A Minty Mess Read online

  Contents

  Map of the Candy Kingdom

  CHAPTER 1 Sour Rain

  CHAPTER 2 Supersweet Idea

  CHAPTER 3 Mint Meanies

  CHAPTER 4 Minty Sweet Treat

  CHAPTER 5 Minty Day

  CHAPTER 6 Sun Dip Sweetness

  CHAPTER 7 Mint Rainbow

  CHAPTER 8 A Royal Assignment

  CHAPTER 9 Sweet Welcomes

  CHAPTER 10 Mint Truth

  About Helen Perelman

  To Caroline Jones Hubbell

  Sour Rain

  Dash the Mint Fairy poked her head out her window. The rain was coming down hard in Peppermint Grove. All the candy mint plants and trees were pushed low to the ground from the heavy rain. “This is a minty mess,” Dash grumbled.

  She pulled the window closed and leaned back in her chair. There had been rainy times before in Sugar Valley, but this was the longest stretch of rain she could remember. It had been raining for weeks. She looked out the window again and saw a sugar fly. She let the little messenger in and read the note.

  Berry the Fruit Fairy had written that she would fly by soon with a surprise. Dash smiled. She wasn’t sure how Berry was getting to Peppermint Grove. During this rainy time all the Candy Fairies had to be very careful. If a fairy’s wings got wet, she couldn’t fly. Leave it to her clever friend Berry to come up with a great idea.

  Her friends had not gathered for Sun Dip for three days. Dash missed seeing her friends. She couldn’t wait for Berry to come.

  “It’s not looking so mint,” she said with a heavy sigh as she watched the rain fall. “What do you think, Hopper?” Dash asked. She put her hand out to the little creamy-white bunny she had found at her doorstep the day before. The little animal was wet and cold, so Dash had brought her inside. Once she had dried her off, she was fluff ier than Dash had imagined, and Dash decided to call her Hopper. “You don’t like the rain either,” she said.

  The little white bunny snuggled into Dash’s hand.

  “The rain had better stop if the Mint Jubilee is going to happen in the grove,” Dash said. Right now this was no place for a royal party.

  In five days the Mint Jubilee was going to be in Candy Kingdom. When Princess Lolli and Prince Scoop, the ruling fairy princess and prince of Candy Kingdom, told her about the plans, Dash was superexcited. A mint celebration was always a good idea!

  And Princess Lolli was happy to announce that her parents, Queen Sweetie and King Crunch, were coming from Sugar Kingdom for the grand party. The queen usually hosted the royal Mint Jubilee, so it was a big honor for Princess Lolli and Prince Scoop to have the party in Sugar Valley this year. Lolli planned to have a mint tea party for the royal family and the Candy Fairies in Peppermint Grove. Dash’s job was to work on the mint candy wrapper designs with Pepper and Spera. But so far, those two fairies had not liked a single one of her drawings.

  Dash was getting concerned about where the jubilee would be if the rain kept up. She wanted the party to be outside in Peppermint Grove with all the beautiful pink-and-white mints and green mint leaves. She held Hopper up to the window. “The rain had better stop soon,” she said sadly.

  Hopper twisted her little pink nose. Her long whiskers tickled Dash’s fingers.

  “At least we can keep dry inside,” Dash told her. “But I miss my friends. You can meet Berry soon. You’ll like her.” Dash gave Hopper a piece of mint candy to nibble on and then read a book that Raina the Gummy Fairy had given her, called The Minty Clue. Raina loved books. She even had her own library and looked after the treasured Fairy Code Book.

  After a few chapters Dash looked out the window again. “You should know that Berry is always late, though,” she told Hopper. “Chances are, she will be wearing a new outfit when she comes. She is the most stylish Candy Fairy.”

  Just then there was a knock at Dash’s door.

  Dash flew to the door, and her mouth fell open when she saw Berry. Berry was wearing a bright watermelon-colored poncho that covered her wings, and she was holding a huge orange-and-yellow umbrella.

  “Holy peppermint!” Dash exclaimed.

  “And I have the same outfit for you,” Berry said, grinning. “But yours is red and white!”

