Chapter 1: Periwinkle

Periwinkle zipped through the trees, finally darting into a hollow oak that had become her temporary home. Well camouflaged, the hidden lair had escaped the notice of the Scout Fairies for quite some time now. Only she and her sister Tinkerbell knew its secret location. Peri only hoped that this time the Scouts hadn't seen her slip into the Autumn Woods this time.

"Surprise!" Peri jumped two inches, hitting her head on the low branch ceiling. "Oh I'm so sorry! Did I scare you? I guess I kind of scared you, didn't I? I thought you liked surprises."

"Shhh!" Peri exclaimed, covering Tink's mouth. "They're close!"

Nodding, Tink pulled away from her anxious sister. "Sorry," she whispered.

Silently, the girls crept up to the tiny peek hole. Looking out, Peri could see the two Scouts that had been chasing her earlier talking in low voices and glancing towards their hiding spot.

"They found me," Peri whispered.

Tink slapped her forehead. "I'm so stupid! I knew they've been trying to find you, I should have kept my big mouth shut."

"No, Tink, it wasn't your fault. I wasn't careful enough. Either way I'm leaving tonight."

"Where will you go?"

"The mainland."

"You can't! It's too far off."

"I have to Tinkerbell! I don't have any other choice. Queen Clarion and Lord Malori are getting no where with Zarina, and as long as she can't persuade the Scout Fairies that they're wrong, then I'm toast."

"Well at least let me help you escape."

"How?"

"I had a little something in mind..."

…

"How do I look?" Tink asked, spinning around in front of the mirror. Her normally green dress had been frosted over to make it look blue. It hadn't turned out quite like she wanted, but in the fading light, you couldn't tell. Her golden hair had also been frosted over to give a white appearance.

"Almost exactly like me," Peri said. "I must say, the frost job is excellent. Who did it for you?"

Tink laughed. "You were amazing! And my hair! It's white!"

Peri laughed too. "Not quite. Right now it looks more like pale platinum blonde, but as long as you don't let them get too close, they won't know the difference!"

"I won't let them get near me until we reach the Pixie Dust Tree. Silvermist, Iridessa and the others are waiting to stop them."

"Are you sure you want to do this? What if you get caught? The Scouts won't like it when they find they've been tricked."

Tink smiled and took Peri's hands. "You know I'll do anything for you. I'll be fine, I promise." She hugged Peri quickly. "Love you!" She called as she flew out of the tree and darted in the direction of the Pixie Dust Tree.

"I love you too," Peri whispered softly as she watched the fairies dart after her sister. "Be safe."

A few minutes later, the coast was clear, and Peri flew out into the night. She followed the creek that ran between the winter and autumn woods until she reached the coast. Looking back, she saw bright flashes of light and head the roar of raging water surrounding an area near the tree. Tink and the others were safe. Then, with a last, longing glance home, Periwinkle shouldered her backpack and started off across the ocean.

The night was pleasantly warm and peaceful, giving the winter fairy time to reflect on the hectic events of the past two weeks. Shortly after the Four Seasons Festival, Zarina's story had spread to the far corners of Pixie Hollow. Several had been happy at her return, but the Scout Fairies were especially joyful; they had been waiting for a moment like this for years. Ever since Lord Malori broke his wing, they had been especially interested in prohibiting the use of illegal magic. While at first they did no harm, the members eventually got to the point where they arrested everyone that even looked at Pixie Dust. Queen Clarion banned them from doing any more work, though they continued to meet secretly and kept track of all the fairies that had messed with magic. But now they had a reason to come back.

"We must make sure other fairies don't turn like Zarina. They might not all turn good again," they said.

Queen Clarion had reluctantly let them, and Zarina had gladly joined them as their leader, knowing full well the consequences of playing with magic. That's when the Scouts began to arrest all the fairies on their list. Apparently, because Tink saved Pixie Hollow more times than one, they forgave her crossing borders, but not Peri's. Periwinkle was on the run from the Scouts while Clarion and Malori tried to convince Zarina, who knew nothing of the sisters' story, to call off the hunt.

"Stupid Scouts!" Peri suddenly screamed in frustration, kicking the waves with her feet. She turned and looked back towards Pixie Hollow, now long gone. "Because of you, I've had to leave my home, my friends, and my sister!" She started sobbing, hovering in place over the salty water. "And I don't know if I'll ever get to go back," she whispered.

Her meltdown was at that moment interrupted by a loud screech. Peri darted upwards, barely dodging the hungry sea hawk and losing her backpack in the process. The bird made a quick turn around just before crashing into the water and began chasing her again. Peri screamed involuntarily and began evasive maneuvers Vidia had taught her.

I'll never be able to make it on my own out here in the open, she thought. I have to make it to the clouds!

With renewed determination, Peri zipped through the air, the hawk snapping at her heels. After what seemed like hours, she made it, and gasped in the thick heavy air.

Keep flying, keep flying, she thought. Don't stop now!

She was breathing heavily from all the adrenaline, but finally the hawk fell behind. Peri slowed down and caught her breath. Cautiously, she poked her head through the clouds and looked around. No danger, only a beautiful aurora borealis. She rested for several minutes, enjoying the natural beauty as only a fairy can. Eventually, she had to continue her flight.

She had gotten a little off course during the chase, but in the distance, she saw a rosy pink, slowly rising sun. She readjusted, hoping to end up in England. An hour or so later, she reached the Mainland, but realized it was not England.

