“The costumes were stored in the small dressing room at the end of the hall,” he said, pointing it out. “The shoe probably got left behind in there. Actually …” he went on, thoughtfully, “no one’s using that dressing room. Why don’t you girls take it? Then you’ll have some space to practice the dance.”
Rachel and Kirsty glanced at each other in delight. “Thank you!” they said together. They hurried down the hallway, carrying their costumes.
When Kirsty opened the door of the dressing room, it was dark inside. Rachel flicked on the light switch. Instantly, a mirror surrounded by light bulbs filled the room with a dazzling white light.
A second later, one of the bulbs popped loudly and went out. The noise made Rachel and Kirsty jump.
“Rachel, look!” Kirsty gasped.
Sparkling gold fairy dust had burst from the broken bulb. As the dust cleared, Rachel and Kirsty saw a pretty little fairy dancing in the air in front of them!
“Hello,” the fairy called. “I’m Paige the Christmas Play Fairy!”
“Hi, Paige,” the girls replied. The tiny fairy wore a short red ballet dress sparkling with diamond dust, a starry headband, and red ballet shoes with tiny bows.
Quickly, Rachel closed the dressing room door. Meanwhile, Paige pointed her wand at the broken bulb. A second later, it was shining as brightly as the others again. “I’m so glad to see you, girls!” Paige cried. “It’s my job to make sure that all the Christmas plays are fun and exciting, so that everyone has a merry Christmas.” She crossed her arms and looked very determined. “But I need your help. Jack Frost is up to his old tricks again!” she went on, frowning. “He wants to ruin Christmas—for everybody!“
Kirsty and Rachel gasped.
“But why?” Rachel asked.
“Because he didn’t get the part he wanted in the Fairyland Christmas Play!” Paige replied, landing lightly on Rachel’s shoulder. “Jack Frost wanted to be Prince Charming. Instead, he got the part of Second Tree in the forest scene.”
“What did he do?” Rachel asked anxiously.
Paige looked glum. “There are three special magic shoes, which help me do my job,” she explained. “Jack Frost sent his goblins to steal them! If they do, all the magic that makes the Christmas plays special will vanish!”
“What do the magic shoes look like?” Kirsty asked.
“One is a ballet shoe,” Paige replied. “It makes sure that all the costumes fit properly. The second is a horseshoe, which makes the props work and ensures that the scene changes go smoothly. And the last one is Cinderella’s glass slipper. That helps everyone remember their lines.”
Kirsty and Rachel looked at each other with wide eyes.
“So our show might be a disaster because of Jack Frost!” cried Rachel with dismay.
Paige nodded and flew over to Kirsty. “One of your ballet shoes is missing, right?” she asked.
Kirsty nodded. “That’s because it’s not just any old shoe,” Paige went on. “It’s the magic shoe that makes everyone’s costumes fit properly.”
“Mr. Robinson told us that nobody’s outfits were the right size,” Rachel said. “That must be because the magic ballet shoe is missing!”
“I have to find that shoe,” Paige said, biting her lip anxiously. “Otherwise, all the boys and girls who go to see Christmas plays will be so disappointed!”
“We’ll help you, Paige,” Rachel promised.
Kirsty nodded. “Of course we will,” she agreed.
Paige smiled and twirled up into the air, skirt flying. “Thank you, girls!” she cried. “I knew you wouldn’t let me down!”
“Where should we start?” asked Kirsty.
But before Rachel or Paige could reply, the dressing room door opened very slowly. Paige zoomed to hide behind Rachel’s shoulder.
A moment later, the knobbly green head of a goblin appeared around the door! Rachel and Kirsty held their breaths. But they could hardly believe their eyes when they saw what the goblin had clutched in his hand—a pink ballet shoe!
The goblin was obviously looking for a place to hide — so he jumped when he saw Rachel and Kirsty! Scowling, he hid the ballet shoe clumsily behind his back. Then he left the room, slamming the door and running off down the hallway.
“That goblin had my magic ballet slipper!” Paige gasped. “After him!”
