two weeks if we ration tightly. As I'm going over the list for the four hundredth time, I see Officer Miller approaching my way.

"Hello Rapunzel," he says with a sly look on his face. My brain instantly jumps to the worst case scenario- he must know.

"I have been noticing Officer Ledger has been spending a lot of time in E Block. Have you seen him doing anything... let's say... out of the ordinary during his time here?" Instead of showing my real panic, I reply calmly.

"Not as far as I could tell. Ka- Officer Ledger seems to be doing everything just as usual." I know I've slipped up, but I'm praying that Miller won't notice.

"If you like, I'll watch him tonight. Is he rostered for my block? I can report back to you tomorrow if there is any suspicious behaviour," I offer as a distraction from my mistake.

"In fact, he is in E Block tonight. That would be wonderful. Talk to me tomorrow if you notice anything," Officer Miller says as he turns and walks away. I let out a sigh of relief, and am about to go tell Charlotte and Amelia when the Major announces that all guards must report to the Meeting Room in ten minutes. That means all of the prisoners will be shepherded into our cells and will have dinner brought to us instead of in the hall. Our escape no longer feels surreal, and the shock is like a slap to the face. I'm about to leave my friends and home. I run over to Amelia and Charlotte as fast as I can.

"I guess this is goodbye," I say holding back the tears welling in my eyes.

"Goodbye for now," Amelia corrects.

"It's never really goodbye," Charlotte says as we all embrace. We are all separated by some guards and are ushered back to our cells. With one final look back, I say goodbye in my heart to my best friends.

Later that day, my food is delivered through the slit in my door. It's just the usual food. Some sort of casserole dish with green beans. Even though I'm hungry, I feel sick. My nerves are worse than ever, but I force myself to eat all of the food. I debate taking a nap, as I will be awake all night. I try to sleep but mostly lie on my back looking up at the roof. After what feels like hours, I feel myself drifting off.

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel. Let me be with you tonight." My brain wakes up groggily, but my senses become instantly alert as I remember what I'm about to do.

"You ready?" Kade asks, a smile spreading across his face.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I reply.

"What's the time?" I ask.

"Just past 11:30. That means we leave in under forty-five minutes, " Kade answers.

As we load all of the food and gear into a small backpack I say to Kade, "One more thing."

I hand him a tattered piece of paper. It's my favourite drawing. A landscape shot of the camp with Kade standing guard while Amelia and Charlotte are laughing in the foreground.

"Wow," Kade says, his mouth hanging open.

"Shall we get going?" I ask, taking in my cell for the last time. Kade laces his fingers in mine, and we head out the door.

"To freedom," he whispers.

My heart is pounding in my chest as I walk down the E Block corridor. Once we get out of the blocks, we face the hardest challenge of all. Actually getting out of the ten-metre-high barbed wire fence. I've never seen the camp in the dark, and the moon makes the cold, concrete buildings shine. Kade's sharp whisper startles me, "Get down."

As I hold my breath, beams of light shine over our hiding place. I strain to hear what the guards are saying, but all I can catch is, "Right. All areas are clear. Finally, we can exchange for the night guards. A couple of the boys are running late, but I think it will be alright."

"Yeah. I think it should be good enough," says another voice chiming in. I look at Kade, and he's smiling like he's just won the war. I know exactly what we're both thinking. We watch intently as one by one, the guards leave.

"Time to shine Zelly." We weave in and out of old water barrels and walls of the other blocks. As we get closer to the fence, I don't see any guards. Now comes the make or break moment. We will have to cross the open land to get through the fence.

"What's our plan, Kade? Are we going to sneak or sprint?" I ask, as I try and peer into the dark.

"I'm not sure about you, but I always liked sprints. Seems a bit more dramatic too."

I grin at him and nod.

"It's now or never Zelly." He takes my hand and bolts. My legs feel like they're flying as we sprint towards the fence. We reach it and scramble to find the loose section Amelia, Charlie, and I had secretly been working on for the last few weeks, twisting the wires until they were thin enough to be cut by Kade's wire cutters.

"I found it!" I call out to Kade. He pulls the fence out and tries to usher me through the hole. I hesitate as I realise I'm about to step foot out of the camp for the first time in fifteen years. I put one foot through the gap, manoeuvre my body through, followed by my right foot. Kade does the same, and by some miracle, none of the slowly re-appearing guards have noticed our escape. I look at Kade, and we both have the same look in our eyes. He locks me in a passionate kiss before we take off at a full sprint into the night.

##  Author Bio

Lucy Munro is a keen student at Heaton Intermediate. Her favourite subjects are maths and science, but she enjoys creating stories during school. Her story, _The Power Of The River_ , was published in the Young NZ Writers latest anthology (Beyond Expectations) on June 23rd as her first published story. Her favourite book is _Shutter Island_ by Dennis Lehane. She reads often and greatly enjoys it. In her free time, Lucy likes to listen to music, sing, dance, or in the summer, do gymnastics.

She chose to rewrite _Rapunzel_ in a war camp instead of a tower.

#  The Pickpocket in Poverty

## by Helius Tee

Creeping up behind her, like a tiger about to strike, she sluggishly plunged her hand into the purse, trying not to dig around too hard. The woman didn't even flinch as her belongings were slowly scooped up. _Too easy_ , Goldilocks thought, as she skipped away with a cocky grin.

She walked up to the pawnbroker and emptied her brown bag with a sound like a tin can being thrown at the ground. The pawnbroker offered her €20. Goldilocks would eat well tonight.

A week passed. Many people were finding out that their belongings had been stolen. A lot of people started carrying less money on them because of Goldilocks. She started robbing houses instead.

Observing one of the richest neighbourhoods, Goldilocks found a house that seemed like the perfect candidate: far enough from any police station, but not so deep into the country that she would get lost. Goldilocks scouted that one house for a week. The house was large and wealthy, yet it was over 95 years old. In that house were a father, a mother and a baby. The family were very kind and generous people so they had many friends.

On one inconspicuous summer evening, the family was out for dinner at a close friend's house. The family was such a caring family. They thought no one would rob them. The family was so sure, that they never felt the need to install a security system. This was Goldilocks' chance.

She approached the house under the cover of night, hoping no one would detect her sneaking over towards the house. As with all of Goldilocks' robberies, she took her lucky brown bag to store stolen goods. She was sure the owners would be out for a long time, as they usually were when they went to their friend's house. They always stayed late.

There was one open window with a rusty latch. The window was barely open but wide enough for the latch to be broken.

After about three minutes the latch broke with a loud snapping noise. She ducked in instinct at the noise to disguise herself within the black night, but the noise was funnelled by the busy traffic. A needle in a haystack. She exhaled and squeezed through. Although being half-starved was painful, it had its advantages—she was able to fit through quite easily.

She looked around and realised that she had snuck into the kitchen. There was a fridge in the corner and a stove on top of an oven. The kitchen was next to the dining room, where a large wooden table sat in the middle of the room. Immediately going to the fridge she saw that the family had prepared supper for themselves when they returned. Three bowls of homemade Italian spaghetti. A large one for the father, a medium sized one for the mother, and a small bowl for the baby.

Like a lion pouncing on its prey, she jumped at the baby's bowl. Walking slowly to the table while grabbing at the spaghetti. She sat down and ate so fast that she was bloated by all the air she swallowed while on her frenzy. The feeling of starvation makes your common sense blind. She was only able to finish the baby's bowl.

Barely able to get out of her chair, she used her new body weight to her advantage to get more momentum, almost rolling off the chair she was sitting on.

Going next to the living room, she started looking through the room for valuables that may be the right size, but valuable, to put into her brown bag. Trophies, certificates, and medals for many different community achievements lined their walls and tables. The family was clearly generous and kind. Having almost no more shelves to store all of their cups. She stole many medallions and cups, to sell at the pawn shop. She was sure she would be paid a handsome amount for this. She didn't bother to check in the bathrooms and toilets as there would be no valuables there. Goldilocks was moderately experienced with these types of houses.

On her way to the bedroom, she entered a space with a fireplace and some bookcases packed against the wall. She noticed some chairs that looked like white fluffy clouds. She made her way over to the chairs and sat on each of them. One was much too hard for her. Another too soft. Finally, the smallest one made her feel tired as soon as she sat on it. She sat for so long that the chair's cushion started falling down from her weight gained after eating the spaghetti. The cushion, unable to withstand the weight, fell through the chair. She was frightened by the sudden drop.

She pushed her legs down and got out of the chair to get back on task. She continued upstairs, skimming through each drawer carefully. She made her way into the bedroom to find several gaming consoles and computers. She had never seen anything like this before. She found an 'on' switch on the computer, and eventually she was glued to the screen. She put on headphones and a virtual reality headset. After putting everything on, she looked like an octopus made out of wires. Fully enveloped in the new technology, it was almost like she was in a trance.

* * *

"Someboda toucha my spaghett!" the baby wailed, his voice echoing through the house. After having to be on high alert for so long, she grew quite good hearing; despite having headphones on, she heard yelling downstairs. She untangled herself from all the wires and ran downstairs.

Goldilocks relied on her instinct too much and did not think of where she was heading. While running downstairs, she swung around each corner bannister. But she was cornered, unable to escape. They were infuriated.

The mother, the calmest of all of them, put a hand on her husband's shoulder. "Don't. She is just a little girl. You must be hungry," the mother said calmly.

The father turned to Goldilocks and sighed. He turned to his wife and nodded.

"Please have a seat," the father offered.

Goldilocks, with adrenaline pumping through her veins, still felt the need to escape, even with the calm atmosphere that the family gave. But the family made sure she wasn't able to escape, blocking off the available exits. She sat down.

"Would you like a drink?" the mother asked. Goldilocks was confused.

What is happening?

The mother and father nodded at each other.

"We would like to propose something to you. We want you to visit us whenever you want for anything you want," the father said.

Still bewildered, Goldilocks was unable to say anything. How could she do such an act and have the family still treat them like any other?

"On one condition. You must change your ways," the father stated.

"Change what?" Goldilocks finally spoke.

"To not steal and hurt people of course!" the father said.

Goldilocks was extremely sceptical. _What is wrong with how I do things?_ she thought.

The mother took a deep breath. "Why do you do these things?" she asked.

Goldilocks tilted her head forward and said, "It's how I survive."

_Why would the parents want me around?_ She couldn't remember her parents because they left her. She was raised by some kind homeless people. She was taught to eat from garbage bins to survive. _What would they get from having me around?_

Goldilocks had tears streaming down her eyes now.

"We know your life must be horrible, but we want to help you, not hurt you," the mother said.

"Please, consider our offer," the father spoke.

Goldilocks grabbed her brown bag and emptied the items on the table.

"I'm sorry for breaking into your house," Goldilocks apologised. "I'll think about your offer."

"You may leave now," the father said.

Goldilocks walked out of the house with tears still running down her cheek and thought, _I'll never come back._

Almost a week after the offer, she was starving. How could one live without food? Every time she thought of travelling to the family's house, she tried to suppress the thought even more. She had no choice. She knew she would keep her word because if she didn't, what chance would she have of having a friend or an ally? She walked over.

It was a nice sunny day. The breeze lifted her golden locks. She was slightly afraid to go over. Why did she need to be? With a hand that seemed to be repelled by the doorbell, she forced her hand to ring it.

"Why did you wait so long?" the mother asked.

"No reason," Goldilocks replied. The mother was able to see her fear of them from a mile away.

"We were worried sick about you," the mother said. She brought her in and sat her down at the kitchen table. They were eating spaghetti again. This time the spaghetti was hot and full of spices and herbs. She took a bite. It was amazing. Every bite seemed better than the last. Without noticing, everyone at the dinner table was staring at Goldilocks. She finished before they even started to have their lunch.

After lunch, Goldilocks was let out of the house and invited to come again. This time she came back in about half the time as before. This repeated many, times. Eventually, she started coming every other day. After the 20th time, the family stopped her from leaving the house.

"Come back here. We would like to ask you something," the mother and father said softly.

"We would like you to join us," they explained. Goldilocks was confused as to what they meant. The family looked at each other.

"We want you to come into our family," they finally said.

Goldilocks blushed and almost fainted. The thought of a real family petrified her.

"Why?" Goldilocks asked.

"We want to give you another chance at life. You have the potential to be better than us, to change the world. You have so many talents," they stated.

She thought about how many new opportunities she could take. She would have a full stomach every day. If something went wrong she would still be able to escape using a window or through school. But what did she have to return to?

She thought for a good five minutes. After a long and tense few minutes, she accepted their offer. Her life had turned over a new leaf.

##  Author Bio

Helius Tee is a twelve-year-old pupil at Heaton Normal Intermediate. He loves writing short stories about realistic fiction and enjoys doing mathematics, football and athletics. He likes reading short stories with great description and a bit of humour. Helius likes writing short stories about these topics as well.

Helius has retold _Goldilocks and the Three Bears_ with a change in setting. He changed the setting to Venice, Italy. He picked this change because he thought it would be the most interesting. Helius was very happy with his choice.

#  The Dwarf's Rebellion

## by Sienna Ford

The life of a dwarf was difficult. It wasn't because we were short and couldn't reach things. It was for reasons we didn't choose. The queen did. She made us mine in a cave all day, just so she could have her diamonds. She made us live in the woods, just so that we were out of the way. She used to do all that. Until things changed.

In our mine, we had a variety of jobs. First, there were the miners, the ones who actually mined the diamonds. Then, there were the ones who transported the diamonds in a minecart. They sent them to the dwarfs who sorted the diamonds, I was one of them. They sorted out the perfect ones (which went to the queen), the imperfect ones (which went to the market, and the queen received the money from them), and the horrible ones (which we received). Because the diamonds we received were so terrible, we would grind them into diamond dust, which we then sold. Lastly, there were the ones who gathered and disposed of the rejected diamonds. That's pretty much how our mine worked.

The last day of spring was a little different though. I was tired of all this work, and most of all, our little income. Judging by all the slack work that had been going on lately, I could tell everyone else was too. I decided to do something about it.

"Why do we go through this every day?" I asked my brother Adam.

"What do you mean?" he asked in reply.

"Why do we do what the queen says?" I asked, louder this time.

"Because if we don't... we'd probably die," he replied.

"But what if we fought back?" I said. This time I could feel everyone's eyes on me.

"How could we win against an army?" David cut in.

"Easy," Fred said, "we could win by hacking at their skin with our pickaxes."

Everyone laughed at that. I honestly didn't get what was funny, but I guess everyone laughs at Fred because everyone likes him.

"We have an army," I said, ignoring Fred's comment.

"Pfft, an army of dwarfs. We're half the size of them. How could we win?" David asked.

"Just forget it, Brian, it wouldn't work," Adam said quietly.

"Just forget it? Forget the enslavement we're being forced into? Forget the small amount of money we earn? Forget the death of Cameron?" I asked him, anger burning inside of me.

That was when everyone burst out. I'd really hit a nerve at the mention of Cameron. He had been killed when part of the mine we'd been hacking at for a long time finally gave way. He was the unlucky one who had been hit. The others were just trapped behind the rocks, and luckily we managed to free them.

It was late afternoon when we returned home. It was silent in the village, and the candles washed over us with a faint light. All twenty houses were empty, meaning every one of the eighty dwarfs in our village were still walking back from the mine. My house came into view; I shared it with Adam, Fred and David. There were four dwarfs who lived in every house.

I unlocked the door to my house. I stepped in and dumped my gear by the door, behind me the rest did the same. We were all hungry, and when we stepped into the kitchen we saw a freshly baked pie, sitting on the table.

Of course, everyone was attracted to the smell of pie because, well, it's food. Because I had entered first I rushed to the table to grab the pie, and not because I wanted to eat it. No one knows who could have made that pie.

"Awww, Brian got to it first!" Fred cried.

"Give it to me!" David shouted. He ran forwards as fast as he could on his short legs. I held it up above my head. Though I'm short, David's shorter.

"You don't know what could be inside of this pie!" I said to them with a stern voice.

"Sure I do," Fred said, "apples."

