Cassie Comes Through Read Online Free PDF Page A

Cassie was frustrated when she realized that she still couldn’t see the creature. Her professor, a tiny woman in a voluminous swirly purple-and-blue skirt that looked like a moonstorm, was somehow positioned in a way that precisely blocked her view. She craned her neck, but she was unable to see behind the woman.
    â€œStar greetings, students,” said Professor Lucretia Delphinus. “Welcome to your first wish identification workshop. Today we will be granting the wishes of our special guest, Mica.” She stepped to the side and Cassie finally caught a glimpse. The creature was sitting in the middle of the teacher’s desk, staring into space. Cassie felt her spirits drop. It wasn’t a majestic glion who could be wishing to climb to the top of the Crystal Mountains and graze on the rainbow lichen that grew there or a galliope who might want to take a lucky student for a ride on his broad back, her fingers laced through his glittering mane. She would not be hearing the bellowing call of the many-antlered twinkelope anytime soon. No, that day they would be guessing the wishes of a much smaller and decidedly less glamorous creature—a creature Cassie knew almost as well as she knew herself: a glowfur.
    Cassie shook her head and laughed to herself. This wasn’t going to be challenging at all. She sighed and waited for the class to begin.
    The professor continued. “We’ll be honing our wish identification skills as we try to determine exactly what Mica is wishing for this morning.” She clasped her hands together and smiled at the students. “I’ll start with an easy question. Who can tell me what type of creature Mica is?”
    Hands shot into the air. Cassie kept hers down. Too easy.
    â€œGloryah?” said the professor, pointing to a student with a pinkish-orange glow. Cassie liked her; she had a sweet disposition and was exceedingly polite, a trait Cassie admired greatly.
    â€œA moonbug!” said Gloryah. But her brow wrinkled as the words came out of her mouth. “No, that’s not right. I mean a—”
    â€œIt’s a glowfur,” interjected a student named Aerabelle disdainfully. She snorted. “Even my baby sister knows the difference between a glowfur and a moonbug!”
    â€œI knew that!” Gloryah said. She looked around the room, appealing to her classmates. “I really did!”
    Cassie gave Gloryah an understanding smile (though, really, who could mix those two up?) and turned to bestow a frown on Aerabelle, who had dusky purple curls and a deceptively sweet round face. You were not supposed to react negatively to your classmates; that was one of Starling Academy’s basic rules. Being kind and supportive—no matter how silly you thought a comment or question was—helped create an atmosphere of civility and support, which encouraged sharing and open dialogue, per the Student Manual. Aerabelle had apparently skipped that chapter.
    â€œBe kind, Aerabelle,” the professor said in a warning voice. She might have been tiny, but her toughness was legendary. Her eyes flashed with annoyance. “That’s what we are here for. To learn, of course, but to do so in a supportive way. There are no incorrect answers. We learn from everything that is shared in this classroom, accurate or inaccurate. There is no room for negativity here.”
    Aerabelle pouted, clearly not comprehending her teacher’s words, just her scolding tone. Cassie wasn’t surprised. The purple-haired girl was part of a group of first years whose ringleader was a student named Vivica, who had been particularly rude to the Star Darlings from day one at Starling Academy. Aerabelle was just as kind and understanding as her pale blue friend, Vivica—which is to say not at all.
    Cassie watched as Gloryah’s face burned brightly with embarrassment. Cassie felt sorry for the girl but was quick to notice that she flushed a very pretty