Lila and Myla the Twins Fairies

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Map

  Poem

  Lila’s Pendant

  Party Pairs

  Seeing Double

  Tricked!

  Twice the Ice

  Magical Mimics

  Myla’s Pendant

  An Icy Classroom

  Fairies in Hiding

  Distracted Goblins

  A Sleepy Song

  Jimmy Thaw Takes a Side

  The Gemini Ring

  Brand-new Twins

  Twin Tempers

  An Icy Prison

  Two of a Kind

  Good-byes

  Teaser

  Copyright

  I will not sleep nor rest my head

  Till fairy hearts are filled with dread.

  Soon twins around the world will find

  They’ve left their happy days behind.

  This spell makes me a work of art;

  Twice as mean and twice as smart.

  The king and queen will both be lost

  And Fairyland will turn to frost!

  Find the hidden letters in the hearts throughout this book. Unscramble all 7 letters to spell a special twin word!

  “This is the one,” said Rachel Walker, pointing up at a tall white town house.

  A bunch of pink balloons was tied to the gate, and there was another bunch pinned to the front door. Rachel smoothed down her party dress and smiled at her best friend, Kirsty Tate. Kirsty was staying with Rachel during her school vacation.

  “It was really nice of your friends to invite me to their birthday parties,” said Kirsty. “I’ve never been to two in one day before!”

  Rachel’s friends Jessy and Amy were twins, and they were having two separate birthday parties—one for each of them.

  “Jessy and Amy’s parents are really fun,” Rachel said as they walked up to the front door. “They’re letting Jessy have her party this morning, and Amy have hers this afternoon. The twins like different music and decorations, and their mom and dad wanted to make sure they’re both happy!”

  She knocked on the door, and it opened to reveal a girl with long blonde hair and big blue eyes. She was wearing a sparkly pink party dress and there was a pink bow in her hair.

  “Happy birthday, Jessy!” said Rachel.

  “Thanks,” said Jessy with a smile. “This must be Kirsty. Hi!”

  “Hi, and happy birthday,” said Kirsty.

  Jessy invited them in. There were pink balloons pinned in every corner and the guests were dancing to music. A table was piled high with presents wrapped in pink paper.

  “Those are the prizes for the party games,” Jessy said, seeing Rachel looking at them.

  Kirsty peeked into the kitchen and saw a tray full of pink gelatin treats on the dining table.

  “Pink’s my favorite color,” said Jessy. “Can you tell?”

  The girls laughed and gave Jessy her presents. Then another girl came over and gave Rachel a hug.

  “Happy birthday, Amy,” said Rachel. “Kirsty, this is Amy—Jessy’s twin.”

  “Wow, you don’t look alike!” said Kirsty in surprise.

  Amy’s blonde hair was cut into a bob, and she was wearing cropped jeans and a red T-shirt. She laughed and linked arms with her sister.

  “We’re identical twins, but we’re very different,” she said. “Luckily, our parents let us be ourselves! Come on, let’s start playing some games.”

  The first game was musical chairs. It was a lot of fun, but suddenly the CD started to skip. While Jessy’s dad tried to fix it, her mom went to the prize table.

  “We might as well end the game now and start on dessert,” she said. “Oh, no! Where have all the prizes gone?”

  The table was completely empty. Jessy’s father frowned.

  “Someone must have moved them,” he said. “I’ll go look in the kitchen.”

  But when he went into the kitchen, he let out a shout of surprise. Rachel and Kirsty hurried after him, followed by the rest of the party guests.

  The kitchen was a terrible mess. The bowls of beautiful pink gelatin had been knocked upside down and trampled into the kitchen mat. Paint and glitter from the craft table in the corner had also been emptied all over the floor.

  While everyone was wondering what had happened, Kirsty tugged on Rachel’s arm.

  “Look over there,” she whispered.

  There was a large footprint in some spilled purple glitter, and the girls recognized it at once.

  “It’s a goblin footprint!” whispered Rachel.

