Cassidy the Costume Fairy Read online

  It wasn’t hard to find them. The goblins were squabbling so loudly that it was easy to follow the sound of their voices. The three friends flew down a spiral stone staircase and into the Hall of Mirrors — a long rectangular room with mirrors of all shapes and sizes lining the walls. Princess Goblina was admiring his many different reflections. “I look so handsome in this tiara,” he said.

  The guard goblin scowled. “Hurry up, we need to go. Jack Frost trusted me to look after that tiara. He’ll be furious if we don’t find a safe place for it,” he grumbled.

  “Just wait,” Princess Goblina snapped. “And stop whining! I’ve got to make sure it’s on properly.”

  Rachel, Kirsty, and Cassidy flew in quietly, staying close to the ceiling in the hope that the goblins wouldn’t notice them. They knew that if Cassidy could get close enough to the princess goblin, she could use magic to change the tiara to fairy-size and take it back.

  But before the fairies could get any closer, the guard goblin caught sight of their reflections in one of the mirrors. His eyes widened in alarm and he spun around. “Fairies!” he gasped. “Run, Goblina, run!”

  The princess goblin scampered out of the room, one hand protectively clutching the tiara on his head. His sneakers slapped against the tiled floor as he ran.

  Kirsty, Rachel, and Cassidy tried to fly after him, but the guard goblin swatted at them with his big green hands. “Come here, you pesky fairies,” he said, snatching at thin air as he tried to grab them. “You’re not getting that tiara — I won’t let you!”

  The fairies dodged and swerved around the guard’s flailing hands. They eventually managed to zoom out of the Hall of Mirrors and chase the princess goblin. They heard his loud footsteps go up the spiral staircase again. Then all went quiet.

  “He stopped,” Cassidy said in surprise. “Unless he took off his shoes?”

  Kirsty suddenly remembered how much the goblin had enjoyed sitting on the throne earlier, and how she’d had to wait for him to get up. “I wonder if he went back to the Throne Room,” she suggested.

  The fairies flew along the hallway and peeked around the door of the Throne Room. Sure enough, the goblin was sitting on the throne once again, pretending to wave to a crowd of people.

  “Good morning, everyone,” they heard him say in a high-pitched voice. “Your princess is pleased to see so many admirers.”

  Rachel had to cover her mouth to stop herself from giggling.

  Kirsty looked thoughtful. “If we can keep him sitting there long enough, we might be able to fly above his head and get the tiara,” she said. “But we’d need him to be distracted, so he wouldn’t notice.”

  Cassidy nodded. “Yes,” she said. “What can we do to make sure he stays on the throne?”

  Kirsty reached up to scratch her head, forgetting for a moment that her jester’s hat was there. Then she smiled. “I could be a jester,” she said. “A real jester, entertaining Princess Goblina!”

  “Perfect,” Rachel said with a grin. “And while he’s watching you, Cassidy and I can grab the tiara!”

  They all thought this was a good idea. Cassidy turned Kirsty back to human-size and had just enough magic left to give her a real jester costume. Then Kirsty strolled out in front of the goblin while Cassidy and Rachel flew to hide behind a silk screen.

  “Good day, your highness,” Kirsty said, bowing low. “I am your court jester, here to entertain you.”

  The goblin’s eyes widened with excitement. “Ooh! I feel just like a real princess now,” he said, clapping his hands together.

  Kirsty took out her juggling balls and began juggling. To make things more fun, she purposely threw one ball to bounce off her head, and caught another on her foot. She comically hopped around while still juggling the last two balls in the air.

  Just then, the guard goblin rushed in. He opened his mouth to say something to the princess — but burst out laughing when he saw Kirsty’s antics. The princess goblin was laughing, too, in a very un-princesslike manner — cackling and snorting with tears rolling out of his eyes.

  Then Kirsty whipped off her hat and tossed each ball into the air. She ran to catch them in her hat, skidding across the polished floor and making funny faces. Once all the balls were in her hat she put it on her head . . . and of course, the balls fell right out, bouncing in all directions!

  Princess Goblina cracked up again, and the guard goblin was laughing so hard he had to clutch his sides.

  Rachel and Cassidy exchanged glances. “Let’s grab the tiara!” Rachel whispered. “Come on!”

  They zoomed through the air toward Princess Goblina, whose shoulders were shaking with glee. But at the last moment, the guard goblin spotted the fairies, and immediately stopped laughing. “Goblina!” he yelled. “Duck!”

  Princess Goblina looked up in horror, saw the fairies approaching, and ducked out of their way. But clever Rachel remembered she still had her trusty broomstick. Sir Beaumont — or actually, Lady Rachel — to the rescue once again!

