She flicked her wand, and there was a whoosh of colorful sparkles. The girls both closed their eyes.
When Kirsty and Rachel opened their eyes again, they were standing next to the hedge in the park, and the sun was shining. In the distance they could see Oliver and his friends walking away with their skateboards under their arms.
“No time has passed at all,” said Rachel with a grin. “Oh, Kirsty, I love magic!”
“Me, too!” said Kirsty, hugging her friend. “Come on, let’s do some rollerskating. Keep your eyes peeled for clues. Jack Frost could have hidden the other two birthday charms anywhere—and that includes the human world!”
“I hope it stops raining in time for Mom’s surprise birthday party on Saturday,” said Rachel as she and Kirsty hurried along, huddling under an umbrella.
“Me, too,” Kirsty agreed. “Birthdays are never as much fun when it’s raining.”
“I wonder if Jack Frost has anything to do with this rain,” said Rachel.
“I don’t think we can blame him,” Kirsty replied with a little giggle. “It’s probably just bad weather.”
“I hope Belle is OK,” Rachel went on. “Time’s running out! We have to find her other two charms before Mom’s party.”
They had helped Belle the Birthday Fairy find the magic birthday book that Jack Frost had stolen, but two of Belle’s birthday charms were still missing. Without them, birthdays were going wrong all over Fairyland—and in the human world, too! Rachel didn’t want anyone’s party to be ruined, especially her mom’s.
“Let’s try not to worry,” said Kirsty, putting her arm around her best friend’s shoulders. “Queen Titania always says that we should let the magic come to us.”
“That’s true,” Rachel replied, her face brightening. “Ack, Kirsty, watch what you’re doing with the umbrella! You just dripped water down my back!”
“Sorry!” said Kirsty, straightening the umbrella. She glanced up. “Look, we’re here!”
The two girls had arrived at the bakery. Mr. Walker had sent them on a special secret mission to pick up the birthday cake he had ordered for Rachel’s mom.
“This window display always makes me hungry,” said Rachel, pausing next to the glass.
“I’ve never seen so many yummy treats in one place!” Kirsty agreed.
The shelves in the window were filled with a dazzling choice of cakes and pastries. There were pastries covered in fruit, cheesecakes with ruby-red strawberry glaze, and cakes topped with icing and sugared almonds.
The girls leaned closer to read some of the handwritten labels.
Kirsty let out a sigh filled with longing.
“They make the best cakes in Tippington,” Rachel told her. “I can’t wait to have a piece of the cake they made for Mom.”
“Let’s go inside and see it!” said Kirsty.
Rachel stepped inside the bakery. Kirsty shook off the umbrella and followed her.
The bakery was full of wonderful smells, and Kirsty felt her stomach start to rumble. The warm scents of cake, chocolate, nuts, and cream filled the air.
“Hello,” said Rachel to the plump baker behind the counter. “We’ve come to pick up the birthday cake for Mrs. Walker.” The man’s smiling face fell. “Oh, no,” he said. “I’m so sorry, but you’re going to have to come back tomorrow, instead. I’m having a lot of trouble with that cake.”
He pointed to the counter behind him. He had obviously been trying to frost a cake, but something was very wrong. The cake was misshapen, and the icing was sliding off. Sugared flowers were lying beside it. The baker looked at them with a worried expression.
“This is the third cake I’ve tried to make for Mrs. Walker,” he said. “I’ve used the same recipe I use for all birthday cakes, but it keeps going wrong. The cake is coming out heavy and dry, and the icing won’t stay put. It’s a nightmare!”
Rachel’s eyes filled with tears, but Kirsty tugged on her arm.
“We’ll come back tomorrow,” she told the baker. “Come on, Rachel.”
“Why did we leave so quickly?” asked Rachel as they stepped outside the shop.
“Because of what I just saw out the window!” Kirsty whispered urgently.
