Chelsea the Congratulations Fairy Read online

  The crowd cheered, but Rachel and Kirsty couldn’t help feeling nervous as Clare stepped out onto a rock next to the water. She waved to the audience, and the girls waved back, giving her thumbs-up. When Clare spotted them, her face lit up with a huge grin.

  “She doesn’t look worried anymore,” Kirsty whispered.

  Rachel chewed on her straw. “I hope the return of Chelsea’s balloon has given Clare some confidence!”

  As the feeding began, it was clear that Clare and the penguins were a perfect team! The penguins performed every trick that Clare asked, happily gobbling up the fish that she offered them. The penguins splashed in the water, spun on the rocks, and made everyone laugh.

  Rachel sighed in relief. “I think we found Chelsea’s balloon just in time,” she said. “Hopefully Ivy is feeling better about her graduation speech, too.”

  Kirsty cheered as one of the penguins slid across a rock on his belly. “I bet she is,” she said. “And I bet her speech is going to be perfectly magical!”

  “What a beautiful spot for a graduation!” Kirsty said as she and Rachel walked into Cove City Park. The park was filled with leafy green trees, colorful flower beds, and sparkling fountains.

  Rachel grinned. “It’s hard to believe we’re right in the middle of a city, isn’t it?”

  Up ahead, Mr. and Mrs. Walker walked alongside Ivy and her parents. “Come on, girls!” Mr. Walker called, pointing to an enormous lawn. “The ceremony is this way!”

  Rachel and Kirsty raced to catch up, and they both gasped in awe as the lawn spread out before them. Rows of white folding chairs faced a huge stage. Just beyond the stage was the glimmering cove, which twinkled beautifully in the afternoon sunlight.

  “Ivy, this place looks perfect,” Rachel said softly, squeezing her cousin’s arm. “I’m so excited for your big day!”

  Ivy smiled, straightening her cap and smoothing the wrinkles out of her long, black graduation gown. “Thanks! I have to go do a sound check so I know how to use the microphone when it’s time for my speech. Wish me luck!”

  The whole family hugged Ivy and waved as she headed to the stage.

  “Well, girls,” Mrs. Walker said, turning to Rachel and Kirsty, “the ceremony doesn’t start for a while yet. The rest of the family will be here later. Do you two want to explore in the meantime? We’ll save some seats.”

  “That sounds great!” Kirsty said. Once the adults had walked away, she turned to Rachel. “Do you want to check out the cove? It looks awfully magical …”

  Rachel winked. “I sure hope it is!”

  As the girls headed past the stage to the waterfront, they couldn’t help noticing all sorts of commotion backstage. People seemed to be running around frantically.

  A loud squeak rang through the air. “The speakers aren’t working right!” someone cried.

  “That’s nothing,” another voice chimed in. “We just found out that Principal Doogan is stuck in traffic—and he has all of the diplomas in his car!”

  Someone else piped up. “Has anyone seen the master list of graduates’ names? It was right here, but now I can’t find it anywhere!”

  Rachel and Kirsty looked at each other in dismay. They knew exactly why everything was going wrong—and they were the only ones who could fix it!

  “We have to find Chelsea’s missing magic diploma,” Rachel whispered urgently. “I don’t even know where to start looking, though.”

  Kirsty sighed. “Queen Titania always says we should let the magic find us … but we don’t have much time. If we don’t track down the diploma soon, Ivy’s graduation ceremony will be an absolute disaster!”

  Rachel and Kirsty left the chaotic stage behind and headed to the waterfront. The cove sparkled in the sunshine. It was so big that the girls could barely see where it opened up into the ocean!

  “Look at all the boats out there,” Rachel said, pointing at sailboats, rowboats, kayaks, and motorboats bobbing on the calm water.

  Kirsty nodded. “And so many people are flying kites on the beach!” The colorful kites sailed overhead, their tails blowing in the breeze. There were kites in every color of the rainbow!

  As both girls peered up, Rachel suddenly squeezed Kirsty’s arm. “Did you see that?”

