Free Lily's Pesky Plant by Kirsten Larsen Page B

garden, Lily landed near the roots of an old oak tree.
    “I’ll just go for a short walk,” she told herself as she set out along a narrow path through the bushes. “Then I’ll go back.” She figured Iris would have moved to someone else’s garden by then.
    Most fairies never went to the forest alone because of snakes, owls, and hawks. And fairies almost never walked unless their wings were too wet to fly. But Lily was brave, and what was more, she liked walking. She felt closer to the plants when her feet were on the ground.
    Lily walked along the forest floor. She kept an eye out for snakes. High above, the wind rustled the leaves of the trees. Lily took off her shoes. She liked the feeling of the damp soil between her toes.
    Just then, she spotted something curled against the base of a rock. It was a silvery green plant with tightly coiled, velvety leaves. Lily smiled.
    “A possum fern!” she whispered. She had spotted one after all! Holding her breath, Lily silently crept toward the rare plant to get a closer look.
    Suddenly, something crashed through the leaves over her head. Lily gasped and flew for cover between the roots of a nearby tree. Had a hawk just swooped at her? Trembling, she peered out from behind the root and scanned the forest.
    But there was no sign of a hawk. The forest was still and quiet. Lily looked over at the possum fern and saw that its leaves had uncoiled and turned brown. It had heard the noise and was playing dead.
    Then Lily saw something that made her gasp again. In the spot where she had just been standing lay a strange seed.

A T LEAST , L ILY thought it was a seed. It was hard to say for sure. She had never seen anything quite like it before.
    It was as big as a chestnut and a pearly white color, like the inside of an oyster shell. The ends tapered into points. A few fibers stuck out like hairs from the tips.
    As soon as her heart stopped racing, Lily flew over and landed next to the strange object. She picked up a twig and poked it. Nothing happened.
    Lily felt braver. She touched it with her fingertips. The surface felt cool and smooth, like a sea-polished rock.
    Now Lily was sure it was a seed. Her gardening instincts told her there was life inside it—the sleeping life of a plant waiting to grow.
    “But where did it come from?” Lily asked aloud.
    Just then, she heard a loud chittering sound above her. She looked up. A squirrel was chattering at her from a branch overhead.
    Lily laughed. Now she knew where the seed had come from. The squirrel probably wasn’t used to seeing fairies walking on the ground. It had dropped the seed in surprise.

    “Don’t worry,” she called to the squirrel. “I’m leaving soon!” The squirrel chattered at her again, then darted away along a tree branch.
    Lily looked back down at the seed. What is it? she wondered. For once, she wished she were an animal-talent fairy. Then she could talk to the squirrel and ask him where the mysterious seed had come from.
    “What kind of plant are you?” Lily whispered to the seed. As she said the words, something occurred to her, and her eyes widened. “That’s it!” she exclaimed. “I’ll plant it! After all, the only way to find out what a seed will become is to watch it grow.”
    Lily reached down to pick it up. To her surprise, it was heavy. She sprinkled a pinch of fairy dust over the seed. It grew lighter in her arms.
    Clutching her treasure against her chest, Lily rose into the air and flew in the direction of her garden.

    Back at her garden, Lily found Iris still sitting on the toadstool, right where she had left her.
    “Oh, Lily, you’re back already,” said Iris. “Did you get to see some possum ferns? The last time I went possum fern spotting, I saw exactly three dozen of them. Although for some reason, they all were playing dead.…”
    “I found something even better,” Lily told Iris. She no longer felt annoyed with her. She was much too excited about her find. Gently Lily