Tears ran down Rani’s face. She had ruined everything. First, she had brought rain to Pixie Hollow. And now it looked as if she had spoiled Pixie Hollow’s supply of fairy dust.
Another gust of wind sent her tumbling. She moved through the sky with the clouds. Maybe this was the best thing that could have happened, she thought miserably. Maybe the clouds and I should blow away for good. Then Pixie Hollow can return to normal.
Rani thought the other fairies were probably glad she had blown away. They would be relieved to be rid of such a troublemaker. And they would be especially happy to be rid of the never-ending rain.
Rani realized that none of those things were really true, but she couldn’t help thinking them anyway. She felt miserable.
She began to sob. She was crying so loudly, she almost didn’t hear her name.
“Raniiiiii? Raniiiii? Where are youuuuuuu?”
Rani blinked her tears away. She peered through the foggy mist of the clouds. She couldn’t believe her eyes. Here came Brother Dove with Prilla and Fira on his back. The two fairies carried long ropes of woven lemongrass looped over their shoulders.
Prilla unwound one of the ropes. “Tie one end around your belt, so we can take you down,” she told Rani.
She tossed the end of the rope to Rani. Rani reached out. But the motion sent her turning over and over.
“Try again!” Fira urged.
They tossed the rope once more. This time, Rani managed to grab it. She tied the end to her belt. “I can’t believe it. I thought you were going to leave me up here,” she said.
Fira yelped, “Leave you up in the air? Rani! What are you thinking? Of course we wouldn’t leave you.”
Brother Dove, Prilla, and Fira carefully towed her through the air, back to Pixie Hollow. As they approached the ground, Rani saw that several fairies had gathered. They peered up at Rani with worried faces. Queen Clarion was at the very front. Her helper fairies held broad petal umbrellas over her to keep her dry.
Fresh tears rolled down Rani’s cheeks. But this time, they were tears of happiness. The fairies were all concerned about Rani. Despite the rain, they all had come to make sure she was okay.
As soon as Rani’s feet touched the ground, the fairies began to applaud. Rani knew she owed them the truth. She held up her hands and took a deep breath. “I’m safe and sound. And I have something to tell you all.…”
Rani told Queen Clarion and the rest of the fairies the whole story of how she came to have the clouds and why they wouldn’t leave.
When she was done, there was a long silence. Rani wondered what would happen next. Would Queen Clarion scold her? Banish her? Blame her for everything that had gone wrong?
Instead, Queen Clarion turned to the rest of the fairies and spoke in a clear, strong voice. “Fairies! You have all heard Rani. I know water sprites. They are mischievous, but they are not wicked. Dab will come back and take these clouds away. But she has posed a riddle and we must solve it.”
The queen waved her arms. “Let us all work together. Go to your rooms. Go to your workshops. Go to your studios. Look in your special hiding places. I want every talent group to bring their treasures to the fairy circle. We have so many treasures! Surely we can find three that everyone would envy and want to possess.”
THE CARPENTER-TALENT fairies quickly raised tent poles in the fairy circle. The weaving-talent fairies brought their sturdiest cloth. Soon, a large canopy covered the entire clearing, protecting it from the rain.
Within an hour of Queen Clarion’s announcement, the fairies and sparrow men began to arrive. They displayed their treasures on tables set up beneath the canopy.
Rani had never seen so many wonderful things in one place. The coiffure-talent fairies showed off hair ornaments and combs made from gold and pewter. The garden-talent fairies piled their table high with beautiful flowers and mouth-watering fruit. The table-setting-talent fairies brought out dishes made from porcelain as thin as paper.
“My goodness,” Rani said to Prilla as they wandered among the tables. “I didn’t know we had so many delightful things in Pixie Hollow.”
Tinker Bell’s table gleamed with kettles, pans, and utensils. She held up a long-handled skillet. “Have you ever seen anything more beautiful than the shape of that handle?” she said in a hushed tone.
