Odd One Out Read online

  Contents

  Copyright Page

  Title Page

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  First published in 2011 by

  MACMILLAN EDUCATION AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

  15–19 Claremont Street, South Yarra, 3141 Australia

  Visit our website at www.macmillan.com.au/primary

  Visit the Star Girl website at www.stargirluniverse.com

  Associated companies and representatives throughout the world.

  Copyright © Louise Park 2011 (text)

  Copyright © Macmillan Education Australia 2011 (illustrations)

  All characters and names in the Star Girl series are fictitious and not based on persons

  living or dead.

  All rights reserved.

  Except under the conditions described in the Copyright Act 1968 of Australia and subsequent amendments, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

  National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry

  Park, Louise, 1961—

  Odd one out / Louise Park.

  ISBN: 9781420290301 (pbk.)

  Park, Louise, 1961-Star girl ; no. 2.

  For primary school age.

  A823.4

  Series conceptualised and created by Louise Park

  Packaged by Paddlepop Press Pty Ltd in conjunction with

  Jaclyn Crupi Professional Editorial Services

  Cover illustration by Kyla May

  Designed by Natascha Lenz

  Internal illustrations by Melanie Matthews and Kyla May

  Printed in Australia by McPherson’s Printing Group

  Papers used by Macmillan Education Australia are natural, recyclable products and made from wood grown in sustainable forests. The manufacturing processes conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin.

  These electronic editions published 2011 by

  Macmillan Education Australia Pty Ltd

  Level 1, 15-19 Claremont Street, South Yarra 3141

  All rights reserved. This publication (or any part of it) may not be reproduced or transmitted, copied, stored, distributed or otherwise made available by any person or entity (including Google, Amazon or similar organisations), in any form (electronic, digital, optical, mechanical) or by any means (photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise) without prior written permission from the publisher.

  Star Girl: Odd One Out

  Louise Park

  Adobe eReader format

  978-1-45869-505-5

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  978-1-45869-506-2

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  978-1-45869-504-8

  Macmillan Digital Australia

  www.macmillandigital.com.au

  Visit www.macmillan.com.au/primary to read more about all our books and to buy both print and ebooks online. You will also find subject catalogues, teacher support material and news of professional development events.

  SEAS

  A SPACE STATION BOARDING

  SCHOOL FOR GIRLS AND BOYS

  The Space Education and Action School is located on Space Station Edumax. Students in the space-training program complete space missions on planets in outer space that are in danger and need help.

  Not all students will make it through to their final year and only the best students will go on to become space agents. Addie must make it through and become a Space Agent. Outer space needs her.

  CHAPTER ONE

  ‘We’d better finish getting ready, Addie,’ said Olivia. ‘I don’t know what’s happened to Miya. She wasn’t in Space 101 class this afternoon. But we’ll be late and it’s the first ballet lesson of the term.’ Olivia was in Miya and Addie’s dorm room. She’d come over to get ready for ballet with Addie. Addie had only been at the school for five weeks. And this wasn’t just her first ballet lesson of the term. It was her first ballet lesson at her new space station boarding school.

  Olivia began pulling Addie’s hair up into a tight bun.

  ‘Ouch! Don’t pull so hard,’ Addie said.

  ‘Sorry, Ads,’ Olivia said. ‘But you don’t have hair that likes to stay in a neat bun.’

  ‘I know,’ Addie laughed. ‘Mum always used to say my hair had gremlins in it.’

  Olivia felt really sad that Addie didn’t have her mum anymore. She stopped tugging on Addie’s hair. She didn’t know what to say. She never did when Addie brought her mum up. ‘Your mum would love it that you were at SEAS and training to be a space agent, wouldn’t she?’ she said finally.

  ‘I guess so,’ said Addie, shrugging. ‘Mum died when I was five, so I don’t really know what she would think.’ Addie changed the topic. ‘Hey, I’m just going to send a quick message to Miya and see where she is.’

