The Woods Beyond (Disney

by Kiki Thorpe

  “Remember Lainey’s first deer ride in Never Land?” Prilla asked.

  “I do!” Mia giggled. “She was trying to say ‘Giddy-up’ in Deer—”

  “But she ended up saying ‘Fire!’ ” Kate broke in, laughing. “And the deer just took off! Lainey barely managed to hold on!”

  “Remember when she talked to a bear?” Gabby said.

  “I heard about that!” Prilla said. “It was the talk of the tearoom for ages. Lainey spoke to the bear in Mouse. What was it she said?”

  “She said, ‘I’m looking for my brothers and sisters,’ ” Gabby replied. “And the bear ran away. He thought we were great big mice!”

  Everyone laughed.

  Suddenly, Kate, who was leading, drew up short. They had come to a thorny thicket. The deer trail was gone. The girls couldn’t see any way around or through the snarly plants.

  “Now what?” said Mia.

  There came a screech from the dark forest. The girls moved closer together. They took each other’s hands. Prilla landed on Kate’s shoulder.

  “I’m sure it’s nothing,” Kate said uncertainly.

  “I wish Lainey were here right now,” whispered Gabby.

  “So do I,” said Mia.

  “So do I,” said Prilla.

  “So do I,” said Kate.

  Down beneath the forest floor, a party was taking place in the boys’ underground hideout. As a cozy fire crackled in the hearth, Lainey and the boys made shadow puppets on the wall. They held handstand contests and jumped on the bed and tried to scare each other with their best ghost stories.

  Lainey was having a great time. But she couldn’t stop thinking of Kate, Mia, and Gabby and how they were missing all the fun.

  She wondered what her friends were doing. They must have noticed she was gone by now. Were they worried? Had they returned home without her? Lainey was sorry she hadn’t thought to leave a note.

  Noticing the look on her face, Cubby stopped jumping. “What’s the matter?” he asked. “Aren’t you having fun?”

  “Yes … it’s just, I miss my friends,” Lainey replied.

  Hearing this, Slightly and Tootles stopped jumping, too. The Twins and Nibs came out of their handstands. “Were they good friends?” one of the Twins asked.

  “Yeah,” said Lainey. “And I left without saying good-bye.”

  “That sounds like a sad story,” Cubby said warily.

  “Cubby doesn’t like sad stories,” Slightly told Lainey. “They make him cry.”

  “Do not!” Cubby shouted, punching him on the arm.

  “Do so!” Slightly said, pushing back.

  “It’s not all sad,” Lainey said quickly. “We had lots of fun times, too.”

  Cubby nodded. “That sounds better.”

  “What sort of fun times did you have, Lainey?” one of the Twins asked.

  They gathered around the hearth to hear the story. Only then did the boys realize that the fire had burned low and they were out of firewood.

  They drew sticks to see who would go out to get more. Tootles lost. He gave Lainey a mournful look, as if to say, “I always lose.”

  “I won’t start the story until you’re back,” Lainey promised.

  Tootles scuttled into the tree, and they heard him slowly climbing up to the forest.

  He was gone only a few moments before he scrambled back into the room, gesturing madly.

  “Somebody’s coming!” Nibs translated. “Pirates, I think. Headed right this way!”

  Tootles nodded. The other boys leaped to their feet. “If they’ve just come back to the island, they’ll be looking for a fight,” Slightly said.

  “A fight with who?” Lainey asked in alarm.

  “Whoever they find,” Cubby said. “There’s nothing like a few weeks at sea to make a pirate mean.”

  Lainey gulped. It was one thing to hear about a pirate battle. It was quite another to be mixed up in one. “Wouldn’t it be better to stay in here, then?” she asked.

  “And let them ambush us?” Cubby shook his head. “I say we sneak up on them first.”

  The other boys agreed. They began to gather their clubs and swords.

  Lainey was in no hurry to go out into the dangerous night. On the other hand, she didn’t want to stay there alone. She watched, uncertain what to do, as one by one the boys headed up to the forest.

  Finally, Lainey and Tootles were the only ones left. He looked at her with raised eyebrows as if to say, “Aren’t you coming?”

  Lainey gazed longingly at the dying fire. How nice it would be to stay in this snug home. But then she thought of how Tootles had rushed out to save her from the rhino. It didn’t seem right not to help him—and the other boys—now.

  “All right.” With a sigh, Lainey followed him, slowly climbing the notches in the hollow trunk that served as a ladder. But by the time she made it up to the forest, the boys, including Tootles, had vanished.

  It was a moonless night. The forest was so dark that she couldn’t tell where one tree ended and another began. “Tootles?” she whispered. “Nibs?”

  Silence.

  “Slightly?” she said, inching forward. “Cubby? Twins?”

  “Shhhh,” said a voice no louder than a mouse’s sigh. A hand reached out and pulled her into the bushes.

