Esther the Kindness Fairy Read online

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Map

  Poem

  The Start of Summer

  A Surprise in the Goal

  Tea in the Rose Garden

  Unkind Words

  Esther’s Brooch

  Forgiving Friends

  Teaser

  Copyright

  The Friendship Fairies like big smiles.

  They want to spread good cheer for miles.

  Those pests want people to connect,

  And treat one another with respect.

  I don’t agree! I just don’t care!

  I want them all to feel despair.

  And when their charms belong to me,

  Each friend will be an enemy!

  “It’s so amazing to be back on Rainspell Island again—together!” said Kirsty Tate, leaning out her window and taking a deep breath of sea air.

  Her best friend, Rachel Walker, clapped her hands and bounced up and down on her tiptoes.

  “Today is the start of the most amazing summer vacation ever,” she said. “I’m sure of it!”

  They were sharing a room at the Sunny Days Bed & Breakfast on the island where they had first met and become best friends. They were so happy to be there again on vacation together. The girls shared a quick hug before rushing down the narrow stairs to the cozy breakfast room. Their parents were already there, poring over leaflets about activities on the island.

  “I’m sure we can find some new things to do,” said Mr. Walker, “even though we have visited this island so many times before.”

  “How about a nice long hike?” suggested Mr. Tate as the girls slipped into their seats and poured some cereal. “It’d be interesting to explore more of the island—we all love seeing its beautiful plants and trees.”

  Rachel and Kirsty shared a smile. They had an extra-special secret reason why they loved Rainspell Island so much. It was here that they had first become friends with the fairies!

  “Hiking would be a great start to the trip,” said Mr. Walker. “Let’s head out after breakfast, shall we?”

  “Here’s something interesting,” said Mrs. Walker, holding out a bright yellow flyer. “It’s called the Summer Friends Camp.”

  Rachel took the flyer and read out loud. “ ‘A day camp for children staying on the island. Make new friends and join in lots of fun activities.’ It sounds awesome!”

  As Kirsty and Rachel were looking at the flyer and chattering about the activities, the breakfast-room door opened and Mr. Holliday came in. He ran the bed and breakfast, and he glanced at the flyer as he put some toast down on the table.

  “My daughter Ginny’s helping run that camp with her best friend, Jen,” he said.

  Kirsty and Rachel exchanged a special smile, wondering if Ginny and Jen’s friendship was as strong as theirs. They knew that they were lucky to have each other.

  “Is it OK if we go to the Summer Friends Camp instead of going on the hike?” Kirsty asked. “It sounds like lots of fun.”

  “Of course,” said Mr. Tate. “We’ll see you later. You can tell us all about it!”

  “The Summer Friends Camp is held at Rainspell Park,” said Mr. Holliday. “I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful time.”

  When they had finished breakfast, the Tates and the Walkers put on their backpacks and hiking boots and set out on their hike. Rachel and Kirsty waved good-bye and then headed off toward Rainspell Park. The bed and breakfast was on a tree-lined road that overlooked the ocean, and as they walked along they saw the ferry heading toward the island.

  “Remember when we met on the ferry that first day?” Rachel asked, smiling at her best friend. “That was one of the best days of my life.”

  “Mine, too,” said Kirsty. “Everything I do is more fun now that I have you to share it with—including our fairy adventures!”

  The girls held hands and smiled when they saw that they were both wearing the friendship bracelets that Florence the Friendship Fairy had given them. Rainspell Island was the place where the girls had first made friends with the fairies, so it had a very special place in their hearts.

  “I hope we’ll meet some more fairies while we’re here,” said Rachel. “I love making new fairy friends.”

  “Fingers crossed we’ll make some new human friends, too,” Kirsty added. “The Summer Friends Camp sounds like such a fun idea.”

  They reached the entrance to Rainspell Park and walked through the open gates, gazing around at colorful flowerbeds and huge old trees. The wide gravel paths were dotted with benches, and a large fountain was bubbling and splashing beside the bandstand.

