“Won’t you please tell us what you’re making for the Blast feast?” Breeze called out when she saw the dragon.
The dragon laughed, and blue smoke poured from his nostrils. “No chance!” he chortled. “It’s a secret. But you’re going to love it! We’ve been practicing the recipes for weeks. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to put these vats in the kitchen and go get the rest of the ones Ernest made for me.” With that, he disappeared down the hall, his enormous, spiked tale dragging behind him.
“I’m already hungry for the Blast feast,” Breeze said. “I skipped breakfast so I’d have extra room.”
“Me too!” Sunbeam and Flash said at once.
Flash turned to Sunbeam and narrowed her eyes. “You did?” she asked. “That doesn’t sound like you.”
Sunbeam blushed. “Well, okay, I had a little bit of breakfast,” she admitted. “I started to get cranky because I was hungry and I ate some roinkleberries. Well, a lot of roinkleberries. And some mushrooms. And an avocado. But trust me, I’m already hungry for the feast!”
“Prism, Firefly, and I meant to just have a small breakfast,” Bloom said, smiling self-consciously, “but then we saw a cluster of huge, perfectly ripe froyananas hanging from a tree. And, well, we couldn’t resist!” Cressida’s stomach turned. When she had visited Bloom’s domain, the Enchanted Garden, she had taken one bite of a froyanana only to discover it tasted like a terrible mix of pickles, marshmallows, tomatoes, and tuna fish.
Prism nodded. “They were amazing! But by the time the dragons have cooked their feast, I’m sure we’ll be hungry.”
“Definitely,” Firefly added. “I can’t wait for all of us to fly up into the sky together.”
Moon glanced up, and Cressida could see the unicorn’s eyes had filled with tears.
“What’s wrong, Moon?” Cressida asked.
Moon sniffled. “I’m not coming to the Blast this year, or ever again,” she said. “I’m too scared.”
“Oh no,” Flash whispered to Cressida. “Moon fell off her kite last year, and although she didn’t get hurt, she’s been terrified of this year’s Blast ever since.”
Cressida nodded. She certainly understood what it felt like to be scared after an accident—once, she had fallen off a playground swing, and she hadn’t wanted to go anywhere near that swing set, or even that park, afterward. Later, when she felt ready, she had returned to the park with her friends Gillian and Eleanor, and she had even tried—and enjoyed—swinging. But it had taken her awhile to feel like swinging again.
Breeze looked at Moon and said, “I know you’re scared, but you have to come to the Blast. It won’t be any fun without you.”
“I’m sure you won’t fall off again this year,” Sunbeam said.
Moon shook her head, and more tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Come on, Moon,” Prism said. “We all want you to fly with us.”
“I told you, I’m not coming,” Moon said. “Would you please listen to me? Stop trying to make me do something I don’t want to do!” With that, she turned and galloped down the hallway.
Breeze frowned. “I feel bad for Moon, but I just really hope she changes her mind,” she said. “The Blast won’t be any fun without all of us there, flying together.”
“I’ll go talk to her as soon as you and Cressida leave for the Windy Meadows to prepare for the Blast,” Flash said. “Don’t worry! I’m sure I can convince her to come fly with us.”
“Thank you, Flash!” Breeze said, and her eyes lit back up with excitement. She turned to Cressida. “Are you ready to come with me to the Windy Meadows? I can’t wait to show you around.”
“Absolutely!” Cressida said. Though she felt excited to visit the Windy Meadows, she also felt worried about Moon. She hoped the other unicorns would be able to comfort their sister.
“What are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Breeze called out, kneeling down. But just as Cressida started to climb onto Breeze’s back, a high, nasal voice cried, “Hold on! Wait!” And then Cressida heard the unmistakable sound of Ernest, the wizard-lizard, running as fast as his feet could carry him down the hall and toward the front room of the palace.
“Hello, Ernest!” Cressida said, giggling.
“Before you go,” Ernest said, “I have a present for you! I’ve been practicing this spell for the past hour, and I’m absolutely sure I’ve finally gotten it right!”
Cressida smiled and braced herself for a magical mishap. Every time she came to the Rainbow Realm, Ernest got at least one spell wrong.
The wizard-lizard took a deep breath. He pulled his wand from his cloak. And then he chanted, “Safety Sequiny Satiny Bright! Make a Magic Grape for Cressida’s Flight!”
A gust of wind swirled around Cressida. And then she felt something cool, wet, and mushy against her skin. She looked down and laughed to see that she was inside a giant, bright blue, sequin-covered grape. Only her head stuck out from the top.
“Oh dear!” Ernest exclaimed.
The giant grape, with Cressida inside it, began to roll forward. “Yikes!” Cressida said as Breeze and Bloom rushed over and used their hooves to keep her upright.
“Oops,” Ernest said. “When I was practicing upstairs, I kept accidentally making apes. And one time I even made a roll of tape. But a grape is something new. Hold on. Oh dear!”
Ernest scratched his head. He raised his wand. And he chanted, “Gibbledy Globbledy Gobbledy Goo! Trade in this Grape for a Cape of Blue!”
More wind swirled around Cressida, and, to her relief, the giant grape vanished and now both her feet were firmly planted on the ground. When she looked down, she saw she was wearing a long, bright turquoise, sequined cape.
“Wow! I love it!” Cressida said, twirling around so the cape billowed.
Ernest grinned with delight. “It’s a special magic cape,” he explained. “If you fall off your kite, it will keep you from getting hurt when you land on the ground. It came out just a little larger than I expected. I hope you don’t
