Isabella the Air Fairy

  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

  Flower Fairy

  All a Flutter!

  Goblin Alert

  Lots of Butterflies

  Get That Wand!

  Ticklish Goblin

  Teaser

  Copyright

  “Rachel! Kirsty! Hurry up, we need to go!” came a voice from downstairs.

  “Coming, Mom!” Kirsty Tate shouted back, putting her hair in a ponytail. “There,” she said. “Are you ready, Rachel?”

  Rachel Walker, Kirsty’s best friend, frowned as she gazed around the bedroom the two girls were sharing. “Almost,” she said. “But I don’t know where my shoes are. Have you seen them?”

  Kirsty shook her head. “Maybe they’re in the hall,” she suggested.

  The girls hurried down to find their parents waiting by the front door. The two families were staying in a cottage together for a week on Rainspell Island. It was a very magical place, as Kirsty and Rachel had discovered the first time they’d been there on vacation. That would always be a summer to remember: Not only had they met each other, but they’d also met some very special fairy friends!

  So far, this vacation was proving to be just as exciting. They had only arrived yesterday, but Rachel and Kirsty had already found themselves in another wonderful fairy adventure. This time, they were helping the Earth Fairies with a mission to clean up the world’s environmental problems.

  Today, the two families were going to Seabury, a town on the mainland. The girls wanted to go to a movie and the grownups were going shopping. Kirsty and Rachel really hoped they’d meet another fairy at some point!

  Mr. Walker looked at his watch. “Girls, we have to leave now if you’re going to make it in time for the movie. The ferry to the mainland leaves in ten minutes, and there won’t be another one for an hour.”

  “I can’t find my shoes, Dad,” Rachel said, hunting all around the hallway closet. “Where could they be?”

  Kirsty helped her look, and the girls searched the entire cottage before finally finding the shoes under Rachel’s bed.

  “At last,” said Mr. Tate when they reappeared. “We’ll have to drive to the ferry now. There isn’t time to walk. We’re cutting it close as it is.”

  The two families got into the Tates’ car and drove off. They arrived at the dock just in time. They pulled the car onto the ferry, and, moments later, the ferry sailed to Seabury. It was a short trip and, before long, the two families were driving into the little town.

  It was very busy. A huge traffic jam snaked away from the main street, and the cars crawled along an inch at a time.

  “Ugh,” Kirsty said, closing her window. “What a disgusting smell!”

  “It’s the fumes from the traffic,” her mom said, wrinkling her nose as an old car went by. A stinky gray smoke puffed out of its muffler.

  “I don’t know where we’re going to park.” Mr. Tate sighed and leaned against the steering wheel. “I wish we hadn’t brought the car. It would have been much faster to walk.”

  Rachel bit her lip. It was her fault they were in the car — if only she’d been able to find her shoes more quickly!

  It took ages for the two families to find a parking lot with open spaces. “At last,” Mrs. Tate said when they were finally able to walk into town. “I think you probably missed the start of the movie you wanted, girls, but there should be other movies showing that you could see. There’s the theater at the end of the block, look. We’ll pick you up in the lobby at four o’clock, OK?”

  The girls said good-bye to their parents and headed off, chatting about the movies they could watch instead. Just before they reached the movie theater, they passed a shop that had large pots of flowers outside. “Look at these gray flowers,” Kirsty remarked. “They’re very unusual. I’ve never seen gray flowers before, have you?”

  Rachel stroked one of the oval petals lightly. To her surprise, the gray came off on her thumb, leaving a streaky white color underneath!

  “They’re not gray,” Rachel said. “It’s just the exhaust that’s made them look gray.”

  Kirsty gently rubbed another petal. It had a thin gray film on it, too. “Poor flowers,” she said. “Where did all the pollution come from?”

  Before Rachel could reply, she saw something glittering at the back of the flower arrangement . . . and then, in a cloud of sparkles, out popped a tiny fairy. It was Isabella the Air Fairy!

  Isabella had long brown hair that fell in waves about her shoulders. She wore a wispy purple dress with a bright golden belt and leggings. Kirsty and Rachel were delighted to see her again.

  “Hello!” they said in chorus. They had been friends with the fairies for a long time, but it was still exciting to have adventures with a new fairy.

  “Hello,” Isabella said in a musical voice. “Kirsty and Rachel, right? I met you yesterday.”

  “That’s right,” Kirsty said. She and Rachel had visited Fairyland to ask the king and queen for help with improving the environment. There they had met seven fairies, who were all training to earn their magic wands. The fairies were named Nicole, Isabella, Edie, Coral, Lily, Milly, and Carrie. The king and queen had given the fairies a challenge. Their job was to help humans with environmental issues, like pollution and littering. Kirsty and Rachel knew that if this test was successful, the king and queen would let their friends be Earth Fairies forever!

  “Hi, Isabella,” Rachel said. “Have you found your wand yet? Or can we help you look for it?”