  “Look,” said Rachel, “there’s a sign for the camp.”

  A bright yellow sign pointed them past the fountain and around a bend. They saw a large tepee-style tent in the middle of the grass. It was surrounded by colorful balloons, and the sign next to the tent said, Welcome to the Summer Friends Camp!

  Still holding hands, Rachel and Kirsty walked into the tent. It was cool inside, and decorated with rainbow-colored silk. A smiling teenage girl hurried to greet them. She was wearing a mint-green name tag that said, Jen, decorated with delicate, dark-gray birds.

  “Welcome to our camp,” she said. “Come and join us!”

  Peering over Jen’s shoulder, Rachel and Kirsty could see another teenage girl standing at a craft table with eight other children. Jen led them over to the table and the other teenager smiled at them.

  “Hi, girls, it’s great to see you here! I’m Ginny. Right now we’re all making name tags. It’d be great if everyone could introduce themselves.”

  The children smiled at Rachel and Kirsty and went around the table introducing themselves. Then two children named Lara and Oscar made space for the girls to join them.

  “Have some markers,” said Oscar, moving a cup of markers over so they could both share it.

  “I have enough stickers for all of us,” added Lara, placing her sticker sheet between them all.

  “Thanks, that’s so kind of you,” said Rachel with a smile.

  They both took a blank name tag and started the fun of decorating.

  “So is this your first time on the island?” Jen asked Rachel.

  “No, we’ve been here lots of times,” said Rachel. “It’s actually where Kirsty and I first met and became best friends, so it’s a really special place for us.”

  “You’re so lucky,” said Lara as she carefully drew a butterfly on her name tag. “I’ve been here for three days and I love it. I wish I lived here!”

  “It’s definitely a great place for friendship,” said Ginny, exchanging a smile with Jen.

  “Everyone is so nice,” Kirsty whispered to Rachel. “I’m really glad we came.”

  As soon as the name tags were finished and the craft table was cleaned up, Ginny asked everyone to come outside.

  “We have two outdoor activities planned for today,” she said. “First we’ll play a game of soccer, and then Jen and I will challenge you all to a water-balloon fight!”

  “Let’s split into teams,” said Jen. “I can’t wait to get started!”

  She divided the group into two, and Rachel and Kirsty found themselves on different teams. They grinned at each other—everyone was so friendly that they didn’t mind being separated at all!

  “All we need now are some goalposts,” said Ginny. “Does anyone have anything we can use to mark where the goal is?”

  Rachel pulled off her bright pink hoodie and three of the other children also donated colorful sweatshirts and cardigans. Then the positions were assigned and the game began. Kirsty was the goalie for her team, and she stood in the goal with her knees bent and her heart thumping as Rachel’s team brought the ball closer
and closer to her. She felt nervous because she didn’t play soccer very often and she didn’t want to let anyone down.

  Lara darted across the field and kicked the ball as hard as she could. The ball flew toward Kirsty, who dived sideways, hands outstretched. She felt it brush her fingertips, but she couldn’t quite reach it, and the first goal had been scored.

  “GOAL!” yelled Rachel, jumping up and down in delight.

  “Good dive, Kirsty!” called Lara.

  Kirsty picked herself up and looked around at her team, feeling awful.

  “I’m so sorry,” she said. “I tried my best.”

  “Don’t worry,” said Oscar, jogging over to pat her on the back. “You tried really hard, but that was an amazing goal. Besides, we’re just playing for fun. Don’t be upset!”

  Everyone else on the team was smiling at her, too, and Kirsty felt better right away. The game continued, and soon Oscar had scored a goal for their team. Kirsty started to really enjoy herself. Rachel was having a good time, too, running up and down the left side of the field and passing to Lara.

  When Ginny blew the halftime whistle, the score was 2–2. Rachel jogged over to Kirsty while the others walked across the field to the table of snacks that Jen and Ginny had prepared.

