 Before the Reverend Mother goes off on a cruise vacation, she makes Sister Bertrille promise her that she will not not tell anyone else about her ability to fly. At the hospital pediatric wing, Sisters Bertrille and Jacqueline encounter Charlie Webster, a problem orphan who is self-absorbed and prone to telling tales. As such, he is a loner without friends and is hard for the authorities to find adoptive parents. Sister Bertrille thinks she can get through to Charlie, especially since they have the love of flying in common. Sister Bertrille does get through to Charlie. She finds out that his selfishness stems from the fact that everything he has loved has been taken away from him. However one day when they re out flying a kite, Sister Bertrille takes an unscheduled flight. As usual, Charlie tells all back at the hospital, who think he is once again lying. Much to his dismay, Sister Bertrille can t and won t support his story because of her vow to the Reverend Mother. Fearing that she has lost touch with Charlie, Sister Bertrille flies out to the cruise ship that the Reverend Mother is on for some advice. The Reverend Mother leaves it up to Sister Bertrille s better judgment. In the middle of the night, Charlie steals Sister Bertrille s cornette. The sisters put two and two together and learn from the other children that he indeed is going to try to fly, his reasoning being that he s half a light as Sister Bertrille and thus should be able to fly twice as high. What s worse is that he plans to take flight from the top of his favorite climbing tree. Sister Bertrille and the others get to him just in time. She convinces him that he won t be able to fly and that she is his friend. She also tells him the reason for not supporting his story - which she can now with the Reverend Mother s blessing - and the reason why the convent in general keeps her flying a secret. Charlie tells the others that he indeed was lying - this is the first unselfish act he has done in a long time, and begins the new phase of his childhood.