“Well, not all of you are pretty,” Rachel said. She pointed to one of the goblins. “You look scary. In fact, you might be the scariest one.”
The goblin looked proud. “Of course! I’m the scariest of all!”
The other goblins didn’t like that.
“No, I’m the scariest!”
“No, it’s me!”
“Nobody is scarier than I am!”
The goblins started to argue.
Soon they were shoving and wrestling each other, just like they had done in the market.
Rachel nudged Kirsty. “They’re distracted. Let’s run!”
Rachel and Kirsty ran right past the fighting goblins. The goblins were so busy arguing, they didn’t even notice!
“Now we have to find Emma before the other goblins do,” Rachel said.
The girls scanned the field. A few rows away, they saw the butterflies hovering over a small daffodil patch.
“Over there!” Kirsty cried.
The girls ran toward the butterflies. They spotted a small group of goblins running from the other direction.
Kirsty tried to run faster. “They’re going to beat us there!”
“Maybe we can stop them,” Rachel said.
“How?” Kirsty asked.
Rachel quickly bent and scooped up an Easter egg from under a daffodil leaf. It looked gray and smelled bad.
Kirsty did the same. Their baskets were filled with rotten eggs by the time they reached Emma.
Emma turned her head and waved when she saw them. “I found it!” the fairy called out. “One of the magic eggs!”
The girls saw a white egg perched in the center of a daffodil. It had a picture of a colorful Easter egg painted on it and sparkled with fairy magic.
But two of the goblins had already reached Emma.
“I’ll take that!” one of them said, grabbing for the egg. Rachel nodded at Kirsty. “Now!” The girls pelted the two goblins with rotten eggs. The eggs broke as they hit the goblins, splattering them with smelly goo.
“Oh, no!” one of them yelled.
“Yuck!” shouted the other. “It’s slimy and cold. This is even worse than having chilly, wet feet!”
They ran off, leaving the magic egg inside the flower.
Kirsty hurried to the daffodil and picked up the egg. Emma fluttered down next to her, smiling widely.
“Good work, girls!” she cheered. “You did a great job getting rid of those goblins.” Emma turned to the butterflies. “Thank you for your help!”
The butterflies flew away across the field in a blur of beautiful colors.
Kirsty looked down at the egg in her hand. “This is the magic egg that makes Easter eggs bright and beautiful, isn’t it?”
Emma nodded. “Yes! I should get it back to Fairyland quickly, before any more goblins show up to cause trouble.” The fairy waved her wand over the magic egg. The egg shrank down to its fairy-size. Then it floated up and landed in Emma’s palm.
“I’ll be back soon,” Emma told the girls. “We still have one more magic egg to find.”
“And the Easter Bunny, too,” Rachel added.
Emma nodded, blowing each girl a kiss. She flapped her wings, and the air around her sparkled and shimmered. Then she vanished.
Just then, the three little kids they’d seen earlier came running back to Rachel and Kirsty. They looked angry.
“There you are,” said the little girl who had been crying. “You told us there were nice eggs over there. But we didn’t find any! Just these!”
She held out her Easter basket. It was filled with gray and brown eggs.
“They’re all yucky!” complained the little boy next to her. He crossed his arms in front of him.
At that moment, a beautiful rainbow appeared over the field. Everyone began to ooh and ahh as they peered up at the sky. The rainbow colors sparkled over the whole field of daffodils.
Rachel and Kirsty looked at each other.
“Do you think it’s fairy magic?” Rachel whispered.
“I think so,” Kirsty said, gazing around the field. “Look!”
The gray and brown eggs in the field were changing color right before their eyes! Now they were bright pink, yellow, and blue, with colorful polka dots and swirly designs.
“Your eggs look very nice to me,” Kirsty told the little girl.
The three kids looked inside the Easter basket and gasped.
“They’re so pretty!” the girl cried.
The little boy’s eyes were wide when he looked back up at Kirsty. “You must be magic!”
