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Authors: T.M. Alexander
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What’s happening? )
‘Come on, Copper Pie. Surely you’re in?’ said Bee.
‘Nope. Not in.’
Phew! No Copper Pie meant no Fifty and that meant no me.
Or it should have done, but Bee had other ideas. ‘Copper Pie, when you’re capped for England think how good it’ll look when someone digs up our time capsule and finds out about
all the amazing things you did when you were a boy. Making the alley safe for all the kids would sound great.’
Surely he wasn’t going to fall for that?
Copper Pie spends his life waiting to be discovered by the England trainer and told to leave school immediately and kick a ball every day instead. I could almost see the newspaper
headline in his eyes: Goal-scoring genius Copper Pie revealed as schoolboy hero.
TRIBERS’ DREAMS
COPPER PIE: To be the most successful England captain ever.
KEENER: To ban cheese fondue.
BEE: To make lots of money doing something really good for the planet and be interviewed on telly.
JONNO: To discover something that’s meant to be extinct, like a dodo.
FIFTY: To grow.
‘Do you really think so?’ he asked.
‘Absolutely,’ said Bee.
Absolutely not, I thought. But I said, ‘Copper Pie, you can’t seriously think we should —’
‘I know, I know. But I don’t like being pushed around.’
‘And what sort of Tribe are we if we let other kids say where we can go and where we can’t?’ said Jonno.
Help!
Fifty was my only hope. I knew he didn’t really want to save the alley . . . but Jonno got there first. ‘I’ve got an idea.’
No, please. Surely they weren’t going to make it our next mission.
‘Maybe it should be our initiation,’ he said. ‘A way of being worthy enough to be a member of Tribe.’
‘Maybe it should,’ said Fifty. ‘Initiations are cool.’
‘Top idea,’ said Copper Pie. ‘Blood in. Blood out.’
‘What does that mean?’ I said. I had to know. I can’t do blood. If being in Tribe meant blood I’d have to resign. Suddenly being a breath-holder with no friends
didn’t seem such a bad thing.
‘You’re sick,’ said Bee. ‘We’re not that sort of gang. Don’t worry, Keener. They only do the blood thing in comics.’
Phew!
‘Think about it,’ said Jonno. ‘Groups have initiations to test whether you’re brave enough or strong enough, or whatever, to join. Going down the alley fits perfectly. We
all agreed the Alley Cats shouldn’t be allowed to torture everyone. Let’s be brave and show them we don’t care. If we go together and don’t listen to what they say,
what’s to be scared of?’
‘Nothing. We can do it,’ said Copper Pie.
‘Well said, C.P. You’re one brave Triber.’ Bee gave him a cheesy smile, and then turned to me.
‘Keener, you need to shape up. No wusses in Tribe.’
Thanks, Bee!
‘You know why he’s chicken, don’t you?’ said Fifty, meaning me.
Jonno shook his head.
SECRETS THAT AREN’T SECRET
KEENER: Has a crush on Miss Walsh.
COPPER PIE: Can’t sleep without Trumpet, his baby elephant.
BEE: Sleeptalks whole conversations.
FIFTY: Still fits his age 3–4 Thomas the Tank Engine pyjamas.
JONNO: It’s still a secret.
‘Please don’t say it,’ I pleaded with Fifty. He wasn’t going to rat on me, was he?
‘Keener. We’re Tribe now. No secrets. All for one and one for all.’
‘Tell us, Fifty,’ said Bee.
‘They call him “Pinky Prince Charming”.’
‘Ha ha,’ I said, trying to sound like I didn’t care, but they were already laughing so it didn’t really work. I could feel my face going the Pinky Prince colour.
‘Why?’ said Jonno. Did he really need it spelling out?
‘Because that’s the colour he always goes when they ask him why he doesn’t plait his beautiful long blond hair.’
With friends like mine, who needs enemies! I can’t help the way my face behaves and all surfers have long hair and it’s not my fault I’m blond. I wished someone would change
the subject.
