Amber the Orange Fairy (9780545307840) Read online

  “Here you are,” he croaked.

  The shell seemed very heavy now that Rachel and Kirsty were the same size as Ruby and Amber. But Bertram helped them lift it into the pot.

  Soon the shell bed sat neatly inside. Ruby lined it with sweet-smelling rose petals.

  “The pot looks lovely,” Rachel said.

  “I wish I could live here, too!” said Kirsty.

  Ruby turned to her sister. “Do you like it, Amber?” she asked.

  “It’s beautiful,” Amber replied. “It reminds me of our house back in Fairyland. I wish I could see Fairyland again. I miss it so much.”

  Ruby smiled. “Well, we can’t go back to Fairyland for good until we’re all together,” she explained. “But I can show you Fairyland. Follow me!”

  Bertram was still on guard next to the pot when they flew outside again. “Where are you going, Miss Ruby?” he croaked.

  “To the magic pond,” Ruby replied. “Come with us.” She sprinkled her magic dust over Rachel and Kirsty. Quickly, they grew back to their normal size.

  They went over to the pond.

  Ruby flew above the water, scattering fairy dust. Just like before, a picture began to appear.

  “Fairyland!” Amber cried, gazing into the water.

  Rachel and Kirsty watched, too. Fairyland still looked sad and chilly. The palace, the toadstool houses, the flowers, and the trees were all icy and gray.

  Suddenly, a cold breeze rippled the surface of the water, and the picture started to fade.

  “What’s happening?” Kirsty whispered.

  Everyone stared down at the pond. Another picture was taking shape — a thin, grinning face with frosty white hair and icicles hanging from his beard.

  “Jack Frost!” Ruby gasped in horror. As she spoke, the air turned icy cold and the edges of the pool began to freeze.

  “What’s happening?” Rachel asked, shivering.

  Bertram hopped forward. “This is bad news,” he said. “It means that Jack Frost’s goblins must be close by!”

  Rachel and Kirsty felt shivers run down their spines as the whole pond froze over. Jack Frost’s grinning face faded away.

  “Follow me,” ordered Bertram. He hopped over to a large bush. “We’ll hide here.”

  “Maybe we should go back to the pot,” said Ruby.

  “Not if the goblins are close by,” Bertram replied. “We can’t let them know where the pot is.”

  The two girls crouched down behind the bush next to Bertram. Ruby and Amber sat very still on Kirsty’s shoulder. It was getting colder and colder. Rachel and Kirsty couldn’t stop their teeth from chattering.

  “What are the goblins like?” Rachel asked.

  “They’re bigger than us,” said Amber. She was trembling with fear.

  “And they have mean faces and long noses and big feet,” Ruby added, holding her sister’s hand for comfort.

  “Hush, Miss Ruby,” Bertram croaked. “I hear something.”

  Rachel and Kirsty listened. Suddenly, Rachel saw a long-nosed shadow dash across the clearing toward them. She grabbed Kirsty’s arm. They were peering out of the bush when the leaves rustled right next to them. The two girls almost jumped out of their skin.

  “Hey!” said a gruff voice, sounding very close. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  Rachel and Kirsty held their breath.

  “Nothing,” said another gruff voice, rudely.

  “Goblins!” Amber whispered in Kirsty’s ear.

  “You stepped on my toe,” said the first goblin angrily.

  “No, I didn’t,” snapped the other goblin.

  “Yes, you did! Keep your big feet to yourself!”

  “Well, at least my nose isn’t as big as yours!”

  The bush shook even more. It sounded like the goblins were pushing and shoving each other.

  “Get out of my way!” one of them shouted. “Ow!”

  “That’ll teach you to push me!” yelled the other one.

  Rachel and Kirsty looked at each other in alarm. What if the goblins found them there?

  “Come on,” puffed one of the goblins. “Jack Frost will be really angry if we don’t find these fairies. You know he wants us to keep them from getting back to Fairyland.”

  “Well, they’re not here, are they?” grumbled the other. “Let’s try somewhere else.”

  The voices died away. The leaves stopped rustling. And suddenly, the air felt warm again. There was a cracking sound as the frozen pond began to melt.

  “They’re gone,” Bertram croaked. “Quick, we must get back to the pot.”

  They all hurried across the clearing. The pot stood under the weeping willow tree, just as before.

  “I’ll stay outside in case the goblins come back,” Bertram began. But a shout from Kirsty stopped them all in their tracks.

  “Look!” she cried. “The pot’s frozen over!”

  Kirsty was right. The top of the pot was covered with a thick sheet of ice. No one, not even a fairy, could get inside.

  “Oh, no!” Ruby gasped. “The goblins must have been really close. Thank goodness they didn’t discover the pot.”

  She flew over to the pot with Amber right behind her. They drummed on the ice with their tiny fists. But it was too thick for them to break through.

  “Should we try, Rachel?” asked Kirsty.

  “Maybe we could smash the ice with a stick.”

  But Bertram had another idea. “Stand back, please, everyone,” he said.

  The girls moved to the edge of the clearing. Ruby sat on Kirsty’s hand, and Amber flew over to Rachel. They all watched.

  Suddenly, Bertram took a mighty hop forward. He jumped right at the sheet of ice, kicking out with his webbed feet.

