Fairy Dust

by Titania Woods

  ‘You must mend it yourself, you stupid fairy – you, and no one else! Or we shall take away the ice pole and no one will use it at all. Bah! We should have known better than to trust the fairies!’

  With a furious splash, the water sprite dived back under the water. ‘Wait!’ called Sooze, her wings fluttering in alarm. ‘I don’t know how to mend it! Does it just attach back on? What do I do?’

  But there was no answer. The hole froze quickly over again, until there was no sign the sprite had been there at all. Spurred by sudden panic, Sooze flitted to the top of the pole and tried to press the beak on to the robin’s face. It fell off in her hand.

  Licking her finger, Sooze frantically wet the end of the beak and tried again. ‘Please, please work!’ she muttered. But the beak refused to stay attached.

  ‘Sooze, what are you doing?’ called a voice.

  Sooze gasped. Twink and the others were flying towards her in a brightly coloured stream. It was time for class! Quickly slipping the beak into her pocket, Sooze flew to the bank and tried to look relaxed.

  .

  .

  Twink landed lightly beside Sooze, eyes gleaming. ‘Is it the prank?’ she whispered.

  Sooze flinched. ‘I – no – sort of,’ she muttered, cheeks blazing. ‘Just forget the prank, Twink!’

  Twink’s face fell. ‘But I thought you were going to play one. Everyone’s in such a bad mood –’

  ‘Oh, who cares!’ burst out Sooze. ‘It’s not up to me to cheer them up, is it?’ She turned quickly away as the others arrived, not wanting to see the hurt look on Twink’s face.

  Madame Brightfoot fluttered grandly down into their midst. Her rich purple hair was piled atop her head, and her red wings shone against the grey day.

  ‘Flower Formation, everyone!’ she cried. Her cobweb dress shimmered as she waved her arms about. ‘Quickly, quickly!’

  Glumly, Sooze got into position with the others, holding hands with the fairies on either side of her. Once they were all in a circle, they opened their wings so that the very tips of them touched. From above, they looked like a many-petalled flower.

  Madame nodded in approval. ‘Very nice. We shall now do a thank-you dance to the sprites for their ice pole – and once we have finished, I am sure that they will appear in response!’

  The blood left Sooze’s face. Oh, no! Would the sprites appear and tell everyone what she had done? Woodenly, she tried to follow Madame’s steps as the dance began.

  ‘And sway to the left . . . spin once, twice, three times! Now, up in the air! Think thank-you thoughts!’ Madame hovered in the centre of the circle, waving her arms in time to the dance.

  Sooze’s wings felt clammy. What on earth could she say? Um . . . thank you for the ice pole, she thought timidly. It was really glimmery until I broke it. Oh, that didn’t sound right at all!

  ‘Now land,’ said Madame finally. The fairies drifted to the ground. Beaming broadly, Madame cocked an ear at the pond. ‘Any moment now,’ she whispered.

  Sooze nibbled her thumb. The pond’s icy surface stayed still and silent.

  Madame’s purple eyebrows drew together. ‘How odd!’ She straightened abruptly. ‘We shall try the dance again! Someone wasn’t thinking hard enough! Come now, quickly!’

  This time when they finished the dance, Madame got on her hands and knees, cupping a hand about her ear as she listened. ‘But I do not understand!’ she murmured. ‘I am sure we did the dance perfectly.’ She looked up at the ice pole, frowning in puzzlement.

  Sooze stifled a yelp. She might see the broken robin! ‘Please, Madame – I think they’re just tired!’ she blurted.

  Madame stared at her. ‘Tired? What do you mean?’

  Sooze swallowed. ‘I – I was down here before class started, and I saw one of them. He said they’re tired of all the attention they’ve got since they built the pole – they just want to be left alone.’

  She saw the class glance at each other, wondering if this was part of a prank, or for real! Madame tapped her wings together. ‘Is this true, Sooze?’

  ‘Oh, yes!’ said Sooze. The broken beak felt sharp in her pocket, and she hurried on, ‘I mean – well, why else wouldn’t they appear when we danced?’

  Madame nodded slowly. ‘Yes . . . yes, I suppose so. Well, then – in that case we shall simply do a silent dance of respect. Follow me, girls.’

  As the class imitated Madame’s moves, Sooze let out a breath. She had got away with it – for now, at least!