The girls flung the door open and ran after the goblin. Paige clung to Rachel’s shoulder. They followed the sound of running footsteps into the area behind the stage. The stagehands were getting the props ready for rehearsal. Luckily, they were too busy to notice the girls!
“Where did the goblin go?” Kirsty wondered out loud.
“There are three different ways he could have gone,” Rachel said anxiously. “How will we find him now?”
“He must be here somewhere,” Paige whispered in Rachel’s ear.
Just then, two stagehands walked by, carrying a marble column for the ballroom scene.
“I didn’t think there were any goblins in Cinderella, did you?” one of the stagehands said to the other.
“No,” his friend agreed, “but that was really a great costume. It was so ugly!”
Rachel and Kirsty glanced at each other. “They saw the goblin!” Rachel whispered. “And they came from over there,” Kirsty added, pointing.
The girls dashed toward where the stagehands had been. Soon, they came to an area where big props from previous plays were stored. It was dark and shadowy, but the girls could make out statues, trees, bushes, and big cans of paint, plus doors, tables, chairs, and other pieces of furniture.
“The goblin could be hiding in here anywhere,” Paige said, fluttering around to examine the props. “We’ll have to keep our eyes open.”
Rachel and Kirsty began to search for the goblin. They looked behind trees and statues, and under tables and chairs, but he was nowhere to be seen.
“What next?” Kirsty asked gloomily.
Rachel was just about to reply when she caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye. She spun around to look at a group of statues. As she watched, one of them moved!
Rachel nudged Kirsty. “That statue moved!” she whispered, pointing at it. “And it has a really long nose,” Kirsty whispered back. “I bet it’s the goblin!” As the girls and Paige began to creep toward him, the goblin realized he’d been spotted. With a shriek, he ran to the back of the prop area.
The girls ran after him. They saw the goblin head for the ladder that led to the catwalk high overhead. The goblin clamped the ballet slipper between his teeth and began climbing.
Rachel, Kirsty, and Paige hurried over to the bottom of the ladder.
“Come down!” called Paige.
The goblin glared at her, but kept climbing. The girls and Paige watched as he went higher and higher. Suddenly, he began to slow down. The girls saw him glance at the floor nervously. A look of panic came over his face and he clutched the sides of the ladder. He looked scared that he was going to fall! “I think the goblin just realized that he’s afraid of heights!” Rachel whispered. “Why don’t you come down?” Paige called up to him. The goblin shook his head stubbornly. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and continued climbing. “With his eyes closed, he won’t be able to see where he’s going!” Kirsty exclaimed.
Suddenly, the goblin missed a rung of the ladder—and his foot slipped! He gave a frightened yell. The ballet shoe fell from his mouth. As it whirled downward, ribbons flying, the goblin reached out to grab it. He missed, and he also lost his grip on the ladder.
As Rachel darted forward and caught the ballet shoe, the goblin fell. He tumbled through the air, arms flailing wildly—and he looked terrified!
“Oh, no!” Kirsty cried. “We have to break his fall!” She glanced around and spotted a big can of orange paint next to Cinderella’s pumpkin coach.
“Paige!” Kirsty yelled, pointing at the can of paint.
Luckily, Paige understood exactly what Kirsty meant. She wa
ved her wand. A shower of magical golden sparkles swirled around the can, pushing it across the floor until it was right underneath the goblin.
SPLASH!
The goblin plunged into the can! Orange paint drops splattered everywhere. The goblin surfaced, spluttering and wiping orange streaks from his face. “Give me that ballet shoe!” he gurgled angrily, climbing out of the can.
“No way!” Rachel replied firmly, hiding the shoe behind her back. “It’s not yours.”
“Go back to Fairyland,” said Kirsty. “And tell Jack Frost we’re not going to let him ruin Christmas!”
Muttering angrily, the goblin stomped off, leaving a trail of orange footprints behind him. “I’ll get rid of this mess,” Paige said, laughing. She pointed her wand at the footprints. Soon, all the orange paint had vanished in a stream of sparkles.