  Isabella smiled. “Thank you,” she replied. “No, I haven’t seen my wand anywhere. And I really need it so I can begin my assignment. It’s my job to clean up the air, and the sooner I can start, the better!”

  Kirsty nodded, her eyes glancing at the grimy gray petals of the flowers nearby. “This place definitely needs cleaning,” she said. “We helped Nicole find her wand yesterday, and we’ve promised to help all the other Earth Fairies do the same. We can’t let Jack Frost get away with his nasty tricks!”

  Jack Frost was always up to no good. This time, he’d appeared just as the seven Earth Fairies were about to start their Wand Ceremony. They were each going to receive a special wand to help them do their work. Bertram, a friendly frog footman, had been holding the seven wands, but then Jack Frost’s goblins had shown up, snatched the wands, and vanished. “My goblins are the only real green creatures!” Jack Frost had sneered. “And I don’t want any silly fairies interfering!” Then he disappeared, too, before anyone could stop him.

  The goblins were now hiding in the human world with the wands, and Kirsty and Rachel had promised to track them down.

  “I have a rough idea where the goblin with my wand is,” Isabella told the girls. “So if you don’t mind coming on a little journey with me . . .”

  “We’d love to!” Kirsty said at once.

  Isabella grinned. “I was hoping you’d say that,” she said.

  “We have to be back to meet our parents at four o’clock,” Rachel reminded her friend.

  “That’s fine,” said Isabella. She took a deep breath
. “I think I have enough power to turn you into fairies for the trip.” She waved her hands and a shower of shimmering blue fairy dust streamed from her fingertips, swirling all over the girls. As soon as the magic sparkles touched Kirsty and Rachel, they began to shrink smaller and smaller.

  “We’re fairies!” Rachel said excitedly, as she became the same size as Isabella. She flapped her glittery wings, smiling as she floated off the ground.

  “You certainly are,” Isabella said. “And now that you’re ready . . . off we go!”

  She waved her hands again. Sparkles swirled from out of nowhere, lifted the three of them into the air, and carried them away.

  Kirsty felt tingly. Another fairy adventure was beginning!

  A few moments later, they landed gently. Kirsty and Rachel looked around. They realized that they were on the roof of a building in the town next to Seabury. Below, there was a mass of thick clouds that was impossible to see through. “It’s very foggy here,” Rachel said.

  Isabella looked sad. “That’s not fog,” she replied. “It’s clouds of smog — dirty, smoky air. Doesn’t it smell awful?”

  Kirsty nodded. “It’s horrible,” she said. “It makes my throat hurt.”

  Just then, a tiny gray butterfly fluttered by. Seeing the fairies, she gave an excited squeak and zipped toward them . . . but then her antennae drooped. “Oh,” she said, sounding disappointed. “I thought you were butterflies like me. What kind of insect are you?”

  “We’re fairies,” Isabella said, and introduced them all. “Who are you — and what are you doing all the way up here?”

  “I’m Flutter,” said the butterfly. “I’m tired of living in the dirty city, so I’m looking for a nice green home and some other butterflies to live with. I haven’t had any luck yet.” A tear rolled down her face and splashed onto the roof. “And now I’m lost. Please, will you help me?”

  The girls exchanged a glance. They couldn’t let Flutter down!

  “Of course we’ll help,” Isabella told the sad butterfly.

  “Don’t worry,” Kirsty said. “We’ll find you a home. Come on, let’s fly down to the ground. There must be a nice park or a small forest . . . or even somebody’s yard that would be good for you.”

  The three fairies and Flutter set off, diving down through the air. Flying through the clouds was hard work. Some were white and fluffy as usual, but others were gray and smelly. Rachel made the mistake of flying through one of the dirty clouds and came out coughing and choking. Her eyes watered. “Yuck!” she sputtered. “That was disgusting!”

  They could see the ground beneath them now, and it was clear that they were in a much bigger town than Seabury.

  There were a lot of cars on the roads, but none of them appeared to be moving, because they were all stuck in a huge traffic jam. Flying closer, Kirsty noticed that many cars had only one person inside.

  Isabella was sighing unhappily. “If only humans could fly, like fairies!” she said. “No wonder the air is so bad here! If some of those drivers shared their cars, or walked or biked instead of driving everywhere, there would be less traffic on the road, and less pollution in the air.”

  Kirsty nodded. She was starting to realize that pollution affected everyone and was caused by everyone, too. “We have to get our bikes out later this week,” she vowed to Rachel. “We could go for a family bike ride around the coves!”

  “Good idea,” Rachel said. Then her face brightened. “There’s some green over there,” she said pointing. “Let’s fly down to see if we can find a home for Flutter.”

  Flutter wiggled her antennae, looking happier. “Oh, yes!” she squeaked. “Come on, let’s check it out!”

  The four of them fluttered lower and lower. As they got closer to the patch of green, they realized that it was a park — perfect! But then Kirsty frowned. Maybe it wasn’t so perfect after all.

