“I am still writing it, Karen.”
“That is okay. You can read what you have written so far.”
“Oh, all right. But we cannot stay on the phone long. I have to finish,” Natalie replied.
Natalie read the title, “As Snow Princess, I Promise …” Then she read what she had written.
I was glad she was going to work on it more. So far it did not sound like a prizewinning composition to me. But I tried to be encouraging.
“It is a good start,” I said. “You can give it to me when you finish and I will look it over for you.”
“I do not know. I really want to do this myself, Karen.”
“Even real authors have editors,” I said. “I will just check to see if there are spelling mistakes or anything.”
“Well, maybe. I will let you know tomorrow.”
By the end of school the next day, Natalie finally agreed to let me look at her composition. I took it home and went straight to my room to read it.
It was better than it had been. In fact, it was pretty good. But it was still not good enough. I fixed some spelling mistakes. I added a missing period.
Then I changed a couple of words at the beginning. I did not think Natalie would mind. The new words made her composition sound much better.
I changed a few more words. Then I took out a couple of Natalie’s sentences and put in my own.
The composition was getting better with every change. There was only one problem. It was not exactly Natalie’s composition anymore. I was not sure I should change anything else. But there was one other part that would be so easy to fix. I could not resist. Finally, I rewrote the composition from the beginning. I drew a few pictures too.
The contest rules said the composition had to be in the mail by midnight. I had promised Natalie I would mail it for her. I copied it over carefully, addressed the envelope, and put on a rose stamp. Then I took the envelope to the corner mailbox.
My stomach did a flip-flop. Before I dropped the envelope in, I had to think. I had made a lot of changes. But how could it hurt to make Natalie’s composition better? I just wanted to be sure she would be the winner. Natalie Springer, Snow Princess. How could she mind?
Oops
The ten finalists were invited to read their compositions on Wednesday afternoon at the library.
I went with Natalie and her parents. That is because Mommy was at home with Andrew, who had a cold. And Seth was at work in his studio. (At least he was back in Stoneybrook.)
Natalie was the third finalist called on to read. I could see she was feeling good. She was standing up tall, her socks were not drooping, and she was smiling.
Ms. Feld handed her the composition the judges had received.
“We enjoyed reading your composition very much. We also liked the beautiful illustrations,” said Ms. Feld.
Natalie looked a little puzzled. I had not told her I illustrated the composition when I copied it over. In fact, I had not even told her I copied it over.
“Thank you,” said Natalie.
Without looking in my direction, she began to read.
“As Snow Princess, I promise to do many exciting and important things for the town of Stoneybrook.”
Natalie was still smiling, but her smile was a little shaky. She had not expected the words “exciting and important” in her composition. I had added them.
“The Snow Princess must stand for many things,” continued Natalie. “I promise to be cheerful and friendly. I will work with my loyal Snow Prince to make Stoneybrook a fairy-tale town.”
Natalie’s eyes opened wide. That whole paragraph must have been a big surprise. She had not written one word of it.
Natalie swallowed hard and continued reading as if nothing were wrong. But at the end, she started to look a little wobbly.
“I promise I will try gigundoly hard to be the best Snow Princess this town has ever had.”
When she finished speaking, the audience clapped. Natalie was smiling, but she did not look happy.
For the first time since she started speaking, Natalie looked in my direction. She gave me a big what-have-you-done-now look. Oops.
Princess Who?
We listened to the rest of the speakers. Then everyone was invited to have juice and cookies while the judges made their decisions.
I did not feel much like eating. And I thought it would be better for me to leave Natalie alone. I went to the bathroom and washed my hands and combed my hair six times.
I returned to the conference room when I heard Ms. Feld say, “Please take your seats, everyone. We are ready to name the Snow Prince and Snow Princess for our winter carnival.”
We all sat down quickly and Ms. Feld continued.
“First, we want to congratulate each of our speakers for doing a wonderful job. We thank you for contributing your time and ideas,” she said.
We clapped for the contestants. Then Ms. Feld announced the first winner.
“Based on his fine composition, the judges name Bill Korman Snow Prince of the winter carnival,” said Ms. Feld. “Congratulations, Bill.”
I clapped for my big-house neighbor as he stepped forward to accept his crown and certificate of honor. He had done a very good job. I could see he was happy to have won.
When the room was quiet again, Ms. Feld continued. She was ready to name the Snow Princess. I crossed all my fingers and wished as hard as I could for my friend to win.
“Based on her wonderful composition, we name Natalie Springer Snow Princess of the winter carnival,” said Ms. Feld. “Congratulations, Natalie.”
“Yes!” I shouted. “Hooray!”
I jumped out of my seat and clapped louder than anyone in the room. Until I saw Natalie’s face. It was not the face of a winner. It was not the face of a happy Snow Princess. It was a confused face. I stopped clapping and sat down again.
After thanking the judges and shaking their hands, Natalie walked toward the audience. Her parents were waiting to congratulate her. They were thrilled that their daughter had been named Snow Princess.
“Would you please excuse me for a minute?” she said to them. “I would like to talk to Karen in private.”
