Farrah in Fairyland Read online

  FAIRYLAND”S FIFTYETH ANNUAL TALENT CONTEST TO BE HELD AT THE END OF THE MONTH.

  Noticing that the article had captured Farrah’s attention, her father spoke, “Don’t tell me that you are getting these grand illusions again about entering the talent contest? You know very well that the contest is for Superiora only. After all, what are you going to do? Are you going to use Pixie dust to whip up a batch of kiwi-pork chop muffins? Plus, you aren’t going to have time for any of that, because you’re starting your new job at the bakery tomorrow.”

  Having been reminded of what tomorrow was to bring, tears rushed into Farrah’s violet eyes, blurring them momentarily. Knowing that Farrah was upset, Crystaline finished up the dishes with one last dash of Pixie dust and sat down next to her daughter.

  “Farrah, I don’t understand why you are so ashamed of our family,” said a gentle-sounding Crystaline Fancycracker, as she placed her arm around Farrah’s shoulder to console her.

  “How many fairies can say that their great, great-grandmother invented cereal?”

  Farrah snorted accidentally, which she attempted to cover up by coughing into a napkin. The legend to which Farrah’s mother was referring was one that Farrah was far too familiar with. As the story went, Paulmatine Fancycracker dreaded her morning routine. She found that she didn’t have nearly enough time to prepare breakfast. Farrah’s great, great- grandmother would get up a full two hours early to prepare the meal, which included bacon and eggs for the entire family. However, with a total of 20 sons and daughters, her other obligations, which involved making lunches, doing the laundry and making the beds, took up most of her morning. Despite the use of Pixie dust to speed along the chores, it was 8:00 when all the chores were finally done and she had yet to shower or change for work.

  Frustrated one morning, Paulmatine decided that she wouldn’t make bacon and eggs. Instead, she combined some biscuits in a bowl with some milk and she ate them with a spoon. It was quick, simple and delicious. The entire family loved it and Paulmatine had so much extra time that morning that she even had time for the occasional bubble bath.

  Word quickly spread around Fairyland of this new breakfast that saved time and money. People flocked from all over the land to learn how to make Paulmatine’s biscuits and milk. It was quite funny to see Paulmatine giving seminars on how to make breakfast. After all, the seminar took only a few short minutes. She took some biscuits, crushed them into a bowl and poured some milk over top. The simplicity of the breakfast creation mattered not to the townsfairies of Fairyland. They thought that Paulmatine had created the best culinary masterpiece since Mr. Potatofairy had invented the baked potato.

  Farrah, on the other hand, knew the real story. When Farrah was ten-years old, her grandmother Gizella Fancycracker had confessed that her mother invented cereal completely by accident. According to Grandma Gizella, Paulmatine had inadvertently left some biscuits in a pail one morning. As usual, she was rushing to get ready for work when she grabbed the bucket, forgetting that there were biscuits in it and went to milk the cow. A sleepy Paulmatine Fancycracker was surprised when pieces of biscuit floated to the top of the pail. Not wanting to waste food, she took a spoon and began to fish the biscuits out of the bowl. One taste and she was hooked. She instantly fell in love with her new culinary creation, which later became known as cereal.

  Farrah often toyed with the idea of telling her parents the truth behind her great, great- grandma’s creation. She thought that by revealing that piece of information, her parent’s would allow her to pursue a career other than a baker. She knew, however, that the information would crush her parent’s spirit, not to mention the business. After all, they did name their business Paulmatine’s Bakeria in honour of Farrah’s great, great- grandmother.

  Farrah’s eyes were still glued to the article as she tried to read around her father’s grip. What Farrah’s parents didn’t know was that in her spare time, Farrah was learning the Pixie Arts on her own. It was a slow process without the help of a professor and only library books to assist her. Despite any success at first, it was now five months ago to the day that Farrah had perfected the Giganto Spell.

  This was much to the delight of her best friend, Giuseppi Piscini, to whom she had demonstrated the spell. Giuseppi stared at his friend in wonder on that day when the usually petite, almost weak-looking Farrah had instantly grown to nine feet tall. Her hands were like tree trunks and her legs looked like two skyscrapers. After that day, and with her newfound confidence, Farrah had learned over 25 spells, a secret that she kept from everyone including Giuseppi.

