Chapter 12. Having Kittens
They made their way back to Ryan’s house. It was evident that Tracey had arrived before them as Mrs Hughes’ screams could be heard clearly from the street.
‘What have you done to your hair?’ she screeched. ‘And why are you wearing those dreadful clothes. What on earth were you thinking of?’
‘I wanted a change,’ said Tracey’s reflection mutinously. ‘You have no idea how boring my life is. Just looking in a mirror day after day.’
Mrs Hughes was nearly speechless.
‘Boring?’ she gasped. ‘Oh, and as for looking in the mirror, well I’ll soon put a stop to that for you.’
She marched into Tracey’s bedroom and lifted the mirror from the wall. The real Tracey took one look at her mother’s angry face and hid under the bed while the reflection stood with her arms crossed and a gloating smile on her face.
‘I’m going to put this away until your attitude improves, young lady,’ announced her mother. ‘And you can go and wash that colour out of your hair right now, and change into more suitable clothing.’
Mrs Hughes took the mirror into Ryan’s bedroom while Tracey’s reflection stormed angrily in the bathroom and slammed the door.
‘I’m putting this away in your cupboard, Ryan, until Tracey has come to her senses.’
‘Sure Mum. No problem,’ said Ryan hastily.
He and Andy waited until Mrs Hughes had dumped the mirror on top of the jumble of shoes and toys in the cupboard and departed for the kitchen. Together they hauled the mirror out again and propped it up on Ryan’s desk.
‘Tracey,’ called Ryan softly. ‘You can come out now. She’s gone’
Tracey’s unhappy face peered out from the mirror at them. She made writing motions with her hand in the air.
‘I know,’ Ryan reassured her. ‘We’ll try and get her to change back again.’
He sounded more confident than he felt. The boys spent the next twenty minutes reading pages of Ryan’s joke book to the mirror to try and cheer Tracey up. Loud crashes and splashes came from the bathroom.
When Ryan heard the bathroom door open he leapt out and grasped Tracey’s reflection firmly by the wrist.
‘Let go,’ she said angrily. Her wet hair was still sticking out in spikes but was now a more normal brown with blonde streaks. The flares and halter-top had been replaced with old blue jeans and a soft blue T-shirt. Ryan dragged her into his room and shut the door. Andy prudently stood in front of it to block any plans for retreat.
Tracey’s reflection scowled at them.
‘What do you want?’
‘We need you to get Tracey back for us,’ said Ryan firmly. ‘Write down Tracey changed places with her reflection.’
‘No.’
‘Why not?’
‘Because it’s boring being a reflection. I get no life at all. I’m stuck in that stupid bedroom every single day and nothing ever happens.’
‘I know,’ suggested Ryan cunningly, ‘how about if we hang the mirror downstairs in the hall by the front door. That way you could see everyone who comes to the house and keep up with what’s going on.’
Tracey's reflection began to look interested.
‘Well, I suppose I could go outside then,’ she said thoughtfully.
‘Yeah, and we’ll come and talk to you so you don’t get bored,’ said Andy enthusiastically. ‘We’ll hold things up to the mirror then you can have their reflections, like,’ he paused for inspiration, ‘a kitten. You’d like a kitten wouldn’t you?’
Tracey’s reflection smiled.
‘A kitten would be so sweet. Are you sure?’ she said suspiciously. ‘You’re not just making things up to get me back in that mirror. You’ll have to promise.’
‘I promise,’ said Ryan promptly. ‘I promise to bring a kitten and hold it up to the mirror for you.’
‘All right. I’ll write it for you,’ Tracey’s reflection said gracefully. ‘Where is the pen?’
Ryan eagerly proffered pen and paper. She wrote.
Secalp degrahc noitcelfer reh dna yecarT
Nothing happened. Ryan picked up the paper and looked at it.
‘You’ve done it all wrong,’ he cried in disappointment. ‘This isn’t proper writing.’
‘It is so!’ Tracey's reflection was indignant.
Andy looked over Ryan’s shoulder.
‘It’s mirror writing,’ he said. ‘Hold it up to the mirror and you’ll be able to read it.’ Ryan held the paper in front of the mirror and sure enough he could read what it said.
Tracey and her reflection changed places.
The real Tracey in the mirror was becoming more and more agitated. She waved her arms at Ryan and made writing motions.
‘We did it, but nothing happened,’ said Ryan in exasperation.
Tracey waved her arms even more wildly.
‘It didn’t work,’ bellowed Ryan. ‘Look it didn’t work.’
He took the pen and held it up to the mirror shaking it in annoyance.