  “That kite is glimmering a little bit!” Kirsty said excitedly, noticing a beautiful purple kite with multicolored bows on its tail. She turned to Rachel, her eyes shining. “Do you think it could be …?”

  Just then, the kite dipped closer to the ground. The girls squinted to get a better look. Sure enough, they could see a tiny figure perched on the kite, her dark bangs blowing in the breeze.

  “It’s Chelsea!” Rachel cried.

  Chelsea darted through the air so quickly that no one else was able to spot her. Rachel and Kirsty could hear her laugh as she fluttered down and landed lightly on Kirsty’s shoulder.

  “Hi, girls!” the little fairy called out cheerfully, grinning up at them. “I’m so happy to see you again.”

  “We’re happy to see you, too, Chelsea,” Kirsty said, and Rachel used her pinkie finger to give Chelsea a tiny high five.

  The girls made their way to a grassy hill near the water, away from the crowds. “I think we can talk here without anyone seeing us,” Rachel noted. She plucked a fluffy dandelion from the grass, and blew the seeds into the air.

  “Everyone in Fairyland was thrilled to see my magic balloon,” Chelsea reported. “I can’t thank you enough for your help tracking it down!”

  Kirsty frowned. “Things are still all mixed-up here, I’m afraid,” she said. “Ivy’s graduation starts soon, and nothing seems to be going right!” She blew on a dandelion with a frustrated huff.

  Chelsea put her hands on her hips, looking determined. “We have to figure out what those terrible goblins have done with my magic diploma! Where should we start?”

  Rachel and Kirsty both shrugged.

  “I don’t have a clue,” Rachel said, staring down at her hands.

  Kirsty nodded and lay back in the grass with a sigh. “Yeah, why bother? We’ll never find your diploma in time to fix Ivy’s graduation, anyway.”

  Chelsea furrowed her tiny eyebrows and looked at the girls carefully. Suddenly, she snapped her fingers. “This is all because of my missing diploma!” she exclaimed. “It helps people be persistent and see tasks through to the end. Without it, you’re both thinking of giving up.” She tugged on Kirsty’s braid with a twinkle in her eye. “But that’s why I need your help more than ever!”

  Rachel and Kirsty both sat up straight, as though they’d been shocked out of their stupor. Chelsea was right!

  Before either Rachel or Kirsty could say anything, some noise out on the water caught their attention.

  “What’s going on out there?” Chelsea murmured, hovering above Rachel’s head to get a better look.

  The three friends could see a big green boat bobbing in the cove. A group of boys was yelling and laughing as they did cannonballs off the side of the boat into the water. Every time one of them landed, they splashed people in kayaks and canoes all around.

  “How rude!” Kirsty said indignantly.

  Rachel shook her head. “Why would anyone act like that?”

  At that, Chelsea gasped and did an excited tumble in the air. “Not why, WHO!” she said with a wink.

  “Goblins!” Rachel and Kirsty cried together, their faces lighting up.

  The boat was too far away to see if the boys really were goblins or not, but as the girls looked more closely, they noticed a huge flag fluttering off the stern of the boat. It was green … and had a picture of a giant, sneering goblin face on it!

  Kirsty pointed out the flag to Chelsea. “That boat out there definitely belongs to the goblins!”

  “I’ll bet they have my magic diploma,” Chelsea said with a grin. “It’s so close, I can feel it!”

  Rachel stared out at the water, thinking. “But how can Kirsty and I get out there?” she wondered. “We don’t have a boat, and it�
�s too far to swim.”

  The friends were silent for a moment. Then Chelsea clapped her hands in delight. “I have the perfect solution—I’ll turn you both into fairies! Then we can all fly out to the boat together.”

  “Ooh, I love being a fairy!” Rachel said with a happy sigh.

  “Me, too,” Kirsty added. “Let’s do it!”

  With no time to waste, Chelsea murmured a spell under her breath and waved her wand. A shower of purple sparkles rained down on the girls. Before they knew it, they were the same size as Chelsea—and they had lovely, shimmery wings on their backs!

  Kirsty fluttered her wings and smiled as she rose into the air. “This is the best feeling in the world,” she said. “Come on, let’s go!”

