by Kiki Thorpe
“Papi is busy today. Mia, please don’t sulk. It’s just one day. You’re old enough to be responsible.”
“Who cares about being responsible?” Mia grumbled under her breath. She watched, arms folded, as her mother picked up her purse and left.
When she was gone, Mia called Kate and Lainey and told them they couldn’t come over. Then she returned to the table, plopped herself down in a chair, and glared at her sister.
Gabby didn’t seem to notice. “Do you want to play a game?”
“No,” Mia snapped.
“Do you want to color?” asked Gabby.
Mia’s frown deepened. “No. Why don’t you go watch TV or something?”
“I’m not supposed to watch TV unless Mami says it’s okay,” Gabby pointed out.
“Well, I’m in charge today, and I say it’s okay,” Mia replied.
At once, Gabby hopped up from the table. She ran into the living room. A moment later, Mia heard the TV turn on.
With nothing better to do, Mia followed her into the living room. She flopped down on the sofa. On the television screen, a bunch of cartoon monsters were singing a silly song.
Mia sighed. She couldn’t think of anything more frustrating than to be stuck watching a lame kiddie show when she could be spending time with real fairies.
She looked out the living room window at the high wooden fence. Never Land lay just on the other side. She could reach it in less than thirty seconds.
Well, why shouldn’t I? Mia thought. I could just pop over and see what’s going on in Pixie Hollow. I’ll be back before anyone even knows I’m gone.
Mia glanced at her sister. Gabby was caught up in her cartoon. She’ll be fine for a few minutes, Mia thought.
Quietly, she slipped off the couch and let herself out the back door.
She didn’t see her father, but she could hear him whistling. He was working somewhere around the side of the house. Now was her chance.
The loose board was on the fence that separated the yard from their neighbor’s. Mia had to spend a few moments nudging the boards until she found the right one. The board swung sideways on its nail, creating a gap just big enough for her to squeeze through.
As Mia knelt down, she felt a warm breeze on her face. She could smell jasmine and sun-warmed moss—the sweet scent of Pixie Hollow. She took a deep breath, then crawled through the opening, pulling the board back into place behind her.
She came out from a hollow tree into a sun-dappled forest. To her left was a wildflower-filled meadow. To her right, Havendish Stream burbled between its banks. And just beyond the stream lay Pixie Hollow. Mia could see fairies darting through the air as they flew to and from the giant Home Tree.
Mia heard a commotion downstream. She followed the sound around a bend, to a small wooden bridge. Dozens of fairies swarmed around the bridge. They carried rope and bits of wood and buckets full of sand.
Mia saw Tinker Bell flying past. “Hi, Tink. What’s going on?” she asked.
“The footbridge is out,” Tink replied. Now Mia saw that part of the bridge had collapsed into the stream. “We think Bingo must have smashed it when he was chasing fairies.”
“Oh no!” Bingo was Mia’s cat. The day before, he’d slipped through the fence into Never Land and caused trouble. “Can you fix it?”
“Yes, but it will take a lot of work,” Tink said happily. “I’d better get back.” She waved to Mia and flew off. Tink was always happiest when she had something to fix.
The fairies at the bridge all seemed busy, so Mia decided to go to the Home Tree. Perhaps she could find someone to talk to there.
In the pebbled courtyard, Mia saw sweeping-talent fairies tidying up. They waved to Mia, but kept on with their jobs. It was the same in the kitchen. When Mia peered through the tiny doorway, the cooking- and baking-talent fairies barely looked up.
“Busy day in Pixie Hollow,” said the baking fairy Dulcie as she rolled out pie dough. “Lots of hungry fairies to feed.”
Mia was disappointed. She’d hoped she might come upon a tea party or a game of fairy tag. But everyone in Pixie Hollow was hard at work. Mia wondered if she should help—after all, it was her cat that had caused the mess. But she knew she shouldn’t leave Gabby alone for too long. Time worked differently in Never Land, and Mia couldn’t be sure if a minute or an hour had gone by since she had left.
As Mia started back, she passed a tiny house made from a gourd that sat on one of the Home Tree’s lowest branches. She tapped on the little wooden door with her finger.
The garden fairy Rosetta opened the door. She was dressed in a glorious ruffled gown made from a pink carnation. “Mia!” Rosetta exclaimed. “I was hoping someone might drop by. I’m glad it’s you!”
“Are you going to a party?” Mia asked hopefully, eyeing Rosetta’s fancy dress.
Rosetta sighed sadly. “No parties today—not even a picnic. Everyone is too busy cleaning up after … well, you know, what happened with Bingo.”
“Why aren’t you busy, too?” asked Mia.
“Well, Bingo made a great mess of almost everything, but he left all the flowers alone. There’s not much for a garden fairy to do. So I’ve been trying on dresses. Sometimes I do that when I’m feeling bored,” Rosetta admitted. “But now I’m out of dresses—I’ve tried on everything!”
Suddenly, Mia had an idea. It was such a good idea that she wondered why she hadn’t thought of it before. “Why don’t you come to my house? I have lots of dresses that would fit you perfectly,” she said, thinking of her doll clothes.
“You mean, go through the fig tree to the mainland? I don’t know.” Rosetta suddenly looked nervous. “Some fairies say it’s dangerous.”
Mia laughed. “It’s not dangerous. I just came through it! Rosetta, you have to come. I have a pink velvet dress that would look beautiful on you. Oh! And one made of blue lace. And a green one with a little matching bag…”
As Mia described the dresses, Rosetta’s blue eyes widened. At last, she burst out, “I’d love to see them all!”
“Come on. Let’s go right now,” said Mia.
With Rosetta flying beside her, Mia led the way back to the hollow tree. She was thrilled. This was the perfect answer to her problem. She could look after Gabby and still have fun!
But when they got to the tree, Rosetta hesitated. “Are you sure it’s safe?” she asked.
“You can ride in my pocket, if it makes you feel better,” Mia said.
Rosetta flew into Mia’s pocket. Then Mia crawled into the hollow tree, and back to her own world.
KIKI THORPE spent much of her childhood reading, daydreaming, and searching for fairies in the forests of Idaho—pastimes that were good training for writing children’s books. She is the author of several books for young readers, including the New York Times bestseller In a Blink, the first book in the Never Girls series. She lives with her husband, Greg, and their two children in San Francisco.