  Jessy’s dad folded his arms. He suddenly looked very grumpy.

  “If Jessy’s party is going to be this much trouble, we might have to cancel Amy’s party,” he said.

  “I agree,” said Jessy’s mom, frowning. “Suddenly, I’m feeling very tired.”

  Jessy and Amy looked upset.

  “Our birthday is turning into a disaster!” cried Amy.

  Jessy’s parents walked back into the living room and the guests followed. Rachel and Kirsty stayed back, looking puzzled.

  “I’ve never heard Jessy’s mom and dad sound so upset,” Rachel said.

  Just then, a green balloon floated past them toward the open back door. It bobbed out into the yard.

  “That’s strange,” said Kirsty. “I thought that all Jessy’s balloons were pink.”

  “They were,” said Rachel. “Kirsty, do you think that there are goblins here? After all, green’s their favorite color!”

  Rachel and Kirsty knew all about goblins, because they were friends with the fairies. Jack Frost liked sending his goblins to cause trouble for the fairies, and Rachel and Kirsty had often helped their magical friends.

  “Let’s follow the balloon,” said Kirsty. “If it is goblins, there’s sure to be more trouble.”

  The girls ran out into the yard and spotted the balloon floating behind a wooden shed. They ran around the corner of the shed and saw a little pond. Two garden gnomes were standing next to it with toy fishing rods.

  “Look, there’s the balloon,” said Rachel. “There’s definitely something magical about it.”

  It hovered by the shed wall, even though there was a little breeze that should have blown it away. As the girls watched, it began to grow bigger and bigger. Then … POP! The balloon disappeared, and two tiny fairies were fluttering toward Rachel and Kirsty!

  “Hello, I’m Myla,” said the fairy on the left.

  “And I’m Lila,” said the fairy on the right.

  Rachel and Kirsty blinked, hardly able to believe their eyes. The fairies were both wearing pale orange shorts, pink jackets, and sparkly ankle boots. They both had short black hair, but Myla had pink highlights and Lila had blue.

  “We’re the Twins Fairies!” they said together.

  “It’s wonderful to meet you both,” said Kirsty.

  “I’m so glad you were in the balloon,” said Rachel. “We thought that the goblins might be up to something.”

  She described the problems they’d had at the birthday party and the goblin footprint they’d seen.

  “That’s why we’re here,” said Lila in a serious voice. “The queen sent us from Fairyland to ask for your help.”

  “We’re always happy to help Fairyland in any way we can,” said Rachel. “What happened?”

  “It’s Jack Frost,” said Myla, sounding gentler than her twin. “He and his goblins crept into our cottage yesterday while we were out. They stole some very precious magic objects from us.”

  “Without them, things are going to go terribly wrong for twins everywhere,” finished Lila. “You see, we look after twins all over the human world and in Fairyland.”

  �
�Is that why things were going badly at the party?” asked Kirsty. “Presents disappeared, and the music stopped.”

  The twins nodded.

  “It’s all Jack Frost’s fault,” said Myla with a sigh.

  “What are your magic objects?” Rachel asked.

  “First, there’s the heart pendant,” said Lila. “I have one half, and Myla has the other. My half makes sure that people treat twins as individuals, and Myla’s half makes sure that twins have fun being together.”

  “Jack Frost also took our Gemini ring,” said Myla. “It ensures that twins aren’t compared with each other all the time.”

  “Will you help us find our magic objects?” asked Lila.

  “Of course,” said Kirsty at once. “But how are we—”

  She broke off when she heard a strange, high-pitched giggle coming from the pond.

  “Look!” cried Rachel, pointing to where they had seen the garden gnomes fishing. “One of the gnomes has disappeared!”

  “No, he hasn’t …” said Lila.

  She swooped down to some tall grass next to the pond and pushed it aside. A goblin was crouching down behind it.

  “That wasn’t a gnome at all,” Kirsty exclaimed. “It was a goblin in disguise!”