"Well, I'm going to search this house," I said, ignoring Fred. "Is anyone else?"

"What for?" Adam asked.

"For the mysterious pie-maker," I said.

"It was probably just Holly, you know how she loves to bake," Adam replied.

"But Holly was at work today, point proven, now let me search for this criminal," I said.

"Fine." Adam said, "I'll help."

"Ahhhhhh!" Fred screamed as we found someone sitting on my bed.

She was much too tall to be a dwarf, so she had to be human. We had searched all the great hiding spots in our house but did not expect to find her here. She spun around to face us, a shocked expression on their face.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—" she began, but not all of us were listening. Fred turned and bolted down the stairs.

"Fred, get back here!" I yelled.

"It's the culprit, no way!" he yelled back.

I turned to look at the mysterious person.

She looked at me. "I'm so sorry I scared you!" She sounded as though she were really sorry, but I still didn't trust her.

"Why are you here?" Adam asked her.

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me," she said.

"Well, I think we would, actually," David told her.

"Okay then," she said, "It all started when my mother died..." She paused for dramatic effect.

"Oh, if you're going to launch into that, I'll need to get my brother. Fred will want to hear this," I said.

After a lot of persuading, I managed to bring Fred back inside.

Her story was fairly long, but to cut it short, she pretty much almost got killed by a huntsman. Her evil stepmother had ordered him to do it, but he had a soft heart. She ran into the woods, seeking refuge, and found our cottage. She found our lovely kitchen and did some baking to calm herself down, I guess that's where the pie came from.

Everyone thought we should let her stay. I agreed, but only because my brothers looked so happy. For me, she's on trial.

She told us that her name is Snow White, I thought it was kind of a strange name but the others didn't seem to think so. We told her that we didn't like the queen either, we call her the evil queen. I plan to get rid of her, now my brothers and I just had to convince the other dwarfs.

It was only a few days after Snow White had arrived. We always left two of us at home with her for protection, as we realised she was too valuable—she could help us against the queen as she knew things that we didn't. She also did a lot of work around the house. We provided her with a home, and we protected her from the evil queen.

That day, Fred and David were at home with her. When we returned home from the mine, I could smell something burning. I walked through the door and dumped my mining gear on the floor. I'd deal with that after I found out what was going on.

"What happened?!" Adam asked, rushing to the table. I got into the room and there was a scorched pie sitting on the table.

"Actually, that's not our main priority right now," David growled.

"What's got you so moody?" asked Adam.

"He has." David pointed to Fred, who was lying on the couch. To me, he looked weak, maybe from doing so many chores, but apparently not for Adam.

"Oh, let me guess, it's because he got to sleep while you had to do chores?" Adam said.

"Actually, he got poisoned," Snow White blurted out.

"What!" I yelled. "How did he get poisoned?"

"Okay, so we were happily cooking a pie, all three of us, when I looked up and saw an old lady at the window," Snow White began. "She didn't exactly look like your average grandma though, she was short, with a black cloak that hung down to her ankles, she had a long nose and long nails, and overall she looked kind of like a witch."

Snow White paused and shared a look with David, urging him to finish off.

"As soon as she saw that we'd noticed her, she asked us, 'cooking pie my dears?' She had a raspy voice. When we told her we were making gooseberry pie, she told us that apples tasted way better in pies. She then revealed a basket filled with apples. Confused about what was going on, we all just nodded."

David looked at Snow White, and she continued.

"Then she moved her eyes to me. 'Try one,' she said, 'they're delicious.' Before I could reach out to take one, Fred pushed past me and snatched the apple from her hand. He took a bite and fell to the ground."

"Wait, what?" Adam exclaimed, "He just fell to the ground after eating an apple?"

"Yes," I agreed, "that does seem rather strange."

"We're getting there," David growled, and he continued with the story. "We then realised that she had poisoned the apple. At least now she had no weapons against us. We grabbed our pickaxes and chased her away from our house, but she was incredibly fast for an old lady. We then came back to see if the poison had killed Fred or not."

"Wait a second, why would a random lady want to kill Fred?" I asked.

"We've been thinking about it," Snow White said. "That old lady wasn't who we thought. She was the evil queen, and she was trying to poison me, not Fred."

After Fred had been poisoned, things weren't quite the same. It was quieter than usual, and we had no one to tell funny jokes for us to laugh at. We were all sitting around the table in silence. Snow White was on the couch because she couldn't fit. I took a glance around the table, everyone's heads were down.

Snow White must have noticed our sad expressions because she got up from the table and went to the fridge. "Is anyone hungry?" she asked. I looked up to see her pull out a bowl of fruit salad she must have made yesterday.

"I'm pretty hungry after our work today," I said. She brought over the bowl of fruit salad along with four plates. We ate the fruit happily, but when everyone was finished, I noticed that the apples were left untouched.

Now all of us dwarfs plotted against the queen, we just weren't quite sure how to get to her yet. Of course, we couldn't just march right into the castle and stab the queen with a knife. That would be stupid.

"So... what are your plans of revenge?" I asked my brothers and Snow White.

"Well, I was kind of thinking we could just send her a 'fan basket' containing poisonous pie," Adam said.

"Wow, how original," David said sarcastically.

"I'm not good at being evil," Adam replied, a hint of frustration in his voice.

"Anyway, what were you thinking of David?" I asked.

"We stab the queen." He shrugged.

"Yeah, but how would we get close enough to her to do that?" I asked.

"Yeah, it's not like a whole army of dwarfs would be allowed to barge into a fully guarded castle." Adam pointed out.

"What are your thoughts, Snow White?" I asked. "You've been very quiet."

"Well, I know we couldn't sneak into the castle. I've seen the whole thing. There aren't any secret passages, not even one," she said. "But knowing the queen, she's going to come to us."

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

"Just think, if she meant for that apple to be for me, then when Fred ate it she must have been pretty angry. She isn't just going to let me survive. She won't just go home and say, 'Oh no, Snow White didn't get poisoned, I'll just give up now.' Do you think anyone would say that? She's gonna come back, and when she does, we'll be ready," Snow White finished.

We walked to the grand hall, which was where the meeting was being held. It was big enough for all of us dwarfs to fit inside, and Snow White as well. Adam stayed behind to look after Fred, as he wasn't well. For the first ten minutes of the meeting, we talked about financial issues. Basically all just on sorting out our weekly salary. But before long, Adam came rushing in. He had tears rushing down his cheeks as he whispered, "Fred's gone."

After that news, the other dwarfs were ready to avenge their friend. Snow White told them our plan and they all agreed. After the meeting, we went home to move our pickaxes from the mining cupboard to our bedroom, so we would be prepared at any time. We all planned our attack. If anyone saw the queen, they would blow their horn (we all have one in our house). After the horn was blown, we'd grab our pickaxes and charge out of our house and attack.

Hopefully, we would win.

It was six in the morning, and it was still dark. The horn had been blown by someone from another house. We were launching into full-on attack mode, the other dwarfs emerging from their houses as well.

Fighting in the dark was harder than expected. The queen had clearly thought that we wouldn't expect them coming; even though she had fifty soldiers, she probably meant for them to kill us in our sleep. That plan had failed badly. Clearly, her soldiers didn't think they'd have to be doing much fighting either, I could tell by their drowsy expressions and sleepy stances.

It was only too easy to... I shouldn't mention what we did in this story, it's too violent. We worked our way through the soldiers easily, I didn't even have a scratch. Some of her men were such wimps they didn't even put up a fight.

The last one standing was the queen. She had a sword, a sharp metal one. We surrounded her, she was trapped with nowhere to go. With all of us charging in at once, I guess she didn't stand a chance.

We held funerals for those who had given their lives to protect us. Fred, Hannah, and Carl. Both Hannah and Carl had died during the battle. We all cried, even David, and he never cries. We did it our way, with each dwarf given their chance to speak. It took the rest of the day.

I'm pretty sure that by the end of it, we were all beginning to recover, and the next day, we had another meeting.

"So, the queens gone," I said.

"Hooray!" everyone yelled.

"But with her absence, we need a new ruler," I announced.

There were a lot of murmurs before someone yelled, "I'll rule!"

"We need someone to rule the whole kingdom, are you up for that," I asked.

"Oh... I don't think so," they replied.

"I know who can rule!" Adam yelled out. "Snow White!"

Everyone started cheering and the announcement was clear, Snow White was queen. She walked up to the front of the crowd.

"Well, if I'm going to be queen there will need to be some changes around here," she said, "I now declare that all dwarfs are free from enslavement and now earn eighty percent of their profit."

Everyone was cheering so loud that I was sure all the villagers would hear.

"That's to be shared among you though, just to be clear," she yelled over top of the cheering.

Either nobody minded, or no one heard, as it didn't stop our continuous celebration.

Now the dwarfs are happy. We still work in the mine, but we're free. We don't have to live in the woods anymore, but we love our home so much that we couldn't leave.

Snow White now lives in the queen's old castle, but we visit her once a week. She tries to persuade us to move in with her, but we're not quite ready yet.

Even though we are much happier now, we still think of Fred, Hannah and Carl. We think of them every day, and there's no way we could forget them.

##  Author Bio

Sienna Ford is twelve years old. She likes writing fiction stories. She enjoys reading books like _Harry Potter_ , by J.K. Rowling and _Twilight_ , by Stephenie Meyer. She likes to read because the stories people write are original and interesting; they bring you to a whole new world. She likes to write because she wants to create a book like the ones she reads, but original. She loves to play netball and piano.

She chose to rewrite _Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs_ from the point of view of one of the dwarfs.

#  Elf of the Year

## by Emelia O'Leary

"Hello lovely people of Elvesville, and welcome to this year's Elf of the year award," said the announcer. Izzy roared with excitement along with the crowd. "I am delighted to be able to announce the winner of this year's award.

"As you know the Elf of the Year competition is a long-running tradition in Elvesville, were elves go around and help humans, and whoever makes the biggest impact on the human society wins." On he went for a good thirty minutes, like he does every year, until he finally got to the good bit, "And the winner is... Rudolph, for his astounding dedication to helping Rhonda restore her bakery after the Pandemonium Boulevarde fire," the announcer screamed the last part over the cheering of the crowd.

Izzy clapped and cheered as her father went up to collect his Elf of the Year Trophy, and his official Elvesville Board badge, just like his father had done before him, and his grandfather had done before that. In fact, members of Izzy's family had been winning Elf of the Year for twenty-three years straight.

After doing a couple of press interviews, her father wandered towards where she was standing. "This will be you next year Izzy," he said grinning.

Izzy knew what he meant. She turned eighteen next year, which meant she was old enough to enter. She was also the only person in her family able to enter this year. Everyone else in her family had already won or weren't eligible yet. They were all relying on her. Her father would put a lot of pressure on her to win. It was important to him that she uphold this family legacy of representing Elvesville, and continue the winning streak. It was an honour to be a member of the Elvesville Board, they made the rules, met with other elf provinces, and if trouble ever brewed with the human world, the Elvesville Board sort it out.

"I see your family won again this year," said a familiar voice. Izzy spun around to see her enemy, Kate standing behind her. "Are you entering this year?" she asked.

"Yeah," Izzy replied.

"Do you know what you are going to do?"

"No, do you?"

"I have an idea, but I'm still thinking. I do know one thing though."

"What?"

"I'm going to put an end to your family's winning streak and make sure your family doesn't cheat again. Yes, I have a suspicion that your father talked to the human he helped, which I'm sure you're aware is against the rules. So I'll be keeping my eye on you," and with that, Kate disappeared into the crowd, leaving Izzy gobsmacked.

* * *

A COUPLE OF MONTHS LATER

Izzy, stressing out, wandered into human town. The Elf of the Year Competition deadline was looming closer every day, and she still hadn't found a human to help. She was thinking of all possible ideas when she heard crying coming from a shop named Ronald's Shoe Store.

Izzy peeked her head around the corner of the door, which was slightly ajar. She saw a middle-aged man sitting on a tattered chair, balling his eyes out. "If only I could make better shoes so I could make enough money to feed my family," he sobbed.

Now Izzy had a perfect idea of how to help, and it would be her entry for the competition.

She walked back home to talk to her father. When she got to the house, she found her him sitting at the table reading the newspaper. She sat down.

"Dad," she said.

"Oh, hello, Izzy. What's up," he replied.

"I was just wondering if you could approve my plan for the Elf of the Year Award?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"So there's this shoemaker who is struggling to make enough money to feed his family, and I was wondering if it was a good idea to sneak in and help him make some interesting designs."

"Sounds like a good idea, just make sure you don't get caught."

"Don't worry, I won't."

"Go around midnight just to make sure."

"Okay, thanks, Dad."

"No worries."

Just before midnight, Izzy made her way out of her bedroom and onto the country lane towards the Human Town. She reached the shoe store and tried the door. It was locked, so she shimmed up the drainpipe next to a loose window and jumped through onto the table.

There she found enough leather laid out on the counter to make one pair of shoes. She thought of the shoes she made during sewing class at her school and took inspiration from those.

Izzy worked quickly, but it still took more time than she expected. Finally, where the cuts of leather had been, were a brand new pair of weird and wacky shoes that were bound to sell.

Izzy camped on top of the store sign and waited until the shoe store opened. Not long after, a wealthy looking woman walked into the store. A couple of minutes later she walked out of the store wearing the shoes that Izzy had made.

Izzy felt a surge of pride go through her as she heard a happy scream coming from the shop. "This is the most money that I've ever made from one pair of shoes."

She returned the next night and was about to start one of her wacky designs when she had the feeling someone was watching her. "Hello?" she called, and a human emerged from behind the sofa.

"Hello," he replied. Izzy was stunned.

"Do you own this store?" was the only thing that she could say.

"Yes," he replied, "were you the one who made the shoes yesterday?"

"Yes."

"Well, I'm glad you returned, because I really want your help. Those shoes were so wacky and cool that people wanted to buy them, so I was wondering if you could help me create some more designs like that."

"Well, I'm not really supposed to be talking to the human I help, but I guess it will be okay just this one time."

"Okay, are you sure?"

"Yes."

"And by the way, call me Ronald."

"Okay, and call me Izzy."

Izzy and Ronald worked into the night, and by 2 am they had created a masterpiece. It was much quicker with Ronald helping. The main bit of the shoe was dark blue with purple stripes. Atop the toes was a big yellow bow with multicoloured dots.

"Thank you," Ronald said once they were done.

"That's okay, I enjoyed working on them," she replied.

Izzy returned to help Ronald every other day for about four months after that. Together they created wonderful designs as she helped him to improve his skills. She knew that talking to him was against the rules, but she preferred to work alongside him, so she just hoped that no one would find out.

One night, Izzy came and, instead of Ronald waiting for her with leather to make shoes, she found him holding a little parcel.

"Hello Izzy," Ronald said.

"Why don't you have leather?" she replied.

"I have something to tell you, Izzy, sit down."

"Okay," she said, sitting down.

"I think I have enough ideas now to carry on making shoes on my own," he said. "As thanks, however, I would like you to have this as a gift of my gratitude. Thank you, Izzy."

Feeling sad that she wouldn't get to spend time with him anymore, but happy that she had helped him create a successful business, she said, "That's okay, good luck with your business and thanks for the gift."

She smiled at Ronald and left.

* * *

NEW YEAR'S DAY

Izzy made her way over to the area where her fellow competitors were. She smiled as the lace from the dress the shoemaker had given her waved in the breeze, and as the multi-coloured bows on top of her shoes bounced. She couldn't help but feel a sense of pride.

"You excited?" Kate asked.

"More nervous than excited," Izzy replied.

"I think I have a good chance at winning," said Kate.

"Really, what did you do?"

"You'll find out when I'm holding the trophy."

"We'll see."

Kate walked off, and Izzy was left with a sinking feeling in her stomach. Had she done enough? What had Kate done? Was making shoes good enough? She would have to wait and see.

The announcer walked onto the stage. He proceeded to make a huge speech on the importance of helping humans to uphold the elf tradition of doing so, but finally, he got to the good part. "And the winner is... Izzy, for helping Ronald get his business back on track."