Tracey gave a smile of relief. As Ryan held the pen up, its reflection appeared in the mirror. Tracey took the pen’s reflection and wrote with it;
Secalp degrahc noitcelfer reh dna yecarT
There was a whoosh of air and Tracey was back.
‘Thanks,’ she said in relief. ‘I was trying to make you understand. Thank goodness you held the pen up at last.’ She smiled at her reflection in the mirror. ‘Hey, that streaked hair is quite effective,’ she murmured.
‘Don’t even think about it.’ Ryan shuddered. ‘Mum has already gone berserk over it. Thank goodness your real hair hasn’t changed at all.’
‘What was it like in the mirror?’ asked Andy.
‘Awful,’ replied Tracey firmly. ‘It was as if there was a foggy white wall surrounding me and all I could move around in was one small piece. I’m going to move the mirror around from now on so my reflection gets a bit more excitement out of life. What was she like?’
‘Horrible, even worse than you,’ said Ryan and ducked as Tracey’s hand flung out in a slap.
‘We promised we’d get her a kitten,’ Andy reminded him. ‘The little kid next door to us, Stephanie, has one we can borrow for half an hour. That ought to do it.’
‘Let’s get it now,’ said Ryan, ‘and get it over with. Do you want to come, Tracey?’
‘No thanks, I’m going to look for something.’
‘See you later, then,’ called Ryan. ‘Come on, Andy.’
He and Andy ran down the road and begged a surprised small girl for the loan of her kitten for half an hour.
They promised to bring it back unharmed and called for Tracey to hold it up to the mirror, which was now hanging in the hallway by the front door.
‘That way we can be sure your reflection will get it,’ said Andy.
Tracey held the kitten up to the mirror where its soft pink nose sniffed enquiringly. Tracey’s reflection smiled as a kitten appeared in her arms then contentedly turned away to cuddle it and play with it.
‘Now! At last!’ said Ryan turning to Tracey. ‘Would you write something for us?’
‘It won’t work anyway,’ pointed out Andy. ‘She’s had her turn.’
‘Bother, I forgot. I know, let’s take this kitten back and get young Stephanie to write for us.’ He prised it out of Tracey’s arms and put it firmly back in its carry case.
Stephanie was pleased to get her kitten back and surprised to be entrusted with some important writing for the boys.
‘You have to say it’s important if you want to get them to do anything,’ Andy had advised Ryan. ‘Little kids will do anything if you tell them it’s important.’
‘Now write it carefully,’ cautioned Ryan. ‘Do you want me to spell super powers for you?’
‘I’m a good speller,’ said Stephanie indignantly. I got ten out of ten in our spelling test last week.’
‘That’s wonderful,’ said Andy. ‘I knew you would be the best person to help us.?
??
Stephanie beamed at him and took the pen. Sticking her tongue out of the corner of her mouth she wrote firmly with great concentration;
Ryan and Andy
‘The pen’s running out,’ she said anxiously. ‘It’s going all light.’
‘Don’t press so hard,’ said Ryan in anguish. ‘Quick, write the rest.’
Stephanie bent her head and wrote firmly;
Have soup
‘It’s run out,’ she said. ‘Oh look.’
To Ryan and Andy’s surprise, a small table appeared on the ground in front of them. On the table was a bowl of soup.
‘Is it a magic trick?’ asked Stephanie with interest.
‘Yeah,’ said Ryan in disgust. ‘It’s a magic trick all right. The pen’s finished now, the ink has run out,’ he said bitterly and tossed it contemptuously into the bushes beside him.
Andy laughed. He couldn’t help it.
‘Aren’t you going to drink the soup?’ asked Stephanie. ‘It smells lovely. Look, it’s alphabet soup.’
‘You can have it,’ Andy spluttered. ‘Cheer up,’ he said to Ryan. ‘The pen might be finished, but it’s been quite exciting while it lasted.’
‘I suppose so,’ said Ryan gloomily. Then he brightened. ‘Do you want to come back to my house? We can make things with my electronic set.’
‘Cool. Do you suppose we could make a robot that would do our homework for us?’
‘We could certainly give it a try.’
Ryan and Andy walked slowly back to Ryan’s house, discussing all the things they wanted their robot to do. They stepped through the front door and waved to Tracey’s reflection in the mirror. She looked up from cuddling her kitten and waved cheerfully back. The next minute they heard a shriek and Tracey herself came racing towards them.
‘Ryan, Andy! Thank goodness you’re back!’
‘Why? What’s happened?’
‘I found that spoon, the one Aunt Agatha gave me for a birthday present. You won’t believe what it’s done!’
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