“I am here,” the reflection told her.
“I know you are,” Tink said. “But I mean really here. With me.”
“I am really here with you.”
“No. I mean right next to me.”
“Tink,” the reflection said. “I’m standing right behind you. You’re looking at me in the mirror.”
Tink turned, and there he was. Right there. Right beside her. Just like he said. She threw her arms around him. “Terence! I am so sorry.”
Terence hugged her back. “I’m sorry, too. You were under a lot of pressure and—”
Blaze flew over and tried to squeeze between them.
“Hey! Who’s this?” Terence asked.
Tinker Bell stood back so that Blaze could get his share of hugs. “This is Blaze. He’s been a big help in some tough spots.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Terence said to Blaze.
“How did you find me?” Tink asked.
“I flew all night and all day over the sea—it’s a good thing you left that trail of pots and pans across Never Land,” Terence explained. “Then, just when I was going to run out of pixie dust, I stumbled into that flying machine of yours. That thing is awesome. I only had a pinch of dust left, but it got me all the way here.”
“You found my balloon? But where did you get the dust to make it this far?”
“I … uh … ‘borrowed’ a little extra.”
“You broke the rules for me?”
“I knew you needed my help.”
Tink was about to throw her arms around him one more time, when she saw something emerging from the shadows. “Terence. Look!”
A rat appeared. Then another. Soon Tink and Terence were surrounded by a pack of rats. And they looked hungry.
The fairies didn’t lose any time. Terence grabbed the satchel with the moonstone fragments. Tink pulled the compass needle from the wall and stuck it in her belt.
Only one thing left to do now …
RUN!
Tinker Bell and Terence took off as fast as they could. Blaze flew behind, trying to provide cover. He dive-bombed the rats, using his loudest buzz and brightest light to distract and confuse them.
More rats came pouring out of every dark hole and crack in the ship.
Terence grabbed Tinker Bell’s hand and pulled her along through the disintegrating grandeur of the rotting ship. They ran over a globe, slid across the curved surface, and landed on a grand piano, which let out an ominous and out-of-tune chord of protest. “Hold on,” Terence said. He grabbed a tattered curtain ribbon with one hand and wrapped his other arm around Tink’s waist. They swung across the room. Halfway across, the ribbon snapped.
They plummeted, landing on a stack of old dinner plates. The stack teetered for a moment, then began to slide across the table.
Tinker Bell and Terence held out their arms for balance as they rode one of the plates like a sled. They made a graceful leap to safety just before the plate hit a banister and shattered into pieces.
Terence grinned. “That was kind of fun.”
The fun didn’t last long, though. More rats—an ocean of rats—came rushing at them. Terence pointed toward a crevice in the ship’s wall. “There’s our way out.”
Tink and Terence tried to squeeze through, but the crevice was too tight. They would have to pry away one of the boards. They tugged at one of the planks with all their might. It wouldn’t budge.
“Terence, buy me some time,” Tinker Bell said as she pulled the needle from her belt and tossed it to him. He turned, wielding the needle like a sword as the rats closed in. “Back!” he yelled, whisking the needle back and forth to hold them at bay. “Back!”
Tinker Bell and Blaze leaped behind a pile of debris for cover. Suddenly, Tink had an idea. Rummaging through her satchel, she found the mirror and some dirty cobwebs. A few deft movements later, she was ready.
She peered over the bank of debris and saw one of the rats knock the needle from Terence’s hand. The rat lunged. Terence dodged just in time. But when he turned, he was greeted by a group of rats with their teeth bared. They were beginning to close in when, suddenly, their eyes were distracted by something.
The rodents fell back, squeaking in fear. The huge shadow of a monster loomed on the wall. A bone-chilling growl echoed through the ship. The shadow began to move and grew even larger.
That was it for the rats. They turned and ran, climbing over one another in panic. Their shrieks and squeaks gradually faded as they disappeared into the most distant reaches of the hull.
“Are they gone?” Tinker Bell whispered.
Terence stood very still and listened to be sure. “Yeah! Let’s go.”
Tinker Bell took one last look around before putting her props away. The monster had been an illusion created by the mirror, the cobwebs, and Blaze’s clever lighting.