The crowd went wild as Izzy made her way up on stage. She could hear her father whooping and cheering. Her heart swelled with pride, and a huge smile spread across her face. She was about to go up the stairs when Kate rushed on in front of her and shouted, "I OBJECT."

"Why?" the announcer replied.

"I saw Izzy talking to the human she helped, and that's against the rules."

"Do you deny this Izzy?" the announcer asked.

"No. Okay, yes, I did talk to the human I helped" Izzy stammered.

"Are you aware that because of this, we can not award you the trophy?"

"Yes," said Izzy, her heart sinking.

"Okay, since Izzy is no longer in the running this year, we will award the trophy to Kate, for her amazing work at the animal shelter in Human Town."

Another cheer erupted from the crowd as Izzy walked off stage and slipped away.

Izzy ran down the country road. Enraged. Fuming. Furious. Furious that she didn't win. Furious that Kate had handed her in. Furious her father was going to be furious with her. Furious at herself for breaking the rules.

She ran into Human Town and stopped at the shoe shop. At least she had Ronald as a friend. She could rely on him to appreciate her. She would go live with him.

She was about to burst through the door when a familiar voice said, "Izzy?"

Izzy spun round startled, but what startled her more was the person who said it. Her father.

"If you're here to yell at me about breaking the rules and ruining our tradition, then you may as well leave now," Izzy said defensively.

"No, Izzy, it's not like that," her father replied. "Let me explain."

"Fine, but this better not be a waste of my time."

"It won't be. I'm not mad at you Izzy, Okay?"

"Then why are you here?"

"I am very proud of you for helping the shoemaker. Even though you broke the rules. And I am proud of you for being honest about it. So why don't we go home and celebrate what you helped this human achieve with a nice, big cake?"

"Yes," said Izzy, smiling. "I'd like that, I'd like that a lot."

"And you never know, you might win next year."

##  Author Bio

Emelia O'Leary is twelve years old and goes to Heaton Normal Intermediate. She enjoys reading and doodling. Her favourite books include _Singing Home the Whale_ , by Mandy Hager and _Listen to the Moon_ , by Michael Morpurgo. She also loves playing netball and adores animals.

She chose to rewrite _The Elves and the Shoemaker_ from the point of view of a new character, to give a different perspective on the story.

#  Goldi and the Penthouse Suite

## By Lucinda Thompson-Quinn

Ugh, I still can't believe Mom sold my car, but money's tight right now, and I guess walking home isn't too bad. It's only about a thirty-minute walk from school. I walk towards my apartment.

Wait, is that arguing again, I actually can't believe this. I hear my mum yelling at my older brother. He's only older by three years, but he acts like he's ten years older than me. He thinks he's an adult, which is why he and Mom get into so many arguments.

"You seriously lent the Sheep brothers your car? You know we're short on money right now, Tyler, and I only let you keep the car because you need it for university."

"I know, Mom. I'm sorry. They're just really close friends, you know?"

"Yes, I know this, but those boys are just so messy and reckless. They might wreck it."

"No, they won't!"

"Really what about—"

Yet another pointless argument. I'm going to the roof. My mum and brother always fight over the most ridiculous stuff and frankly I'm so sick of it.

Our apartment building's pretty tall, and the elevator's been broken for a few months now, but I don't mind the walk. It'll help me clear my head.

As I'm walking, I notice that they've finished the renovations on the new apartment. I decide to ask a friendly looking flamingo about it as she walks past.

"Um, excuse me, madam, has this apartment finished its renovations?"

"Oh, yes dear. They only finished quite recently. Apparently, these rich bears from Manhattan just moved in about five days ago. I've heard they own a chain of restaurants."

"Oh, interesting. Well, thank you."

I watch as the flamingo walks down the hall and turns the corner. My music stops. I look down and see my phone is dead. Great, this is just my luck, isn't it? I can't go to the roof without my phone, it would be so boring. Wait, I have this genius idea. Now, it sounds a little crazy, but it won't do anybody any harm, so why not?

I scan the hallway. It's empty, so I knock on the door. There's no answer. I twist the doorknob. Crap, it's locked. I look through the peephole on the door and notice something bizarre. The apartment is plastered with Winnie the Pooh. I'm talking a massive portrait on the wall, a huge rug in the lounge, Winnie coffee cups. They even had a life-sized Winnie cut out just chilling on the balcony. These people obviously admired him.

I almost give up hope of getting in when I hear a beep beep. Next to the door, I see a small grey keypad. I decide to put in Winnie123. It's a longshot, but it doesn't hurt to try right? I hear a click and the door jars open ever so slightly. "Yes!"

I push through into the penthouse and my jaw drops. It's the most beautiful home I've ever been in. It's all open plan, and the view is amazing.

I don't really know about this though—I can't go to the roof without my phone, I'll literally die of boredom, but I also don't want to go home because of all that arguing. I think as long as I don't steal or break anything I'll be fine... as long as the bears don't catch me. I lock the door behind me, walk over to the kitchen and plug in my phone, and then look over at the counter. On it is a planner. Hopefully this will tell me when they're coming back.

There are three different colours. The key on the side says blue for Mom, green for Dad, and yellow for Winnie. Wow, they even named their child after him. I skim over it quite briefly: tennis for Dad, wine club for Mum, and Scouts for Winnie.

I look down to today it says walkathon in park three o'clock till six thirty. Perfect, it's only half past three they won't be back for hours. It will take around twenty minutes for my phone to get to at least ten percent, so I have some down time in this epic place.

Naturally, I snoop around the fridge and spot three pieces of pizza, interestingly all of varying sizes. I decide to sit down at the dining room table and test them out. First, I go to eat the big piece, but instead of a nibble, I scoff down the whole thing. Then, I try the slightly smaller one. This piece has more flavour than the first, so I end up finishing that one too. Then, there's the smallest piece. Of course, I finish that piece too.

They live in this big apartment, I think they can afford a few more slices of pizza. And it's cold, so I'm really doing them a favour by eating it.

I go up to check my phone. It's only on five percent, so I sit down again. As I'm daydreaming, I see that someone's left a video game going on the tv. The previous player has it open on the sports game.

This is my all time favourite video game and I'm so excited. Video games are my number one time killer. I search for the Wii remote. I don't have a Wii anymore; in a heated dispute with my brother over who was better, we decided to play a game of bowling. One thing led to another, and I found myself throwing the remote at the TV. Sensibly, my mother decided to sell it.

But anyway, back to my game. I haven't played in ages, as I said, so my skills may be a little rusty. I choose to do my old favourite: tennis.

I just finish winning my first set when I decide to check my phone again. It's at twenty! But wait, I could let it get to thirty, or fifty, or one hundred. I'm not doing anybody any harm, and I'm starting to get used to this place. Marble countertops, fur rugs, gold walls. I think I'll stay a little longer, just until fifty percent, and then I'll go home. Perfect game plan.

I start playing again and find myself being beaten. As my anger levels are rising, I miss a crucial shot. I throw the remote to the ground, and there's a breaking sound as it hits the wooden floor.

Oh no! I have to get rid of this. I slide the broken remote under the couch. Hopefully, it's never found.

I guess I have to find something else to do now. I'm scanning the room when I notice three different devices. An iPhone, iPad and a computer. After some consideration, I decide to go with the iPad. I'm assuming that they have Netflix by the looks of their apartment.

I get comfy on the couch and turn on the iPad, put on my favourite show and relax (I'm pretty tired out after the tennis). As I'm watching the show, my eyes begin to droop. I didn't get much sleep last night so that's probably why. Also, this is the softest blanket I've ever felt in my life. I try and try to stay awake, but I just can't.

I wake up to the sound of a click. I freeze.

Slowly, I get up and crawl into the kitchen to grab my phone and its charger. I push myself up against the wall and stay there. All I have to do is turn round the corner, sprint to the door, open it, and get out. Sounds easy enough.

I can hear chattering voices down the hall and take a quick peek round the corner.

The coast is clear, so I try and make a run for it, but I hear a scream. I freak out and dive under the kitchen table.

All of a sudden, three bears come into view. The baby bear is crying. I crane my neck to get a better look.

The mother is comforting the baby while the dad has an aggravated look on his face. The pizza! They must know that someone's in the house! If I try and get out from under here, I'll grab their attention and get caught.

The bears sit down on the couch and start talking when I hear another loud wail from the small bear. The remote! Oh no!

And yet another moan: "Mummy, they've touched my iPad."

"Everything will be alright, dear. We'll catch them," the mother reassures him.

His father stands up and starts searching the room.

"What are you doing, Earl?" says the mother.

"I'm searching the apartment. They have to be here somewhere."

The other two bears get up and start searching too.

I'm going to get caught! I panic and decide to make a run for it.

I wriggle myself out from under the table and sprint to the door. As I'm running, I hear yelling and hurried footsteps, but I don't look back. I can't get caught. I don't stop running until I get to my apartment.

I burst through the door and collapse on the couch panting heavily.

"Goldi, where on earth have you been?"

"Oh, I just got back from Laura's house. We were studying for our history test."

"Studying? Okay, but please text me next time. I was starting to worry about you."

"Okay, Mom. It's just that my phone died, but I promise I will next time."

I get up, walk into my room and flop onto the bed. I'm so exhausted. My mind is racing. I can't believe what I just did. Mom can never find out, she would kill me.

Hopefully, I never see those bears again in my life.

##  Author Bio

Lucinda Thompson-Quinn is twelve years old and goes to Heaton Normal Intermediate. She enjoys reading and going on road trips with her family. Her favourite books are _Turtles All The Way Down_ , by John Green, and _Grandpa's Great Escape_ , by David Walliams. Lucinda also loves to play netball.

She chose to rewrite _Goldilocks and the Three Bears_ in a more modern setting to make the story more readable to people nowadays.

#  Maleficent's Curse

## by Lukah Bennett

I was the first born, the apple of my parents' eye. Dark hair, deep mesmerizing eyes filled with mystery and delight. My parents were devoted to me and spoiled me in every way imaginable.

Then she came along.

They named her Aurora. She was beautiful with glistening blonde curls, her skin so soft, and blue eyes which could melt your heart. When I looked into her eyes, I could see her beauty, her innocence and the love she held within her heart, but for some reason, this filled me with hate and jealousy.

She was my little sister, and the only sister I would ever have.

Our parents showered Aurora with attention, just like they had once with me. They had changed. It was nearly like I had been forgotten and now I did not need their love, I was to fend for myself. This filled me with rage, and soon I knew that she was the favourite daughter. She could do no wrong. I felt forgotten and vulnerable. I was still a child, only seven years of age, sheltered from the outside world, cocooned by the safety and security of my parents and the castle walls. I had been number one, and now I had to share this with someone else.

I had a very one-sided view of what I thought I was missing out on and couldn't see the benefits of having a sister through my hatred and jealousy. It was hard for me to get along with Aurora, as she was only three years old, and all I could think about was how she was everything, and I was nothing. She was showered with gifts from our parents, dollhouses, books, toys and she was always known as the much prettier daughter. I was constantly jealous of what she had. Sure, I had all the same things, but the one thing that I longed for, and felt was missing, was the love and affection of my parents. I wanted to go back to the days when it was just them and me. When Aurora did not exist. That is what drove me mad.

At the age I was, I thought that to get the attention I deserved back from my parents, I had to do something to make my sister disappear. I knew this would break my parents' hearts, but I would be there to fill the void and once again gain full control of my parents' attention. I would be number one again. It didn't matter what it was as long as my parents would give me the love and attention I so desperately craved.

I had a plan. I didn't really think through what the long-term effect would be. My mind was set, and there was no going back.

I was born with a power that I was told to keep secret. The magic was too strong to be used, it could be dangerous to the people around me, but the hate I had for Aurora was so strong I was left with no choice. I had to use my power to place a curse on my own sister.

"Mummy, look what I did."

"Not now, Maleficent. Aurora's going to show us her new dress."

"But Mummy..."

"Not now, Maleficent!"

I couldn't take it! Aurora got all the attention, and I had enough. I devised a plan for her sixth birthday she would not wake up, but forever sleep and never be woken.

I got up earlier than usual to see my sister. She was still asleep lying peacefully on her bed. I closed my eyes rested my hands near her stomach and repeated the words, "Go away, stay away, you must sleep forever and fly away."

Aurora groaned slightly then slowly went back to sleep. I thought I had done it. I felt happy, but also guilty because I knew that I had done something awful.

Aurora never went away. In fact, she stayed.

As we grew older, we developed a love and understanding only sisters can have. I realized that, even though I might have not gotten all the love from my parents that I wanted, I had always been loved by my sister. She was always with me. She was my best friend.

Aurora was now fifteen. She was so kind and loving, and I tried so hard to be like her, even though I was the older sister. Aurora did also look up to me, but the guilt that still sat inside kept building up over time. I couldn't keep living while holding a secret this big. I needed to tell someone, someone who could help.

Who was I to tell? I could be locked up in the dungeons with the key thrown away for what I could had done. There was one person in this castle that could help me. He was the sorcerer, Maurice. I decided to tell him, as I was hoping he could do some sort of spell or something to make me forget about what I had done.

Telling him would be one of the hardest challenges I had ever faced, and he might not have the answer I was looking for. His special spell room was in the opposite wing of the castle. This area was off limits to us. My parents had warned us of what lurked there and said it held the most dangerous things in the castle. I had to disobey them, as this was important, so I ventured to this dark side of the castle, even if it meant breaking the rules.

The doors were huge and heavy as I made my way alone and in secret. I knew I must not be seen, so I hid in the shadows as I quickly made my way. I had never entered this part of the castle before. It gave me an uneasy feeling.

I knocked on the door, but before I was even finished knocking, it slowly opened. It was like Maurice knew I was coming. He was sitting in a chair with his back to me, facing the wall filled with spell books.

"What brings you here I must ask?" He was a small round man, but his voice was very deep, kind of chilling. He scared me to the core.

"I have done something terrible and unforgivable! Maurice, you must help me."

He stiffened like he knew what I was going to say.

I started to speak, but the words come out shaky and scared. "When we were younger, I cursed my sister. Nothing happened, but the guilt I still have is so overwhelming, and I need your help."

It was a few minutes before the sorcerer finally said, "How did this curse come to be? Did you mean it, or was it an accident?"

"I did it out of jealousy and hate."

That's when he looked at me and said, "A curse is a curse. It can never be broken, but they can go wrong. All you have to do is look within and see that you have all the answers inside. You don't really need my help. You just have to appreciate your sister and realize that there was nothing you could do."

Maurice warned me it would be much more difficult than expected and I wouldn't learn my lesson until I owned the consequences of my actions.

The morning of Aurora's birthday was beautiful. The birds were chirping, the sun was shining, and there was a slight breeze making the hot summer weather bearable. This was the perfect day. My heart was ready to forgive what I had done and share that love with my sister. It felt so good, the feeling of forgiveness and love. So maybe I couldn't get the attention I always longed for from my parents, but I could give my love to Aurora instead.

Our bond had already strengthened over time. If the curse was to be broken it would have happened many years ago. But I had to find her before something bad happened. Maybe I could stop her from doing anything bad. I had been looking for a while, but I just couldn't seem to find her.

As I walked up the stairs, I saw her sitting quietly on her window seat, stitching a lace dress she was to wear for her birthday dinner. She looked so peaceful, just sitting there. I didn't want to disturb her. As I went to leave, Aurora looked over at me.

"Maleficent, come over here. Sit down, and we can talk about the big party Mum and Dad are throwing for my birthday."

"I know! Isn't that exciting you are going to be sixteen? I can't believe how fast you have grown up."

"Maleficent, may I ask you something?"

"Of course you can."

"Ouch!"

"What happened?"

"Oh sorry, I just pricked my finger on the needle."

I watched as the colour slowly drained from her face. "Aurora, are you okay?"

"Um, yes, I'm fine. I just feel a little ill..."

My heart sank. The tears started to stream down my face. I could see that she was a little scared.

"This is all my fault. I'm so sorry."

"No. How could this be your fault? I was the one stitching the dress, and I'm so clumsy, I pricked my finger."

