by Kiki Thorpe
Iridessa’s heart pounded with fear. Her body wanted to fly away. But she made herself look closer.
She saw that the beast’s wings resembled the wings of an eagle. Its many legs were long and rangy, like the legs of wolves. And its thick tail whipped unhappily like a trapped snake.
Or many snakes. The butterfly shadows sprang into Iridessa’s mind.
Shadows are not always what they seem.
Suddenly, she understood. This beast wasn’t a monster. It wasn’t even a beast. It was a bunch of lost, trapped shadows. And they needed her help.
There was no time to collect sunbeams. This time Iridessa would have to be the sun.
Iridessa took a deep breath and flared her glow. Bright, brighter, brightest, until she shone like a tiny star.
Then, like a blazing arrow, she flew straight at the heart of the beast.
She heard Gabby cry, “Iridessa! No!” But there was no stopping now. A second later, Iridessa plunged into inky blackness.
Iridessa had never been in darkness so complete. It felt as if a black cloth had been thrown over her, muffling all her senses. Although she knew that she was blazing, she couldn’t see her own light. For a moment, she feared she wasn’t strong enough. Maybe even the power of fairy magic wasn’t enough to help the shadows.
But she had to try!
Iridessa closed her eyes and shone with all her might.
From inside the beast, Iridessa could not see what was happening. But her friends saw. As the fairy’s light pierced the shadows, the shadow beast began to come apart.
The beast’s wings broke away and became the shadow of a hawk. It hovered for a moment, wings spread wide, as if relishing its freedom. Then it soared away into the sky.
The beast’s horns came off next. The shadow of a stag bounded away, kicking its legs high with joy.
The beast’s legs peeled away and became a pack of wolf shadows. They slinked off into the forest, disappearing among the trees.
The shadow beast’s tail broke into the shapes of a dozen snakes. They slithered into holes in the ground and vanished.
One by one, faster and faster, the shadows peeled away. Out came the shadows of rabbits, crows, and raccoons.
Still, Iridessa blazed on. The beast shrank and shrank, until there was only a single shadow left—the shadow of a tiny mouse.
The mouse shadow lifted its head and sniffed the air, as if amazed by this sudden change. Then it scurried off.
The shadows were all gone. Iridessa was left alone, her glow now nothing but a faint gleam.
She wobbled in the air for a second. Then she sank to the ground. Her glow winked out.
* * *
When Iridessa opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Kate, Mia, Lainey, and Gabby leaning over her. Their big faces blocked out the sky.
“She’s awake!” Mia exclaimed.
“Stand back, everybody. Give her some room,” Rosetta commanded. The fairies came buzzing through, clearing the girls out of the way.
Silvermist placed a cool hand on Iridessa’s forehead and asked, “How are you feeling?”
“A little tired,” Iridessa replied. The truth was, she felt as if she could sleep for a hundred years. “How long was I out?”
“Only a few minutes. Here, this ought to make you feel better.” Fawn sprinkled a hefty handful of fairy dust over Iridessa.
At once, Iridessa felt better, stronger. She could feel her glow returning.
“Iridessa!” Kate exclaimed. “That was so cool! You were like—wow!” Kate spread her fingers like the rays of a sun. “And that beast just came apart. How did you know it would do that?”
“The butterflies,” Iridessa said. “When I saw the shadow beast, I guessed maybe the same thing happened—that it was just a bunch of lost shadows. Over the years, different animals must have come through here. When they passed through the arch, they lost their shadows. The shadows grouped together for comfort, and then they couldn’t get apart. I think that’s how the beast came to be.”
Iridessa thought for a moment. Then she added, “I guess shadows don’t really like to be alone. It’s their nature to be attached.”
“I got my shadow back.” Gabby said, stepping forward. Now Iridessa could see Gabby’s shadow standing beside her, like a ghostly twin. “But I can’t figure out how to get it back on.”
“Was your shadow part of the beast, too?” Iridessa asked.
Gabby shook her head. “I thought so at first. But I think my shadow led the beast to us. It knew that we could help.”
“Clever shadow,” Iridessa said. “Just like her girl.”
“What will happen to all those other shadows?” Lainey asked. “Will they find their animals again?”
“Not until the curse is undone,” Fawn said. “At least, that’s what the bats told us.”
“I almost forgot—the magic stone!” Gabby flew up to the top of the arch. They saw her reach under the keystone and feel around.
Her face fell. “It’s not there.”
“Are you sure?” Kate asked.
“I’m sure,” Gabby said. “I can feel a hole, but there’s nothing in it. Whatever was there is gone.”
A groan of disappointment went around the group. “That means someone else got the stone first,” Mia said.
“And I think I know who it could have been,” said Gabby. “Tinker Bell!”
“Tinker Bell?” the others exclaimed in unison.
“Gabby,” Mia said, “didn’t we agree you wouldn’t say anything about Tinker Bell unless you were sure—”
Gabby cut her off. “I’m sure.” Then she turned to look up into the trees. “Hey, come out!” she called. “Don’t be afraid.”
For a moment, nothing happened. Then a small dark shape flitted down from the treetops, darting like a nervous hummingbird. Only when it stopped right in front of them could everyone see it clearly.
“It’s Tink’s shadow!” Iridessa exclaimed with a gasp.
The shadow put a fist on its hip. It cocked its head as if to say, No kidding.
