Elle the Thumbelina Fairy Read online

  “Hooray!” Thumbelina shouted, delighted to see the prince. “Now you goblins will be sorry!”

  “No pint-sized prince is going to stop us!” the short goblin shrieked.

  Meanwhile, the three fairies zoomed down toward the goblin with the thumb ring. He wasn’t paying attention to the ring—it would be easy to slip it off his thumb without him noticing. But just as Kirsty was about to grab it, the long-nosed goblin took it. He shoved it onto his thumb and folded his fingers over it.

  “Hey, that’s mine!” the knobby-kneed goblin wailed. “Give it back!”

  The goblins splashed into the shallow stream, shouting and squabbling. They pushed and shoved, dunking one another under the water and spluttering with fury. But the whole time, the long-nosed goblin kept dancing around in front of them.

  “I’m going to live happily ever after!” he taunted in a singsong voice. “You two might as well go marry toads!”

  Snickering and gloating, he danced farther out into the stream. Meanwhile, the prince flew over to the tree stump and put his arms around Thumbelina.

  “I will find a way to save you from these goblins,” he promised.

  “But how?” asked Thumbelina. “They’re so much bigger than us.”

  “Size doesn’t matter,” said Rachel, smiling at the girl. “You’ve got fairies and magic and friendship on your side. I know that we can stop those goblins. We just have to think of a good plan to get the thumb ring back, and then everything will be all right.”

  “I don’t think anything will make the goblins give up the ring,” said Thumbelina. “I’ve been listening to them, and it’s all they talk about.”

  “I have an idea!” Rachel exclaimed. “Rings are really important in fairy tale weddings. We can offer a trade. Elle, could you magically create another ring?”

  Elle waved her wand, and there was a faint magical tinkle as a sparkly green ring dropped onto the tree stump beside them. It glimmered in the sunshine and immediately caught the eye of the long-nosed goblin. He splashed out of the stream and hurried over to it, his arm outstretched.

  “Mine!” he squawked.

  Kirsty seized the ring and flew upward, holding it out of his reach.

  “If you want this, you have to return Elle’s thumb ring first,” she said.

  “Give it!” hollered the goblin, jumping up and down and trying to reach Kirsty. “I want it now!”

  Rachel fluttered up and hovered in front of the goblin.

  “You’re not thinking clearly,” she said. “If you’re going to have a fairy tale wedding, you have to exchange rings with Thumbelina. If Thumbelina gives you the green ring, surely you could give her the thumb ring.”

  The goblin thought about this for a moment, but he still didn’t seem convinced.

  “If I were lucky enough to marry Thumbelina, I would certainly give her a ring,” said the flower prince.

  “Fine,” snapped the goblin. “I’ll give Thumbelina the ring on one condition. We have the fairy tale wedding I’ve always wanted right now!”

  “I’ll do it,” Thumbelina said.

  Thumbelina winked at Rachel and Kirsty.

  “This goblin really wants a fairy tale wedding!” she whispered. “Once he hands me the ring, you can swoop in and grab it.”

  Rachel and Kirsty nodded.

  “Once I have my ring back, your story will go back to normal,” Elle promised.

  Thumbelina and the fairies stood on the tree stump, watching as the goblin smoothed down his bumpy head and put a moth-eaten green tie around his neck.

  “What do you think? Is this fancy enough?” he asked Thumbelina.

  “Sure, you look great,” Thumbelina said, stifling a giggle behind her hand.

  Rachel and Kirsty rolled their eyes.

  “I don’t care,” said the goblin. “I just can’t wait to see the faces of the other goblins in Goblin Grotto when they hear about this!”

  He rubbed his hands together and the flower prince groaned. He couldn’t believe the goblin could be so easily tricked. But then, he hadn’t met many goblins!

  The other two goblins were looking very grumpy. They had found some old vests for the occasion, but they were a pretty tight fit.

  “I will conduct the ceremony,” said Elle, stepping onto the highest point of the tree stump.

  Thumbelina stood in front of her, and the goblin knelt down beside the tree stump.

  “First, you must exchange your rings,” said Elle. “Goblin, give Thumbelina her ring.”

  “Give me my ring first,” demanded the goblin.

  Elle shook her head.

  “You first,” she said. “That’s how it should be done.”

  Grumbling, the goblin took the thumb ring off and placed it in front of Thumbelina. It was much too big for her to wear, but she pushed it toward Elle.

  As soon as the little fairy touched the ring, it shrank to the right size. Elle slipped it onto her thumb and smiled.

  “Hey, that ring’s for Thumbelina!” the goblin protested. “Give it back!”

  Kirsty handed the sparkly green ring to Thumbelina, who held it out to the goblin.

  “This is for you to keep,” she said. “But you’re not getting a fairy tale wedding today. I want to marry the flower prince!”

  With that, she ran into the prince’s arms and the two of them embraced joyfully. Suddenly, bells started to chime all around them. Rachel clapped her hands in delight.

  “They’re bluebells!” she cried.

  “They’re telling all the woodland creatures that there will be a wedding today,” said Elle.

