Christmas Fairy Magic

  Dedication

  for

  Becky,

  who is the very spirit

  of Christmas

  Contents

  Dedication

  Map

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Fairy Secrets

  Back Ad

  About the Author

  Credits

  Copyright

  About the Publisher

  Map

  one

  “This Christmas will be the perfect Christmas,” said Goldie Bell one sparkling December morning. “I’ll have so many presents!”

  The Fairy Bell sisters were lying on the hearth rug before a roaring fire in the great room of their fairy house. It was a blindingly sun-filled morning, with fresh snow sparkling on every rooftop of the fairy village.

  “Only ten more days till Christmas,” said Sylva Bell. She was stroking a tiny kitten that was curled up in the crook of her arm. “We don’t know if we can wait any longer than that, do we, Ginger?” she said. Ginger purred.

  “Well, you won’t have to,” said Clara. “Christmas is coming whether we’ll be ready or not.”

  “I’m ready now,” said Goldie.

  “We’ll be patient, won’t we, Squeakie?” said Rosy Bell.

  “O-bee!” said Squeak.

  “Why not, Squeak? Why won’t you be patient?” said Rosy. Squeak rolled over and rubbed her back on her crib. “I don’t know what’s the matter with Squeak. She hasn’t been at all herself lately.”

  “Maybe she’s getting a new tooth,” said Sylva.

  “Or she has an upset tummy,” said Clara. “Goldie, have you been giving Squeak fairy chocolates again?”

  “Not too many,” said Goldie.

  “I’m a little worried about her,” said Rosy. “Do you think—”

  Just then there was a tinkling of bells outside their fairy house windows. “What’s that?” asked Clara. The bells had a tone that she recognized from long ago, but she did not want to risk saying what she thought. She flew over to open the door—and found no one there.

  “Try the back door,” said Goldie. “Maybe it’s Avery. She said she’d come visit later on today.”

  The tinkling sound came again. Rosy looked at Clara. Could it be?

  Sylva flew to the back door and opened it. “No one here, either,” she said.

  Once more the bell tinkled. Ginger scurried into the kitchen to hide. “Look! There at the window!” cried Rosy.

  A dazzling beam of light filled the largest window of the fairy house great room.

  “Squeak!” said Squeak.

  The light was so bright and powerful that it seemed to be knocking right on the windowpane.

  Clara took Rosy’s hand and squeezed it tight. “She’s come back, Rosy,” whispered Clara. “She’s come back at last.”

  two

  It would be terribly rude to go much further in this story without introducing all of you to the Fairy Bell sisters. If you haven’t had the pleasure of their acquaintance already, please meet them now. Here are:

  Clara, Rosy, Goldie, Sylva, and Squeak live together with the other young fairies on Sheepskerry Island, which is a place so filled with magic that you may be reading this story very near it right now (only you might not know it, because human people call it by another name). The Fairy Bell sisters have one more member of their family, their big sister, who lives in Neverland with a friend called Peter Pan. In case you don’t dare guess her name, I’ll tell you: it’s Tinker Bell. And it was Tinker Bell who had made that tinkling sound right outside the Fairy Bell sisters’ fairy house.

  If you have read other stories about the Fairy Bell sisters, you know that now is the time I usually ask a question to see if you really want to read any further. The question could be about perfect fairies or foolish fairies or headstrong fairies or fairies with tender hearts.

  In times past, most of you have turned the pages and read on, which is why you know so much about the Fairy Bell sisters. But this time, I’m going to take a chance. I’m not going to ask that question, because I believe that every single one of you will want to read a story about a magical little baby who’s about to make a big change. A little baby who has a secret language all her own. A little baby named Euphemia Bell, better known as Squeak.

  You might especially want to read this story if I add that it is absolutely filled with magic, and it’s about a Christmas that almost does not happen—a Christmas that is an absolute disaster . . . until Squeakie Bell discovers the most extraordinary Christmas present in all of Fairyland.