She pointed at three people who were crowding under one small umbrella and gazing at the cake display. Rachel rubbed her eyes and did a double take. All three of them were wearing rainboots, raincoats, and rain hats. Between the top of the boots and the bottom of the raincoats, she could see green legs.
She gasped. “They’re goblins!”
Rachel and Kirsty stared in amazement as the three goblins put down their umbrella and scurried into the bakery. They tracked rainwater all over the bakery floor as they splashed inside.
“What are the goblins doing in Tippington?” Kirsty wondered out loud. “I don’t know,” said Rachel, “but we’re getting soaked! Put the umbrella up, quick!” Kirsty raised the umbrella above their heads, but as she opened it something strange happened. The inside of the umbrella glowed with colored lights—and then Belle spiraled down the handle, waving at them!
“Belle!” exclaimed Kirsty. “Thank goodness you’re here. Three goblins just went into the bakery!”
“I know,” said Belle, folding her arms. “I’m sure they’re planning some trouble. I saw them creep out of Jack Frost’s Ice Castle at dawn, and they were acting suspicious, so I followed them. I’m glad to find you girls here. How did you know that the goblins were coming?”
“We didn’t,” Rachel explained. “We just saw them when we came to pick up the cake for my mom’s surprise party.”
“Something keeps going wrong with the cake recipe,” Kirsty added. “The baker can’t make it work.”
Belle’s face fell.
“I knew this would happen,” she said with a sigh. “The magic birthday candle helps all birthday cakes to bake perfectly and grants the birthday person a wish. Until I find it, I’m afraid no birthday cakes are going to turn out well.”
“Belle, could you turn us into fairies?” asked Kirsty. “We have to find out what those goblins are up to.”
“Good idea!” Belle said. “But I can’t do magic here in the middle of the street.”
“Let’s go over there,” said Rachel, pointing to a little alleyway between the bakery and the store next door.
The girls hurried down the alley and stopped when they were sure that no one could see them from the street. Then Belle waved her wand. A flurry of gold and purple fairy dust twinkled around the girls. It was like being caught in a storm of sequins! They giggled happily as the fairy dust settled. They had shrunk down to the same size as Belle, and their gauzy wings were glistening in all different colors.
“Let’s follow those goblins and find out what they’re planning!” said Belle.
She zipped back up the alley with Rachel and Kirsty fluttering close behind. The bakery door was open, and all three of them slipped in through the crack.
“Let’s watch from the top of that display cabinet,” said Rachel, pointing to a shelf. “No one will see us up there.”
They fluttered up to the highest shelf and sat on the edge. They could see the baker bringing out cake after cake to show the goblins. What were they up to?
“These just aren’t good enough!” squawked the tallest goblin.
“What a bunch of garbage!” squeaked the smallest goblin.
They were causing trouble already!
The baker had brought out all his most elaborate cakes and lined them up in front of the goblins. They weren’t birthday cakes, so he hadn’t had any trouble making them.
“Boring!” shouted the middle goblin, poking his bony finger into the first cake.
“Boring! Boring! Boring!” the other two yelled, poking their fingers into all the beautiful cakes in front of them.
“But this is my best selection!” cried the poor baker. “Ha!” snorted the tallest goblin. “We’re from the Cake Standards Board, and I’m telling you that these are terrible cakes! We
’ll shut this bakery down unless you start making better ones!”
The baker rubbed his forehead, looking upset.
“The Cake Standards Board?” he repeated. “But I’ve never heard—”
“We could make better cakes than this standing on our heads, with our eyes shut!” yelled the middle goblin.
“Get out!” screeched the smallest goblin. “Come back in an hour and you’ll see a truly magnificent cake!”
“I guess I could take my lunch break now,” the baker stammered. “It’s been a tough morning….”
“Go! Go! GO!” cried the middle goblin, pressing the baker’s umbrella into his hands and shoving him toward the door.