  “There’s a big cloud over the park,” she noticed. She wrinkled her nose and fanned the air in front of her face. “And it smells really strong — like bad perfume!”

  As they zoomed in closer, they could see who had made the cloud. “It’s one of Jack Frost’s goblins!” Rachel hissed. She landed on a branch of a nearby tree and glared at him. “What is he doing?”

  The goblin had a can of air freshener in each hand and was spraying them into the air. Around his waist, he wore a belt with even more cans of air freshener attached. He looked like a cowboy, Kirsty thought. Then her eyes grew wide as she saw what else was strapped to his belt. “Rachel, Isabella, look!” she whispered. “It’s Isabella’s magic wand!”

  “Good eyes!” Isabella cried.

  Rachel bit her lip. “I can’t believe the goblin is here in the middle of the park, in broad daylight, with a magic wand!” she whispered. “If someone spots him, it’ll be a disaster!”

  Flutter looked from one fairy to another, not understanding. “Why?” she asked. “Who is this person anyway?” She coughed. “And why does he keep spraying that horrible stuff all around? It smells awful!”

  “He’s a goblin. If humans find out about Fairyland and all the magical creatures who live there, then the fairies will be in danger,” Kirsty said. “People might try to catch them and put them in zoos or museums. . . . It would be terrible.”

  Isabella shivered when she heard that. Her wings trembled. “We can’t let that happen,” she insisted. “Thank goodness this part of the park is empty and there’s no one here to see him.” She turned to Flutter. “The goblin stole my magic wand. And to answer your other question, I have no idea why he’s spraying those cans. Maybe I should ask him.”

  With that, the little fairy impulsively flew from the branch and zoomed straight toward the goblin.

  Kirsty and Rachel followed their fairy friend.

  “Hey!” Isabella called out. She was hovering a safe distance from the goblin, her hands on her hips. “What on earth are you doing, spraying that air freshener everywhere?”

  The goblin puffed out his chest. “I’m being green, of course,” he said. “I’m getting rid of air pollution by making the air fresh.”

  Isabella stared at him. “No, you’ve got it all wrong,” she said. “People use air freshener inside buildings — to cover up bad smells.” She folded her arms across her chest. “Although, frankly, they should just open a window. That will help clean the air, not just hide the stinky smell.”

  The goblin looked annoyed.

  “You’re the one who’s got it wrong,” he said. “I’m a good reader and I know what it says on these cans: Air Freshener.” He pointed at each word as he read it, and an expression of pride spread across his face.

  “My plan is working very well,” he bragged. “The air smells really nice now.”

  Isabella narrowed her eyes. “But air freshener isn’t natural. It’s made of hundreds of chemicals. With all your spraying, you’ve released those chemicals into the air. Eventually, those same chemicals will soak down into the earth. They could really hurt the soil and plants.”

  The goblin looked huffy. “Keep your nose out of my business,” he warned. “Or I’ll make you smell a little nicer!” Then he aimed the can right at the fairies, and ran toward them, spraying thick clouds of air freshener in their direction!

  “Quick!” Rachel yelled. “Take cover!”

  She and her friends dove into some nearby bushes, where the leaves would protect them from the spray.

  “The chemicals in that stuff could damage our wings,” Isabella said anxiously. “That goblin is a real pest!”

  “Yes, he’s a nuisance, isn’t he?” came a little voice from behind them. The three fairies and Flutter turned. Flutter let out a gasp of delight.

  There was a whole crowd of butterflies in the bushes, all with bright wings and friendly faces!

  “Hello,” said a butterfly with pale yellow wings at the front of the pack. “Nice work trying to stop that green guy. He’s been spraying those cans all day — that’s why we’re hiding in here.” She wiggled her anten
nae at Flutter. “Haven’t seen you around here before. My name’s Goldie. And this is Shimmer, Flit, Willow . . .”

  Flutter was delighted to meet all the butterflies. She bobbed a happy little hello to each of them. “I’m Flutter, and this is Isabella, Rachel, and Kirsty. Oh, it’s wonderful to see all of you!” she cried. “I’ve been so lonely.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, too.” Flit smiled. She had striking red and blue markings. “Aren’t you an unusual color? I’ve never seen a gray butterfly before.”

  Flutter’s antennae drooped. “My wings look really boring next to all of yours,” she said in a small voice. “I wish I was colorful, too.”

  A cornflower-blue butterfly put a kindly wing around Flutter. “I think your gray wings are very stylish,” she said. “And we all know that it’s what’s on the inside that counts.”

  “Yes, that’s true,” said Goldie. “Will you stay with us for a while, Flutter? You’d be very welcome. This park is usually a lovely place to live — although not at the moment, unfortunately. What is that green fellow doing?”

  They peeked out to see that the goblin was still squirting air freshener up into the sky, in big fragrant clouds.