Sky the Blue Fairy (9780545308137) Read online

  “The feathers have helped, but Sky still can’t fly,” Kirsty said.

  “Maybe the other Rainbow Fairies can help,” Rachel said.

  Sky looked up excitedly. “Do you know where my sisters are?” she asked.

  “Oh, yes,” said Kirsty. “So far, we’ve found Ruby, Amber, Sunny, and Fern.”

  “They are safe in the pot at the end of the rainbow,” Rachel added.

  “Could you take me to them, please?” said Sky. “I’m sure they will help make me better.” She tried to stand up, but her legs were too wobbly and she had to sit down again.

  “Here, let me carry you,” Rachel offered. She cupped her hands and scooped up the feather nest with the fairy inside.

  Sky waved at the little blue crab and his friends. “Good-bye. Thank you again for helping me.”

  “Good-bye, good-bye!” The blue crab waved his claw. His friends waved, too, their eyes shining proudly. They had never rescued a Rainbow Fairy before.

  Kirsty and Rachel glanced at each other as they walked across the pebbles. Sky was being very brave, but the goblins had come closer to her than to any of the other Rainbow Fairies. And now the Blue Fairy was hardly blue at all!

  Rachel and Kirsty hurried across the beach and into the woods. Rachel carried Sky very carefully. The fairy lay curled in a ball inside the warm feathers, her cheek resting on her pale hands.

  “Here’s the clearing with the willow tree,” Kirsty said.

  The smell of oranges hung in the air, tickling their noses. Rachel glanced around and spotted a tiny fairy. She was hovering over a patch of daisies, collecting nectar in an acorn cup.

  “Look!” Rachel said. “It’s Amber the Orange Fairy.”

  “Hello again, Rachel and Kirsty!” Amber fluttered over and settled on Rachel’s shoulder.

  Then Amber saw Sky lying curled up in Rachel’s hand. “Sky! Oh, no! Sky, what happened? I have to call the others,” she cried. She waved her wand and a fountain of sparkling orange bubbles sprayed into the air.

  The other Rainbow Fairies fluttered up all over the clearing. The air sparkled with red, orange, yellow, and green fairy dust. Bubbles, flowers, tiny butterflies, and leaves sprinkled the grass.

  Rachel and Kirsty watched as the fairies gathered around Sky. The Blue Fairy sat up slightly and gave a weak smile, happy to see her sisters. Then she flopped back into her nest of feathers.

  “Oh, Sky!” cried Fern, the gentle Green Fairy.

  “Why is she so pale?” Sunny asked.

  “The goblins got really close to her,” Rachel explained. “They froze the pond. Sky was trapped in a bubble under the ice.”

  “Ooooh! That’s terrible.” Sunny shuddered.

  “Kirsty shouted at them and tried to catch them,” Sky whispered.

  “Thank you. You are so brave!” said Ruby the Red Fairy, then she flew high into the air. “We must think of something to help Sky! Oh, I know! Let’s ask Bertram for his advice!”

  The fairy sisters sped toward the willow tree, their wings flashing brightly in the air. Rachel and Kirsty carried Sky over in her feathery nest.

  The pot at the end of the rainbow lay on its side under the willow’s hanging branches. The Rainbow Fairies were living there until all seven sisters had been found and they could go back to Fairyland.

  As Rachel put Sky down next to the pot, a large green frog hopped out.

  “Miss Sky!” he croaked, looking pleased.

  “Hello, Bertram.” Sky gave another weak smile.

  “The goblins came very close to Sky, and now she’s really cold. We have to make her warm so she gets her color back,” Fern explained.

  Bertram looked very worried. “Jack Frost’s goblins are so cruel,” he said. “You must all stay close to the pot so that I can protect you.”

  “Don’t worry,” said Sunny, giving Sky a hug. “You’ll feel better soon.”

  Sky nodded, but she didn’t answer. Her eyes started to close. She was so pale, her arms and legs seemed almost see-through.

  Rachel and Kirsty watched the rest of the Rainbow Fairies exchange worried glances. “Oh, Bertram, what if the goblins have hurt Sky forever?” asked Fern. “What can we do to save her?”

  Bertram looked very serious. “I think it’s time for you fairies to try a spell.”