The doorbell jangled as the baker left. The goblins locked the door behind him, snickering.
“Those nasty goblins!” cried Rachel, who had been watching in shock. “How could they be so awful to that nice baker?”
“And why?” Kirsty added. “What do they want?”
“Let’s find out!” said Belle, fluttering into the air. “Look—they’re heading into the kitchen at the back of the store!”
The three girls flew through the colorful curtain that separated the store from the kitchen.
“Oh!” Belle gasped.
Suddenly, they were enveloped in a blinding white cloud!
“What is this?” Kirsty coughed, twirling around and trying to see what had happened.
“It’s going in my mouth!” Rachel cried. “It’s … it’s … flour!”
“Fly upward!” said Belle, coughing as she breathed in the flour dust. “As fast as you can!”
The three girls zoomed toward the ceiling, and their heads broke out of the floury cloud.
As the flour began to settle, they saw that the three goblins were running around the kitchen. They had pulled off their enormous rain hats and raincoats. The tallest goblin had a chef’s hat perched on his head, and the smallest was wearing a striped apron. The middle one seemed jealous, and kept trying to steal the others’ outfits.
The goblins had knocked over a huge bag of flour, which had caused the cloud. The floor and the counter were smeared with broken eggs, dotted with spilled raisins, and dusted with sugar.
“Oh, no!” Kirsty exclaimed. “They’re wrecking the kitchen. By the time the baker gets back, everything will be ruined!”
“We have to stop them,” said Rachel with a determined expression on her face.
“Wait a minute,” said Belle. “I don’t think they’re here just to make trouble. Look! I think they’re actually trying to make a cake!”
The goblins had opened a cookbook, and were stirring lots of ingredients into a large mixing bowl. “Stop pushing me!” squawked the goblin in the chef’s hat. He elbowed the goblin in the apron and broke an egg over his head.
“It’s my turn to stir!” wailed the middle goblin.
“Oh, be quiet and go get the candle!” the tallest goblin snapped.
The middle goblin pouted. He stomped over to the pile of rain hats and raincoats, and felt in the pockets. Then he pulled out a beautiful cake candle with a magic flame. It was a shimmering purple color, and glittered in the light.
Belle went pale.
“Girls, that’s it!” she said quietly. “That’s my magic birthday candle!”
As Rachel, Kirsty, and Belle stared at the birthday candle in excitement, the other two goblins were still arguing.
“I’m the one with the chef’s hat, so I’m in charge!” said the tallest goblin, shaking flour into the mixing bowl.
“Oh, yeah?” snarled the one in the apron. “You can’t be in charge—you don’t even know how to read a recipe!” He jabbed a green finger at the long cookbook. “That says ‘add sugar’, not ‘add flour’, you fool!”
“Who are you calling a fool?” shrieked the other.
They rolled across the bakery floor, wrestling, and crashed into the shelves. A colorful waterfall of cake decorations, ribbons, cake stands, and candle holders rained down on them.
As the other goblins tumbled around the floor, the middle goblin continued to follow the recipe. Rachel saw him add a large spoonful of chili powder to the mixture and stir it in.
“That cake is going to taste horrible!” she said to Kirsty. “They haven’t even broken the eggs properly—I can see pieces of shell in there.”
The goblin started to pour the mixture into a cake pan, but he needed both hands, so he put the candle down on the counter.
“Now’s our chance!” Rachel whispered. “I could fly down and pick up the candle before he notices!”
“It’s too dangerous!” Belle whispered. “The candle is right next to him. He’ll catch you!”
Rachel gulped. She knew that it was dangerous, but she couldn’t stand the thought of her mom’s birthday cake being ruined because of Jack Frost and the goblins.
“I’ve got to try,” she said.
CRASH! BANG!