"It was my fault! You may not believe me, but it's true. All these years, you have been cursed. You are to die today, on your sixteenth birthday. I tried to take it back. I did everything I could, and I don't want to lose you. You are my everything and I wanted to protect you forever. I'm so sorry."

Aurora looked me right in the eye. I watched as a tear fell from her eye onto the floor. "Even if you did curse me, that was when we were younger. We have grown and we have learned from our mistakes, and I forgive you because no matter what, you will always be my older sister—the one I look up to and want to be like, and I love you."

I saw her start to close her eyes and her hands slowly turned cold. As I watched, I realised this was the moment that I was going to do something great. I was going to give my life to my sister.

This was the biggest decision I had ever faced, but it was for my sister. If I truly loved her I would give up my own life for her.

She would live and be one of the most inspiring people in the kingdom. She would grow and learn about love and happiness, while also feeling pain and sadness. She would get to live and fulfil the life I knew she always dreamed of, but for me to give her that, I must give her my life. This was my decision and this was what I wanted to do.

As I held Aurora's hand, I closed my eyes and everything started to go black.

##  Author Bio

Lukah Bennett is twelve years of age. She is Year 8 and attends Heaton Normal Intermediate. She enjoys maths and writing. Her favourite books consist of, _The Art of Not Breathing_ written by Sarah Alexander, _Violet Ink_ and _Dandelion Clocks_ who share the same author, Rebecca Westcott, and her very favourite, _We Were Liars_. In her spare time, Lukah attends musical theatre and hip hop classes at studio 42 as she enjoys dancing. She also likes to play touch rugby, as it is one of her favourite sports.

Lukah has chosen to retell _Sleeping Beauty_ from the perspective of Maleficent to show that not all villains have evil intentions.

#  The Runaway Princess

## by Maggie de Their-Hunt

Fear ran inside me as I took off from the horrible castle I had lived in for seventeen years. I rode my horse through a dark and mysterious forest. Tall trees hung over the path, making me feel claustrophobic. My horse shivered like a spider had crept up his spine. Thoughts streamed through my teenage mind. _Would I ever see the castle again? Had I made the right decision?_ All I knew was I wanted to be free from the emotional, controlling king: my father.

My father always wanted the best from me, he wanted me to grow up and marry a prince. Mother would tell him he was wrong, that I was too young. Maybe he thought he was doing the best for me, but he never realised how unhappy I felt. Now it was like he was just blinded by his own misery. After mother passed, he became obsessed with me marrying a prince.

My mother died from a serious illness when I was thirteen. The year before she died, we went into the town to see the Well-being Witch. She read Mother's bones and her heart, and told us in exactly one year, she would pass. In that time, the three of us played together. We went for long walks. We used to go on fun adventures with my mother's best friend, Mel, and have the best birthdays, and of course that last Christmas together before mother would leave us.

The only thing ruining those twelve months was knowing this would be the last year we would spend as a family, before it all ended. My mother died soon after Christmas. The 4th of January was the most devastating moment of my life.

The morning I ran away, my father told me, "Belle, these last few years have been hard, but we will be okay. I am sorry if I have been pressuring you. I just think it is the only way you could be happy, by marrying a prince, right?"

This aggravated me. "No, I am not happy with you making my decisions for me. I don't even want to marry a prince anyway!"

From being soft and sad he turned angry, "I am sorry, Belle. It's the only way I think you can be remotely happy, but clearly not!"

"Why are you like this? It has been like this since mother died. Why can't she just be alive? Life would be so much better."

The room went silent, I knew I had pushed it too far. I stormed off into my room and slammed the door. He had been telling me this since my mother died. I couldn't deal with it anymore.

That night I found a place to stay. It was a small, abandoned home, sitting in the middle of the woods. It felt cold and empty, with no furniture apart from an old mattress that had holes tearing to the middle. I settled in, taking hours to get to sleep. The mattress had hard, uncomfortable springs digging into my back.

Before I fell asleep, I tried to get my father off my mind, but it felt almost impossible. _What if he finds me? What would he do to me? Why am I here? What have done?_

The next morning, I went back off on my trek. I didn't really know where I was headed. Maybe I would find my knight in shining armour, or see some relatives. I just needed to get away from the castle. I had taken my backpack from under my bed and grabbed a few things I needed. I took money from my father's chest of drawers so I could survive.

After an hour or two of riding my horse, I suddenly came to a halt. My horse stood still like a rock. I almost went flying off him, but used my strength to keep ahold.

My eyes widened. There in front of me stood a small village. Slowly, a huge grin appeared on my face. Those thoughts I had before were replaced with food, food, food. This was what I needed.

I ventured into the village, to see a small store. The town made me feel welcomed. It had tiny cottages with the sun beaming into the windows. There were young women and men sitting around tables and chatting outside their homes.

One thing stood out: a dark house at the back of the village with no people, no lights, no sun. I was curious, but the faint growl from my stomach made my train of thought blur, and all I could think about was food.

As I walked out of the store, after eating a delicious sandwich, a huge storm erupted. It poured with rain, and thunder shook the ground. A glimpse of lightning flashed before my eyes.

The village was empty, apart from one person wearing a long coat and black boots. She seemed suspicious. When I saw her, she turned and looked at me. I quickly put my head down so she didn't see who I was. I turned around and saw a horse's hoof about to swing into me. I tried to duck, but fell to the ground and hit my head. Darkness.

I didn't know where I was, but it wasn't home. I lay on a large window seat, staring at an old wooden ceiling. Moss stuck through the edges of the logs and mini spiders were spinning their webs. _Where am I?_

I turned my head to have the view of a small cottage with no one in sight. Out of nowhere, a huge beastly figure burst through the door holding my horse by the rope. My heart jumped out of my chest. _Who is this beast-like man?_ I lay stiff and quiet, then I heard a deep, calming voice, it was the beast.

I could barely tell what he said. I heard, "Are you okay, Miss?"

I replied with a shaken up, "Uh, yes."

Although he looked like a strange creature, he was sweet and caring. He helped me to the sofa and offered me a hot cup of tea.

"Who are you?" I asked fearfully.

His hair creased into a small frown, "Everyone calls me the beast."

"Surely that is not your real name?"

He went silent. "It's Adam."

I learnt that he wasn't born like that. He got cursed by his stepmother on his sixteenth birthday, as he was being horrible to her. His stepmother said he would never be loved. This made him wake up the next morning as a beast. The only way the curse could be broken was by finding true love and proving her wrong.

Hours passed as we chatted. We learned the surface of each other and parts of our background. The storm had died down, but the chilled breeze still blew. I felt sleepy and my eyes were slowly drifting shut.

In the morning, I woke up under a blanket on the sofa. The sound of a kettle whistling made me crave a cup of tea. I rose from my sleep and tiptoed into the kitchen. There I saw the beast in a bathrobe. He stood by the bench, stirring a mug of tea.

That day, we went for stroll in the village. I explored the shops, and we had lunch together. Walking in the town, I got a lot of stares. I wondered why, but realised I was next to a huge, furry beast.

After eating, we walked out of the shop and I saw a shadow in a bush, near the corner of another store. Before I could look twice, the shadow disappeared. I noticed the person, but couldn't figure out who it was. It looked like the same person I saw the first day I arrived in the village. The figure almost looked like my mother's best friend, Mel.

The clock struck twelve, and the bell dinged loudly. We wandered back to Adam's cottage. I went to grab my bag of clothes, but he put his paw on my hand, stopping me. I looked into his eyes.

"Don't go!"

"I need to keep going."

"Go where?" he asked in a smug way.

"On my trek, of course. If I stay here for too long, my father may find me."

"But where are you planning on going? You're going to have to stop somewhere, right?"

"Well... yes, but..."

Adam's eyes were watering. My heart felt soppy.

"Why do you want me to stay so bad anyway?"

"You may be the one."

"What?" The confusion made me feel fazed. _What did he mean by this?_

"You may be the one to break the curse."

I wanted to grab him, to throw myself into his arms, but I stayed still as a tear slowly fell down my cheek.

"Please," he said.

I decided to stay a little longer. Days turned to weeks, and my father still didn't show. I thought I might be free. It had been three weeks, on a Saturday morning, when the door fell to the ground with a loud thud.

The soldiers from the palace were all standing in the big wooden doorway, holding guns. I heard my father's voice come from behind them. "Is she there?"

The soldier standing at the front of the door answered with a firm, "Yes."

My father barged through the door. He saw the huge beast sitting near me and quickly pointed his gun right at Adam. My heart stopped. My connection with the beast had grown stronger. I had started to think he could be the first man I would fall in love with. Father didn't move an inch. I saw his finger slowly start to press the trigger.

I couldn't think. My gut told me to yell at him, but that wouldn't have worked, so I jumped in front of the gun. Father's finger pulled the trigger. The bullet shot me through the leg and I fell to the ground with blood gushing out of me. I screamed.

Traumatized by what he had done, Father fell in the chair behind him and started crying. The beast fell to his knees and grabbed a bandage from the small table beside us. He placed my hand on the wound with the bandage protecting it. I heard a faint gasp, it sounded small, but pushing past my light head, I knew it wasn't.

I slightly opened my eyes to see a woman standing next to my father. His face looked pale and scared, and the woman was a tall blonde lady, wearing bright red lipstick. She looked so familiar, but I didn't know why.

The beast slowly rose to his feet. "Mel?" he questioned softly.

Mel! The image of a figure in the shadows flashed through my mind. Of course it was Mel. I wanted to jump up and hug her. I missed her so much, but I couldn't move. My body was stiff.

"How do you know Mel?" I asked the beast quietly.

"She is the stepmother I told you about. She made me this beast."

"Yes, it's me," Mel said. "Adam, did you do this to her?"

"Of course not! I was starting to think she was the love you said I would never find," he answered angrily.

"Who did it then?" She looked at my father's hand, she saw the gun. Her face dropped. "Maurice, is that you? Were you the one that shot her?"

He couldn't speak full words. He mumbled, "Yes. I didn't think she would risk her life for that huge ugly beast."

Mel fell to her knees next to me. She whispered what sounded like a spell, "Leave her alone, let her be, keep her alive, and you will see."

I felt stronger, but I wasn't strong enough to pull myself up.

"I love him," I said. It was so faint that only Mel could hear me. I was still overwhelmed by the situation, and I fainted.

The next thing I remember was waking up in the castle. When I opened my eyes, a handsome young man sat next to me.

I wanted to start running, but I was incapacitated. I didn't know who this boy was. I looked into his eyes. I recognised him, but I couldn't figure out how I knew him.

"Who are you?" I asked with a scared voice, misplacing my words.

"Adam," he said, "the beast."

"Adam?" I was confused. "But why? Who? What?"

He explained, "I am human again. We declared our love for each other. Remember I told you that when I meet the love of my life the curse would be broken?"

"Why are we here, in this awful castle?" I was slowly getting my speech back again.

"Mel told your father and me that you said you loved me. When I found this out, I realised I loved you too. It made me become human again. Your father was stunned. He apologized and we decided to come back to this castle."

I heard a knock on the door. Mel's head popped around the corner.

"Rise and shine, Belle."

How many days had it been since the accident?

Without asking, Mel answered my question, "Yesterday, we came home from the village. We started cleaning the castle whilst you were unconscious. This place is huge. I am happy we get to live here now."

"You live here?"

"Yes! Did Adam not tell you? The four of us are in this amazing place together now. You are probably wondering why?"

"Yes, I am."

"Well, I felt at home again, seeing you and your father. It made me feel like I was with your mother. It warmed my heart. On the ride home, we talked about everything."

That night at the dining table, I wanted to talk to my father. I didn't want this happen again with him.

"Father, I'm sorry I ran away."

"I'm sorry I shot you," he said.

I giggled, "I don't think I will forget it, but I guess I can forgive you. It was a mistake."

"Thank you, don't ever run away again, darling. And don't worry, I will change."

* * *

Three years later

Adam, Mel, my father and I were all living in the castle. We had cleaned it up and made it feel welcoming and homely. Adam and I were engaged and were getting married in a year. Father and Mel were best friends, almost as close as Mel and mother were. We had an amazing life living in the castle, the only thing missing was Mother.

One morning we woke and went to the kitchen for breakfast. Whilst we were eating, I said, "Guys, I have some news to share."

The room went silent, my father's voice croaked, "Yes, darling?"

"I'm..."

"Go on," I heard Mel tell me.

"I'm pregnant."

They were in shock and stared at each other. I felt invisible. But then everyone started cheering, and they jumped out of their seats to hug me.

##  Author Bio

Maggie de Thier-Hunt is twelve years old. She is a Year 8 student at Heaton Normal Intermediate. Her favourite subject is writing, she enjoys reading books, especially _Violet Ink_ , by Rebecca Westcott, and _All the Bright Places_ , by Jennifer Niven. Maggie loves to dance. It is one of her favourite things to do. She attends Garden City Dance Academy and Studio 42 dance.

Maggie chose to retell _Beauty and the Beast_ from Belle's perspective. She changed the role of the beast and Belle, by having Belle already as a princess, and the beast living in the village, not as a cruel prince. Maggie chose _Beauty and the Beast_ because it is one of her favourite fairy tales. She liked the idea of making Maurice, the father, horrible and mean.

#  William's Nightmare

## by Daniel Prager

My eyes drift open. It's still night time. I look through my window. The moon casts its luminosity upon the forest, lighting up the trees for miles. The large dark trees sway slowly in the wind, creaking with every single movement.

Unable to sleep, I shift and turn on my rock hard bed. My cheap, handmade covers make every centimetre of my body itch. My room is virtually a shack. Actually, a shack would probably be nicer. The wood is slowly peeling off the walls, I think even it wants to leave this wretched house.

I sit up. Every inch of the house groans from the slight adjustment of weight. I look over to my sleeping sister, envious of her ability to rest so easily. Her side of the room is even more disgusting than mine.

The quiet murmur of my parents puts me on edge, they're usually asleep by this time. They must be discussing something important, but what could it be? As I'm deep in thought, I finally start to relax. Then the house rumbles, and the shouting starts.

"What do you mean get rid of the kids?" my father shouts.

My horrible stepmother shouts back, "You old fool. How can you be against this? We've barely got enough money to support ourselves, let alone two children."

There was a short silence. My father replies quietly, "but they're my children."

My evil stepmother is persistent and keeps nagging my dad. "Oh come on, it's our best shot at having a comfortable life."

My father replies firmly, "No, you cannot make me kill my own children."

My stepmother's tone hardens, sending a shiver down my spine, "Think again, dear. You must let them die!"

She's too persuasive and my father pauses for a long time. Finally a reply, "No."

"You're blinded by your love for those kids. They'll be the death of us, you twit!"

The sound of metal rings throughout the house. My father squeals like a pig, the events that follow make our small cottage sound like a slaughterhouse. Loud slashes fill the air making my ears ring, I flinch. It sounds like meat being cut by a large knife. I curl into a ball, scared that my evil stepmother will kill me right here. She tells my father, "You will take your children out into the forest and let them die."

I hear the pain and sorrow in my father's voice. "How can you expect me to live with the pain of killing my children? The sin always catches up with the sinner."

I hear the ring of metal once more. My father screams again, "Whatever you want, but how will I go on?"

My stepmother replies, clearly happier than before, "Old man, you'll be fine!"

My body goes cold with shock. Every centimetre, numb. I will my legs to stand up, but they do not obey. I want to leave and run as fast as I can. My body is frozen. For what feels like hours, I sit on my bed trying to wrap my head around what just occurred. Panic grows larger and larger by the second. I feel as if I'm having a full blown panic attack. Nothing can save me. My breathing gets faster and faster. A bad taste is left in my mouth, the taste of betrayal. I can't believe it, my stepmother actually wants my sister and me dead. Then again, am I really surprised? But my father agreeing to it makes my stomach ache.

A million things are crossing my mind, but I'm distracted from the quiet sobbing from my sister, Scarlet. It pains me to see her sad, but there isn't much I can do about it. I go over to her bed so I can comfort her, but I end up just as sad.