  Amber frowned. “It might not work with only four of us. Rainbow Magic needs seven fairies!”

  “But Bertram’s right, we have to try,” Ruby said. “Maybe we can do a small spell. Quick, let’s make a fairy ring.”

  The Rainbow Fairies fluttered into a circle in the air above Sky.

  Rachel noticed a black-and-yellow queen bee and a small gray squirrel watching from the edge of the glade. “Queenie and Fluffy have come to watch the spell,” she whispered to Kirsty. Queenie the bee had helped Sunny get her wand back after the goblins stole it. Fluffy the squirrel had carried Fern, Rachel, and Kirsty back to the pot when the goblins had been chasing them.

  “Ready, sisters!” said Ruby. She lifted her wand. “In a fairy ring we fly, to bring blue color back to Sky!” she chanted.

  The other fairies waved their wands.

  Four different colors of fairy dust sparkled in the air — red, orange, yellow, and green. The dust covered Sky in a glittering cloud as she lay in the nest of feathers on the soft green grass.

  “Something’s happening!” Kirsty said. Through the cloud of dust, she could see that Sky’s little dress and knee-high boots were turning bluer and bluer. “The spell is working!”

  Whoosh!

  A shimmering cloud of blue stars shot into the air. They drifted up to the sky, where they faded away with tiny pops.

  “We did it!” cheered Amber, turning a cartwheel in the air, while Sunny clapped her hands in delight.

  “Hooray for Rainbow Magic!” shouted Ruby.

  Sky yawned and sat up. She brushed the feathers away and looked down at herself. Her face lit up. Her dress was blue again! “My wings feel strong enough to fly now,” she said. She flapped them twice, then zoomed into the air. She did a twirl, and her wings flashed with rainbows. “Thank you, sisters!”

  The Rainbow Fairies gathered around Sky, hugging and kissing her. The air around them bubbled with fairy dust — red, orange, yellow, green, and blue. It was almost a whole rainbow!

  Rachel and Kirsty grinned.

  Fern swooped down and scooped up an armful of seagull feathers. “You won’t need these anymore!” She laughed, tickling Sky with a long, white one.

  “But I think I might know what to do with them!” said Sky. She flew down to the edge of the pot and peeked in. “It’s so cozy!” she said, admiring the tiny chairs and tables made of twigs and the giant shell bed. Then Sky fluttered over to the rest of the feathers and gathered them up. “I thought we could put these on our bed. They’ll be very warm and soft.”

  Her fairy sisters looked delighted. “Thanks, Sky. What a good idea!” said Ruby.

  “Let’s have a welcome-home feast,” said Fern. “With wild strawberries and clover juice.”

  Amber did another cartwheel.

  “Hooray! Rachel and Kirsty, you’re invited, too!”

  “Thank you, but we have to go.” Rachel looked at her watch. “Our moms will be waiting at the beach with our picnic.”

  “Oh, that’s right!” Kirsty remembered, jumping up. She felt a little disappointed that she wouldn’t have a chance to taste some fairy food. But she also didn’t want her mom to be worried. “Good-bye! We’ll be back again soon!”

  The fairies sat on the edge of the pot and waved to the girls. Queenie, Fluffy, and Bertram the Frog waved, too. “Good-bye! Good-bye!”

  Sky fluttered in the air next to Rachel and Kirsty as they walked back across the clearing. Tiny rainbows sparkled on her wings. Her dres
s and boots glowed bright blue, and a blueberry smell filled the air.

  “Thank you so much, Rachel and Kirsty,” she said. “Now five Rainbow Fairies are safe.”

  “We’ll find Inky and Heather, too,” Kirsty said. “I promise.”

  “Yes,” Rachel agreed.

  As they made their way back to the beach, Rachel looked at Kirsty. “Do you think we can find them in time? We only have two days of vacation left. And the goblins are getting much closer. They almost caught Sky today!”

  Kirsty squeezed her friend’s hand and smiled. “Don’t worry. Nothing is going to stop us from keeping our promise to the Rainbow Fairies!”

  Ruby, Amber, Sunny, Fern, and Sky are all safe. But where is

  Inky the Indigo Fairy?

  Time is running out! Join Kirsty and Rachel’s adventure in this special sneak peek. . . .