And the growl had been Blaze, using Tink’s folded hat as a megaphone. He was still growling away and having a wonderful time. Tink snatched her hat back and the menacing sounds returned to Blaze’s customary squeak. “Come here, you vicious monster!” She grabbed the mischievous firefly and gave him a big hug. Blaze blinked happily.
Tinker Bell grinned at her companions. The three of them were a good team. Now all they had to do was get back to Pixie Hollow.
That and one or two other things—like fixing the scepter and figuring out what to do about the moonstone. But at least now she wasn’t trying to do all those things by herself.
Terence had left the balloon tied to the mast of the pirate ship. Very carefully, the three friends climbed the rotten rigging and scrambled into the balloon’s basket. “How are we going to fly this thing?” Terence muttered, untying the ropes. “I used the last of my dust getting it this far.”
Tinker Bell rummaged around in the bottom of the basket. “With any luck, my pixie dust bag should be around here somewhere. Aha!” She held up her little velvet bag and tossed it to Terence. “Here. Is it enough?”
He untied the strings and looked inside. “It’s enough,” he confirmed. “Anchors up.”
Tink saluted. “Aye, aye, Captain.” Blaze mimicked her salute.
“Just a little bit of pixie dust up front will get this baby going.” Terence rubbed some dust on the bow of the balloon. “There, that should do the trick.”
The bow began to glow. Then it lurched into the air as if it were excited to be released from its tether. Terence fell back against the rudder and grabbed it, straightening their course.
Soon they were sailing over the water, on their way back to Pixie Hollow.
On and on they flew, making good time the whole way. By sunset, they were almost there.
But Tink’s relief at escaping the rats had turned to apprehension over what would happen when she got back home. Her friends seemed to sense the change in her mood. “Are you okay?” Terence asked. Blaze hovered with concern.
“What’s going to happen when we get back?” Tink asked. She picked up the bag that held the moonstone fragments and shook it sadly. “Would you happen to have an extra moonstone?”
Terence’s face grew serious. He picked up a bag from the floor of the balloon. “I don’t know if it will help, but I brought this.”
Tink opened the bag. “My scepter!” She took out one of the broken pieces of the scepter and examined it next to a tiny shard of moonstone. Was there any way to repair them? Any way at all?
Terence leaned over her shoulder, and Blaze flew in close so he could see. The light from his tail bounced off the mirror and refracted through the shard. Streams of brilliant blue light shot out in every direction.
“Terence!”
Terence stepped back. “Oh, yeah. Sorry. I know you need your space.”
“It’s not that,” she said eagerly. “I have an idea. And I can’t do it without you. Will you help me?”
Terence’s face broke into a wide smile. Those were just the words he had been waiting to hear. “Sure.”
Tinker Bell position
ed Blaze so that he could cast enough light for her to work. Terence gathered up everything in the balloon that could possibly be used as a tool. And the three of them buckled down to do their task. The future of Pixie Hollow depended on them.
That night, as their balloon flew steadily toward Pixie Hollow, Tinker Bell and Terence hammered, tapped, rapped, twisted, and tweaked, determined to repair the damage, not just to the scepter, but also to their friendship. They politely and eagerly exchanged and accepted advice from each other. It wasn’t long before they were finishing each other’s sentences and anticipating each other’s next move—just like in the old days.
“If I turn this, then this can go in here,” Tink said.
“Wait a second … do you think this would work?” Terence asked.
“Yes. Yes.”
“Okay. Now set it at a thirty-degree angle so that the reflective qualities of the moonstone—”
“—are magnified in relation to the moonbeam rays. You’re a genius!” Tink said. Little by little, the pieces began to fit together. She pressed a shard into the scepter’s handle. “I’ve almost got it. I just need—”
“A sharp thingy,” Terence offered. He held out the compass needle. Tink smiled gratefully and took it from him. Yes. That was exactly what she needed. Too bad she had been too stubborn to realize it before.
As night fell, Blaze buzzed brighter, and the blue moon rose into the sky.