  “Farrah!” Crystaline Fancycracker hollered even louder.

  “Oh, I’m sorry, Mom,” responded Farrah, as she got up from the table. She sprinkled some Pixie dust, which she had taken out of her pocket, onto her plate. Instantly, the dishes were cleaned and returned to the cupboard.

  Farrah headed for the coat closet when her father yelled out to her,

  “Just promise us, Farrah, that you aren’t going to do anything stupid.”

  “I won’t,” Farrah said hesitantly, yet sternly.

  “I’m just going off to Giuseppi’s for a while.”

  With that, she grabbed a sweater from out of the closet and walked out the front door.

  Chapter 3: Who’s Got Talent?

  Pausing for a moment to look at the beautiful dawn of the night, Farrah was lost in thought. She often contemplated running away down to earth where she could start her life over again. Considering the state that the earth was in, however, her lowly life as a baker seemed to be her only inevitability. Deep down, she knew that Fairyland was like no other place in the universe. It was in constant motion for a reason; a safety mechanism crafted by the founders of Fairyland so that it would remain protected from harm.

  There was only one place in Fairyland where earth could be seen below. It was high atop Mount Michelutz, a favourite spot of Farrah and Giuseppi’s. Mount Michelutz was also hard to find, in that it was also in constant motion. “Fairyland is like a Rubik’s cube, always shifting,” Farrah’s father would often say.

  Unlike on Earth, it is always warm in Fairyland, but not sticky warm like the summers often experienced by humans. The sky is a wondrous shade of pink with the sun funnelling through the drift of the clouds. The lakes and rivers are slightly reddish/orange in colour, with Pixie dust having enchanted them to enhance the ambiance of the mystical land.

  The trees are a bright orange, almost as a beacon to signal that anything that pretty should never be destroyed. Within Fairyland, nature is of the uttermost importance, with rituals held on a monthly basis to give thanks to the lavish land. The biggest ritual is held on January 1st. It is a massive celebration called Equinos, which begins with a daylong parade with all the fairies in Fairyland floating down the streets dressed up in elaborate costumes.

  Farrah’s mother had worn a large multicoloured hat at the last Equinos celebration. It resembled the mane of the lion and was so heavy that she often had to stop and take off her hat to rest at each block. The Fancycrackers also baked Pixie-Butter cookies for the entire land, which was a fan favourite.

  Farrah didn’t care much for these celebrations. She thought it unfair that only the Superiora were permitted to ride the lavish floats in the parade. She hated to see the smug faces of the Superiora as they slithered methodically like the colourful dragons of the Chinese Golden Dragon Parade in celebration of the Lunar New Year.

  The Ordinaria were relegated to the role of spectators. More excruciating was the fact that the Ordinaria were also required to clean up after the celebration was done; a task that could take up to a week, despite the use of Pixie Dust.

  Even with all of the shortcomings, Farrah knew that Fairyland was a special place to call home. As she continued around the corner of the house toward the Volareport, Bella started to hop up and down with excitement. As one would expect, motorized vehicles are strictly prohibited in Fairyland to preserve the beauty of the environment. Instead, many O
rdinaria opt to ride a Volare to get from one place to another.

  A Volare is like a large butterfly. It is the size of a compact car with a saddle strapped to its elongated back much like that of a horse. Bella was a magnificent specimen. A subtle rainbow pattern splattered like paint on the outside of her wings, enhanced by the yellow of her scaly back. Her beautiful green and yellow, blue and red wings fluttered as Farrah approached.

  “Ciao bella. How are you doing today?” asked Farrah, as she stroked Bella’s head back and forth.

  Bella responded by whistling to Farrah in conversation. Farrah had learned at an early age that Bella had the gift of speaking Volarish. It was thought that only the special Volare were granted the ability to speak the language. This was why Farrah regarded Bella as more than just a mode of transportation, or even a pet. Bella was a friend to Farrah and for a girl that grew up not having many friends she truly cherished this relationship.