  Berry flew inside and handed Dash her package. “Try it on,” Berry said. “We may not be able to enjoy a colorful Sun Dip, but we can definitely brighten Sugar Valley up with some colorful rain gear.”

  “This is sugar-tastic!” Dash cried. “You made all these?”

  “Sure as sugar,” Berry said. “I like working with fruit leather, which turns out to be excellent material for keeping off the rain.” Berry removed her poncho and fluttered her wings. “And keeping wings dry,” she added.

  Dash slipped on her poncho and twirled her umbrella open. “This is so mint! Is everyone coming tonight?”

  Berry nodded. “I just made deliveries to Gummy Forest, Chocolate Woods, and Caramel Hills,” she said. “Raina, Cocoa, and Melli are in for tonight. It is going to be a supersweet Sun Dip.”

  Hopper stuck her head out of Dash’s dress pocket.

  “Hello!” Berry said, looking down at the white fluffball. “Who are you?”

  Dash laughed. “I took this little bunny in when the rain got bad last night,” she explained. “I guess Candy Fairies aren’t the only ones who don’t like the rain. Minty bunnies don’t either!”

  “You can come too!” Berry said to the little white animal. “It will be a wet Sun Dip, but a happy one since we will be together. We’re going to meet at the shed near Lollipop Landing.”

  “Hopper and I will be there,” Dash said.

  Berry walked over to Dash’s table. “Sweet strawberries! Are these your mint candy-wrapper designs? These are sugar-tastic,” she said.

  “Spera and Pepper won’t think so,” Dash mumbled.

  “Oh, who cares what those bitter Mint Fairies think?” Berry said. “You did a great job. All that counts is whether Princess Lolli loves the designs. And she will. These are fantastic.”

  Dash wished she could be more like Berry and not care so much what other fairies thought, but Spera and Pepper had really not been nice when they met up the week before. The two older fairies made Dash feel uncomfortable when they were talking about her small size and making fun of her. Being small had nothing to do with having a good design for the candy wrappers! The two Mint Fairies were not as interested in helping as they were in gossiping and rolling their eyes at Dash. Dash was dreading seeing them again. She wished one of her true friends were working on the project with her.

  “We may not even have the Mint Jubilee, anyway,” Dash said. “Look at the mess in the grove. No one counted on the rain lasting for so long.”

  “After the rain comes a rainbow,” Berry said. She gave her friend a tight squeeze. “Cheer up, Dash. I’ll see you later.”

  Dash waved to Berry. Everything was so soggy and wet. There were no rainbows in sight. Dash felt minty mad and bitter. And she definitely wasn’t looking forward to meeting up with Spera and Pepper. If only she could race through the day and get to Sun Dip and see her friends!

  Supersweet Idea

  Dash flew to a large white tent at the edge of Peppermint Grove. The new poncho Berry had made her worked very well, and Dash was able to fly faster than before. A few Mint Fairies were there already, working on plans for the Mint Jubilee. Dash spotted Spera and Pepper. They were giggling together. Dash definitely didn’t like being the third wheel.

  Dash tried to think of her real friends and Sun Dip. In a few hours she would be sitting with them, huddled together under their new Berry-designed umbrellas and ponchos. The sweet thought helped Dash find the courage to take off her rain gear and fly over to the two bitter Mint Fairies.

  “I made
some new designs for the mint candy wrappers,” Dash said. She showed Spera and Pepper some of her drawings.

  The two mint fairies made sour faces and rolled their eyes.

  “That looks a little babyish,” Spera said.

  “Not my taste,” Pepper added.

  Dash wasn’t sure what to do. It wasn’t as if these two fairies were in charge, but the three of them were supposed to work together. Though Dash wasn’t sure that the other two had done any work at all!

  “Look how small she is,” Pepper whispered loudly to Spera. “How can she even fly with those tiny wings?”

  Dash wanted to tell them that she was one of the fastest fliers in Sugar Valley and ask if they remembered that she had won many races. Instead, she lowered her wings and left her drawings on the table. She flew out of the tent and heard giggling as she left.

  At Sun Dip, Dash tried not to think of Spera and Pepper. She was happy to see her friends in their colorful rain outfits, and she didn’t want to spoil Sun Dip.