After a couple of minutes of painful silence, I speak quietly, "We have to find a way to survive."

She mumbles back, "I know, but how?"

I reply, "Yeah, I don't know either, but we need to figure something else, or we'll die."

We both sit on her bed searching our minds, calculating how we can survive. At this point my body is pumping with adrenaline, each second going by brings me closer to my fate. I will either die, or I will live. No in-between. My mind searches for a solution.

My sister makes an excited noise, "I've got an idea!"

Eagerly I reply, "What is it?"

She settles down and tells me, "You know how every morning father takes us out to the river so we can fetch some water for the day?"

I nod. She replies, "Well maybe we could insist on going together, and while we're out we collect stones, so when they're leading us into the forest, we can drop them and leave a trail."

Unable to contain myself, I excitedly whisper, "My God, that's brilliant!"

She smiles proudly. "Anyway, we better get some rest. I have a feeling it's going to be a long day tomorrow."

I lie on my bed for hours, shifting and turning, worrying about the horrors that tomorrow will contain.

My stepmother enters the room. I've never seen her this joyful. She speaks to us loudly, "Alright, kids, your father and I have some work for you to do. First, you'll go and collect some water. Then we need to go and collect some wood in the forest. You two will have to wait in the forest until we're done, got that?"

"Yes," my sister and I mumble back.

We come back from collecting water with pebbles in our pockets. I hope it's enough, otherwise we're dead. My stomach growls, begging me for food, but I feel sick to the stomach. We all gather in the house.

I get more scared by the minute. My legs tremble. My throat closes in fear, making me gasp for breath. I don't want to die. Our stepmother explains everything that's happening today. My brain dismisses most of it....

They give us both a bit of bread to save for the day. The thought of food makes my belly rumble, but looking at the bread makes me more queasy than I already am. My brutal stepmother hurries us out of the house, walking with a skip in her step.

Immediately, as I step outside, the cold wind stabs my face. The large trees blow heavily in the unrelenting gale. Leaves fly around stepmother's feet, her hair blows gracefully in the wind. For a split second, she almost looks beautiful, but I push back those thoughts. No, no, she is not beautiful, not on the inside anyway. We walk into the forest, leaves crunching under every step. We drop stones after every few metres.

Finally, we arrive at our destination: a narrow opening in the trunk of a wayward pine. This is where death will meet me? Cosy. With one cold goodbye, my parents set off into the dark.

I feel an overwhelming need to sleep. To escape this harsh and cold reality. A part of me wants to stay awake, but the urge is too much, and I plunge into the black pit of my subconscious.

* * *

I look around. Where am I? My vision is clouded. I feel a sense of impending doom, and for no apparent reason, I run. I can feel something trailing me, but I don't know what, so I keep running. I have no idea where I'm going or what's chasing me, but I'm driven by fear.

I decide to hide. There is a small complex of barrels, and I hide in the middle. My heart is beating out of my chest. Gas clouds my vision. I start to choke. Poison. I get back up and run, but I'm restricted by some sort of invisible wall. The gas clouds my vision again. I hear deep breathing. Where am I?

A loud cackle brings back the memory. The belt. The sharp pain, striking my back, making my skin tear. My painful past distracts me. I have to run away. Not thinking, I go back the way I came from, manoeuvring my way through the patches of poisonous gas, but I can't avoid every little thing.

Parts of my body start swelling, my vision goes blurry. Everything goes black. A cold, dark voice speaks to me. It sounds weirdly like my evil stepmother. "Young boy, you're useless. No one loves you. It's all your fault. If it wasn't for you, your sister would stay alive. Even your own father doesn't want you!"

I scream, "Shut up!"

"You know it to be the truth, boy."

I shout once more, "I said shut up!"

"It's your time to die, young one." Somehow, I know she speaks the truth.

* * *

I'm jolted awake. Finally, the dream is over, but the cold hours that follow bring forth a newer, more real, nightmare.

I shiver uncontrollably as I tap my sister with my inhumanly purple hand. "S-S-Scarlet, we need to find a way back home." My teeth chatter as I talk.

She nods, bags have formed under her eyes, her movement is slow and frigid. I guess she didn't rest easy either.

We set off, following the stones. After a while, my frozen legs seize up. Virtually unable to move, I push forward. I bang into my sister. She's stopped walking. With a scared tone, she says, "Umm, William we've already been past this area..."

I look around, she's right. We've been going in circles.

"It's all your fault!" she screams.

I shout back, "How is it my fault?"

My sister replies even more loudly, "If you weren't sulking with your head down, and were actually paying attention to our surroundings, maybe you would've noticed!

I yell back, "You were the one that noticed us backtracking, maybe YOU should've been paying attention more!"

There is a faint cackle in the distance. Sounds like Stepmother. My gut urges me to run, but I feel my sister tug on my sleeve, "Wherever she is, Father will be close."

I know.

After running for a while we come to a halt. My eyes are greeted with a beautiful meadow. Lush, verdant grass covers the forest floor. The succulent smell of fresh flowers fills my nose. A cool breeze sweeps through the meadow, gently blowing the trees. Every centimetre of the meadow is pure beauty. I blink. Tears fill my eyes.

Then the pungent odour of swamp fills my nose. This is repulsive, and to my disgust, I'm waist deep in the filthy, murky bog. I jump. Something sweeps past my ankle. It feels like a hand! I lean down to pick whatever is there up. I lift it out of the water. I look straight into its cold eyes. They seem to be human. My mother, she lies dead in my hands! I want to scream out, I want to run, but I don't. My hands clench tighter around her. Tears push their way down my cheek. I drag my poor mother out of the stagnant water and lay her on the muddy ground. My eyes drop to her stomach. A large gash runs down it. Tears obscure my vision. I wipe them away, only to see the large slit makes a shape. Some sort of cross, it looks like a human on a cross. "Mumma!" I scream out so loud the birds fly away.

My mother, after all these years. "What happened to you?"

She stares blankly at me. Finally, her death has been confirmed. My stepmother said she had left us for another family. Tears pour down my cheek. "Scarlet! It's mother."

There's no reply. I look around, unable to find her. I shout louder, "Scarlet!"

I start to panic. Where is my sister? Once again, I'm running. This time with more urgency.

Eventually, I drop to the ground from exhaustion. I just want to go home to my father. I feel so alone, so unloved, so depressed. I close my eyes, but then the smell of fresh meat fills my nose instantly I get up, my stomach controlling me. I finally come across the hut where the smell is coming from. Some sort of cross lies on the door, but I'm too hungry to care. I knock. The door opens and I'm faced with the ghoul herself: my stepmother.

She quickly brings me into the surprisingly nice hut. "William, we were so worried about you."

I reply, "We?"

She replies, "Your father and I. He went out to go look for you both."

I sadly reply, "I lost Scarlet."

With a smile, she says, "Don't worry, she's asleep in the other room."

Relief washes over me. Finally, she replies, "Why don't you go get some rest, I'll prepare dinner."

I don't argue with her, I collapse onto the bed, barely able to harness the energy to move. The back of my brain urges me something is wrong, but I can't begin to think about it. In seconds, I'm asleep.

Quietly, I tip-toe out of bed and explore the house. I silently open a door. Webs are strewn from corner to corner. Blood paints the walls red, and in the centre of the room lie disembodied hands, legs and heads. Whoever did this was clearly not a novice.

My stomach churns at the thought of what happened here. I go numb. Shock and disgust fill my body. My legs move without my command. I feel like a zombie, disconnected from reality.

Most of the rooms follow the same format, blood, webs and human body parts. Vomit crawls up my throat. Unable to stop it, the revolting liquid floods the floor. Then I see a staircase leading down and my legs take me.

I slowly go down and I am greeted by a door. The cross on the door is the same as on my mother. I open without a single bit of hesitation. A large basement lies before my eyes. Right in the centre of the room, I see my father.

Excitement fills me up for a second. Then I look above his head, there's some sort of rope. I then look down. His feet aren't on the ground, a lump forms in my throat.

Then someone speaks behind me, "You always were a curious one."

I scream, "What did you do to father?"

"You're forgetting about someone else very dear to you..."

Tears roll down my cheek, "My mother! It was you!"

"Hahaha, yes, dear. It was me."

"Witch!"

"Maybe, but you will follow in your parents' footsteps. Scarlet! Get down here!"

My sister slowly wanders down the stairs. I look into her eyes. They're completely white—completely soulless. An axe hangs from her hand. A haunting smile spreads across her face.

"Kill him!" my stepmother says. The large blade sweeps past my face, missing me by inches. "Strike him!"

For multiple minutes, I dodge the blows of the axe, but I start to tire. I scream out, "Scarlet! What are you doing? Come back to me."

Her eyes are still white, and the axe keeps swinging. I look over to my stepmother. She's laughing.

As I'm crawling backwards, my hand touches something cold and sharp. I snatch a quick glance. A heretics fork. How evil is this woman? Then I feel something large and heavy plunge into my stomach: the axe. As it's removed, blood pours out onto the floor. I scream as loud as possible.

"Good job. Now get over here, Scarlet!"

My sister drops the axe next to me. They both turn away. My energy depleting, I manage to stand up. Blood is running down my leg. My vision begins to go blurry. My sister turns around, but before she can react, I thrust the fork into her chest. Tears roll down her face and the light returns to her eyes. I'm a monster.

The sound of my stepmother's cackle echo through my ears.

"How could you do this?" I ask. "Why us?"

"Oh, little one, there have been many before you, and there will be many after you."

"You witch!"

"Yes, I've found another nice little family. I'll have great pleasure eating them."

As my vision and energy fade away. I murmur, "The bill always comes due."

And the last thing I hear is my cruel stepmother's cackle. Then the cold hand of death takes me.

##  Author Bio

Daniel Prager is a twelve-year-old student who attends Heaton Normal Intermediate. He enjoys sports, and this includes running and swimming. Daniel is also very passionate about music and listens to it regularly. He really enjoys the book series Cherub. His favourite genres include fantasy, action and mystery.

Initially, Daniel chose to retell _Hansel and Gretel_ , and made the children's stepmother the witch. However, as the story developed, he decided that his story was a prequel to the original fairy tale, which shows the witch's full wickedness in her pattern of terrorizing children. Daniel took inspiration from _The Blair Witch Project_ , resulting in a gruesome horror story.

#  The Wolf

## by Bronson Reuben

As I sit by the stream, I try to talk to the fish passing by.

Obviously, they don't reply, but they are the only creatures that don't run away in fear when they see me.

Sitting in a daze, I'm not thinking straight; I'm filled with mixed emotions that are hitting me from every angle. I am lonely, and miserable, and don't know where I stand in this world. I get up, cold and damp, I can't feel my legs as I stumble and trip over a mossy stump. Falling, I land flat on my face and mud covers me from head to toe.

I lie there for what feels like an hour and just think about how my life is so terrible.

Finally, I hop up and stomp my paws on the ground. Bursting out in a rage, I wave my front paws into the air, only to end up bursting into tears and falling onto my knees in despair.

The pain of anger and misery takes over my body; I feel like I'm possessed by an evil spirit. I lie down, curled up in a ball, depressed and weeping. I can't stand the feeling of being all by myself in this scary woodland with no one by my side to have my back and be there for me.

As I sit there in sorrow, I start to smell something that doesn't belong in these dark woods. I jump to my paws and I start to track the scent, my nose twitching, on the verge of finding the intruder.

Dashing across the brisk and gloomy shrubs, I feel I am getting closer to what could be my prey. I scamper across the muddy shrubs, claws digging, paws squelching. Then I hear a soft, subtle noise past the damp undergrowth.

As I erupt out of the of rich vegetation, I see a little girl dressed in a soft, vibrant cloak. She is standing on a mossy path, holding an elegant basket with red ribbon on top. The girl looks frightened and looks like she is about to run away.

"It's fine weather out here today, isn't it?" I say, trying to make her look happier.

"It is, wolf," she says, stuttering on each word.

"What are you doing out here, little girl?" I say, in a voice as friendly as I can muster.

The girl takes a while to respond, but in the end, she mutters, "I'm on my way to see Grandma, who lives through the forest near the brook, between the two big trees."

_This could be it!_ I think to myself. _She will be my friend, someone I can talk to._ But she must have realised how late she was, because she quickly excuses herself, rushing down the path.

I howl in frustration and I flop onto the ground. "Why don't people talk to me? What's wrong with me?"

Well, the girl and her grandma seem to be pretty close. Maybe I could ask the girl's grandmother how to be friends with people, and hopefully, she can give me some good advice.

Hope and excitement rise inside me and my blood starts to go berserk. I have a bounce in my paws and my tail is hung high in hope. I spring into action and take a shortcut to the brook. I leap through the bushes and stumble, but regather my balance. I dart down a muddy ridged path dodging the mossy log and the broken tree hanging on to another tree by a thread.

As I head down a long path, a colony of rabbits move quickly out of the way and hide amongst the trees. I crawl under a fallen pine tree and my stomach slides over the muddy ground. I jump to my feet and pounce through a large pile of leaves. Brushing them off my face, I can see an opening through a large thorn bush.

To avoid the bush, I leap over a gigantic cobblestone wall. The wind blows past my ears and I feel like everything is in slow motion.

Ooof. I land awkwardly but regain my balance and can see lots of houses, but one particular cottage stands out to me. It is sitting between two monstrous trees.

_This must be it,_ I think. I look around to see if anyone is watching, but it looks like the coast is clear. I hope my plan turns out the way I want it to. I really want to learn how to make friends.

I sneak towards the run-down door and gently knock on the brown, torn up wood. Fear strikes me like lightning and I feel like running away. As the door opens, the rusty hinges groan like they have a cramp.

An old lady gazes at me in horror. I panic and don't know what to do! My wolf instinct kicks in, and before she knows it my razor-sharp teeth are showing and my jaws are wide open. I gobbled her up within seconds.

"What have I done?" I say to myself.

I'm not feeling well. With the lady in my stomach, I start to feel light-headed.

I need to pretend to be Grandma so the girl and I can be friends. What if I wear some of her clothes to disguise myself? I slam the door hurriedly. My plan isn't smart, but it's the only way I can get a friend.

"I hope she doesn't see through this disguise, otherwise I am going to be miserable forever," I mutter so myself. I hurry to gather clothes that would make me look like an old lady: I open a closet and snatch out a nightgown and a frilly hat. Then I jump into bed and pull up the sheets.

The gown smells like flowers, and the hat just fits over my sharp ears. I dab some of the old lady's perfume behind my pointy ears for good measure.

The bed is so comfortable. I have never been in a bed before.

A few minutes later, the little girl knocks on the door. The knock echoes through the old cottage and it gives me a tingle in my paws.

"Who is it?" I call in a crackly voice.

"It's me, Little Red Riding Hood," says the girl.

"Oh, how lovely! Do come in, my dear," I cracked.

When the girl enters the little cottage, she looks suspicious and isn't falling for my disguise. She puts down the basket and steps forward.

She stops abruptly, showing signs of fear and confusion. She says, "Your voice sounds so odd. Is something the matter?"

"Oh, I just have a touch of a cold," I squeal, adding a cough at the end to prove the point. My ears are sticking out of the frilly hat and know I don't look like your ordinary grandma.

The girl comes closer, and she looks scared. "But, Grandmother! What big ears you have," says the little girl, edging closer to the bed.

"The better to hear you with, my dear," I say, trying to distract her.

"But, Grandmother! What big eyes you have," says the little girl.

"The better to see you with, my dear," I reply anxiously. I am starting to sweat and my paws are twitching.

She carries on. "But, Grandmother! What big teeth you have," says the little girl, her voice quivering.

_This isn't going to work,_ I say in my head with remorse. I hop out of bed. The girl's Grandmother swirls around in my stomach, causing me pain.

Her mouth drops as she sees how scary I look, and she starts to run for the door. My nails clatter violently on the floorboards as I start chasing her.

"Help! Wolf!" she yells, as I scream at the top of my lungs, "come back, come back!"

She keeps running.

I trip, then fall and land on the soft grass. The nightgown is torn and the frilly hat lies next to me. I'm going to cry.

