Penelope the Foal Fairy Read online

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Map

  Poem

  Poster Animals

  A Muddy Mess

  Jack Frost’s Pets

  Sad Snow Geese

  A Spell and a Splash

  True Friends

  Teaser

  Copyright

  I want a farm that’s just for me,

  With animals I won’t set free.

  It’s far too slow to find each one.

  Let fairy magic get this done!

  With magic from the fairy farm,

  I’ll grant my wish—to their alarm!

  And if I spoil the humans’ fun,

  Then Jack Frost really will have won!

  “Just one day left until the farm’s grand opening,” said Kirsty Tate.

  She was looking at a computer screen over the shoulders of Harriet and Niall Hawkins, the owners of Greenfields Farm. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Tate, and her best friend, Rachel Walker, were also gazing at the computer. They were all looking at the design for the new poster that would advertise the farm.

  “I feel jumpy with excitement every time I think about the grand opening tomorrow,” said Rachel.

  “I feel jumpy with nervousness every time I think about it,” said Harriet with a laugh. “I can’t believe there’s just one day left.”

  “I’m sure everything will be fine,” said Mr. Tate, patting Harriet’s shoulder.

  The Tates and Rachel were all spending spring break at Greenfields Farm, just outside Wetherbury. The Tates were friends with Harriet and Niall, and they had all been helping to get the farm ready. Tomorrow, Greenfields Farm would open to visitors for the first time, complete with a children’s petting zoo.

  “You’ve all been wonderful,” said Niall, turning in his chair to smile up at them. “Especially you, Rachel and Kirsty. We were worried about being too busy to look after the baby animals this week, but you’ve done everything for them.”

  “It’s been a treat to look after them,” said Kirsty with a smile.

  Mr. Tate was still gazing at the poster design.

  “I think it needs more photos of the farm,” he said.

  “How about adding some photos of the baby animals?” said Rachel. “They are so cute—they’d make anyone want to visit the farm.”

  “Especially animal lovers like us,” Kirsty added.

  “We could add some photos of the foals,” said Harriet. “They’re really sweet—especially when they’ve just been groomed and are all nice and clean.”

  “I saw them this morning and they are definitely not clean at the moment,” said Niall with a chuckle. “I’ve never seen such scruffy-looking foals before. Girls, would you mind giving the foals a bath and grooming them before they have their photo taken?”

  Rachel and Kirsty exchanged a glance of pure delight.

  “That sounds like so much fun,” said Rachel. “We’d love to do it.”

  “You’ll need to put on your rubber boots and your oldest clothes,” said Harriet. “I’ve found that the animals end up clean, but the people bathing them certainly don’t.”

  Shortly afterward, the best friends were walking toward the stables, with two buckets of warm soapy water and the grooming equipment. They were wearing fraying old T-shirts and threadbare jeans, and they couldn’t stop smiling.

  “I think we’re going to need every drop of this water,” said Kirsty. “We need to get the foals clean and neat so that they look good for the posters.”

  “The foals are adorable, even if they are muddy,” said Kirsty. “And they make such happy little neighing noises.”

  “Look, there’s Blossom,” said Rachel, spotting the cow outside her barn. “Let’s go and say hello.”

  They hurried over, stopping to pick some juicy green grass for Blossom. She munched on it and then gave them a friendly moo.

  “We’re going to wash and groom the foals,” Kirsty told her. “Wish us luck.”

  Blossom gave an extra-loud moo, which made the girls laugh. They said good-bye and then continued along the lane toward the stables. It was another sunny morning on the farm, and the air was filled with the sounds of animals all around, and the high, clear twitter of the birds.

  “Everyone seems to be happy that it’s springtime,” said Rachel.

  “I’m happy that it’s spring vacation, and we’re spending it together,” Kirsty replied, smiling at her best friend.

  The girls had shared many adventures, but they never grew tired of being together. They always had lots of fun. Best of all, they had a very exciting secret, which they had never told anyone else. They were friends of Fairyland, and had met lots of fairies since they first became friends on Rainspell Island.