  “Rain, rain, go away.” Rachel Walker sighed. “Come again another day!”

  She and her friend Kirsty Tate stared out of the attic window. Raindrops splashed against the glass, and the sky was full of purplish-black clouds.

  “Isn’t it a horrible day?” Kirsty said. “But it’s nice and cozy in here, at least.”

  She looked around Rachel’s small attic bedroom. There was just enough room for a brass bed with a patchwork quilt, a comfy armchair, and an old bookcase.

  “You know what the weather on Rainspell is like,” Rachel pointed out. “It changes all the time. It might be hot and sunny very soon!”

  Both girls had come to Rainspell Island for a week-long vacation. The Walkers were staying in Mermaid Cottage, while the Tates were in Dolphin Cottage next door.

  Kirsty frowned. “Yes, but what about Inky the Indigo Fairy?” she asked. “We have to find her today.”

  Rachel and Kirsty shared a wonderful secret. They were trying to find the seven Rainbow Fairies. The fairies brought color to Fairyland, but mean Jack Frost had sent them away with a wicked spell. Fairyland would be cold and gray until all seven fairies had been found again.

  Rachel thought about Ruby, Amber, Sunny, Fern, and Sky, who were all safe now in the pot at the end of the rainbow. Rachel and Kirsty only had Inky the Indigo Fairy and Heather the Violet Fairy left to find. But how could they look for the fairies while they were stuck indoors?

  “Remember what the Fairy Queen said?” Rachel reminded Kirsty.

  Kirsty nodded. “She said the magic would come to us.” Suddenly, she looked scared. “Maybe the rain is Jack Frost’s magic. Maybe he’s trying to stop us from finding Inky.”

  “Oh, no!” Rachel said. “Let’s hope it stops soon. But what will we do while we’re waiting?”

  Kirsty thought for a minute. Then she went over to the bookcase. It was filled with dusty, old books, and she pulled one out. It was so big, she had to use two hands to hold it.

  “The Big Book of Fairy Tales,” Rachel read out, looking at the cover.

  “If we can’t find fairies, at least we can read about them!” Kirsty grinned.

  The two girls sat down on the bed and put the book on their knees. Kirsty was about to turn the first page when Rachel gasped. “Kirsty, look at the cover! It’s purple. A really deep purplish-blue.”

  “That’s indigo,” Kirsty whispered. “Oh, Rachel! Do you think Inky could be trapped inside?”

  “Let’s see,” Rachel said. “Hurry up, Kirsty. Open the book!”

  But Kirsty had spotted something else. “Rachel,” she said shakily. “It’s glowing.”

  Rachel looked. Kirsty was right. Some pages in the middle of the book were gleaming with a soft purplish-blue light.

  Kirsty opened the book. The ink on the pages was glowing indigo. For a moment, Kirsty thought that Inky might fly out of the pages, but there was no sign of her. On the first page was a picture of a wooden soldier. Above the picture were the words: The Nutcracker.

  “Oh!” Rachel said. “I know this story. I went to see the ballet at Christmas.”

  “What’s it about?” Kirsty asked.

  “Well, a girl named Clara gets a wooden nutcracker soldier for Christmas,” Rachel explained. “He comes to life and takes her to the Land of Sweets.” They looked down at a brightly colored picture of a Christmas tree. A little girl was asleep beside it, holding a wooden soldier.

  On the next page there was a picture of snowflakes whirling and swirling through a dark forest. “Aren’t the pictures great?” Kirsty said. “The snow looks so real.”

  Rachel frowned. For a moment, she had thought the snowflakes were moving. Gently she put out her hand and touched the page. It felt cold and wet!

  “Kirsty,” she whispered. “It is real!” She held out her hand. There were white snowflakes on her fingers.

  Kirsty looked down at the book again, her eyes wide. The snowflakes started to swirl from the book’s pages, right into the bedroom, slowly at first, then faster and faster.

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  e-ISBN 978-0-545-30813-7

  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.

  SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc. RAINBOW MAGIC is a trademark of Rainbow Magic Limited. Reg. U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and other countries. HIT and the HIT logo are trademarks of HIT Entertainment Limited.

  First Scholastic printing, November 2005

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