Christmas Fairy Magic (3 page)

six

T
he Fairy Bell sisters and their friends flew up to Cathedral Pines, where Ginny and Genny, the Root sisters, planted trees every year for the Christmas Tree Forest. The trees above them were dizzying. “None of those, of course,” said Poppy. “They're way too big. Ginny and Genny will have some just our size.”

They flew over to a field of fairy-sized Christmas trees. “They'd all be perfect for us,” whispered Sylva when she saw them.

“Tink will pick a gorgeous tree for you,” said Poppy. “The trees in Neverland are probably made of emeralds!”

“With Peter Pan's own arrowheads for decoration!” Sylva said, and the two friends grinned.

“Faith told me to pick whichever tree I like best for the schoolroom,” said Avery. She started strolling through the rows of trees with Goldie at her side. “We have to make it look jolly for the Christmas Fair.” Avery lived with her teacher, Faith Learned, above the fairy schoolhouse. Every year the Christmas Fair was held there. “I can't wait to do my Christmas shopping at the fair,” Avery said. “On the mainland, the shops got so crowded—and I didn't have any way to pay for presents.”

“That's so not fair!” said Sylva.

“I still can't believe that Queen Mab hands out sparkling stones—for free,” said Avery. She had grown up on the mainland, and things were very different there.

“Of course she does,” said Goldie, looking up at a tall blue spruce. “We get twelve each.”

“Faith says they're called tourmaline,” said Avery.

“Faith knows everything!” said Goldie. “Did she tell you they come in different colors? Wait till you see how polished they are, Avery. I hope I get all green this year. Just like my eyes!”

“I like that we each get twelve stones,” said Rosy as she ran her hand along the soft needles of a Scotch pine. “It's always more than enough to pay for what we'd like to buy—”

“I actually think
fifteen
stones would be better,” said Goldie.

“—and anything we can't buy, we make ourselves,” said Rosy.

“Tink did say we're not to buy any presents for one another,” said Clara. She didn't like always being the one to remind her sisters about what Tink had said, but in fairness, she felt she had to.

“Because we'll get
so
many from her. I bet she'll raid Captain Hook's pirate ship for treasure!” said Sylva.

“What do you think your presents from Neverland will look like, Goldie?” asked Avery. “I can't even begin to imagine.”

Goldie didn't answer right away. She was still a tiny bit peeved that Tink was going to bring their tree from Neverland. Goldie had very particular ideas about what a Christmas tree should look like. Last year she'd told Rosy, “It should be taller than a fairy, shorter than a troll, a perfect triangle from top to bottom, with soft green needles and a gorgeous sprucy smell to fill up the house.” As that thought crossed her mind, she saw the absolutely most perfect Fraser fir tree right ahead of her. “Oh, this is the
most
beautiful tree on Sheepskerry!” she said. “It belongs in our fairy house.”

“Except we're getting an emerald tree, from Neverland!” said Sylva.

“Sylva, sometimes you are so immature,” said Goldie. “They don't have emerald trees in—”

“Ooh, that's gorgeous!” said a voice that came from just behind Goldie and Sylva. “We call that one for us!” And with that, Judy Jellicoe and her sister, Julia, swooped down into the forest next to Goldie's tree.

“Oh no!” said Goldie.

“Not to worry, Goldie,” said Rosy. But before Rosy could even give Goldie a hug, dozens of Sheepskerry fairies filled the air and started to choose their Christmas trees.

“We call this one!” said Acorn Oak. “It's so pretty and we'll hang it with all our golden acorn caps.”

“We call this one!” said the Shepherd sisters together.

On and on it went till the Christmas Tree Forest was just about empty. The Fairy Bell sisters watched the trees being cut down one by one. “We've been
robbed
,” said Goldie.

“Well, not really,” said Clara. “Sheepskerry Island is pretty full of trees.”

“Not trees that have been specially grown for Christmas,” said Goldie. “Just scraggly old leftovers. What if Tink forgets to bring us one?”

“What if she gets home and finds there's a tree already there?” asked Rosy, although to tell the truth, she had been thinking the same thing. “Tink's been away so long. Let's give her a chance to do something she wants to do for us.”

“It's only another few days till Tink comes,” said Sylva. “We can wait that long, I know we can.” She gave her sisters a bright smile. “Let's at least get our ornaments out of the attic, in case she needs them to decorate,” she said.

Sylva's enthusiasm was infectious. “Good idea,” said Clara. “And how about a cup of hot peppermint tea to help us sort them all out?”

“Race you!” said Sylva. “And we'll get home faster than any of the other fairies, since we don't have to lug home a big old Christmas tree!”

Sylva shot off with Goldie right behind her. Clara and Rosy—with Squeak squirming in her baby carrier—followed a little more slowly.

