Coral the Reef Fairy Read online

  The Earth Fairies must be dreaming

  If they think they can escape my scheming.

  My goblins are by far the greenest,

  And I am definitely the meanest.

  Seven fairies out to save the earth?

  This very idea fills me with mirth!

  I’m sure the world has had enough

  Of fairy magic and all that stuff.

  So I’m going to steal the fairies’ wands

  And send them into human lands.

  The fairies will think all is lost,

  Defeated again — by me, Jack Frost!

  Cover

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Map

  Poem

  Magic Sparkles

  Into the Sea

  A Funny Fish

  Dangerous Water

  Bubble Trouble

  Good-bye, Goblins!

  Teaser

  Copyright

  Kirsty Tate grinned as she stepped onto the beach. “This looks fun!” she exclaimed, gazing around in excitement.

  Her best friend, Rachel Walker, was close behind. “And there’s so much to do,” she said, her eyes bright. “Where should we go first?”

  The two girls had come with their parents to Rainspell Beach, where the local surfing club was holding a “Save the Coral Reefs” event. As Kirsty and Rachel looked around, they could see a crowd of people dancing to the lively beat of a samba band, a line of food stands that all smelled delicious, and an information center surrounded by flags displaying pictures of bright, colorful tropical fish.

  “Maybe we should split up and meet back here in an hour for lunch?” Mr. Walker, Rachel’s dad, suggested.

  “Good idea,” Rachel replied. “How about we meet you at the information center at twelve?” She slipped an arm through Kirsty’s. “Come on, let’s explore.”

  The girls made their way into the crowd, enjoying the hustle and bustle of the event. They were on Rainspell Island for a school break. So far, they’d had a very exciting few days helping their new fairy friends, the Earth Fairies.

  “There’s another good reason for going off on our own,” Kirsty said, thinking about the adventures they’d had lately. “We might meet another fairy today.”

  Rachel grinned and crossed her fingers. “Here’s hoping!” she said.

  At the start of the week, Kirsty and Rachel had magically transported themselves to Fairyland to ask King Oberon and Queen Titania for their help in cleaning up the human world. The girls had met seven fairies-in-training who each had a special mission. When their training was complete, they would become the Earth Fairies. Their jobs would be to help save the environment in both the human world and in Fairyland. But before the fairies had received their wands and could start work, Jack Frost had appeared. He’d declared his goblins were the only truly “green” creatures and had ordered them to steal the magic wands and hide them in the human world!

  Now Kirsty noticed that Rachel was looking around expectantly. Kirsty guessed she was hoping a fairy would instantly appear.

  Kirsty gave her a nudge, and said in a low voice, “Remember what Queen Titania always says — there’s no point looking for magic.”

  Rachel nodded. “I know — it’ll find us,” she agreed. “OK, let’s go and learn about coral reefs.”

  The two friends wandered over to an information booth that had lots of colorful pictures pinned up.

  As they got closer, they could see that the pictures were of a tropical reef, with rainbow-colored fish swimming around twisty coral. “Doesn’t the coral look amazing?” Kirsty said, pointing at it. “The shapes make them look like weird plants.”

  “Well, coral is alive,” said a curly-haired woman behind the booth. “Did you know that coral is a living, breathing organism?”

  “It is?” Rachel asked in surprise. “I thought it was just rock.”

  The woman shook her head. “No,” she said. “It’s alive — although more and more coral is becoming damaged and dying these days.”

  “How does it become damaged?” Kirsty asked. She remembered all the pretty pink-and-white coral she and Rachel had seen when they’d helped Shannon the Ocean Fairy find her enchanted pearls.

  “Climate change is a big problem,” the curly-haired woman replied. “Coral reefs need to live in a certain temperature range. But the oceans have become warmer, which means the coral gets sick and dies. Other things can damage the coral, too, like when people or boats disturb it. Sometimes just touching coral is enough to kill it.”

  Rachel and Kirsty both felt sad. While they’d been helping the Earth Fairies, they’d learned a lot about things like climate change. They knew how much harm was being done to the planet.

  They thanked the woman and wandered farther down the beach, past the samba band and some of the food booths. It was a sunny day and unseasonably warm. “I love the way the sea sparkles in the light,” Kirsty said, looking out at the waves that rushed in, leaving foam on the sand.

  “Something over there is sparkling, too,” Rachel said, pointing to the far end of the beach. “Look!”

  The girls stared at a rock pool near the beach’s edge, where the cliffs reached the waves.

  Rachel was right — something in the pool appeared to be glimmering. The incredibly bright light danced around the surrounding rocks.

  The two girls felt curious as they walked toward it. Then, as they drew closer to the rocks, Rachel let out a gasp of delight. Climbing out of the tide pool was a shiny pink crab . . . and on its back, dangling a foot in the water and leaving a trail of sparkly bubbles, was a tiny, smiling fairy!

  “It’s Coral the Reef Fairy!” Kirsty said with excitement.

  “Hello again,” Coral called, waving at them. Her shoulder-length blond hair was cut in a sporty bob. She wore a bright pink-and-orange top, a ruffled yellow-and-orange skirt, and a pretty pink necklace with a coral design dangling from it.