  “Berry, you really are the best designer,” Dash told her as she gazed at each of the rain outfits.

  “I am stylish and dry!” Cocoa exclaimed.

  “Me too!” Raina and Melli said at the same time.

  Berry blushed. “I had to do something to get us all together. It had been too long.” She turned to Dash. “How did it go today with Spera and Pepper?”

  Dash wished that Berry hadn’t said anything. Raina, Cocoa, and Melli were all giving her concerned looks.

  Berry shrugged. “We all know that you are working with those two bitter mints,” she said. “We’re just trying to help.”

  “There is not much you can do,” Dash said sadly. “They don’t like my designs. I’m not sure what will happen if we don’t agree.” She twirled her new umbrella. “Maybe Princess Lolli will cancel the jubilee and none of this will matter.”

  Raina slid under Dash’s umbrella to give her a hug. “Remember when we had those terrible rains and my gummies got all swirled? I was so sad that the candies weren’t perfect. And then the candies won a prize!” Raina smiled at Dash. “You have to stay positive and keep trying to make the mint wrappers and candies the best they can be. Those Mint Fairies will come around.”

  “And there is no way that Prince Scoop would let Princess Lolli cancel the party. He loves mint!” Melli added.

  “We should just plan for rain,” Cocoa said. “Even if the party is not in Peppermint Grove, we can have the festival in the castle or somewhere else.”

  Dash lowered her head. “But Peppermint Grove is the perfect place for the Mint Jubilee.”

  Berry thought for a moment and then exclaimed, “There should be rain hats for everyone! Think about the fun, fashionable hats we could all wear.”

  “Only Berry would think of that,” Melli said.

  “Only Berry owns those kinds of hats!” Cocoa added.

  Raina grinned. “Next up for Berry is making hats for all of us!”

  Berry’s wings were fluttering fast as she thought out loud. “Oh, I have tons of hats for you to choose from!” She clapped her hands. “Or I could even make some. Wouldn’t that be sugar-tastic?”

  “Yes,” Raina agreed. “And you could make special hats for Princess Lolli and Queen Sweetie.”

  Berry clapped her hands. “That is one supersweet idea,” she said. “I am on the hat case!”

  “But what about all the other details?” Dash said, pouting. “Like the location and the mint candy wrappers?”

  “Dash, it will all get done,” Cocoa told her. “Sure as sugar, this event will be the sweetest ever.”

  “More likely it will be the wettest ever,” Dash told her.

  “The royal tea party will go on,” Melli declared. “Even in the rain!”

  Dash knew her friends were trying to help, but they were missing the point. For her, the whole event was already ruined because of Spera and Pepper.

  “Dash, you look so sad,” Melli said. “You should talk to Princess Lolli. She would want to know how those fairies are treating you.”

  Dash shook her head. She didn’t want to be known as the Candy Fairy who went to Princess Lolli for help with mean fairies. No, she would face these fairies on her own. “They would just say they didn’t mean it or something like that,” Dash replied. “And then they would be even more bitter because I’d gotten them in trouble.”

  “How about a chocolate caramel?” Cocoa asked her friends, trying to fix Dash’s sour feelings. “Let’s go sit on the benches in the shed.”

  “Thanks,” Dash said.

  The five fairies flew to the shed.

  “Let’s stop talking about the jubilee and start eating these Sun Dip treats,” Dash said. She popped the chocolate caramel into her mouth and motioned for her friends to do the same. “These are delicious!” she said. She held up the basket to her friends and quickly ended the discussion of the bitter Candy Fairies.

  Mint Meanies

  The next morning Dash woke up to the sounds of raindrops hitting her window. She snuggled down in her fluffy pink-and-green cotton-candy blanket. The thought of going back to the party-planning tent was making Dash hide. She didn’t want to see Pepper and Spera again.

  Dash tried to remember the positive talk from Sun Dip. Again she wished that her friends could be with her today. They all seemed to know what to say to the bitter, mean Mint Fairies.

  Hopper hopped over to Dash and wiggled her whiskers.