  She lunged forward, stretching the broomstick out in front of her so she could reach the tiara with its tip. Then she expertly flicked the tiara off the goblin’s head and sent it flying through the air. She and Cassidy soared down, catching hold of it seconds before it clattered to the floor. As soon as Cassidy touched the tiara, it shrank to its usual fairy size, and she joyfully placed it on her head.

  “Hooray!” she cheered, fluttering high into the air. Colorful sparkles of magic burst all around her. “Oh, that feels so much better!”

  Rachel flew up after her, and Kirsty grinned. The plan had worked perfectly!

  Meanwhile, the goblins argued about whose fault it was that they’d lost the tiara. Kirsty, Rachel, and Cassidy slipped out of the Throne Room and left them bickering.

  Outside, Cassidy waved her wand to turn Rachel back to her ordinary size — and Rachel gasped when she saw that she was now wearing the most fantastic knight costume ever! “Oh, thank you, Cassidy!” she said, smiling as she flipped up the visor on her gleaming silver helmet. “Even Sir Beaumont would be proud of this outfit, I think.”

  “Thank you so much,” Cassidy replied, smiling happily. “Both of you — you were amazing! I’m absolutely thrilled to have my tiara back so that I can use its costume magic again. Your pageant should turn out perfectly this afternoon.”

  “That’s great news,” Kirsty said. “I’m glad we could help you, Cassidy.”

  Cassidy gave each girl a tiny ticklish fairy kiss, then waved good-bye and disappeared in a swirl of sparkling magic. After the last sparkle had faded, the girls went to look for the other kids.

  They found them outside with Caroline and Louis on the main lawn in front of the palace. There was a tent with refreshments, and rows of benches where the parents had gathered to watch. “Look, there’s Mom and Dad!” Kirsty said, waving and smiling at them in the audience. “Come on, let’s ask Caroline what we’re supposed to be doing.”

  Just then, Louis gave a shout when he saw a large box by the side of the tent.

  “Hey, guys, I found the missing costume box,” he said, a smile spreading across his face. “We’ve got swords, armor, kitchen maids’ outfits, princesses’ tiaras. . . . Now we can get you all dressed up properly.”

  “Thank goodness,” Caroline said, helping Louis hand out the props and costumes. “I wonder how that box got down here? It’s almost as if it appeared by magic!”

  She was laughing, but when Kirsty and Rachel spotted a few telltale sparkles twinkling around the box, they smiled at each other. Unknown to Caroline and Louis, Cassidy’s magic really had saved the day. Now the girls could enjoy the pageant, and look forward to helping another fairy tomorrow!

  Rachel and Kirsty found Hope’s and Cassidy’s tiaras. Now it’s time for them to help

  Anya

  the Cuddly Creatures Fairy!

  Join their next adventure in this special sneak peek. . . .

  “Another perfect day!” said Rachel Walker happily. She was
standing in the sunshine on the grand entrance steps of the Golden Palace. Rachel’s best friend, Kirsty Tate, looked up at the sky and smiled as the bright sunbeams warmed her face.

  “It’s royal weather for a royal palace!” Kirsty agreed.

  Kirsty and Rachel were staying at the Golden Palace for a special Royal Sleepover Camp for kids over spring vacation. Today, Kirsty’s mother was bringing Kirsty’s younger cousin Charlie to spend the day with them.

  “I’m looking forward to showing Charlie all the amazing places here,” said Kirsty. “I wonder what he’ll like best. The drawbridge? The moat?”

  “Or the petting zoo, the magic staircases, the dungeons, or the maze,” said Rachel, counting them off on her fingers. “There are so many things to show him, I don’t think one day will be enough!”

  “Staying here really does make me feel like a princess,” Kirsty said, gazing out across the palace gardens.

  “How about a Princess Fairy?” Rachel asked.

  The girls shared a secret smile. They were friends with the fairies who lived in Fairyland, and they often helped them when Jack Frost and his goblins caused trouble. At the moment, the fairies needed their help more than ever before. When the girls had arrived at the Golden Palace, they had been invited to a special ball in Fairyland in honor of the Princess Fairies. But Jack Frost had crashed the party and stolen the princesses’ tiaras!

  “Jack Frost is so mean,” said Kirsty, thinking about the cold-hearted master of the Ice Castle. . . .

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  e-ISBN 978-0-545-43391-4

  Copyright © 2011 by Rainbow Magic Limited.

  Previously published as Demi the Dressing-Up Fairy by Orchard U.K. in 2011.

  All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc., 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012, by arrangement with Rainbow Magic Limited.

  SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc. RAINBOW MAGIC is a trademark of Rainbow Magic Limited. Reg. U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and other countries. HIT and the HIT logo are trademarks of HIT Entertainment Limited.

  First Scholastic printing, August 2012

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