  Addie took out her SpaceBerry. Every Cadet at SEAS had a SpaceBerry. It was a mobile and a computer. Addie loved using hers to send text messages to her friends.

  ADDIE

  Where R U? We are nearly ready to go.

  MIYA

  Just back from a mission. I’ll C U there.

  ‘She’s been on a mission,’ Addie said. ‘Come on, have you got your ballet bag?’

  ‘Yes, but aren’t you going to change out of that purple tutu first?’ Olivia asked.

  ‘What do you mean?’ asked Addie. ‘This is my ballet tutu. It’s what I wore to class at home. And I love it!’

  ‘But it’s purple!’ Olivia said. ‘Pink is the school colour here. Why didn’t you get one when you bought your uniforms?’

  ‘I like this one. And I didn’t need a new one,’ Addie said quietly. ‘And everything was costing heaps and …’ She sat down on the bed. ‘I’m going to look dumb, aren’t I?’

  ‘A bit,’ Olivia said. ‘Come on, we have to hurry or we’ll miss the space-tube.’

  Addie usually loved riding on the space-tube. It was an overhead rocket-pod rail system that went from one part of the space station to any other part. But today Addie felt like the odd one out.

  Pink tutus everywhere, she thought. She knew everyone was looking at her and whispering. She stared out into space through the dome. Looking out from the pod and seeing all the stars and galaxies in space was the best part of riding the space-tube.

  The rocket-pod pulled in at the Gymnasium and Ballet Hall and everyone climbed out and went into the studio entrance hall. Then Addie heard a voice behind her.

  ‘Hey, New Girl,’ Valentina called out. She was snickering and pointing at Addie’s tutu. ‘I don’t think Miss Styles will be happy about you wearing that. I hope you lose school house points for Stellar.’

  Addie knew Valentina didn’t like her but she thought after their mission together that things might have changed.

  Addie smoothed down the purple netting of her skirt. ‘It’s a tutu just like everyone else’s,’ she said. ‘So what if it’s purple?’

  ‘What makes you think you’re so special?’ said the girl standing with Valentina. ‘You can’t just wear whatever you want.’

  Addie looked at the girl and was shocked to see that it was Grace. She showed me around the school when I first arrived, thought Addie. She was so friendly to me that day. Why is she being so yucky now?

  Addie tried to smile. ‘Hi Grace,’ she said. ‘I don’t think I’m special. This is just my tutu from my old school, that’s all.’

  Suddenly Miss Styles was behind them clapping her hands. ‘Valentina,’ she said, ‘your gym class is starting without you. Off you go.’ Then she turned to Addie. ‘You
must be Adelaide Banks. You aren’t wearing the regulation school tutu, Adelaide. I have heard that you don’t always follow the school rules. Why aren’t you in pink?’

  ‘This is the tutu from my old school, Miss Styles,’ Addie said. ‘It’s the only one I have.’

  ‘I see,’ said Miss Styles, softening. ‘Please see me after class and we’ll sort something out. I’m sure I can find something that you can have.’ She smiled then ushered the girls into the studio.

  ‘What does she mean about me not following the school rules?’ Addie whispered to Olivia. Olivia shrugged.

  ‘First position and eyes to the front, please,’ said Miss Styles.

  Miss Styles led the group through some warm-up exercises and then they began practising their leaps. ‘Push off from the floor and jump,’ called Miss Styles. ‘I want to see you spring from the floor.’ Then she made the class stop. ‘Adelaide and Grace, could you come out the front please and show the class what a real leap is.’

  Addie groaned. It’s bad enough that I’m in this purple tutu, she thought. Now I have to stand out the front of the class. And with Grace, who thinks I think I’m special.

  They went out the front.

  ‘Adelaide first, please,’ said Miss Styles. Addie pushed off from the floor. ‘Wonderful leaps, Adelaide,’ said Miss Styles.

  ‘You should try out for the school spaceball team. Now you, Grace.’ But before Grace got to jump, a SpaceBerry went off at the back of the room.

