The Missing Barbegazi

The Missing Barbegazi — page 3 — 1 Tessa Tessa aimed her binoculars at the white blanket of new snow searching for a barbegazi The T-bar lift pulled her uphill along the boundary of the ski area as she scanned the mountains on the far side of the gorge Her skis wobbled over a bump and the eyepiece knocked against her cheekbone She winced but kept her eyes fixed on a crevice from where small chunks of snow were rolling down the smooth white slope Had they been loosened by a barbegazi She itched to ski beyond the prepared slopes to get closer But that was impossible A blizzard had raged over Christmas and the avalanche warning was high Today not even the craziest skiers braved the dangerous off-piste Yet Tessa’s view of the crevice became a gray blur when the lift dragged her into a cloud Annoyed she lowered the binoculars and let them dangle from their strap Everything beyond the red trousers and green jackets of her ski-club teammates on the T-bars in front vanished in the mist The clamminess chilled her

The Missing Barbegazi — page 4 — and she pushed her long brown braids back snuggled into her soft fleece and thought about the barbegazi If only she could find their caves in the snow and see them surf on avalanches When she emerged above the cloud stray snowflakes glittered glittered in the sun filling the air with magic gold dust The brightness brightness blinded her She tugged down the goggles on her helmet until they protected her eyes Empty T-bars swung back and forth where the other two eleven-year-old girls from the racing team waited While dismounting dismounting the lift Tessa tried to jam the binoculars into her pocket Looking for fairies again Maria called out They’re not fairies Tessa mumbled through the glove she had in her mouth while she closed the zipper on her bulky pocket She hoped Coach wouldn’t notice They’re Whatever Maria exchanged a glance with Lisa It’s not like anyone’s ever seen one Or will My opa has Tessa pointed with her ski pole toward the gully on the other side of the T-bar lift It rescued him down Nobody believed your grandfather Her throat tightened at Maria’s harsh interruption Everyone knows they’re extinct Tessa Lisa’s tone was friendlier than Maria’s Perhaps she was also remembering Opa’s funeral Not trusting her voice to sound steady Tessa just shook her head Oh my God Tessa Maria waved her arms wildly and 10

The Missing Barbegazi — page 5 — pointed toward the mountainside beyond the gully Look Quick Was something moving up there again Tessa couldn’t help turning I thought they were extinct But no I see one It’s a Maria drew a long deep breath A-a-a T rex Both she and Lisa exploded into fits of giggles Very funny Tessa muttered Hidden behind the goggles tears welled up in her eyes Don’t wait I need the restroom she said trying not to sound choked up and she started gliding over to the mountain hut Still giggling Maria set off and Lisa followed her new best friend The lump in Tessa’s throat grew She didn’t need the toilet and she didn’t really care what they thought She missed Opa so much her chest hurt The pain pulsed into her heart as if all the blood in her body was trying to fill an Opa-shaped hole No wonder Oma was ill if this kind of pain was attacking her weak heart Tessa stopped and looked back to where Maria had pointed for her dinosaur prank Above it by a rocky outcrop a small movement caught her eye She gasped Something white was bouncing up the snowy slope then disappeared behind the rock It definitely wasn’t a skier Could it be a barbegazi Without taking her eyes off the outcrop she fish-boned her way back up the slope past the swinging T-bars and the top station of the lift Here on the crest of Kapall orange netting 11

The Missing Barbegazi — page 6 — barred the way out onto the ridge and the untamed part of the mountains Tessa tried looking through the binoculars but the outcrop obstructed her view of where she’d seen the creature last If she could just get a bit nearer A ski-route-closed sign warned of alpine danger Tessa checked to make sure that none of her teammates were looking looking If anyone saw her ski off-piste in these conditions Coach would ban her from training and Mum would lock her skis away forever And she wasn’t going to ski off-piste Not really The first stretch of the ski route through the gully and into the gorge was almost flat and she’d turn back as soon as she’d had a peek behind that outcrop With a last glance back she squeezed through a gap between the nets and out into the deep snow The wind had blown most of the snow away from the top of the ridge and Tessa glided effortlessly along the flat surface More of the crevice behind the outcrop came into view To gain a better perspective she planted her poles into the snow and stepped nearer to the edge She looked through her binoculars There was a blurry spot on one of the lenses Without taking taking off her glove she rummaged in her pocket for a tissue and one of the lens covers fell out Instinctively Tessa leaned down to grab it Under her sudden shifting weight the ground beneath her right ski disappeared as the snow overhang she had edged onto broke apart A reflex sent both her arms outward to help her 12

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