The Sugar Ball (3 page)

“Did you finish your wand?” Melli called out as soon as she spotted Cocoa.

Cocoa proudly took her prized possession out of her bag. She floated above her friends and waved her royal scepter. Tiny little pieces of chocolate sprinkled from the wand, and her
friends giggled as they grabbed for the sweets.

“So mint!”
Dash called out. The little Mint Fairy was the smallest fairy in Sugar Valley, but also one of the fastest. She swooped through the air to gather up the most chocolate. “Cocoa, your wand is beautiful—and
choc-o-rific
!”

“You certainly have a way with chocolate,” Melli said.

“Thanks,” Cocoa said, grinning. “I can't wait for the ball. We're going to have the best time!”

“And wait till the Sugar Pops see us!” Melli gushed.

“They won't even recognize us,” Berry boasted. “The last time we saw them, we weren't in ball gowns. We'd been working in Candy Corn Fields!” She slipped her long gown on over her dress. “Cocoa, will you zip me up?”

“Sure,” Cocoa said, setting down the wand. “This gown is
sweet-tacular
!”

Berry twirled around in a circle. The meringue bottom of her dress fell around her in a puffed-out skirt. “I feel like a princess!” she said, beaming.

“And you look like one too,” Raina told her. “I think we all will tomorrow night!”

“I better get back home,” Cocoa said. She looked up at the sky. The sun was almost behind the Frosted Mountains. “I have to finish my dress.” She grabbed her royal wand and put it in her bag. “I'll see you fairies tomorrow!” she cried as she shot up in the air. “I can't wait for the Sugar Ball!”

S
peeding through Sugar Valley, Cocoa was grinning as she thought about the Sugar Ball. She wondered what Princess Lolli would say about her wand; after all, she was a
real
fairy princess. The ruling princess of Candy Kingdom certainly knew all about royal wands. Cocoa had long admired the fancy bejeweled candy
scepter that Princess Lolli held at important affairs. Her great-grandmother Queen Taffy had passed down the wand to her. It was beautiful and sparkled with the most exquisite rainbow sugar candies. Cocoa hoped Princess Lolli would be pleased with her chocolate one!

When she arrived home, she put her bag on the chocolate oak table and examined her unfinished dress. She wanted to put a few extra chocolate sprinkles on the waistband.

As she sewed, Cocoa thought about the ball. Sugar Ball was known for elaborate candies made specially by the Royal Fairies at Candy Castle. Everything at the ball was sugarcoated and delicious! Holding a wand all night might be difficult. If she were to eat any candy, she'd need a free hand. Maybe if she sewed a loop on
the side of the dress, she could easily slip the wand in and out.

Cocoa was very pleased with herself. What a
choc-o-rific
idea! She cut some extra fabric and got to work.

The stars twinkled in the dark night sky, and the full moon cast a white glow through Cocoa's window. She'd been hard at work for hours! Cocoa stood back and examined her finished gown. She was so proud of her dress—and the fancy loop on the side of the dress for the wand. Grabbing her chocolate weave bag from the table, she reached inside for her wand to test out her invention.

“Huh?” Cocoa murmured to herself. She stuck her hand into her bag. Where was the wand?

She knew she had put the wand back into her bag before leaving Sun Dip. She never would have left the wand lying on the ground. …

She searched the bag again. And then she saw her finger poking through a hole at the bottom of her bag. A hole that was big enough for her chocolate wand to fall through!

“Bittersweet chocolate!” she cried.

Cocoa's heart began to race. Her magic wand was gone? Raina's words rang in Cocoa's head.
“If wands get into the wrong hands, there can be trouble.”

The first sour thought that came into Cocoa's head was of the salty old troll Mogu. Mogu lived under the bridge in Black Licorice Swamp and was always on the hunt for Candy Fairy candy. He had even stolen Cocoa's prized chocolate eggs from their nest in Chocolate
Woods. Cocoa's wings fluttered as she remembered her journey to Black Licorice Swamp with Princess Lolli. The princess had been brave as well as clever, and together, the two fairies had outsmarted that old troll. Would he have tried to steal from her again?

