“Well, I didn’t expect to meet little fairies here,” she said. “What can I do for you?”
Hurriedly, the girls whispered their plan to her. She agreed right away, and, together, she and Faith waved their wands. Rachel and Kirsty stared at each other as their eyes grew narrower, their noses more pointy, and their mouths mean and tight-lipped. A few seconds later they were towering over the fairies, and they were wearing flashy ball gowns in ugly colors.
“You look just like one of the mean girls at the ballroom-dancing lesson!” Kirsty said at once.
“You, too,” Rachel replied. “Oh, Kirsty, they must have been Cinderella’s real stepsisters. I had no idea!”
There was no time to talk about it now. The girls pushed the curtain aside and walked up behind Jack Frost, trying to feel brave. Remembering how the stepsisters had sounded, Rachel spoke in the meanest voice she could manage.
“It’s our turn to try on the glass slipper,” she snapped at Jack Frost. “It’s much too big for you.”
“Get lost,” said Jack Frost, scowling.
“But that’s how our story goes,” Kirsty burst out. “We have to have a chance to try on the glass slipper.”
“I don’t care how your story goes!” Jack Frost snapped. “I’m Cinderfrost and this is my story now, so no one is going to try on my glass slipper! Go away!”
Badly disappointed that their plan hadn’t worked, Rachel and Kirsty ducked back behind the curtain. Faith waved her wand and turned them back into fairies. Then she gave them a big hug.
“Thank you for trying,” she said. “Jack Frost is too stubborn for words.”
“We’ll just have to try something else,” said Rachel in a determined voice.
The Fairy Godmother gave them a gentle smile.
“I wish I could stay to help you, but someone else is calling for my help,” she said. “I hope that you can stop Jack Frost from spoiling my poor Cinderella’s story. She’s such a sweet girl.”
She held up her wand and twirled in the air, and then disappeared in a shower of silver sparkles. For a moment, Kirsty thought that she heard the sound of far-off bells. Even though she was worried about Faith’s magic glass slipper, she couldn’t help feeling excited. She had never met a fairy godmother before.
The space behind the curtain had grown darker—it was twilight in Fairyland. Rachel and Kirsty looked out of the window and were surprised to see lots of fairies fluttering down from the starlit sky. They were all wearing beautiful ball gowns, and their jeweled necklaces, tiaras, and bracelets were glistening in the half light.
“I bet they’ve all been invited to the ball,” said Rachel. “Jack Frost must be planning a very special evening—he doesn’t normally like fairies anywhere near his castle.”
“He must have wanted lots of guests, just like in the Cinderella fairy tale,” said Kirsty. “Oh, of course!”
Rachel and Faith looked at her with hope in their eyes. Did she have an idea to get back the magic glass slipper?
“We should have thought about the fairy tale from the start,” said Kirsty. “Do you remember how Cinderella’s dress turns back to rags on the stroke of midnight?”
“Yes, and her glass slipper comes off as she runs out of the ballroom,” Rachel added.
“Midnight is a very important time in this story,” Kirsty went on. “Perhaps we need to see what Cinderfrost will do when the clock strikes twelve. If the glass slipper is loose, it might come off if he has to hurry.”
Faith smiled—she understood exactly what Kirsty had in mind! With a wave of her wand she changed the clock on the wall so it said five minutes to twelve. She also made the glass slipper grow just a little larger. Almost at once, one of the goblins glanced up at the clock and gasped in surprise.
“Cinderfrost, look at the time!” he squawked. “You’re going to miss the ball!”
Jack Frost let out a wail.
“Get out of my way!” he bellowed. “I’ve got to make my grand entrance!”
He ran out of the room in a panic, still wearing Faith’s too-big glass slipper on one foot and the ice-blue shoe on the other. The fairies followed him at top speed as he raced down the back stairs.
“Oh, please let his glass slipper fall off!” said Rachel under her breath.
Jack stumbled as he reached the last step, but his glass slipper stayed on. He dashed out through the back door. An ornate silver carriage was waiting there, with a goblin footman standing at the back in a green-and-gold uniform.
“Hurry up!” the footman shouted when he saw Jack Frost. “I’ve been out here for ages and it’s freezing.”
“Quiet,” snapped Jack Frost.
He took a flying leap into the carriage, landing in a heap of ice-blue frills. His heel half-popped out of the magic glass slipper and the fairies darted forward, but the door slammed shut in their faces and the carriage took off. They stared at one another in dismay.
“Let’s fly ahead and hide at the entrance,” said Kirsty. “I’ve got an idea!”
While Kirsty explained her plan, they zoomed around the side of the castle toward the main entrance. There were two large statues of Jack Frost on either side of the castle door, and Rachel and Kirsty hid behind one, while Faith ducked behind the other. They were ready.
The carriage rumbled to a halt between the statues, and a goblin butler opened the castle door. The fairies could see that the entrance hall was lined with curious fairies.
Everyone stared as Jack Frost stepped out of his carriage and adjusted his tiara.
“The mystery guest has arrived!” announced the goblin butler in an important voice.
