Grand Prize Winner

Alone
Author: Erica Stevens (6th grade)
Linton Middle School

Alli and her family were going on a journey to get ingredients for a new potion. She complained constantly about going. Her claim was that, with her magical skills, her parents could summon the things instead of going to an unknown place. Her parents said this place they were to go to was a magical place that forbade the people around to use their magic. This made her hate the trip even more. Her favorite activities were practicing her magic and learning new spells from her caretaker and friend, Sari. This beloved friend had taught Alli all that she knew about magic.

In the ancient courtyard, birds sang, and yet, Alli was not comforted. Desperately, she pleaded with Sari to come. “If I am forced to go on this horrid trip, it is the least you could do to go along!” Her golden hair fanned out behind her as she walked.

“I can’t,” her Sari replied. “I think your mother wants this to be strictly family!”

Alli frowned. That sounded like her mother, thinking up strictly family projects, even though Alli preferred hanging out with her peers instead of her family.

“You’re family, aren’t you?” she said in a final, desperate attempt to persuade Sari to come. A light laugh that sounded like bells came from Sari. Alli loved that laugh. She smiled in spite of herself. However, when Sari spoke again, that faint smile faded.

“No. I am here to repay a debt I owe to your mother to keep you safe and happy.”

“But your coming would make me happy!” Alli coaxed, but Sari stood firm.

After lunch, the family boarded a train to the unknown land. As the train pulled into the final station, Alli sighed. Her thoughts were on Sari when her parents led her into a dense forest and told her to search for a beast with the appearance of an oversized crow with five-inch claws. They handed her a weapon with which to kill the beast. They also told her to drag it to the nearest path once she killed it and to wait for them there. She nodded absently and set off searching. After a long time walking, she got desperately lost. She cried out in utter despair. It was as her mother had said, Alli’s magic, as she found out, would not work, though she tried constantly to contact her parents and to summon food. She spent that night on the ground weeping. The next morning, she woke and began wandering again. She missed her mother, father and Sari. Suddenly, she was rudely knocked out of her thoughts when a tilepetahiony (a magical mix between a tiger, leopard, cheetah, lion, and fairy) leaped into her path. This beast could be dangerous or loyal, depending on its mood. This one chose to be friendly as tilepetahionies go.

“Greetings, my bag of old, worthless flour. You seem worried. I may decided to help in your task, if you seem to have a purpose worth fulfilling, you slimy dog.”

Alli was spellbound at the insults. Slowly, she calmly remembered her teachings about these creatures. They were born to insult. In fact, from what she remembered, this one was being polite. She responded in a timid voice, still frightened from being alone and lost. “I search for my parents.”

“You are a raving, mad pinhead, are you not, to return to your rat brain parents when they tortured you, an inconsiderate delinquent?”

“Not so!” she retorted. “They were wonderful, loving parents, and I miss them!”

“So, weakling, you find your ignorant parents a blessing to your useless self’s prayers?” He sat back on his haunches and grinned, pleased with himself.

“Yes,” she answered quietly. “I want to go home!”

“Well, when you put it that way, you child of rats and pigs, I feel it is the duty of my wonderful self to escort you junk back to your icky parents.” With that, he allowed her to get onto his back as he spread his wings to return Alli to her parents.