Amber the Orange Fairy (9780545307840) Read online

  Cold winds blow and thick ice forms,

  I conjure up this fairy storm.

  To seven corners of the human world

  the Rainbow Fairies will be hurled!

  I curse every part of Fairyland,

  with a frosty wave of my icy hand.

  For now and always, from this day,

  Fairyland will be cold and gray!

  Cover

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Map

  Poem

  A Very Unusual Shell

  The Magic Feather

  A Stranger in the Pot

  Home Sweet Home

  Goblin Alert!

  Bertram to the Rescue

  Teaser

  Also Available

  Copyright

  “What a beautiful day!” Rachel Walker shouted, staring up at the blue sky. She and her friend Kirsty Tate were running along Rainspell Island’s yellow, sandy beach. Their parents walked a little way behind them.

  “It’s a magical day,” Kirsty added. The two friends smiled at each other.

  Rachel and Kirsty had come to Rainspell Island for their vacations. But they soon found out it really was a magical place!

  As they ran, they passed tide pools that sparkled like jewels in the sunshine.

  Rachel spotted a little splash! in one of the pools. “There’s something in there, Kirsty!” She pointed. “Let’s go look.”

  The girls jogged over to the pool and crouched down to see.

  Kirsty’s heart thumped as she gazed into the crystal-clear water. “What is it?” she asked.

  Suddenly, the water rippled. A little brown crab scuttled sideways across the sandy bottom and disappeared under a rock.

  Kirsty felt disappointed. “I thought it might be another Rainbow Fairy,” she said.

  “So did I.” Rachel sighed. “Never mind. We’ll keep looking.”

  “Of course we will,” Kirsty agreed. Then she put her finger to her lips as their parents came up behind them. “Shhh.”

  Kirsty and Rachel had a big secret. They were helping to find the seven missing Rainbow Fairies. Jack Frost put a wicked spell on the fairies and trapped them on Rainspell Island. The Rainbow Fairies made Fairyland bright and colorful. Until they were all found, Fairyland would be dark and gray.

  Rachel looked at the shimmering blue sea. “Do you want to go swimming?” she asked.

  But Kirsty wasn’t listening. She was shading her eyes with her hand and looking farther along the beach. “Look over there, Rachel — by those rocks,” she said.

  Then Rachel could see it, too — something glittering and sparkling in the sunshine. “Wait for me!” she called, as Kirsty hurried down the beach.

  When they saw what it was, the two friends sighed in disappointment.

  “It’s just the wrapper from a chocolate bar,” Rachel said sadly. She bent down and picked up the shiny, purple foil.

  Kirsty thought for a moment. “Do you remember what the Fairy Queen told us?” she asked.

  Rachel nodded. “Let the magic come to you,” she said. “You’re right, Kirsty. We should just enjoy our vacation, and wait for the magic to happen. After all, that’s how we found Ruby in the pot at the end of the rainbow, isn’t it?” She put her beach bag down on the sand. “Come on — race you to the water!”

  They rushed into the water. The sea was cold and salty, but the sun felt warm on their backs. They waved at their parents, sitting on the sand, and splashed around in the waves until they got goose bumps.

  “Ow!” Kirsty gasped as they paddled out of the water. “I just stepped on something sharp.”

  “It might have been a shell,” said Rachel. “There are lots of them around here.” She picked up a pale pink one and showed it to Kirsty.

  “Let’s see how many we can find,” Kirsty said.

  The two girls walked along the beach looking for shells. They found long, thin, blue shells and tiny, round, white shells. Soon their hands were full. They had walked right around the curve of the bay. Rachel looked over her shoulder and a sudden gust of wind whipped her hair across her face. “Look how far we’ve come,” she said. Kirsty stopped. The wind blew at her back and made goose bumps stand out on her arms.

  “It’s getting cold now,” she said. “Should we go back?”

  “Yes, it must be almost lunchtime,” said Rachel.

