Fairy Geraldine beamed. “We could teach her to knit!”
Fairy Jacqueline nodded. “Or perhaps to sew. That dress was a disgrace …”
“We’ll think about it, my dears,” said Fairy Josephine. “But now it’s time for a party!”
All the guests agreed it was the most wonderful party they had ever been to. They stayed and stayed … and the king and queen were gracious to everyone. The servants were thanked and promised time off and extra pay. The cake was a huge success, and Skeldith, who was watching anxiously to make sure all went smoothly, was able to heave a huge sigh of relief. Nobody was forgotten … except…
Towards the end of the party, Peony went to find her parents. “Mother, Father … may I be excused? There’s someone else I need to thank.”
“Why aren’t they here?” her mother asked.
Peony shook her head. “He’s not very keen on parties. But maybe I could take him some of those little fishy sandwiches.”
“Take whatever you like,” the king said. “And Peony! I have a special favour to ask.”
“A favour?” Peony looked at her father in surprise.
“There’s just one thing missing from this splendid feast: a cherry pie. Nobody makes cherry pies like you do, Peony. Would you consider popping down to the palace kitchen sometime tomorrow and making one? For me?”
Peony beamed. “I’d absolutely love to!” And she hugged her father and blew kisses to her mother as she ran out of the royal banqueting hall.
She found Basil curled up on her bed.
“Basil!” she said, and she picked him up and held him to her heart. “Thank you for everything! Thank you so, SO much! I’m the happiest girl in the whole wide world!”
Basil stretched out a paw and inspected his toes. “When you go to the library,” he said, “you’ll find the best stories all end, ‘And the princess lived Happily Ever After…’”
He began to purr.
THE END
Also by Vivian French
ALFIE ONION is setting out on a great adventure. His brother Magnifico is off to make the family’s fortune … and Alfie’s carrying his luggage! But it turns out Magnifico hates adventures and Alfie has to save the day – with a little help from his loyal dog, a talking horse, two mice and some meddling magpies.
Vivian French
lives in Edinburgh, and writes in a messy workroom stuffed full of fairy tales and folk tales – the stories she loves best. She’s brilliant at retelling classic tales, as she did for The Most Wonderful Thing in the World, and has created worlds of her own in The Adventures of Alfie Onion and the Tales From the Five Kingdoms series. Vivian teaches at Edinburgh College of Art and can be seen at festivals all over the country. She is one of the most borrowed children’s authors in UK libraries, and in 2016 was awarded the MBE for services to literature, literacy, illustration and the arts.
Marta Kissi
is an exciting new talent in the world of children’s book illustration. Originally from Warsaw, she came to Britain to study Illustration and Animation at Kingston University, and then Art and Design at the Royal College of Art. Her favourite part of being an illustrator is bringing stories to life by designing charming characters and the wonderful worlds they live in. Marta shares a studio in London with her boyfriend and their pet plant Trevor.
Other books by Vivian French
The Adventures of Alfie Onion
The Most Wonderful Thing in the World
Tales from the Five Kingdoms:
The Robe of Skulls
The Bag of Bones
The Heart of Glass
The Flight of Dragons
The Music of Zombies
The Snarling of Wolves
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or, if real, are used fictitiously. All statements, activities, stunts, descriptions, information and material of any other kind contained herein are included for entertainment purposes only and should not be relied on for accuracy or replicated as they may result in injury.
First published 2017 by Walker Books Ltd
87 Vauxhall Walk, London SE11 5HJ
Text © 2017 Vivian French
Illustrations © 2017 Marta Długołecka
The right of Vivian French and Marta Długołecka to be identified as author and illustrator respectively of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
TAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, taping and recording, without prior written permission from the publisher.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data:
a catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library
ISBN 978-1-4063-7509-1 (ePub)
www.walker.co.uk
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