  She waved her wand, and Thumbelina’s dress transformed into a wedding gown made of white rose petals. She wore a cobweb veil, held in place by a golden tiara.

  From all around, woodland animals splashed across the stream to join them on the little island. Soon there was a huge congregation of wedding guests, and nightingales perched in the trees and sang for the happy couple.

  Elle led the ceremony, and Rachel and Kirsty were bridesmaids. The prince and Thumbelina gave each other sparkling dewdrop rings.

  “I now declare you husband and wife!” said Elle.

  “Hooray!” cried Rachel and Kirsty. “Three cheers for Thumbelina!”

  The bluebells started to chime again, and the woodland guests erupted in cheers and applause. Even the goblins celebrated, throwing handfuls of flower petal confetti at Thumbelina and her prince. Tears rolled down the cheeks of the long-nosed goblin, and he blew his nose with a loud trumpeting sound.

  “I love weddings!” he sniffed.

  After the ceremony, there was dancing and a magnificent feast. Rachel and Kirsty wished that their storybook adventure could go on forever, but after a while, Elle fluttered over and put her arms around them.

  “It’s time to go,” she whispered. “Thank you for helping me fix my story.”

  “Thank you for bringing us here,” Kirsty replied.

  Elle raised her wand, and the beautiful woodland scene disappeared in a whoosh of fairy dust. When the sparkles faded, the girls found themselves sitting beside the river at the Storytelling Festival. As usual, no time had passed since they left. The children were still sitting around the book bench, and Alana Yarn was still reading Thumbelina aloud.

  “The toad lived in a swampy stream in the garden,” she said. “He croaked when he saw Thumbelina.”

  Rachel and Kirsty exchanged smiles of relief and happiness. The story was back to normal. They settled back to enjoy listening. When Alana came to the part about Thumbelina and the flower prince getting married, they felt a thrill of excitement.

  “All their woodland friends came to the wedding, and their fairy friends, too,” Alana read.

  “I can’t believe it!” said Rachel in a whisper. “We’re in the story!”

  “It was a wonderful wedding,” said Kirsty. “I’ll never forget it.”

  The best friends smiled at each other, but then Kirsty looked thoughtful.

  “
I wonder which story Jack Frost and the goblins will want to change next,” she said. “I hope that we can get the rest of the magical objects back for the other Storybook Fairies.”

  Rachel thought of the beautiful woodland wedding they had just seen and the magic that Elle had performed. Then she looked around at the rapt faces of the other children.

  “We will,” she said, feeling determined. “Stories are too important to let Jack Frost ruin them!”

  Kirsty Tate was walking along the river path toward the Story Barge, feeling thrilled to her fingertips. She loved books, and the Wetherbury Storytelling Festival was like a dream come true for her. Even better, she was enjoying every moment with her best friend, Rachel Walker, who was staying for the whole weekend.

  “This day just gets better and better,” said Rachel, grabbing Kirsty’s hand. “The Storybook Picnic was amazing, and now we’re going to see a puppet show put on by Alana Yarn. I can’t wait!”

  Alana Yarn was one of their favorite authors. She was running the festival, which was being held in Wetherbury Park. The girls were attending every event they could. They had just come from a giant picnic, where they had eaten food inspired by their favorite stories. There had even been a cake in the shape of a very large storybook.

  “What was your favorite food at the picnic?” Kirsty asked as they reached the Story Barge.

  “I can’t decide,” said Rachel after a moment’s pause. “I loved the Alice in Wonderland EAT ME cupcakes, but the Peter Pan cake pops were delicious, too.”

  They were standing next to the Story Barge now, and there was a sign on the path advertising the show.

  ALANA YARN’S PUPPET SHOW

  COME INSIDE AND GUESS THE STORY

  “Come on!” said Kirsty.

  She stepped onto the creaky old Story Barge. A short ladder led to the upper deck, which was piled with books. Inviting armchairs and plump floor cushions were scattered around. Lots of children were already on board, looking very excited.

  “Let’s find a seat,” said Rachel. “I want to look at all these books.”

  The girls settled down on a large blue cushion, and they were soon sharing a book that they had been longing to read. Just as they finished the first chapter and exchanged happy smiles, a head popped up from the wooden staircase that led down to the lower deck of the barge. It was Alana Yarn.

  “The puppet show is ready,” she announced. “Come on down to the lower deck, everyone. A story is waiting for you!”

  The children made their way downstairs and gathered on large pillows in the middle of the lower deck. At the far end of the deck, Rachel and Kirsty saw a small stage with a tall striped puppet theater and a large trunk. The trunk had a curved lid, decorated with pictures of fairy tale characters. Alana was standing in front of the trunk, and as soon as all the children were sitting down, she lifted the lid.

  “I’d like you to try to guess what story I’m going to tell,” she told the listening children. “Look carefully at the puppets and see if you can figure it out.”

  First, she took out a large hand puppet of a girl with long blond hair. Then she placed some props on the stage.

  Copyright © 2016 by Rainbow Magic Limited.

  All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920. 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.

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  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  ISBN 978-1-338-05495-8

  First edition, March 2017

  Cover design by Angela Jun

  e-ISBN 978-1-338-05496-5

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