  But the ice did not break. “Let’s try again,” he panted.

  He jumped forward again and hit the ice. This time, there was a loud cracking sound. After one more jump, the ice shattered into little pieces. Some of it fell inside the pot. Rachel and Kirsty rushed over to fish out the pieces of ice before they melted.

  “There you are,” Bertram croaked.

  “Thank you, Bertram,” Ruby called. She and Amber flew down and hugged the frog.

  Bertram looked pleased. “Just doing my job, Miss Ruby,” he said. “You and Miss Amber must stay very close to the pot from now on. It’s dangerous for you to go too far.”

  “We’ve got to say good-bye to our friends first,” Amber told him. She flew into the air and did a backflip, smiling at Rachel and Kirsty. “Thank you a thousand times.”

  “We’ll see you again soon,” said Rachel.

  “When we’ve found your next Rainbow sister,” Kirsty added.

  “Good luck!” said Ruby. “We’ll be waiting here for you. Come on, Amber.” She took her sister’s hand, and they flew over to the pot.

  The two fairies turned to wave at the girls. Then they disappeared inside.

  “Don’t worry,” Bertram said. “I’ll look after them.”

  “We know you will,” Rachel said as she picked up her beach bag. She and Kirsty walked out of the woods. “I’m glad Ruby isn’t on her own anymore,” said Rachel. “Now she has Amber and Bertram.”

  “I didn’t like those goblins,” Kirsty said with a shudder. “I hope they don’t come back again.”

  The girls made their way back to the beach. Their parents were packing up their towels. Rachel’s dad saw Rachel and Kirsty coming down the path and went to meet them. “You’ve been gone a long time.” He smiled. “We were just coming to look for you.”

  “Are we going home now?” Rachel asked.

  Mr. Walker nodded. “It’s very strange,” he said. “It’s suddenly turned quite chilly.”

  As he spoke, a cold
breeze swirled around Rachel and Kirsty. The friends shivered and looked up at the sky. The sun had disappeared behind a thick, black cloud. The trees swayed in the wind, and the leaves rustled as if they were whispering to one another.

  “Jack Frost’s goblins are still here!” Kirsty whispered.

  “You’re right,” Rachel agreed. “Let’s hope Bertram can keep Ruby and­ Amber safe while we look for the other Rainbow Fairies.”

  Kirsty nodded and smiled at Rachel. They still had five fairies to find. It would take some magic and a lot of work, but she was sure they could do it together!

  Ruby and Amber have been rescued. Now it’s time to search for

  Sunny the Yellow Fairy!

  But where could she be? Join Kirsty and Rachel’s adventure in this special sneak peek. . . .

  “Over here, Kirsty!” called Rachel Walker. Kirsty ran across one of the emerald-green fields that covered this part of Rainspell Island. Buttercups and daisies dotted the grass.

  “Don’t go too far!” Kirsty’s mom called. She and Kirsty’s dad were climbing over a fence at the edge of the field.

  Kirsty caught up with her friend. “What did you find, Rachel? Is it another Rainbow Fairy?” she asked hopefully.

  “I don’t know.” Rachel was standing on the bank of a rippling stream. “I thought I heard something.”

  Kirsty’s face lit up. “Maybe there’s a fairy in the stream?”

  Rachel nodded. She knelt down on the soft grass and put her ear close to the water.

  Kirsty crouched down, too, and listened really hard.

  The sun glittered on the water as it splashed over big, shiny pebbles. Tiny rainbows flashed and sparkled in the light — red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.

  And then they heard a tiny bubbling voice. “Follow me. . . .” it gurgled. “Follow me. . . .”

  “Oh!” Rachel gasped. “Did you hear that?”

  “Yes,” said Kirsty, her eyes wide. “It must be a magic stream!”

  Rachel felt her heart beat fast. “Maybe the stream will lead us to the Yellow Fairy,” she said.

  Rachel and Kirsty had a special secret. They had promised the king and queen of Fairyland that they would find the lost Rainbow Fairies. Jack Frost’s spell had hidden the Rainbow Fairies on Rainspell Island. Fairyland would be cold and gray until all seven fairies had been found and returned to their home.

  Silver fish darted in and out of the bright green weeds at the bottom of the stream. “Follow us, follow us. . . .” they whispered in tinkling voices.

  Rachel and Kirsty smiled at each other. Titania, the Fairy Queen, had said that the magic would find them!

  Kirsty’s parents came up behind the girls and stopped to admire the stream, too. “Which way now?” asked Mr. Tate. “You two seem to know where you’re going.”

  “Let’s go this way,” Kirsty said, pointing along the bank.

  A brilliant bluebird flew up from its perch on a twig. Butterflies as bright as jewels fluttered among the cattails.

  “Everything on Rainspell Island is so beautiful,” said Kirsty’s mom. “I’m glad we still have five days of vacation left!”

  Yes, Rachel thought, and five Rainbow Fairies still to find: Sunny, Fern, Sky, Inky, and Heather!

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  e-ISBN 978-0-545-30784-0

  Copyright © 2003 by Rainbow Magic Limited.

  Illustrations copyright © 2003 by Georgie Ripper.

  All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc., 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012, by arrangement with Rainbow Magic Limited.

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  First Scholastic printing, May 2005

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