Polly the Party Fun Fairy

by Daisy Meadows

  “Stop laughing!” the goblin demanded, banging the water with his spoon-paddle. Rachel flew over and took it away from him.

  At the same time, Polly fluttered down and picked up her party bag from the bottom of the boat. “Thank you so much, girls,” she said with a smile, hugging the bag close.

  “Our pleasure,” Kirsty said. “But what are we going to do about him?” She pointed at the goblin, who was still mumbling to himself under the bucket. “We’d better pull him and the Frisbee to dry land,” Rachel suggested.

  Polly and the girls took hold of the Frisbee and began towing the goblin toward the bank.

  “What are you doing?” the goblin grumbled. “Where are you taking me?

  “You’re coming back to Fairyland with me,” Polly replied, clutching her party bag tightly.

  “I don’t want to go to Fairyland!” The goblin pouted.

  Rachel and Kirsty couldn’t help giggling.

  “Well, girls, you’ve saved the day again,” Polly said, flying over to hug them both. “If the anniversary party is as much fun as I think it’s going to be, it will all be thanks to you! I’d better get back to Fairyland now.” She raised her wand, but Kirsty stopped her. “Wait, Polly!” she cried. “You’ve got to make Rachel and me human-size again.”

  “Oops!” Polly laughed. “I almost forgot. You both make such good fairies!” She waved her wand, and a shower of glittering fairy dust swirled through the air and fell over both girls. A few seconds later, they were their normal size again.

  “Good-bye, Polly!” Rachel smiled. “Say hi to the other Party Fairies for us.”

  “And to everyone in Fairyland,” added Kirsty.

  But to their surprise, Polly was still hovering there, looking thoughtful. “Before I go,” she said, “there’s just one more thing I need to do.…”

  She opened her party bag, took out a handful of fairy dust, and tossed it into the air. As the sparkling blue dust whirled and tumbled to the ground, Rachel and Kirsty were delighted to see that it was all in the shape of tiny balloons.

  “What are you doing, Polly?” Rachel asked curiously.

  Polly grinned and waved her wand. As she and the goblin began to disappear in a shower of glittering fairy dust, she called, “You’ll have to wait and see!” She winked at the girls. “For now, it’s a secret!”

  And with that, she vanished.

  Kirsty and Rachel looked at each other in surprise. At that moment, they heard Mrs. Talbot calling.

  “Kirsty! Rachel! Where are you?”

  Kirsty grabbed the Frisbee, and she and Rachel hurried back to join the other Explorers.

  “Oh, there you are,” said Mrs. Talbot. “You were gone a long time.” She looked down at the wet Frisbee. “Did it go in the stream?”

  “Yes, it took us a while to get it back,” Kirsty replied.

  Rachel grinned. That’s true, she thought.

  “Well, eat your snack quickly,” Mrs. Talbot went on. “We’re going to play another game now.”

  “Did you find the box for pass the present?” asked Emily.

  Mrs. Talbot looked a little embarrassed and shook her head. “No, I didn’t. I can’t figure out where it could be.”

  “I found it!” Mrs. Carter said, walking toward them with a large box wrapped in glittering, multicolored paper. “It was still on the bus.”

  Mrs. Talbot looked surprised. “That’s not the box I …” she began doubtfully.

  “Well, it must be,” said Mrs. Carter. “It’s the only present here.”

  Rachel and Kirsty glanced at each other and smiled. Now they knew what Polly had been up to when she took the fairy dust out of her party bag. This was a magic present from Polly the Party Fun Fairy!

  “Gather around, girls,” called Mrs. Carter. “Sit down on the grass in a big circle.”

  Kirsty and Rachel hurried to join their friends. Meanwhile, Mrs. Talbot was still looking confused. “I don’t remember using that sparkly wrapping paper at all!” she muttered to herself.

