“Are you ready, Kirsty?” Jim Fay called, walking over. He handed her the game ball.
“I was born ready!” Kirsty replied.
With that, Jim led her out to a spot in front of the pitcher’s mound. Kirsty waved and laughed as the announcer proclaimed for the whole stadium to hear: “Throwing today’s first pitch is a very special guest of the Gulls, Miss Kirsty Tate!”
The crowd cheered wildly. Kirsty could see Ivy and her cousins waving excitedly from their seats.
She took a deep breath, kept her eye on the catcher … and threw the ball right into his mitt!
More cheers rang in her ears as she and Jim jogged back to home plate together.
“You didn’t seem nervous at all!” Rachel cried, giving her a big hug.
“I wasn’t,” Kirsty said. “My nerves disappeared like … magic!”
Before the girls headed up to join Ivy and the group in their seats, Jim tapped Kirsty on the shoulder. He was holding a big bouquet of flowers.
“Congratulations on a great pitch,” he said, giving her a high five and handing her the flowers.
Kirsty and Rachel thanked him and wished the team good luck as they walked off the field.
Suddenly, Rachel started giggling. “Kirsty, did you take a close look at your bouquet yet?”
Kirsty shook her head and looked down at the flowers. They were all bright yellow tulips!
She laughed, too. “I think Chelsea would approve!”
“I hope they have tigers!” Rachel said, linking arms with Kirsty and skipping down the city sidewalk. Cars, taxis, and buses zoomed down the busy street. Tall buildings towered all around.
Kirsty giggled. “And baboons!” She turned to smile at Rachel’s parents, who strolled down the street behind the girls. “Thanks so much for taking us to the Cove City Zoo this morning, Mr. and Mrs. Walker.”
“It’s nice to get out of the house and see the sights,” Mrs. Walker replied.
“Besides, Ivy seemed awfully nervous about her graduation speech this afternoon,” Mr. Walker added. Then he winked. “It’s best that we stay out of her hair for a little while!”
Rachel raised an eyebrow at Kirsty. The girls knew that Ivy was feeling more than just regular nerves. “This is all because two of Chelsea the Congratulations Fairy’s magic objects are still missing,” she whispered.
“I know,” Kirsty said with a sigh. She nudged Rachel with her elbow. “But cheer up! Maybe we’ll find one at the zoo. Look!”
Up ahead, the girls could see a huge iron gate topped with animal silhouettes. A colorful sign read Welcome to the Cove City Zoo! With a squeal, they both ran as fast as they could until they reached the gate.
“This is one of the biggest zoos in the country,” Mrs. Walker said when she finally caught up.
Mr. Walker paid the admission fee and studied a map. “There’s a lot to see,” he said with a whistle. “You girls have your work cut out for you!”
Rachel grinned. “Can we explore on our own for a while?” she asked. Without her parents around, maybe she and Kirsty could find one of Chelsea’s magic objects … or maybe they’d even find Chelsea herself!
“Sure, I think that would be OK,” Mrs. Walker said. “Why don’t we meet in an hour by the penguin exhibit? They feed the penguins at eleven o’clock, and Ivy said we definitely shouldn’t miss it.” She circled it on the map.
“I love penguins!” Kirsty cried. “That sounds great.”
Rachel gave each of her parents a hug, grabbed Kirsty’s hand, and together they ran off down the tree-lined path.
“The baboons are this way,” Kirsty said, pointing to the left.
Rachel pointed to the right. “And the tigers are that way.” Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks. Just ahead, a young woman in a green zookeeper uniform sat alone on a bench. She held her head in her hands. “Kirsty, look,” Rachel whispered.
Kirsty peered at the woman. “She looks awfully upset,” she noted. “What do you think could be wrong?”
“I don’t know,” Rachel said. “But there’s only one way to find out …”
Rachel slowly approached the bench, with Kirsty close behind. She put a gentle hand on the zookeeper’s shoulder. “Excuse me—are you OK?”
