Rescue Princesses #5: The Snow Jewel
Read Rescue Princesses #5: The Snow Jewel Online
Authors: Paula Harrison
Tags: #Juvenile Fiction, #Action & Adventure, #General, #Royalty, #Animals, #Cats
For Billy, Freddie, and Martha
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE: Sledding at the Castle
CHAPTER TWO: The Snow-Quartz Necklace
CHAPTER THREE: The King’s Royal Slipper
CHAPTER FOUR: The Secret Feast
CHAPTER SIX: Skating Princesses
CHAPTER SEVEN: The Wandering Kitten
CHAPTER EIGHT: The Tracks in the Snow
CHAPTER NINE: The Frozen River
CHAPTER ELEVEN: The Kitten and the Jewel
Princess Freya sped across the crisp snow in her thick furry boots. Her blond braids bounced on her shoulders and her blue eyes shone brightly.
She ran through the gate at the end of the castle garden and closed it behind her. Then she stopped for a moment to gaze down the hill at the newly made ice rink at the bottom. Fresh snow had fallen in the night and the sunshine was making everything sparkle.
A group of princes raced out of the gray stone castle behind her and began throwing snowballs at one another. Freya swung around to watch them. It was strange seeing her castle so busy and noisy when it was usually so quiet.
Her dad, King Eric, had invited all the royal families from around the world to come and spend the winter holidays here in the kingdom of Northernland. The ice rink had been dug out and smoothed over especially for everyone to skate on. The guests had arrived yesterday, and now the castle was crammed with kings, queens, princes, and princesses.
Freya took a few steps down the hill, thinking about the other princesses. She had been longing to meet some girls her own age for what seemed like forever. She’d seen four princesses slip out the door after breakfast. They had
run off laughing together and she had desperately wanted to join them. But where had they gone?
The sound of giggling floated over to her on the frosty air. Freya hurried down the slope and through a cluster of fir trees, trying to see where the noise was coming from. When she reached the other side of the trees, she saw the girls right away.
Four princesses, wearing thick coats, woolen scarves, and gloves, were pulling a wooden sled up the hill. When they reached the top, a girl with wavy black hair sat down on the sled and the others gave her a huge push.
The princess on the sled zoomed away with a shout of delight. Halfway down the hill, she jumped on top of the sled and glided the rest of the way standing on one leg. Freya’s eyes widened. She’d
never seen somebody do such a daring trick before!
The black-haired princess jumped off at the bottom of the slope, and the others ran down to help her pull the sled back up. A princess with red curls noticed Freya and waved.
“Hello!” called the red-haired princess. “Would you like to come and try?”
Freya blushed and ran over. “Thanks! That’s really nice of you!”
“It’s not really
that
nice!” The princess laughed. “We borrowed this sled from the castle. So it’s really yours! I’m Princess Emily, by the way.”
“And I’m Lulu,” said the black-haired princess. “This is Jaminta.” She pointed at a girl with smooth dark hair. “And that’s Clarabel.” She pointed at a girl with golden hair.
“Hello,” said Jaminta and Clarabel, smiling widely.
“I’m Freya,” said Freya shyly. “I’m so pleased that you’ve all come to stay. I’ve wanted to meet some other princesses for a long time.”
“Didn’t you come to the Mistberg Grand Ball last year?” asked Lulu, looking at Freya curiously.
Freya shook her head. “My dad likes to stay here at home in Northernland.”
“Well, I think it’s wonderful here in the snow.” Emily smiled at her. “Would you like the next turn on the sled?”
Freya beamed back. “Yes, please!”
The five princesses grabbed the rope and pulled the sled up to the top of the hill. Then Freya got the sled into position and climbed on.
“Try going down backward,” cried Lulu, jumping up and down. “It’s really fun!”
“All right! Here I go!” said Freya, turning around on the sled so that she was facing the wrong way.
“Are you ready?” asked Jaminta.
Freya glanced over her shoulder at the steep slope below. “Ready!” she said firmly.
Jaminta and Emily gave the sled a push to start her off. Freya raced down the slope at high speed, her blond braids flying behind her in the wind.
“Woo-hoo!” she shouted as she went faster and faster.
Suddenly, one corner of the sled tilted down, making the whole thing wobble. Freya slid forward. She grabbed ahold of the sides, desperately trying to keep her balance. But the sled tipped over, sending her flying.
She landed with a gasp in the middle of a deep snowdrift. The sled landed next
to her as she lay still, feeling the snow seeping down her neck.
“Oh, no! Are you OK?” Clarabel ran toward her.
Freya sat up and rubbed the snow away from her mouth. She felt a little dizzy, but not really hurt. “Yes, I’m all right,” she said. “It was pretty funny, actually. For a second I felt like I was flying!”
Lulu pulled the sled upright and looked underneath. Then she scooped some snow out of a hollow. “There’s a hole here. It’s probably a rabbit’s burrow. The sled runner must have gotten caught in it, and that’s why the sled tipped over.”
“The poor rabbits!” Freya got up and peered into the hollow. “I hope I didn’t frighten them by sledding into their hole like that!”
Emily laughed. “I’m sure you didn’t.”
Lulu looked at Freya, who was covered in snow from head to foot. “I bet the rabbits are safe, deep down in their burrow. You look like you need the Rescue Princesses’ help more than they do!” Then she stopped suddenly and clapped her hand over her mouth.
Emily and Clarabel glanced at each other, as if they didn’t know what to do.
“Lulu! You weren’t supposed to say that!” exclaimed Jaminta.
“Oops! I forgot!” Lulu’s eyes grew wider.
“What’s the matter?” asked Freya, seeing their startled looks. “Who
are
the Rescue Princesses?”
Emily pushed her red curls behind her ear and nudged Lulu. “I think we should tell her. It would be nice to have another princess to help us.”
