A Toothfully Twisted Summer

By Ellen Cappello

Magnolia Bloomgarden is not excited about spending her summer vacation in Tooth Kingdom working as a fairy for the family business. She couldnt care less about getting wings, learning to fly, or sprinkling magic dust, especially because she has to leave her best friend, Sun, behind. But all of that is about to change when she realizes Suns family is being pursued by dark fairies who need just one thing to survive: teeth.

Magnolia is worried about what will happen to Sun and her family if she does not warn them that the evil fairies are loose in the mortal world. But before she can caution them that the fairies have potentially found a way to open their portal, Magnolia is led to the Tooth Kingdom by her uncle. There she soon discovers a perfect, happy world overshadowed by the threat of dark fairies who want nothing more than to destroy the peaceful kingdom. As the fairies make their presence known, Magnolia embarks on a dangerous journey to save both her kingdom and Suns family from their sinister clutches.

In this childrens fantasy tale, a tooth fairy-in-training must summon the courage to battle dark forces as a portal slowly opens and frees what everyone in Tooth Kingdom has always feared.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Jun 17, 2013
• ISBN: 9781475991864

Ellen Cappello

Ellen Cappello is the author of A Toothfully Twisted Summer. She resides in Long Island, New York, with her family.

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Copyright © 2011, 2013 Ellen Cappello

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

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ISBN: 978-1-4759-9188-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-9187-1 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-9186-4 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013909319

iUniverse rev. date: 06/13/2013

Contents

1.       Bad Morning

2.       The Monarch

3.       Jewel Thief

4.       The Black Wall

5.       Uncle Ashton

6.       The Portal

7.       The Other Bloomgardens

8.       Wings

9.       Collecting in All Weather Types

10.       The Baba Yaga

11.       First Flight

12.       Fairy Fourth Festival

13.       Sun

14.       Mount Maguxion

15.       Back to Being Mortal

To Nicole and Thomas

1

Bad Morning

I would be going into middle school in September. It meant bigger responsibilities besides middle school. And for the next four summers I would be traveling to a far-off place with relatives who work for a billion-year-old tooth-collecting business.

My little brother, Kai, came into the kitchen and took his place across the table. It was going to be his last day of third grade. He was grinning and chattering about what he planned to do all summer.

Kai’s hair was unevenly chopped into a cut he did on his own. It got me laughing. Mom took one look at it and rolled her eyes. She took a baseball hat off the counter and covered his head.

Now that’s better, Mom said.

Mom was hustling back and forth, talking to us as she went about the kitchen. She was putting things on the table, getting things out of the fridge, scrambling eggs, turning bacon, and burning toast. This was a morning ritual with Mom.

I knew she was trying to cheer me up with her endless chatter. She was obviously hoping to get me interested in the tooth-collecting business. But it wasn’t going to work. I was determined about that.

Kai finished his breakfast and hurried away. I munched down the last bit of scrambled eggs and left Mom to do the cleanup chores. But she followed me to the door.

Are you upset today is the last day of school, Magnolia? she asked. I didn’t answer, and she looked concerned.

I knew I had to say something. I had to speak for myself; the time was now or never. So I said, Mom, I don’t want to spend the summer in Tooth Kingdom. I don’t care about it. I want to stay here with my friends.

There was a knowing look on her face. And her eyelids seemed to be weighed down more than normal. I thought she might not have slept well. I wondered if my summer trip to Tooth Kingdom was bugging her too. Or was it Dad’s snoring again?

It’s silly to worry about your friends, she said. They will be here when you come home. Tooth Kingdom is a beautiful place. It’s filled with tooth fairies and magic. You’re going to have a wonderful time. I’m sure you’ll even forget about your friends while you’re there.

I opened the door and saw my best friend, Sun, walking up the driveway. I couldn’t help wondering what would happen if she found a new best friend over the summer. Tears welled up in my eyes. I told Mom, I won’t forget my friends, but they might forget me.

I didn’t bother to wait for her reaction before running out the door. She was still calling after me when I caught up with Sun.

Is everything okay? Sun asked.