  The goblin leaped over the tall grass and raced away from them.

  “Follow that goblin!” cried Lila.

  Rachel and Kirsty looked at each other in surprise. They’d never seen a goblin run so fast!

  The girls raced after the goblin, who darted into the garden shed and slammed the door shut. Rachel pushed on the door, but it wouldn’t open.

  “I think he’s leaning against the door,” she said.

  “We need to ask him what he knows about our magic objects,” said Myla.

  “If we all push together, we might be stronger than him,” said Kirsty. “Let’s try.”

  Rachel and Kirsty pushed on the shed door with all their strength. Myla and Lila pushed, too, fluttering as hard as they could against the top of the door. They heard a squawk from inside, then the door gave way and they all tumbled inside.

  “There he is!” cried Lila.

  The goblin was trying to hide under an old umbrella.

  “We can see you,” said Kirsty. “Please come out of there—we just want to ask you some questions.”

  The goblin threw the umbrella to one side and sat down on an upturned flowerpot. He folded his arms and looked very grumpy.

  “I’m not talking to humans or fairies,” he said. “You’re all the same. Tricky!”

  “We just want to know why Jack Frost took Lila and Myla’s magic objects,” she said.

  “And where he’s hidden them,” added Kirsty hopefully.

  “I’m not going to tell you,” said the goblin.

  He stuck out his tongue and stood up.

  “Let me leave,” he said. “I want to go and eat more of those gelatin treats.”

  “There are no treats left,” said Rachel. “Besides, we’re not moving until you answer our questions.”

  The goblin sat down again and stroked his chin thoughtfully.

  “Let me think …” he muttered.

  The girls waited. Myla and Lila fluttered above them, staring hopefully at the goblin. He opened his mouth, but then closed it again. Then they all heard the town clock chime. The goblin put his head to one side as if he was counting. The clock chimed twelve times, and then the goblin giggled.

  “Twelve o’clock,” he said, rubbing his hands together with glee. “My job is done.”

  “What do you mean?” Lila demanded.

  “Jack Frost has had enough of you fairies interfering with his plans,” said the goblin. “I just had to make sure that you didn’t take the humans to Fairyland until after twelve o’clock. That way, Jack Frost knew you would be too late to stop him!”

  Lila and Myla groaned, but Kirsty had an idea.

  “You were very smart to trick us like that,” she said to the goblin. “You had us completely fooled.”

  “I’m the best actor of all the goblins in the Ice Castle,” boasted the goblin.

  “I bet Jack Frost told you all about his plans,” Kirsty went on. “I’m sure he shared them with a smart goblin like you.”

  “Oh, yes, I know everything,” said the goblin with a smug smile.

  “Go ahead and tell us,” said Kirsty. “After all, it doesn’t matter now. You kept us here past twelve o’clock.”

  “That’s true,” said the goblin cheerfully. “From now on, it’s going to be twice as hard for you to get the better of Jack Frost!”

  “What do you mean?” asked Myla.

  “He stole the magic objects so that he could make his own twin,” said the goblin, looking up at the fairies with a smirk. “Two Jack Frosts will be able to take over Fairyland forever!”

  Myla gasped, and Lila let out a shocked cry.

  “Can he do that?” asked Rachel.

  “Our magic objects are very powerful,” said Myla. “If he combines his magic with ours, he can use it to make a copy of himself.”

  “Two Jack Frosts?” said Kirsty. “One is bad enough—how will we be able to stop two?”

  “Let’s go to the Ice Castle,” said Lila, raising her wand. “Maybe Jack Frost won’t know how to use our magic. If we’re lucky, we might still be in time to stop him!”

  Lila and Myla put their wands together, and a double jet of pink fairy dust spiraled out. The glittering swirl wound around Rachel and Kirsty, lifting them into the air and shrinking them until they were fairy-size. They felt glimmering wings grow on their backs, and then they were fluttering together up near the roof of the shed.

