Chapter 1
“The office is down the hall and to the left,” Sarah whispered. The girl pointed through the slats in the air vent at a large, black door. “Let’s sneak in before the guards come back around.”
Sarah had planned this mission down to the tiniest detail. Sarah was commander and eleven years old, two years older than Zia. Zia still couldn’t believe her luck — this was her first mission, and she had been partnered with Sarah for almost three months. Finally, today was the big day. Right now, however, they were crammed painfully together inside an air vent.
“Ok, are you ready?” Sarah asked Zia.
They were the best team ever. Sarah was smart and funny. Zia was fast and agile. Together, no mission was too big or too difficult. Plus, Sarah and Zia had two gigantic, incredible secrets.
“Yes, let’s do it!” Zia said, grinning at her best friend.
The first secret was that the two girls were actually secret agents. Spies. And they were about to capture a nasty, terrible troll pretending to be the head of Chicago’s richest bank. Trolls loved money and would do horrible things to get as much as possible. And this troll, named Yeego, was one of the worst. However, they first needed to escape from this tight space.
“Pouches out,” Sarah said.
Sarah pulled out a pouch made of shimmering green leaves. Zia unclipped her own pouch. They both pulled what looked like tree bark. In fact, it was tree bark — just not from any tree you could find in the nearby forest. This was called Zinfandel Bark, and it had some very special powers.
“Let’s get it over with,” Zia said, sticking out her tongue. “Yuck.”
They held the bark above their tongues and then bit down on it. The strange, bitter taste ran down her throat. Zia felt herself buzz like a bumblebee. And then she shrank — from girl-size to the size of a pea. But they only had seconds to act.
“Go, go, go!” Zia squeaked, her voice as small as her now shrunken body.
Zia and Sarah ran through the opening at the bottom of the vent. The metal slat was now so big that it felt like running beneath a soccer goal. In the hallway, Zia and Sarah took a moment to catch their breath. Zia ruffled her hair. It was short, purple, and spiky like a porcupine. Zia felt the buzzing again. Then, she returned to her normal nine-year-old girl size.
“Just like magic,” Sarah joked.
Zia grinned at Sarah. This was their second big secret. Not only were they spies, but Zia and Sarah were members of the Fae tribe. Others might call them fairies, but the Fae didn’t like that nickname. The Fae weren’t the fairies from storybooks, the ones with frilly dresses and magic wands. In fact, the Fae tribe wasn’t magic at all — not really. The Fae lived in secret forests where magical plants grew. From the time they were babies, the Fae learned how and when to eat those magical plants.
“Okay, Zia. Yeego is in that office,” Sarah murmured as they approached the black door at the end of the hallway. “Let’s finish this mission!”
Godmother had ordered Zia and Sarah to track down Yeego and stop his evil plans. Zia was determined for her first mission to be a success. She wanted to be a hero, like her mother. Plus, for the first time in Zia’s life, she had finally made a friend. Zia felt like she finally belonged.
“You do the honors, Zia,” Sarah whispered as they stood outside the door. “You deserve it.”
Sarah passed Zia a set of handcuffs. The handcuffs were made of a Fae vine — if they could slap them on the troll, his powers would vanish. Zia opened the door and darted inside. Zia felt Sarah at her back. A very tall, very wide man sat behind a wooden desk.
“Hands up, Yeego!” Zia yelled, holding the handcuffs above her head. “You are under arrest!”
But Yeego didn’t put his hands up. Instead, he laughed. As Zia watched in horror, Yeego’s face bubbled like hot soup. Human skin melted away into an ugly, bumpy, vomit-colored face. Zia saw someone move from behind the door. But it was too late.
“Zia, help!” Sarah screamed.
Another troll held Sarah in their massive, tree-trunk-like arms. The yellow Yeego glared at Zia. His slobbery green lips smacked loudly as though he was eating and speaking at the same time.
“Welcome, my fairy friends.”
Zia almost choked with surprise. Yeego’s lips curled into a hideous grin.
“Did you think a couple of fairy children could stop me, the great Yeego?”
Yeego sat back in his desk chair, looking comfortable. The troll holding Sarah laughed. Zia was frozen. They had planned to take advantage of the element of surprise. Now what? Zia’s mind felt soggy and heavy. Zia should be doing something! Zia reached into her pouch. Sarah, however, shook her head. Then Sarah whispered in her softest Fae voice so the trolls would never hear a word.