Back in Pixie Hollow, the fairies were gathering in the forest for the Autumn Revelry. Fairy Mary was in a state of panic. Where was Tinker Bell? Where? The ceremony was starting. The blue moon was rising. The music fairies were already sounding the fanfare on their flower trumpets, but Tinker Bell was nowhere to be seen.
Fairy Mary wrung her hands and paced, counting frantically to calm herself. She’d been counting for a long time and was way past ten. “One thousand four hundred and ninety-two … one thousand four hundred and ninety-three … one thousand four hundred and ninety-four …”
Bobble and Clank followed her back and forth, trying to soothe her. “Now, now,” Bobble clucked.
“It’s all right,” Clank crooned. “Tink will be here any second now.”
Fairy Mary watched Queen Clarion and the Minister of Autumn proceed to the stage.
Fairy Gary and the other dust-keepers followed. They carried huge cauldrons to catch the blue pixie dust. Fairy Gary’s cauldron was the largest. “It’s a bit heavier than I remember,” he said, placing it on top of a holder with a grunt.
Fairy Mary groaned and slumped to the ground. “The blue harvest moon is high. The moonbeams are almost at their mark. This is a disaster.” Clank and Bobble hoisted her back up and made more soothing noises—but nothing they could say would help.
The Minister of Autumn stuck his head backstage and hissed, “Fairy Mary! Where is Tinker Bell?”
“I don’t know!” Fairy Mary wailed.
The Minister of Autumn’s brows shot up and his eyes bulged. “You … you … don’t know?”
Now Queen Clarion had stepped backstage. “Fairy Mary, Minister of Autumn. Is anything the matter?”
“Yes, Your Highness,” said the Minister of Autumn.
“No, Your Highness,” Fairy Mary said at the exact same time.
Queen Clarion clasped her hands together and narrowed her eyes. “Where is Tinker Bell?” she asked.
Fairy Mary’s head began to spin. This was terrible. This was awful. So awful she could hardly get the words out. “Um … well … uh … we’ve been … uh …”
Fairy Mary cast her eyes upward so she wouldn’t have to meet Queen Clarion’s stern gaze. And to her utter amazement, she saw a huge balloon sweeping down with Tink and Terence hanging from the rigging.
“There she is,” Fairy Mary said with a sigh of relief so deep, she almost fell over again.
“Hello!” Tinker Bell called out, waving.
By now, all the fairies who had gathered for the revelry had spotted the balloon. A roar of applause filled the forest. Fairy Mary and the queen watched as the balloon settled on some tree branches. Tink and Terence stepped out, followed by Blaze.
“I made it,” Tinker Bell said happily.
“Now, that’s an entrance!” Queen Clarion said. A smile lurked at the corners of her mouth.
“Right in the nick of time,” Bobble said approvingly.
The fairies continued to cheer as Tinker Bell approached the queen, dropping down on one knee. “Your Highness,” she said respectfully.
Queen Clarion gestured to the fairies to be quiet. When the forest was silent, she spoke. “Tinker Bell. At the beginning of the season you were entrusted with a great responsibility. Where is the Autumn Scepter?”
Fairy Mary squeezed her fists so hard, she could feel her nails digging into her palms. Had Tinker Bell succeeded?
Tinker Bell lifted her head, and her large eyes were full of apology. “There were some … uhhhh … complications.”
Fairy Mary felt the color drain from her face. Queen Clarion turned to look at her, as if to ask whether she knew anything about this. Fairy Mary gave a tiny shake of her head.
“But it’s ready now, Your Highness.” Tink turned, and Terence handed her something wrapped in a leaf.
Queen Clarion led Tinker Bell to the stage. “This way, Tinker Bell.”
Tink placed the shrouded scepter in a special holder in the middle of the stage. “Fairies of Pixie Hollow, I present … the Autumn Scepter.”
Tink whipped off the leaf, and Fairy Mary felt her eyes bulge and her heart stop.
If that was a scepter, then Fairy Mary was a june bug. It didn’t look like a scepter at all. It looked like an old hand mirror with bits of gold and scepter shards glued all around it. Artistic, and well … beautiful, in a Tinker Bell kind of way. But where was the orderly, geometric design Tinker Bell had shown them? And where was the moonstone?
