The Fairy Bell Sisters: Rosie and the Secret Friend

“Hush, Silver, that’s enough,” said Clara in a clipped tone. “You remember what happened on Coombe Meadow Island, don’t you?” Clara didn’t like to have to bring up faraway Coombe Meadow, but she had to stop Silver’s wild ideas.

The other sisters, even Squeak, fell silent. “Did all the fairies lose their homes?” asked Silver at last.

“Every one of them. Their houses were trampled, their school was dug up, their queen’s palace was destroyed—” Rosie had to stop for breath.

“—and many of them were chased until they dropped from tiredness. So it is lucky that they all escaped.” Clara didn’t add ‘with their lives’. She didn’t need to.

“I thought Summer People were nice to fairies,” said Silver.

“Oh, they used to be nice to fairies,” said Clara. “When children still believed in fairies.” She sighed. “But those children don’t exist any more.”

(How I wish Clara knew about you!)

“So if we value our homes and our lives and Sheepskerry Island, we must stay far away.”

“Still, if I was very careful—”

“Silver, I won’t tell you again. You are not to go near a Summer Cottage or a Summer Dog or a Summer Cat or any of the Summer People. It is simply too dangerous. Do you understand?”

“Silver understands now,” said Rosie gently to Clara. She hated to see Silver so upset. “Don’t you, Silver?”

“I guess so.”

“Good,” said Rosie. “Then we’ll all be safe.”

It did not occur to Rosie then or for a long time afterwards, that it might be she who would trespass into the world of the Summer People.

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By the end of the day, the five families had moved into their summer cottages. Peace came over the island at last.

The sisters missed the fireflies that evening and the sunset, but when they peeked their heads out of their fairy house and saw a roof of bright stars in the heavens, the waste of the day did not feel so bad.

“We only have a little time before we need to go to bed,” said Clara. “Let’s see what damage the Summer People have done so far. That way, we’ll know the worst of it before we start setting things to rights in the morning.”

Rosie fetched a fairy lantern and put in a tiny glowing jellyfish, which lit up the bright night even more. Silver took Squeak in her arms and off they all went to explore.

“Dhaah,” said Squeak.

“Yes, it is dark, Squeak, but you’re safe,” said Lily.

They traced the Summer People’s path from cottage to cottage and found, as they’d expected, that the Summer People had been as careless as ever.

The shell-lined path up to the Flower sisters’ house was at sixes and sevens and the dogs had been up to mischief in the gardens near the Seashell sisters’ place. “I’ll have to replant those mulberry bushes,” said Clara with a sigh. “More work, just when I thought I’d get a rest.”

In front of Deepwater Spring, where they washed and dried their laundry, Rosie’s face fell. “Oh dear,” she said. “Here’s a week’s worth of washing, trampled underfoot.” Every one of Squeakie’s nappies for the week had been squashed into the mud.

“Odeo!” cried Squeak

“Never mind, Squeak,” said Rosie. “I’ll make sure you have fresh ones to keep you dry. But what a lot of work it will be.”

A sudden shriek came from Lily, who was down on Sea Glass Beach.

“My blues! They’re gone!”

Lily had been collecting bits of blue sea glass ever since fairy school was over. Blue sea glass is the rarest of all, as you probably know, and it’s very hard to spot. Lily happened to have quite a talent for finding blue sea glass (“Probably because it’s the same colour as my eyes,” she once said), and she had collected quite a pile of it.

“Poor Lily!” said Rosie.

“I did mention you should have brought it home to take care of it properly,” said Clara.

Lily had left the blue sea glass in a tiny little rock pool on the beach outside White Rose Cottage so all the other fairies could stop by and admire her treasure.

“How could those Summer People ever have found it so quickly? On the first day! Why, if I ever meet one of those Summer People, I will—”

“Quiet!”

Silver’s voice was urgent.

Then they all heard it. The rumble of a wheelbarrow up the path. People’s voices – Summer People’s voices. They were headed to White Rose Cottage, just metres from where the Fairy Bell sisters were hovering.