I followed Natalie down the hall. Her lower lip started to quiver. That always happens to Natalie when she is upset.
“Please do not cry,” I said. “I know you are unhappy with me. But you should be happy for yourself. You are Snow Princess! You won the contest and you should be proud.”
“Why should I be proud?” asked Natalie. “Ms. Feld said I was chosen based on my wonderful composition. Only it was not my composition. It was yours. Now what am I supposed to do?”
“You are supposed to enjoy being Snow Princess.”
“I cannot enjoy something I do not deserve. I feel like a cheater, even though I did not do anything wrong.”
Natalie sounded angry and I could not blame her. Because of me, she would not enjoy being Snow Princess. Because of me, Natalie felt like a cheater.
I knew there was only one thing to say, and I said it: “Natalie, I am really sorry.”
The Real Story
I called Natalie after supper that night. I had done a lot of thinking.
“Here are our choices,” I said. “You can be the Snow Princess and not tell anyone I changed your composition.”
“We already decided that is dishonest. I cannot do it,” replied Natalie. “What other choices do we have?”
“I could only think of one. We can tell the truth.”
“I like that one. We can tell Ms. Feld. She can talk to the other judges.”
The next day after school Natalie’s mother drove us to the library. (We told Mrs. Springer we needed to ask Ms. Feld some questions about being Snow Princess. It was sort of the truth.)
Ms. Feld was happy to see us.
“Welcome, Karen. And welcome, Natalie, our new Snow Princess,” she said.
“We need to talk to you about that,” said Natalie.
“I will be happ
y to answer any questions you have.”
For a minute Natalie and I just stood there looking at each other. We had not decided who would do the talking.
Then Natalie blurted out, “I should not be Snow Princess! Karen wrote my composition. But I did not know that she did it.”
Ms. Feld looked confused. I decided it was my turn to talk, since the whole mess was my fault. I explained everything. I told Ms. Feld how I got carried away and rewrote the composition to help Natalie win.
“I was trying to be a good Princess Promoter,” I said. “I wanted Natalie to win very badly.”
“Natalie, do you still have the composition you wrote yourself?” asked Ms. Feld.
“Yes,” replied Natalie. “But it is my first copy and it is very messy.”
“That is okay,” said Ms. Feld.
Natalie handed the composition to Ms. Feld.
“I will read this carefully and discuss it with the other judges. I promise to call you later this evening,” said Ms. Feld.
We thanked Ms. Feld, then headed outside. I saw Natalie’s lip begin to quiver. I was afraid she was going to start crying.
“Do you want me to keep you company until you get the phone call tonight?” I asked.
“Would you?” asked Natalie. “I really do not want to be alone. You could have dinner at my house.”
“I will call home and see if it is all right. There is a phone right over there,” I said.
I did not want to be away from Seth. I hardly got to see him because he was in Chicago so much. But I decided it was important for me to be with Natalie. She was afraid to wait for this phone call without a friend. And I did not want her to be all alone if they took away her crown.
Omigosh! They might take away Natalie’s crown. That would be even worse than not winning in the first place. It would be worse than losing the class election.
Maybe I was not such a good Princess Promoter after all.
The Real Princess
Mommy and Seth said I could have dinner at Natalie’s house. I explained that she was upset and needed my company.
That part was the truth. Natalie was upset. But she was not the only one. I was upset, too.
At Natalie’s house, Mrs. Springer offered us a snack. She made toast with peanut butter and honey and warm apple cider.
But Natalie and I were not hungry. We nibbled corners of the toast and took little sips of cider.
“Are you girls all right? Would you like something else to eat?” asked Mrs. Springer.
“No, thank you. We are not very hungry,” I said.
We excused ourselves and went upstairs. We did not feel like playing either. We sat on Natalie’s bed and watched her pet mouse, Delroy. He was running along a wheel in his cage. We watched the wheel go round and round.
Ring! When the phone rang, Natalie and I both tumbled off the bed.
“I bet it is Ms. Feld! She is calling early!” I said.
“Mommy, is that for me?” called Natalie.
“No, Natalie,” answered Mrs. Springer.
“I am feeling very jumpy,” I said. “I think we should take a walk.”
We bundled up because it was cold outside. At the bottom of the Springers’ driveway, Natalie turned left. I turned right. We smashed into each other.
“Oops, sorry,” I said.
I turned and started to walk left. Natalie turned and started to walk right. Now we were walking away from each other.
“I do not think we should go for a walk after all,” I said. “What if Ms. Feld really does call early? We do not want to be out.”
“You are right!” said Natalie. We hurried back into the house. Mrs. Springer was off the phone.
“What is going on with you, girls?” she asked. “I have never seen you so jumpy.”
Natalie and I looked at each other. It was time to tell our story again. When we finished, Mrs. Springer said, “Karen, I know you were trying to do something nice for Natalie when you rewrote the composition. So do not feel too bad. And Natalie, even if you are not the Snow Princess, we love you anyway.”
Telling the truth always seems to work the best.
