The Wish Birds

• Madeleine Pearson, Grade 6, St Anne's School -
• Short Story
• 2018

Excellence Award in the 'Write Along 2018' competition

A girl walked cautiously through the thicket. Her jet black hair draped over her shoulders, brushing her milky white skin then resting at her waist. The trees created silhouettes on the grey sky behind her. It felt as if the trees were closing in on her and she felt absolutely terrified and extremely paranoid. The strong air blew through the twisted branches making her jump. Her once pristine white silky nightgown, had become grubby and kept getting caught on the thorn bushes, a large rip had appeared.

In the darkness she caught a glimpse of a glow in the trees ahead. She moved forward towards the light like a moth drawn to a flame. She couldn’t help herself if she wanted to, as the girl was curious… too curious. Crunch, crunch, crunch glass shattered beneath her feet. The radiance came from a lantern with a panel of glass shattered to smithereens. The girl picked the lantern up tentatively, admiring the design. Suddenly, a blinding light shone in her eyes and a flock of birds surrounded her. The birds were every possible colour and a rainbow flash engulfed her. She closed her eyes tightly as she felt her feet being lifted up off the filthy ground.

As she floated upwards, the cold air tingled her skin. The drifting motion made her stomach churn. Landing with a soft thud on a tuft of grass, she opened her eyes once again. The grass was parakeet green and the sky was clear cornflower blue. The girl could smell apple blossoms, the smell was so sweet she could almost taste it. The only thing in the large space was a gargantuan oak tree with honey brown bark and lush green leaves. Somehow she trusted this place so the girl edged closer to the tree to have a better look. The rainbow birds that had taken her to this magical place had disappeared high into the branches. Three small words were carved into the tree.

Make A Wish

So the girl laid down on the soft grass and gave it some thought. She could wish for a house, a friend, good luck, money and so much more but one thing the girl really needed was… courage. Courage to make a difference to her friends, her family and everyone around her. So she decided her wish was courage and as soon as she had thought it through a rainbow bird flew down and perched upon her finger. She whispered her wish to the gorgeous bird. It gave a small nod and flew away with the flock. The girl knew in her heart that the bird would carry her wish safely until she needed it most and then the wish would come true. Maybe not today, tomorrow or the next but someday it would.