Lindsay the Luck Fairy

  Around the fairies, my magic cowers.

  I seem weak against their powers.

  When I battle them I sometimes get stuck,

  But I’m just a guy with lots of bad luck.

  The goblins are about to change my ways.

  They’ll bring an end to my unlucky days.

  They’ll steal a coin, a shamrock, and a hat.

  Then I’ll be lucky — imagine that!

  With Lindsay the Luck Fairy’s lucky pieces,

  My magic power only increases.

  My chilling spells will be so strong,

  I’ll take over Fairyland before too long!

  Find the hidden letters in the clovers throughout this book. Unscramble all 8 letters to spell a special lucky word!

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Map

  Poem

  Hat Trick

  Trip to Toberton

  Something Shiny

  Toberton Town Hall

  A Path of Prints

  Unlucky Keep Away

  Lost and Found Luck

  A Classic Castle

  Wildflower Watch

  Double Chase

  A Clever Clue

  A Charming Poem

  Good as Gold

  A Morning Mix-up

  Mushroom Mania

  Greedy Goblins

  A Race to the Rainbow

  A Magical Wish

  Teaser

  Also Available

  Copyright

  Trip to Toberton

  Something Shiny

  Toberton Town Hall

  A Path of Prints

  Unlucky Keep Away

  “I’m so glad you could come with us,” Rachel Walker said to her best friend, Kirsty Tate. “I always have more fun when we’re together.”

  “Me, too,” Kirsty said. She grabbed Rachel’s hand in the backseat of the car and smiled. The girls always shared such amazing adventures!

  This time, they were headed to Toberton, a small village several hours from Rachel’s house. Mrs. Walker was going to a convention at the Toberton Hotel over the weekend for work, and everyone else was coming along to enjoy the country air.

  “You’ll find a lot to do around Toberton, girls,” Mrs. Walker said from the front seat. “When I was little, I stayed in a cottage there with my family. It’s beautiful.”

  “That’s not what you said when you first read the invitation to the convention. You said Toberton was spooky!” Mr. Walker remarked with a laugh.

  “That’s not exactly true,” Mrs. Walker corrected him, smiling. She turned and looked into the backseat. “My brothers, who were much older, told me the woods were haunted with fairies, goblins, and leprechauns. I was so young that I believed them. I even imagined seeing green shadows hiding in the trees. It’s silly, I know.”

  Rachel and Kirsty didn’t think it sounded silly at all! The two girls knew that fairies and other magical creatures were real. In fact, they were friends with the fairies! The girls had assisted the fairies on many occasions. Whenever Jack Frost and his naughty goblins had evil plans, the king and queen of Fairyland asked Rachel and Kirsty for help.

  “While Mom is in her meetings, we can explore the town and the nearby landmarks,” Mr. Walker said from the driver’s seat. “I’ll bet there are some great wildflowers in the woods, too.”

  Kirsty and Rachel smiled at each other. Mr. Walker really liked flowers and wildlife.

  “Don’t forget that I have tomorrow afternoon off,” Mrs. Walker added. “And if everything goes as planned with my speech, I can join you for the festival on Sunday.”

  Today was only Friday, but Sunday was St. Patrick’s Day, and there would be a festival in the center of town to celebrate. The girls couldn’t wait!

  “It sounds like we’ll be busy,” Kirsty said, grinning with excitement.

  “How long until we get there?” Rachel asked.

  “Well, we would be there already, if we hadn’t had to turn around,” said Mrs. Walker.

  “Don’t worry, dear. We should still make it on time,” Mr. Walker said.

  Rachel bit her lip. Her mom had lost her glasses, and they’d had to go back home to get her other pair. Then they had run into a lot of traffic. Now they were running really late. What bad luck!

  As soon as they pulled into the hotel’s circular driveway, Mrs. Walker jumped out of the car and rushed inside. Mr. Walker opened the trunk and handed each girl her own duffel bag. Then he grabbed the bag that he and Mrs. Walker shared. As he slammed the trunk closed, Rachel thought she saw something flash by in a shimmery glow.

