The next day, on the first day of the third week, Isabelle went back to the spyglass.

It was a slow, sleepy Saturday. Isabelle didn’t expect anything to happen.

Nora was sitting at the window watching a cute bunny hop around her backyard. She opened her window and tossed it a carrot. Then she yawned without covering her mouth. She made a sound like “Aaaaaah-waaaaah,” which was really just a very loud yawn, but Isabelle strained her ears and imagined that if she had a cold—which was technically possible—“Aaaaa-waaaah” could actually be “I wish.”

Isabelle seized the moment.

She didn’t care that she was supposed to wait for the exact right moment, or that she was supposed to foster independence in her practice princess.

Nora was not a usual princess. She was a regular girl. Isabelle wasn’t going to follow even the few rules she knew.

She put as many sparkles as possible on the tip of her thumb. Then she pinched them as hard as she could and held her wand high. She swished and she twirled. For luck, she crossed her fingers. She was pretty sure she needed it.

And then she did it. She felt herself go and be transported to Nora. It was the best feeling ever. Not exactly like flying. More like flying at supersonic speed until everything stopped and you were somewhere else and it was really hard to control yourself and not jump up and down in the sparkle dust.

Sparkles were really messy. First, they floated up to the ceiling. Then, just when the air began to feel clear, they turned into dust and drifted down to the floor until everything in the room—every trophy, notebook, and pillow—looked shiny and slippery. In a way, sparkle dust resembled tree pollen—or a whole field of dandelions exploding at once. When it had settled, everything looked slightly fuzzy.

Isabelle smiled at the speechless, shocked girl who stood in front of her. She waved her wand back and forth the way she’d seen Clotilda do. Then she said the words she’d dreamed of saying since before she’d even passed her training:

“Hello, Nora. I am your fairy godmother. I’m here to make your wish come true!”