“I’ve seen it before!” Silvermist said, realizing. “On the Lost Coast! I thought I saw a spirit in the fog. But it wasn’t a spirit. It was Tink’s shadow!”
“I saw it, too!” Fawn exclaimed. “That night by the campfire. Tink’s shadow was on the rock. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me.”
Tink’s shadow sighed heavily. If it had had a face, it would have been rolling its eyes.
“It really does look like Tinker Bell,” Rosetta remarked.
“It’s been following us for a long time,” Gabby told them. “I thought it was a moth at first.”
“If Tink lost her shadow, that means she must have come this way, too,” Kate said. “So we’re on the right trail. But where is she now?”
Tink’s shadow shrugged.
“I think that’s why it’s been following us,” Gabby explained. “The shadow is hoping we’ll lead it back to Tink.”
Tink’s shadow nodded.
“But if Tinker Bell really does have the magic stone, why is her shadow here?” Lainey asked. “Shouldn’t it be with her?”
“Something must have happened,” Mia said. “There must be a reason she couldn’t undo the curse.”
Everyone went quiet, thinking about what this could mean. In the silence, Gabby became aware of a faint sound. She lifted her head. “Do you hear that?” she asked.
“I don’t hear anything,” Kate said.
“Wait…listen. I hear it, too,” Mia said. “It sounds like a bell.”
From far off came a slow, rhythmic clanging. The sound was deep and a little sad.
“It’s the sound I heard last night!” Gabby said. She turned to Iridessa. “I wasn’t dreaming. I really did hear it.”
“But what is it?” asked R
osetta.
“Oh!” Mia said. “Look at Tinker Bell’s shadow!”
The sound seemed to have an electric effect on the fairy shadow. It cocked its head and listened, trembling like a leaf in the wind. Its wings moved so fast they were only a blur.
Suddenly, without warning, it darted away.
“Quick! Follow it!” Kate exclaimed.
They scrambled after the shadow. It wasn’t easy to follow, because every time it came to a patch of shade, it disappeared. Then they had to look everywhere until someone spotted it again.
The shadow led them all the way to the edge of the cliff. There it stopped, looking out at the sea.
The girls and fairies skidded to a stop behind it. They peered out at the whitecapped waves. Fog was rolling in, making it difficult to see.
“I don’t understand. Why did her shadow lead us here?” Lainey asked.
They could hear waves crashing on the rocks below. And something else.
“Listen!” Kate cried. “It’s the bell again.” The sound rolled toward them on the wind, slow and sad.
Clang-clang.
Clang-clang.
Standing above the sea, they suddenly made sense of the sound. It was the clang of a ship’s bell. But where was the ship?
They were all looking at the water. So if Gabby hadn’t happened to glance up, she would have missed it. Far off shore, a shape appeared in the fog. At first Gabby thought it was a bird. But as it came closer, she made out the shape of a wooden prow and a tiny sail.
“Look! There!” she pointed.
“It can’t be…,” Kate said.
“It is! It’s a boat!” Lainey cried.
“Not just any boat,” Mia said. “It’s the Treasure!”
The little boat sailed across the rolling fog, like a ship riding the waves. From where they stood on shore, they could just make out a small light on board—a light that could have been a fairy’s glow.
“I see Tink!” Gabby cried. “I really do this time!”
“But what’s she doing way up there?” asked Mia.
Fawn slapped her forehead. “Why didn’t I think of it? We’ve been looking for Tink in the wrong places. We were following the river and looking for her boat along the coast. But Tink doesn’t need water to sail that boat. She has loads of fairy dust! She can fly!”
They watched the tiny boat come closer. It looked as if it was struggling. It was tossed up and down on the wind. Its mast tilted dangerously to one side.
The girls jumped up and down, waving their arms. They yelled Tinker Bell’s name.
But if Tink heard them, she gave no sign. Suddenly, the boat made an abrupt turn and disappeared into a patch of fog.
“Where is she going? Why is she leaving?” Lainey asked.
“Tink! Tink!” they cried louder. But the boat was gone. The sound of the ship’s bell faded away.
“Didn’t she see us?” Gabby cried in dismay.
Iridessa looked troubled. “I had the feeling she did. It seemed as if she turned because she saw us.”
“But we’re her best friends. Why would she run away?” Rosetta asked.
“Well, we’re not going to figure it out standing here,” Kate said, lifting her chin. She looked out at the sea of fog, narrowing her eyes against the wind. “We came here to find Tinker Bell. And that’s what we’re going to do.”
Kate held out her hands. Gabby took one. Lainey grasped the other. Mia took Gabby’s free hand. The fairies joined hands, too. Tink’s shadow hovered close by, as if afraid to be left behind.
“Everybody ready?” Kate asked.
“Ready,” said Mia, Lainey, and Gabby. They squeezed each others’ hands.
“Ready,” said Silvermist, Iridessa, and Rosetta.
“Let’s finish this quest,” Fawn added.
Still holding hands, the girls rose off the cliff and plunged into the swirling mist. This time, no matter what, they were going to find Tink.
Mercedes McAndrew
KIKI THORPE spent much of her childhood reading, daydreaming, and searching for fairies in the forests of Idaho—pastimes that were good training for writing children’s books. She is the author of several books for young readers, including the New York Times bestselling Never Girls series. She lives with her husband and their two children in Denver.
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