The Tooth Fairy's Terrible Cold

Rosie's tooth had wobbled for nine whole days. It wiggled at breakfast. It wobbled at play. Then, right in the middle of a fish finger at tea… PLOP! Out it popped. Rosie stared at the tiny white tooth. "Tonight," she whispered, "the Tooth Fairy will come!"

That night, the tooth went under the pillow. Rosie shut her eyes and pretended to sleep. The clock ticked twelve. The curtains fluttered. The window creaked open… And in flew a sneeze. "AAAAA… ATCHOO!"

A tiny fairy tumbled onto the pillow. "I'm Tilly, the Tooth Fairy," she sniffled. "My nose is all tickly, my head feels like glue. I've a hundred teeth to collect, and I'm terribly overdue!" She sneezed again. PFFFT! went her wings. Tilly spun backwards and landed in a sock. "Oh, bother," she mumbled.

"I could help!" said Rosie. Tilly looked doubtful. Then she sneezed so hard she flew into the lampshade. "Actually," she said, untangling her wings, "that would be lovely." With a sprinkle of glittering fairy dust, Rosie shrank to the size of a teaspoon. Her wings fizzed like lemonade. "Hold on tight," said Tilly. "ACHOO!" And out of the window they flew!

Over rooftops and chimneys, they fluttered through the night. Tilly held her sack. Rosie held the list. They whispered their special tooth-collecting song: "Hush, hush, quiet as a mouse, A coin for a tooth in every house!" Then Tilly's nose began to twitch. "Oh no," she whispered. "Not another…" ATCHOO!

The first tooth lay beneath a pillow guarded by a dog as big as a sofa. He snored so loudly the curtains bounced. "Quiet as a mouse," whispered Tilly. They crept past his nose. "Grrrr… sausages," mumbled the dog. His enormous paw flopped across the pillow! Rosie held her breath. Tilly sneezed into her handkerchief. The dog snored on.

The next child had left a note: DEAR TOOTH FAIRY, PLEASE CAN I SEE YOUR HOUSE? "Everyone asks that," whispered Tilly. Rosie thought for a moment, then wrote a tiny reply: "Keep brushing, keep smiling, and perhaps one day!" Tilly nodded approvingly. "Excellent handwriting for someone smaller than a teaspoon." Then her nose twitched again. They ducked behind the curtains. "ATCHOO!"

The third tooth sat in a glass beside a grandad's bed. Rosie peered inside. "Does that count?" Tilly giggled. "Not quite. But perhaps we should leave him a coin for being so tidy." They tiptoed out, leaving the coin by the glass. Then they checked the list. So many houses! So many teeth! And the sky was already beginning to pale.

They flew through the dark, over gardens and sleeping streets. Hush, hush, quiet as a mouse, A coin for a tooth in every house. At last, one tiny tooth remained. It lay beneath a pillow beside a little teddy bear. Tilly reached for it, but her nose gave a mighty twitch. "Uh-oh," whispered Rosie. "Please, please, please…" ATCHOO! The teddy wobbled. The pillow lifted. But Rosie caught the tooth just in time!

"Wonderful catching!" whispered Tilly. As the sunrise turned the clouds pink, she led Rosie beyond the moonlit rooftops. There stood the Tooth Palace, sparkling like the inside of a shell. Its walls shimmered with thousands of tiny teeth. "Every tooth adds a little shine," said Tilly. "And every child gets a little visit from magic." Rosie gazed up in wonder.

Tilly sprinkled the last of her fairy dust. WHOOSH! Rosie was back to normal size, tucked snugly in bed. The curtains were still. The house was quiet. The alarm clock rang. Had it all been a dream? Then Rosie felt something tickle her nose. A tiny sparkle of fairy dust!

Under the pillow lay a shiny coin and a little note. THANK YOU, PARTNER! LOVE, TILLY P.S. BRUSH THAT GAP! Rosie grinned and touched the new gap in her smile. Outside, a tiny sneeze sounded from somewhere high above. "ATCHOO!" Then a little voice called, "Goodnight… oh, I mean, good morning!" And a silver sparkle danced past the window.