  Mrs. Carter handed the present to the closest Explorer. “Now remember, girls, whoever’s holding the present when the music stops gets to take off a layer of wrapping paper.” “I can’t wait to see what’s inside,” Kirsty whispered to Rachel, as Mrs. Carter switched on the CD player. The Explorers passed the large package around the circle until Mrs. Talbot stopped the music. When she did, Jenny was holding the present.

  All the Explorers, including Rachel and Kirsty, leaned forward eagerly as she ripped the first layer of paper off.

  “Oh!” Everyone gasped. Hundreds of clear, shining bubbles floated up into the air, filling the sky overhead with rainbows. Rachel and Kirsty grinned and nudged each other. “Look at Mrs. Talbot’s face,” Kirsty whispered, giggling. “She can hardly believe her eyes!”

  “I’m sure this can’t be the present I wrapped.…” Mrs. Talbot was saying, but no one was paying attention to her. They were too excited to see what other wonderful surprises the present contained.

  Mrs. Carter started the music again. This time, when it stopped and an Explorer removed another layer, hundreds of pieces of glittering confetti burst out of the paper. They sparkled and floated down onto the grass, disappearing as they landed.

  Next, the present stopped at an Explorer sitting near Kirsty. She tore off a layer of paper, and everyone gasped as colored sparkles shot up into the air and burst overhead like tiny fireworks. They filled the sky with dazzling colors.

  Just when the girls thought there couldn’t be any surprises left, the music stopped again while Rachel was holding the box. Taking a deep breath, she pulled the shiny piece of paper apart.

  It was the last layer. A huge pile of candy, wrapped in colorful twists of paper, spilled onto the grass.

  The Explorers cheered.

  “Thank you, Polly,” Rachel whispered, as she and Kirsty began to hand the candy out to the other Explorers.

  “We helped our fairy friends again, and we had fun, too,” Kirsty said, smiling at Rachel. She sighed happily. “Fairy adventures are always the best!”

  Kirsty Tate and Rachel Walker were busy wrapping a birthday present for Kirsty’s friend, Charlotte.

  “There,” said Kirsty, tying the ribbon. “Charlotte’s going to love this silver headband. It’s so pretty!”

  “Are you almost ready, girls?” Mrs. Tate called up the stairs. “Dad and I have to leave in two minutes!”

  “We’re coming, Mom,” Kirsty replied. Then she turned to Rachel. “I can’t believe we’re going to another party, can you?” She grinned.

  Rachel shook her head. “I wonder what’s going to happen this time,” she said excitedly.

  Kirsty and Rachel put their party dresses into a bag with Charlotte’s present, then rushed downstairs.

  Kirsty’s parents had to go out that afternoon, so Mrs. Tate had arranged for the girls to go to Charlotte’s house a little early.

  “We’ve helped almost all of the Party Fairies now,” Kirsty said, as she and Rachel walked along the road.

  Rachel counted them off on her fingers. “Cherry the Cake Fairy, Melodie the Music Fairy, Grace the Glitter Fairy, Honey the Candy Fairy, and Polly the Party Fun Fairy,” she said. “So the only two we haven’t helped are …”

  “Phoebe the Fashion Fairy and Jasmine the Present Fairy,” Kirsty finished. “I wonder if we’ll see one of them today.”

  Rachel couldn’t help smiling as they walked up Charlotte’s front path. “I bet we will,” she said. “Those goblins won’t be able to resist another chance to try to steal a magic party bag. One of them is bound to cause trouble! Then Phoebe or Jasmine will have to come and fix everything.”

  Kirsty rang the doorbell. A few moments later, Charlotte answered the door.

  “Happy birthday!” cried Kirsty and Rachel together.

  But then Kirsty noticed how sad her friend looked. “Is everything all right?” she asked, concerned.

  Charlotte didn’t seem to be in a birthday mood. She wa
sn’t wearing a party dress, and she wasn’t even smiling “No,” she wailed. “Everything is not all right. My favorite dress is ruined!”

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  e-ISBN 978-0-545-35689-3

  Copyright © 2005 by Rainbow Magic Limited.

  Illustrations copyright © 2005 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, July 2010

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