  Rachel and Chelsea zipped up behind her as Kirsty darted out across the water. In no time at all, they reached the goblins’ boat. Silently, they landed near the stern of the boat and hid behind the flapping goblin flag.

  Luckily, the goblins were too busy causing chaos to notice them! But before long, the green troublemakers climbed out of the water and lounged lazily in the sun.

  One big-nosed goblin yawned. “This is the life!” He sighed contentedly. “We should do this more often.”

  A goblin in a baseball cap nodded in agreement. “Here, it’s just us. We don’t have to worry about anyone stealing the magic diploma. We can just relax all day and enjoy ourselves!”

  Rachel, Kirsty, and Chelsea all looked at one another and smiled. Not only did the goblins definitely have Chelsea’s magic diploma—but they were also about to get some surprise visitors!

  But where was the diploma? Was it in a goblin’s pocket? Hidden down below the boat deck? It could be anywhere! The fairies scanned the deck frantically, looking for a telltale sparkle.

  Suddenly, Kirsty giggled. “Look!” she whispered, pointing to a goblin leaning over the side of the boat. He was peering out to sea through a telescope.

  “Wait a minute,” Rachel said, catching on. “That’s not a telescope at all … he’s looking through your magic diploma, Chelsea!”

  Rachel, Kirsty, and Chelsea watched the goblin carefully. Whispering, they came up with a plan to get the diploma back. It was risky, but they had to try!

  The three friends took to the air and silently fluttered down near the goblin, who was still peering at the horizon through the diploma. On Chelsea’s sign, all three fairies suddenly began to fly faster and faster! They zipped around the goblin’s head, wings buzzing.

  “Argh!” the goblin cried frantically, swatting them away. “I hate bugs! Shoo! Shoo!”

  Their plan was working—the goblin thought they were bees or flies. They were moving so fast, he had no idea that he was surrounded by fairies!

  There was no time to celebrate, though. Rachel, Kirsty, and Chelsea had to keep ducking, dodging, and swooping as the goblin flapped his hands and tried to knock them away.

  Kirsty dipped under the goblin’s flailing hand just in time, zooming up around his big ears. Whew!

  Seconds later, Chelsea almost crashed into the goblin’s nose when he unexpectedly turned his head! At the last minute, she did a spectacular tumble in the air, up and over his nose. That was close!

  “Whoa!” Rachel cried as the goblin made contact with one of her wings and sent her spiraling out over the side of the boat. For a second, she was totally out of control! Was she going to crash right into the water?

  Flapping her wings as hard as she could, Rachel righted herself and sailed upward. Not a moment too soon, her toes skimmed the surface of the water as she zoomed into the sky. If she hadn’t regained control, her wings would have gotten wet, and she wouldn’t have been able to fly at all! Rachel took a deep breath and rejoined her friends.

  The goblin continued to dance around and swat the air. Nearby, his friends watched from their lounge chairs, laughing at him.

  “Are you scared of a little bee?” one called out.

  Another chuckled. “It looks like you’re no match for those tiny bugs!”

  The goblin flailed wildly, getting more and more frustrated. Finally, he swatted the air so hard that he flung the magic diploma right out of his hand. It went flying overboard!

  “Oh, no! It’s going to land in the water!” Kirsty cried.

  Chelsea darted through the air like a streak of light. “Not if I can help it!” She used her powerful wings to swoop down and scoop up the diploma just before it splashed into the water. As her little hand touched it, the diploma shrank to fairy-size. It was safe at last!

  Once Chelsea had the diploma, Rachel and Kirsty pulled up short and hovered above the goblin’s head, breathing heavily. They were exhausted!

  The goblin’s eyes widened when he realized what had happened. He groaned and shook his fist at the girls. “You pesky fairies again!”

  The other goblins weren’t laughing anymore. In fact, they looked angry! They joined their friend at the railing, peering up at Rachel, Kirsty, and Chelsea.

  “Why can’t you just leave us alone?” one whined.

  Another goblin stomped in frustration. “You’re always getting us in trouble with Jack Frost!”