  “Did you see that?” Rachel whispered to Kirsty.

  Kirsty looked around and shook her head. “No,” she answered.

  Rachel frowned. “It was probably nothing.”

  They walked into the hotel lobby, which had high ceilings and deep red curtains and carpets. “I’m excited to stay here. It’s so fancy,” Kirsty said, looking around with wide eyes.

  “Yeah, but look at those dirty footprints,” Rachel said, giggling. There was a muddy trail right in front of the check-in desk.

  Before Kirsty could say anything, Mrs. Walker approached them. “Sorry, girls. The hotel lost our reservation, and there aren’t any open rooms here,” she said with a frown.

  “We’ll have to go to the inn across town,” Mr. Walker added. Rachel thought for a minute. “But the conference is here.”

  “I know. It’s very unlucky,” Mrs. Walker agreed. They all took their bags back out to the car. As Mr. Walker opened the trunk, Rachel saw the same shimmer again.

  Kirsty grabbed Rachel’s hand. “I saw it, too,” she whispered, pulling her friend to the side. “Rachel, I think it was a fairy!”

  “Oh, I hope it is a fairy!” Rachel said. “But where did she go?”

  “I’m not sure,” Kirsty said in a hushed voice. “We have to find her.”

  “Girls, I’m going to head into a meeting. You can take the bags to the inn with Dad,” Mrs. Walker suggested, waving and going into the hotel.

  “All right. Let’s go!” Rachel’s dad called.

  Kirsty gave Rachel a meaningful look.

  “Dad, could we walk over to the inn? I need to stretch my legs,” Rachel said. “We were in the car forever!”

  Mr. Walker thought it over. “I guess that’s okay. It’s just on the other side of the Town Green.” He gave Rachel a kiss and squeezed Kirsty’s shoulder. “Just be careful and stick together!”

  As soon as he had given them the address and pulled out of the driveway, Rachel and Kirsty started searching for a fairy. “Hello?” Kirsty whispered.

  “Down here,” a sweet, tinkling voice rang out.

  Rachel scanned the ground until she saw a tiny fairy hidden in the spotted green ferns planted in front of the hotel. It was hard to see her because she was wearing a white and bright green dress that blended into the plants! “Hello,” Rachel said, bending down. “I’m Rachel, and this is Kirsty.”

  “Oh, I’m so glad!” the fairy exclaimed. Her bright green eyes were filled with relief. “I was trying to find you, but I was chased by a bee and then I got locked in your trunk. It was all very unlucky. Finding you is the only lucky thing that’s happened to me all day.” She nervously twisted her red hair around her finger. “I’m not used to unlucky things happening. After all, I’m Lindsay the Luck Fairy!”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Lindsay,” Kirsty and Rachel said together. It was always fun to make a new fairy friend!

  “It’s wonderful to meet the two of you.” Lindsay curtsied. “You’re just who I was hoping to find. I need your help!”

  “What’s the matter?” Kirsty asked. “How can we help?”

  “Jack Frost is
causing trouble again,” Lindsay explained. “This time, he sent his goblins to steal my three good-luck charms: a gold coin, a shamrock, and a black bowler hat with a green ribbon.”

  Rachel and Kirsty both frowned. Jack Frost again!

  “My charms are in charge of luck, both in the fairy and the human worlds,” Lindsay told them. “They make sure there is plenty of good luck to go around! The hat controls the luck of sports and games. The shamrock affects the luck of losing and finding things, and the gold coin is in charge of the luck that helps things go just as planned.”

  “Oh! Now I know why Mom lost her glasses,” Rachel said. “That was very unlike her.”

  “And it explains why the hotel didn’t save a room for us,” Kirsty added.

  “And why we ran into bad traffic that made us late,” Rachel said. It didn’t take the girls long to realize what a mess the world would be if they didn’t help Lindsay!

