Yours sincerely,
Timmy Hopkins
Twink felt warm as she read it. What a nice, polite boy!
Looking more closely at the sleeping Timmy, she saw that he was wearing blue pyjamas, and cuddling a teddy bear to his chest.
Twink gazed at his pillow, wondering again why the teeth were left in such an awkward place. It wouldn’t be very easy for her to get to it.
‘Tradition,’ Shadow had said when she’d asked. ‘You’ll be fine – just crawl under the pillow, grab the tooth, and away you go.’ She’d made it sound very simple, but looking now at the large, soft pillow, Twink wasn’t so sure. Still, she supposed she had to try.
She flitted over to the bed and touched down beside the pillow. Timmy’s sleeping head loomed above her. He snored softly, ruffling her pink hair in the breeze.
The mattress felt spongy under her feet as Twink made her way to the edge of the pillow. Well – here goes, she thought. Dropping to her knees, she took a deep breath and crawled underneath it.
.
Chapter Four
It was worse than being underground! Twink held her breath as she inched along, hating the feeling of the pillow pressing so closely around her. Finally her groping fingers brushed against something cool and smooth.
Twink pulled the coin from her bag and placed it on the sheet. Grabbing hold of the tooth she backed quickly out again, pulling it along with her. She gasped in relief as she came out into the open. She’d done it!
Carefully, Twink tucked the tooth into the bag. Adjusting the strap so that it lay securely across her chest, she stretched her wings and took off towards the open window.
BOING!
‘AAARRGGHHH!’ screamed Twink as she hurtled backwards through the air. Struggling to right herself, she shrieked again as she saw that Timmy wasn’t asleep after all. He was standing up on his bed, tugging on a thread – and it was attached to her pouch!
The tooth! There had been a thread tied around it to trap her! Twink fumbled wildly with the bag, straining to get rid of it – but it was too late. Timmy had reeled in the last bit of thread, and suddenly Twink found herself dangling from his fingertips.
‘Got ya!’ he said triumphantly.
‘Let me go!’ gasped Twink, twisting and kicking in his grasp.
Whipping out a jar from under the covers, Timmy popped Twink into it. She landed with a hard thump on the glass floor, and gaped in disbelief as he screwed a lid on to the top.
Fluttering frantically, she beat on the smooth walls with both hands. ‘Let me go,’ she repeated. Her voice echoed faintly around her.
Timmy leered in at her, his face like a giant moon. ‘No way!’ he chortled. ‘You’re the ninth fairy in my collection. You look different from the others, though,’ he added. Carrying her over to the night light, his eyes widened. ‘Wow, you’ve got pink hair!’
‘You horrid, horrid boy!’ yelled Twink. She kicked the side of the jar as hard as she could. ‘I thought you were nice!’
Timmy sniggered. ‘Yeah, the note’s ace, isn’t it? Lures you lot in every time!’ Taking a pair of scissors from his desk, he neatly snipped off the thread that still hung outside the jar. Twink struggled to stay upright as he carried her across the room.
‘Where are you taking me?’ she cried. ‘Put me down!’
Timmy ignored her as he opened his wardrobe door. Climbing up on to a chair, he moved a shoebox on a shelf, shoved Twink’s jar behind it, and then put the shoebox back into place.
‘Stop!’ shouted Twink, banging on the glass. ‘What are you doing? You can’t just leave me here.’
‘Welcome to your new home,’ sang Timmy. His voice was fading slightly, and she realised he was climbing down from the chair again. ‘You’ll love it, I promise. Just like all the others!’
The wardrobe door shut with a click . . . and the world went black around her. ‘Wait!’ screeched Twink, banging the glass with her fist. ‘Wait!’
There was no response. Distantly, Twink heard Timmy get back into bed . . . and then a few minutes later came the sound of his snores. The horrible little boy had actually gone to sleep!
Defeated, Twink sank back on to her haunches. What on earth was she going to do now? She was trapped in here, alone in the dark.
All at once she straightened as hope tingled through her. What was it that Timmy had said? Something about ‘the others’ – and that she was the ‘ninth fairy in his collection’! Could it be that she wasn’t by herself after all?