  So get yourself cozy, and wrap up warm if it’s cold outside. And then let’s see if you do go ahead and turn that page. . . .

  three

  Oh, I just knew you would! You won’t be sorry!

  four

  “What is all this?” said Rosy.

  “Did Christmas come early?” asked Sylva.

  Clara pushed open the window against the snow. The beam of light grew brighter and the bell sound was even higher and more clear. The great room was bathed in a brilliant light, which dissolved into a constellation of tiny crystals. The crystals gathered in front of the roaring fire. They didn’t melt like snowflakes; instead, they swirled together in midair.

  “What is it?” asked Sylva. She had never seen such a thing before in her life.

  But Goldie had. She remembered a message like this on her ninth birthday, a very special message indeed. “It’s from Tinker Bell!” she cried.

  The moment Goldie Bell said the words “Tinker Bell,” the crystals swirled into shapes. And the shapes turned into words. And the words chimed. From Tinker Bell, they said.

  “Tink!” cried Clara. “Is that really you?”

  Of course it’s me, the words rang. Only Tinker Bell can do things like this!

  “It’s not Tink herself,” Rosy whispered. “But it’s Tink’s magic!”

  “Let’s listen to what she’s saying,” said Goldie. “Quick! Before the crystals disappear!”

  The words sparkled and glowed as they chimed aloud.

  Christmas is only ten days away, they said. I know you are working hard to make it the best Christmas ever. . . .

  “We are!” cried Sylva.

  But now I want you to stop working and not do another thing. Because I will do everything for you this Christmas.

  “Does that mean you’ll come home, Tink?” asked Sylva.

  “Hush, Sylva,” said Clara. “It’s magic.” The words continued to appear.

  I want to treat you to the very best Christmas you could ever have, they said. I’ll bring every single present from Neverland, and a tree too—with special decorations from Peter and the Lost Boys.

  “Ahhma!” said Squeak.

  Mind you don’t lift a finger. Leave it all to me. I’m in charge this year. See you early on the morning of December 24, if not before! Love, Tink.

  The Fairy Bell sisters watched the words Love, Tink till they faded from sight.

  Sylva was the first to speak. “Do you really think—”

  But her words were interrupted by another flash.

  PS. I will be very cross if you spoil my surprise by de
corating for Christmas and making presents for one another, so PLEASE DO NOT. That means you too, Rosy. xoxo T.

  Just to be on the safe side, the sisters didn’t speak for quite a long time.

  “Do you think she means it?” asked Clara at last. Clara knew from experience that sometimes Tinker Bell had trouble keeping her promises.

  “Oh, she’ll come! She’ll come for sure. And she’ll bring Christmas with her!” said Sylva. Sylva had been so young when Tink left for Neverland that she barely remembered her oldest sister. Sometimes she even forgot what Tink looked like. “I want to see her so much.”

  “Squeakie, aren’t you happy?” asked Rosy. But Squeakie, usually the cheeriest baby on Sheepskerry Island (or anywhere else), only gave a tiny smile.

  “Squeakie’s too young to know much about Christmas,” said Goldie, giving her baby sister a cuddle. “But oh my! I can only imagine what Tink will bring me from Neverland. She knows I have exquisite taste.”

  Sylva was so thrilled that she flew around the great room in circles at the thought of Tinker Bell being here on Sheepskerry Island. “Now I really can’t wait till Christmas,” she said. “It’s going to be the best Christmas of my entire life!”

  five

  There’s nowhere quite so beautiful as Sheepskerry Island after a snowfall. The land is silent. The trees are laden down with heavy white powder that sparkles with tiny prisms of color. Fairies have wings, of course, but they all love to make the first tracks in new-fallen snow. And that’s exactly what the Fairy Bell sisters were hoping to do one week before Christmas.

  “The snow’s stopped. Can we go outside, Clara?” asked Sylva.

