Step It Up (11 page)

“Gracie, do you have something you'd like to say to Scarlett?” Toni asked.

Gracie nodded nervously. “I'm sorry I took your tights. And your leotard. And your hair bows … Oh, and your new issue of
Dance
magazine. I cut out some of the ballerina pictures for my mirror.”

Scarlett took a deep breath. “I didn't read the new issue yet, but thank you for telling the truth,” she said. “And can we agree that you'll
ask
me anytime you want to borrow my stuff from now on?”

“I think that's a fair request,” Toni said. “Teammates respect each other's feelings and each other's belongings.”

Gracie handed Scarlett back her pink lip gloss. “I took this without asking you, but you can have it back. I'm sorry,” she said.

“Nah, keep it,” Scarlett replied. “It's yours now.” Her sister's face lit up, and Toni gave them both a thumbs-up.

Gracie might be annoying sometimes
, Scarlett thought,
but we will always be teammates and sisters
. And that was pretty much the same thing in her book.

Arabesque:
a move where the dancer stands on one leg with the other leg extended behind her at 90 degrees.

Cambre back:
a bend from the waist to the back.

Chaîné:
a series of quick turns.

Développé:
a move where the dancer unfolds her leg in the air.

Fouetté:
a turning step where the leg whips out to the side.

Grand jeté:
a large forward leap in the air that looks like a flying split.

Pas de bourrée:
a move involving three quick steps.

Passé:
a move in which the working foot passes close to the knee of the standing leg.

Pirouette:
a turn on one leg with the other leg behind.

Relevé:
to rise up on pointe or on demi-pointe.

Sheryl Berk
is a proud ballet mom and a
New York Times
bestselling author. She has collaborated with numerous celebrities on their memoirs, including Britney Spears,
Glee
's Jenna Ushkowitz, and
Shake It Up
's Zendaya. Her book with Bethany Hamilton,
Soul Surfer
, hit #1 on the
New York Times
bestseller list and became a major motion picture. She is also the author of The Cupcake Club book series with her daughter, Carrie.

Showtime!

Two to Tango

Let's Rock!

Step It Up

On Pointe

(coming soon)

Copyright © 2014 by Sheryl Berk

All rights reserved.
You may not copy, distribute, transmit, reproduce, or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (including without limitation electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

First published in the United States of America in September 2014
by Bloomsbury Children's Books
Electronic edition published in September 2014
www.bloomsbury.com

Bloomsbury is a registered trademark of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to Permissions, Bloomsbury Children's Books, 1385 Broadway, New York, New York 10018

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Berk, Sheryl.
Step it up / by Sheryl Berk.
pages       cm       —(Dance Divas; 4)
Summary: Trouble is brewing between the Divas just before their big upcoming
Dance Fusion competition. Miss Toni is mad, mad, mad—but she has an idea
to fix the problem: a camping retreat, where these girls will have to learn
the true meaning of teamwork or be left out in the dark.
[1. Dance teams—Fiction. 2. Dance—Fiction. 3. Interpersonal relations—Fiction.] I. Title.
PZ7.B45236St 2014     [Fic]—dc23     2014009650

ISBN: 978-1-61963-584-5 (e-book)

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