Natalie and I were feeling a little less jumpy. By dinnertime our appetites were back. We helped Mrs. Springer make a big salad. Then Mr. Springer came home with pizza from Pizza Express.
“I am glad you girls are hungry. I got extra large pies tonight,” he said.
Ring! We were just finishing our dinner when the phone rang again. This time it was for Natalie. Ms. Feld was calling with the judges’ decision. I listened to Natalie talking on the phone.
“Really? You mean it?” said Natalie. “Thank you! Thank you very much!”
When she hung up, I said, “What happened? What did Ms. Feld say?”
Natalie was beaming.
“Ms. Feld said the judges liked your composition very much. It was definitely a prizewinner. But they liked my own composition even better!” said Natalie. “They are doubly sure they picked the right princess. Can you believe it? I am the Snow Princess. The real princess!”
“Congratulations! That is great!” I said.
My feelings were a teensy bit hurt when I heard that the judges liked Natalie’s composition better than mine. But it was for a worthy cause.
Natalie had finally been chosen for something important. And the best part was that she had been chosen just for being Natalie.
Seth’s News
That night, I told Mommy and Seth about Natalie and the composition.
“I am glad everything worked out,” said Mommy. “And I am glad you told us what happened. Having too many secrets is not good.”
“You and Seth have been keeping lots of secrets lately,” I replied.
“You are right, Karen,” said Seth. “I promised to tell you what has been going on, and this is a good time.”
Mommy called Andrew. We all went into the den. I was feeling nervous. I was afraid I was going to hear bad news.
“What is going on?” asked Andrew.
“I want to tell you why I have been going to Chicago so much lately,” replied Seth. “I have been going there because I was offered a temporary job.”
Andrew looked confused.
“Temporary means it will not be for always,” said Mommy. “This job would be for six months.”
“Six months? That is a very long time!” I said.
“We have not made a decision yet,” said Seth. “But it is an exciting offer and I would like to consider it.”
“Wouldn’t you miss us if you moved away for six months?” I asked.
“Of course,” replied Seth. “That is why we would move there together.”
My stomach did a flip-flop. Now I understood. Mommy and Seth were thinking of moving us all to Chicago.
“I do not want to move!” I said.
“Me either,” said Andrew.
“It would not be forever,” said Mommy.
“How can I see Daddy and everyone at the big house when we are far away?” I asked.
“How could I go to school?” asked Andrew.
“You would both come back for weekends sometimes,” said Mommy. “And you would go to new schools in Chicago.”
I did not like the sound of this one bit. Seth must have seen how unhappy I looked.
“If moving seems too difficult, I would consider commuting,” said Seth.
Andrew looked confused again.
“Commuting means going back and forth,” I told Andrew. “That is what Seth is doing now.”
“But I would do it for a much longer time,” said Seth.
“This is a lot to think about,” said Mommy. “We do not have to decide anything right now. We just wanted to let you know what was going on.”
I was relieved to know what the whispering was about. I had been worried about the secrets. But now I had an even bigger worry. I had to worry about moving to Chicago.
I did not want to leave my big-house family. I did not want to leave my friends and my s
chool.
But I did not want Seth to commute either. I was not happy when he was away so much.
There was only one thing I wanted. I wanted Seth to turn down the job so we could all stay right where we were.
First Night
My little-house family ate breakfast together on Saturday morning. Then we said good-bye to Seth. He was going to go to Chicago for the whole week.
“I will be back in time for the end of the carnival so I can go to the parade with you,” he said. “And I will call you later to hear all about First Night.”
I had been worrying so much lately about Natalie and Seth that I had almost forgotten about the lighting ceremony. I started thinking about it again. I wanted Mayor Keane to choose me to light the town square. By the time Seth called, I wanted to have exciting news to tell him.
It was hard waiting for the afternoon to come. The ceremony did not start until four-thirty. I had to find things to keep me busy.
First Mommy, Andrew, and I hung our new lights. Then we set the timer and tested it. It worked! At five o’clock in the afternoon, our house would glow.
I made some phone calls. I called Hannie and Nancy and Natalie. I called my big-house family. (They would be at the ceremony too. That meant they would see me light the town square if I got picked.)
I ate lunch. I read a book. Then I planned what to wear. That was important. If I wanted the mayor to pick me out of the crowd, I had to be sure she could see me. I propped Goosie up on my bed.
“It is time for a fashion show,” I said.
I pulled out all my sweaters. My yellow sweater was the brightest. It popped out from all the rest. The yellow turtleneck popping out of my bright red ski jacket was just what I needed.
Then I remembered something else I needed. One of my Christmas gifts had been a baseball cap with lights that blinked. I searched my closet until I found it. I tried out the lights. They worked. The mayor was sure to see me in my yellow sweater and blinking hat.
But I was not taking any chances. I went to my night-table drawer and took out one more thing. A flashlight. By the time the ceremony began, it would be almost dark. A flashlight was just what I needed. I would wave it in circles. There was no way the mayor could miss me with a red jacket, yellow sweater, blinking hat, and waving light.