Lara Bergen - Disney Fairies - Art Lessons by Bess

“HOW CAN SCARLETT not know what sort of art she’s interested in?” Quill whispered. She and Bess were huddled with the other art-talent fairies at the edge of the lagoon. Scarlett, still wearing her arrival garment, kept picking up seashells and trying them on as hats.

Bess’ glow blushed pink with embarrassment for Scarlett. Of course, Scarlett didn’t seem ashamed of her odd behavior.

Scarlett seemed even stranger because she didn’t know her own artistic specialty. Most fairies knew as soon as they arrived. Bess had emerged already eager to hold a paintbrush for the first time. She remembered when Jax, a glass-blowing-talent sparrow man, first arrived in Pixie Hollow. He had asked to be taken to the glassworks even before he had told anyone his name!

At last Scarlett noticed that everyone was watching her. “Am I doing something wrong?” she asked cheerfully. A pink shell slipped from her head into the sand.

“Of course not,” Leo said. He put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “It’s simply that — that—” Bess knew he wanted to ask about Scarlett’s funny behavior, but instead he stuck to what was simpler. “You see, most of us arrive knowing what kind of art we like.”

“Not everybody!” said Jolie, a papiermache-talent fairy. “I didn’t figure it out for almost five whole minutes. So you just wait. The answer will come to you.”

“I bet you figure out your specialty once you get your magic,” Bess said. “Terence, come and help us!”

“On my way!” cried Terence, a dust-talent sparrow man. It was Terence’s job to scatter pixie dust, which gave fairies their magic and allowed them to fly.

Terence flew over Scarlett and scattered a teacup of shimmering pixie dust over her. Scarlett held out her hands and twirled in the sparkling powder.

“There you go,” Bess said as Scarlett flapped her wings for the first time. “Now you can fly!”

“Oh, this is wonderful!” Scarlett cried as she rose into the air. She rose up, up, up—

CRASH!

She smacked her head into a tree branch.

“Ow!” yelped all the fairies. Scarlett hovered unevenly. Terence quickly went to her side and steadied her as they lowered to the ground.

“Are you all right?” Terence asked.

He looked at Scarlett and frowned. “I think you got some twigs in your hair when you hit the tree.”

“Oh, no, I put them there! I thought they would keep my curls out of my face,” Scarlett said. She re-twisted the knot of hair at the back of her head. “It’s comfortable, too. How does it look?”

“It’s — um—” Bess struggled to find the right words. “Well, it’s very original!”

Quill whispered, “We’ve got to get her to the coiffure-talent fairies!”

Scarlett finished doing up her hair with a smile. “What do we do next?”

The other fairies and sparrow men all glanced at each other. Usually, new art-talent fairies wanted to start creating art right away.

But Scarlett still didn’t know what kind of art she would create. She was the only art-talent fairy who had ever gone so long without knowing.

That meant nobody really knew what to do with her.

“I know,” Bess said. “Let’s take a look at your new room in the Home Tree. The decoration-talent fairies should have it ready by now.”

“A room all for me?” Scarlett brightened. “I’d love to see it!”

Cheered, everyone zipped into the air and flew with Scarlett over Pixie Hollow. As they went, the fairies pointed out different places she needed to recognize: the lagoon, the mines, Lily’s garden.

The art-talent fairies all lived in the same area of the Home Tree, and there was a branch they usually landed upon. Everyone descended gracefully — except Scarlett. She wobbled a little, unsure of her balance.

“Don’t worry!” she called, pinwheeling her arms around. “I’ve got it!” Somehow Scarlett managed not to fall.

When they arrived, they discovered the decorating-talent fairies had outdone themselves. The walls were robin’s-egg blue, and her silver, oval-shaped bed was piled high with soft pillows.

“It’s so beautiful.” Scarlett said as she stroked the milky white drapes. “This is really all for me?”

Bess nodded. She, along with Jolie and Quill, were touring the room too. “Usually the decorating-talent fairies put something on the walls, but not for us. They know that we’ll create our own art soon enough. And we always like our own work best.”

“Even if nobody else does!” joked Quill. They all laughed.

“And these clothes?” Scarlett threw open the closet door. “They’re all for me?”

“The sewing-talent fairies are truly wonderful,” Jolie said. Happily, she smoothed the skirt of her lilac-colored dress. “Which reminds me — are those new leggings, Quill? They’re very nice!”

“Thank you,” Quill said with a smile.

Nobody said anything about Bess’ clothes, which were smudged with paint. Bess edged behind the footboard of Scarlett’s bed, hoping the others wouldn’t notice.

They didn’t — because they were looking at Scarlett.

Scarlett had discarded her arrival garment and slipped on a bright turquoise skirt — but she was wearing it as a shirt. The hem didn’t quite reach her knees. Now she had a long green stocking on one leg and was putting a blue-and-white striped stocking on the other.

“You know, Scarlett, those socks don’t quite match, Bess pointed out.”

“Who wants to wear only one color when you can wear them all at once?” Scarlett grinned, proud of her strange outfit.

None of the others knew quite what to say. Quickly, Jolie clasped her hands together. “So, Scarlett, have you realized your special talent yet?”

Scarlett shook her head. “You’ll help me think of it, right?”

Bess put one hand on Scarlett’s shoulder. “We’ll figure it out together,” she said. “You’ll see!”

EVERY EVENING, THE residents of Pixie Hollow gathered together for dinner. The cooking-talent fairies prided themselves on creating delicious meals even for ordinary days. However, when they had heard about the new arrival, they’d made the night’s meal even more special. The long tables for each talent group were decorated with wreaths of soft clover. Acorn soup simmered in pots, and huckleberry tarts waited beside every plate. As Bess and Scarlett flew into the dining room, Bess’ mouth began to water.

“This feeling in my tummy—” Scarlett put her hands on her belly. One of the twigs behind her ear stuck out at an odd angle. “Does this mean — am I— hungry? ”

Bess swiftly explained, “Yes, you’re hungry. It’s dinner time. This is where we all eat together, see?” She realized people must be staring at Scarlett’s odd outfit.

“This room is amazing.” Scarlett pointed upward. “See how the ceiling curves? That catches the light and makes everything seem taller.”

Bess raised an eyebrow, surprised and impressed. Only an art-talent fairy would notice that kind of detail about the dining room.

Bess wanted to sit down to her meal like everyone else. Her belly was rumbling with hunger already. But Scarlett didn’t budge. She kept turning around in a circle, admiring the dining hall.