Rani smiled and moved on. The fairy circle buzzed with activity as the fairies proudly displayed their treasures. Some had used balloon carriers to bring their offerings through the rain. But some treasures were small and easy to carry. The cooking-talent fairies didn’t even need a whole table. Their most valuable things fit into a little sandalwood box. Their treasures were recipe cards.
It was a wondrous bazaar. The dyeing-talent fairies displayed pots of dye in colors Rani had never even seen before. There were colors so rare they didn’t even have a name. One of the dyeing-talent fairies showed her a small vial of vivid pink dye. It was nestled in a silk pouch in a golden box. “It’s the only vial of Volcano Pink left in Never Land. This dye was made from the last sunset before the eruption on Torth Mountain.”
Rani walked over to the mining-talent fairies’ table. The only thing on display was an old pick. Orren, a mining-talent sparrow man, lifted it up. “She’s a beauty, isn’t she?”
Rani smiled. “Yes. But tell me about it. What makes it a treasure?”
“That’s the pick that opened up the biggest vein of Never pewter ever found,” he said proudly.
A group of art-talent fairies across the aisle scoffed at him. Bess said, “You’re being silly, Orren. A pick isn’t a treasure. A pick is a tool. A treasure is something like a painting or a sculpture.”
At the next table, Queen Clarion’s helpers laid out the queen’s favorite shoes, which were made from woven gold threads.
“Now who’s being silly,” one of them said. “A treasure is something rare. You art-talent fairies turn out a dozen paintings a week. So how can they be treasures? Now this is a treasure.” She held up a delicate piece of handmade paper.
“What is that?” Rani asked.
“It’s an invitation to a ball written in the queen’s own hand, using the royal pen. See? The ink is purple and it glitters.”
Behind the queen’s helper, the sewing- talent fairies laughed. “An invitation! You think an invitation is a treasure? You’re quite wrong. A treasure is something that takes time to create. Something that’s made with skill and patience and creativity. Look around you. Every single fairy is wearing a beautiful, one-of-a-kind dress made especially for her. Any one of our dresses is more of a treasure than a pick or a painting or a pot or a note.”
At this, the light-talent fairies rolled their eyes. “You sewing talents are so conceited,” said Luna.
“We are not conceited,” a sewing-talent fairy retorted. “If anyone is conceited, it’s the light talents.”
Fira, who was setting out a beautiful glowworm lantern, scowled. “How dare you say that?”
“It’s true,” a passing music-talent fairy agreed. “You light talents always think you’re the most important part of any party. You’re always talking about how you have to rest and worrying about whether or not you’ll have enough energy to glow. As if nothing else is important—not the food, not the dancing, and certainly not the music!” The music-talent fairy angrily folded her prized trumpet flower under her arm and turned away.
Fira stamped her foot. “That’s the meanest thing anybody has ever said. Maybe the light talents just don’t need to come to any more parties.”
“Maybe you don’t,” Dulcie said. “And maybe the music talents don’t need to come either. Everybody knows the most important part of a party is the food. But to hear the sewing talents tell it, the only reason fairies go to parties is so they can dress up.”
“Well, well, well,” a sarcastic voice said. “What’s all this quarreling about?” The fast-flying fairy Vidia touched down in the midst of the arguing fairies.
“Vidia!” Rani exclaimed. “Have
you brought your treasures?”
Vidia rolled her eyes. “No, dearest.”
Rani suspected that Vidia’s treasure was her secret stash of stolen fairy dust. Not that Vidia would admit it.
Vidia cast a scornful look around the fairy circle. “Let’s face it, darlings, fairy dust is the only treasure worth having. Everything here is just a bunch of rubbish.”
There were a number of outraged shrieks. Suddenly, the pent-up frustration from all the rainy days overflowed.
The sewing talents accused the laundry talents of deliberately washing their best dresses in hot water so that they shrank. The garden fairies complained that the animal-talent fairies didn’t make one bit of effort to explain to the birds and squirrels why they shouldn’t eat their berries. “From now on, don’t ask us to coax the insects out of your gardens!” the furious animal talents replied.
That angered cricket-whistling-talent fairies. After all, they said, they were often the ones who helped coax insects out of the gardens, not the animal fairies.