‘Is – is anybody there?’ Twink whispered hesitantly.
‘Yes,’ answered a gloomy female voice.
Twink let out a relieved breath. Though she wouldn’t have wished for anyone else to be trapped like she had been, she wasn’t sorry to have some company in here! ‘Are there really eight of you, like he said?’ she asked.
‘I suppose so,’ said the voice. ‘We’ve never bothered to count.’
Twink’s eyes widened in surprise. How could they not know how many of them had been captured? ‘Well – are you all tooth fairies?’ she pressed.
‘Yes,’ came the reply. ‘Aren’t you?’
Twink sighed, and sat down on the hard glass floor. She didn’t really want to talk about it very much – she felt silly enough already. ‘No, I was just doing someone a favour,’ she said. ‘Anyway, I’m Twink. What’s your name?’
‘Midnight,’ said the other fairy. ‘It’s nice that you’ve come,’ she added politely. ‘We were all getting very bored, just talking to each other. Do you know any good stories?’
Twink felt her jaw drop. Midnight spoke as if she planned on spending the rest of her life here! ‘No, I don’t,’ she snapped. ‘Midnight, what about escaping? What have you and the other fairies tried?’
‘Escaping?’ echoed the other fairy. ‘Oh. Well, it’s difficult, you see – the lids are always screwed on so tightly. But at least we have air holes. And Timmy brings us food every day. I suppose it’s not so bad here . . .’
As Twink’s eyes adjusted to the darkness, she could just make out another jar beside hers. She stared at it in disbelief. ‘Not so bad?’ she repeated. ‘Are you mad? It’s awful! What does he want with us, anyway?’
‘I don’t know. I think he just likes collecting things,’ said Midnight.
‘Haven’t you ever asked?’ said Twink in amazement.
There was a pause.
‘Er . . . no,’ said Midnight finally. ‘Should we have?’
Twink gave up. What was wrong with these fairies, anyway? It was as if they were too dismal to even care. Maybe Shadow was a bit prickly, but at least she had some life to her!
‘Well, I’m going to go to sleep now,’ she said crossly.
‘Goodnight,’ said Midnight’s voice. ‘And do have a think about the stories, won’t you, Twink? It would be lovely to hear some new ones.’
Twink didn’t answer. She curled up on the hard glass floor, tucking her lavender wings tightly around her. Though she was trying not to feel too sorry for herself, it wasn’t easy. If the other fairies were anything like Midnight, then having them here was almost worse than being alone!
It’ll be all right, she told herself, staring out into the darkness. When I don’t come back, Bimi and Sooze will realise something’s gone wrong, and they’ll come looking for me.
And poor Shadow! She’d probably feel dreadful when she found out what had happened. Twink yawned, beginning to feel sleepy despite her uncomfortable bed. Yes, someone would be coming after her soon . . . she was sure of it.
‘The Brave One sensed there was a tooth that needed collecting – but then her heart sank as she realised whose tooth it was. What was she to do? She had to collect the tooth, but knew only too well the danger that awaited her!’
Twink cracked one eye open grum
pily. Who was telling stories so late at night? For a confused moment she couldn’t remember where she was, and then it all came flooding back. She groaned as she sat up, straining to see in the dim light.
‘Yes, be afraid!’ continued the voice to its audience. ‘For it was a name to inspire dread in all tooth fairies . . . the Terrible Timmy.’
Twink’s eyes widened. Had the tooth fairies known that Timmy was going to try and capture them? But why on earth would they still come to his house, in that case?
‘The Brave One had escaped the Terrible Timmy once before, but could she do it again? Stealthily, she crept into his room . . .’
Twink’s thoughts spun. Could Shadow have been aware that Twink was flying into danger? But no, that couldn’t be right! No one could be so horrid to someone who was only trying to help them – could they?
‘The Brave One found the tooth, cut the thread that was tied around it . . . and then the Terrible Timmy pounced!’