  “Look,” said Rachel as they passed the horses’ paddock. “I think the horses are watching something over by the pigsty. I wonder what it could be.”

  Four of the horses were standing in a line with their backs to the girls. It was hard to see around them. The girls climbed up onto the paddock gate, but they still couldn’t see anything.

  “Let’s go and check if everything’s OK,” said Kirsty. “If there’s something wrong, we’ll have to run back and tell Niall and Harriet.”

  They put down their buckets and brushes, and then climbed over the gate and dropped into the grassy paddock. The horses took no notice, even when the girls walked right up next to them. Then Rachel and Kirsty saw what they were looking at.

  “Oh my goodness,” said Kirsty. “The foals are in the pigs’ enclosure!”

  “That’s not all,” said Rachel. “Just look at what they’re doing!”

  There was plenty of mud around the pigsty. It was exactly the sort of squishy mud that piglets love. But there wasn’t a single piglet to be seen. Instead, three little foals with fluffy coats and long manes were rolling around in the mud. The girls looked around and saw another foal jumping into a big muddy puddle with a splash. As they watched, it threw back its head and let out a loud oinking sound.

  The horses in the paddock took a few steps backward, and the girls exchanged a worried glance.

  “The foals are acting like piglets,” said Kirsty. “Oh, Rachel, we know what this means.”

  “Yes,” said Rachel, looking serious. “It means more trouble from Jack Frost and his naughty goblins.”

  On the day they arrived at Greenfields Farm, Kirsty and Rachel had met Debbie the Duckling Fairy. She had whisked them to the Fluttering Fairyland Farm, a magical farm hovering among the puffy white clouds over Fairyland.

  Debbie had introduced the girls to the other Farm Animal Fairies and their magical baby farm animals—Splashy the duckling, Fluffy the lamb, Frisky the foal, and Chompy the baby goat. The girls had been delighted to find out that the magical animals helped the Farm Animal Fairies look after baby farm animals everywhere.

  But as the girls were walking around Fluttering Fairyland Farm with the fairies and Farmer Francis, Jack Frost and his goblins stole the fairies’ magical farm animals. Jack Frost was making his own petting zoo at his Ice Castle, and he wanted to fill it with lots of cute and cuddly farm animals. He said his pet snow goose and her baby, Snowdrop, needed friends, so he was going to use the fairies’ magical animals to get even more baby farm animals.

  Jack Frost’s plan had already caused chaos at Greenfields Farm.

  “First the ducklings acted like puppies, and then the lambs behaved like kittens,” said Kirsty. “Now the foals are not themselves. What are we going to do?”

  Rachel glanced over at the horses again. They looked just as worried as she felt. Then she saw something out of the corner of her eye. One of the bales of hay that were scattered around the paddock was glowing. Her heart gave a leap of exc
itement.

  “Kirsty!” Rachel said in an eager voice. “I think there’s magic happening over there.”

  The girls hurried over to the hay bale and kneeled down in front of it. The glow grew brighter, and the hay seemed to turn golden. Rachel and Kirsty saw it moving and reached out their hands. At once, Penelope the Foal Fairy fluttered out of the center, shaking stray strands of hay from her glittery wings. She was wearing flowery boots with a matching scarf wrapped around her head. She also had on a crisp white shirt and a skirt as blue as the sky.

  “Hello, Penelope,” said Kirsty. “Have you come to help the foals?”

  Penelope glanced over to where the foals were still rolling around in the mud. But then she shook her head.

  “I wish I could help them,” she said in a soft voice. “But I can’t return them to normal without Frisky. That’s why I’m here. I’ve found out that Jack Frost has Frisky at his Ice Castle. Please, will you come with me and help me get him back?”