“Thank goodness we have the magic ballet shoe back,” Paige went on happily, flying over to perch on Kirsty’s shoulder. “Now your costumes will fit properly, and so will everyone else’s.”
“We’d better go and see Mrs. Spencer, the seamstress, Kirsty,” Rachel suggested. “Then the ballet shoe’s magic can get to work. Plus, she’ll be so happy that she doesn’t have to alter everyone’s costumes after all!”
Rachel led the way to the costume department, where she, Kirsty, and Paige peeked into the room. It was full of actors and actresses, all dressed in their costumes. Mrs. Spencer, the seamstress, was rushing here and there with a tape measure around her neck and a box of pins in her hand.
“Mrs. Spencer!” Karen Lewis cried, twirling in circles. Her white dress swirled around her. “Look, I don’t think my dress is too long after all. In fact, it’s just right!”
“And I can button my jacket now!” added the young man who was playing Prince Charming. “It felt too small a minute ago.”
“Oh, thank goodness!” Mrs. Spencer sighed with relief. “It looks like we all panicked too soon.”
Paige beamed at the girls. “The ballet shoe’s magic is working again!” she announced joyfully.
“Let’s go and change, too, Kirsty,” said Rachel.
Kirsty and Rachel hurried back to their dressing room with Paige close behind. Quickly, they changed into their beautiful dresses, which fit perfectly. Then Paige helped put the roses in their hair.
“You look so pretty!” Paige said.
Rachel and Kirsty grinned happily at each other.
“I need to get back to Fairyland and tell everyone the good news,” Paige went on. “Good luck with your rehearsal, girls. I’ll see you tomorrow. But don’t forget, the goblins will definitely be back to cause more trouble! So keep an eye out.” With a flick of her wand, she vanished in a cloud of dazzling fairy dust.
“Kirsty, we’d better start practicing the dance steps,” Rachel said. “There’s a lot to learn before the play.”
“And we only have two days before opening night!” Kirsty said eagerly. “I don’t want to make any mistakes. I want the play to be really good!”
“I’m sure it will be,” Rachel said. “But we’ll also have to stop the goblins from stealing the magic horseshoe and the glass slipper. We can’t let Jack Frost ruin our Christmas play!”
The next morning, the girls arrived at the theater bright and early, ready for the final dress rehearsal. Kirsty and Rachel had been very busy practicing their dance whenever they had a moment.
“We practiced so much, I think I was dancing in my sleep last night!” Kirsty laughed. “I don’t want to make any mistakes today.”
“Everyone thought you did great yesterday,” Rachel said. “I mean, we only had about half an hour to practice in our dressing room before we went on stage!”
“Yes, but today we’re going to be doing the whole show from beginning to end,” Kirsty reminded her. “That means the whole cast will be there, so I want to do it right.”
“I can’t wait to see Cinderella’s pumpkin coach,” Rachel said, as they went through the stage door. “Alison, the actress who plays the Fairy Godmother, owns a riding stable. She’s bringing two ponies to pull the coach onto the stage!”
“Oh!” Kirsty exclaimed. “Do you think one of the ponies will be wearing Paige’s magic horseshoe?”
Rachel nodded. “I hope so,” she answered. “But we’ll have to watch out for goblins! If they steal the horseshoe, none of the props will work. And who knows what could happen with the scenery?”
“We have to stop them,” replied Kirsty. “Or Jack Frost will ruin all the Christmas plays everywhere!”
As the girls headed to their dressing room, they noticed a crowd of people standing in the wings of the stage. The people were gathered around two beautiful white ponies, which were harnessed to a dazzling orange-and-gold pumpkin coach.
“Look!” Rachel gasped. “The ponies are here.”
“Let’s go and see,” Kirsty said eagerly.
The girls hurried over to join the admiring crowd. The ponies had been carefully groomed, and their white coats gleamed. They wore pretty golden halters and glittering golden headdresses with fluffy orange feathers.