“I can’t reach my pouch. Throw me yours, Zia. Trust me, I know just what to do.”
Zia was shocked. Fae pouches were holy. Any pouch would explode into a fireball if it were stolen or taken by force. Pouches could only be freely given away — but normally, no Fae would ever part with their prized possessions. But Zia knew this was no normal circumstance. Sarah nodded in encouragement.
“One. Two,” Sarah whispered.
Suddenly, Sarah squirmed and pulled one of her hands-free. “Three!”
Zia unclipped her pouch and tossed it to Sarah. It landed perfectly in Sarah’s outstretched hands. Sarah grinned. But to Zia’s surprise, so did the troll holding Sarah. Yeego boomed with more laughter. Zia’s stomach dropped.
“Excellent work, Sarah,” Yeego said. “Release her, Gorge.”
The smaller troll released Sarah. Zia froze with her mouth wide open. Sarah walked up to Yeego’s desk. Zia’s chest felt tight, as if she had run out of air. To Zia’s horror, Sarah handed Zia’s precious Fae pouch to the enormous troll. Yeego grabbed it — but the pouch did not explode. Zia had allowed Fae magic to be given away to an enemy!
“Sarah!” Zia shrieked. Her feet felt as though they were glued to the floor. “What…what are you doing?”
Sarah gave Zia an evil smirk. Yeego looked from Sarah to Zia and cackled. The troll pulled out a bag of gold the size of Zia’s head. Sarah twirled around in glee. Sarah grabbed at the money, but Yeego pulled it back.
“You get your reward,” Yeego said, his voice slow and steady. “After your little fairy friend is captured.”
Sarah pouted. Then Sarah turned toward Zia. Her eyes were sharp and dangerous, like a wolf about to chase down a rabbit.
“No problem, boss,” Sarah said. “She doesn’t have any magic left. Now, Zia is just a little scared nine-year-old girl.”
Sarah’s words, however, seemed to unlock Zia’s frozen legs. Because Sarah was wrong. Zia did have some magic up her sleeve — literally. Her mother had taught her this trick. Thanks, Mom, Zia thought. Before Sarah or the trolls could move, Zia ripped into a secret pocket sewn into the sleeve of her shirt. She pulled out a strand of silver Cloud Grass and a tiny piece of Zinfandel Bark. Yeego stopped laughing and stared at Zia. But Zia was looking past Yeego towards the window behind his desk. The window was cracked open, and Zia could hear the busy Chicago traffic below.
“Get her!” Yeego roared.
Sarah lunged at Zia. But Zia ducked beneath Sarah’s arms and ran towards the desk. Gorge swung out a thick arm. Zia rolled into a somersault and then vaulted onto the desk. Yeego howled. His fist rocketed at Zia. But Zia had already stuffed the grass and bark into her mouth. Zia felt the whoosh of air as the troll’s fist flew high above her.
“Where did she go?” Yeego hissed.
Tiny again, Zia ran across the desk and jumped towards the window. Luckily, the Cloud Grass finally kicked in. She was soaring through the air. Wings had sprouted from her back and were carrying Zia towards the open window.
“Shut the window!” Sarah screeched. “She’s getting away!”
Zia urged her wings to fly faster. Faster! Zia felt the air ripple as the window rushed downwards. She was about to get crushed! With her last bit of strength, Zia zoomed through the opening just as the window thudded close behind her.
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Chapter 2
Zia walked aimlessly through the Fae forest. This was her home. She had grown up in this forest, hidden away deep in the northern wilderness. Humans never broke into their special realm — all around their Fae forests, tiny magical purple flowers grew in clumps. These flowers gave off a wonderful smell that reminded Zia of a warm, cozy pillow. To humans, however, the flowers smelled awful and reminded them that they forgot to lock their doors and turn off the stove.
Zia thought that being home would be wonderful. However, she only felt numb. Zia stopped and stared at the delicate bridges that hung between large pine trees. The bridges were made of red vines strung together into ropes. Three older Fae women walked slowly on the bridge, heading towards a tree house on the other side. One paused to stare down at Zia and then began talking to her companions. Although Zia couldn’t hear every word the woman was saying, her heart felt heavy.
“Greenleaf…pouch…Godmother…such a shame…”
Since arriving back home empty-handed (without a troll or even her pouch), Zia had heard many whispers wherever she walked. Were they whispering about her failure? Or did they feel sorry for her? Did they think Zia would never be as good of an agent as her mother? Zia didn’t know which thought made her feel worse.