Though the story had the feel of one that had been told many times before, a horrified gasp echoed about the wardrobe shelf. Twink craned her pointed ears, listening intently.
‘The Brave One flew this way, she flew that way! Finally, she managed to escape with the tooth . . . but she vowed that she would never return to the Terrible Timmy’s house again, if she could help it.’
The audience sighed with satisfaction. Suddenly a horrible suspicion came to Twink, and she leapt to her feet. ‘Hang on!’ she cried. ‘Who’s this Brave One you keep going on about?’
There was a startled pause. ‘She is called Shadow,’ said the storyteller finally, her voice hushed with respect. ‘She’s the only one of us to have escaped the Terrible Timmy.’
Oh! Twink’s wings felt on fire with anger. ‘Well, I don’t think Shadow’s brave at all!’ she burst out. ‘She tricked me into coming here, and never even told me to be careful! She –’
‘Oh, Twink, tell us the story!’ broke in Midnight’s voice eagerly.
‘Yes, please!’ echoed several others.
Twink could have kicked her jar in frustration. Were stories all that these stupid fairies cared about? Fine – she’d tell them one they’d never forget!
She plunged into her tale, beginning from when she’d first noticed the little branch at the top of Glitterwings. The tooth fairies hardly breathed as she described her journey up to it, the strange carvings on the shelf – and then meeting Shadow herself.
‘So that’s where the Brave One lives,’ whispered an awestruck voice in the darkness. ‘I’ve often wondered. And you say she carves things? How strange!’
Murmurs of agreement came from all directions. Twink gritted her teeth and carried on, describing Shadow’s hurt wing – if it had really been hurt at all, that is – and how she and Sooze had offered to help.
‘And Shadow never even told me to be careful,’ she finished up indignantly, after describing her capture by Timmy. ‘She knew perfectly well that I was flying into a trap, but she never warned me!’
There was silence on the darkened shelf. Finally the same fairy whose story had woken Twink up spoke. ‘You must be mistaken,’ she said.
‘Yes, you must have got it wrong, somehow,’ said Midnight’s voice. ‘Shadow is the Brave One! She wouldn’t do such a thing.’
Twink opened her mouth to argue – and then slowly shut it again. Maybe the tooth fairies, trapped here in their jars, needed to believe in the Brave One for their own comfort.
‘I suppose you’re right,’ she said after a pause. ‘Maybe I – I didn’t understand her, or something.’
‘I’m sure that was it,’ said Midnight, sounding relieved. ‘But it was a good story anyway, Twink. Would you tell it again tomorrow?’
Twink sighed. ‘No, I don’t think so,’ she said. ‘My friends will be coming after me soon . . .’
She trailed off, suddenly wondering whether that was the case. After all, Sooze hadn’t heard where she was going – Shadow had taken Twink to one side and whispered the directions. And what if Shadow refused to help them?
Twink straightened her wings. Well, whether her friends came to save her or not, she had no intention of staying here!
‘When it’s lighter, I’m going to try and escape,’ she said firmly. ‘Timmy will be at school during the day, won’t he?’ She remembered from her time with Lindsay that human children had to leave their homes every day to be taught.
‘Yes, that’s right,’ said Midnight. ‘I don’t think you’ll be able to escape, though, Twink. You might as well just accept it: you’re here with us now.’
There were murmurs of agreement from the others. Twink clenched her jaw. ‘Well, I think I’ll at least try first, before I give up and live in a jar for the rest of my life!’
She could almost see Midnight’s shrug. ‘Suit yourself.’
To change the subject, Twink said, ‘There’s one thing I don’t understand. Did you all know that Timmy was going to try and capture you?’
‘Only some of us knew,’ replied the storyteller. ‘After the Brave One escaped for the first time, she told others what was happening. All we’d known until then was that sometimes tooth fairies went missing.’
‘Oh,’ said Twink in bewilderment. ‘But why did you keep coming here, in that case?’
‘It’s because of the tooth fairy pact,’ explained Midnight. ‘We have a very old agreement with humans, you see. If there’s a tooth that needs collecting, then we have to come and exchange a coin for it – no matter what.’
