The Leprechaun's Money Bag

THE LEPRECHAUN’S MONEY BAG

One Monday morning, as usual, I was walking to school. To get to my school, I have to walk through a forest. Well, Mum says it’s not a forest, it’s the woods, because it’s not big enough to be a forest. But, as I always say to her, it looks big enough to me.
Anyway, as I was saying, I was walking through the woods one day to school. As usual, it was quite a boring walk, until I heard a little voice by my knees. I looked down, and there was a little man standing there. He looked quite wizened, and was sporting a little white beard, and he was wearing a green suit.
“Hello,” I said. “Who are you then?”
“I’m the Tooth Fairy,” the little man answered, quite sarcastically. “I’m a leprechaun, and I’m looking for my bag of gold. I was taking a walk through these woods, to get to Fairy Land. And I tripped over and dropped my bag of gold somewhere. But I don’t know where it’s gone.”
“It’s ok, I’ll help you look for it,” I said.
“You’re a sweet girl,” the leprechaun smiled. “What’s your name then?”
“Molly,” I replied. “What’s your name?”
“Bobo,” he told me. His face crumpled. “Oh, Crystal’s going to be mad with me. She sent me to Fairy Land to get some more fireflies. We’re running low on fireflies, you know.”
“Who’s Crystal?” I asked.
“My wife. She’s a fairy. We live in these woods, you see. And every now and again, we take it in turns to go to Fairy Land. While the other does the chores at home. It saves time you know.”
I was starting to get used to this. A leprechaun called Bobo who was married to a fairy called Crystal and lived in a tree in the woods. The same woods I walked to school through. And there was a real Fairy Land. I used to be obsessed with fairies and Fairy Land when I was younger. My favourite film used to be FernGully.
I was over by the river by this time. I could see a little bag by the bank, curiously I picked it up. I opened it up, and I had to close my eyes for a couple of seconds, because a bright, golden light shone out of the bag. After I got used to it, I looked inside the bag. There were several little gold coins, from which the light was coming from.
“Hey, Bobo, I think I found your money bag!!!” I called out.
“Sssh, not so loud. Mr Badger might be near by. He tried to steal the money off Crystal last week, you know.”
“Sorry, sorry.”
Bobo dashed over and took the little bag off me. He looked inside, and his face beamed. Not from the light, but because he was so happy.
I wasn’t sure whether to start off on my way to school, but I didn’t want to appear rude, so I stayed there.
After a couple of seconds, Bobo looked up. “Oh, Molly, I almost forgot about you, I did. Thanks for finding my money for me. Now, I want to give you a couple of my coins, but I can’t, because as soon as you go back to Human Land, it’ll disappear.”
“What about these woods?” I asked.
“Ah, you see, these are magic woods. The woods between Human Land and Fairy Land. Well, they got to be, hadn’t they? Me being a leprechaun and my wife being a fairy. And the animals here talk as well, you know.”
“I’ve never heard them,” I said.
“That’s because you’ve probably never listened to them. Humans never do, you know.”
He stood there pondering for a moment, then he clicked his fingers. “I know, you can come to Fairy Land with me!!!”
I stared at him. “I wouldn’t be allowed, would I? In the stories I read about Fairy Land when I was little, humans were never allowed in Fairy Land.”
Bobo laughed. “You can if you are with a magical creature such as myself, you know.”
“I can?”
“Yes, when you walk through these woods, where does it lead you?”
“Erm, to the other side. Where my school is. This is only a short cut, so I don’t have to walk so far. I’m always getting a stitch.”
“Yes, when you walk through the woods, it takes you to the other side, because you’re a human. But me, because I’m a magical creature, I can walk through the gateway that takes me to Fairy Land. And because you’re with me, you can go through it as well.”
I smiled. “Cool!!!”
“BBBRRRIIINNNGGG!!!”
Suddenly, the woods, Bobo, and everything around me disappeared. And I was back in my bedroom at home, sitting up in bed, my alarm clock going off. I was so disappointed. I was looking forward to going to Fairy Land with Bobo. I switched my alarm clock off as Mum came in my bedroom.
“Molly, time for school. Come on, chop chop!!! You’ll never get ready just by sitting there, will you?”
“I was in the woods just now, Mum. And there was this leprechaun called Bobo, and he had a wife called Crystal, she was a fairy, and the badger could talk, and Bobo lost his money bag, and I found it for him, and we were going to Fairy Land. You can’t go to Fairy Land if you’re a human, you know. The woods just go to the other side, where school is. But Bobo said you can go through the gateway to Fairy Land if you’re with a magical creature. And Bobo can, because he was a leprechaun. And, And…”
“Molly, shut up. Bobo’s not real, Crystal’s not real, and neither is the talking badger or Fairy Land. It was just a dream you were having. Now get ready for school.” Mum left my room.
My hand was underneath the pillow, as I pushed the quilt back with my other hand to get out of bed. I felt a bit of paper under the pillow, and I pulled it out. I read it, and it was a note:

“Hello Molly,
Sorry you couldn’t make it to Fairy Land, with me. You would’ve loved it. Perhaps you’ll make it next time.”
See you soon,
Bobo