"I have to get back up," I tell myself. I wipe the tears from my eyes and wipe my nose. I try to get up, but the weight of the girl's Grandmother pushes me back to the ground. I struggle to get back up, it takes a few tries, and look for the little girl. She is nowhere to be seen.

I feel like I am a nobody, by myself with no one helping me. Before I know it I'm flopped down on my back, depressed, and stunned, knowing that it is over for me.

I cry and cry, and cry some more. Misery envelops me and I put my paws to my face. I curl up into a ball and wonder why people don't like me, and why can't I make any friends.

Then, I hear a noise and lift my head from my tear covered paws. Walking towards me is a tall middle-aged man with a long dirty beard, wearing shabby overalls and a green cap.

He is holding an axe and I instantly feel terror. He has come to kill me! Unable to struggle to my feet again, I just sit there, tears pouring down my cheeks.

"There he is! That's the wolf that ate my Grandmother," says the girl pointing to me.

A feeling of despair runs through me. They are standing by me looking down.

"I didn't want this to happen, I just wanted someone to be my friend," I say, sobbing. "Eating your Grandmother was a terrible idea, and I didn't plan for it to turn out like this. I'll try to be nice at least—"

He raises the axe over his shoulder and I stare at him in horror. Whoosh!

I am surrounded by darkness, alone.

##  Author Bio

Bronson Reuben is twelve years old and goes to Heaton Normal Intermediate. He enjoys sport, reading and writing. His favourite books include _Stone Cold_ , by Robert Swindells, and the _Hardy Boys_ , series by Franklin W. Dixon. Bronson also loves playing rugby league, and is part of the Heaton basketball team.

He re-wrote _Little Red Riding Hood_ from the point of view of the wolf. He really enjoyed the process to get it finished and the way he told the story. He is proud of his work and worked hard for the final piece.

#  Goldilocks and the Magical Gem

## by Sithum Alahakoon

"Honey!" I hear my Mother's voice echo all the way up the winding staircase and into my bedroom. "Darling, can you wake up and come downstairs please?" Her voice sounds disrupted, like something happened.

I get out of my double bed onto the smooth carpet and walk downstairs. I move past the stolen paintings on the wall, remembering stories of Mother and Father doing the heists before I was born.

"Stop wasting time and get down here now!" Mother adds.

I run down the remaining stairs, past the living room and into the prize room, where all the stolen prizes are displayed. To my right, I see Mother lying next to a glass cabinet. I sprint to her and ask, "What happened?"

She looks at me sadly and says, "The gem, it's gone."

"Mother, you have lots of gems," I say.

"This one is different," she replies.

"How?" I ask.

"It's magical."

"Mother, are you drunk?"

"No, no, Goldilocks," she quickly replies.

"Then what do you mean 'magical'?"

"Back when your father was with us, we entered a whole new world of thieving. Well, we entered a whole new world, through a portal."

_She is definitely drunk,_ I think to myself. "Well, Mother, you lost me there."

"Come into the living room. I'll explain there and get you some breakfast."

She grabs some premade buttered toast with jam out of the kitchen and sits in front of me. "So, when we entered this new world, it wasn't run by humans. They were bears!"

"Bears? But how? They live on Earth. And why bears? Why not, I don't know, unicorns or something?"

"Nope, they were bears, and, darling, stop interrupting. The bears roamed that world, no humans in sight." She takes a deep breath and carries on. "Your father and I were young, we had only robbed supermarkets and small shops. This was our first big heist. When we got through the portal into the world, it felt like nothing had changed until we heard a huge roar in the distance. We were very scared. We had an old map with us. When we got to their house we stole the mystical gem that, and this will be hard to believe, grants wishes!"

"So, um..."

"Have you ever wondered how we have this amazing home?"

"Uh... you wished for it?"

"Yeah."

"Really? But if you already stole it once, why can't you do it again?"

"Darling, I did it with your father a couple years before he died. I am now fifty-two years old, and I am too old to steal, but you, being an active fourteen-year-old, could enter the bear world and steal back the gem."

"Really? Are you sure?" I say.

She hands me an old wrinkled piece of paper and says, "Study it. You will go there tomorrow morning."

I take a closer look at the paper. It is a map.

The next morning, I walk downstairs, past the paintings and into the kitchen. The first thing I see is Mother standing next to a small backpack, drinking a cup of coffee.

"Ready?" she says joyfully.

My heart beats rapidly as she says that. I am excited. "Yeah. So what can this gem do again?"

"Grant wishes. Now off you go," she replies.

"Okay."

"Take this, and be careful," Mother says. She hands me the backpack and indicates where I need to go on the map.

I give Mother a hug and a kiss. "Goodbye, Mother." I shut the door and set off.

I leave our small city and enter the woods where no one goes. I don't know why no one goes here, it's quite nice. I look at the map and wonder how long Mother had this, and how there is a bear world. I look for the first landmark on the map and there it is! A small tree with a hole right through it. I move past the tree and I find the last one. It is a small lever integrated into a tree. I do what anyone would do and pull it. It makes a clicking noise. Before I know it, the ground disappears.

I am falling. I look down. There is no floor. I hear myself breathing heavily and shrieking, but it feels like my brain has left my body. Then it stops. I feel nothing for a few seconds, then I am back. The woods, the ground, the trees, it's all the same.

I keep walking until I see that some of the trees have carvings on them. I go closer to analyse them. There are images of bears: fighting, war, love. Just like humans.

I look at the map and see what looks to be a hut, so I start walking.

I see the small wooden hut. No one seems to be in there and the map suggests that the gem should be inside, but it could be anywhere. I take a few more steps towards the hut. It has a door and a small window. These must some civilized bears... no that can't be true, I sound as crazy as Mother! Actually, this whole journey is crazy, in my opinion.

I near the hut and peek through the window to check if anyone, or anything, is in there. I finally take a good look and I am definitely sure no one's home, so I go to the front door, twist the old knob and watch the door creak open. I bet bears haven't learned the concept of locks.

"Ha," I laugh to myself. I search through the first room and don't find anything except for some old lifestyle magazines stacked near the entrance with pictures of bears, which is weird.

There is a coffee table near the back of the room. It is about the size of a normal one and has a wide paper sheet covering it. As I near the table, I smell something delicious. I recognise that smell. I lift the sheet and see three plates with bacon on them.

This confuses me a lot. I mean, why would bears eat bacon and eggs? That is human food. I am hungry from the effort it took to get here though, so I reward myself with some of the food. I eat the smallest plateful because the food on it is cooked just right.

After that, I enter another room inside the hut, and suddenly the hut isn't as small as I thought. No, it isn't small at all. It is like I am in a fantasy story because the room I just entered is bigger than the whole second story of my house. This is amazing.

I start looking around the heavily decorated room with pictures of a bear family. Then I think about my Mother and the gem. I cannot fail this mission.

I take a deep breath. I must find that gem! I search all over the room, but I can't find anything. But then I check under the rug. There's a trap door leading to a basement.

The basement is small. There is an old switch on the wall. I flick it and a small dim bulb hanging from the wall gives off light. I look around and see a big safe in the corner. It's as big as a portaloo. I am sure the gem is in there.

I spin things and press buttons to try open it but nothing happens. I remember the bag that Mother packed for me. I know she packed lockpicks because when Father was still around he would teach me how to pick locks, just in case I get locked in a room, or, in this case, needed to open a safe. I think I'm pretty good myself.

I take out the mini bag of tools and get to work. The safe is old, almost rusty, but nothing I can't handle. I pull the big door open and walk into the safe. There is a wooden podium with a black box on it. I open the box with no hesitation and there it is. The 'magical' gem that Mother was on about is actually real.

If that's real then the bears must be too. I grab the purple glowing stone. It looks amazing, and I can't resist seeing what it can do. "I wish for a pack of bubble gum."

I look around and see nothing, I reach down into my pockets and feel a small packet. No way! It actually works! I shove it in my bag for later.

I crawl out of the small basement and leave the hut.

I start making my way back to the portal thing and try to think about what I just did. Stealing a magic gem from a weird bear world, this definitely is the weirdest first theft.

I am now about half a kilometre away from the portal back home. I approach it but I hear a growling noise around me. The bears! They found me! I try running but I am stopped by a small one and then two others appear through the trees. I've been ambushed!

They come closer to me and the father, I think, opens its mouth: "Why are you here?" It roars in my face and shoves me to the ground.

"I wi—"

"Honey, honey, it's okay. This is the one we were expecting to steal back the gem," a female bear says, maybe his wife.

"Oh, yeah," the father bear replies. The baby bear holds my arms back, keeping me still.

"Please don't kill me," I say softly.

"Oh, we won't kill, but we will hurt you so bad you'd wish you were dead."

"No, please," I say, scared out of my mind.

"Then do share why you are here," she says evilly.

"Well, umm, the gem."

"I knew it! Foolish humans trying to steal back what's ours. Dear, take the gem off her and deal with her."

"Wait, if I give you the gem can you let me go, please?"

She nods to the father bear, and he nods back. Then she leaves with the baby bear, towards the hut.

The father bear comes walking angrily towards me with his fists clenched.

I stand quickly and grab my bag. I reach down into it and find the gem. I grab it.

The father bear is nearing me. Only a metre separates me from death. As I pull the gem out, the father tries to claw me. I dodge swiftly and throw my bag at him. I have about a two-second window to wish myself home and I take it. "I wish to be back at home with my mother."

I hear roaring and growling and I start to feel dizzy.

I wake. Looking around, I see I'm back home, sitting at the dining table opposite Mother, with a bowl of porridge in front of both of us. I take some deep breaths.

Mother looks at me. "Goldilocks, are you okay? Do you have the gem?"

"What? Where... No. The bears!" I stand up with fury. "I wish for the portal between the human world and the bear world to be closed forever!" I sit down, breathing heavily. I feel tired, very tired.

"Mother," I say quietly. She rushes over to me and holds me in her arms. "I feel tired, Mother."

"That's because you just shut down a portal from one world to another."

"But why am I sleepy?"

"Whenever you use the gem it drains your energy."

I am so tired that I can I barely stay awake.

"Can I see the gem?"

I hold it up with all the energy I have left and she sighs.

"What is it?" I struggle to say.

"When you closed the portal, the gem was on Earth, so it lost its connection to the bear world."

"So what are you saying?"

"The gem is dead."

"No... I am so sorry."

"It's for the better. Now let's get you into bed."

##  Author Bio

Sithum Alahakoon is a twelve-year-old student who attends to Heaton Normal Intermediate. His family are from Sri Lanka, but he and his brother were born in New Zealand. He enjoys sports such as football, basketball, cricket and swimming. One of his favourite books is _Refuge_ , by Jackie French.

Sithum chose to retell _Goldilocks and the Three Bears_ by changing the setting, and having Goldilocks steal a gem from a magical bear world.

#  Awake

## By Mya Cawood

I open my eyes. The first thing I see is a boy, my age, standing beside me.

"Who are you?" I demand.

"I, I am Albert and I am here to rescue you," he stammers.

_Rescue me? Who does he think he is?_ "Get out of my room before I call the guards!" I fume. I realise that I'm not in my room but the attic. _Strange, what am I doing here?_

"No, Princess Aurora! Don't do that!" he blurts. He grabs me by the arm and tries to pull me out of the bed.

Enough! "Guards!" I scream

Two men dressed in a dull purple burst through the door and grab me and the boy by our arms.

"Hey, not me! Let me go!" I roar. Instead of letting me go, they laugh! They drag us down the stairs and through the dimly lit corridors to the grand wooden doors of the throne room.

Inside, everything is purple. Every person in the room is dressed in purple. The rough carpet is purple, and there are purple banners, with gold horses imprinted on them, hanging from the walls.

A stranger is sitting on my dad's throne. _Who does she think she is?_ She is wearing a purple cape and has horns on her head. There is an evil look in her eyes.

The guards shove us onto the carpet.

"Hello," a voice purred. "Don't you remember who I am?"

I look up at her, confused for a few seconds until I find myself remembering. Maleficent.

"I'm the reason you have been asleep all these years," she says with obvious contempt in her voice.

"What are you talking about?" I shout.

"I put a curse on you at your christening. You really were meant to die."

"Where are my parents?" I ask, furious.

"Haha! Foolish girl. You have been asleep for a hundred years. Everyone you know is gone." She cackles. "Ah, this must be Albert. Thought you could be the hero of this story? Hah! Stupid boy. Well, I guess I will have to punish you both. I would kill you now, but I want to see you suffer. Run off into the forest. You can have an hour head start, but when my soldiers find you, they will kill you."

I open my mouth to object, but before I can say anything, Maleficent shouts, "Get these two out of my sight!"

A group of guards come forward and seize me and Albert. They drag us down the corridor and shove us out the large castle doors.

We stand there stunned until Albert says, "We better get moving."

I don't reply, but we start running.

The town passes by in a blur. Before I know it, we are out of the castle gates and making our way into the woods.

I need to stop for breath. Apparently being asleep for a hundred years makes you awfully unfit.

Albert breaks the silence by saying, "Maybe we should introduce ourselves?"

I'm not really paying attention, I think I'm still in shock.

"I am Prince Albert, from the kingdom of Niri," he says.

"What made you come to my kingdom?" I ask breathlessly.

Albert blushes before saying, "Everyone knows the story of the sleeping princess. I came to find you. First, I snuck into the castle and found out where you were. When I finally found you, I entered your room. All of a sudden you woke up. I tried to explain to you why I was there, but you just ignored me."

"Wow," I say.

Silence hangs in the air until Albert speaks up. "And also, about the manhunt thing... don't worry. I bet my brother I would rescue you, and if I don't make it back in a day and a night, my brother will come and get me."

"Do you get a prize for winning this bet?" I ask.

"Well, yes. I get to be the heir to the throne if we get back on time." He replies quickly.

"So you didn't really come to rescue me? You came to win this bet?"

"Well... yeah." Albert answered.

I stick my nose up and we continue our journey. The further we walk into the woods, the darker they become. The animal calls become more frequent. I fight back anxiety by thinking about Albert's deal with his brother.

Suddenly the birdsong stops, and so do we. From a distance, we hear shouting and the sound of horses galloping. I clamber inside a thick bush while Albert dives into the bush next to mine. As the galloping and shouting come closer and closer, fear wraps itself around my chest making it hard to breathe. I part the leaves, and in the distance, I can see flashes of Maleficent's livery through the trees, getting further and further away.

Eventually, we pluck up the courage to crawl out and start walking again. By now the birdsong has started up again, and I am getting very thirsty.

We continue walking for what feels like hours. All of a sudden, Albert stops and cocks his head to the side before sprinting ahead. I pause before I hear a faint trickle of water and chase after him. My dress makes running a harder job than it should be, but finally the river comes into sight. I pick up the pace and sprint the remaining twenty metres.

When I reach the river I collapse onto my knees and start drinking the cool, clear water. I realise that the forest has become very quiet. Something in the corner of the eye catches my attention. Through the trees, I can see movement. I creep closer and Albert must be able to tell something is up because he follows me. A familiar fear tightens around my chest. I can just see men mounting up. I guess Maleficent's soldiers must have camped here for a bit.

"Where are they?" Albert whispers.

I point to their camp. Albert gets an odd look on his face and then suddenly, he stands up.

"Albert," I snap. "Hide!"

By now all of the men are on their horses checking everything over.

Instead of taking cover, Albert slowly walks towards the men.

"Albert, Stop it. Hurry up and hide!" I call after him.

I follow as Albert scrambles through the bushes, still heading towards the men.

"Hey!" Albert shouts at the top of his voice. I react quickly and dive into a nearby bush.

"Hey! HEY! Over here!" Albert continues.

"Albert! What are you doing? Stop!" I rage at him.

He continues on.

"Get back!" I scream at him. Fearing for my life, I make the decision to stay behind. I peek through the bush and to my relief, I can see the men galloping off into the distance, with Albert chasing them. Albert slows down and gives up the chase. Thankfully, the men never heard him.

Albert trudges back over towards where I am. I take a deep breath before going back outside to confront him.

