A Face in the Bushes
The Twinkling Tree
Fairyland in Darkness
Follow those Goblins!
Glow, Glow, Glow!
Firefly Magic
The sun was setting and the evening was growing cooler at Camp Stargaze. Rachel Walker zipped up her fleece and tucked an arm through Kirsty Tate’s to keep warm. Rachel and Kirsty were best friends, and their families were on vacation together for a week. Exciting things always seemed to happen when the two girls got together. So far, this vacation was already looking like another very magical one!
Kirsty and Rachel were gathered with about twenty other kids at the edge of the campsite. There was going to be a special nighttime walk, and everyone was chatting happily as they waited for it to begin.
“Is everyone ready? Let’s go into the Whispering Woods!” called Peter, one of the camp counselors. Kirsty and Rachel walked with the rest of the group into the forest. It was cool and dark underneath the leafy trees. Kirsty turned on her flashlight and pointed it ahead. The tall trees swayed in a gentle breeze, and their leaves really did seem to make a whispering sound. “It’s creepy being here in the dark, isn’t it?” she said to Rachel.
“Yeah, it is,” Rachel replied, glancing around. “It makes you wonder what’s hiding in those shadows.”
“Whoooo-oooo-oooo!”
Rachel and Kirsty clutched at each other as they heard a ghostly wailing behind them. They spun around to see two boys, Lucas and Matt, laughing so hard they were doubled over. “Gotcha!” Matt cackled.
“Your faces! You looked terrified!” Lucas added, his eyes sparkling with mischief.
Kirsty and Rachel laughed, too, once their hearts had stopped racing. Then Rachel had an idea, and she winked at Kirsty. “Oh, my goodness!” she said, pretending to gasp in fright. “Look up there—those two glowing eyes. They’re staring down at us!”
The boys gazed at the tree where Rachel was pointing—and now it was their turn to look scared.
“No way!” Matt yelped in alarm. Shining out of the darkness were two gleaming lights that looked exactly like the eyes of a wild animal. “What do you think it is? A mountain lion?”
“Hmmm,” said Kirsty, pretending to think. “It looks like it’s a really dangerous … firefly. Actually, two fireflies!” She and Rachel giggled. The glittering lights in the tree were only a couple of flickering fireflies—there was nothing scary or dangerous about them!
Peter, the leader, had overheard. “Wait until we get to the Twinkling Tree,” he said. “It always has tons of fireflies around it. It’s pretty high up, so you can see the lights of the fireflies from far away. It attracts other fireflies to it.” He grinned. “When they’re all twinkling on the branches, it looks like it’s decorated for Christmas. Or like it’s a tree that’s full of fairy magic!”
Rachel and Kirsty smiled at one another. They knew all about fairy magic! They were friends with the fairies, and often helped them—especially if the horrible Jack Frost and his sneaky goblins had been up to their usual tricks!
The group started climbing a hill, but Matt suddenly stopped walking. “What was that? I just heard something,” he said, shining his flashlight into the dark bushes.
Kirsty rolled her eyes at Rachel. “Matt, are you trying to scare us again?” she asked.
Matt shook his head. “No, honestly! I heard a rustling sound in the bushes. Listen!” The girls stopped and listened. Matt was right—there was a rustling noise close by. “Are there bears out here?” Lucas wondered. He sounded nervous.
Peter smiled and shook his head. “No,” he said. “It’s probably just a badger. There’s nothing to worry about.”
Rachel, Kirsty, Lucas, and Matt all aimed their flashlights toward the bushes. Rachel hoped it was a badger—she’d never seen one before.
“There’s a face!” Lucas cried out, pointing. He gulped. “I saw a face … but it was green. What could that be?”
Matt started joking about aliens, but Peter remained calm. He explained that it was probably just animals moving around in the green leaves, and that it had only looked like a face. Still, Rachel and Kirsty exchanged a worried glance. They were pretty sure the green face didn’t belong to an alien or an animal, but something much worse: one of Jack Frost’s goblins!
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Rachel asked Kirsty in a low voice.