It had been two weeks since her escape from the Chicago bank. Even now, with time to reflect, Zia still wasn’t sure how she had managed to do it. Her memories were like butterflies, flitting away each time she tried to catch them. In the distance, Zia saw a patch of glittering red berries. On instinct, she reached down to touch her pouch — she would have loved to refill her stock of Bolt Berries. Zia sighed. She sometimes still forgot that she no longer had a pouch at all. Zia felt awkward and naked, almost like stepping out of the bath, only to realize that you didn’t have a towel.
“Hey, Greenleaf!”
The voice made her spin around. A boy named Martin stood behind her. Martin had been in her FAE training class. Although he was older than Zia, they had graduated at the same time.
“What?” Zia asked.
Martin smirked. They couldn’t stand each other. Martin didn’t like that Zia had outperformed him on all the FSA agent tests. Zia didn’t like that Martin thought he’d be a great agent without working hard.
“Godmother wants to see you,” Martin said.
Again, he smirked. Zia’s stomach dropped. Then he shrugged and turned to walk away.
“Wait, what does Godmother want?”
Martin paused but didn’t turn back around to face her. “I don’t know, Greenleaf. Perhaps the FSA will offer you a job pulling weeds at the academy.”
Zia stuck out her tongue, but Martin had already walked away. Jerk, she thought. Stupid, immature, jerk. Zia’s heart, however, was pounding now. Was she about to be kicked out of the FSA? Ever since she was a tiny Fae girl, watching her mother return from missions, all Zia had ever wanted was to be an FSA agent. Mom had been the best, Zia thought — if she was around today, what would she think of her daughter? Zia walked quickly towards the Great Tree. Her palms were starting to sweat now.
“Hey Zia, are you training today?”
Zia looked to the left. Another one of her classmates at the academy was waving at her from the training area. Shaped like green giants, massive green bushes were crashing across the forest floor. Voya ducked under as a large green arm swept toward the girl. Then Voya slid underneath the bush creature and climbed on its back. Zia waved back, but she felt embarrassed. After her failed mission, would she ever train again?
“Not today. I have a meeting with Godmother.”
Voya nodded and continued to beat up the magical bush. Behind Voya, more agents and academy trainees were punching, kicking, jumping, diving, and flying around. Voya was nice, and Zia was friendly with a few other agents, but Zia hadn’t really formed any deep friendships. Training felt like her best friend — that is until Sarah came along. Zia forced herself to walk the rest of the way to the FSA headquarters, known as the Great Tree.
“Come in!”
Godmother was waiting for Zia inside the Great Tree. Zia, however, stood motionless on the leafy path. A massive door cut into the oak loomed inches from her face.
“Stop standing around. I know you are out there, Ziadora Greenleaf.”
Godmother’s voice made Zia flinch. The Great Tree towered above her. It was the largest tree in the Fae forest, one hundred feet tall and fifty feet wide. She gulped and went through the door. Twinkling lights made from Fae flowers lit up the room. The large circular room was cozy, warm, and smelled of cinnamon and apples. These sights and smells should have calmed Zia. Instead, her stomach flopped over, and her chest felt heavy.
“Ziadora, please take a seat,” Godmother said, pointing at the comfy-looking chair made of moss and soft grass.
Zia wanted to scowl, but she sat down anyway. She hated her full name. Only Mom could call her that, Zia thought. She preferred Zia or Agent Greenleaf — her mother was also Agent Greenleaf, after all.
“Your mission was a clear failure,” Godmother said. Her face was ancient, yet her voice remained strong and clear. “Yeego was not arrested. A Fae pouch, along with its magic, was lost. One agent did not return.”
Zia’s heart sank. She loved being an agent of the FSA — her dream was about to be squashed. Part of Zia hoped the moss chair would come alive and swallow her whole. Zia stared at her lap.
“Ziadora, look at me!”
Zia forced her eyes to meet Godmother’s stare. To her surprise, Godmother didn’t look angry.
“And one junior agent, aged nine, managed to escape — against all odds. After her partner betrayed her, this agent was brave and smart enough to avoid capture.”
Zia’s heart leaped back into her chest.
“So…I’m still an FSA agent?” Zia asked.
Godmother sighed. As the head of the famous Fae Spy Agency, Godmother was one of the world's most powerful Fae. But now Godmother looked tired and old.