  “It’s pointless,” called the goblin, gazing up at them. “You can’t stop him now.”

  “We’ll see about that!” said Lila.

  The fairies tapped their wands together twice, and Rachel and Kirsty were surrounded by a starburst of fairy dust. When the sparkles cleared, they were fluttering above the Ice Castle. Snow blanketed the ground, but for once the sun was shining, and the girls were very warm.

  “I can see Jack Frost!” said Kirsty immediately. “Look, he’s in the main courtyard with all the goblins.”

  “Let’s hide in one of the turrets and watch,” said Rachel.

  The girls had both been to the Ice Castle before, so they led Myla and Lila to a turret from where they could see the courtyard. Jack Frost was standing in the middle of a group of goblins.

  “I can only see one Jack Frost,” Myla whispered. “Maybe his spell didn’t work.”

  He was strutting up and down in front of something that was tall and thin, and covered in a red cloth.

  “You are very lucky goblins,” Jack Frost declared. “You are about to witness my greatest triumph!”

  “Get your wand ready,” Lila whispered to her twin. “When he casts his spell, we have to try to block it. If we work together, we should be strong enough to stop him.”

  But instead of raising his wand, he raised his hand and pulled off the red cover. Standing on a round platform was an exact copy of Jack Frost. The spell had already been done!

  “My name is Jimmy Thaw,” announced the twin. “I have come to rule over you, side by side with my brother, Jack!”

  The fairies gasped, and several of the goblins squawked and screeched. One of them fainted, and several others scrambled to hide. Jack Frost cackled with pleasure.

  “Behold the power of my magic!” he said as Jimmy Thaw waved to the crowd of goblins and grinned at him. “I should thank those who have helped me—I couldn’t have done it without Lila and Myla!”

  “How could he say that?” cried Myla, her eyes filling with tears. “We didn’t help him!”

  Lila put her arms around her twin and gave her a warm hug.

  “We’re going to stop him and get our magic objects back,” she said. “We have Rachel and Kirsty to help us, so try not to worry.”

  Rachel and Kirsty exchanged nervous smiles. They hoped that they could live up to
Lila’s belief in them!

  Just then, Jack Frost jabbed his finger at a nearby goblin, who was staring at the new twin with his mouth hanging open.

  “What are you waiting for?” Jack Frost bellowed. “Go and hide that fairy trinket now!”

  The goblin squealed in alarm and sprinted out of the castle.

  “Look, he’s got something in his hand!” said Rachel.

  “It must be one of our magic objects,” Myla exclaimed, brushing her tears away. “Come on, let’s follow him!”

  Led by Myla, the fairies zoomed out of the turret and followed the goblin as he ran away from the castle. They flew higher up and saw him racing toward the forest.

  “We’ll have to fly lower or else we’ll lose him among the trees,” called Kirsty.

  In single file, the fairies swooped down and followed the goblin into the forest. The sun had been making the snow-covered branches sparkle, but now that they were inside the forest, everything was dark and cold.

  “I can hear the goblin up ahead,” whispered Rachel. “Listen!”

  There was a loud crashing and crunching up ahead, as if the goblin was stumbling through thick bushes and losing his way. They flew as fast as they could, weaving through spiky branches, trying to keep up with him. Suddenly, the crashing noises stopped.

  “Oh, no. I hope we haven’t lost him,” said Myla.

  “No, don’t worry,” said Lila, who was in the lead. “He stopped to catch his breath.”

  There was a little clearing up ahead, and the goblin sat on a boulder, huffing and puffing. The girls could see a delicate chain dangling from his hand and something dark pink clutched in his fist.

  “That’s my half of the pendant!” Lila exclaimed. “Myla has the pale pink half, and mine is dark pink.”

  “How can we get it back?” asked Myla, worried.

  “Jack Frost’s spell gave me an idea,” said Rachel. “Maybe if we all look like exact copies of the goblin, we can confuse him into giving us back the pendant.”