Kirsty nodded. “Goblins!” she whispered. “There were goblins around yesterday when we helped Ava the Sunset Fairy, weren’t there? There might be more tonight.”
The day before, the girls had met the seven Night Fairies, who looked after the world between sunset and sunrise—but things were all wrong! The Night Fairies were having a party under the stars when Jack Frost and his goblins had stolen their magic bags of fairy dust! Since the fairies had lost their magic dust, strange things had been happening. Last night, a bright green sunset had filled the sky and the sun had not set until the girls helped Ava the Sunset Fairy.
“I wonder if we’re going to have another fairy adventure tonight,” Rachel whispered. Her arms were prickly with goose bumps. “I hope so!”
“Me, too,” Kirsty said eagerly. “Let’s keep a lookout for anything magical.”
The group of campers continued slowly up the hill. “I can’t see any fireflies now,” Rachel realized, gazing at the dark branches of the trees. “I wonder if they’re all at the Twinkling Tree.”
“Probably,” Kirsty said. “I can’t wait to see it.”
After a few more minutes, Peter stopped and spoke to the group. “We should get our first glimpse of the Twinkling Tree soon,” he said. He started walking again. “Once we climb up this last steep hill, you’ll see it shining through the trees. Any minute … now! Oh.” Disappointment filled his voice.
“That’s strange,” he said. “Where are they?”
Rachel and Kirsty had reached the top of the hill, too.
They could see a tall tree through the dusky sky, but its long, leafy branches were empty, without a single twinkle of firefly light to be seen.
Peter frowned. “That’s a shame,” he said. “Usually the Twinkling Tree is a real highlight of this walk. Where can all the fireflies be?”
Kirsty felt disappointed, but then Rachel nudged her. “Look,” she whispered. “What’s that?”
A small spark of light was dancing through the air toward them. Kirsty squinted to make out its shape in the darkness. Was it a firefly … or could it be a fairy? Somebody else had noticed the moving light, too. “Hey—look!” Matt called excitedly. “There’s a firefly. Quick, steer it toward the Twinkling Tree so it can signal to its friends!”
The firefly—if it was a firefly—quickly swerved away as Lucas and Matt ran toward it. Rachel and Kirsty peered into the darkness, but the light vanished before they could really tell what it was.
Then Lucas gave a yell. “There are more over here!” he shouted, pointing at a cluster of sparkling lights that danced through the air in the distance.
The other kids rushed to see the sparkles. Kirsty was about to run after them, but Rachel put a hand on her arm. She had just noticed a tiny gleaming figure slip out of the shadows and fly toward them.
“Look!” Rachel whispered as she recognized the fairy’s pretty, smiling face and wavy blond hair. The fairy had on a green headband, a silver sequined miniskirt, and matching high-top sneakers. It was Lexi the Firefly Fairy!
“Hello again,” Kirsty said in delight, holding her jacket pocket open wide so Lexi could dive into it and hide.
“Phew!” said Lexi. “That was close—I thought those boys had spotted me. I made some flying sparkles to distract them in the nick of time!”
Kirsty and Rachel moved
out of sight, behind the low-hanging branches of the Twinkling Tree. “Good thinking,” Rachel said with a grin. “It’s nice to see you again, Lexi. We were wondering what had happened to the fireflies that usually gather here. Do you know?”
“I do,” Lexi said. “It’s all because of Jack Frost. He knows how important the fireflies are. Not only do they make summer nights special in the human world with their pretty flickering lights, but they also provide light to the Fairyland Palace and the fairies’ toadstool houses. I usually have my magic bag of fire dust that keeps the fireflies nice and bright. But since Jack Frost and his goblins stole my dust, the fireflies’ lights have gone out. Fairyland is in darkness!”
“Oh, no!” Kirsty said. “Can we help look for your bag of fire dust? We helped Ava find her sunbeam dust yesterday.”
“I heard,” Lexi said. “That’s really good news! And, yes, I’d love you to help me, too. Would you mind coming to Fairyland with me?”