The young woman looked up in surprise. When she saw the girls’ concerned faces, she gave them a small smile. “I’ll be fine,” she said. “Thanks for asking.”
Kirsty noticed that the woman’s name tag read CLARE. “You work here at the zoo, Clare?”
Clare sighed. “I’m new. Today is my first day in charge of the big penguin feeding.”
“Oh!” Rachel’s face lit up. “We’re planning to watch that! I heard that it’s a super-popular exhibit.”
“It’s many visitors’ favorite part of the zoo,” Clare said, looking even more worried than before. “And that makes my problem even worse! I’ve worked with these penguins a lot behind the scenes, and I have plenty of experience at other zoos, too. But in our latest practice session, everything went wrong. The penguins wouldn’t listen to me at all!”
Rachel and Kirsty looked at each other with raised eyebrows. Uh-oh! This must be because of Chelsea’s missing magic objects …
Clare buried her head in her hands again. “I’m sure that I’m going to disappoint all of the visitors who come to see the penguins today!”
“I wish there were something we could do to help you,” Rachel said.
Kirsty squeezed Rachel’s arm. “There is,” she whispered. “We have to find Chelsea’s magic objects—and fast!”
Rachel nodded, looking determined. “I hope everything goes better at the feeding, Clare,” she said to the zookeeper. “We’ll be cheering you on from the audience!”
“Good luck,” Kirsty added. “You’ll do great!”
Clare gave the girls a halfhearted smile and waved as they headed down the path.
“Poor Clare,” Rachel said once they were out of earshot.
Kirsty sighed. “This is all Jack Frost’s fault—and we’re the only ones who can help. I just wish we knew where to look!”
Together, the girls headed into the area marked Safari. For a few minutes, they completely forgot about Chelsea’s magic objects. Around every bend in the path they spotted roaring lions, trumpeting elephants, and towering giraffes!
“Wow!” Kirsty cried. “Those elephants were even bigger than I expected!”
“And look at that giraffe!” Rachel added, pointing. “I can barely see the top of its head behind that tall tree branch.”
Kirsty squinted as the giraffe moved. “Doesn’t the top of its head look a little … sparkly?” she asked slowly.
Rachel gasped. “It’s Chelsea!”
Rachel was right! The tiny fairy was perched on the giraffe’s head, waving. She fluttered down to see the girls, leaving a trail of shimmering fairy dust behind her. The giraffe nodded in a friendly way and wandered off.
“Hi, girls!” Chelsea called, grinning as she landed on Rachel’s shoulder. “I was hoping to find you here.”
“We were hoping to find you, too,” Kirsty said. “We’ve been searching for more of your magic objects, but we haven’t had any luck yet.”
The girls continued along the safari path, with Chelsea sitting comfortably on Rachel’s shoulder.
“Things are going all wrong, Chelsea,” Rachel said, looking glum. “My cousin Ivy is really nervous about her graduation speech, and we just met a zookeeper named Clare who’s worried about disappointing fans at the penguin feeding.”
Chelsea put her hands on her hips, suddenly looking spunky and determined. “This is all because my magic balloon is missing!” she cried. “It gives people confidence. We have to get it back!”
The three friends made their way out of the safari exhibit and along another pathway, keeping their eyes open for anything magical. Colorful birds swooped overhead. A peacock even strutted right out in front of them!
Just then, Chelsea tugged on Rachel’s ponytail. “One of my
magic objects is nearby,” she whispered excitedly. “I can sense it!”
Rachel and Kirsty peered all around, but they didn’t see anything unusual. Kirsty peeked behind a shrub along the side of the path—and jumped when a frog hopped out and landed on her foot!
“The zoo is full of magical surprises,” Kirsty said, laughing. “I just hope we can find the magic we’re looking for!”
The girls continued toward the tiger exhibit. As they rounded a corner in the path, they spotted a huge cart rolling to a stop up ahead. Tied to the cart were tons and tons of balloons in all different colors!
