For Betsy Morrell
Contents
Excerpt from Rosie and the Secret Friend
Clara Bell, Lily Bell, Rosie Bell, Silver Bell and baby Squeak are fairy sisters who live on Sheepskerry Island.
Usually Silver and her sisters get along just fine – but not the week of the Fairy Ball. Silver has her heart set on going – but fairies must be at least eight years old to attend…
Everybody has heard of the Fairy Ball on Sheepskerry Island, for it’s the only ball where fairies put on their diamond wings and walk on satin ribbons under the stars. But only a few of us will ever see those diamonds or find those ribbons. This is what they look like, just so you’ll know when you do see them.
And though this is quite a secret, I’ll tell you something as long as you promise not to tell anyone else: this year’s ball was nearly ruined. And it would have been, except for one of Tinker Bell’s little sisters.
Oh yes, of course Tinker Bell has little sisters. Tink is a grown-up fairy, so she lives on the island of Never Land with her friend Peter Pan. Some people think Tink’s entire family lives in Kensington Gardens in London, as that’s where Tink was born, but that’s not true at all. Her sisters aren’t grown up yet, so their home is with the younger fairies on Sheepskerry Island, which I believe is not far from where you are right now. You may have been there without even knowing it, as on maps used by grown-up people it goes by another name. But perhaps you’ll recognise it if I describe it to you. It’s a jewel of a place, bright green in spring, silent white in winter, and filled with sturdy yellow roses in summer and flaming leaves in autumn. And it holds all manner of secret things that you will know about very soon. If you read the next chapter, that is.
But I am forgetting my manners. Have you met Tinker Bell’s little sisters? Please allow me to introduce them. May I present:
They live with the other young fairies on Sheepskerry Island. There are no sheep on Sheepskerry any more, which is a good thing, as sheep are enormous monsters of huge size, as everyone knows. (Actually, Tinker Bell’s little sisters only know about sheep from the stories they’ve heard from their fairy godmother, Queen Mab, the most powerful fairy of all.)
Tinker Bell’s little sisters go to fairy school, and eat fairy food, and play fairy games, and stay away from trolls and once a year, they go to a Fairy Ball, if they are old enough.
Which, this year, Silver Bell was not.
Do you suppose Silver Bell wanted to go with her sisters to the ball? Oh yes, she did. She wanted to go so much that she did something very, very naughty. Something you would never do, I feel quite sure, even if you meant well, as Silver did. Silver made such a mess of things the day before the Fairy Ball that I’m not even sure I should tell you about it.
I’ll leave the choice to you. If you would like