“Mind?” Rachel echoed. “We’d love to!” She and Kirsty knew that they were safe to leave—the other kids wouldn’t notice. Time always stood still while the girls were in Fairyland. They would be able to fly off and have an exciting adventure, and nobody in the human world would realize they were gone!
“Fantastic,” Lexi replied. “First, let me turn you into fairies….” She waved her wand over the two girls. They felt their bodies shrink smaller and smaller, until they were the same size as Lexi. Both girls had glittering fairy wings on their backs, and they fluttered them in delight!
“Now let’s go to Fairyland!” Lexi cried, throwing more fairy dust over all three of them.
A sparkling whirlwind spun around, and Kirsty and Rachel were lifted up into the air. Another fairy adventure was beginning!
Before long, Rachel and Kirsty felt themselves gently landing again. The glittering whirlwind cleared, and both girls blinked in surprise. Usually when they came to Fairyland, it was light and sunny there, with cute little toadstool houses, flowers everywhere, and the beautiful Fairyland Palace gleaming on the hillside.
Tonight, however, most of Fairyland was pitch black. It took a minute for the girls’ and Lexi’s eyes to adjust to the darkness.
“Wow,” Rachel said, staring into the gloom. “Where are we? I can hardly see a thing!”
The end of Lexi’s wand was sparkling, and she held it up in front of them like a flashlight. They could barely make out the vague outline of a toadstool house. “I think this is where Joy the Summer Vacation Fairy lives,” Lexi replied. At that moment, the door of the house opened, and out came Joy herself.
“Lexi, is that you?” she asked, shivering. “Flicker’s light won’t go on.”
“Where are you, Flicker?” Lexi called. “Are you there?”
From out of the darkness came the sound of beating wings, and then an insect flew over and landed on Lexi’s palm. Neither Rachel nor Kirsty had ever seen a firefly close up before! They gazed in interest at Flicker’s sleek black-and-gold shell.
Compared to the fairies, he was about the size that a robin would be in the human world, and his expression was sad.
“I usually sit on Joy’s windowsill in the evenings to give her light,” Flicker explained. “Once she’s gone to bed, I fly to the stream with my friend Glimmer. There’s a night rose that grows there, and the nectar is delicious.”
His antennae drooped miserably. “But without my light, Glimmer won’t be able to find me. And neither of us will be able to find the rose!”
“Oh, dear,” Lexi said, stroking Flicker’s back. “I’m sorry to hear that. We’re searching for my magic bag of fire dust. As soon as we find it, I’ll be able to turn all the fireflies’ lights on again, but until then—”
Lexi stopped talking, her face alert. Kirsty and Rachel became aware of a commotion nearby and listened. They could hear voices—loud and angry—coming closer by the second.
“You’re wrong!” the first voice grumbled. “I caught four, and you caught two. There’s no use pretending you got the last one, because you didn’t.”
“Yes, I did! You’re making things up!” the second one shouted. “You’re just jealous because I’m better at catching them than you!”
Kirsty and Rachel shrank into the shadows as the voices came even closer. The girls would know those loud, nasty voices anywhere—they belonged to the goblins!
“I wonder what they’re up to,” Joy whispered as they huddled in her doorway.
They didn’t have to wait long to find out. The goblins suddenly came into view, and the four friends saw that they were carrying flashlights that cast golden beams through the darkness. They also held what looked like lanterns, but there was no light coming from them.
When the goblins spotted the fairies gathered outside Joy’s house with Flicker on Lexi’s palm, they looked delighted. “Look! There’s another one!” the tallest goblin shouted. Then, before the fairies could stop him, he snatched Flicker, shoved him into a lantern, and ran off!
“Hey!” shouted Lexi, but it was too late. The goblins had vanished into the distance. The four fairies could now see other shadowy figures running around, all holding lanterns. From the goblins’ shouts of glee, it was clear that they were stealing every single firefly they could find.
“Why are they taking the fireflies?” Rachel asked, bewildered.
“I don’t know,” Lexi said grimly, “but I bet it has something to do with Jack Frost and my fire dust! I’m going to follow them. We have to find out what’s going on.”