“Aren’t they beautiful?” Rachel said, stroking the pony closest to her. Both animals were very well-behaved and stood patiently as people pet them.
“They even have golden horseshoes!” whispered Kirsty, pointing down at the ponies’ sparkling hooves. “I wonder which is the magic one.” The girls tried to look closer at the ponies’ horseshoes, but it was hard to do with so many other people around.
“Isn’t the pumpkin coach fantastic, too?” Rachel said. “This is going to be the best part of the whole show!”
Suddenly the director hurried over, clutching his clipboard. “Time for you all to get changed for the dress rehearsal,” he called. “The ponies are going to practice pulling the coach on and off the stage a few times before we start, so we need to clear some space.”
Rachel and Kirsty gave the ponies one last pat and dashed off to their dressing room.
“I wonder if Paige will be waiting for us,” Kirsty said as they went inside.
But there was no sign of the little fairy. Quickly, the girls changed into their dresses and ballet shoes, and put the flowers in their hair.
“We’d better go to the makeup room now,” Rachel said, once they both had their costumes on. When the two girls were ready, it was time for the dress rehearsal to begin. Kirsty and Rachel hurried to join the rest of the cast.
“I’m really nervous,” Kirsty said. “I hope I can remember everything!”
“You were wonderful yesterday, Kirsty,’ said Lucy, the fourth dancer in the group. “You hardly made a single mistake.”
“You’ll be great today, too!” Rachel told her friend confidently.
Everyone was milling around backstage, dressed in their costumes. Rachel and Kirsty were thrilled to see Cinderella in her rags; the ugly stepsisters in their tall wigs and huge dresses; and a very handsome Prince Charming.
“Attention, everyone!” Mr. Robinson said as he bustled in. “Cinderella and the ugly stepsisters on stage for the first scene, please. Everyone else can wait here until they’re called.” He turned to Rachel and Kirsty. “Could you two help out by carrying the ugly stepsisters’ trains, please?”
Rachel and Kirsty laughed as the ugly stepsisters headed toward the stage. They wore big puffy dresses—one striped purple and yellow, the other bright pink with purple spots. Both dresses had long, dragging trains.
Rachel and Kirsty picked up the ugly stepsisters’ trailing skirts and helped them take their places in the wings. Then the girls found a quiet spot where they could watch without getting in anyone’s way. There was a burst of music, and the dress rehearsal began.
The girls enjoyed themselves as they watched the familiar story unfolding before them. They felt sorry for Cinderella when the ugly stepsisters wouldn’t let her go to the ball, and they wanted to cheer when the Fairy Godmother arrived in Cinderella’s kitchen.
“You will go to the ball, Cinderell
a!” declared the Fairy Godmother. “Bring me a pumpkin!”
Rachel nudged Kirsty and pointed at the wings on the opposite side of the stage. The ponies were ready to pull the pumpkin coach on stage. As the Fairy Godmother waved her wand over the ordinary pumpkin that Cinderella brought her, there was a glittering flash of smoke. A stagehand quickly removed the pumpkin. At the same moment, another stagehand sent the ponies trotting onto the stage. The coach glittered and the ponies’ white coats gleamed in the bright spotlights. Kirsty and Rachel couldn’t help gasping.
“Isn’t it cool, the way the pumpkin disappears and the coach takes its place?” Kirsty whispered. “It’s just like real magic!”
Rachel nodded. “The audience is going to love it!” she whispered.
Suddenly, a piece of wooden scenery that was painted to look like a kitchen cabinet full of shelves of plates toppled over.
It fell to the floor with a loud BANG! Everyone jumped, and the ponies were startled, too. They whinnied with fright and broke into a canter, dashing across the stage past Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother, and dragging the coach behind them.
“The ponies are really scared, Kirsty,” Rachel cried. “We have to stop them!”
The ponies galloped into the wings where Rachel and Kirsty were standing. The two girls quickly stepped forward and grabbed the ponies’ golden lead ropes, bringing them safely to a stop.
The Rainbow Magic Holiday Collection Page 11