  “You’ve made some amazing saves,” said Rachel, hugging her best friend. “You’re a really good goalie!”

  “Thanks,” said Kirsty with a grin. “You and Lara have kept me on my toes!”

  “Let’s go and get some juice and cookies,” said Rachel. “I’m starving!”

  As they walked out of the goal area, something caught Kirsty’s eye. She looked down and saw that Rachel’s hoodie was glowing in a very familiar and magical way.

  “Rachel!” Kirsty called in a low voice. “Look!”

  They knelt down beside the hoodie, which was glowing even more brightly. The girls glanced over at the snack table. Everyone had their backs to the goal. Rachel reached out a hand and lifted a sleeve of the hoodie, and a tiny, chestnut-haired fairy fluttered out from the folds of material!

  “Hello!” said the fairy in a bubbly voice. “I’m Esther the Kindness Fairy.”

  Her pink top was decorated with blue flowers and her matching skirt flared out as she gave a happy twirl. She had a warm, easy smile and her dark eyes shone with friendliness.

  “Hello, Esther,” said Rachel. “It’s great to meet you.”

  “We always love meeting new fairies,” added Kirsty with a smile.

  “I’ve come to invite you to Fairyland for a tea party with the Friendship Fairies,” said Esther. “We’ve been wanting to meet you for a long time—we’ve heard so much about you both! Will you come? You won’t miss a moment of the Summer Friends Camp—time in the human world will stop while you’re in Fairyland.”

  Kirsty and Rachel didn’t hesitate!

  “Yes, please!” they said together.

  They glanced over at the other children. No one was looking their way. Esther waved her wand and a flurry of golden sparkles surrounded the girls. They were dazzled, and closed their eyes as they felt themselves shrinking to fairy size. Then gossamer wings appeared on their backs, and a wonderful scent filled the air. They opened their eyes and saw that Rainspell Park had vanished. They were standing in a small Fairyland garden that was filled with roses of every color. In the center of the garden was a white table, upon which was the most wonderful tea party spread that the girls had ever seen. A five-tiered cake stand was filled with meringues, cookies, macarons, eclairs, and tiny cupcakes in jewel-tone colors. The bottom was filled with bite-size triangular sandwiches, and a rose-patterned teapot steamed merrily beside matching cups and saucers.

  “Welcome to our tea party!” said a chorus of tinkling voices. Three other fairies hurried to greet them, their hands outstretched.

  “Let me introduce you all,” said Esther. “This is Mary the Sharing Fairy, Mimi the Laughter Fairy, and Clare the Caring Fairy—my fellow Friendship Fairies. It’s our job to keep all friendships strong and happy.”

  “What a wonderful job!” said Rachel. “How do you do it?”

  “With a little help from our magical objects,” said Mimi with a laugh.

  Each of the four fairies took out a magical object and laid it on the white table for the girls to see. Rachel and Kirsty were enchanted to see Esther’s heart brooch, Mimi’s smiley-face pendant, Mary’s yin-yang charm, and Clare’s mood ring. While they were examining the objects, the fairies poured tea and filled little plates with a selection of dainty sandwiches, mini tea cakes, and mouthwatering appetizers. The girls couldn’t resist trying a little of everything! As they sampled the cakes and sipped tea, the fairies showed them all the different roses in the garden. Esther knew the name of each flower. They were sniffing a thornless rose called Titania, named after the queen, when they heard an evil cackle. Everyone jumped and turned around. To their horror, they saw that a ring of goblins, holding hands, had surrounded the little white table. Jack Frost was standing on top of the table, and all the delicate cakes and sandwiches were being trampled under his feet.

  “Get down from there right now!” Esther demanded.

  She and the other fairies darted forward, but Jack Frost hurled a bolt of blue lightning at them, and they had to dive sideways to avoid it.