Soon, every single fairy was angry. Every single fairy felt unappreciated. Every single talent group was ready to take their treasures and go…when a terrible creaking noise brought them all up short.
Tink yelled, “Look at the canopy!”
Rani looked up. “Oh, no!”
While the fairies were arguing, the rain had collected on top of the canopy, causing it to sag. Before anyone could make a move, the entire canopy collapsed. Gallons of water and yards of wet cloth fell down, drenching all the fairies, along with their treasures, big and small.
RANI LOOKED AT the dismal mess. Broken tables, torn cloth, shattered pots, ripped garments, soggy paper, and muddy jewels were scattered everywhere. Every fairy was as upset as could be.
It was the rain that was making everyone so cranky and angry. It was the rain that was making everyone sad and gloomy. It was the rain that was ruining the peace and harmony of Pixie Hollow.
Rani whistled for Brother Dove. The faithful bird soared down. She climbed on his back.
“We’re going to leave for a bit,” she said. “What Pixie Hollow needs is some sunshine and some time to dry out, dry off, and calm down.”
Rani and Brother Dove took to the sky. They circled around the clouds. Rani used the language of water—dots, plops, plinks, and gurgles. She urged the clouds to move quickly.
Brother Dove carried Rani out of the clouds until she was in front of the flock. They flew low over Never Land, leading the rain clouds away from Pixie Hollow and toward the forest.
Rani looked down. She saw the leaves on the trees tremble as the raindrops fell. Some of the trees were a bit brown, she noticed. But after a splash of rain, they seemed to brighten and stand up straighter.
Rani smiled. It was nice to bring rain where it was wanted and needed.
Rani wondered if other parts of Never Land needed rain. She asked Brother Dove to fly higher so she could get a better view. To the south, she saw a yellow field that should have been green. “That way,” she told Brother Dove.
They flew over the field. Rani and Brother Dove let the clouds hover for hours, giving the field below a nice, long drink.
After they watered the field, they flew over a pond that seemed to be drying out. Rani and Brother Dove flew closer. The waterline was dangerously low. In a short time, there wouldn’t be enough water in the pond to keep the fish alive.
So Rani and Brother Dove perched on a nearby tree limb and settled in for a long afternoon. The clouds hovered over the pond, slowly filling it.
As the water in the pond rose, fish jumped. The limp grass along the banks sprang up. Frogs leaped into the water, and schools of tadpoles skittered this way and that just below the surface.
Rani wondered where Dab was. Dab wasn’t a fairy, but she still had an important role to play. Every pond, field, garden, and creature in Never Land depended on rain to stay alive. Herding and moving the rain clouds across Never Land was Dab’s role. If she had been a fairy, it would have been her talent.
Even though Rani wasn’t a cloud keeper, bringing rain where it was needed was a way of using her water talent. As Rani thought this, a wave of happiness warmed her from head to toe. It was a wonderful feeling.
“How could Dab abandon her talent?” Rani asked out loud. “Wherever she is, it seems like she would be miserable.”
Brother Dove made a noise in his throat. He pulled his wings in tighter.
Rani felt a pang of guilt. Poor Brother Dove. He wasn’t a creature of the water, but he had spent the last three days soaked. She reached out and ran her hand down his wet feathers to show her gratitude.
Brother Dove cooed. Rani felt another wave of happiness as she thought of something she could do for him.
Tonight they would go back to the caves. Rani could sleep in the open, so the clouds would see her and stay calm. Brother Dove could sleep inside the cave where he would be warm and dry. She knew he would worry at first, but she would tell him to sleep well.
As long as I am using my talent to do something good, Rani thought, I will be fine.
That night, Rani lay on a ledge just outside one of the caves. She stared up into the dark, wet night. Her mind raced, trying every combination of Pixie Hollow treasures she could think of.
“Hear me, Dab, wherever you are. In the name of Pixie Hollow’s three treasures—a paper-thin porcelain tea set, Queen Clarion’s handwritten invitation, and Orren’s pick—I wish you back…I wish you back…I wish you back!
