Magical Mayhem Read Online Free

choice but to take shelter. He’d just have to hope that they found him, somehow.
    Closing his eyes, the dragon slowly drifted off into an uneasy sleep.
    And began to dream.

.
    Chapter Three
    The storm continued for two days – and then abruptly, on the morning of the third day, it ended. The students awoke to soaring blue skies, with sunshine sparkling on the snow like diamonds.
    Like everyone else, Twink was relieved to hear that the glow-worms had finally recovered, and that the fairies could return to their branches. Sleeping in the Great Branch had been fun, but it was good to get things back to normal again!
    â€˜Brr, it’s cold!’ said Twink later that afternoon, rubbing her chilled wings together. She and Bimi were outside with Sal, measuring the temperature for their Weather Magic project. The salamander seemed unimpressed with the snow, sniffing at it disdainfully.
    Bimi wrapped her thistledown scarf tightly about her neck. Like Twink, she was wearing a dress made of violet petals, with the bright yellow sash that showed they were third-year students. ‘It’s freezing!’ she agreed. ‘Do you have the temperature pad?’
    Twink brought out the special petal pad that Mrs Starbright had given her. ‘These results are going to be very different from the ones I took at home,’ she said, flipping through the pad. ‘I think the only thing our project’s going to show is that the weather’s gone completely topsy-turvy!’
    She tugged on Sal’s lead, and the salamander came scampering over. ‘Here, Sal,’ said Twink, showing him a fresh page. ‘What’s the temperature?’
    Though salamanders couldn’t live in fire as humans had once believed, they did love heat – and were experts on temperature! Sal stood very still for a moment, closing his eyes and twitching his tail. Finally he touched his nose to the pad.
    There was a swirl of golden light, and then the page turned a pale, icy blue.
    â€˜That’s the coldest I’ve ever seen it!’ exclaimed Twink. ‘It looks like winter’s properly here, all right.’
    Bimi nodded. ‘I checked on the mice this morning, and most of them have gone into hibernation already. I thought it would take weeks yet.’
    â€˜So did everyone else,’ said Twink, tucking the pad back in her petal bag. ‘It’s strange how not even Mrs Starbright saw the snowstorm coming.’ She frowned, remembering what Sooze had said. Had there been something unnatural about the storm?
    Twink started to ask Bimi what she thought – and then saw that the salamander was standing stockstill, sniffing the air. Suddenly he took off at a run, jerking the lead from Twink’s fingers.
    â€˜Sal! Come back here!’ she shouted, flitting after him. Bimi followed close behind.
    Sal’s black tail disappeared around a low hill. Putting on a burst of speed, Twink jetted over the hill’s crest – and then stopped in confusion.
    â€˜Bimi, look at this!’ she cried.
    The salamander was on a large, circular patch of ground with no snow on it. All around the circle, snowdrifts stood higher than the fairies – but where Sal had stopped, there was only grass.
    Bewildered, Twink touched down beside him. What on earth did it mean?

    â€˜Oh, it’s warm!’ burst out Bimi as she landed. Twink blinked as she realised that her friend was right. The ground felt toasty under their feet!
    The two fairies gaped at each other. Sal was trotting this way and that about the warm grass, sniffing excitedly at the ground. ‘What is this?’ said Twink. ‘I thought that the school’s dance circle was the only bit of enchanted ground nearby!’
    Bimi shook her head. ‘Maybe there’s an underground hot spring here? We’ve never had such a heavy snow before, so that could be why we’ve never noticed it.’
    â€˜Maybe,’ said Twink