  The boys were crouched together there. They stared into the darkness. Lainey heard a tiny snap, like the sound of a twig breaking.

  Pirates!

  Nibs put a finger to his lips. Then, with a wave of his hand, he motioned the boys and Lainey forward. They began to sneak toward the pirates.

  The sound of her own heart pounding filled Lainey’s ears, so loud she was afraid the whole forest could hear it. Her eyes had adjusted to the dark now. She could see three figures coming through the trees. They carried a single lantern between them. The lantern flame was so low it cast hardly any light at all.

  There’s something strange about that lantern, Lainey thought. It didn’t swing like a lantern normally would. It moved up and down, this way and that, almost as if it had a mind of its own.

  Just then, the light swung up high, and Lainey caught a glimpse of a face. She stood straight up and yelled, “STOP!”

  But it was too late. With warlike whoops, the boys leaped out from their hiding place.

  The pirates screamed.

  The boys screamed, too, and jumped back in surprise. “Girls!” Slightly squealed.

  The “pirates”—Kate, Mia, and Gabby—were standing there, clinging to each other in fright. What Lainey had mistaken for a lantern was Prilla, fluttering beside them.

  When Kate heard the boys scream, she straightened and peered closer at the furry attackers. “They’re not bears,” she announced. “They’re just boys!”

  “I wouldn’t say ‘just,’ ” Cubby huffed, drawing himself up with as much dignity as he could.

  Kate was about to reply, when she caught sight of Lainey. The girls rushed over to embrace her.

  “What are you doing here?” Lainey asked, every bit as surprised as they were.

  “Looking for you, of course!” Kate said. “What are you doing here?”

  “And who are they?” Mia added, pointing at the boys, who were watching with confused expressions.

  Lainey made introductions. The boys were still suspicious. Slightly declared he thought the girls might actually be pirates in disguise. The girls were also wary, since they thought the boys had given them an unfair scare. But when Lainey explained that it had all just been a misunderstanding, everyone warmed up.

  Of course, as soon as the girls heard about the hideout, they wanted to see it. The boys, who were proud of their home, were eager to show it off. Kate, Mia, and Gabby tried out all the mushroom stools and looked at the coat hooks and took turns making water run into the washbasin. They praised the boys’ cleverness so much that even Nibs turned pink.

  As they explored, Lainey told them about her day. Kate was thrilled to hold the pirate sword, just as Lainey knew she w
ould be. Mia was delighted to hear about the mermaid castle. And Gabby liked the story of the rhinoceros so much she made Lainey tell it twice.

  In the excitement, Lainey almost forgot about Prilla. When she finally thought to look for her, the fairy was flying out the door.

  Prilla flew into the dark forest. The night air was cool. It felt good after the warmth of the hideout.

  She was glad to see the girls reunited, and relieved that everything had worked out. But it had been a long day, and she was eager to return to Pixie Hollow.

  Still, she hadn’t gotten a chance to apologize to Lainey. The girls and boys had been having such a good time, they hardly seemed to notice her. Maybe it’s better just to leave them to their fun, she thought.

  As Prilla hesitated, she heard footsteps behind her. She turned and saw Lainey. “Where are you going, Prilla?” Lainey asked.

  Prilla flew over to her. “Back to Pixie Hollow. But I wanted to tell you that I didn’t mean what I said about you being a clumsy Clumsy. I’d fly backward if I could.”

  “You really didn’t mean it?” Lainey asked.

  “Of course not!” Prilla exclaimed. “I was just upset. I was having a bad day. The worst day ever, in fact. I’m afraid I took it out on you. Please come back to Pixie Hollow.”

  “But what about the other fairies?” Lainey said.

  “What other fairies?” Prilla asked.

  “Everyone,” said Lainey. “They must be laughing at me. They think I’m just a big Clumsy.”

  “No one was laughing at you,” Prilla assured her. “I don’t think anyone really noticed. They were all focused on the games.”

  Lainey thought about that. Maybe the fairies she’d heard hadn’t been laughing at her after all.

  “I’m sorry I almost stepped on you,” Lainey said. “You were right to be angry. I should have watched where I was going. I was having a bad day, too. But it’s turned into one of the best days ever. Isn’t it funny how that works?”

  Prilla agreed that it was.

  “You know what I think?” Lainey said. “Maybe bad days are just bad days. It doesn’t mean everything is bad.”

  Prilla smiled. “I think you might be right about that.”

  Kate, Mia, and Gabby emerged from the hideout, followed by the boys. “Prilla, aren’t you staying?” asked Kate.

  Prilla shook her head. “It’s time for me to go home. It’s late, and there’s something I still need to do.”

  “I’m ready to go back, too,” Lainey said.

  “You’re really leaving?” Slightly asked.