  The two girls began to walk back along the beach. They’d only gone a few steps when the wind suddenly stopped.

  “That’s funny,” said Kirsty. “It’s not windy here at all.”

  They looked back and saw perfect little swirls of sand being lifted by the wind. “Oh!” said Rachel, and the two friends looked at each other in excitement.

  “It’s magic,” Kirsty whispered. “It just has to be!”

  They walked back to where they had been, and the breeze swirled around their legs again. Then the golden sand at their feet began to drift gently to one side, as if invisible hands were pushing it away. A large scallop shell appeared. It was much bigger than the other shells on the beach. It was a light peach color with soft orange streaks, and it was tightly closed.

  Quickly, the girls kneeled down on the sand, dropping the little shells from their hands. Kirsty was just about to pick up the scallop shell when Rachel put out her hand. “Listen,” she whispered.

  They both listened hard.

  Rachel smiled when she heard the sound again.

  Inside the shell, a tiny voice hummed softly. . . .

  Very carefully, Rachel picked up the shell. It felt warm and smooth.

  The humming stopped at once. “I should not be scared,” said the tiny voice. “I just have to be brave, and help will come very soon.”

  Kirsty put her face close to the shell. “Hello,” she whispered. “Is there a fairy in there?”

  “Yes!” cried the voice. “I’m Amber the Orange Fairy! Can you get me out of here?”

  “Of course we will,” Kirsty promised. “My name is Kirsty, and my friend Rachel is here, too.” She looked up at Rachel, her eyes shining. “We’ve found another Rainbow Fairy!”

  “Quick,” Rachel said. “Let’s get the shell open.” She took hold of the scallop shell and tried to pull the two halves apart. Nothing happened.

  “Try again,” said Kirsty. She and Rachel each grabbed one half of the shell and tugged. But the shell stayed tightly shut.

  “What’s happening?” Amber asked. She sounded worried.

  “We can’t open the shell,” Kirsty said. “But we’ll think of something.” She turned to Rachel. “If we find a piece of driftwood, maybe we can use it to pry open the shell.”

  Rachel glanced around the beach. “I don’t see any driftwood,” she said. “We could try tapping the shell on a rock.”

  “But that might hurt Amber,” Kirsty pointed out.

  Suddenly, Rachel remembered something. “What about the magic bags the Fairy Queen gave us?” she said.

  “Of course!” Kirsty cried. She put her face close to the shell again. “Amber, we’re going to look in our magic bags,” she said.

  “OK, but please hurry,” Amber called.

  Rachel opened her beach bag. The two magic bags were hidden under her towel. One of the bags was glowing with a golden light. Carefully, Rachel pulled it out.

  “Look,” she whispered to Kirsty. “This one is all lit up.”

  “Open it, quick,” Kirsty whispered back.

  As Rachel unt
ied the bag, a fountain of glittering sparks flew out.

  “What’s inside?” Kirsty asked, gently putting down the shell.

  Rachel slid her hand into the bag. She could feel something light and soft. She pulled it out, scattering sparkles everywhere. It was a shimmering golden feather.

  Kirsty and Rachel stared at the feather.

  “It’s really pretty,” said Kirsty. “But what are we going to do with it?”

  “I don’t know,” Rachel replied. She tried to use the feather to push the two halves of the shell apart. But the feather just curled up in her hand. “Maybe we should ask Amber.”

  “Amber, we’ve looked in the magic bags,” Kirsty said, “and we found a feather.”

  “Oh, good!” Amber said happily from inside the shell. “That’s wonderful news!”

  “But we don’t know what to do with it,” Rachel added.

  Amber laughed. It sounded like the tinkle of a tiny bell. “You tickle the shell, of course!” she said.

  “Do you think that will work?” Rachel said to Kirsty.

  “Let’s give it a try,” Kirsty said.

  Rachel began to tickle the shell with the feather. At first nothing happened. Then they heard a soft, gritty chuckle, followed by a tinkly giggle from inside the shell.