Thankfully someone did – my sister
‘Come on, Copper Pie. Surely you’re in?’ said Bee.
‘Nope. Not in.’
Phew! No Copper Pie meant no Fifty and that meant no me.
Or it should have done, but Bee had other ideas. ‘Copper Pie, when you’re capped for England think how good it’ll look when someone digs up our time capsule and finds out about
all the amazing things you did when you were a boy. Making the alley safe for all the kids would sound great.’
Surely he wasn’t going to fall for that?
Copper Pie spends his life waiting to be discovered by the England trainer and told to leave school immediately and kick a ball every day instead. I could almost see the newspaper
headline in his eyes: Goal-scoring genius Copper Pie revealed as schoolboy hero.
TRIBERS’ DREAMS
COPPER PIE: To be the most successful England captain ever.
KEENER: To ban cheese fondue.
BEE: To make lots of money doing something really good for the planet and be interviewed on telly.
JONNO: To discover something that’s meant to be extinct, like a dodo.
FIFTY: To grow.
‘Do you really think so?’ he asked.
‘Absolutely,’ said Bee.
Absolutely not, I thought. But I said, ‘Copper Pie, you can’t seriously think we should —’
‘I know, I know. But I don’t like being pushed around.’
‘And what sort of Tribe are we if we let other kids say where we can go and where we can’t?’ said Jonno.
Help!
Fifty was my only hope. I knew he didn’t really want to save the alley . . . but Jonno got there first. ‘I’ve got an idea.’
No, please. Surely they weren’t going to make it our next mission.
‘Maybe it should be our initiation,’ he said. ‘A way of being worthy enough to be a member of Tribe.’
‘Maybe it should,’ said Fifty. ‘Initiations are cool.’
‘Top idea,’ said Copper Pie. ‘Blood in. Blood out.’
‘What does that mean?’ I said. I had to know. I can’t do blood. If being in Tribe meant blood I’d have to resign. Suddenly being a breath-holder with no friends
didn’t seem such a bad thing.
‘You’re sick,’ said Bee. ‘We’re not that sort of gang. Don’t worry, Keener. They only do the blood thing in comics.’
Phew!
‘Think about it,’ said Jonno. ‘Groups have initiations to test whether you’re brave enough or strong enough, or whatever, to join. Going down the alley fits perfectly. We
all agreed the Alley Cats shouldn’t be allowed to torture everyone. Let’s be brave and show them we don’t care. If we go together and don’t listen to what they say,
what’s to be scared of?’
‘Nothing. We can do it,’ said Copper Pie.
‘Well said, C.P. You’re one brave Triber.’ Bee gave him a cheesy smile, and then turned to me.
‘Keener, you need to shape up. No wusses in Tribe.’
Thanks, Bee!
‘You know why he’s chicken, don’t you?’ said Fifty, meaning me.
Jonno shook his head.
SECRETS THAT AREN’T SECRET
KEENER: Has a crush on Miss Walsh.
COPPER PIE: Can’t sleep without Trumpet, his baby elephant.
BEE: Sleeptalks whole conversations.
FIFTY: Still fits his age 3–4 Thomas the Tank Engine pyjamas.
JONNO: It’s still a secret.
‘Please don’t say it,’ I pleaded with Fifty. He wasn’t going to rat on me, was he?
‘Keener. We’re Tribe now. No secrets. All for one and one for all.’
‘Tell us, Fifty,’ said Bee.
‘They call him “Pinky Prince Charming”.’
‘Ha ha,’ I said, trying to sound like I didn’t care, but they were already laughing so it didn’t really work. I could feel my face going the Pinky Prince colour.
‘Why?’ said Jonno. Did he really need it spelling out?
‘Because that’s the colour he always goes when they ask him why he doesn’t plait his beautiful long blond hair.’
With friends like mine, who needs enemies! I can’t help the way my face behaves and all surfers have long hair and it’s not my fault I’m blond. I wished someone would change
the subject.
Thankfully someone did – my sister
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