Carlos squatted down and heaved a heavy box of books into the air. The books were piled so high he could hardly see over the top. He bobbed and weaved through the bookcases, trying to find a place for them when—crash!—he ran smack into Willa.
Willa carried a paper bag and sipped a fairy smoothie, lost in her own thoughts. “Whoa-hoa! Hey, watch where you’re going!” she cried, taking another sip of her drink. “You almost made me spill my smoothie!”
Carlos wobbled, trying to save his stack of books. But they tumbled out of his hands and all over the floor. He sighed. Filling Mariposa’s shoes was hard work—especially with Willa around!
“Carlos!” Willa cried, recognizing him now that his face wasn’t hidden behind books. “Good morning!”
Carlos rolled his eyes and knelt to pick up his spill. “It’s afternoon, actually,” he replied testily.
“Oops, I slept in,” she said breezily. “Then I stopped by Flutter’s Bakery for some Poof Pastries.” She held up her paper bag. “Breaky?”
“It’s lunchtime,” Carlos snapped, hoisting the box once more.
“Harrumph. No breakfast for you, then,” Willa huffed. She wondered what had made Carlos so grouchy today. Library work must not agree with him, she thought.
Carlos put his box down and picked up a nearby clipboard. “Now, let’s see,” he said, examining it. “Today’s shipment of books has already come in. Check!” He looked down the list for the next item. “Inventory new books.” He gazed around the library floor at the piles of books and frowned. “Hmmm. This could take a while.”
Willa sat down on a stack of boxes, bit into a pastry, and waved to Carlos.
Carlos shot her a look. It looked like it would take more than a while.
Mariposa set down her teacup and admired her surroundings. A huge, beautifully glowing Crystallite chandelier illuminated the ballroom. The king, the princess, Zee, and Anu were quietly sipping their tea as Talayla raced around refilling trays and cups. Sylvie, the princess’s Pegasus, sat quietly in the corner.
Mariposa took a bite of her tea sandwich and let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. Maybe she was cut out for this ambassador stuff after all!
However, while she was starting to feel more comfortable with her role in Shimmervale, she was having a hard time getting used to how small everything was here. The Crystal Fairies had tinier wings than Butterfly Fairies—especially Mariposa’s. She had to admit she felt a bit cramped at the table. Each time she reached for her teacup, she had to be careful not to knock anything—or anyone—over with her large, colorful wings. If only she had a bit more space!
“… so to defeat the Skeezites,” the king was saying, “your people must be trained as warriors from birth.”
“What?” Mariposa replied, slightly shocked. She knew that in Flutterfield, Butterfly Fairies didn’t know everything there was to know about Crystal Fairies. Still, she couldn’t believe some of the strange stories floating around Shimmervale about Butterfly Fairies. “We’re not warriors,” she tried to explain. “I mean, we have warriors, but we’re a very peaceful people.” Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Zee throwing a scone at Anu. She shot her a look. Not now!
“More tea?” Talayla asked, hovering over her shoulder.
“Please,” Mariposa replied, leaning to the side to make room for Talayla to pour.
Talayla leaned toward her cup, but Mariposa’s wings were just too big. She tried again as the king continued talking.
“But I was under the impression that Butterfly Fairies were built for battle. The laser vision, the claws, the fire breath!” he said.
“Fire breath? Um … we don’t actually have any of those things.” Mariposa exhaled. She tried to change the subject. “I love how the Crystallites shimmer in the sun.” She reached out a hand to touch one.
“Don’t touch that!” the king shouted. “The Crystallites are only to be touched by Crystal Fairies.”
Mariposa shrank back in her chair. “Oh. Of course,” she said softly.
“I’m sorry, if I could just—” Talayla whispered, still trying to refill Mariposa’s teacup.
“Oh, excuse me. Here,” Mariposa leaned all the way to one side, forgetting just for a second how big her wings were. They knocked over a crystal pitcher, sending a wave of water straight toward the king’s robes. Splash!
“My word!” the king exclaimed, jumping from his chair just in time.
Mariposa covered her mouth with both hands. “Oh, no!” She wheeled around to apologize. Bap! Her wings smacked into Talayla, who spilled her pot of tea all over Zee.