  But what would happen if she couldn’t mend the robin’s beak? Sooze gulped, remembering what the sprite had said. The Spring Ceremony would be cancelled – and it would be all her fault.

  No! she thought desperately. I’ll mend it somehow. I will!

  .

  Chapter Five

  Twink stood in a long line with the other first-year fairies, trying not to look bored as Mrs Lightwing flew up and down in front of them in the moonlight.

  ‘I’ve been seeing some very sloppy wingwork from you girls lately! Don’t think that just because the Spring Ceremony is only a few days away that you can neglect your flying lessons.’ Mrs Lightwing stopped and hovered, fixing them all with a stern stare.

  Twink held back a sigh. Night Flying had sounded so exciting on her timetable this term – but it had turned out to be just like Flight, only at night!

  Mrs Lightwing’s sensible oak-leaf dress rustled in the evening breeze. ‘Flying teams, please!’ she barked. ‘We’re going to do some exercises.’

  As Twink flitted into place with Pix and Bimi, she glanced at Sooze, who was on a team with Sili and Zena. Her friend was flying with her head down, looking nothing at all like her usual sparkly self.

  Twink frowned. What was wrong with Sooze? She had been acting odd for days. Only yesterday, Twink had caught her sneaking a bit of sap glue out of the supplies branch. When Twink had asked her about it, Sooze had just mumbled something and flown quickly away.

  Maybe it was for a prank, thought Twink hopefully. But it was over a week ago now that Sooze had mentioned a prank. Now it seemed to be the last thing on her mind.

  ‘Full speed, three left-sided barrel rolls on my command, and then a loop-the-loop,’ announced Mrs Lightwing. ‘And any fairy with sloppy wingwork will find herself doing laps around the school!’

  Mariella tossed her head. ‘Oh, I could do that in my sleep,’ she said in a piercing whisper. ‘But then, I am a very advanced flier.’

  Twink rolled her eyes and glanced expectantly at Sooze. Sooze loved it when Mariella came out with her snooty remarks – it gave her an excuse to respond with cutting comments of her own!

  But Sooze didn’t seem to have heard. She was hovering a little way apart from Sili and Zena, staring towards the pond.

  Maybe she’s thinking of the ceremony, thought Twink. Sooze still hadn’t worked out fairy dust.

  Neither had Twink, and she sighed. She didn’t suppose she’d be dancing in the ceremony now. She thought wistfully of Queen Mab, and how she had hoped to meet her. The Queen would hardly want to meet a fairy who couldn’t even use fairy dust.

  Twink frowned. But Sooze wasn’t the sort to mope about a thing like that. What on earth could be wrong with her?

  Mrs Lightwing raised her arm and dropped it. ‘First team – go!’ A team from Poppy Branch jetted off into the night, their red dresses flashing.

  Leaning close to Bimi and Pix, Twink whispered, ‘Have you two noticed anything strange about Sooze recently?’

  ‘Strange how?’ Bimi whispered back.

  Twink shrugged, unsure how to express it. ‘She just doesn’t seem very happy, that’s all.’ She thought about the sap glue, but decided against mentioning it.

  .

  .

  ‘She’s probably just down becaus
e she hasn’t got the hang of fairy dust yet,’ said Pix. Pix had worked out the secret only a few days before, to her immense relief. Afterwards, she’d looked almost sheepish as she said, ‘Zena was right, you know – it’s not something you can find in books!’

  ‘Second team,’ called Mrs Lightwing. Mariella and Lola skimmed away.

  Twink shook her head. ‘No, I don’t think that’s it. Sooze wants to dance in the ceremony, but she doesn’t care about it that much. I think something might really be wrong.’

  ‘With Sooze?’ Bimi looked surprised. ‘What could be wrong?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ said Twink. ‘But –’

  ‘Look out!’ shrieked several fairies.

  Twink spun round, and gasped. Mariella wasn’t watching where she was going – and she was about to fly straight into a large brown moth!

  Crash! Twink winced as Mariella and the moth collided in a flurry of wings. ‘Oh!’ screeched Mariella, struggling to disentangle herself. ‘Get off me! You clumsy – stupid –’

  Well, thought Twink, she obviously wasn’t hurt, with the fuss she was making! Twink held back a wild giggle as Mariella spluttered and shouted, all flailing legs and flapping wings. Lola fluttered about them helplessly, tugging at first one and then the other.