  “Oh, Hopper,” Dash said. “Maybe you’ll come with me?” The bunny hopped under a pillow. Dash laughed. “I feel the same way,” she said. “If I didn’t have to go, I would hide under the covers all day.”

  Dash grabbed her rain gear and her sketchpad. “Maybe my friends are right and today will be different,” she said. She looked over at the large calendar hanging on the wall. There were three more days until the Mint Jubilee. That was enough time to make and print the designs—and for the rain to stop. She knew that the five designs she had ready for today were good. This time the older fairies had to see that her work was minty perfect.

  Feeling positive, Dash flew off to Peppermint Grove. She was very thankful for the large umbrella and poncho that Berry had made for her. She had missed speed flying!

  At the tent set up in Peppermint Grove, many Mint Fairies were busy working on decorations. There were lots of details to attend to for a royal Mint Jubilee. There were fairies preparing mint tea, painting teacups, and making mint candies. Everything had to be peppermint perfect for the grand event.

  Dash spotted Pepper and Spera. They were the only Mint Fairies not doing any work! They were sipping mint frappés and laughing loudly. Dash fluttered her wings a few times. Before she could even take her sketchpad from her bag, Pepper started laughing.

  “What kind of poncho is that?” she asked.

  “My friend Berry made it for me,” Dash answered quickly. And then she got mad at herself for not coming up with a better reply.

  “Very slick,” Spera snickered.

  “I have some more sketches for the mint candy wrappers,” Dash said. She took off her poncho and hung it upon a hook. She wanted to move this conversation along. The less time she spent in the tent with the two mint meanies, the better.

  “We have to show something to Princess Lolli this afternoon,” Pepper told her.

  “I heard she is coming here to see how the preparations for the jubilee are going,” Spera added.

  Dash knew that they were behind on the wrappers. The other Mint Fairies were waiting for them to complete the designs so that the new mint candies could be finished. She took her sketches and spread them out on the table.

  But in a sour second Spera’s mint frappé spilled. Dash tried to grab the drawings so they wouldn’t get soaked, but some of the mint frappé got on the designs. “Careful,” Dash scolded.

  “Sorry,” Spera said in an annoyed way. “You knocked the cup over when you took out your precious drawings.”

  Dash glared at Spera. She ha
d never met such a bitter Mint Fairy.

  “Even though you are small, you can make a big mess,” Pepper said, giggling.

  At that moment Dash didn’t want to hear what they had to say about her drawings. She didn’t wait to hear what the two of them would say about anything. She flew out of the tent.

  The second she flew out Dash realized that she had forgotten to take her poncho!

  “Ugh!” she cried as she sped over to a large weeping mint tree. Dash ducked under a tree and stood, trying to catch her breath. She was shivering and miserable. And quite sure that no one was watching.

  But she was wrong.

  Prince Scoop appeared by her side. “Hello, Dash,” he said very calmly.

  Dash was so shocked to see the fairy prince that her mouth gaped open. She couldn’t speak or move! How was she going to explain herself?

  “What brings you out here in the rain with no umbrella?” he asked.

  Dash wiped her eyes quickly. She didn’t want him to see her crying. And she really didn’t want to tell the prince what was going on with the Mint Jubilee.

  “Come with me,” Prince Scoop said. He pointed to a covered carriage with the royal unicorn Butterscotch standing ready. “This makes getting around in the rain a little safer,” he said. “And faster,” he added with a wink. He opened up his large ice-cream cone umbrella and escorted her to the dry carriage.

  Dash had no choice but to follow. She sniffled a little and tried to stop her tears.

  “Let’s go have some tea at the castle,” Prince Scoop told her. “I know there are some sweet treats in the throne room.” He smiled at Dash, and she relaxed into the soft fruit-leather seat of the carriage. “Princess Lolli is off with her parents and making plans for the jubilee.” He smiled again. “I guess you know all about that.”

  Dash nodded. A royal snack and some tea sounded very good to her. As the carriage flew up in the air behind Butterscotch, Dash looked back at the top of the mint tent at the edge of Peppermint Grove. All her hard work and her designs were covered in mint frappé and likely being laughed at by Spera and Pepper. She sighed. At least she wasn’t with the mint meanies anymore.