"Where am I?" she wondered aloud.

Looking down, she saw a small kingdom on the edge of a fjord, with high, snowy mountains behind it. At the moment it was completely isolated and frozen, though Peri was sure it was supposed to be summer over here.

Carefully, she flew down to the docks and walked in, making sure to hide her wings the best she could. Hopefully nobody would pay much attention her.

Of course she was wrong.

Almost immediately a tall man with red hair and thick sideburns came up to her.

"Here, child," he said kindly. "Take a cloak to warm yourself. It's ok," he said, seeing her startled expression. "You can trust me, the princess left me in charge."

"Oh, ok," Peri said, taking a green cloak and wrapping herself in it, even though she was never bothered by the cold.

"The castle is open and there is soup available if you need it."

"Thank you!" Peri said. "It's been awhile since I last ate."

The man laughed slightly. "I know how you feel. It's been too confusing to eat lately."

Peri waved goodbye and continued through the village, which she learned through snippets of conversation was called Arendelle, and the kind man in charge was Prince Hans of the Southern Isles. Most people ignored her, passing her off as a young human girl.

After awhile, Peri paused and adjusted her coat so she wouldn't get too warm. Suddenly she heard voices arguing in the alleyway behind her. Turning, she saw a young woman with short brown hair and a pink dress. Behind her was a man who liked a little like Hans, but with brown hair and a thinner face.

"It would be warm, you said," the man was saying. "It would be beautiful in summer, you said. Last time we honeymoon with any of your cousins."

"Eugene! It's not her fault!"

"Rapunzel, she caused all this snow."

Wait! Peri thought. There's a human who can cause snow to come? This I have to see!

"She's still learning to control her powers. They looked much more difficult to handle than mine were. You know my other cousin doesn't have powers. Other than extremely good archery skills."

"Oh no, we are not going to Scotland! Merida is even worse! She tried to shoot me last time we met."

"Eugene! You were playing with her best bow. You should have know better."

"Alright, alright. Fair enough. But when can we get out of here? It's freezing!"

"Yes, I noticed. But we can't get out of here until the fjord melts enough for the ships to leave. We can't exactly get to Corona on foot. If one could, than Aunt Eliza and Uncle Harold would still be here."

Suddenly Peri coughed and sank to the ground. The cloak was too warm and heavy, but she couldn't take it of without people getting suspicious. Immediately the woman, Rapunzel, ran over to her.

"Are you ok? Are you lost?"

"A little," Peri admitted. "I need to get some traveling food and supplies, then go the castle for some soup."

"You trying to go somewhere?" Eugene asked.

"I'm not going to tell strangers where I'm going," Peri said guardedly.

"Well, I'm Rapunzel," she said. "The cousin of Queen Elsa and Princess Anna. I want to help you if you're lost. I was once lost too, you know."

"I'm Periwinkle." She paused thoughtfully, then pointed toward the mountains. "I live in the mountains with my family and I'm trying to get back to them. But I want something to eat first."

"Naturally!" Rapunzel said with a smile. "Come with me."

"So...which princess caused the snow?" Peri asked. "I wasn't there when it happened."

"That would be Elsa," Eugene said. "Tall, pale platinum blonde hair that's a little like yours. I've been told she's a nice gal, but she was a little upset at the coronation party, and then she ran away to who know's where, and I haven't gotten to meet her yet. So far she's not all she's cracked up to be."

"Enough, Eugene," Rapunzel said firmly.

She's not here? Now I'll never be able to find her. "What about the other princess? Anna? Does she have powers?"

"No," Rapunzel said. "It skipped her for some reason. Actually nobody's sure why Elsa can make snow and ice in the first place."

"Maybe it's like your power," Eugene suggested. "Your Aunt Eliza drank something magical before Elsa was born."

"You have powers?" Peri asked.

"I did. See, I used to have long golden hair that had the power to heal any illness or injury. But it's gone now."

Peri could sense that there was more to the story, but Rapunzel didn't seem willing to share at the moment, so she didn't press. They reached the castle and Rapunzel ordered everything Peri needed to get "home" while she are soup. About an hour later, she was ready to go. She thanked Rapunzel, Eugene and Hans for their kindness, and set off. It was a shame she couldn't stay with them, but it was simply too dangerous. She couldn't hide the fact that she was a fairy forever.

For a long time she flew into the woods, not knowing or caring where she was going. Her tentative plan was to hide in the snowy mountains for awhile until she was well rested from her oversea journey. Then she would head to London, England and check in on Wendy Darling, a little girl whose music box Tink had fixed years ago, when she had first been born. Tinkerbell knew that's where her sister would wind up eventually, so that was their rendezvous point in case the Scout Fairies dropped Peri's charges.

At last Peri came to a mountain that looked like a nice isolated place to settle down for the next few days. But when she circle around she got a huge surprise: a huge ice castle rested comfortably on the mountain.

Elsa, Peri thought. Ok, change of plans.

She watched from behind a tree as a huge abominable snowman came out of the palace and threw out a young couple and...a small more friendly looking snowman. Both snowmen could speak, although the little one sounded more intelligent. Peri waited until the big snowman chased after the apparently unwelcome company, then slipped up to the doors of the ice palace.

She may not welcome me, either, she thought. But then again, I may be able to help learn how to control her powers.

Periwinkle took a big breath, and stepped inside. No going back now.