  ‘Brilliant!’ whispered Pix. ‘And after she was just bragging about her flying, as well!’

  Mrs Lightwing flew up, grim-faced. With a single wrench of her hand, she had the moth separated from Mariella and zigzagging dazedly on its way.

  ‘Oh! Did you see that clumsy thing!’ shrieked Mariella, stamping her foot in the air. ‘It just crashed straight into me! It . . .’ She trailed off, noticing for the first time the expression on Mrs Lightwing’s face.

  ‘What is the rule about right of way with moths, Mariella?’ demanded their Flight teacher.

  Mariella paled. ‘Er . . . pass on the left,’ she said weakly.

  ‘PASS ON THE LEFT!’ boomed Mrs Lightwing. ‘NOT try to go straight through them!’

  Twink quickly pressed her hand over her mouth to hold in her laughter. She knew she shouldn’t, but – oh, dear! Mariella deserved it!

  Mariella scowled. ‘Yes, but –’

  ‘But nothing!’ snapped Mrs Lightwing. ‘That was the WORST bit of flying I have ever seen. You could have seriously injured that poor moth!’

  ‘Injured him?’ burst out Mariella. ‘What about me?’

  ‘You deserve what you get,’ said Mrs Lightwing grimly. ‘Now, thirty laps around the school – go on!’

  ‘But that’s not fair! He –’

  ‘Fifty laps – do you want to make it more?’ Mrs Lightwing folded her arms across her chest.

  Mariella fell into an angry silence, glaring at the dark ground. Mrs Lightwing jerked her head towards the school. ‘Go on, then – start flying!’ Mariella buzzed off towards Glitterwings, looking ready to explode.

  Grinning to herself, Twink glanced at Bimi and Pix. Bimi’s blue eyes were sparkling with suppressed giggles, while Pix was almost doubled over in the air, struggling to hold in howls of laughter. The rest of Daffodil Branch was in much the same state. The other first-year fairies might find Mariella a pain during Flight lessons, but Daffy Branch had to live with her all the time! It was glimmery to see her get her come-uppance so firmly for once.

  Mrs Lightwing shook her sky-blue head. ‘Lola, join the next team, please. Now, let’s continue – third team!’

  Twink caught sight of Sooze, and her merriment faded. Sooze wasn’t even smiling. As Twink watched, she glanced worriedly at the pond again.

  ‘Look!’ hissed Twink, nudging her friends. ‘I told you something was wrong. Sooze doesn’t even care that Mariella just got told off!’

  Bimi and Pix stared at Sooze, their eyes wide. ‘Oh,’ whispered Bimi. ‘Twink, I think you’re right – something must really be wrong!’

  At dinner that night, Sooze sat at the end of the Daffodil Branch table, apart from the others. Twink looked anxiously at her. She had tried to talk to Sooze after the Flight class, but Sooze had vehemently insisted that nothing was wrong. Now she looked glummer than ever, picking listlessly at her food.

  Suddenly Sili leaned across the table, her long silver hair almost touching the oak-leaf platter of seed cakes. ‘Have you three noticed that Sooze is acting strange?’ she hissed.

  Twink nodded. ‘We were talking about it earlier,’ she whispered back.

  ‘What do you think’s wrong with her?’ asked Bimi.

  Sili shook her head, her large eyes wider than ever. ‘Zena and I can’t work it out. She’s acting like – like she’s committed some terrible crime!’

  Bimi clapped her wings together impatiently. ‘Oh, don’t be silly. Of course she hasn’t!’

  ‘But she’s obviously upset about something,’ whispered Pix. ‘And if she doesn’t want to talk about it, I wonder if we can’t cheer her up, somehow?’

  ‘We could have a fairy cabaret!’ squealed Sili softly, bouncing on her mushroom seat. ‘We could all sing a song, or do a dance, or –’

  Twink shook her head, remembering how Sooze hadn’t even smiled when Mariella got told off. ‘I don’t think that would work, Sili.’

  ‘What are you lot talking about?’ demanded Mariella. The pointed-faced fairy’s eyes were narrowed as she watched them from the end of the table.