Cocoa rushed outside and called for the sugar flies. She had to get messages to her friends quickly. Sugar flies could be gossips, but they were also good for getting messages to friends in a hurry.

Dashing off notes to her friends, Cocoa instructed the flies to deliver the urgent messages. Cocoa knew it was late, but she asked her friends to meet her back at Red Licorice Lake. Since that was the last time she'd seen the wand, she figured she would begin her search there.

After the sugar flies took flight, Cocoa flew to the Sun Dip meeting spot. She hoped that on her way she'd spot the wand. Even though the moonlight was bright, Cocoa didn't see any candy jewels glittering on the ground. All that hard work—and all that chocolate magic! Cocoa was melting inside. How could she have been so careless? She should have double-checked her bag!

At Red Licorice Lake, Cocoa took a peppermint light from her pocket. She held the candy up as she searched the red sugar sand beach.

Not a trace of her wand.

Cocoa sat down on the cool red sugar sand. The valley was dark, and most fairies were home getting ready for bed. Her wings drooped as she thought about having to tell Princess
Lolli her wand had been lost. A magic wand gone missing was not something to take lightly. She'd have to tell her. If Mogu had gotten hold of the wand, there was no telling what would happen! The Sugar Ball would be canceled. All of Sugar Valley would be in danger. A troll with a magic wand … She didn't even want to think about it.

Cocoa pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her head. She hoped that the sugar flies had delivered her messages quickly and that her friends would come soon. Maybe together they'd be able to figure out what to do.

Glancing up, Cocoa saw a thick licorice stalk in front of her. She squinted in the moonlight, unsure of what she was looking at. What was on the top of the stalk? She stood up and flew to the top of the licorice.

It was covered in chocolate syrup!

Someone definitely found the wand here,
Cocoa thought. The wand must have fallen out as soon as she took flight! Flying around the stalk, Cocoa wondered why someone would have aimed at the licorice stalk. She floated back down to the ground, searching for more clues. If she followed the chocolate clues, she'd find the wand!

She wasn't sure her plan would work, but she knew one thing. Sure as sugar, she needed all her friends to help her!

C
ocoa!” Melli cried. She swooped down and knelt near her friend. “Oh, Cocoa, what is going on?” She took a deep breath. “I saw chocolate puddles everywhere as I flew from Caramel Hills!”

Looking up at her friend, Cocoa's lip quivered. She didn't want to burst into tears, so she looked
back down at her knees. “My wand …,” she began.

Melli's hand was on her back. “Oh, Cocoa. You worked so hard on that wand.” And then she took a quick breath as she realized what this news meant. “And now someone has chocolate power!” she gasped.

“Licking lollipops!” Berry blurted out when she saw her friends. “What is going on here tonight? There's a chocolate explosion around here. You should see Fruit Chew Meadow! Those candy chews are going to need a power wash to get back to their fruity glory.”

“There's chocolate in Fruit Chew Meadow, too?” Cocoa asked. She shook her head. This was worse than she had thought. Someone was definitely using the wand—someone who
didn't understand the magic of chocolate.

“Strange,” Berry said. She tapped her finger to her chin. “It's like there's a chocolate spell on Sugar Valley or something.”

“And that spell is
so mint
!” Dash announced as she flew in from over the licorice stalks. “These peppermints are delicious with the chocolate sprayed on them. What a minty cool idea.” She popped a chocolate-covered candy in her mouth and then licked her fingers.

“Dash!” Melli scolded. “This isn't a joke. Cocoa's magic wand has been stolen!”

“Not stolen, exactly,” Cocoa said sadly. “My wand fell out of my bag when I left Sun Dip.” She couldn't keep back her tears anymore. “And now this is all my fault! Raina warned me about making a magic wand.”

Cocoa's friends all gasped. A gentle breeze blew and fluttered their wings as the fairies stood in silence.

“Oh, this doesn't look good,” Raina said as she joined her friends. She looked at Cocoa. “I came as soon as I got the message. What happened?”

“Please tell me you know a story in the Fairy Code Book about a magic wand that gets into the wrong hands,” Cocoa pleaded. She held up her bag and stuck her fingers in the hole. “My wand fell out after I left Sun Dip.”