  ‘Someone will be wanted for a mission, I suppose,’ said Miss Styles. ‘Everybody go and check your SpaceBerries and please be quick.’ But just then another SpaceBerry went off.

  That’s mine, thought Addie. Great, another mission. I wonder who I’ll be going with?

  Just then Grace held up her SpaceBerry. ‘It’s me, Miss.’

  ‘And me,’ Addie added.

  ‘Well, no more leaps for you two today,’ said Miss Styles. ‘Off you go to the FlyBy. Have a safe mission girls.’

  CHAPTER TWO

  The FlyBy was way over on the other side of the space station.

  ‘We’ll take the dome-traveller,’ said Grace. ‘It’s the quickest way there.’

  The dome-traveller transported people across the inner surface of the space station’s dome.

  ‘I haven’t taken the dome-traveller before,’ said Addie. ‘It looks a bit scary.’

  ‘It feels like being on a rollercoaster ride,’ said Grace. ‘You sort of stick to the roof and slide along it from one side to the other. You stand in-between the guides and when the activate button is pushed you’ll be sucked against the dome and held there for the entire ride.’

  The girls stepped into the dome-travellers and pressed their backs against the surface.

  ‘It’s a bit like a glass elevator at home,’ said Addie.

  ‘Except there are no doors,’ said Grace.

  ‘Oh,’ said Addie feeling a little green. ‘And we won’t fall out?’

  ‘No one has yet but I suppose there’s a first time for everything. Ready?’ asked Grace.

  ‘Ready as I’ll ever be,’ said Addie. ‘So how do we work this thing?’

  ‘See the control panel? Hit the FlyBy button and then the one that says “activate”,’ said Grace, hitting hers and whizzing off.

  Addie nervously hit the buttons. There was a strange sucking sound. She was pulled tightly against the dome. Then she shot up along the inside of the dome and slid down the other side, coming to a stop on the ground near the FlyBy.

  ‘So what did you think of it?’ asked Grace.

  ‘It’s ace!’ Addie said. ‘Seeing the whole space station from up there was unreal! It made me a bit funny in the stomach though. I thought I was going to be sick when I hit the highest part of the dome.’

  ‘Lucky you didn’t,’ said Grace.

  The girls walked over to the mission briefing room door. ‘You go first,’ Addie said.

  Grace stepped up to the small screen on the door and smiled. Then Addie did the same. Words flashed on the security screen.

  The door opened and they went inside.

  The briefing room was buzzing with activity. The girls’ dorm teacher stood facing one of the screens.

  ‘Hello, Mrs Lamrock,’ the girls said.

  She turned to Grace and Addie.

  ‘You made good time, girls,’ she said. ‘Good work. I will be briefing you for this mission and will be the mission holograph teacher. How’s your new roommate working out, Adelaide?’

  ‘Really, really well thanks, Mrs Lamrock,’ Addie said, feeling a bit awkward about that whole situation with Valentina.

  ‘Good,’ said Mrs Lamrock. ‘Hopefully things will go smoother on this mission too.’

  Addie flinched. Things hadn’t been that bad on the last mission, had they?

  She liked Mrs Lamrock. When Addie had been homesick the dorm teacher had been kind. She thought about saying something about her first mission but decided against it. Instead she said, ‘Yes, Mrs Lamrock and … um … well, everyone at home just calls me Addie. And so do my friends. Would it be alright if the teachers called me Addie too?’ It was the first time she felt secure enough to ask a teacher something like that.

  ‘I’ll make a note of that, Addie,’ Mrs Lamrock said with a smile. ‘Now, we need to send you girls to Planet Plantagan.’

  ‘I studied Plantagan’s galaxy in Space 101 last term,’ said Grace. ‘It’s so far away.’

  ‘That’s right, it is,’ said Mrs Lamrock. ‘Space Agent Space Surfer will be taking you and he knows a few shortcuts. He’ll have you there with plenty of time for you to complete your mission, girls.’

  ‘What will we be travelling in?’ asked Addie. She remembered Valentina asking the same question on their last mission. Addie wanted Grace to know she had a partner who knew about missions.