“Wow,” Rachel said. “Those are awfully pretty … but I thought balloons weren’t allowed at the zoo.”
Kirsty shook her head, suddenly looking angry. “They’re not. If the animals try to eat them, they could get really hurt!”
“I wonder what all of those balloons are doing here, then,” Chelsea said, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. “Something fishy is going on!”
She darted behind a nearby tree, and the girls followed. They had a perfect view of the cart from their hiding spot! They could see three workers in zoo uniforms bustling around the cart, getting ready to open for the day. One pushed the cart, the second filled balloons from a helium tank, and the third was ready to deal with customers.
“Do you notice anything strange about those workers?” Kirsty asked.
Rachel squinted. “I can’t see their faces because their hats are too low,” she said. Then she gasped. “But they have gigantic green feet!”
“Goblins!” Chelsea cried, tumbling through the air in excitement. “And they have my magic balloon with them!”
Before the girls could say anything else, they were drowned out by the goblins, arguing loudly.
Chelsea rolled her eyes and sighed. “They’re fighting. What else is new?” she muttered.
The girls listened closely.
“You were supposed to keep track of it!” one goblin cried, pointing at another.
That goblin shook his head. “No, no, no! It wasn’t me. I’m in charge of collecting the money.”
The third goblin held up his hands. “Don’t look at me!” he said. “It’s not my fault you lost it!”
The first goblin threw his hat to the ground in exasperation. “Jack Frost will never forgive us!”
Rachel’s eyes widened. “Did they lose your magic balloon, Chelsea?”
Chelsea winked. “No, they just can’t tell which one it is—it’s mixed in with all of the other balloons!”
The girls stifled their giggles. The goblins were always causing extra trouble for themselves!
“I can tell which balloon is mine, though,” Chelsea said. “Do you see that red one, in the middle of the bunch on the far left side?”
Kirsty and Rachel looked closely. “Oh, I see it now!” Kirsty whispered. “It’s shimmering with a tiny bit of fairy magic!”
Chelsea nodded, her eyes twinkling. Then she frowned. “But how are we going to get it back? The goblins may be foolish sometimes, but they surely won’t let any of the balloons out of their sight.”
“I have an idea,” Kirsty said, looking thoughtful. She leaned in to whisper the plan to her friends, grinning. “It’s crazy enough that it just might work!”
With their plan in place, Rachel and Kirsty both took a deep breath. Chelsea was safely hidden behind Rachel’s ponytail as the girls walked up to the balloon cart.
“Hi!” Rachel exclaimed, waving. The goblins stopped arguing and turned to scowl at her. “We’d like to buy forty balloons, please.”
The goblins stared at them in shock. The girls could almost see the dollar signs shining in their greedy eyes.
“Excuse us for just one moment, ladies,” one of them said politely, holding up a bony green finger.
The three goblins huddled together, muttering frantically. They were trying to be sneaky, but Rachel and Kirsty could still hear snippets of their conversation.
“We need to make sure we don’t give them the magic balloon! Jack Frost would be really angry!”
“Just think of how much money we could make, selling forty balloons at once. Our first sale of the day! We’ll be rich!”
Rachel looked at Kirsty, nervous. What would the goblins decide?
Finally, three green faces turned back toward the girls. One of the goblins cleared his throat. “We’d be very happy to sell you forty balloons,” he said.
Kirsty breathed a sigh of relief, and Rachel squeezed her arm. The goblins hadn’t been able to resist making lots of money, just as the girls had hoped!
“Oh, thank you!” Kirsty said sweetly.
One goblin began carefully collecting forty balloons from the cart. He winced with the addition of each new balloon to the bunch. He was obviously worried about handing over the magic balloon by accident!
A tiny voice made Rachel’s smile even wider. “My magic balloon is in the bunch now!” Chelsea whispered, tugging gently on Rachel’s ponytail.
Rachel gave Kirsty a wink.
The goblin untied a few more balloons to add to the gigantic bunch in his hand. Suddenly … he was lifted up into the air! He was holding so many balloons that they carried him right up off the ground!