  Rachel and Kirsty smiled as Coral thanked the crab and fluttered toward them. “There’s been a sighting of my wand,” she told Kirsty and Rachel. “I was hoping you’d come with me to try and get it back?”

  “Of course,” Rachel said at once. “Where was it spotted?”

  “Near one of the biggest reefs,” Coral replied. “A crab saw three goblins over there. One of them has my wand. Apparently, they’re not doing a very good job of hiding it.”

  Kirsty and Rachel exchanged glances. That didn’t surprise them! Jack Frost’s goblins might be sneaky, but they weren’t exactly the most clever creatures in Fairyland.

  “We’ve got a long way to go, but I have a little bit of magic, so I should be able to take us all there,” Coral said.

  Rachel glanced around quickly, making sure nobody was watching. Luckily, the three of them were at the far end of the beach, tucked away from everyone. They were virtually out of sight.

  Coral saw Rachel looking around. “I can work my magic so it will seem as if no time has passed while you’re with me,” she assured the girls. “Nobody will notice that you’re gone.”

  “Great,” said Kirsty, feeling excited. “Let’s go!”

  Coral smiled and waved her hand. A cloud of pink-and-white fairy dust fell over Kirsty and Rachel, and they immediately began to shrink, until they were the same size as Coral, with pretty wings on their backs!

  “OK,” said Coral, “now we need to get you into the water. . . .”

  Kirsty bit her lip as Coral waved her hand again. Into the water? Even though the sun was shining, she was quite sure the sea would be freezing! She gazed down at the water doubtfully . . . but then saw that two bubbles had appeared on the surface. They were both glistening with golden sparkles.

  “Take one of these and
put it over your head,” Coral said. “It’ll help you breathe underwater.”

  “Oh, we did this when we met Shannon,” Rachel said. “Kirsty, do you remember?”

  She took one of the bubbles and pulled it over her head. It looked like an old-fashioned diving helmet. Then, with a pop, the bubble disappeared.

  Kirsty did the same, and then the three friends fluttered into the ocean. To Kirsty’s surprise, the water felt fairly warm as they ducked under the waves. “Thank goodness!” She laughed. “I thought it was going to be really cold — but it feels great in here.”

  Coral grinned at the look of relief on her face. “My fairy magic will keep us all warm and dry,” she said. “Are you ready? Then off we go!”

  She took Kirsty and Rachel’s hands, then softly spoke some magical-sounding words. A second later, the three friends were jetting at top speed through the water.

  They were going so fast, Kirsty could hardly see. She could only make out blurred colors and streams of bubbles as the magic carried them through the rushing water. It was like the fastest amusement-park ride she’d ever been on.

  “Wheeeeee!” she cried in excitement. “This is amazing!”

  After a few moments, Kirsty and Rachel felt themselves slowing down. The underwater world swung into focus as they came to a stop, and they could see once more. Both girls gazed around.

  The water surrounding them was a clear aquamarine-blue, and schools of brightly colored fish swam in all directions. “Isn’t it beautiful?” Kirsty exclaimed.

  “And there’s the coral reef!” Rachel said, pointing in front of her. The reef stretched a long way into the distance, and they all gazed at its bony structure. It looked like a million fingers reaching up. Colorful anemones grew in the crevices, their skinny fronds waving with the current. All kinds of fish and other sea creatures swam through and around the reef. The sand below sparkled gold, and large white shells lay on the seabed.

  “It’s like another world down here,” Kirsty marveled, taking it in. Then her mouth fell open in surprise. “Look at that fish!” she cried, pointing. “Is it really juggling?”

  They all looked at the orange-and-white striped fish. It was skillfully throwing and catching tiny white shells with its fins.

  Coral grinned. “It’s a clown fish,” she said. “Let’s go and say hello. He might have seen the goblins.”

  The three friends swam over to the clown fish.

  “Hello, hello, hello,” he said, still juggling. “What’s the fastest creature underwater?”

  “Hi,” Coral said. “I have no idea. What is the fastest creature underwater?”

  “A motor-pike!” The clown fish chuckled, dropping his shells with laughter. “Get it? A motor-pike!”

  Kirsty and Rachel giggled. They knew a pike was a kind of fish. “Excuse me,” Rachel said politely. “We were wondering if — ?”

  “Knock, knock,” the clown fish interrupted.

  “Who’s there?” Kirsty, Rachel, and Coral asked in chorus.

  “Whelk,” said the clown fish.

  “Whelk who?”

  “Welcome to the reef. Pleased to meet you!” The clown fish hooted, slapping his sides with his fins. “Get it? Whelk-ome!”

  “We get it.” Kirsty smiled. “I don’t suppose you’ve seen — ?”

  “What did the lobster say to the clam?” the clown fish interrupted, tossing one of the white shells up again and balancing it on his nose.

  “Listen, we really need your help,” Coral insisted. “We’re looking for — ”

  “Stop being so shellfish!” the clown fish shouted, spinning a somersault as he laughed at his own joke.

  “Please!” Rachel cried. “Can you be serious for one minute?”

  The clown fish stopped laughing and stared at them, as if seeing them for the first time.