Lulu frowned. “But she
has
to love animals.”
“And she has to keep it all a secret,” added Jaminta.
“I’m good at keeping secrets,” said Freya, shaking the snow off her braids.
“Do you really think we should tell?” said Jaminta doubtfully. “The Rescue Princesses might not work very well with five people.”
“We could make it work if we all help each other,” said Clarabel, and Emily nodded in agreement.
Freya watched them, a bubbly feeling rising inside her.
The Rescue Princesses!
It sounded so exciting! But what was it all about?
Lulu gave Freya a solemn look. “The four of us are the Rescue Princesses, and we’ll tell you all about it if you’re
sure
you really like animals.”
“I do! I love them!” said Freya, her eyes lighting up.
“Can you prove it?” said Jaminta. “I mean, have you ever taken care of any animals?”
“Yes!” Freya beamed. “I’ve got some living in my bedroom right now! Come on, I’ll show you.”
The princesses followed Freya back toward the castle. The snow crunched beneath their boots and the sled skimmed along behind them. When they reached the castle door, they shook the snow off their coats and went inside.
In the Great Hall, the kings and queens were sitting in front of a crackling fire, sipping cups of coffee. There were golden streamers hanging from the ceiling and fairy lights twinkling at the windows. Freya had helped her dad with the decorations. She loved to see the castle looking so beautiful.
“My room’s up here,” she said, leading the princesses up the wooden staircase.
“What kind of animals do you have?” asked Emily.
Freya opened her bedroom door. “Come and see!”
“Where are they?” asked Lulu, gazing eagerly around the room. “Oh, look!”
The girls rushed over to a small box padded with woolly sweaters. Inside the box was a mother cat lying down with six sleepy kittens. They had their eyes shut tight as they snuggled together for warmth. Five of the kittens had beautiful black fur, the same as their mother’s. The sixth kitten had white patches on its face and tummy, and four white paws. It opened its bright blue eyes and stared at the princesses.
“I made the box really comfy for them,” said Freya happily. “I think they like it.”
“They’re lovely.” Clarabel stroked the head of one little kitten. “Look at their tiny ears!”
Freya picked up the kitten with four
white paws and kissed her. “I call this one Minky. She’s the naughty one. She’s always bouncing around the room and hiding under the bed.”
Minky gave a tiny meow and looked at the girls, as if she knew they were talking about her.
“Hello, Minky,” said Jaminta, gently shaking one soft white paw.
Minky meowed back and swished her little tail.
“What are all the others named?” asked Lulu.
“The mother cat’s Carla, and these are Dusky, Fluffles, Velvet, Coco, and Daisy,” said Freya, pointing to the kittens one by one.
“Aw! Aren’t they beautiful!” cried Emily.
The girls huddled around the box to stroke the kittens, who woke up and filled the room with their little meows.
“Tell me about the Rescue Princesses. I want to know everything.” Freya sat down on the bed and hugged her kitten tightly. Minky flicked out a little pink tongue and licked her cheek.
“We met at the Mistberg Grand Ball, and there were some deer in trouble in the forest nearby,” began Emily.
“So we rescued them all and we made a secret promise that we would always help any animal in trouble, even if it was dangerous,” continued Lulu.
“And since then we’ve found lots more animals that have needed rescuing,” said Jaminta. “And we use special rings to call each other if we’re apart.” She showed Freya her emerald ring and pressed it to make it glow.
“Wow!” breathed Freya. “And you do it all without any grown-ups helping?”
Emily nodded. “We train ourselves in things like climbing and balancing so that we can get better at the rescues.”
“I can’t believe you’ve done all of that. I’m hardly ever allowed to do things on my own,” said Freya wistfully. “It all sounds amazing.”
“So what should we do?” said Lulu, turning to the others. “Do we want Freya to join us?”
Freya watched them longingly. These weren’t just girls the same age as her; they were girls who had adventures. She just
had
to join them!
“What is it that
you
want, Freya?” asked Clarabel.
“I would love to become a Rescue Princess, too … if that’s all right?” Freya clasped her hands together hopefully. If only they would let her!
The others exchanged looks and smiled.
Lulu nodded. “If you really, really want to, then you
should
become a Rescue Princess. I bet we’re going to have some awesome adventures together!”
“We haven’t even told you about the ninja moves yet,” said Emily, grinning.
“Ninja moves?” squeaked Freya.
Her squeal woke up Minky, who had been quietly snoozing. The little cat wriggled and got her paw caught in a pale blue ribbon that hung around Freya’s neck. Finding her paw stuck, she wriggled even more.
“Hold still, Minky! You’re making it worse.” Freya untangled the kitten’s paw and then put Minky down on the floor for a moment so that she could unknot the twisted ribbon.
“That’s a lovely jewel.” Jaminta stepped
closer to look at the beautiful white stone hanging on the end of Freya’s ribbon.
Freya held up the roughly shaped gem. It dangled there, sparkling like a drop of snow. “This is a snow-quartz jewel. My mom left it to me. She died when I was a baby. My dad says she used to wear it all the time. I don’t really remember because I was so little, but I’m glad she wanted it to be mine because it’s so pretty.”
“It’s beautiful.” Clarabel smiled.
“Thanks!” Freya tucked the blue ribbon away again. “My mom left me a note about it as well. It says my jewel is special and can protect me against ice and snow —”
“Hang on!” Emily interrupted. “Can anyone see Minky? I’m sure she was here a minute ago.”
“Oh, not again! She scampered away yesterday, too. It took me forever to find her.” Freya looked at the door and noticed it was half open. “We really should have closed that door. Quick, everyone! We must find her before she wanders off. If she gets lost among all the kings and queens she’ll be so scared.”