  Rachel looked at them pointedly. “YOU’RE always taking things that don’t belong to you. That’s not right!”

  The goblins all looked down and scuffed their big feet. They were silent for a moment, before one mumbled, “Jack Frost is mad at us, anyway. This is just going to make it worse.”

  Kirsty couldn’t help feeling a little sorry for the goblins. “Why is he angry with you?” she asked, perching on the railing.

  “He just graduated from his master class in Ice Magic,” explained the goblin who’d dropped the diploma. “We all kind of forgot to congratulate him.”

  Another goblin looked sad. “We didn’t mean to! But he decided that if he wasn’t going to be congratulated for a job well done, no one would. That’s why he stole your magic objects,” he finished, looking at Chelsea and her little diploma with a shrug.

  Chelsea crossed her arms. “Well, I can’t give you the diploma back,” she said. “It’s not fair for Jack Frost to ruin everyone’s special days.”

  “But maybe we can help you cheer him up!” Rachel said suddenly. She grinned. “Why don’t you throw Jack Frost a surprise party at his Ice Castle?”

  Kirsty smiled at her best friend. “That’s a great idea, Rachel! I bet he’ll be so thrilled about the party that he won’t even be mad that you lost the magic diploma,” she told the goblins.

  The goblins began to dance around the boat deck. “I have to admit, you little fairies have some really big ideas!” one of them exclaimed.

  “We just have to decide on a theme,” the big-nosed goblin said. “How about an icy luau?”

  The goblin in the baseball cap rolled his eyes. “That’s a terrible idea! It should clearly be a frosty pirate-themed party.”

  The rest of the goblins all groaned and began yelling at once.

  Chelsea put an arm around each of the girls and giggled. “Typical!” she said. “Come on, let’s get back to the park.”

  With Chelsea in the lead, the three friends darted over the glittering water, leaving the boat full of squabbling goblins behind.

  The fairy friends reached the shore and flitted down to land behind a tree, out of sight. There, Chelsea gave Rachel and Kirsty each a big hug. Then she turned them back to their normal size with a quick flick of her wand.

  “Congratulations, girls!” Chelsea cried, hovering in the air before them and squeezing her diploma to her chest. “You did it! I can’t thank you enough for all your help.” With a wave, she disappeared in a swirl of glittery fairy magic.

  Rachel put an arm around Kirsty’s shoulders. “Another magical mission complete!” she declared.

  But before Kirsty could reply, a big gust of chilly wind blew in from the cove. Both girls shivered! They watched as boats teetered precariously on the water, kites broke from their strings, and the grass took on an icy sheen.

  �
��I don’t like the looks of this,” Kirsty said through chattering teeth.

  A bolt of lightning crashed out of the sky and landed in a stand of trees nearby, making everyone on the beach scatter in fear. Rachel and Kirsty ducked behind a bench, but they knew that it wasn’t real lightning. It was a bolt of ice lightning—and it was carrying Jack Frost!

  “Come on,” Rachel said, heading for the trees. “We need to get Jack Frost back to Fairyland before he ruins Ivy’s graduation—or worse, before anyone spots him!”

  The girls sprinted past the trees … and came face-to-face with Jack Frost. They’d met him many times before, of course, but his icy sneer was always shocking!

  “What are you doing here?” Kirsty demanded, crossing her arms.

  Jack Frost whirled to face her, scowling. “None of your business! I don’t have to tell you pesky girls anything.”

  Rachel stepped forward. “We heard that you graduated from your master class in Ice Magic,” she said gently. “That’s really impressive!”

  “Yeah, well, you’re the only one who thinks so,” Jack Frost huffed, his face softening a little. “No one even bothered to congratulate me. So even though that horrible fairy tricked my goblins into giving back her magic object, I’m here to make sure that this graduation is ruined!” He frowned. “If you want something done right, I guess you just have to do it yourself.”

  Kirsty and Rachel exchanged glances.

  “You know,” Kirsty said carefully, “the goblins were just telling us that they were awfully proud of you.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “We’re not supposed to say anything, but I think they were hoping to celebrate with you at the Ice Castle later today.”