excellent as well. That only comes with practice – and you seem to have been distracted recently’
Cassie’s eyes met Madame Rosa’s. ‘There have been some important things on my mind, but nothing matters more to me than to become the best sand dancer that I can be. I want my
mother to have been proud of me.’
It was really hard for Cassie to watch her friends rehearse for the Harvest Moon Festival. They tried to include her, but she often felt left out when they went for extra
lessons or had conversations after supper about the dance routine or what their costumes were going to be like.
She kept watching out for opportunities to return to Madame Rosa’s study, but it was not easy. Madame Rosa worked very hard and, when she was not taking classes, she was always in her
study – and once when Cassie sneaked down, she discovered a late meeting was taking place, and she was lucky not to be caught.
Cassie spent a lot of time going over the basic dance moves. When she wasn’t practising them she would draw the moves into the sand and then try to work out the best way to perform them
properly. She decided that she would show everyone – one day she would perform the Triple Silica Jump and prove herself! For the first time in a while Cassie thought about her Aunt Euphorbia. Of
course, she had written to her and had letters from her, but she was longing to see her too. Cassie hoped she was well and not working too hard at the sand factory. What was the advice she had
given her for performing a Triple Silica Jump? Cassie tried to remember. It is simply a matter of taking three jumps, and making a turn of the hips as you take a very deep breath and
believe! It helped take her mind off things. It was hard at first to put all the instructions together. Sometimes she felt confident, but her hips would not twist at the right point no matter
how hard she tried.
She did not just try to be a model student in her dance lessons. She really paid attention in mathematics and aerodynamics. She even listened very carefully to Miss Youngsand Jnr’s long
lectures about the science of dunes.
Calluna had made a point of coming over to Cassie after one of those lessons and saying in a superior voice, ‘We are having special dresses made for the festival and we can sew shells and
ribbons on to our dance slippers to make them unique.’
Cassie took a deep breath. ‘That sounds wonderful. I hope it all goes well. You deserve your place as you have worked hard. It can’t be easy keeping us all under control’
Calluna looked taken aback. The hard look in her eyes softened ever so slightly.
‘No, it’s not. It is a very responsible job being the senior sand dancer. I can’t let the dance school down, or my family. My mother expects me to be the best. It’s like
having a big sandbag on my shoulders all the time.’ For the first time Cassie thought that there was a reason why Calluna felt she had to be so mean all the time. It also made her think about
her own mother. What would Marina expect of her?
Chapter Fifteen
‘Two wrongs can sometimes make
the right thing happen.’
The Sands of Time
One night Cassie waited on the balcony for Rubus. Madame Rosa had told them the previous week that she was going to be away for a couple of days, and
Cassie knew she had to take this opportunity to read what was on those missing pages. However, the more she thought about it, the more she realised that it would be safer to have someone on
look-out for her – and that someone had to be Rubus. But Rubus was taking an age coming back. In desperation, she had begged Thassalinus to try to contact him, and the old gatekeeper told her that
she could expect him that evening.
It had been a long and emotional day, and soon Cassie’s eyelids were heavy and she found herself asleep. Her dreams took her back to Madame Rosa’s study. Once again she was watching
the images of her mother as she stretched her arms and crossed her
Cassie’s eyes met Madame Rosa’s. ‘There have been some important things on my mind, but nothing matters more to me than to become the best sand dancer that I can be. I want my
mother to have been proud of me.’
It was really hard for Cassie to watch her friends rehearse for the Harvest Moon Festival. They tried to include her, but she often felt left out when they went for extra
lessons or had conversations after supper about the dance routine or what their costumes were going to be like.
She kept watching out for opportunities to return to Madame Rosa’s study, but it was not easy. Madame Rosa worked very hard and, when she was not taking classes, she was always in her
study – and once when Cassie sneaked down, she discovered a late meeting was taking place, and she was lucky not to be caught.
Cassie spent a lot of time going over the basic dance moves. When she wasn’t practising them she would draw the moves into the sand and then try to work out the best way to perform them
properly. She decided that she would show everyone – one day she would perform the Triple Silica Jump and prove herself! For the first time in a while Cassie thought about her Aunt Euphorbia. Of
course, she had written to her and had letters from her, but she was longing to see her too. Cassie hoped she was well and not working too hard at the sand factory. What was the advice she had
given her for performing a Triple Silica Jump? Cassie tried to remember. It is simply a matter of taking three jumps, and making a turn of the hips as you take a very deep breath and
believe! It helped take her mind off things. It was hard at first to put all the instructions together. Sometimes she felt confident, but her hips would not twist at the right point no matter
how hard she tried.
She did not just try to be a model student in her dance lessons. She really paid attention in mathematics and aerodynamics. She even listened very carefully to Miss Youngsand Jnr’s long
lectures about the science of dunes.
Calluna had made a point of coming over to Cassie after one of those lessons and saying in a superior voice, ‘We are having special dresses made for the festival and we can sew shells and
ribbons on to our dance slippers to make them unique.’
Cassie took a deep breath. ‘That sounds wonderful. I hope it all goes well. You deserve your place as you have worked hard. It can’t be easy keeping us all under control’
Calluna looked taken aback. The hard look in her eyes softened ever so slightly.
‘No, it’s not. It is a very responsible job being the senior sand dancer. I can’t let the dance school down, or my family. My mother expects me to be the best. It’s like
having a big sandbag on my shoulders all the time.’ For the first time Cassie thought that there was a reason why Calluna felt she had to be so mean all the time. It also made her think about
her own mother. What would Marina expect of her?
Chapter Fifteen
‘Two wrongs can sometimes make
the right thing happen.’
The Sands of Time
One night Cassie waited on the balcony for Rubus. Madame Rosa had told them the previous week that she was going to be away for a couple of days, and
Cassie knew she had to take this opportunity to read what was on those missing pages. However, the more she thought about it, the more she realised that it would be safer to have someone on
look-out for her – and that someone had to be Rubus. But Rubus was taking an age coming back. In desperation, she had begged Thassalinus to try to contact him, and the old gatekeeper told her that
she could expect him that evening.
It had been a long and emotional day, and soon Cassie’s eyelids were heavy and she found herself asleep. Her dreams took her back to Madame Rosa’s study. Once again she was watching
the images of her mother as she stretched her arms and crossed her
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