"Albert! What was that all about? You could've gotten us killed, you fool!" I bark. Albert looks sad and confused all at once.

"They were the men from my kingdom!" he splutters.

Stunned, I don't reply.

Albert shuffles over to a tree and sits down with his head in his hands. I sit by the river's edge and run my hand through the cool water to calm myself down. I'm still trying to process what just happened. It's a while before I'm ready to talk to him, but I finally manage to pick myself up and awkwardly shuffle over to him.

"Hey," I say.

"Hello," he replies.

"Look, I know you are feeling down about what just happened, but I think we need to keep moving. You never know when Maleficent's men will turn up. But hey, at least we know that your brother is looking for us," I say, putting on my kindest voice.

"Yeah," he says shortly.

We don't talk much after that. Our paranoia causes us to stop at every loud noise. It becomes really stressful.

The sun is setting when my stomach cramps up. Hunger. I knew this was going to be a problem from the start, but I didn't want to think about it. The pain gets worse and worse. I want to sit down and cry, but our lives are on the line. The pain comes and goes in waves, each worse than the last.

"I'm so hungry," I groan.

Albert, clutching his stomach, nods in agreement.

I'm about to talk to Albert about what would make a perfect spot to settle down for the night when something catches my eye.

A tree, but not a normal tree. Some of its trunk is hollowed out and from what I can see, there is a gap big enough for me and Albert to crawl inside!

"Aurora?" Albert says obviously puzzled.

"Look at that tree over there!" I point at it, and Albert's eyes light up.

We both run over to the tree and Albert crawls inside. I follow. There is enough room for both of us, but we both have to tuck our knees up to our chins.

"Aurora, how did you find this. This is great!" Albert bubbles.

"I don't know but I'm glad I did!" I giggle.

"Well, seeing as we have found our spot, I might go and build a fire to keep us warm," Albert announces.

"I... I don't think that's such a good idea," I say.

"Why not?" Albert questions.

"Don't you think the smoke would give us away?" I reply.

"Oh, of course," Albert mutters.

We carry on talking and before we know it, the sun has gone down and the forest is covered in a thick blanket of darkness.

"I don't know about you, but I'm feeling exhausted," Albert says with a yawn.

"Same, I think I might head off to sleep," I say, my eyes already half shut.

I drift off to the sound of the forest which, to be honest, is very soothing.

I wake with a start. I'm freezing. I roll over to the side of my bed and try to pull my woollen blanket up further. Then I realise that I'm not in bed and do not have any blankets. I am inside the trunk of a hollowed out tree.

A rustling in the bushes nearby brings me to my senses. I sit up.

"Hello?" I whisper. I squint out into the darkness.

"Aurora, it's me," Albert whispers back.

I scan the trees around me, but I still can't see him. Suddenly he pops out from a nearby bush.

"Look what I found!" Albert then proceeds to hold up two dead rabbits, covered in blood. I grimace, then the hunger kicks in. I groan clutching my stomach.

"Quick, let's build a fire to cook the rabbits on," Albert says hurriedly.

I open my mouth to remind him why that is not a good idea, but I give in to the hunger and help him instead. It only takes a few minutes to get the fire started. Albert finds a stick to cook the rabbits on, and then starts skinning the dead animals. Once he's done with all the gruesome stuff, we start cooking the animals and to be honest, I have never smelled or tasted anything as delicious as the rabbit.

"Wow! That tasted great," Albert marvels. I agree.

Later, as I start packing, I hear the sound of hooves and shouting in the distance. Albert and I both rush to get into the tree and peer out.

What I see knocks all the breath out of my body. Maleficent's men have all dismounted and are quietly making their way towards the fire. None of them talk. I pray they haven't worked out where we are. My breathing quickens. Is this the end? All of this effort into surviving, will it all be for nothing?

I remember Albert's brother, Prince Phillip. Our one last glimmer of hope rests on him and his knights. But who am I kidding? This isn't some sort of fairytale where the hero turns up at the end and saves everyone, is it?

I look at Albert. His eyes are closed and his face is all scrunched up. He must be having the same thoughts as me. Suddenly, I can't hear the men walking anymore. They go silent. All I can hear is the crackling of the fire.

"There," a voice from outside says. Running footsteps. Towards the tree. They're getting closer. Game's up. I never got the time to thank Albert properly.

"Thank you for helping me. You—" I don't get the time to finish my sentence because hands grab me. Pulling, scratching, tearing. All with the same goal. To get me out of the tree. I struggle back, holding onto whatever I can. I don't let go. More hands join in the struggle.

I take one last look at Albert. He looks back with fear and sorrow in his eyes. A single tear runs down my face before I give up. I let the hands drag me out of the tree.

Men start shouting, celebrating my capture. I watch as they pull Albert from the tree. They start chanting, "We found them! We found them!"

Suddenly, the chanting dies. The forest is quiet and once again, all I can hear is the fire crackling. No one talks, no birds tweet.

"Charge!" The word rings out from every direction. Maleficent's guards look extremely surprised. Is this an ambush? What is happening?

Men dressed in red and white gallop into view.

The knights holding Albert and I let go. They scramble back to their horses. Albert drags me back to the tree. In a daze, I crawl through the small hole and into our hollowed out spot. Albert gets in and gestures for me to be quiet. I do, and focus on what is happening around the tree. Shouts echo from every direction.

My heart pounds, thoughts racing through my head. The limited space of the tree is too much to handle, and before I know it, everything goes black.

I wake up on a soft bed in a room I don't recognise. In the corner of the room, sorting out what looks to be clothing, is a short plump lady wearing maid's clothing.

"Oh my! You are awake! Don't go anywhere, I will be right back!" With that, she hurries out of the room. She returns a couple of minutes later with Albert and another boy who looks similar to him.

"Hello, Aurora. This is Phillip. My brother!" Albert beams.

"Hello." Phillip blushes, and he runs a hand through his light brown hair.

"Hello," I reply. I try to stop myself from blushing, but I don't think it works out so well. "Where am I?"

"You are in the kingdom of Niri," Albert replies. "Now, I know this may sound a bit odd to you, but we were wondering if you would be interested in starting up a new life here. We get it if you—"

I cut him off. "Of course I would."

With that, I know this journey will have a happy ending after all.

##  Author Bio

Mya Cawood is thirteen years old and is a Year 8 at Heaton Normal Intermediate. Some of her favourite subjects include, P.E. and writing but her favourite subject is reading. Her favourite books series are _Violet Ink_ , by Rebecca Westcott, and _Counting by 7s_ , by Holly Goldberg Sloan. Mya also enjoys football and is in the extension reading programme.

Mya wrote a twist on _Sleeping Beauty_ set after Aurora wakes up. She chose this because Sleeping Beauty was always her favourite fairy tale growing up.

#  The Story of Piper

## by Charlie Walker

The fire burned brightly, twisting around the paper until it consumed it completely and transformed it into a black crisp. Piper grinned, amused for the moment. That was when the teacher turned the corner and spotted him. A few moments later he was sitting outside a closed door with a grumpy looking lady scowling at him from her desk in the corner.

"What are you here for this time?" The boy sitting next to him whispered.

He grunted in reply.

"Be quiet! Do you want a detention?" growled the lady. A door opened and he looked up to see another boy come out followed by a teacher he hadn't seen before. The lady in the corner glanced up and said "Piper! Mr Brown will see you in his office now."

"Okay," Piper grumbled and dragged himself off the seat and into the room.

Mr Brown was a middle-aged man with warm blue eyes that could easily turn dark and stormy if anyone or anything bothered him. "Well? What have you got to say for yourself?" asked Mr Brown. "Well?"

"Umm. I didn't do it?" replied Piper.

"Piper, you're a smart kid, why are you doing these acts of vandalism? When you're older you can get arrested for doing some of the idiotic things you've done!" Mr Brown said angrily. "Your punishment will be... " he thought for a moment before continuing, "you can put your smartness to good use. This school has a rat problem, and I want you to fix that. I will not punish you if you do this job, in fact, I might even reward you with something."

Piper thought about it for a second before answering "What could I get?"

"You could have money, or one of the gadgets I've seen kids walking around with," answered Mr Brown.

"How much money could I have?" questioned Piper

"Umm, ten thousand dollars, as the exterminators charge fifteen thousand dollars for a complete removal."

"Okay then, it's a deal."

Mr Brown opened the office door and Piper skipped out, giddy with the thought that soon he would be the richest kid in the world.

That night Piper lay in bed, staring at the peeling paint on the ceiling. It was difficult to concentrate with the water dripping from the ceiling into the broken bucket his mum had placed there.

He just couldn't stop thinking about all the money he would get from ridding the school of the rats. He would buy him and his mum a new clean house with no leaks, working heating and everything else that modern houses have.

As he walked to school, he thought to himself, _the best thing is, is that I get time off my lessons to make it!_ It was annoying that they weren't giving him a budget, but he was sure that his step-brother, who was a student at the University, would be able to get him the pieces he needed. Arthur might even let him use his cool lab to make it!

After school, he walked to his step-brother's flat and climbed the steps leading to the front door. He stood by the door for a few seconds before knocking, but before he had even finished, the door opened and Arthur welcomed him inside. "Hey! Nice to see you. What's up?"

"I have a school project, and I could do with your help to find and make some of the pieces I need."

"Sure, what sort of pieces do you need?"

"Some neurotransmitters and molecular controllers."

"Woah! Why do you need them? Those things are really expensive!"

"I need to make a device that will get rid of pests, such as rats."

"Hmm... I can get you some of the things you need, but not the neurotransmitters. They're too expensive."

"But they're a necessary component!"

"Sorry."

"Okay," Piper sighed

"Well, you could just use some beta wave manipulators. That should do the job as well."

"I guess I could, thanks!"

A bit later Piper was surrounded by wires and other bits of technology from gadgets that he had taken apart. He was attaching several wires to some sort of screen. When he finished, he asked his brother to get some omni sensors which he then attached to the bottom of the screen.

After about two days of this, he was nearly finished. Now the only thing he had to do was get the neurotransmitters. The beta wave manipulators had overloaded; it turned out they didn't have a powerful enough processor. Piper didn't like it, but it seemed that the only way he could get them would be to steal them. Once he'd gotten the prize money, he'd give his brother some of the money to pay for it.

So while his brother was 3D printing several components, Piper crept down the stairs into the storage room where most of the machinery and technology was stored. He unlocked the door and crept inside. He switched the light on and began searching through the shelves, which were, very usefully, in alphabetical order. Nanometers, neurectulik sensors, and, here we are, neurotransmitters. There were only two in the box (as his brother had used the other three in a mind-controlled gaming headset). Hopefully, that would be enough for his machine to work.

He arrived back at the workbench and started attaching the neurotransmitters to the molecular controllers. He finished that, so he screwed the outer shell over the insides so they wouldn't get damaged, and so his brother wouldn't see the transmitters.

It was finally the day! The day he would amaze the teachers and become the coolest kid at school! As he walked down the stairs, the gizmo seemed to get heavier and heavier. He reached the bottom, took a deep breath and opened the door.

There waiting for him was Mr Brown, holding a cage with several filthy rats cowering inside.

"Piper," Mr Brown shouted over the noise of the crowd, "could you please explain to us how your your..."

"...Gizmo," Piper finished for him.

"Okay, could you please explain to us how your 'gizmo' works?"

"Sure," Piper replied, "so who has heard of mind control?" Most of the crowd raised their hand. "Well, I have made a machine that is able to send electrical currents to the brains of rats. These electrical currents are extremely similar to the natural electrical signals that are being sent to and received by the brain. The rat's brain will think the signals are its own so it will obey them. Any questions?"

"Yes," replied a young girl. "Does that mean you control the mice?"

"Yes, and they are rats, not mice. Any more questions?" Piper asked wearily

"Can you control anything else or is it just mice?" asked a girl a bit older than the last.

"Technically yes, but I would have to modify it a lot. And they are rats, okay? Not mice. Rats!" replied Piper.

The crowd began to whisper amongst themselves. Piper wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Now," Mr Brown had to yell over the noise of the crowd, "could you please proceed with the demonstration?"

"Sure will," Piper replied. "What do you want the rats to do?"

"Umm... I want them to go to that water fountain over there." Mr Brown pointed. "Then I want them to come back and run round this piece of paper, then stop," added Mr Brown. He dropped a piece of paper on the floor by his feet, "there it is. Can you make the rats do it?"

"Probably," Piper replied. "I just have to add some code to the computer. The machine will do the rest." He typed in some complicated code and then very dramatically pressed a big red button on the top of the gizmo.

Nothing happened for a few seconds, then one of the rats in the cage began to twitch and slowly the other rats also began to twitch, until all of them were twitching and jittering. Then they stopped.

"That was the electrical signal entering their brain. They should do what you want them to do now."

Mr Brown opened the cage door. The rats stood there then slowly they began to head towards the water fountain Mr Brown had pointed at. The crowd parted before them and the rats began to pick up speed as they headed towards it, all except for one, which stayed in the cage not moving a muscle.

"Its brain's electrical signals must have been too different, and the signals confused it. I will have to modify the gizmo so it, and any other rats with the same problem, will obey."

By now most of the rats had gotten to the fountain, and were now heading back towards the paper. The crowd parted as the first rats reached them. The rats did exactly what they were told: they went around the paper twice then stopped.

"Hmmm, it will work on a small scale like a classroom, but I don't think it will be able to get rid of all the rats in the school," said Mr Brown, glancing nervously at the other teachers.

"It should," answered Piper. "I just need to use some of the school's electricity."

"Whatever for? You have a perfectly good working battery, can't you just use that?" questioned a teacher.

"No. You see the power from the battery only just managed to send the signal about ten metres. I need more electricity if the gizmo is to send the signal all over the school," replied Piper

"Well, if it's okay with Mr Brown."

"Sorry, the school has to pay lots of money as it is for the electricity, and your gizmo will use a lot of it."

"Come on, let the kid use some of the electricity. After all, he will get rid of the rats."

"Okay, fine," sighed Mr Brown. "You can use some of the school's electricity, but only a bit, otherwise your prize amount will be lowered significantly."

A few minutes later it was ready. Thick black wires snaked from the device along the floor and into the dark, dingy basement of the school where they were hooked up to the school's generators.

Up above Piper was finishing the last bit of coding required to make sure all the rats would follow the commands. Now that he was finished he just had to go down to the generators and turn them on. He walked down the damp steps and struggled to open a dirty door but he managed it and walked slowly into the basement.

He switched his torch on and the beam shone upon the generators a few metres away. He walked over to them and saw a panel with a zap sign on it. He opened the old rusty panel and stared uncomprehendingly at the tangle of multi-coloured wires crisscrossing the circuit board. His eyes alighted upon a big red switch, "Okay then, I guess I just have to flick the switch... with danger signs on the side," he noted.

He flicked it and instantly felt the hairs on his head raise. "Maybe there was a reason the switch was red and had danger signs on it," he said to himself.

He ran up the stairs and stopped, out of breath. He opened the corridor door and came out into the sunlight, it felt like forever since he'd seen the sun and its light hurt his eyes, so he looked away and started to walk towards his gizmo in the middle of the courtyard.

Just like before there, was a small crowd surrounding his gizmo, and there was Mr Brown, waiting for him as usual. Piper strode confidently towards the crowd and they parted before him before closing around him. He cleared his throat nervously, "So now I will activate my gizmo, and it will drive the rats away from the school and straight into the exterminator's traps."

"So the school will no longer have this rat infestation," added Mr Brown.

The machine began to power up, making a humming noise that slowly got louder and louder until the machine beeped, flashed its lights, then fell silent. So did everyone else.

They waited silently, waiting for something to happen.

"Did it work?" asked Mr Brown, a smug look on his face.

"It should have," replied Piper. "Oh, look. There's a loose wire. It looks like someone accidentally pulled it; all I have to do is reconnect it and..." Mr Brown's face fell.

The machine beeped again, made a whirring noise, then stopped.