  Then another chuckle, and another. Slowly, the two halves of the shell began to open.

  “It’s working.” Kirsty gasped. “Keep tickling, Rachel!”

  The shell was laughing hard now. The two halves opened wider. . . . And there, sitting inside the smooth, peach-colored shell, was Amber the Orange Fairy.

  “I’m free!” Amber cried joyfully.

  She shot out of the shell and up into the air, her wings fluttering in a rainbow-colored blur. Orange fairy dust floated down around Kirsty and Rachel. It turned into orange bubbles as it fell. One of the bubbles landed on Rachel’s arm and burst with a tiny pop!

  “The bubbles smell like oranges!” Rachel said with a smile.

  Amber spun through the sky, turning cartwheels one after the other. “Thank you!” she called. Then she swooped down toward Rachel and Kirsty.

  She wore a shiny orange leotard and tall boots. Her brown hair was held in a high ponytail, tied with a band of peach blossoms. In her hand was an orange wand tipped with gold.

  “I’m so glad you found me!” Amber shouted. She landed on Rachel’s shoulder, then cartwheeled lightly across to Kirsty’s. “But who are you? And where are my Rainbow sisters? And what’s happening in Fairyland? How am I going to get back there?”

  She was talking so fast that Kirsty and Rachel couldn’t get a word in.

  Suddenly, Amber stopped. She floated down and landed softly on Rachel’s hand. “I’m sorry,” she said with a smile. “But I haven’t had anyone to talk to. I’ve been trapped in that shell ever since Jack Frost’s spell banished us from Fairyland. How did you know where to find me?”

  “Kirsty and I promised your sister Ruby that we would look for all the Rainbow Fairies,” Rachel told her.

  “Ruby?” Amber’s face lit up. She spun around on Rachel’s hand. “You’ve found Ruby?”

  “Yes, she’s safe now,” Rachel said. “She’s in the pot at the end of the rainbow.”

  Amber did a happy backflip. “Please take me to her!” she begged.

  “I’ll ask our parents if we can go for a walk,” Kirsty said. And she ran off across the beach.

  “Do you know what’s happening in Fairyland?” Amber asked Rachel.

  Rachel nodded. She and Kirsty had flown to Fairyland with Ruby. Ruby had used her wand to shrink them to fairy size, and she had given them magical fairy wings. “King Oberon and Queen Titania miss you very much,” Rachel told Amber. “With no color, Fairyland is a sad place.”

  Amber’s wings drooped.

  Kirsty was hurrying back toward them. “Mom said we can go for a walk,” she panted.

  “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Amber called. She flew up and did a somersault in midair.

  Rachel pulled their shorts, T-shirts, and sneakers out of her beach bag and both girls put them on. “Rachel, could you bring my shell?” Amber asked.

  Rachel looked surprised. “Yes, if you want,” she said.

  Amber nodded. “It’s really comfy,” she explained. “It will make a lovely bed for me and my sisters.”

  Rachel put the shell in her beach bag, and they set off, with Amber sitting cross-legged on Kirsty’s shoulder.

  “My wings are a bit stiff after being in the shell for so long,” she told them. “I don’t think I can fly very far yet.”

  The girls followed the path to the clearing in the woods where the pot at the end of the rainbow was hidden.

  “Here we are,” said Rachel. “The pot is right over there.” She stopped. The pot was where they’d left it — under the weeping willow tree. But climbing out of it was a big, green frog.

  “Oh, no!” Rachel gasped. She and Kirsty stared at the frog in horror.

  Where was Ruby?

  Rachel dashed forward and grabbed the frog around his plump, green tummy.

  The frog turned his head and glared at her, his eyes bulging. “And what do you think you’re doing?” he croaked.

  Rachel was so shocked, she let go of the frog. He hopped away from her, looking very annoyed.

  “It’s a talking frog!” Kirsty gasped, her eyes wide. “And it looks like it’s wearing glasses. . . .”

