Everella's Wand

Once upon a time there was a fairy named Everella. After many failed attempts, she finally passed the wand test and was given her own wand.          

“Prettier than a peppermint stick!” said Everella. Her wand was long and straight and shiny, and it sparkled like diamonds at one end.

Everella’s new job was to keep the meadows decorated with wildflowers and the trees filled with singing birds. She’d point her wand at the grass and, in the blink of an eye, bright flowers would cover the ground. When she pointed it at the trees, the trilling and chirping of bird songs would begin before you could say “skylark.” 

But one day Everella said, “This is boring! And I’m hungry — I wish I had some chocolate.” She pouted as she twirled her wand like a baton. On a whim, Everella pointed her wand at a clod of earth and said,

“Sludgery, fudgery,         

wouldn’t it be dandy

if this should turn into   

a piece of candy!”

In an instant, a thick slab of chocolate-walnut fudge appeared, lying on a paper doily in the grass. “Yum!” said Everella. She devoured it and licked her lips.

From then on, Everella forgot about the flowers and the birds. Pebbles became diamond rings, and leaves turned into frilly new dresses, all for herself. The flowers in the meadows faded away, and the trees became empty and quiet.

One afternoon Everella was fluttering around and searching through the weeds. She found a large stone, pointed her wand at it, and said,

“Ugly old rock   

in front of my eyes,           

change to gold slippers,                 

just my size!” 

Then Everella looked down at the ground, puzzled. The stone was still there, but beside it lay one dirty old shoelace.

“Something’s wrong!” she cried, and she looked at her wand. It was no longer shiny, and the sparkle at the tip was gone. She flew off in tears to find the fairy queen.

“Your Majesty,” sobbed Everella, “my wand needs fixing. It won’t work.”

“I thought so,” said the queen. “I haven’t seen any flowers in the meadows lately, nor have I heard any birds.”

Everella’s face grew red. “Er, can you put a new battery in it?” she asked.

“No,” said the queen. “You must fix it yourself.” 

“How?” asked Everella.

“You must live for a time as an ordinary human being in the outside world. Nothing else will bring back the power,” said the queen. Then she led Everella to the great door in the side of the fairy hill. The door swung open.

“When you reach the village, ask for Dame Malkins. And take care of your wand,” the queen warned, “for it is your only way back to this fairy hill.”

The door creaked shut. Everella sighed, then trudged off down the road. She was dressed in heavy dark clothes and thick shoes. Her wings had vanished, and her wand looked like an ordinary walking stick.

When Everella reached the village, she saw a shop with the sign “Dame Malkins’s Bakery” painted above the door.

“Come in, come in!” said Dame Malkins, peering out. “I’ve been expecting your arrival! Here, tie on an apron and start kneading this dough.” Her wise eyes twinkled.

Everella wondered how Dame Malkins had known she was coming, but she thought it was better not to ask.

Every day, Everella worked from sunup to sundown — mixing dough, waiting on villagers, sweeping out the shop. Her hands became rough and red from doing dishes, and her feet grew sore because she was not used to walking.

Every night, Everella was so tired that she’d fall asleep almost as soon as she lay down on her cot. First, though, she’d anxiously check her wand to see if it had gotten back its power. But each time she picked it up, it was still just a stick. 

The days went by, more than Everella could count. Then one morning she woke up and heard Dame Malkins moaning, “Oh, my old bones! I can’t get out of bed!”

Everella quickly made coffee and brought a cup to Dame Malkins, who said, “I could work if only I had a stick to lean on. Oh, dear!”

A stick to lean on...  Everella wondered if she should let Dame Malkins use her precious wand as a walking stick. What if she leaned on it too hard and broke it? Everella could never go home.

But Everella had grown to like and respect Dame Malkins. She had taught Everella many things and had worked hard beside her. She was always quick to share a kind word or a smile. She had become Everella’s friend.

At last Everella said, “Here, take my stick.”

“You’re a good girl,” said Dame Malkins, and she hobbled out of bed to mix up a batch of rolls. All day long they worked together, with Dame Malkins leaning on the stick. 

The next morning when Everella awoke, the stick was beside her cot. She reached out to touch it. Poof! There was a great flash of light. Everella found herself, sparkling wand in hand, fluttering outside the door in the side of the fairy hill.

The door creaked open, and Everella slipped in. She noticed the flowerless meadows and quiet trees, and said, “Time to get to work!” If she did her job well, maybe the queen would let her visit Dame Malkins now and then.