11 The Book of Tricks

11 The Book of Tricks Nothing happened. Pix laughed. "Saying my name backward won't stop me, Violet!" he said. He tugged at the leg of Violet's pants. "Come and play! Have fun with Pix!"

Violet shook her leg. Pix tumbled off. Violet ran back to the playground gate. Sprite flew out of her pocket. "The backward magic worked on Hinky Pink, but it didn't work on Pix!" Violet told Sprite. Sprite's wings fluttered nervously. "I don't know why it didn't work," Sprite said. "Maybe Pix's magic is even stronger than Hinky Pink's fog." "You said you are a Royal Pixie Tricker, right?" Violet asked. "Do you know what to do?"

Sprite avoided Violet's eyes. "I do know what to do," he muttered. "It's on the tip of my wings..." Then he smiled. "Of course! The book!" Sprite dug into the bag around his waist. He pulled out a tiny book with a gold cover. Violet leaned over and looked at the book. She could just make out the title.

"The Book of Tricks," she said. "What is it?" "There's only one way to send a fairy back to the Otherworld, Sprite said. "With a trick." "I get it," Violet said. "You're a Royal Pixie Tricker. So this book tells you how to trick the escaped fairies, right?" Sprite nodded. "Yes. There is a different trick for each fairy." "Why didn't you think of this sooner?" Violet asked. Sprite blushed bright green again. "I told you. I'm sort of new at this." Sprite opened the book. He turned the pages quickly. "Pix... Pix," Sprite said. "Oh, here it is! There's a rhyme." Sprite read the poem out loud.

Pix loves nothing more than fun. Give him some work and his fun is done!

"Give him some work," Violet repeated. "You mean we have to make Pix do work? Like chores?" "Yes," Sprite said. "And then what happens?" Violet asked. "Then a tunnel will appear and pull Pix back into the Otherworld, Sprite said. "The spell will be broken." Violet felt a little better. It was nice to know exactly what to do. There was only one problem. "How are we supposed to get Pix to do work?" Violet asked. "All he wants to do is play."