  “Oh, I know, Bella. I hate having leaving you in the Volareport all night long. Maybe Mom will let you stay in my room tonight,” Farrah said in response to the Bella’s whistling voice.

  Farrah climbed atop Bella’s back, first saying sorry to her for having to demean her in such a way. Farrah always felt a little ashamed at having to use Bella to fly. Oh, how Farrah wished that her lineage were blessed with the ability to fly instead of the inclination to cook. She always thought Superiora to be ungrateful for this remarkable ability that they were born with.

  Although Ordinaria have wings, they are not fully developed. Farrah’s wings in particular were peculiarly small for a fairy her age. They protruded like two tiny twigs out of her shoulder blades. This was of special interest to the other fairy boys and girls at school, who often teased her about her pathetic looking wings. Samantha Scarcity, Farrah’s nemesis, even resorted to calling Farrah an ostrich. This was a severe profanity in Fairyland, for it was one of the only flightless birds to exist on Earth.

  Lovingly, Bella lifted Farrah up off the ground and in a flash; they were in the sky and on their way to Giuseppi’s house.

  A few short moments later, Bella took Farrah in for a landing at the Piscini residence. Like all houses in Fairyland, the Piscini house was circular in shape, and glistened like a crystal ball in the sunlight. Giuseppi was sitting cross-legged on the grass at the front of the house, pulling at some strands of orange grass. As Farrah walked towards Giuseppi, she could tell that he was upset about something.

  “Giuseppi, what’s the matter, buddy?”

  “Have you forgotten what tomorrow is?” Responded Giuseppi, his voice cracking as choked up.

  Caught up in her own problems, Farrah had forgotten that Giuseppi too, was about to enter a profession that he detested.

  “Tomorrow, I have to start my stupid job at the fishery. Can you imagine working at a fishery, having to gut Wallo-Wallo fish all day long? Oh, and as you know, they just happen to be one of the ugliest, smelliest creatures in all of Fairyland. What girl is ever going to like me now that I’m going to smell like rotten fish all day long?”

  Farrah giggled for a second as she clasped her hand over her mouth after seeing Giuseppi’s reaction and she immediately felt sorry for him. After all, Giuseppi was one of the only fairies in Fairyland to whom she could relate. Much as Farrah was destined to bake, Giuseppi was destined to gut fish. Something that he had not come to terms with over the summer.

  Giuseppi had been Farrah’s best friend since the third grade. It was no secret that, back at the Pixie Academy, the other students disliked Farrah. Speaking simply, she was a little too perfect for the other students at the Academy. She was always the smartest student, the most athletic student, and the boys would tell you, the prettiest student. Her despicable wings, which were much smaller than even the average Ordinaria fairy, prevented the boys from asking Farrah out on a date. No boy would dare invite Farrah over for dinner looking like that.

  Instead, the fairy boys had resorted to name-calling. Fortunately, Farrah was able to look past the taunting. She knew that she just had to survive the Academy, and that was exactly what she did. She was happy to have Giuseppi Piscini to lean on throughout her years at the Academy. She never would have made it through without him and he knew it.

  Giuseppi was a bit of an oddball himself. He was by far the shortest student at the Pixie Academy, which earned him the nickname ‘Stumps.’ Although Giuseppi hated the name, like Farrah, he also decided to ignore the taunts. This was often a difficult feat considering that the name ‘Stumps’ could be heard up to 100 times in a single school day.

  Luckily, Farrah was able to look past Giuseppi’s shortcomings. Sure, he was a little dim-witted, and socially awkward, and he was also the only student at the school that was unable to use his Pixie dust for even the simplest of tasks. That inability caused Giuseppi much embarrassment.

  Most fairy children were born with the ability of Pixie dust manipulation. For instance, Farrah was only 7 months old when she began to use her Pixie Dust to complete household chores and other errands around the house. Nevertheless, Farrah saw Giuseppi as a genuinely loyal friend.

  Giuseppi’s loyalty was proven on the last day of their first year at the Pixie Academy. Samantha Scarcity, the ringleader of the Super Superioras, the so-called cool group at the Pixie Academy, had planned an elaborate prank. She took 37 pink balloons to school. Using her Pixie baton, a tool used only by Superiora fairies, she filled the balloons with tomato soup. Samantha Scarcity had given everyone in Professor DeCuliari’s Pixie Physics class a balloon to throw at Farrah when the bell rang to signal the start of summer break.