Smirking, Jack Frost moved forward to greet his admirers. But as he stepped between the statues …
“Now!” shouted Kirsty.
She, Rachel, and Faith leaped out from their hiding place and Jack Frost jumped high into the air in surprise. At last the magic glass slipper fell off his foot and Rachel dived down to grab it. Before Jack Frost realized what was happening, the magic glass slipper was back in Faith’s hands at last.
In a flurry of golden sparkles, Cinderella appeared in the castle doorway dressed in a glimmering ball gown. Her tiara sparkled in the starlight, and all the fairies cheered as she waved to them. Rachel and Kirsty cheered, too, and Cinderella saw them and gave a happy smile. Then, as everyone was gasping at her beauty, she shimmered and faded out of sight.
“Where has she gone?” cried a disappointed fairy nearby.
“She’s gone back to her fairy tale, where she belongs,” said Faith, before turning to the girls with a warm smile. “And now it’s time for you two to go back where you belong. Thank you for everything you’ve done to help me and the other Fairy Tale Fairies so far.
Without you, the world would be a far less magical place.”
“We’ve loved helping—and meeting some of our favorite characters in real life,” said Rachel.
“It’s an honor,” Kirsty added.
As Jack Frost stamped his feet and gnashed his teeth, Faith, Rachel, and Kirsty shared a big hug. Then Faith waved her wand and the girls blinked, their eyes filled with fairy dust. Seconds later, they were once again standing in the ballroom at Tiptop Castle. Rosie, the dance instructor, was waltzing around the room with Aaron.
“Cinderella’s bossy stepsisters have disappeared,” said Kirsty, feeling relieved.
“Yes, and all the other children are back,” Rachel added, looking at the crowd of their new friends. “Come on, let’s go and join in!”
They shared a wonderful lesson with their friends, with plenty of giggles along the way. By the end of it, everyone was able to waltz around the ballroom, twirling and spinning without falling over.
“Excellent!” Rosie called, clapping her hands together. “You’ve all picked up the steps really well. That’s the end of the lesson, but I have a surprise for you. At the end of the festival, you will be using your new dancing skills at a fairy tale ball—right here in Tiptop Castle!”
; There were gasps and thrilled squeals from everyone, and they all started chattering at once.
“What will we wear?”
“We need to practice more!”
“I can’t wait!”
Rachel and Kirsty threw their arms around each other and jumped up and down.
“Today’s just getting better and better!” said Rachel with a laugh.
The fairy tale ball was the only thing anyone could talk about for the rest of the day. That evening, the girls went to bed with a tingly feeling of anticipation.
“I wonder what the ball will be like,” said Kirsty as she snuggled under the covers.
“Let’s read the story of Cinderella,” said Rachel, grabbing The Fairies’ Book of Fairy Tales. Then she hopped into bed beside her best friend.
Side by side, they turned the pages until they reached Cinderella’s wonderful story. All the characters were just where they belonged, together with Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. It was good to see the words and pictures back in the book as if they had never been away. They took turns to read a page at a time.
“… and they lived happily ever after,” finished Kirsty, turning the last page of the story.
Their happy smiles faded slightly when they saw that the rest of the pages were blank.
“The next story in the book should be The Frog Princess,” said Rachel.
“I hope that we can help Rita the Frog Princess Fairy find her magic object soon,” said Rachel, putting The Fairies’ Book of Fairy Tales on Kirsty’s bedside table and climbing into her own four-poster bed.
Kirsty nodded and yawned.
“It’s been an exciting day, hasn’t it?” she said. “I’m so glad we were able to help Faith and Cinderella.”
“Me, too,” said Rachel. “I wonder what adventures tomorrow will bring!”
Rachel and Kirsty found Julia’s, Eleanor’s, and Faith’s missing magic objects. Now it’s time for them to help
Join their next adventure in this special sneak peek …
Rachel got a closer look at the frog in Kirsty’s hand.
“She’s a very pretty frog,” said Rachel.
“And a very lovely princess,” added Rita, flying above the Frog Princess. “But unless I can get her back into her fairy tale, the story will no longer be about her. It will be about that horrible Jack Frost!”
Rachel looked around. “He must be around here somewhere. What magic object of yours did he take?”
“My silver mixing bowl,” Rita replied. “With it, I can bake the tastiest treats!”
“I can’t imagine Jack Frost making anything tasty,” said Kirsty.
“We must find that rascal, then,” said Bertram.
“What should we do with Princess Vassilisa?” Kirsty asked, looking down at her hand.
“We can bring her to our room,” suggested Rachel. “She’ll be safe there.”
“Good idea,” said Rita. “You girls do that, and Bertram and I will start looking for Jack Frost.”
“We won’t be long,” Rachel promised, and the girls raced back to the castle. They crossed the bridge that passed over the moat. They went through the beautiful grand entryway of the castle and climbed up the stairs to the top of one of the castle’s tall towers.
Text copyright © 2016 by Rainbow Magic Limited
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First edition, January 2016
Cover design by Angela Jun
e-ISBN 978-0-545-86400-8
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Faith the Cinderella Fairy Page 2