Anya the Cuddly Creatures Fairy by Daisy Meadows

“Another perfect day!” said Rachel Walker happily. She was standing in the sunshine on the grand entrance steps of the Golden Palace. Rachel’s best friend, Kirsty Tate, looked up at the sky and smiled as the bright sunbeams warmed her face.
    â€œIt’s royal weather for a royal palace!” Kirsty agreed.
    Kirsty and Rachel were staying at the Golden Palace for a special Royal Sleepover Camp for kids over spring vacation. Today, Kirsty’s mother was bringing Kirsty’s younger cousin Charlie to spend the day with them.
    â€œI’m looking forward to showing Charlie all the amazing places here,” said Kirsty. “I wonder what he'll like best. The drawbridge? The moat?”
    â€œOr the petting zoo, the magic staircases, the dungeons, or the maze,” said Rachel, counting them off on her fingers. “There are so many things to show him, I don’t think one day will be enough!”

    â€œStaying here really does make me feel like a princess,” Kirsty said, gazing out across the palace gardens.
    â€œHow about a Princess Fairy?” Rachel asked.

    The girls shared a secret smile. They were friends with the fairies who lived in Fairyland, and they often helped them when Jack Frost and his goblins caused trouble. At the moment, the fairies needed their help more than ever before. When the girls had arrived at the Golden Palace, they had been invited to a special ball in Fairyland in honor of the Princess Fairies. But Jack Frost had crashed the party and stolen the princesses' tiaras!
    â€œJack Frost is so mean,” said Kirsty, thinking about the cold-hearted master of the Ice Castle. “The Princess Fairies need their tiaras to make sure that humans and fairies can have a happy, magical time. Without them, there will be problems all over the human world and in Fairyland.”

    â€œWe’ve already found two of the tiaras,” Rachel reminded her best friend. “And we know that the others are somewhere at the Golden Palace. I’m sure we'll find them!”
    Queen Titania had not been able to keep Jack Frost from taking the tiaras to the human world, but she had cast a spell to make sure that the tiaras would all end up at the Golden Palace. That way, Rachel and Kirsty could help get them back!
    Before the girls could say another word about Fairyland or the tiaras, they saw Mrs. Tate’s car driving over the drawbridge and pulling up in front of the palace.
    â€œHi, Mom!” called Kirsty, waving. “Hi, Charlie!”
    A very excited-looking little boy climbed out of the car.

    â€œHi, Kirsty!” he called at the top of his voice. “Hi, Rachel! This place is AMAZING!”
    Mrs. Tate hugged Kirsty and Rachel.
    â€œAre you having a good time, girls?” she asked.

    â€œOh, yes!” Rachel exclaimed. “It’s even more exciting here than we imagined!”
    â€œWe want to show Charlie the petting zoo and the royal stables,” said Kirsty eagerly.
    Just then, Mrs. Tate cried out. One of the palace peacocks had jumped up onto a stone pedestal and started pecking at her purse!
    â€œShoo!” said Rachel, flapping her arms at the peacock.

    The peacock lifted its tail feathers and stalked away. Kirsty and Rachel stared at it with astonishment.
    â€œI’ve never seen a peacock act like that before!” said Kirsty, frowning.
    â€œMe, neither,” Rachel added.
    â€œMaybe there’s something in the air,” said Mrs. Tate. “Kirsty’s cat, Pearl, has been out of sorts, too. She’s been running away and hiding all morning.”
    â€œThat’s really strange,” said Kirsty, frowning. “Pearl usually loves curling up in people’s laps.”
    â€œMaybe she misses you,” said Charlie.
    â€œI wonder if Buttons misses
me
,” said Rachel, thinking of her shaggy dog.
    â€œI’m sure he does,” said Mrs. Tate. “I have to go now, but I’ll be back to