“We’ll come with you,” Kirsty immediately offered.
“And I’ll warn the other fairies what the goblins are up to,” Joy declared.
“Thanks, Joy,” said Lexi. Then she turned to Kirsty and Rachel. “Come on—there’s no time to lose!”
Kirsty, Rachel, and Lexi set off through the darkness. It was easy to follow the goblins because they were so noisy, and also because the goblins had flashlights to light their way. The three friends stayed back in the shadows so the goblins wouldn’t spot them.
After a few minutes on the goblins’ trail, Lexi’s eyes narrowed. “They’re going to Jack Frost’s Ice Castle,” she whispered. “I wonder what he’s planning.”
As they rounded a corner, the three fairies gasped in disbelief. Jack Frost’s castle was usually a forbidding place with icy walls and stern guards, but this evening, it looked absolutely merry and welcoming. It was lit up like a firework against the dark sky. “Wow!” Kirsty sighed. “It looks so beautiful.”
“Yes,” Lexi said, sounding angry. “It’s only beautiful because he’s used my special fire dust to light up all the fireflies he has trapped in the lanterns. Look!”
As Rachel and Kirsty flew across the moat and closer to the castle, they realized that Lexi was right. Glowing lanterns hung in every window, and inside each lantern a little firefly flickered. “How selfish!” Rachel insisted. “Stealing all the fireflies and trapping them, just so his castle can be bright!”
“I know,” Lexi said. “The poor fireflies. They aren’t as bright as usual—they must be feeling very sad.”
“Look, there’s Jack Frost,” Kirsty whispered when she saw the spiky, cold figure appear in his doorway. “Hide!”
The three fairies hid inside a bush, and Lexi muttered some magic words that made the light of her wand go out. They peeked through the leaves to see Jack Frost holding a small bag that cast a magical glow into the murky waters of his moat. As the goblins marched into the castle with their lanterns full of fireflies, Jack Frost sprinkled fire dust on each firefly, making it light up. “Now it won’t be dark anymore,” Jack Frost said with a smug smile on his face.
“They caught so many,” Rachel said. “I bet it was a goblin that Lucas saw in the Whispering Woods. Jack Frost must have sent the goblins into the human world to steal fireflies there, and in Fairyland, too!”
“We’ve got to rescue the fireflies,” Lexi said. “We can’t leave them trapped in lanterns as Jack Frost’s prisoners. Th
ey should be free to fly around wherever they want!”
Kirsty and Rachel agreed. But how could they release the fireflies when they were right under Jack Frost’s nose?
“We could sneak into the castle if it was dark,” Kirsty said, “but we can’t risk it now, not with the fireflies’ lights flashing on and off. They’d see us immediately.”
Rachel thought. “Is there a way to tell the fireflies to turn off their lights?” she wondered. “That would make everything dark again.”
Lexi nodded. “I could use my wand to tell them,” she replied, sounding more cheerful. “Let’s see if it works.”
She fluttered above the bushes and muttered some magic words. At once, the tip of her wand sparkled in the dark sky. Then, with another magic command, Lexi turned the wand’s light off.
Lexi, Kirsty, and Rachel held their breath as they stared at the fireflies. Had they seen Lexi’s light? Had they understood the message?
Some of the fireflies’ lights vanished, making the castle a little darker, but most of the lanterns remained lit up.
“I’ll try again,” Lexi said, turning the light of her wand on again, and then off. This time, it seemed that more of the fireflies had seen her light and understood the message. Lots of their little lights turned to black, and the castle became much darker.
“It’s working,” Kirsty said excitedly. “Super smart fireflies!”
Lexi turned her wand on, then off, one more time. The last remaining fireflies turned their lights off, too—plunging Jack Frost’s castle into total darkness.
“What’s going on? Turn those lights back on!” the girls heard Jack Frost demand. Then they heard his footsteps hurrying into the castle. He was shouting frantically at the goblins.
Lexi the Firefly Fairy Page 1