  Inadvertently, Giuseppi had been given a balloon amidst the commotion when Samantha was handing them out. When the bell rang, Farrah was pelted with balloon after balloon. Samantha had even used her Pixie dust to create one massive balloon that splattered like a tidal wave in the cafeteria. Tomato soup covered Farrah’s entire body.

  One couldn’t help noticing that Farrah was unbothered by the whole ordeal. Instead, she just stood there taking the blows of the tomato soup filled balloons. She opted to focus on Giuseppi, which put a smile on her face. When it came time for Giuseppi to throw his balloon, he decided instead to break it over his own head. He hoped this would take some of the attention away from Farrah. She knew right then and there that Giuseppi was a special person. The two fairies had been best friends ever since.

  Farrah leaned in close to Giuseppi who remained seated in the grass. She gave a playful punch to Giuseppi’s arm trying to get his mind off things.

  “Cheer up, big guy. At least we have each other.”

  Giuseppi gave a little smile as he looked up and stared into Farrah’s angelic violet eyes. He got the same queasy feeling that he always did when he looked at Farrah. It was last summer when he realized that he felt more than just friendship for Farrah. However, he dared not say anything to her out of fear that she would no longer want to be his friend.

  “Thanks, Farrah. You just promise me that no matter how busy we are, we will still make time to go to Mount Michelutz. The fires on Earth will eventually be extinguished and hopefully we will be able to get a glimpse of the Great Wall of China like Ormono Orlogio said he did last winter.”

  “No problem, Giuseppi, I promise,” responded Farrah as she smiled at her friend. “Oh, I almost forgot!”

  Farrah took the crumpled up newspaper article that she had sneakily extracted from the recycling bin where her dad had tossed it.

  “I’ve decided something.”

  “What?” asked Giuseppi, feeling anxious as he got up to his feet. Does she finally want to be my girlfriend?

  “I’ve decided that I’m going to enter Fairyland’s talent competition.”

  Chapter 4: Blown Away

  “Oh…I think you have finally gone nuts, Farrah,” responded a disappointed Giuseppi as he started to walk back and forth. His clubbed feet protruded from his leather sandals as they grazed on the grass.

  “I figure this is the only way
that I will ever be able to live my dream and become Tooth Fairy.”

  Farrah also stood up. Her long blonde hair had blown into her face, which she flipped back quickly. Her chin tilted upward toward the red sky, as if posing for a portrait.

  “But, Farrah, even if they do let you into the talent contest, I don’t think that performing the Giganto spell will be enough. How can you possibly compete with the Superiora? After all, they have trained all their lives in the Pixie Arts. They would absolutely maul you.”

  Farrah returned to looking at Giuseppi. Although she did not appreciate the negative tone in his voice, in the back of her mind, she knew that it would take a miracle to win the contest. Last year, the winner was Cecilia Fairchild. She was able to balance two evergreen trees in each hand, the whole time standing on a dancing Tiger Rhino with fireworks coming out of its mouth.

  “Yeah, you are probably right, Giuseppi. If the talent contest was tomorrow, I would surely lose, but I have a whole month to prepare. I know that with a little hard work, I can prove that I belong amongst the ‘elite’ fairies.”

  Giuseppi paused for a moment before he spoke. His facial expression became serious as the nostrils of his pointed nose flared outward.

  “Farrah, what if you get hurt? Pixie magic is not something to take lightly. One wrong move and you could wind up at Malato Hospital. Do you remember what happened when I combined blue Pixie dust and yellow Pixie dust together?”

  “How can I forget that? You were left with a bald head, yellow eyes and swollen wings for over a month,” Farrah chuckled.

  “Don’t worry about me, Giuseppi. I’ve been practising.”

  “Oh, you have? For how long?” Asked Giuseppi, with his hand on his hips and his face scrunched inward in disbelief.

  Farrah did not hesitate to respond, as she sat back on the grass with her knees clutched up against her chest.