  “Jack Frost wants to control my charms himself. With all that luck, he could take over all the magic in Fairyland!” Lindsay buried her face in her hands.

  “Don’t worry, Lindsay. We’ll help you,” Rachel assured her. “Do you have any idea where your charms are now?”

  “I was outside watering my shamrock patch when I heard the goblins running away from my cottage. All at once, an icy blue blast of magic surrounded the goblins and they disappeared.” Lindsay shook her head. “Then I heard an awful laugh. It was Jack Frost! He gave me a wicked smile and said, ‘My goblins have your good-luck charms, my dear. You won’t be able to find them in the human world. Without those charms, you’ll have no luck at all!’ before he disappeared. And he’s right, I don’t have good luck anymore — only bad luck!”

  Rachel and Kirsty looked at each other sadly. Poor Lindsay!

  “We’ll help you,” Kirsty told their new fairy friend. “Don’t worry!”

  Rachel nodded. “Do you think your good-luck charms are close by? Have you seen any goblins?” she asked.

  “I can feel that the charms are close, but I haven’t seen a single goblin,” Lindsay answered, shrugging and looking glum. “I don’t even know where to start looking.”

  “Well, let’s explore the town and let the magic come to us,” Kirsty suggested. It was the same advice that the fairy queen had given the girls on their first fairy adventure, and it had always worked!

  Lindsay tucked herself into the roomy pocket of Kirsty’s wool jacket, and the three friends headed off.

  The Toberton Town Green was a beautiful park in the middle of the town. There were playgrounds and ball fields as well as large, grassy areas for picnics. A small gazebo, a wishing well, and a wooded area dotted the far end of the green. It seemed like it was usually a lovely, peaceful place — but not today. Today, the park was full of kids, and they were all arguing.

  “Hey, that’s not fair!” a kid with a basketball yelled.

  “It is too fair. You’re just unlucky,” a boy wearing high-top sneakers said, snatching the ball away.

  “You cheated!” a little girl playing hopscotch nearby cried.

  “It’s not my fault your stone landed there,” another girl said, hands on her hips. “You have bad luck.”

  At once, Kirsty and Rachel knew what the problem was. Lindsay’s magic hat was missing! It was in charge of making sure there was plenty of good luck in games and sports. “It sounds like lots of people are having bad luck,” Rachel said thoughtfully.

  “And no one is being a good sport,” Kirsty agreed. “We need to find the magic hat before things get any worse.”

  Looking around, they noticed a tall, old building on the corner of the green. “Look, it’s the Toberton Town Hall,” Kirsty said, pointing. “Maybe we should go in there. We might get some ideas for where to look, since there’s sure to be information about the town inside.”

  Rachel agreed, and they headed up the cobblestone walk.

  “Girls, girls!” It was Lindsay, calling from Kirsty’s pocket.

  Kirsty carefully pulled open her pocket. “What is it, Lindsay?” she asked. Was something wrong?

  “Did you hear those footsteps? It sounded like someone ran right past us,” the little fairy explained.

  Rachel and Kirsty shook their heads.

  “We didn’t see anything,” Rachel said.

  “Or hear anything,” Kirsty added.

  “Hmm, that’s strange,” Lindsay said. “Well, keep your eyes — and ears — open. Just in case.”

  “We will,” Kirsty and Rachel reassured her as they walked into the hall. The inside of the building looked very old. The walls were made of large stones, and the only light came streaming through colorful stained-glass windows. There was a big room with an arched ceiling straight ahead of them. It was filled with long wooden benches and a podium.

  “This must be where they have the town meetings,” Rachel said. “A lot of people could fit in here.”

  “But it’s empty now,” Kirsty added, looking around. “Hello! Is anyone here?” she called out. Her words echoed back from the high ceiling.

  “If there isn’t anyone here, then I’m coming out for some fresh air.” Lindsay flew out of Kirsty’s pocket, soared up in a fancy figure eight, and landed on a large green-tinted statue.

  “Hey, look at that,” Rachel said. “It looks like a statue of a leprechaun.”