  “If you wrap up warmly, including a hat, Goldie,” said Clara.

  “I finally found a hat that makes me look adorable and keeps me warm,” said Goldie. “Thank goodness.”

  “Let’s go make snow fairies. Oh, but not you, Ginger,” said Sylva. “The snow is too deep for a kitten. You stay here where it’s warm.” Ginger scampered over to the hearth rug and licked her fur by the fire.

  “Mind you put your wings carefully on the wing table before you go out in the snow,” said Clara. “I don’t want them to get wet. You know it’s not good for them.” Clara remembered how wet her own wings had been during the Valentine’s Games last year. “And frozen wings break right off!”

  “It would have to get a lot colder before our wings broke off,” said Sylva, laughing. “But we’ll be careful!”

  Sylva helped Goldie take off her wings, and Goldie helped with Sylva’s. “Are you coming, Rosy?” Goldie asked.

  “I’m just bundling up Squeakie,” said Rosy. “Your wings are too little to worry about, aren’t they, Squeak?”

  “Humph,” said Squeak.

  “Humph?” said Rosy, and she laughed. “I thought that was Goldie’s favorite word.”

  “Humph,” said Goldie. “That’s not my favorite word. And besides, Squeak could be saying anything.”

  Rosy wasn’t so sure that was true. She was the closest to Squeak, looking after her every day and watching her grow and change. She had never heard a word from Squeak that she could not understand.

  “Come on,” said Goldie. “Let’s get outside before the winds kick up again.”

  The Fairy Bell sisters tromped out the front door of their fairy house—but they didn’t get far before they all sank into the fresh snow. “It’s all the way over my knees!” said Sylva. “Watch this!”

  She stood up straight as a board, and then fell backward. “Keep your legs together!” shouted Goldie. “That’s the way to make a perfect snow fairy.”

  “I already know that!” said Sylva. She spread her arms wide and fluttered them up and down. “Come on, Goldie. You make one too. And you too, Rosy. And Squeak! Tink will see them in our fairy garden when she flies overhead. One week exactly from today!”

  The four Fairy Bell sisters made dozens of snow fairies on their white-blanketed lawn. “Look at Squeakie’s!” said Rosy. She went over to where Squeak’s snow fairy was. “How did you make those wings so big, Squeak, with those tiny arms you have? Your snow fairy looks as if she’s going to get up and fly away.”

  “Sylva! Goldie! Is that you? Everything’s so white I can barely see!”

  “That’s Poppy!” said Sylva. “And Avery is right behind her.”

  The Fairy Bell sisters were friends with everyone on the island, but Poppy and Avery were special. Poppy was Sylva’s best friend—through thick and thin—and Avery was Goldie’s. The two fairies landed with a soft thud just next to the Bell sisters’ snow fairies. “These are beautiful,” said Poppy. “Oh, and look at Squeakie’s! Want to come with us? We’re going to pick out our Christmas trees at the Christmas Tree Forest.”

  Avery brandished a rather fierce-looking hatchet. “I know how to chop wood from when I worked on the mainland. Caraway Cooke sent me this so I could chop down the biggest tree on the island.”

  “Well, keep it away from me!” said Goldie.

  “The biggest tree on the island is as tall as a mountain,” said Rosy. “But that will be good for cutting down the kind of trees we need.”

  “Come on, let’s go!” said Sylva.

  “Wait!”

  Clara’s voice rang out from the front door of the fairy house. “Rosy, Sylva, Goldie—we promised Tink we would let her do everything.” Even as Clara said the words, she wanted to take them back. She loved choosing their Christmas tree each year and wanted to go with the other fairies to do just that. But she didn’t want to disappoint Tinker Bell—not when Tink hadn’t been home for Christmas in so long. “That includes choosing the tree.”

  Sylva’s face fell. Goldie’s mouth turned down at the corners. Even Rosy looked disappointed.