“Aaaahhh!” Talayla cried.
Zee made a face and tried to shake the tea from her fur. Yuck! Then she tasted a bit of it and rubbed her belly. Yum! Chai was her favorite!
Mariposa used her napkin to sop up some of the water, but her wings were just too big to not be in the way. She knocked over a tray of sandwiches and sent Catania’s muffin into her lap.
“I’m so sorry.… This is awful.… Let me help,” Mariposa said.
“Here, let me,” Catania offered, chuckling.
Mariposa gave her a grateful smile. “Thank you.” But even her thank-you led to disaster as her wings toppled a tower of petit fours all over the king. “Did I get you? Let me see.” She leaned toward him, but King Regellius put up his hands to stop her.
“Please,” he barked sternly. “I’d rather you didn’t.” He took a deep breath to collect himself.
Mariposa felt herself turning red. This was a catastrophe!
“Perhaps, Madame Ambassador,” the king began, “it would be best if you simply sat down and moved a bit farther back from the table.”
“Of course, Your Majesty,” Mariposa agreed, moving her chair a few feet away.
King Regellius waved his hand. “Perhaps a bit farther,” he suggested.
Mariposa scooted back some more.
“A bit more … more. Teeny bit farther,” the king continued as Mariposa kept sliding her chair. “Perfect!” he finally announced.
Mariposa fluttered her wings, giving them a good stretch. It felt nice to have enough space—even if she was nowhere near the table now.
Meanwhile, Zee and Anu had declared a food fight. Zee lobbed a mini muffin at Anu, who returned the favor by flicking cucumber slices at Zee. Two of the slices hit Zee right in the eyes and stuck there. Zee shook them off and glared at Anu.
Anu looked around innocently, as if nothing had happened.
Zee put a petit four on her spoon and sent it spinning toward Anu slingshot-style—but it hit the king instead. Whap!
Anu giggled gleefully as the king’s face turned red with rage.
Mariposa cringed.
“This royal tea is over!” the king thundered, pushing his chair back from the table. “Come, Catania!”
Catania and Mariposa exchanged worried glances. This was not how the afternoon was supposed to go!
As Mariposa slumped in her chair, Zee gave her an apologetic look. So much for good first impressions.
That evening, in different section of Fairytopia, an evil fairy called Gwyllion was busy at work in a rustic cabin in the woods. The old crone, with wings like a dragonfly, leaned on her wooden staff. She bent over a ruby-red gemstone on a table.
Talking to her pet bat, she said, “Now is the time, Boris. Eight years of biding my time and planning my revenge. Eight years to hone my magic and become even more powerful.”
Boris flapped his jet-black wings. “Has it been eight years already? Eight years of talk and no action. When are we going to get to the revenge?”
“Silence!” Gwyllion commanded. “I need to concentrate.” She closed her eyes and hovered a wrinkled, knobby hand over the gemstone.
Deep in concentration, she tapped her staff twice on the ground, sending a shiver of black magic over the floor. The magic rippled up the table, which began to shake. It wrapped itself around the gemstone, cloaking it in blackness until it started to soak int
o the gem. The stone shivered, turning from a radiant red to a dull gray as the magic seeped inside.
Gwyllion opened her eyes and smiled a sinister smile. “Yes!” she cackled. “It’s beautiful! Soon, all of Shimmervale’s Crystallites will have had their final glow.”
Gwyllion shuffled toward the fireplace. She peered into a cauldron, which bubbled over the fire and gave off green smoke. She plucked a jar from a nearby shelf and tossed a handful of blue powder into the cauldron. The green smoke rose and swirled high, slowly revealing an image from Shimmervale. It was King Regellius in his throne room late at night. He was gazing out the window at the moon, as if hoping it would tell him something. Gwyllion cackled gleefully as she watched Catania enter the room.
“Father?” Catania said.
King Regellius erased the worried look from his face and turned at the sound of his daughter’s voice. “Catania. It’s late. You should be in bed.”
“I know,” Catania replied. “For what it’s worth, I don’t think Mariposa means us any harm.”