Twink frowned. ‘But . . . why? I mean, why do you want their teeth?’
A startled gasp came from the darkness around her. ‘Because we’re tooth fairies!’ cried the storyteller. ‘That’s what we do!’
‘But do you like collecting teeth?’ insisted Twink. ‘At least Shadow carves things in hers – do you lot do anything like that?’
There was a confused silence.
‘Um . . . we just collect them, that’s all,’ said a voice finally. ‘It’s what we’ve always done.’
‘Yes. It is our fate,’ said the storyteller.
For the second time that night, Twink gave up. She was starting to realise that tooth fairies were very different from ordinary fairies . . . and she wasn’t sure that they could ever begin to understand each other!
.
Chapter Five
‘Sooze! Sooze, wake up!’
Someone was shaking her shoulder. ‘Go away,’ mumbled Sooze sleepily. She rolled over on to her side, pulling her bluebell-petal duvet around her.
‘Sooze! We fell asleep! Twink’s not back yet!’ hissed Bimi.
Sooze awoke with a start. The last thing she remembered was lying in bed talking to Bimi, waiting for Twink to return – and now the sky outside their window was beginning to lighten. Twink had left hours ago!
She sprang out of bed, her heart thudding. ‘Something must be wrong!’ she whispered. Around them, the rest of Bluebell Branch lay sleeping. Sili’s soft snores echoed across the ledge.
Bimi nodded anxiously. ‘Sooze, I’m really scared. What if – what if she’s hurt herself somehow, and can’t get back?’
Sooze flung on her dressing gown. ‘I’m going to go and see Shadow, and find out exactly where Twink went,’ she said.
‘I’m coming with you,’ said Bimi, grabbing her own dressing gown.
Sooze glanced at her in surprise. ‘Are you sure? The passageway’s really tight in places –’
‘Of course I’m sure!’ Bimi looked close to tears. ‘Twink’s my best friend! If I had only gone along in the first place, this might not have happened.’
Sooze put her hands on her hips. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
Bimi blew out a breath. ‘Nothing! It’s just that – well, you do tend to egg each other on a bit, don’t you
?’
Sooze felt a pinch of guilt as she remembered that Twink hadn’t even thought of going until she’d teased her into it. ‘Well, never mind that now,’ she muttered. ‘Come on, let’s go!’
Soon the two fairies had climbed up the narrow trunk and were pulling themselves on to the ledge. Sooze banged on the door with her fist. ‘Shadow!’ she yelled. ‘Open up!’
There was no response. Sooze banged harder. ‘SHADOW! We need to talk to you!’
‘Let’s just go in,’ said Bimi, reaching for the doorknob. She turned it – and the door swung open.
The room was empty.
Flitting inside, Sooze stared around her in surprise. There was no sign of Shadow anywhere! Even the shelves where the carvings had stood were now bare. It was as if the tooth fairy had never been there at all.
‘I don’t like this one bit,’ said Bimi. ‘Where would she have gone, with a hurt wing?’
‘If it really was hurt,’ said Sooze grimly. She spotted something on the floor. ‘Look, it’s one of her carvings!’ she exclaimed, holding the owl carving up. ‘Bimi, I think she’s packed up and left – she must have dropped this one on her way out.’
Bimi’s pretty face paled. ‘Then we have to go after her! She’s the only one who knows where Twink is.’
‘Yes, but how?’ demanded Sooze fretfully. ‘It’s been hours already! She could be anywhere by now –’
The two of them froze as they heard the sound of wings approaching. Without a word, Sooze grabbed Bimi and pulled them both flat against the wall by the window.
Shadow landed on the sill, balancing herself with her silvery-grey wings as she swung the window open. Glancing furtively around her, she hopped to the floor. ‘Now, where did it go . . . ?’ she murmured.
‘Looking for this?’ asked Sooze, stepping forward. She held up the owl carving.
Shadow gasped as she whirled towards them. ‘I – you –’ she stammered.
‘Where’s Twink?’ demanded Bimi coldly. ‘She left hours ago!’
Fairy in Danger Page 3