  Rachel and Kirsty had already helped Debbie the Duckling Fairy and Elodie the Lamb Fairy get their magical animals safely back home to Fluttering Fairyland Farm. But there were still two magical animals missing, and if they didn’t come home very soon, Greenfields Farm wouldn’t be ready to open on time. Rachel and Kirsty knew that the fairies were depending on them.

  “Of course we will,” said Rachel. “We have to get Frisky back—and fast!”

  Penelope gave her wand a little flick, and a shower of pink fairy dust fluttered down around Rachel and Kirsty. They closed their eyes and felt something warm slip around their shoulders as they shrank to fairy size. Their wings unfurled and lifted them into the air. Then a blast of icy wind blew the fairy dust away. The girls opened their eyes and found that they were flying high above the Ice Castle in Fairyland. Penelope’s magic had given each of them a fluffy cape around their shoulders.

  “These will keep you warm and cozy, however bitterly cold it gets,” said Penelope. “My fairy magic is enough to keep me warm.”

  Rachel and Kirsty shivered, feeling glad to have the capes. Jack Frost’s castle was always a chilly place, but today it seemed colder than ever. There was a grim cloud looming so low that it touched the turrets.

  “If Frisky is here, we’ll find him,” said Kirsty. “Come on, let’s fly down and look around.”

  There were no goblins guarding the gray turrets, so the three fairies zoomed down and perched there to look into a little courtyard garden at the back of the castle. It was decorated with ice statues of animals, but there were some living creatures there, too.

  “There’s the snow goose,” said Rachel.

  “And baby Snowdrop,” Kirsty added.

  “And Frisky!” cried Penelope. “Frisky is there, too!”

  The three fairies shared happy smiles. It was wonderful to see Frisky again. He looked just like the foals at Greenfields Farm, except he had an extra magical sparkle. But their smiles faded when they saw that he was bumbling around the courtyard like a pig. Snowdrop, the baby snow goose, was hopping around after him, honking happily. The mother snow goose was watching them both with a puzzled expression. She was sitting beside a large brown sack. It was tied with a white rope, and it was labeled Snow Goose Treats.

  “Even the snow goose is wondering why Frisky isn’t acting like a foal,” said Kirsty.

  Snowdrop and Frisky were now chasing each other around the ice statues and trying to pounce on each other. They were clearly having lots of fun.

  “There’s no sign of Jack Frost or the goblins,” Penelope said. “Let’s go and get Frisky right now.”

  She fluttered her wings and started to rise into the air, but Rachel put a hand on her arm to stop her.

  “Hold on,” she said. “We have to be careful.”

  As she spoke, Jack Frost hurried out into the courtyard, wearing a pair of bright-green overalls. Penelope sank down beside Rachel and Kirsty again, and they watched the Ice Lord, their hearts hammering. A few seconds later and he would have seen Penelope.

  Jack Frost scooped Frisky into his bony arms and cuddled him tightly. Frisky wiggled and wriggled, trying to get away.

  “Frisky doesn’t like being squeezed,” said Penelope.

  Clinging on to the squirmy foal, Jack Frost bent down and opened the sack that the girls had seen earlier. He pulled out a handful of something that looked like birdseed and held it under Frisky’s snout. Frisky gave an oink, bounded out of Jack Frost’s arms, and jumped to the ground. He aimed a hard kick at the sack of snow goose treats, and then darted off again.

  “Come back!” Jack Frost wailed.

  The mother snow goose and Snowdrop waddled over to the sack and started to nudge it with their beaks, looking up at Jack Frost with hopeful expressions. But he shook his head at them and tied up the sack.

  “No,” he said. “If Frisky doesn’t want these, no one is having them.”

  The snow geese waddled away, their white heads drooping a little.

  “They look so sad,” said Rachel.

  “Poor things,” Penelope said. “They chose to be Jack Frost’s special pets. They really love him.”

  “But why is he ignoring the snow geese?” Kirsty asked.

  “He’s just really interested in his petting zoo now,” said Penelope. “He isn’t thinking about the geese.”