  “I thought you were going to stay here for good,” said Cubby. He looked as if he might cry.

  “Thanks, but I miss my home,” Lainey told them, realizing it was true.

  “But you’ll come back for a real pirate battle, won’t you?” Nibs asked.

  Lainey smiled. “Maybe,” she said. “But I might have to miss it. The thing is, I don’t speak Pirate.”

  The boys and girls said good-bye and promised to meet again. Then the girls and Prilla started back toward Pixie Hollow.

  “You know,” Lainey said as they went along, “there’s one thing I’m sorry about.”

  “What’s that?” asked Prilla.

  “The boys kept talking about someone named Peter Pan. But I never got to meet him,” Lainey said.

  “Oh,” Prilla replied. “You never know. You still might get the chance. Anything is possible in Never Land.”

  Later that night, Prilla stood on a high branch of the Home Tree. Pixie Hollow was dark and quiet. The games were long since over. The ribbons had all been handed out. The sweet potato had been roasted and eaten. The girls had returned to their homes on the mainland. Now the fairies were tucked in their beds, worn out from the excitement of the day.

  Prilla yawned. She was tired, too. But before she went to sleep, she had one thing left to do.

  She sat down, settling her dress around her. She focused and took a deep breath. Then she blinked.

  She was in the brown living room. The boy was sitting cross-legged on the floor. But this time he wasn’t watching TV. He seemed to be waiting for something.

  When he saw Prilla, his face lit up. “I knew it!” he cried. “I knew you were real! I knew it was true!”

  Prilla turned a cartwheel in the air, crying, “Clap if you believe in fairies!”

  The boy clapped with all his might. Then he held out his hand, palm facing up. Prilla fluttered down and gently landed on it.

  The boy brought her closer to his face. She heard him suck in his breath. His brown eyes were wide and full of wonder.

  “Fairy,” he whispered, “this is the best day ever.”

  Tina and Tara Taylor sat on the porch swing, their long, straight blond hair pulled back into matching high ponytails. The girls were a year older than Mia and were identical twins. Even their grandmother had trouble telling them apart. To make matters worse, they always dressed exactly alike.

  “Whatcha doing?” one of the twins asked.

  “We just signed up to volunteer at the block party,” Gabby piped in.

  “Us too,” said the other twin. “We’re going to do the Bake Sale.”

  “So is Mia!” Gabby exclaimed.

  “But I’m not—” Mia started to say.

  “We’re making Death by Chocolate Cake,” said one twin, cutting her off.

  Her sister elbowed her in the side. “No, Tina! We’re making lemon meringue pie!”

  “Wrong!” said Tina. “We decided on chocolate for sure.” She eyed Mia. “What are you making?”

  “Um … I don’t know,” Mia said.

  The two girls came over to the front gate. Now that they were no longer sitting, Mia had mixed them up again. One of the sisters narrowed her eyes at Mia. “Well, I bet we’ll sell more than you,” she said. Mia smiled despite herself. The Taylor twins weren’t just competitive with each other, they were competitive with everyone else, too.

  “Wanna make a bet?” asked the other twin.

  “Actually, I—” Mia started to say.

  “Sure, we’ll make a bet with you,” Kate interrupted.

  Mia shook her head at Kate. But Kate ignored her. She stepped forward and placed her hands on the fence. “Mia’s going to beat you both, no problem,” she added.

  The twins whispered back and forth. Then they both nodded.

  “Okay, Mia, if you lose you have to wear a T-shirt all week that says TARA AND TINA TAYLOR ARE THE BEST BAKERS ON SPRUCE STREET,” a twin said.

  “Tina and Tara,” said the one who must have been Tina.

  “And if … I mean, when Mia wins,” Kate retorted, “you both have to wear a T-shirt that says MIA VASQUEZ IS THE BEST BAKER ON SPRUCE STREET.”

  “Sure,” Tina said with a smirk.

  Mia and her friends started to walk away. “May the best baker win!” one of the twins called after them.

  “Kate! Why did you do that?” Mia asked when they were out of earshot.

  “Well, somebody had to take them down a peg,” said Kate. “I can’t stand how they’re always whispering. They act like they’re better than everyone else.”

  “But I can’t win the bet. I don’t know the first thing about baking!” said Mia. She had butterflies in her stomach. What had Kate gotten her into? And how in the world was she going to pull this off?

  Excerpt from A Pinch of Magic copyright © 2014 by Disney Enterprises, Inc. Published in the United States by Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House LLC, a Penguin Random House Company, New York.

  KIKI THORPE spent much of her childhood reading, daydreaming, and searching for fairies in the forests of Idaho—pastimes that were good training for writing children’s books. She is the author of several books for young readers, including the New York Times bestseller In a Blink, the first book in the Never Girls series. She lives with her husband, Greg, and their two children in San Francisco.

  orpe, The Woods Beyond (Disney