“Hear me, Dab, wherever you are. In the name of Pixie Hollow’s three treasures—Dulcie’s recipes, Bess’s sea glass, and Vidia’s fairy dust—I wish you back…I wish you back…I wish you back!
“Hear me, Dab, wherever you are. In the name of Pixie Hollow’s three treasures—Lily’s giant buttercups, Fira’s glowworm lantern, and Tink’s skillet—I wish you back… I wish you back… I wish you back!”
But nothing happened. Eventually, Rani’s eyelids grew heavy and she fell sound asleep.
RANI AND BROTHER Dove traveled around Never Land for four days. Everywhere they went they brought fields to life, restored health to ponds, and made gardens bloom.
Rani always kept her eye out for Dab. Once or twice, she could have sworn she heard Dab’s laughter. But if Dab the trickster was near, she had learned to move faster than Rani’s eyes could see.
By the end of the fourth day, Rani and Brother Dove headed back to Pixie Hollow. Rani knew what she had to do, and she needed to tell the others.
As they approached Pixie Hollow, Rani could see that the fairy circle had been cleared of debris. Crisp, dry laundry hung from lines strung about the Home Tree. And the garden-talent fairies were tilling the moist soil to plant new seeds.
When they saw Rani coming with the clouds behind her, the fairies scrambled. The laundry-talent fairies plucked clothes off the lines as fast as they could. And the garden fairies darted indoors, dragging their baskets of seeds behind them.
Rani and Brother Dove landed. The fairies came out of their rooms and work spaces to greet them. They carried petal umbrellas and wore slickers.
Prilla came running through the crowd with Tinker Bell close behind her. “You’re back!” Prilla cried happily.
Tink pulled on her bangs. “You can’t imagine how much we missed you,” she said in a gruff voice. Rani knew it was the voice Tink used when she was about to cry but didn’t want anybody to know.
The crowd parted, and Queen Clarion hurried forward. Her helpers tried to keep pace with her and hold an umbrella over her head. But the queen moved too fast. She didn’t care about getting wet.
“Welcome. You have been missed,” she told Rani.
“And I missed all of you,” Rani said. “But as you can see, the clouds are still following me. I haven’t figured out how to make them stop.”
The entire population of Pixie Hollow groaned.
“But don’t worry,” Rani said quickly. “I’m not staying.”
Everyone g
asped.
“What do you mean? You can’t leave,” Prilla insisted. “You can’t solve a problem by running away from it.”
“I’m not running away,” Rani protested. “But every part of Never Land needs rain eventually. Somebody has to keep these clouds moving and make sure that the rain gets where it needs to be. I guess that somebody is me.”
“But what will we do without you?” Tink asked.
“I’ll come back from time to time. When you need rain,” Rani said. “But when you don’t need rain, I’ll be away.”
Queen Clarion dabbed at her eyes with a gold-edged leafkerchief. “I fear that we have failed you. We have looked for treasure everywhere. And either we cannot find it, or we cannot agree on what it is.”
Rani shook her head. “Don’t feel bad. And don’t worry. I’ll be with the rain. As long as I can use my talent, I’ll be fine.”
Rani looked out at all the sad faces. Already, the rain was beginning to wilt their hairdos and dampen their wings. It was time to pack her things and go.
Twenty minutes later, Rani came out of the Home Tree. She carried a few spare tunics and her special conch shell tucked into a satchel.
Fira came rushing up. “The light talents have something for you to take.” She placed a stone in Rani’s hands. “It’s a glow stone. It stores light during the day and glows in the night. It will give you comfort in the dark.”
Rani was touched. After all the trouble she had caused, it was nice of Fira to worry about her.
A conducting-talent fairy lifted her hands, and all the music talents began to sing. It was the most cheerful melody Rani had ever heard. And it was so tuneful, she knew she would remember every note. “We wrote that especially for you,” the conducting fairy told her. “It’s a song to sing when you’re lonely.” Rani was grateful. She knew the tune would come in handy.
Disney Fairies: Rani and the Three Treasures Page 3