  Rachel and Kirsty watched helplessly as Jack Frost scooped up the fairies’ magical objects and tossed them to the goblins one by one.

  “Take these to the human world and find some friends for me,” he barked at them. “I want to be super-powerful, so I need lots of friends to boss around, not just you miserable fools!”

  “No!” cried the girls together.

  But Jack Frost and the goblins disappeared with a deafening clap of icy magic.

  The fairies joined the girls, their smiles gone.

  “That awful Jack Frost!” cried Rachel. “Why does he have to do such horrible things? Why can’t he just go and make friends himself, without stealing things that belong to other people?”

  “He doesn’t understand what friendship is,” said Esther in a sad voice. “He’s never been able to recognize true friendship—and now that he and his goblins have our magical objects, nobody else will have true friendship, either.”

  “Then we have to get your objects back quickly,” said Kirsty. “Let’s hurry before Jack Frost ruins all friendships forever!”

  “What about our friendship?” asked Rachel in a quiet, worried voice. “Will we start arguing when we get back to the human world?”

  Esther frowned, deep in thought. Then her gaze fell on the friendship bracelets that the girls were wearing.

  “I have an idea,” she said.

  She held up her wand and it started to glow. Then she spoke, and her voice sounded as if it were echoing around all of Fairyland.

  “Florence, we need you! Our plans

  have gone wrong.

  We’re in the rose garden—please

  don’t be long!”

  A few seconds later, Florence flew into the garden and landed beside the other fairies. They gasped out the story of what had happened, and she looked alarmed.

  “Jack Frost must be stopped,” she exclaimed, shaking back her blond hair.

  “Can you help to protect the girls’ friendship so that they can try to get our magical objects back?” Esther asked.

  Florence nodded, and asked the girls to hold up their bracelets. She pointed her wand at them and closed her eyes, and a thin spiral of rainbow-colored fairy dust coiled out of her wand and wrapped around the girls’ wrists in a figure eight. The bracelets glowed for a moment and then Florence opened her eyes.

  “I’ve used my ‘Friends through Thick and Thin’ spell on your bracelets,” she explained. “It means that your friendship won’t be affected by the loss of the magical objects, but the spell will only last for a few days. You have to find the objects soon!”

  “We will,” Rachel promised. “Thank you, Florence.”

  They hugged their fai
ry friends good-bye, and then Esther held their hands and whisked them back to the human world. Once again, they were kneeling down beside Rachel’s pink hoodie. As usual, no time had passed while they had been gone, and the other children were still at the snack table. But there was no laughter or happy chatter. Instead, all Rachel and Kirsty could hear was arguing.

  “Lara, you took my cookie!” Oscar was yelling. “Give it back!”

  “This is your fault,” Jen grumbled to Ginny. “Why didn’t you buy more cookies?”

  “Why didn’t you buy any orange juice?” Ginny retorted. “It’s ridiculous to only have apple juice!”

  The other children were squabbling, too, and Rachel and Kirsty listened in dismay as the arguments got worse. Eventually they saw Ginny hold up the palm of her hand to Jen’s face.

  “Don’t even talk to me anymore,” she snapped. “I’m fed up with you.”

  “This is what happens to friendships without my heart brooch,” said Esther, looking gloomy. “It ensures that friends are kind to each other.”

  Kirsty’s eyes filled with tears. “Everyone is being mean, and it’s all Jack Frost’s fault,” she said. “We have to get the Friendship Fairies’ magical objects back before these friendships are ruined forever.”

  “We will,” said Rachel, giving her best friend a hug.

  Like Kirsty, she was scared that they might lose their friendship if Jack Frost could not be stopped.

  Just then, the other children started walking back toward them. Halftime was over, and the game was about to begin again. Esther tucked herself back inside the hoodie marking the goal and the girls joined their teams.

  Suddenly, a new boy in a bright green soccer uniform ran onto the field. The other children ran over and gathered around him.