Author's Note: Y'ALL! I AM SO SORRY! I have been really sick and dealing with some family stuff, but I am so back now! I have pumped out 6 chapters in two days and have planned out the rest of the story. I am BACK! I hope you're still interested in reading the rest of this story and thank you to everyone who has kept up with me all this time. Please check back for more, soon.

"Guys! Guys!" A nervous cry from outside the door caught their ears. Tinker Bell and Rosetta looked up from their unsteady bowl of dough, which turned over as they jumped in response to the anxious sound. Vidia leapt to her feet, and Fawn was not far behind her. They knew that voice anywhere.

Iridessa blew into the house with Silvermist right behind her. "Oh my goodness! Guys, it's awful!" Her voice was frantic, and her face was taut.

"She's gone! We couldn't find her anywhere!" Silvermist looked paler than usual, and her hands trembled as she attempted to point in the direction they had come.

"What are you talking about?" Tinker Bell asked, bewildered. She didn't notice the flour floating down and smearing her dress with white streaks.

"The whole house-" Iridessa began.

"-And all her beakers," Silvermist spoke over her.

"-it was all torn apart," Iridessa finished. She was gasping in between words, and she held her hands to her chest as she struggled to breathe.

"Now, y'all need to calm down. Just take a minute," Rosetta cooed, laying aside the apron she had donned and approaching the two panicked fairies. She led them to the couch and sat them down. "Whose house was torn apart?"

"Zarina's!" the girls cried in unison.

"Zarina?" Tinker Bell raised an eyebrow. "Why? Where was she?"

"We don't know…" Iridessa sniffed, and looked like she was going to cry.

"All we found was this note," Silvermist handed a wadded piece of paper to Tinker Bell. "Her house was destroyed, and she was nowhere around. It was awful." She looked sick and laid her head on Iridessa's shoulder.

Tinker Bell's blue eyes squinted as they tried to decipher the scrawled letters. "If something were to happen to me," Tinker Bell read slowly. The other girls held their breath as they waited for answers. "Just know that the red pixie dust was hidden under the old blue leaf hickory tree in the middle of Dewdrop Vale."

"Where did you find this note?" Rosetta asked.

"We found it crumpled up outside the front door," Iridessa explained.

"The note says, 'if something were to happen to me'," Fawn slowly pointed out. "Did something happen to her?"

"Why else would the house have been torn apart like that?" Tinker Bell hated to admit it, but it seemed obvious.

"There were burn marks, too," Iridessa spoke softly. "On the walls…on the edges of the papers…"

"And the room smelled like smoke," Silvermist's face was somber.

"Phoenix…" Fawn whispered.

Tinker Bell frowned and nodded in agreement. "Most likely."

They all let the weight of the news sink in. Then Fawn spoke, "We need to find her."

"We will," Tinker Bell said, determination in her voice. "We need to start at this hickory tree. Perhaps tracking down the dust will lead us to Phoenix. I'm sure he's looking for it, too. He can't run his machine without it."

"Ok, then, what are we waiting for?" Fawn stood quickly and headed towards the door.

"Fawn," Iridessa spoke, standing to put a hand on Fawn's shoulder. "Don't you think you should stay here? You shouldn't have to face Phoenix again."

"Yeah, can you imagine how painful that would be to have to see him again?" Tinker Bell added.

Fawn seemed taken aback. "I'm not staying here! I want to help stop him! I want to help save Zarina."

"Oh, tiger lily," Rosetta sighed. "You've sacrificed so much already. Maybe it's best if you sit this one out."

"No, that's not who I am. I'm not scared of him," Fawn was becoming irritated. "Please, let me help you. Please, I need to do this…"

"You should stay here," Tinker Bell said gently. "I think we all agree on this one, Fawn,"

"No." The sharp tone settled on the group in a tense cloud. "We don't all agree, Tinker Bell." Vidia's voice was soft, but firm. "If Fawn wants to face Phoenix with us, then we should let her come. She should be able to face her attacker and see him defeated. It's not fair to her to keep her locked up because of our own fear. If she's not scared, we shouldn't be either." Vidia's tone left no room for argument or discussion. The other girls realized she was right, and they each began to head out the door. Before Fawn ducked outside behind the others, she flashed Vidia a smile of pure honey, and her eyes shined with gratitude. Vidia grinned back sheepishly and hurried after the others.

They all darted towards the edges of Spring, where Dewdrop Vale sat. They knew well of which hickory tree Zarina spoke. Spring was strangely deserted, they noticed as they approached. There was almost no fairy in sight. Except for two however, floating right next to the hickory tree that hid the precious dust. The girls all made their descent towards the tree, noticing as they got closer that one of the figures was a red-haired sparrowman of unequal stature.

"It's Phoenix!" Tinker Bell called behind her to the group of fairies following her lead. They kept their distance from him as they landed, but they were not far from where he stood, with Zarina lying limply across his shoulder.

"Well, look who it is," Phoenix smiled as they approached. "If it isn't my ex-wife."

"She was never your wife," Vidia growled, anger immediately invading her mind.

"What did you do to Zarina?" Tinker Bell demanded.

"I told her to tell me where she'd hidden the dust, but she wouldn't," Phoenix said, rubbing Zarina's hair gently. "So I had to pry it out of her." Phoenix gave them a knowing look and added. "You might have to mix up a lot of burn ointment. She'll need it."

The girls looked shocked and horrified as he threw Zarina towards them. The girls clambered to catch her and they eased her down to the ground. "Oh my lord," Rosetta gasped as she looked at Zarina's hands. They were burnt and blistered. They traced the cracked, inflamed skin up her arm and across her chest and neck.

"Did you set her on fire?" Tinker Bell was furious.

"Just until she told me where the dust was," Phoenix smiled. "Which she did… and I have it right here." He held up a small satchel covered with fresh spring soil.

"Well it's not going to do you any good," Tinker Bell put her hands on her hips. "I disassembled the machine. You can't use it now!"

"You'd be surprised at what I can do!" With a smirk, Phoenix dashed off, the wind gusting past him into their faces in his wake.

"That was really fast…" Fawn said slowly. "Way too fast. Vidia, you can keep up with him!"

"She's right, Vid," Tinker Bell agreed. "He's headed back to the machine. We can't let him use it. I don't know how he's planning on getting it back together, but he seemed pretty confident. You should follow him, and the girls will follow you. I'll join you once I get Zarina to a hospital."

"Ok, but what do I do when I get there?" Vidia asked as she poised to speed away.

"You stop him," Tinker Bell's blue eyes flashed. She picked up Zarina and clumsily carried her off towards Elderberry Thicket.

"And be careful," Fawn put a hand on Vidia's cheek, making her blush.

"Y-yeah, sure, Fawn," Vidia stuttered. With that, she sped away toward Autumn.