For previous editions, go here.

Turning turning, always turning.

The world rushed by her in a blur of white.  The flurries whirled around her, mocking her desperation.

“I need to leave.”  As her head whipped around, she saw flashes of blue.  Bemused blue, boring into her.

“Where would you go?”

“I need to dance.”  Her words echoed hollowly, mocking her as her feet ached, her arms screamed with exhaustion from being curved overhead so long.

“You are dancing now.”  The Ice Prince spun her faster, the snow now a blizzard.

“No!  I don’t mean that.  I mean I must get to…they are waiting for me…I am Clara.”

Suddenly, she stopped.  The Prince’s face wavered, a picture of perfection.  “You are Clara?”

“Yes.”  She lowered her arms, her aching ankles drifting to the floor.  “You know the Nutcracker?”

He stared past her, his gaze distant.  “All too well.”

“I must perform soon.  They are waiting for me…”  She tried to remember, the faces a blur.  One pair of eyes stood out, one laugh rang in her ears.  J…Justin!

The Prince’s lips curled before she even spoke.  “You are in love.”  He lowered his head, his gaze traveling to their entwined hands.  “A state I remember, as long ago as it was.”

She opened her mouth, but he shook her head.  “We must get you to the stage.”

She stared at him.  “How?”

***

Gabriel burst through the locker room door, his enourmous chest heaving.  Leonette and Justin jumped, scuttling away from their vigil by Arabella’s sleeping form.  Flinging a hand to his head, Gabriel sobbed, “What shall we do?”

“Breathe, first of all.”  Max slipped by him, his worried eyes betraying his dry words.  “There’s got to be an explanation to this.”

“An explanation?”  Gabriel shieked, flinging a hand toward Arabella, her eyes sealed shut.  “What explanation?  The EMS could find nothing wrong with her.  They told us she was sleeping.  No coma, no trauma, nothing!”  He staggered against the lockers, the metal shrieking.  “We should have done Sleeping Beauty,” he moaned.  “Then we could just slap her on stage like that.”

Max gnawed on his lip.  “We have a couple days before the big debut.”

“A couple days?  She could be asleep for centuries!  She’s a medical paradox!  A conundrum!  A mystery!”  Gabriel flung himself forward, his cape billowing behind him.  “What will we DO?”

“I can help.”  Justin cringed, his eyes leaving Arabella long enough just to glare at his twin sister.  Jocelyn crept into the room, her dark eyes glittering.  “I am her understudy, after all.”

“You did this!” Leonette lunged at her, snarling as Justin yanked her back.  “You did this to her!”

“Me?”  Jocelyn pressed a hand to her chest, wounded.  “What did I do?”

Leonette sputtered, curse words littering the air like confetti.  Patting her shoulder, Max sighed.

“I understand completely.  I must admit, this is…odd.”  He wrinkled his forehead, staring at the girl crumpled on the floor.  “It’s almost like she was under a spell.”

Jocelyn snorted.  “How ridiculous!”

“Nothing is ridiculous in the theatre!” Gabriel bellowed, peeling his fat fingers from his eyes.  “If you were a true artist, you would know that!  But you’re merely a chorus girl at heart!” Ignoring Jocelyn’s wounded gasp, he stared mournfully at Arabella.  “She is a true artist,” he howled.  “And now look at her!  Taken from us by a thief!”

“She’s not dead,” Leonette snapped.

“She might as well be, as far as the performance goes.”  Ignoring Gabriel’s heaving sobs, Max shook his head.  “Joceyln, unless Arabella wakes up, you’ll have to step in.”  Clapping a hand on Gabriel’s trembling shoulder, he said, “Come on, buddy.  I’ll buy you an ice cream float.”

“And some pie,” Gabriel whimpered, wiping his nose on his cloak.  “And some brownies…some of those cookies too…”  Trailing after Max, he thundered out of the locker room.  Giving her brother one last smirk, Jocelyn flounced after them, going to the opposite direction.

Leading Gabriel to his car, Max froze.  “Gabriel, is that Alaric’s mother?”

Sniffling into his cape, Gabriel rubbed his red eyes.  “Where?”

“Over there.”  Max peered in the darkness, sucking in his breath.  “She’s with Jocelyn.  And Alaric.”  He slowly raised his eyes to Gabriel’s.  “You don’t think…”

“I thought those were rumors.”  Gabriel clutched his cape, his fat fingers trembling.  “I mean, theater people are odd…”

Max exhaled slowly.  “If the rumors about Alaric’s mother and her “magical abilities” are true…”

Gabriel’s chin wobbled.  “We’re going to need more than a sundae to cure Arabella.”

Max nodded.  “We’re going to need a Christmas miracle.”

***

In the glum dim of the locker room, Arabella’s soft breathing filled the air.  Leonette brushed her golden hair back, her eyes pricked with tears.

“I can’t help thinking if I hadn’t been in such a hurry to go to dinner…”  She trailed off, her lip curling.  “The jerk stood me up anyway.”

Justin shrugged.  “There’s no point in thinking that way.  We don’t know if anyone actually did anything…”  His eyes traveled down to the locket.  Sliding it over his fingers, he raised it up, the gold glittering under the lights.  “This is the necklace Alaric wanted Arabella to have.”

“Cheap.”  Leonette sneered.  Then her eyebrows raised.  “But he never gave it to her.  He was whining about it being stolen.”

Justin’s fingers curled around the necklace.  “Obviously, someone made sure she got it.”  Looking at the snowglobe still clutched in Arabella’s fingers, he rubbed his thumb over the locket.  “I know it sounds crazy, but I have an idea.”

Stay tuned, Invisible Friends!  We have a delicious recipe tomorrow–the first children’s book review and recipe!  Stay tuned!

More