Kirsty grinned. “It’s the magic of Easter,” she said.
“There are pretty eggs all over the field now,” Rachel told them. “You should go find more.”
“Hooray!” the kids cheered, running off happily.
“We should get some eggs, too,” Kirsty said, turning back to Rachel. “Our parents will wonder why we don’t have any if we come back empty-handed.”
Rachel looked worried. “I hope there are some left for us!”
The girls raced through the field once again. Now that they didn’t have to worry about goblins, it was fun looking for the Easter eggs.
Rachel found a purple one with yellow stars tucked under a daffodil. Kirsty found an orange egg with blue flowers all over it. Each egg they found was nicer than the last.
“Emma’s Easter magic is amazing!” Rachel said. “These are the most beautiful eggs I’ve ever seen.”
“Me, too!” Kirsty agreed.
When there were no more eggs on the field, the girls met up with their parents at the starting line.
“There you are,” said Kirsty’s mom. “How did you do?”
Kirsty held up her basket. “We found lots of nice ones!”
Rachel’s mom joined them. “Are you sure?” she asked. “Some of the kids were complaining that their eggs were rotten.”
Mrs. Tate looked around. “That’s funny. All of the eggs look fine to me.”
Rachel and Kirsty smiled at each other. The magic egg was doing its work! All of the Easter eggs were bright and beautiful again.
“What do you say we head home for some lunch?” Mrs. Tate asked. “I’ll make egg salad.”
“Yum!” the girls said at the same time.
They rode home in the back of the Tates’ car, past the stores in Wetherbury. Through the market window, Rachel and Kirsty could see Mr. Hopper selling a carton of eggs to a customer. The store owner had a happy smile on his face.
“Looks like Mr. Hopper’s shipment of eggs came in,” Kirsty remarked.
“Just in time!” Rachel added.
Then they passed the pet shop. The sign on the door read OPEN.
“I thought the pet shop was closed for vacation,” Kirsty said.
“I thought so, too,” said Mrs. Tate from the front seat.
“Mrs. Gilligan went to stay with her daughter, who lives by the beach. Maybe she got somebody to watch the store for her.”
That seemed a little strange to Kirsty. She thought about it for the rest of the car ride. She brought it up when she and Rachel were eating their egg salad sandwiches at the picnic table outside.
“I’ve been thinking about the pet shop,” Kirsty began.
Rachel nodded her head eagerly. “Me, too!” she said. “Emma got that magical feeling every time we passed it.”
“And it’s strange that it was closed for Easter vacation, but now it’s open,” Kirsty added.
“Strange or magical?” Rachel asked, taking a bite of her sandwich.
“Good question,” Kirsty said thoughtfully.
“We should go back to the pet shop after lunch,” Rachel suggested.
“That’s a good idea,” Kirsty agreed. “But I think my parents have more Easter plans for us.”
“We have to fìnd a way,” Rachel said, lowering her voice. “If we don’t track down the last missing egg and the Easter Bunny, everyone’s Easter plans will be ruined!”
“Mom, what a
re we doing this afternoon?” Kirsty asked after lunch.
Mrs. Tate smiled. “Mr. and Mrs. Harrison are inviting people to visit Strawberry Farm today,” she said. “There were lots of animals born this spring, and we’ll get to meet them.”
“Oh, baby animals are so cute!” Rachel exclaimed, grinning. “Will there be lambs?”
Kirsty’s mom nodded. “And goats, and calves, and baby ducks, too.”
Going to the farm sounded like a lot of fun. But Kirsty and Rachel were worried. They had to find the last missing magic egg and the Easter Bunny by the end of the day. If they didn’t, Easter wouldn’t be the same!
“Do Rachel and I have time to take a walk first?” Kirsty asked.
Mrs. Tate looked at the kitchen clock. “We’re leaving for the farm at two o’clock, so you have a little bit of time. Go out and enjoy the beautiful day!”
Kirsty nodded to Rachel, and the girls stepped outside into the bright sunshine.