“Sylva's full of Christmas spirit,” said Rosy. “I hope Tink makes it a wonderful Christmas for her.”

“I hope so too,” said Clara. But inside she added,
Mostly
I hope she doesn't disappoint us all
.

seven

“O
oh, it is so spooky up here!”

Sylva (who had won the flying race, of course) pulled down the trapdoor to the fairy house attic and peeked into the dark.

“We'll light a jellyfish lantern so we can see, but do be careful, Sylva,” said Clara. “I meant to clear this out last spring, but I didn't manage to find the time. And don't let Ginger up here—we'll never find her if she decides to hide.”

Goldie followed Clara up the steep steps to the attic. She didn't get to go up into the attic nearly as much as she liked to. She immediately flew over to the musty old costume trunk and opened its creaky lid. “This old-fashioned fairy dress is my favorite,” said Goldie. “It suits me to a T.”

“We're not here to try on clothes, Goldie,” Clara said. “We're here to fetch the Christmas ornaments.” She lifted her lantern, and the light shone on a dusty corner of the room. Sylva zipped up the stairs with Rosy right behind her, carrying Squeak.

“There they are!” said Rosy.

In a corner of the attic was a pile of boxes, all marked in different fairy handwriting:
Ornaments—special. Ornaments—old. Fairy lights—white. Fairy lights—colored. Sparkly things
(that was in Goldie's writing).
Wrapping paper. Ribbons. Boxes—used. Boxes—new.

“Do you ever think we have too many things up here?” asked Clara.

“Never!” said Goldie and Sylva together.

“Where's the star, for the top of the tree?” asked Rosy. “Tink will want to put that on when she comes.” She moved a pile of boxes. “It's not here with the other Christmas things. I think we put it somewhere so safe last year that we'll never be able to find it.”

“Do you think she'll get here even earlier than she said? Tink, I mean,” said Sylva. “Maybe she'll come tomorrow. There's only a week left till Christmas, you know.”

“She said she'd be here early morning on Christmas Eve,” said Goldie, wrapping herself in an old velvet cape.

“Don't get your heart set on seeing Tink early,” said Clara.

“We'll see her when we see her,” said Sylva. “I know.”

“Help me carry down these boxes, Goldie,” said Rosy. “I can't manage them all.”

“I'll be right there,” said Goldie. She was trying on the spun gold cloth that the Fairy Bell sisters wrapped around the base of their Christmas tree every year. “I think this could make a nice skirt for me.”

“That's a tree skirt, not a fairy skirt,” said Clara. “Tink brought it from Neverland when you were a baby, Goldie.”

“I've always loved it,” Goldie said. “It really should belong to me.”

“It really should belong to all of us, which it does,” said Clara. She held the gold cloth up to the light. “Tink said that this cloth came from Captain Hook's pirate chest. There's nothing else like it in the whole world.”

“The other thing there's nothing like in the whole world is Tink's star,” said Rosy. “We can't go down without it. Where can it be?”

If any of you are wondering why the fairies celebrate Christmas with so many familiar customs—stars and trees, ornaments and presents—let me tell you why. Fairies and humans once mingled much more than they do now. As the ages passed, some traditions of the season were handed down from human people to the fairies, some from the fairies to human people. On Sheepskerry Island at least, it was hard to tell which was which.

“Doo!”

“Squeakie! How did you get there?” cried Rosy.

Squeak was all the way at the other side of the attic, where the fairies kept the wicker chairs they hoped to mend one day.

“You've found the star. And it
is
pretty, you're right!” said Goldie.

Squeak was holding up a box marked
FRAGILE! Tink's Star.
“Good job, Squeak,” said Rosy, taking it from her carefully. “I love this so much. Tink made it when I was just a little wee fairy like you.”

Tinker Bell's star may be like the star you have on your own Christmas tree, but it may not be. “Stars aren't really pointy,” she'd said when she made it, so many fairy years ago. “I've seen them up close. And shooting stars are the best of all.” The Bell sisters loved their shooting star. It was so different from the ones on any other fairy trees. “That's why Tink is so . . . marvelous,” said Sylva. “She thinks of things we would never think of.”

“All I can think of right now is a nice hot bath,” said Goldie. “This attic is so dusty.”

“Don't use all the bubble bath,” said Sylva.

“There would be a lot left if you hadn't tried to wash Ginger with it,” said Goldie. “I'll use as much as I want.”

“Oh, no you don't!” said Sylva as she chased Goldie down the attic stairs.

“I think this may go on all night,” said Rosy. “They're both so excited about Christmas.”

“You know what, Rosy?” said Clara. “I'm beginning to get a good feeling about all this. Maybe Tink will even surprise us and arrive tomorrow morning.”

“I hope she does, Clara,” said Rosy. “Oh, I hope she does.”