  “That’s right,” said Sylva at last. “We promised Tink.”

  All five Fairy Bell sisters sighed a big sigh. It was Rosy who turned the moment bright again. “We didn’t promise we wouldn’t help our friends!” she said. “Come on, everybody, let’s go pick out some Christmas trees! You too, Clara. Come on!”

  six

  The Fairy Bell sisters and their friends flew up to Cathedral Pines, where Ginny and Genny, the Root sisters, planted trees every year for the Christmas Tree Forest. The trees above them were dizzying. “None of those, of course,” said Poppy. “They’re way too big. Ginny and Genny will have some just our size.”

  They flew over to a field of fairy-sized Christmas trees. “They’d all be perfect for us,” whispered Sylva when she saw them.

  “Tink will pick a gorgeous tree for you,” said Poppy. “The trees in Neverland are probably made of emeralds!”

  “With Peter Pan’s own arrowheads for decoration!” Sylva said, and the two friends grinned.

  “Faith told me to pick whichever tree I like best for the schoolroom,” said Avery. She started strolling through the rows of trees with Goldie at her side. “We have to make it look jolly for the Christmas Fair.” Avery lived with her teacher, Faith Learned, above the fairy schoolhouse. Every year the Christmas Fair was held there. “I can’t wait to do my Christmas shopping at the fair,” Avery said. “On the mainland, the shops got so crowded—and I didn’t have any way to pay for presents.”

  “That’s so not fair!” said Sylva.

  “I still can’t believe that Queen Mab hands out sparkling stones—for free,” said Avery. She had grown up on the mainland, and things were very different there.

  “Of course she does,” said Goldie, looking up at a tall blue spruce. “We get twelve each.”

  “Faith says they’re called tourmaline,” said Avery.

  “Faith knows everything!” said Goldie. “Did she tell you they come in different colors? Wait till you see how polished they are, Avery. I hope I get all green this year. Just like my eyes!”

  “I like that we each get twelve stones,” said Rosy as she ran her hand along the soft needles of a Scotch pine. “It’s always more than enough to pay for what we’d like to buy—”

&nbs
p; “I actually think fifteen stones would be better,” said Goldie.

  “—and anything we can’t buy, we make ourselves,” said Rosy.

  “Tink did say we’re not to buy any presents for one another,” said Clara. She didn’t like always being the one to remind her sisters about what Tink had said, but in fairness, she felt she had to.

  “Because we’ll get so many from her. I bet she’ll raid Captain Hook’s pirate ship for treasure!” said Sylva.

  “What do you think your presents from Neverland will look like, Goldie?” asked Avery. “I can’t even begin to imagine.”

  Goldie didn’t answer right away. She was still a tiny bit peeved that Tink was going to bring their tree from Neverland. Goldie had very particular ideas about what a Christmas tree should look like. Last year she’d told Rosy, “It should be taller than a fairy, shorter than a troll, a perfect triangle from top to bottom, with soft green needles and a gorgeous sprucy smell to fill up the house.” As that thought crossed her mind, she saw the absolutely most perfect Fraser fir tree right ahead of her. “Oh, this is the most beautiful tree on Sheepskerry!” she said. “It belongs in our fairy house.”

  “Except we’re getting an emerald tree, from Neverland!” said Sylva.

  “Sylva, sometimes you are so immature,” said Goldie. “They don’t have emerald trees in—”

  “Ooh, that’s gorgeous!” said a voice that came from just behind Goldie and Sylva. “We call that one for us!” And with that, Judy Jellicoe and her sister, Julia, swooped down into the forest next to Goldie’s tree.

  “Oh no!” said Goldie.

  “Not to worry, Goldie,” said Rosy. But before Rosy could even give Goldie a hug, dozens of Sheepskerry fairies filled the air and started to choose their Christmas trees.

  “We call this one!” said Acorn Oak. “It’s so pretty and we’ll hang it with all our golden acorn caps.”