Fairy Mary peered more closely and realized that the moonstone was in pieces. Once again, her head began to swim. This was a tragedy. A huge disaster.
The one and only moonstone was broken!
Fairy Mary clenched and unclenched her hands and began to count as if her life depended on it. Actually, as if Tinker Bell’s life depended on it. Because if Fairy Mary ever got her hands around Tinker Bell’s neck … “One thousand four hundred and ninety—”
But before Fairy Mary could get the word five out of her mouth, the world went black and she fainted.
Tinker Bell saw Fairy Mary collapse. “No. No. No. Don’t worry, Fairy Mary. It’s okay. Just wait.” Tink sounded confident, but inside, she was quaking.
Will it work? Will it really work?
Fairy Mary woke up, but she didn’t look happy. Terence stared up at the moon. “Come on. Come on … ,” he urged.
“Please work,” Tinker Bell whispered. “Please.”
Blaze flew in circles and crossed his antennae.
As all the fairies watched, holding their breath, the moon moved into its final position. Its rays touched the scepter and—WHOOSH!—the result was spectacular.
Thousands of beams reflected off the fragments. Brilliant blue rays went streaking into the crowd, followed by a light shower of blue pixie dust raining from the sky.
A roar of approval shook the forest. The fairies lifted their hands to catch the dust as it fell. At first, it was just a flurry. Then it turned into a dust fall; then a blizzard. The wonderful, magical blue pixie dust piled around them in deep drifts.
The Minister of Autumn and Queen Clarion were awestruck. “Your Majesty,” said the Minister, “I’ve never seen this much blue pixie dust before!”
“Indeed” was all Queen Clarion seemed to be able to say.
Fairy Mary was too happy and relieved to speak. Fairy Gary stood on a pile of dust that reached all the way to his chest. “It’s at least a million smidges. Maybe more.”
Silvermist flew in giddy circles. “This is amazing!” she exclaimed, almost out of breath.
Fawn created sno
w angels in the dust. “Woooohooo!”
“Come on, girls!” Rosetta shouted. “It’s show-time.”
Queen Clarion held up her hands and called them to order. “Fairies of Pixie Hollow, we have celebrated this revelry without interruption for centuries. Tonight, I believe, is our finest revelry ever—thanks to one special fairy, Tinker Bell.”
Tinker Bell pulled Terence close beside her and pointed at him, trying to get Queen Clarion’s attention.
Queen Clarion nodded. “Oh … yes … and her friend Terence.”
Blaze circled Tink and Terence close beside her, blinking and buzzing.
“And … her new friend,” Queen Clarion added, unsure what to call the bright bug.
“Blaze,” Tinker Bell whispered.
“Blaze,” Queen Clarion told the fairies. “We owe them all our thanks!”
The fairies applauded and cheered. Fairy Mary came and gave Tink a hug. “I’m so proud of you,” she said.
“Thank you, Fairy Mary,” Tinker Bell responded.
“What made you think of breaking the moonstone into all those tiny pieces?” Fairy Mary asked. “Genius.”
Tinker Bell really didn’t want to lie, but she didn’t want to tell the truth, either. Luckily, she didn’t have to answer the question, because the Minister of Autumn approached her, holding the scepter. He solemnly handed it to her. “On your lead, my dear.” Then he turned toward the crowd. “All right, everyone. To the Pixie Dust Tree!”
Proudly, Tinker Bell raised the scepter and began to lead the procession.
“That’s our cue,” Fawn told the other fairies. She blew a whistle, and the beautiful special effects began.
The sky turned bright yellow as the twenty-onebutterfly salute successfully launched into the air.
Silvermist’s tadpoles blew bubbles that danced and sparkled overhead.
Clank joyfully ran to his fireworks launcher and let ’er rip.
KABOOM!
The fireworks split the contraption in two, but it didn’t matter—it still managed to hurl fireworks into the sky. Sparkling, sizzling patterns in every color streaked this way and that, reflecting off each happy face in Pixie Hollow.
Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure Page 6