“Yes, Agent Greenleaf. Everyone makes mistakes,” Godmother said softly. Then, her voice became stern. “But to have an agent give up her Fae pouch to the enemy — this cannot happen! The FSA fights against dark magic. We never give up Fae magic to evil forces.”
Zia felt like she was on a rollercoaster ride. She wanted off.
“I’m sorry, Godmother, it won’t happen again,” Zia said.
“Ziadora, a good agent must learn who to trust! Nine times out of ten, you must trust no one!”
Every time Zia thought of Sarah, she felt sick. How could Zia have been so stupid? Sarah had been pretending to be her friend the whole time — and Zia had fallen for her tricks. Zia fought back tears. Then she took a deep breath.
“Am I going after Yeego again? Do you want me to capture Sarah as well?”
Godmother shook her head. “No, Ziadora. With a Fae pouch, Yeego is more dangerous than ever. That mission is now assigned to more experienced agents.”
Zia felt both shame and relief. Godmother reached beneath her desk. Clutching something, she walked over to Zia. Zia stood up quickly.
“You are very young, Ziadora. Maybe your first mission came too soon. Usually, the FSA waits until your eleventh birthday to accept recruits. I made an exception because you passed all your tests with flying colors — not that I expected anything different from the daughter of our finest agent.”
Zia’s legs went wobbly at the mention of her mother. Godmother held out a pouch. Zia paused. Then she took it. The pouch was as soft as a feather in her hands. It was gorgeous, made from a mix of ruby red and stunning purple leaves. It felt like a lightning bolt pierced her heart. Zia recognized that pouch.
"This is your mother’s, Ziadora. It was found at the home where she was last seen,” Godmother said. “I think it's time it's returned to you.”
Zia’s mother — the other Agent Greenleaf — had disappeared two years ago. She had gone on a top-secret mission and never returned. Zia had applied early to the FSA academy, desperate to follow in her mother's shoes. Deep down, Zia still wanted to find her mother.
“I have assigned you a new mission in Leadville, Colorado. Ziadora, you are the only agent who can fill the role.”
Zia’s head raced. She had heard stories of the wild magic in the Rocky Mountains. Deep in these mountains, the small town of Leadville was famous in the magical world.
“Why me? What is so special about me?”
“Ziadora, I need you to go back to school.”
“What?” Zia exclaimed. “I don’t need to go to school. I already passed my exams!”
Godmother chuckled. “Human school, dear. The FSA has detected suspicious magic at a school in Leadville.”
Zia’s shocked expression made Godmother laugh again. Godmother pointed at her mother’s pouch.
“Gather some plants from the forest. Get ready. Tomorrow, you start the third grade.”
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Chapter 3
The bell rang. Zia clutched her backpack to her chest as the line of kids moved inside the classroom. Inside her backpack were two blank notebooks, a handful of pencils, and her mother’s green and purple pouch. The other children chatted loudly behind her. They were laughing and joking around. Zia listened in. As a secret agent, it was her job to gather information.
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“Ok, class, settle down!” said a warm, cheerful voice. “I hope you all had a nice weekend.”
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Everyone went to their seats, leaving Zia standing alone. Zia glanced toward her teacher. Her name was Ms. Stevens. She was tall with long, shiny black hair. Ms. Stevens wore a necklace with a beautiful icy blue jewel. Wow, Zia thought, her new teacher was beautiful.
“We have a new student today,” Ms. Stevens said. She looked towards Zia. Even though she was a trained spy, Zia still felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. “Would you like to introduce yourself?”
Zia gulped. Everyone stared at her. “Hi, my name is Zia. I’m…um, new in town.”
“Hi Zia!” the class said all together.
Ms. Stevens beamed at Zia. She pointed to a desk near the back. “Welcome to Leadville Elementary, Zia. You can sit next to Sadie and Wesley.”
Zia walked down the aisle and took a seat. The girl to her left grinned.
“Zia’s a cool name,” Sadie said. “Oh, and I love your hair!”
Zia touched her hair. This morning, Zia had chewed on a special Fae leaf. Now, she could change her hair to whatever she wanted. For this mission, Zia had chosen curly, sky-blue hair. She looked around and was glad to see that a few other students also had streaks of colorful hair.