  Rachel and Kirsty looked at each other, knowing that they were both thinking the same thing. If they could get Frisky back for Penelope, maybe Jack Frost would start noticing the geese who loved him so much again.

  “But how are we going to catch Frisky?” Rachel asked. “He’s still darting around like a pig.”

  “Or being chased and cuddled by Jack Frost,” said Kirsty.

  She pointed to where Jack was sprinting around a frozen fountain after Frisky.

  “Come here!” he roared. “Come back! I want to cuddle with you!”

  He threw himself across the fountain and managed to catch Frisky by the back legs. Frisky oinked and wriggled as Jack Frost picked him up.

  “I’ve got something for you,” Jack Frost said, panting as he tried to hold on to Frisky.

  He pointed over to a small iron bench. The fairies were startled to see a large stuffed toy in the shape of Jack Frost. It was sitting on the bench with its legs crossed and a mean expression on its face.

  Jack Frost clutched Frisky to his chest and carried him over to the toy. He put him down at the toy’s feet.

  “There,” he said. “Isn’t it the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?”

  Frisky snorted like a pig and shrank back from Jack Frost.

  “I don’t think he’s very impressed,” said Rachel.

  “Jack Frost doesn’t know anything about what foals really like,” Kirsty said. “He has no idea how to look after one the right way.”

  “But Frisky isn’t acting like a foal,” said Rachel in a thoughtful voice. “He’s acting like a pig. Treating him like a foal won’t do any good. We have to think of something a pig would want—like acorns.”

  “You’re right,” said Penelope.

  She waved her wand, and a big basket of acorns appeared on the ground below. While Jack Frost was still trying to get Frisky to play with the stuffed toy, the three fairies zoomed downward and hid behind a nearby hay bale.

  Kirsty watched Frisky as he stared at the acorns.

  “Come on,” she whispered, hardly daring to breathe in case it frightened him away. “Come on, Frisky.”

  Frisky took one step toward them … and then another. Then he trotted over to the acorns and started nibbling. But Jack Frost was close behind him. The Ice Lord scooped Frisky up into his arms and squeezed him tightly.

  “I’ve got another surprise for you,” he bellowed at the little foal.

  “Oh, poor Frisky,” said Penelope.

  Jack Frost lifted Frisky’s ear and whispered into it, “I’ve built you a new home.”

  He strode away from the acorn basket, carrying Frisky. The three fairies darted high into
the air and followed him as he tramped away from the Ice Castle. He walked past frozen fountains and snow-covered shrubs until he reached a little huddle of weeping willows, stiff with frost.

  “Close your eyes,” Jack Frost told Frisky.

  Frisky oinked again, his eyes wide open. Jack Frost waved his wand, and the weeping willows parted their branches like curtains. Inside, the girls saw a foal-sized version of the Ice Castle. It was guarded by tiny goblin statues, and Jack Frost clapped his hands together in delight.

  “It looks cleaner and tidier than the real thing,” Rachel whispered.

  The windows sparkled, and when they peered through, the fairies could see that the little castle looked dry and bright. There were blue curtains at every window and the wooden drawbridge had been polished until it gleamed.

  “Welcome to your new home,” said Jack Frost. “The drawbridge really works.”

  He put Frisky down and watched him run into the castle. Then he closed the drawbridge, and the fairies heard a furious oink and squeal from the little foal. The next moment, Frisky came sailing over the castle wall and past the moat. Then he began to snuffle at the ground like a pig looking for food.

  “Frisky, stop!” Jack Frost roared.

  Kirsty turned to Rachel and Penelope with an excited look on her face. Seeing Frisky snuffling like a pig had given her an idea.

  “I’ve got a plan,” she whispered. “I think I know how we can get Frisky back.”

  As quickly as she could, Kirsty explained her plan. She thought that for anyone to get close to Frisky, the foal needed to be relaxed—but the only way for him to feel relaxed was if he was treated like a pig. As soon as they heard the plan, Rachel and Penelope started to smile.