  “Bertram!” Amber flew down from Kirsty’s shoulder. “I didn’t know it was you.”

  Bertram bowed his head as Amber hugged him. “Thank goodness you’re safe, Miss Amber!” he said happily. “And may I say, it’s very good to see you again.”

  Amber beamed at Rachel and Kirsty. “Bertram isn’t an ordinary frog, you know,” she explained. “He’s one of King Oberon’s footmen. He works closely with the king and queen.”

  “Oh, yes!” said Kirsty. “I remember now. We saw the frog footmen when we went to Fairyland with Ruby.”

  “But they were wearing uniforms then,” Rachel added.

  “Excuse me, miss, but a frog in a uniform would not be a good idea on Rainspell Island,” Bertram pointed out. “It’s much better if I look like an ordinary frog.”

  “But what are you doing here, Bertram?” asked Amber. “And where’s Ruby?”

  “Don’t worry, Miss Amber,” Bertram replied. “Miss Ruby is safe in the pot.” He suddenly looked very stern. “King Oberon sent me to Rainspell. The Cloud Fairies spotted Jack Frost’s goblins sneaking out of Fairyland. We think he has sent them here to stop you from finding the Rainbow Fairies.”

  Kirsty felt a shiver run down down her spine. “Jack Frost’s goblins?” she said.

  “They’re his servants,” Amber explained. Her wings trembled and she looked very scared. “They want to keep Fairyland cold and gray!”

  “Never fear, Miss Amber!” Bertram croaked. “I’m here to look after you and keep the Rainbow Fairies safe.”

  Suddenly, a shower of red fairy dust shot out of the pot. Ruby fluttered out. “I heard voices,” she shouted joyfully.

  “Amber! I knew it was you!”

  “Ruby!” Amber called. And then she cartwheeled through the air toward her sister.

  Rachel and Kirsty watched as the two fairies flew into each other’s arms. The air around them fizzed with little red flowers and orange bubbles.

  “Thank you, Kirsty and Rachel,” said Ruby. She and Amber floated down to them, holding hands. “It’s so good to have Amber back safely.”

  “What about you?” Rachel asked. “Have you been OK in the pot?”

  Ruby nodded. “I’m fine now that Bertram is here,” she replied. “And I’ve been making the pot into a fairy home. We can stay there until all our fairy sisters
are found.”

  “I brought my shell with me,” Amber said. “It will make a lovely bed for us. Could you show her, Rachel?”

  Rachel put her bag down on the grass and took the peach-colored shell out of it.

  “It’s beautiful,” said Ruby. Then she smiled at Rachel and Kirsty. “Would you like to come and see our new home?” she asked.

  “But the pot’s much too small for Kirsty and me to fit inside,” Rachel began. Then she started to tingle with excitement. “Oh! Are you going to make us fairy size again?”

  Ruby nodded. She and Amber flew over the girls’ heads, showering them with fairy dust. Rachel and Kirsty started to shrink, just as they had before. Soon they were the same size as Ruby and Amber.

  “I love being a fairy,” Kirsty said happily. She twisted around to look at her silvery wings.

  “Me, too,” Rachel agreed. She was getting used to seeing flowers as tall as trees!

  Bertram hopped over to the pot. “I’ll wait outside,” he croaked.

  “Come this way,” said Ruby. She took Rachel’s hand, and Amber took Kirsty’s. Then the fairies led them toward the pot.

  Rachel and Kirsty fluttered through the air, dodging a butterfly that was as big as they were. Its wings felt like velvet as they brushed gently past it.

  “I’m getting better at flying!” Kirsty said as she landed neatly on the edge of the pot. She looked down eagerly.

  The pot was full of sunlight. There were little chairs made from twigs tied with blades of grass. Each chair had a cushion made from a soft, red berry. Rugs of bright green leaves covered the floor.

  “Should we bring in the shell?” asked Rachel.

  The others thought this was a very good idea. When they flew out of the pot, Bertram was already pushing the shell across the grass toward them.