  ‘I’ll show you,’ said Mrs Lamrock. ‘Come this way and I’ll brief you on board.’

  Mrs Lamrock took the girls back into the FlyBy area. Bots were busy working and space pods and shuttles were coming and going.

  ‘But this is where we’re dropped off when we come back from holidays,’ said Grace. ‘There are usually only school shuttles here.’

  ‘Quite right,’ said Mrs Lamrock. ‘But not everything is the way it seems. You might want to think about that, Comet XS. Here is the space shuttle you will be travelling in. Please climb aboard.’

  It’s just a school space shuttle, thought Addie. Grace is right. How’s this going to get us anywhere super fast?

  Then she stepped inside. Grace and Addie looked at each other and laughed. The inside was anything but a school space shuttle. The two hundred student seats were gone and in their place were just two seats that were almost like beds.

  There was a pile of soft cushions and a large touch screen on the wall showing ‘select’ buttons for the latest movies, songs and games. Mrs Lamrock touched a button labelled ‘Plantagan’ and an image filled the screen.

  ‘This is Plantagan,’ said Mrs Lamrock.

  ‘It looks like a giant jungle,’ said Addie. ‘Except it’s all shades of blue.’

  ‘Yes,’ said Mrs Lamrock. ‘But the forests are usually much brighter shades of blue. Something is polluting the air there and all the life forms are suffering. The air is also very poisonous for humans now as well. We need you girls to investigate and report back. Now, come over to the table so I can take you through your mission equipment.’

  They all walked over to the table and looked at the equipment.

  ‘These spacesuits will protect you against Plantagan’s polluted air,’ said Mrs Lamrock.

  Addie looked at the shiny silver suits. ‘They look a bit small.’

  ‘The suits are designed to be a close fit,’ said Mrs Lamrock. ‘They’re like a second skin so there’s nothing loose and flapping on them that can get caught on twigs or branches. You don’t want to get a tear out there. The air will burn your skin.’

  ‘What are those things?’ asked Grace
.

  ‘Gas goggles,’ answered Mrs Lamrock. ‘They fit onto your helmets and will allow you to see in all sorts of conditions.

  The controls and settings for the goggles are in your mission packs. You’ll also find ropes and oxygen poppers in there too.’

  The girls opened their mission packs and they each found what looked just like a party popper with a pull string.

  ‘You only have one each,’ Mrs Lamrock continued. ‘They should be kept for an extreme emergency. Once the string is pulled an oxygen bubble will be released.

  You will be protected inside the bubble and it will give you enough air to breathe while you wait to be rescued. But I’m sure you won’t need to use them at all. Now, can I have your watches please so that I can check your tracking chips and load myself in as your mission holograph. While I’m doing that, you can use the time to learn all you can about Plantagan. Take off will be in ten minutes.’

  Mrs Lamrock took the girls’ watches and went back into the FlyBy. The girls took out their SpaceBerries and logged on to the school’s information site.

  ‘Ten minutes isn’t much time,’ said Addie to Grace. ‘Why don’t you learn about the environment and I’ll do the alien life forms?’

  ‘No way,’ said Grace. ‘I’ll do my own research, thanks.’

  Addie stared at Grace. ‘Why not? If we share the …’

  ‘I don’t trust you, if you must know.’

  ‘Why not?’ Addie was shocked.

  ‘You’re wasting time,’ Grace said, brushing Addie’s question aside. ‘Let’s just get on with the mission and try to earn a good score for it.’ She turned back to her SpaceBerry, leaving Addie a bit upset. She had trouble concentrating but started researching the planet’s aliens anyway.

  ‘Time to suit up, girls,’ said Mrs Lamrock. ‘Here are your watches. You know the rules. The tracking chips are to be on at all times. We’ll also be able to listen in on the mission with them now thanks to a new piece of technology in the chip. Before you leave the shuttle, Space Surfer will check that your helmets are on correctly and that your tanks are working. Good luck, girls, and be sure to work as a team.’