Yes, I answered. I didn’t want to lie to my best friend. But I had to, because I remembered Dad’s warning about keeping Tooth Kingdom and its tooth fairy counterparts secret. He said it’s a law that must never be broken. The punishment is instant death. And that scared me.

Sun hugged her notebook and folder to her chest. She was so studious; who else would have those things on the last day of school?

I gave up on being studious when spring started. What kind of kid wouldn’t get excited over spring? Oh, that’s right, a kid like Sun. She already has her whole future planned out. I thought I’d start planning mine in about ten years.

Sun had a thick, golden bracelet on her wrist. It was set with rubies that seemed to twinkle in the morning sun. She didn’t usually wear jewelry; she was more the athletic type. And her figure was filling out. My figure was boring next to hers. Mom was always telling me I’d fill out as I got older.

I like your bracelet, I said. Where did you get it?

Her almond-shaped eyes lit up. Thank you, Magnolia. My grandpa gave it to me. It belonged to my mother.

Everybody knew Sun’s parents died years ago. She said it was an accident, but she never went into detail about it. Part of me thought there was a lot more to her story, but another part of me figured it was just too hard for her to tell it.

I gave her my best smile. It’s beautiful, Sun. Take good care of it.

We reached the bus stop, and I heard footsteps behind us. For a moment I thought it was Mom, but then I heard Kai say in a sarcastic tone, Thanks for waiting for me, Sis.

Sorry, Kai. Mom was about to make me crazy, I replied. I hugged his shoulder.

I don’t understand, he replied.

I expected him to be confused. After all, who wouldn’t want to visit Tooth Kingdom? From what Mom and Dad had told us, it was the most magical place in the world. And surely I would want to go—if my friends could come along.

I wish I was going to Tooth Kingdom, Kai said.

My heart sank as soon as I heard Tooth Kingdom.

What’s Tooth Kingdom? Sun asked.

My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, and my heart felt like it was about to. I squeezed Kai’s shoulder tightly, hoping it would be enough to keep him quiet. Otherwise there was no telling what might happen to him.

It’s some story Kai made up, I blurted out.

I’d like to hear more about it sometime, Sun said to him.

Sun was waiting for a response, and it appeared Kai had choked up. I gave him a light nudge, and he spit out one word: Sure.

An awkward silence fell over us. The bus came around the corner. And I was nervous this conversation would come up again later. For now, a blast of the horn put a stop to my worries. The doors opened, and I climbed the short stack of stairs.

2

The Monarch

Kai sat with the other third-graders. I wasn’t sure which seat he fell into, but I knew it was somewhere in the middle of the bus. That was where all the third-graders sat. But the fifth-grade graduates got the good seats, the ones in the back.

As Sun and I walked the aisle, my eyes zoned in on the second-to-last seat. That was where Sun and I sat every day together. Mallory always sat across from us, and she enjoyed sitting alone. But she didn’t mind sharing if someone was bringing along a friend.

We were close enough to our seat to hear Zayne and Scotty chuckling. They always sat behind us and were always doing something to make our bus ride irritating. Like the time they shot spitballs over the seat. Sun and I were pulling germ-infested, tiny balls of loose leaf from our hair the entire bus ride. Or the time they snuck the cell phone from my backpack and prank-called the most popular girl in our grade. That was hard to explain.

I wondered what they had planned for our last day of school.

We sat down. Sun and Mallory got into a conversation about the fun they had planned for the summer—trips to the beach, amusement parks, and pool parties, all sounding exciting. Of course I was included in those plans. The only thing was, they didn’t know I wouldn’t be able to come along.

Sun, are we still coming to your house after school? I asked.

Yes, of course.

Yay! Mallory and I cheered.

That was when I felt the first kick hit the back of the seat. Cut it out! I demanded.

The kicks came harder and faster. They were loud enough to attract the attention of the bus driver. His beady eyes were watching us from the rearview mirror.

Ouch! Sun cried.

The boys ignored her and continued to drive hard kicks into the back of our seat. Sun leaned forward and put her hands over her face.

Really? I thought. She’s not going to stick up for herself? She’s just going to allow those boys to irritate her entire trip to school. No way am I going to allow that. Yup, this is war!

I started punching the seat and yelling