The king considered his daughter’s words. “Perhaps. Perhaps not. I just hope she can help us.”
Catania joined her father at the window, and they both looked up at the moon.
The scene over the cauldron grew fuzzy, and Gwyllion rubbed her gnarled hands together, plotting.
Later that night, Mariposa used a Flutterlight to read in bed. Zee slept next to her, snoring softly. Mariposa envied the snoozing puffball—she hadn’t been able to relax since their disastrous tea with the king. How had things started off so wonderfully, only to end in such a mess? Mariposa had unpacked all of her books on Shimmervale and set to studying. Maybe there was some crucial fact about the Crystal Fairies that she had missed—a key to making sure they saw her as a help and not a threat.
Zee rolled over and opened one eye.
“Can’t sleep, Zee?” Mariposa asked.
Zee squinted at the light. It’s too bright in here!
“I know,” Mariposa replied, missing Zee’s hint. “I couldn’t sleep, either. I think I unintentionally insulted the king. I guess I don’t know as much about Shimmervale as I thought.” She hung her head.
Zee gave her a sympathetic pat and then rolled over grumpily.
Mariposa looked down at the book in her lap. “It says here that outsiders are forbidden to touch a Crystallite, especially the Heartstone, which is the most powerful Crystallite in Shimmervale. That’s why the king was so upset at the tea.”
Zee dramatically pulled her pillow over her head.
Mariposa chuckled. “Sorry, Zee, but I’m not tired … and this light just makes me feel like I’m at home.”
Zee took the pillow off her head. She wished Mariposa wouldn’t worry so much. She wondered if there was something she could do to take her mind off of things. Suddenly, she had it! Grinning mischievously, Zee picked up her pillow. Whack! She playfully hit Mariposa in the head with it.
Mariposa’s mouth dropped open and she giggled. “Hey!” she cried, grabbing a pillow of her own.
Early the next morning, Mariposa heard a knock on her bedroom door.
“Huh?” She poked her head from under the covers and rubbed her eyes. It was still dark outside.
Talayla stuck her head in the door. “Ready for your introduction to the people of Shimmervale?” she asked perkily.
Mariposa groaned. What if she made another mess of things?
“We don’t want to keep the king and princess waiting!” Talayla continued. “Not to mention an entire kingdom of Crystal Fairies!”
Mariposa yawned and stretched. Talayla was right. She shook Zee gently.
Zee let out a sleepy growl from under her pillow.
“Come on!” Mariposa urged.
As they flew from the palace into the city, Mariposa wondered how many Crystal Fairies would turn out to see her. She tried to ignore the nervous feeling in her stomach. Ahead of her, the king and princess rode in the royal carriage. It was decorated with warmly glowing Crystallites.
“Mariposa,” the king called, motioning her to his side. “Before our conversation got, well, interrupted yesterday, you were about to enlighten me as to your weapons training and hand-to-hand combat skills.”
“Combat skills?” Mariposa repeated.
“Yes, the ones you used to fight the Skeezites, of course.”
“Oh,” Mariposa began. She wrung her hands. As usual, the king had the wrong idea about her—about all Butterfly Fairies, really—but she wasn’t sure how to tell him. “Well, it never really came down to ‘battle.’ Rayla, Rayna, and I met Zinzie, and then we all flew to the Bewilderness, where we found clues leading to the mermaids, who told us to fly east—”
The king waved his hand impatiently. “If you don’t want to tell me, just say so!”
Mariposa sighed helplessly. How could she make him see the truth?
“Shimmervale City, Your Highnesses,” Talayla announced, sweeping an arm toward the city.
Mariposa looked around. The streets were empty. Somewhere she heard a window slam shut.
“Please welcome Mariposa, our Royal Ambassador from Flutterfield,” Talayla went on in her official voice.
Princess Catania looked around, surprised at the deserted city. “Well, it looks like everyone is busy today,” she offered, smiling at Mariposa.
King Regellius furrowed his brow. “It appears my subjects are … preoccupied today.”
“No, we’re not!” cried a fairy from some-where down the street.