  Sili giggled and flipped her hair back. ‘You, actually! We were saying how fit you must be after all those laps.’

  Sniffing loudly, Mariella turned away. A moment later she was whispering in Lola’s ear, and Lola was squirming uncomfortably. ‘I can’t, Mariella,’ Twink heard her mumble.

  Twink shook her head in disgust. Why couldn’t Mariella just work the secret out on her own, like everybody else?

  Pix tapped a bit of seed cake against her oak-leaf plate. ‘Maybe I can find a reference in the library that would help us cheer Sooze up. Or we could try a daisy mood-altering charm – if we can find all the ingredients in the Flower Power cupboard, of course –’

  .

  .

  Bimi shrugged. ‘I think we should just be really nice to her,’ she said. ‘And if she wants to tell us what’s wrong, she will.’

  Pix blinked. ‘Or . . . yeah,’ she said lamely. ‘We could just do that, I suppose.’

  With a swooping rustle, the school’s butterflies fluttered into the Great Branch to clear away the remains of dinner. As she got up with the rest of the Daffodil Branch table, Twink saw Bimi flit across to Sooze’s side.

  ‘I saved you a bit of seed cake,’ she said brightly. ‘It’s your favourite, isn’t it?’

  Twink’s heart swelled with pride as she watched her best friend. Bimi didn’t even like Sooze very much, but she was trying so hard to help her! It didn’t even occur to her not to. That was just the sort of fairy she was.

  Suddenly Twink gasped and stopped short. Of course! she thought, her mouth falling open. That was it!

  She knew the secret of fairy dust.

  .

  Chapter Six

  Twink sat impatiently at her mushroom desk, waiting for Miss Sparkle to pass out the boxes of fairy dust. Oh, why wouldn’t she hurry!

  Bimi raised her eyebrows. ‘What’s wrong? You seem all . . . twitchy.’

  Twink hesitated, and then shook her head. ‘Nothing. I just want to get started, that’s all.’ Normally she told Bimi everything, but her confidence had taken a knock after weeks of trying to work out the secret. If she was wrong, she’d rather keep it to herself!

  Miss Sparkle put Twink’s bark box on her desk and handed her a fresh rose petal. Twink’s spine tingled as she looked at it. Would it be a boot soon? Or just stay a petal, like all the rest?

  ‘Those of you who know how to use fairy dust, please try the spell I’ve written
on the barkboard,’ said Miss Sparkle. ‘The rest of you, keep trying. Don’t worry, you’ve still plenty of time.’

  Miss Sparkle’s smile was encouraging, but Twink wasn’t at all sure she really meant what she said. The ceremony was only two days away now!

  Slowly, Twink opened her box. The fairy dust gave off pink and golden sparks as she scooped out a shimmering handful.

  Beside her, Bimi was carefully reading the spell on the barkboard, preparing to change a pebble into a woodlouse. For the more advanced fairy dust magic you had to use spells – and some of them were very tricky.

  Twink turned back to her petal and took a deep breath. It was time to test out her theory. She mustn’t think of the reasons why she wanted the dust to work – instead, she needed to focus on how she could help others with it.

  Squeezing the dust against her palm, she closed her eyes. Please let me change this petal into a boot, so that someone who doesn’t have a shoe can wear it – and so that I can help to bring in the spring for the whole world!

  She repeated the words over and over, meaning them with her whole heart. She felt her hand begin to tingle. Opening her eyes, Twink quickly threw the fairy dust on to the petal.

  There was a noiseless flash of pink and golden light. A purple-red pixie boot sat on Twink’s desk, perfect in every detail – even down to the tiny bell at its toe!

  ‘Oh!’ cried Twink. ‘I did it, I did it!’

  Bimi shrieked and clutched her arm, bouncing up and down. ‘Twink! You clever thing! Oh, I’m so glad!’ Her face was alight with happiness – in fact, Twink thought she looked happier than when she herself had worked it out!

  ‘Hurrah!’ cried Sili, bounding across the branch to hug her.

  Pix grinned. ‘Well done! I knew you could do it, Twink.’

  Miss Sparkle flitted over, beaming broadly. ‘Oh, good work, Twink!’ She picked up the pixie boot, turning it over in her hands. ‘Yes, perfect! You’ve got it now, haven’t you?’ Her dark eyes smiled into Twink’s.