There was a small rumbling sound coming from within the school, the doors burst open and a small tidal wave of rats poured out. Everyone jumped backwards in alarm and scrambled away from the oncoming wave. However, the rats didn't even look at the people; they just ran past without even glancing up, and in about forty seconds the rats went around a corner and disappeared.

"Well, I guess that worked," Mr Brown sighed.

A few minutes later you could hear loud snaps and squeaks as the rats ran into the traps that resembled bear traps, and were killed instantly

"So, can I have my reward now?" asked Piper hopefully. "Can I have the ten thousand dollars?"

Mr Brown stood there, not meeting his gaze. "No, this school doesn't have the money."

"But you promised!"

"You used up most of the school's electricity, so no! You don't get any money."

"But I need the money to repay my brother for some of the pieces I needed, and they were really expensive!"

"Well, it's not my fault that you got rid of the rats in the most expensive way possible. And if you stole the pieces, you don't deserve any money!"

"Fine! I didn't want the stupid money anyway," said Piper indignantly, before storming away.

As he walked out of the school, he saw groups of kids staring at him and whispering to themselves. When he was a few metres away from the gate he looked over his shoulder and saw that all the kids were laughing and pointing at him. He ran the last few metres and disappeared around the corner, the kids' laughter still ringing in his ears.

"They'll pay for this!" he thought to himself. "Hmm," he said, remembering what the little girl asked him, "I wonder if I could make my machine work on humans?"

"Wouldn't it be a shame if all the kids disappeared and ran into those rat traps?" he thought, an evil grin spreading itself across his face. "Wouldn't it be a shame?"

##  Author Bio

Charlie Walker is a twelve-year-old boy from Heaton Intermediate, whose favourite hobbies include rock climbing, reading and annoying his brothers. Some of his favourite books include _Mud, Sweat and Tears_ , by Bear Grylls, _Gifted Hands_ , by neurosurgeon Ben Carson, and most books by Rick Riordan. Charlie lives with his parents, three younger brothers, and an ever expanding menagerie. He also enjoys playing the piano and learning about all areas of science as well as digi-tech and robotics.

He retold the tale of _The Pied Piper_ and changed it by putting it in a modern setting, where the Pied Piper is a kid in a normal school who keeps causing trouble and is told to put his smartness to good use by making a machine that will solve the school's pest problem.

#  The Different Child

## Xavier Stewart

It is 3:20 PM, on a cold Friday in November. Eleven-year-old Christopher Owen is heading home from school. His house is in Southampton, England, and overlooks a seven-hectare farm. It's a white, modern, three-story house with a glass balcony.

His parents are big business people and own many farms and a few farming industries. Because of all that business importance, Christopher has to key in a twelve digit passcode to the front door and it swings open.

He immediately goes to his bedroom. Unfortunately, he doesn't see the pillow someone has balanced on top of his door and it plummets towards Christopher as he walks in. The pillowcase has heavy books stuffed into it. A bolt of pain explodes inside his head and he keels forwards, landing on the carpet.

His thirteen-year-old brother Sam laughs at him from the hallway. "I got the monster!" he yells gleefully, before running off.

Christopher had always been an outsider in his family and community because of his face. He was born with his left cheek twisted, and that pulled down his left eye. He grunts and staggers into his bedroom, clasping his head.

After dinner, Christopher's father Glenn paces up and down the living room, his face contorted with fury. "Somebody has stolen our prized sheep!" He roars. He slams his fist into his hand and growls, "I'll find these people and lock them up for years!"

Christopher's six-year-old sister, Lucy, asks, "Daddy, can I watch Adventure Time?"

Glenn suddenly switches his behaviour and says sweetly, "Of course, darling."

He then switches back to angry and barks at Christopher, "You. Bed. Now."

Christopher doesn't move so Glenn walks over to him and holds his face very close to Christopher's. "Now," he seethes.

Before Christopher leaves he notices a letter that is on the coffee table. It has details about a sheep competition at Stanpit Recreation Ground. Christopher's brain starts to connect the dots. The prized sheep went missing just before the sheep competition. The sheep had won buckets of medals in past years.

His father shoves him from the living room before Christopher can get a good look at the letter, but he had managed to see the key details. The competition is set to start at 11 AM tomorrow and is invite only.

He lies in bed, thinking about how everyone hates him. Kids at school, his siblings. Even his parents loathe him. Suddenly a thought floods Christopher's mind: Get the sheep back.

So he plans to cross Smugglers Ditch and the River Stour and reach Stanpit before dawn and before the competition starts. Christopher knows that the sheep must have been taken to Stanpit for the competition; whoever had stolen the sheep would be entering them, Christopher was sure of it. He has to enact his plan at night, so he sets an alarm for 11 PM. Then he rolls onto his side and falls asleep.

Christopher is dribbling the ball down the court. Levi Jones comes to intercept the ball, but Christopher dodges him, leaving Levi standing there with his mouth agape. Everyone cheers as Christopher reaches the hoop and goes for a shot. There is a crash and the ball leaves Christopher's hand. It flies towards the net and it looks like it is going to go in—

Christopher awakens with a jolt. Why had there been a 'crash' in his dream? It didn't seem to fit in. Suddenly, he remembers the missing sheep. Christopher slips out of his bedroom window and lands next to the sheep paddock that abuts their house. It is a clear night and there is a full moon.

He leaps the electric fence (thanks to his high jump skills) and runs across the sheep paddock, looking for clues as to where the sheep thieves broke out.

Then Christopher freezes. He hears footsteps and he looks towards the sound. He can't believe his eyes. Levi Jones and Harvey Baldwin are hurtling towards the paddock. Levi and Harvey are big bullies at Christopher's school. Out of everyone, Levi and Harvey bully Christopher the worst.

Levi has a switchblade in his hand and Harvey has a sack in his.

"We are going to take you away from the countryside and put you in an asylum, freak." Harvey drawls. "Levi will rough you up if you don't— STOP!" Harvey screams at Levi.

Levi had just clung on to the electric fence, not knowing it was electric. He screams as electricity surges through him. He's flung into the air, his arms and legs rigid, his eyes wide open. He flies through the air and lands with a sickening crunch. He doesn't get back up again. The switchblade Levi had been carrying lands within a metre of Harvey.

Christopher hears Harvey scream, "You killer! You mutant! I hate you!" He gives Christopher a look of pure loathing and sprints off into the darkness.

Knowing Harvey could return at any moment, with hunters with guns or axes, Christopher picks up Levi's switchblade. He shudders at the thought of hunters closing in on him with weapons.

Two hours pass before Christopher pushes his way through the last few bushes before he reaches Smugglers Ditch. A bridge runs across the ditch from one side to the other. The bridge is slippery and the boards are freezing, so Christopher is careful. Half-way across, Christopher hears a crash behind him. He spins around, slips over and smacks his head on the asphalt. His eyes stream and his head is in agony. He wipes his eyes and sees four hunters at the opening of the bridge. To one man's left, Harvey Baldwin stands triumphantly.

Christopher rolls on to his side and springs to his feet. He doesn't waste any time and starts sprinting across the bridge. The four men and Harvey go after him in hot pursuit. Out of the corner of his eye, Christopher sees the man who was standing next to Harvey. He has a thick ginger moustache and a big beard. With a sickening jolt, Christopher realises it is Harvey's father, David Baldwin.

Christopher darts between bushes and weaves around trees.

"You can run but you can't..." David begins, but the rest of his words are drowned out by the noise of rushing water: the River Stour.

Christopher spots a piece of driftwood floating downstream just as David and his men burst through the bushes. Christopher times his leap and jumps on. David, Harvey, and the other men leap into the water and swim towards Christopher. Christopher cups his hands and begins trying to paddle the driftwood to the other bank. He jumps off the driftwood and lands on the bank, almost slipping back into the river.

The men are less fortunate. One man is hurled into a submerged rock and hits his arm. Another is sucked under, as reeds wrap around his arms and legs. The third has more success as he scrambles at the bank and hauls himself up onto the grass. He swings his fist at Christopher and Christopher pulls out Levi's knife. The knife makes a cut across the man's fingers and Christopher lashes out with a kick, causing the man to fall into the river.

David Baldwin tries to pull himself up on a submerged rock and lunge at Christopher, but lots of little fish swim past his feet and in the current, he falls over.

Harvey snarls at Christopher and swings his machete, but Christopher ducks and runs.

He sprints into the trees, with Harvey close on his tail. Christopher makes a sharp left and leaps up a tree, and doesn't stop climbing until he's reached the top. He looks down and sees Harvey clinging onto a tree branch, a metre below.

Realising he's still in danger, Christopher looks around. He spots a branch nearby and leaps for it. His fingertips scrabble at the bark but he clings on.

Harvey climbs up the tree after him and looks at where Christopher jumped. He leaps for the swaying branch but misses. The branch crunches into Harvey´s nose and the cartilage breaks. Blood streams from Harvey's nose as he plunges towards the earth. He screams at the top of his lungs but leaves and dirt fill his open mouth making him choke. Harvey lies unconscious, but he's still breathing.

Christopher climbs down from the big tree and sprints off into the dawn light. Dawn. Hunters would be able to see him easier in daylight. Fearing David Baldwin calling for backup, Christopher runs towards the direction of Stanpit.

Finally, he passes through some trees and emerges into a clearing. A vast open space with a number of paddocks, most of which had animals in them. There are signs on all of the paddocks reading the same thing: Property of Stanpit Farms Ltd.

_So,_ Christopher thinks, _I made it to Stanpit._ He walks through the paddocks and stops at one containing sheep. A sheep with a certain face shape and golden tag stops chewing grass and looks at Christopher as if it recognises him. Christopher stares back, realising it's one of his parents' sheep. Christopher looks at all of the sheep and sees they all have golden tags on their ears. These Stanpit Farms Ltd. people had stolen his parents' sheep, and he's sure they're planning to use them to win prizes at the competition. He has to call his parents!

Over the other side of the sheep paddocks, there is a wooden barn house. Christopher was sure there would be a phone there. While trying to break into the paddock so he can get to the barn house, a man walks towards him. He is wearing black trousers, a blue jersey and gumboots.

"What are you doing here?" he asks.

"Those are my parents' sheep," Christopher says firmly. He feels confident but can't help his voice wavering.

"We don't care about your parents," the man replies, shrugging.

"Well, you should give them back or there will be consequences." Christopher balls his hands into fists.

In a flash, the man pulls out a gun and points it at Christopher. "I don't think so," the man says sharply. "Come with me." The man gestures with the gun away from the paddocks.

Christopher doesn't do anything, and the man takes a step closer, so the gun is almost touching Christopher. He tries to rush away, but the man grabs his lapel and holds him in a vice-like grip.

"I am William Jones, Levi's father. I know you are responsible for my son's death," William growls. He flings Christopher to the ground.

"Levi touched the fence, how am I to blame?" Christopher says, panting.

"Electric fences don't kill people, freak," William snarls.

"It must have been installed incorrectly," Christopher replies.

The breath in William's throat catches. He freezes for a few seconds and Christopher exclaims, "It was you! You wired up the fence! You wanted to harm my family! You evil, sick, horrible man! I hope you go to prison forever." Eyes streaming, Christopher gets back up but he doesn't manage to defend himself in time.

William's knee sinks itself into Christopher's stomach. Christopher falls to his knees, the breath knocked out of him. William stands triumphantly over Christopher and points the gun at Christopher. "Got something to say before you die, mutant?" William snarls.

Christopher is about to reply when Harvey Baldwin comes running into sight, wearing grey overalls and holding an iPhone. "You killed Lev-" Harvey begins, but William doesn't notice him standing there and pulls the trigger on his gun.

Desperately, Christopher grabs the gun and wrenches it sideways, so it's pointing at Harvey. The bullet grazes Harvey's arm lightly and doesn't do much damage. Harvey screams and runs off into the dawn light.

While William is staring at Harvey in horror, he doesn't notice Christopher get up and push him. William rolls away and gets to his feet. He slips over and whacks his head on the muddy earth. He lies there, unconscious.

Christopher spots the iPhone Harvey was holding. Harvey had dropped it when ran away. The screen is unlocked so he dials his home number. It rings twice before a voice says, "Glenn Owen speaking."

Christopher fights to contain his rush of excitement. "Hi Dad, it's me, Christopher." Christopher takes a deep breath.

"Christopher? Get back to bed!" Glenn shouts.

Christopher says quickly "I found your sheep, Dad. They were stolen by Mr William Jones for Stanpit Farms Ltd."

"Where are you?" Glenn asks.

"S-St-Stanpit Recreation Ground," Christopher stammers.

"Stay put, Christopher. We will send some cars to pick them up. Thank you." Glenn says the last two words very quickly. He hangs up and Christopher sits down on the grass, wondering when his father and his convoy would turn up. Sleep edges its way into Christopher's head. Not here, he thinks desperately. However, his eyes droop and he falls asleep.

Christopher wakes up to the sound of an engine running. He leaps to his feet as a Range Rover comes lumbering into view followed by four Mercedes Benz Sprinters. The convoy halts and Glenn leaps out of the driver's seat. "Christopher! Thank you so much for finding our sheep!" Glenn exclaims.

Christopher's about to respond when his mother, Jessica Owen, comes out of the passenger seat of the Range Rover. "Thank you, Christopher," Jessica says.

Then his parents do something they have never done before: they hug Christopher tightly.

Christopher is frozen with shock for a few seconds and then returns the hug. In the background, workers are getting out of the vans and are herding sheep into them. Christopher and his parents get back into the car and set off. The convoy drives back towards Southampton in a quick manner.

They reach their home twenty minutes later. Christopher is shattered from his adventure, so he crashes onto his bed and falls asleep to the sound of the workers unloading the sheep.

The next day, a Saturday, Christopher recounts his adventure to his family. After Christopher tells his story, his family constantly treat him with the respect he has deserved for eleven years.

* * *

Aftermath

Glenn Owen called the police to take William Jones and Harvey Baldwin away.

William was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for attempted murder, theft, and improper installation of the electric fence. Harvey was sent to hospital for his arm and returned to Southampton. After the loss of Levi and newfound hatred of Levi's father, Harvey never bullied again.

David Baldwin and his hunters were sentenced to four months imprisonment and given a warning stating that if they did anything serious again, the consequences would be greater.

Glenn and Jessica Owen won prizes at the competition for their sheep, and are now treating Christopher like the rest of their children.

Everyone at Christopher's school befriended him and almost no-one bullied him again.

## Author Bio

Xavier Stewart is twelve years old and attends Heaton Normal Intermediate School. He enjoys football, maths, reading, and writing. Xavier enjoys running around and doing exercise. He likes watching action movies, and wishes to become an actor in adult life. His acting has been published on one DVD in _Seussical: The Musical_ in 2017.

He chose to retell the fairy tale, _The Ugly Duckling_. He changed it by turning the characters into people and setting the story in Southampton, England.

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Thanks!

Beaulah Pragg & Fran Atkinson- Editors

# About the Editors:

### Beaulah Pragg

Beaulah works for the library learning centre, as well as teaching creative writing and independent publishing. She is a founding member of the Christchurch Writers' Guild, a free and accessible space for new writers to find encouragement and support.

You can find out more or contact her through her website: www.beaulahpragg.com

### Fran Atkinson

Fran is an author and counsellor. She is a founding member of the Christchurch Writers' Guild and enjoys working to support young authors in the community. You can read one of her stories, "Evacuation", in the anthology Regeneration, edited by Anna Caro and Juliet Buchanan.

# Other titles by the editors:

Chronicles of Tyria: The Silver Hawk

* * *

Recrafted: 2018 - Group Two - Heaton Extension Writers Anthology

Recrafted: 2018 - Group One - Heaton Extension Writers Anthology

Home: 2017 - Group Two - Heaton Extension Writers Anthology

Home: 2017 - Group One - Heaton Extension Writers Anthology

Courage: 2015 – Year Eight – Heaton Extension Writers Anthology

Courage: 2015 – Year Seven – Heaton Extension Writers Anthology

Change: 2014 – Heaton Extension Writers Anthology

Chatham Islands War

2013 – Home School Writers Anthology

2012 – Home School Writers Anthology