“Oh, thanks,” Zia said. She looked at Sadie. Sadie had dark brown skin, dark brown hair, and pretty, dark brown eyes. Her face looked friendly. Zia needed to fit in, but she wasn’t sure how to be a human nine-year-old. Zia quickly thought of something to say. “I like your shirt, Sadie.”
Luckily, Sadie grinned and looked down at her blue-striped shirt. Zia felt relieved. She was glad Sadie liked her compliment. Zia glanced towards the boy sitting to her right. He had a buzz cut and big, honey-colored eyes. Wesley looked over at her at the same time. He frowned and wrinkled up his nose. There was something about Wesley that made her feel uncomfortable — and Zia didn’t like that feeling one bit.
“Please open your math folder and finish the worksheet from yesterday,” Ms. Stevens told the class.
Ms. Stevens handed Zia a blank worksheet. Then, the teacher gently tapped on Wesley’s desk.
“Wesley is also a new student to the class. He started only a few weeks ago,” Ms. Stevens said, looking between Zia and Wesley. “Wesley, since you finished the worksheet yesterday, could you help Zia get started?”
Zia nodded. Math was her worst subject. Whenever she tried to grab the numbers, they seemed slippery and squirmed away. Maybe this boy could finally help her understand. But instead of helping her, Wesley only grunted and pointed at the worksheet when Zia got the answer wrong. It was super annoying.
“Do you even know how to multiply?” Wesley asked.
His voice was cold and unfriendly. By the time Math was over, Zia was grumpy. Why did Wesley hate her? She looked around at the rest of the class. Math must have also been difficult for the other students — Zia counted at least three students who were curled over their desks, sleeping. Only Wesley, however, gave Zia a weird feeling. The bell rang.
“Zia, can you wait, please?” Ms. Stevens asked.
Zia waited by the door as the rest of the class flowed past her. Sadie gave Zia a thumbs-up and then disappeared.
“How are you feeling on your first day?”
Ms. Stevens bent down so that she was at eye level with Zia.
“Um, it's okay,” Zia said, trying to sound like a normal third-grader—and not a secret agent. “I guess there is a lot to learn.”
“I know how hard it is to change schools. When I was your age, I had to do it a few times, too,” Ms. Stevens said. Her eyes were bright green and full of kindness. Ms. Stevens rubbed at the blue jewel on her necklace. “Zia, I’m here to help. Please come to me anytime if you have questions or need anything at all.
Zia smiled at her. Ms. Stevens was very nice. “Thanks, I will.”
“You clearly are a special girl, Zia.”
Ms. Stevens took a deep breath and squeezed Zia’s shoulder. Zia felt her eyes droop. She was exhausted. The challenging math problems and Wesley’s bad attitude must have drained all her energy. Plus, it had taken all night to travel from her forest to Leadville. Zia desperately needed food and sleep.
“Ok, Zia. Hurry on to lunch. You must be starving,” Ms. Stevens said.
As soon as Zia entered the cafeteria, Sadie waved her over. Sadie was sitting all by herself. Zia grabbed a lunch tray and joined her. She was happy to sit next to Sadie. Zia knew what it was like not to have many friends. Zia loved her Fae tribe, but she had worked so hard to be a great agent that she didn’t have much time to make friends. Well, other than Sarah, Zia thought bitterly.
“What did Ms. Stevens want?” Sadie asked between mouthfuls of chili.
Zia looked down at the bowl in awe. She forced herself to answer Sadie before devouring the food — but it took all her effort.
“She was just being nice. She said I should come to her if I need anything,” Zia said.
Finally, Zia tried the chili. It was boiling hot, but it tasted amazing. Zia wouldn’t admit it to other Fae, but she loved human food—cheese, cookies, cake, chocolate! All of it!
“Ms. Stevens is really great,” Sadie said. It didn’t look like she was enjoying the food as much as Zia. Zia wondered if it would be weird if she ate Sadie’s leftovers. She has one-on-one meetings with us, like every week, just to see how we're feeling. She’s the only teacher who does that in the whole school!”
The bell rang again. Zia slurped up the chili, eating at hyper speed. Sadie looked astonished. Sadie pushed her bowl across the table. Zia laughed and scarfed down Sadie’s chili as well. Just then, Wesley walked by. He gave Zia a dirty look. Sadie grabbed both bowls and returned them to the lunch counter. Wesley paused and looked back at Zia. No one else was around. Then he whispered something that made Zia’s blood turn cold.
“I’m warning you — stay out of my way, fairy!”