“HELP!” the goblin shrieked, kicking and flailing in midair. He clung to the balloon strings for dear life. “Help me!”
His goblin friends stared up at him in shock, frozen. By the time they made a move, the goblin with the balloons had floated too high. They couldn’t reach him!
Just then, Chelsea sprang into action. She fluttered out from behind Rachel’s ponytail and twirled up into the air, her party skirt floating around her.
“I’ll make a deal with you!” she said cheerfully, hovering next to the panicking goblin.
His eyes were squeezed shut in fear, but they popped open when he heard Chelsea’s voice. “Fairies!” he cried. “I should have known you pesky fairies were behind this trick!”
Chelsea put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes. “Would you like my help or not?”
The goblin looked down at the ground, which was getting farther and farther away. “OK, OK!” he squealed. “What do you want?”
“It’s simple,” Chelsea said with a casual shrug. “You’re holding my magic balloon. Just hand it over, and I’ll get you down from there.”
The goblin scowled. Below, his friends protested, jumping up and down and shaking their heads.
“Don’t do it!” one cried.
“Jack Frost will be furious!” the other added with a shudder.
“Don’t you think I know that?!” squealed the goblin in the air.
Kirsty looked at Rachel and crossed her fingers. They were so close to getting Chelsea’s magic balloon back—but what if the goblin said no?
Chelsea zoomed around the goblin and the balloons, flying in a few dizzying loops. “Do we have a deal?” she asked.
The goblin glanced down at her—and squealed again when he saw how high he’d floated! “All right!” he cried. “Take whatever you want!”
On the ground below, Rachel and Kirsty whooped and gave each other a high five.
Chelsea didn’t waste a moment. In the blink of an eye, she flew up, plucked her magic balloon out of the bunch, and shrunk it down to fairy-size. She held tight to it with one hand while carefully using her wand to make a few of the goblin’s other balloons disappear. As each balloon vanished, the goblin slowly lowered to the ground. When he landed on the pavement, he shouted with joy.
His friends weren’t so happy, though.
“This is all your fault!” one hollered.
The other chimed in, “You ruined everything!”
Rachel couldn’t listen to them bicker any longer. “You shouldn’t have balloons at the zoo anyway,” she said. “They’re dangerous for the animals!”
The goblins looked sheepish. For once, they had nothing to say!
Chelsea swooped out of the sky and flicked her wand. Fairy dust glimmered in the air. Whe
n it cleared, all of the goblins’ balloons had vanished.
The goblins grumbled under their breaths and turned back to their empty cart. Together, they pushed it down the path. The girls could hear them muttering, “Pesky fairies ruin everything!” as they disappeared around a bend.
Chelsea gave Rachel and Kirsty each a kiss on the cheek. “I couldn’t have done it without you, girls!” She tugged on the string of her magic balloon. “Now I need to get this back to Fairyland, so people everywhere can feel confident about trying new things.”
Kirsty looked at her watch. “It’s almost eleven o’clock already—time for the penguin feeding! I hope your balloon can help Clare with the penguins.”
Chelsea winked. “You’d better hurry up. I think today’s penguin feeding is going to be something you won’t want to miss!”
And with that, she vanished in a swirl of sparkles.
Rachel grabbed Kirsty’s hand. The two friends ran along the wooded pathways until they came to the penguin exhibit. Mr. and Mrs. Walker waved to them from a spot in the stands, and the girls scurried up the steps to join them.
“You’re just in time!” Mrs. Walker said with a smile. “Did you have fun exploring the zoo?”
“It was an adventure!” Rachel said.
Mr. Walker handed over two red slushies in silly penguin cups. “We thought you might be thirsty.”
The girls’ eyes lit up. They thanked him and sipped their icy drinks as the announcer came over the loudspeaker.
“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls—welcome to Cove City Zoo’s famous penguin feeding!”
Chelsea the Congratulations Fairy Page 2