“Now we’ll have time to check out the pet shop,” Kirsty said.
“I have a good feeling that we’ll find something important there,” Rachel added. “There must be a reason why Emma got a magical feeling every time we walked past that place.”
Kirsty looked around. “Emma? Are you here?”
The Easter Fairy appeared in a sparkly spray of fairy dust. “King Oberon and Queen Titania were so happy that we found the second magic egg!” she cried, twirling through the air. “They told me to thank you both.”
“We’re glad to help,” Kirsty said, smiling at her fairy friend. “And we have an idea. We’re going back to the pet shop in town. We think something strange is happening there.”
“I’ll come with you,” Emma told them, suddenly looking serious.
Emma flew into Kirsty’s pocket and the friends hurried to the pet shop together. As they turned the corner onto High Street, Emma suddenly spoke up.
“Look! Up there! It’s an egg!”
Emma pointed to a crook in the branch of a tree right next to the pet shop. The girls could see something sparkly and white there.
Emma was quivering with excitement. “I’ll fly up and get it!”
She darted out of Kirsty’s pocket, heading straight for the egg. But before she reached it, Emma stopped in midair.
“Oh, no!” she cried.
“Emma, what’s wrong?” Kirsty asked.
“I’m stuck!” the little fairy said in dismay. “It’s Goblin Gossamer! Their pet spiders weave it. It’s very, very sticky. I can’t move my wings!”
Rachel shaded her eyes with her hand so she could see better. She spotted Emma up above, struggling, but she couldn’t see anything else around the fairy. “I don’t see a thing,” she said, squinting.
“Goblin Gossamer is invisible,” Emma told them. “Goblins like to use it to trap fairies. The only way to get out is to sprinkle it with fairy dust.”
“Can you use your wand?” Kirsty asked, worried.
“No!” Emma called down. “I can’t move my arms.”
Rachel’s eyes got wide. How could they possibly help Emma now? Then she looked at the locket hanging around Kirsty’s neck. Rachel had a matching one of her own. They were presents from the king and queen of the fairies … and they were filled with magical fairy dust!
“It’s a good thing we have some fairy dust,” Rachel said.
She opened up her locket and sprinkled some of the fairy dust onto her palm. Kirsty did the same. Then the two girls blew gently on the fairy dust. It floated into the air, leaving a trail of sparkles behind it.
When the fairy dust swirled around Emma, the invisible Goblin Gossamer became visible. It looked like a green spider web. After a moment, the strands of the web dissolved, and Emma was free!
“Oh, thank you,” Emma cried in relief, flying down to the girls. “I could have been trapped there for a long time, if it wasn’t for you!”
“The goblins must have set that trap,” Rachel guessed. “They were trying to keep you from getting the magic egg back!”
Emma shook her head. “No, that wasn’t a magic egg at all. It was a plastic egg sprinkled with glitter.”
“Then why set a trap?”
Rachel wondered. She scratched her head. Kirsty frowned. “I think they’re trying to keep us away from the pet shop.”
Just then, the big town clock began to chime. It was two o’clock!
“Oh, no!” Kirsty cried. “We have to get home fast. We’re late!”
Kirsty and Rachel ran back to Kirsty’s house as quickly as they could.
“Meet us at Strawberry Farm,” Kirsty told Emma as they got close.
Emma flew out of Kirsty’s pocket. “See you later!” she called, then vanished in a twinkle of light.
Mrs. Tate and Mrs. Walker were waiting for the girls in the driveway.
“There you are,” Kirsty’s mom said, opening the car door. “Your dads are going to stay home and start getting supper ready. We’ll take you to the farm.”
Kirsty and Rachel climbed into the backseat of the Tates’ car.
“I can’t wait to see the baby animals,” Rachel said eagerly. “We don’t have any farms like that in Tippington.”
“But your town has lots of other fun things to do,” Kirsty pointed out. “I loved picnicking at Windy Lake.”