Mariposa bit her lip. She felt her eyes well up with tears. She’d traveled all this way, and no one was interested in meeting her. How could she return to Flutterfield and report to Queen Marabella that she had failed in her job as ambassador? She covered her face with her hands and turned to leave. As she did, her wings knocked the king’s crown right off his head!
Somewhere, a fairy shouted, “She’s attacking the king!”
“Butterfly Fairy attack!” cried another hidden Crystal Fairy.
Mariposa bent to retrieve the crown and stepped on the king’s foot by mistake.
“Oof!” he grunted, stumbling forward.
Mariposa handed him his crown, noticing that it was bent at a funny angle. “I’m sorry! Your crown, Your Majesty!”
“Perhaps you beat the Skeezites by tripping over them,” the king said meanly, flying away.
Catania watched him leave, looking concerned. She turned to Mariposa. “There will be more people here tomorrow. I’m sure of it,” she offered.
“No, there won’t!” cried another fairy.
Mariposa blew out a frustrated breath. If only she could believe Catania.
Back at the royal library, Carlos stood in front of a hanging tapestry. He delicately dabbed at some worn spots with his paintbrush, trying to restore the image on the fabric. He stepped back to admire his work.
“There we go. Almost finished,” he said to himself. Then he heard Willa’s voice in the distance. He looked over his shoulder to see Willa leading a group of fairy tourists toward the archives.
“We’re flying.… We’re flying…,” Willa announced in her best tour-guide voice. “And we’re stopping.”
She gestured for her small group of tourists to come in closer so they could hear her. She cleared her throat. “A long time ago—I forget how long—our fairy forefathers built Flutterfield on top of a putrid swamp.”
One of the tourists raised his hand. “But, miss?” he asked, leafing through a brochure. “It says here that Flutterfield was built on a magnificent and exquisite garden.”
Willa cocked her head to the side. Hmm. “Moving on,” she announced, leading the group toward Carlos. “Okay, over here you’ll see our resident mural … guy … painting some kind of picture.”
The crowd marveled at his work.
“Willa!” Carlos exclaimed. “You’re not supposed to bring visitors back here! Please stand back,” he said, ushering the tourists away from the delicate tapestry. “This is very … fragile.
” He winced as someone bumped into his paint supply and sent paint splattering all over the tapestry.
Willa made a face. “Okay, people. We’re flying. We’re flying.…” She led the tourists out of the room as Carlos tried to clean the ruined tapestry. Being a tour guide was rough work! At the end of a long hallway, Willa continued, “Here you’ll notice the royal lunchroom.”
“You’re not very good at this, are you?” one of the tourists asked.
“Can I get a refund?” asked another.
“When is Mariposa coming back?” inquired a third.
Not soon enough, Willa thought, blowing out a sigh.
Mariposa yawned and stretched. Then, bubbling with excitement, she leaped out of bed. She’d spent much of the previous night reading up on Shimmervale, and she now felt certain that she could impress the Crystal Fairies. She bounded across the room and pounced on Zee, who was sleeping peacefully.
“Good morning, Zee!” she exclaimed.
Zee jumped out of bed and bumped her head on a tree-branch decoration. Ahhhhh!
“Today will be better, Zee. I just know it!”
Just then, there was a knock on their door.
Talayla breezed in, holding a dress.
“Good morning!” she sang, hanging the dress in the closet. “The king asked me to invite you to the annual Crystal Ball.”
“Crystal Ball? What’s that?” Mariposa asked.
“Just the biggest social event of the year!” Talayla replied. “Everyone comes to the palace to celebrate!”
Mariposa clapped her hands. “That’s perfect! I’ll win over the citizens of Shimmervale, and the king will see that we can all get along.” She turned to Talayla. “Do you know where I can find him? I want to thank him for the invitation.”
A short while later, Mariposa and Zee flew down a long hallway toward the palace library. Mariposa knocked lightly on the door. Too eager, she entered without waiting for an answer.
Inside, she saw the king hovering over a scale model of Shimmervale. He seemed to be moving small army fairies into various positions on a battlefield. Catania was reading by the window with Anu on her lap.
Mariposa and the Fairy Princess Junior Novelization (Barbie) Page 3