The other goblins were still fighting. At that moment, the middle goblin turned to put the cake pan in the oven. Rachel flew down to the counter as fast as her wings could flutter, and Belle and Kirsty both held their breaths. Could she grab the candle before the goblin turned around again? Rachel reached the candle and put her arms under it, but it was too heavy! She couldn’t lift herself and the candle into the air—and the goblin was turning around! Kirsty and Belle darted down to help Rachel. But before they could reach her, the goblin gave a yell of alarm.
“It’s one of those pesky fairies!”
He grabbed a strainer and brought it crashing upside down on top of Rachel. She was trapped!
The other goblins dashed over to the counter. They were covered in egg, flour, and broken cake decorations, but they grinned when they saw Rachel hammering against the side of the strainer.
“Let me out!” she cried.
“Look, there are more of them!” yelped the middle goblin, pointing to where Kirsty and Belle were hovering in the air.
“Aha!” cried the smallest goblin, dancing around and sticking out his tongue at them. “We caught a fairy! We caught a fairy!”
Belle put her hands on her hips.
“Goblins, give me the candle and let Rachel go right now!” she said in a loud voice.
“No way!” retorted the tallest goblin.
Kirsty frowned. She thought about the goblins creeping out of Jack Frost’s Ice Castle.
“You’re the same goblins who came looking for the birthday book, aren’t you?” she said, thinking quickly. “Does Jack Frost know you’re here?”
All three goblins went pale green.
“You’re not going to tell him, are you?” asked the smallest goblin in a trembling voice.
The middle goblin began to sweat. “Oh, no—you can’t!”
Kirsty and Belle exchanged confused glances. Why were the goblins causing trouble without orders from Jack Frost?
“Don’t tell Jack Frost!” said the tallest goblin. “We want it to be a surprise!”
“This cake is for Jack Frost?” Rachel asked.
“Of course!” said the middle goblin. “We couldn’t make it in the Ice Castle without him noticing.”
“Now go away!” the smallest goblin squeaked.
“We’re not leaving without Rachel and the birthday candle,” Belle declared.
“That’s our candle!” snapped the tallest goblin. “We found it next to Jack Frost’s throne. Now it’s ours, and we’re keeping it!”
“They don’t know that it’s a magic candle,” Kirsty whispered quietly to Belle. “They just thought it would look good on the cake! They might give it to us in exchange for something better.”
“What are you whispering about?” demanded the tallest goblin.
“We were just talking about the cake you made for Jack Frost’s surprise party,” Kirsty said. “Without magic, it will take hours to bake. The baker will be back soon, and he won’t be happy with the mess you’ve made. But if you agree to help us, Belle can make your cake cook faster, and t
hen you can head back to the Ice Castle!”
The goblins made faces at the idea of helping the fairies again. Kirsty couldn’t help hoping that their impatience would get the better of them.
“If we agree, we could be back at the castle in time for lunch!” the tallest goblin whispered to the others.
That did it! The greedy goblins nodded in agreement, and Kirsty smiled with relief. Belle waved her wand, and a jet of gold and purple sparkles hit the oven. The door swung open—and the finished cake floated out and landed on the table in front of the goblins! Everyone stared at it open-mouthed.
“It’s horrible!” said Kirsty.
“It’s spectacular!” the goblins cried.
The cake was gray and formed sharp spikes where pieces of eggshell were sticking out. It was misshapen and ugly … but it was perfect for Jack Frost.
“It could look even better with icing and decorations,” said Kirsty, winking at Belle.
“Yes!” cried the goblins, clapping their hands and dancing around the kitchen in excitement. “Make it better! Make it better!”
“I’ll finish the cake for you—in exchange for two things,” said Belle. “Let Rachel go, and give me the candle.”
“Done!” the middle goblin declared.
He lifted the strainer and Rachel flew up to join Kirsty and Belle.
“Thank you, Belle!” She smiled, stretching out her wings. Then Belle flew down to the birthday candle. She picked it up, shrank it to its fairy size, and swept her wand over the cake.
Belle the Birthday Fairy Page 2