  “It is,” Kirsty confirmed, reading from a plaque. “His name’s Toby. He’s Toberton’s town leprechaun.”

  “Is he wearing a bowler hat, Lindsay?” Rachel asked. The statue had on a classic hat with a brim that curled up. A wide ribbon wrapped around the base of the hat.

  “Yes, he is! It looks just like my good-luck charm.” Lindsay sighed. Suddenly, she looked around in alarm. “Did you hear that?” she whispered.

  “No,” Rachel admitted.

  “It sounded like someone laughing,” Lindsay said, fluttering to land on Rachel’s shoulder. “I’m sure of it. And that someone is very close.”

  The girls looked at each other. Was Lindsay hearing things?

  “We believe you, Lindsay,” Rachel said. “But I wonder why you can hear the laughter and we can’t?”

  “I don’t know,” Lindsay said, peering around in confusion.

  “Well, let’s search. Maybe we can figure out where the laugh came from,” Kirsty suggested. She knew that they were all thinking it might be a goblin. Those horrible goblins were cackling all the time!

  They started searching the main room. As the friends looked around, the girls found some brochures for things to do in Toberton. They picked up a few to share with Rachel’s parents. Then the three friends split up to look in the hallways and the smaller rooms of the town hall.

  “Rachel, Lindsay! Come quick! I found something,” Kirsty called.

  Rachel came running. She found Kirsty bent down, looking at something close to the front door.

  “Footprints!” Rachel gasped. “Just like the ones at the hotel.”

  “Maybe they belong to a goblin,” Lindsay thought out loud. “And maybe that goblin has my lucky hat! Let’s hurry!”

  They followed the muddy path out the door and ran along the sidewalk, looking ahead to see if they could find whoever made the muddy footprints. Then, all at once, the footprints stopped.

  “That’s funny,” Kirsty said. “The path ends right here. It’s almost like magic.”

  The three friends scanned the sidewalks and the town green. They didn’t see anyone who could have made the footprints, but they did see a lot of disappointed kids. The kids were having very bad luck playing their games and sports.

  “I feel so bad for them,” Lindsay said, covering her eyes with her hands. “I can’t even watch. It makes me too sad.”

  “Then you should watch that team over there,” Rachel said, pointing. “They have great soccer skills, and they seem to have good luck, too.” Rachel admired the players for a minute before realizing something. “Hold on …”

  “They are good,” Kirsty said.

 
; “And they’re goblins!” Rachel added.

  The team was all wearing warm-up suits with the hoods up over their heads. Extra-large sneakers covered their big feet, but their green hands and noses stuck out and gave them away.

  “If they’re playing that well, then they must have my lucky hat,” Lindsay decided. The three friends watched the soccer game closely. A girl from the other team made a great soaring kick. The ball headed straight for the goal. But at the last moment, the ball seemed to swerve around the goal and land just outside the net. What horrible luck! When the goalie ran over to grab the ball, he cackled.

  “He’s a goblin, too,” Kirsty said.

  “And he’s wearing my lucky hat under his hood!” Lindsay cried.

  “We have to get it!” Rachel declared, taking off across the green at full speed.

  As she ran down the hill, she stumbled into a somersault. She began to roll faster and faster until she was out of control!

  Rachel rolled to a dizzy stop at the bottom of the hill. Lindsay and Kirsty hurried to catch up with her, but Kirsty tripped on her shoelace and landed right on top of Rachel.

  “Ouch.” Kirsty groaned. “Are you okay, Rachel?”

  “I think so,” Rachel answered.

  “I’m sorry, girls. That’s more bad luck,” Lindsay said as her friends stood up.

  Kirsty sighed. “And we aren’t even playing a game.”

  “Oh, yes you are,” a gruff voice came from the nearby soccer field. It was a goblin, the tall one wearing Lindsay’s special hat. “The game is called Keep Away, and we’re keeping the hat away from you. You’re so unlucky, you’ll never get it!”