  “Serious?” he repeated. “It’s not my job to be serious,” he told them. Then he thought for a moment. “Of course,” he went on, “if I was going to be serious, I might tell you that I’d seen some strange green creatures swimming near the reef earlier. They were climbing all over it, not realizing that they might be hurting the coral. Not realizing that at all.”

  “Thank you,” Rachel said, relieved to have gotten a straight answer at last. “That’s really helpful. Where were they?”

  The clown fish pointed a fin. “That way,” he said. Then he smiled. “I say, I say, I say . . .” he began.

  But Coral motioned Kirsty and Rachel away. “Sorry, we’ve got to go,” she called to the clown fish as they swam off in the direction he’d shown them. “Thanks again! Great jokes!”

  The three friends swam into the reef. Kirsty and Rachel both gazed at the sights around them. There were fish of every shape and color, unusual sea plants sprouting from the sand, crabs scuttling, and majestic sea turtles who raised their flippers in greeting. Then came a shout. “You’re It!”

  Coral’s eyes grew wide. “Goblins,” she whispered. “It sounds like they’re very nearby!”

  Coral grabbed Kirsty and Rachel and pulled them behind a large clump of seaweed. She peeked through its fronds, then put her finger to her lips as she turned back to the goblins. “The goblins are right in front of us,” she whispered. “You should see the way they’re jumping all over the reef. They could cause terrible damage doing that!”

  Kirsty and Rachel peeked out at the three goblins. They were all wearing helmets and flippers, and seemed to be playing tag around the reef, leaping from one part to another without a care. Rachel nudged her friends as she saw what one of the goblins was holding.

  “The wand!” She gasped. “Right there!”

  “The sooner I get it back, the better,” Coral fumed. “What is he doing with it?”

  The three friends stared in horror as they saw the goblin poking holes in the reef as he tried to tag another goblin with the wand. “Ow!” squealed a small yellow fish as the goblin accidentally jabbed it.

  “I can’t bear to watch anymore,” Coral said. “Come on, let’s try and get the wand from him.”

  Coral, Kirsty, and Rachel swam out from their hiding place toward the goblins . . . but before they’d gone very far, one of the goblins shouted a warning cry. “Over there! A horrible fairy and her friends! Quick, let’s swim!”

  The goblins immediately swam through the water away from Coral, Kirsty, and Rachel.

  “Hurry,” Coral shouted to Kirsty and Rachel. “They’re getting away. After them!”

  The three friends sped after the goblins, keeping a close eye on the one carrying the wand — they could not let him out of their sight! But it was difficult to swim quickly through the reef. Its twisty structure meant that Kirsty, Rachel, and Coral had to be careful and avoid touching it. They had to slow down.

  Unfortunately, the goblins did not care. They carelessly bashed into the reef with their big flippers. It wasn’t long before the speedy goblins had pulled so far ahead that Rachel, Kirsty, and Coral had completely lost sight of them.

  “We don’t even know which direction they went.” Kirsty sighed. “They could be anywhere by now!”

  Rachel was about to speak when a huge shadow loomed over the three of them, blocking the sunlight and making the water feel colder and much darker. She looked up anxiously, wondering if a shark, or another large sea creature above, was causing the shadow. But it was neither. “It’s a boat,” she realized, staring up at its underside.

  “Yes,” agreed Coral in dismay. “And look what just jumped off it!” She pointed at the water, which was churning with splashes and bubbles. As the bubbles cleared, Kirsty and Rachel saw a group of people who had dived into the sea. They were all wearing masks and snorkels.

  “Quick, hide!” Kirsty gasped. “We can’t let them see us!”

  She, Rachel, and Coral darted behind a boulder and peered around it to watch the swimmers. Some carried special underwater cameras and photographed the sea creatures, making excited gestures to one another. Some wore big flippers — and Coral
groaned as she noticed several people clumsily kicking the reef with them.

  “Oh, no — more damage,” she said sadly. “I’m sure they’re not doing it on purpose, but they’re not being careful enough. Let’s see if I can help.” She waved her hand in a pattern and muttered some magic words. A stream of pink bubbles appeared near the snorkelers and surrounded their flippers. The bubbles gently moved the people away from the coral reef.

  “That’s better,” Rachel said. “Nice work, Coral! Now, let’s keep looking for the goblins. We’ve got to find them before any of the snorkelers spot them.”

  Kirsty nodded at once. She knew that it would be a disaster if any other humans found out about Fairyland or its magical inhabitants. “Well, there’s no sign of them here,” she said, looking around, “so maybe —”

  She stopped talking when she spotted something even more alarming than goblins. Floating on the surface of the water was a large school of jellyfish. Their pale pink bodies gleamed, and a mass of ribbony tentacles dangled in their wake.

  “Get back!” Coral warned, grabbing Kirsty and Rachel and pulling them away as the jellyfish drifted dangerously close. “If any of us are stung, we’ll be in big trouble!”

  Kirsty, Rachel, and Coral swam quickly down to the seafloor to avoid the jellyfish. A shout went out from one of the snorkelers, who’d also spotted the jellyfish. The group of people went back to their boat, looking nervous.