When they arrived at the farm, the gravel parking lot was filled with cars. The porch of the big white farmhouse was decorated with dangling paper Easter eggs. Next to the house stood a red barn and a grain silo. Visitors were walking around a fenced-in field next to the barn. The air smelled of sweet, fresh hay.
Rachel bolted out of the car and ran to see the baby animals.
“Hey, wait up!” Kirsty called out.
Rachel paused at the fence. “Aw, they’re soooo cute!”
In the pen in front of her were three small lambs with curly white wool. Next to them were two brown-and-white calves with big, brown eyes.
Gray baby goats munched on hay in another pen. And in the last pen, fuzzy yellow baby ducks splashed in a small pond.
“They are awfully cute,” Kirsty agreed.
Rachel reached through the fence to pet one of the lambs. “Hi there, little guy,” she said.
Cock-a-doodle-doo!
The loud crow of a rooster rang across the farm.
Rachel jumped. “What was that?” she asked.
“It’s a rooster,” Kirsty replied.
“Do they have chickens here?” Rachel asked, looking around.
Kirsty nodded. “There’s a big coop behind the barn.”
Rachel looked thoughtful. After a moment, her eyes lit up. “Kirsty! Where there are chickens …”
“… there are eggs!” Kirsty said, finishing her thought.
The girls looked at each other meaningfully.
“Do you think the last missing magic egg could be in the chicken coop?” Rachel whispered.
Kirsty grinned, her eyes shining. “I think it’s a good place to look!”
Together, they walked around the big red barn. Through the open door, they saw some big cows and sheep munching on hay.
“Those must be the mommy and daddy animals,” Rachel said.
Kirsty looked around. “I wonder where Emma is.”
They turned the corner of the barn, and found themselves face-to-face with a small group of lambs.
“What are you doing out of your pen?” Rachel asked. “Are you lost?”
“No,” replied one of the lambs. “But we want you to get lost!”
Rachel and Kirsty gasped and stepped back. These weren’t baby sheep at all.
They were goblins!
The goblins were wearing fuzzy lamb costumes, but their green heads stuck out from under the fake lamb heads.
Rachel put her hands on her hips. “Get out of our way!” she said bravely.
But the goblins stood in a straight line in front of them, blocking their path.
“No way!” one of the goblins said.
“We’r
e under strict orders from Jack Frost. You girls keep messing everything up!”
“You’re the ones messing everything up!” Kirsty shot back. “Why can’t you just go away and let everyone have a nice Easter?”
The goblins didn’t answer. Instead, their eyes grew wide. They looked afraid.
Kirsty and Rachel turned to see Emma flying toward them! Glittering fairy dust drizzled from her wand. All the big cows and sheep were following the fairy dust! When they saw the disguised goblins, their eyes got angry.
“Moo!” bellowed the cows.
“Baaaa!” cried the sheep.
The animals charged past Kirsty and Rachel and stomped toward the goblins.
“Run!” one of the goblins cried.
The goblins scrambled in all directions, leaving their lamb costumes behind.
Emma flew up to the cows and sheep. “Thank you, my friends,” she said kindly.
“Mooo,” replied one of the cows, nodding.
The animals slowly returned to the barn, while Emma fluttered over to Rachel and Kirsty.
“You showed up just in time!” Kirsty said gratefully.
“Yes,” Rachel added, nodding. “Thank you!”
“Those goblins are such a pain!” Emma replied, frowning. “I hope we’ve gotten rid of them for a while.”
“Me, too,” said Kirsty. They had important things to do! “Rachel and I were just going to the chicken coop to look for the missing egg.”
Emma fluttered her wings happily. “Oh, what a wonderful idea! Let’s go!”
The chicken coop was a large wooden building with wide shelves built along one side. The shelves held rows of small nesting boxes filled with hay, so the chickens could lay their eggs there. Almost every box had a fat, white chicken sitting on it.
Emma the Easter Fairy (9780545549288) Page 3