Angelite Amy glows baby blue, the colour of Christmas healing. Finally her turn to open an advent calendar door!

She flies gracefully to door number twenty two which is plain and white, with tiny snow quartz crystals. Behind the door is a winter wonder: a tiny tree with branches covered in snow, and a twirling star snowflake on top.

Back at ground level, Amy carefully places the tree on the snow studded grass. The snow on the branches begins to move, forming individual snowflakes which dance around the tree. They change colour: pink, blue, green, purple snowflakes. Then they fly to the main Christmas Tree, tease it with their presence then soar over the trees and are gone.

The bare tree has revealed a secret: under the snow are real diamonds, stuck to the branches and shining in the winter sun. The snowflake on top of the tree stops twirling, and falls to the ground: a star-shaped diamond. Amy picks it up with joy, she will cherish this forever.

Meanwhile the coloured snowflakes fly in to the night, to find an unhappy child and melt on their tongue as they sleep, gifting each the best dreams ever. In the morning, all the children will find a diamond under their pillow. It will be a shining Christmas!

© Can Stock Photo Inc. / svic

Zoisite Zena stuns in a leaf green dress, offsetting the deep tones of her green body. She flies to the advent calendar, twitching in excitement. Door twenty one depicts a green crystal heart, just like the one beating inside her.

Inside she finds a sprig of holly, a deep green to complement her own skin! Laughing, she takes it down to the glade.

The other fairies crowd round. As she holds the twig of holly up to catch the sunlight, it jerks out of her hand. Hovering midair, it begins to grow in to a beautiful holly heart shape.

Danburite Dawn flies through the heart. She emerges with a holly crown on her head. Moonstone Marina jumps through – and disappears! Other fairies follow. They have landed in another glade, this one surrounded by holly trees with statues of angels within them. It is very peaceful, a space of winter retreat and reflection.

The fairies kneel and say a prayer each, overcome by the sacred aura of the glade. Then they slowly leave, jumping through the heart and back to Gemstone Glade. Everything now looks brighter. The holly heart begins to spin, and flies to the Christmas Tree, taking place at its foot, a final Christmas decoration that can not be surpassed.

Zoisite Zena is green with delight. Surely she has opened the best door yet!

Iolite Ina glows purple in the low winter sun. She is wearing her favourite lilac skirt with tassles, in honour of her day to open an advent calendar door!

Door number twenty is silver with a picture of a unicorn head, complete with golden mane and shining silver horn.

She opens it quickly. There is nothing inside! Then she looks closer.

A long thick golden hair is hiding in plain sight. She touches it and electricity shoots up her arm. Gently, she picks it up. This must be a unicorn hair! A magic thread of someone’s golden mane. A special someone, donating personal poetry to the calendar, their own piece of molten magic.

Ina takes the golden hair down to where the other fairies wait. They all touch it in awe. Immediately the female fairies feel their own locks growing! Stray golden hairs appear among their usual colour. They shriek with delight.

Then they all feel something soft on their neck – it is a braid of unicorn hairs, forming a necklace! They jump up and down with excitement.

Ina lays the golden hair reverently on the grass. It starts to multiply with speed. A magic rug is forming before them! In ten minutes a tiny rug is there, just waiting to be played upon.

The fairies begin to dance on the rug, as golden stars rise from it. This is such fun! After a while they all lie down exhausted, and fall in to the sweetest slumber, full of golden unicorn blessings. When they awake hours later, the sun is setting in beautiful reds and golds. They gasp. Life is too beautiful. This is Gemstone Glade style Christmas, magic at its most festive.

Peacock Ore Patrick glows in the winter light, iridescent and invincible. All the fairies love him: he is always there for anyone in need, with kind words and sage advice.

His door is plain and golden. What can be behind it?

Carefully he opens the door, and slowly sighs. A gold bell sits there, regal and radiant. Patrick takes it is his hands. The sweetest sound emanates, a song for the soul, a call of the divine.

Gold sparkles around his hands and his head. The bell continues to chime.

Hooves can be heard approaching. Then they are here: six unicorns with shining gold horns, summoned by the bell. They begin to dance together, walking around in circles and patterns as they criss cross each other’s paths. The fairies stare in wonder.

Then the golden dove returns, flying high over the glade.

Gold stars fall off the bell, and land on the fairies. They giggle in delight as their wings turn golden and sparkly.

A bird cries, a sound from heaven, music on wings. He arrives: a golden eagle. He circles the glade then flies through the star on top of the Christmas Tree, and is gone! But where did he go?

The fairies dance with the unicorns, fluttering their wings as they fly round their heads, breathing in unicorn magic.

The unicorns form a circle, and place all their horns to touch on the ground. A gold cloud forms round them, then hovers above the fountain, which turns golden too.

The fairies laugh. They need to enjoy their gold wings while they have them, as they know this magic will wear off soon.

The unicorns move apart and begin to leave the glade. The bell stops tolling. The moment has passed: but it will live on forever.

© Can Stock Photo / Catmando

Moonstone Marina stares at advent calendar door eighteen with curiosity. It is green with white and red stars. What can be behind? Slowly she opens the door, savouring the moment.

A beautiful piece of mistletoe confronts her, shining with golden stars around it. She gasps in heartfelt delight.

Tentatively, she touches the mistletoe, then picks it up. A warmth courses through her body.

The fairies crowd round as she returns to ground level. The stars twirl around the mistletoe, little Christmas moments, microcosms of magic.

Then the mistletoe begins to grow. The fairies stare, transfixed. Faster and faster it grows until it towers above the fairies, then it erupts in to many smaller mistletoe pieces: the exact amount for all the fairies to have one each!

Stars fly between all the mistletoes, and then gather in a small cloud of light and fly to the Christmas Tree, where they take up residence.

The fairies clutch their new presents happily, and then begin to dance. Let the mistletoe party begin!

Dancing continues on in to the night, and as dusk comes the glade is lit up by twinkling stars and the magic pine cones on the Christmas Tree. In the morning, a pile of mistletoe brightens up the foot of the Christmas Tree, and the glade is ready for yet more Christmas fun.

Obsidian Olly claps his hands – finally he has been chosen to open an advent calendar door! His door depicts pine trees, sparkling green and gold.

As he opens the door, a fresh forest small hits his nose. Inside are pine cones, all different colours.

Slowly they drift out the door, and form the shape of a tree mid-air, shining in the winter sun.

Then the cones fly to the  main Christmas tree, and affix to branches. They light up: beautiful colours that will glow like stars when the sun goes down.

One pine cone has stayed behind. Olly picks it up. It lights up and vibrates in his hand. He has a new friend – and a torch!

Delighted, he returns to ground level, holding the cone gently as if it might break. He will not let go of it again in a long time.

That night, he sleeps with the light of the pine cone next to him, and in his dreams a forest of pine trees engulfs him and shares its secrets.

Sugilite Sally jumps up and down with delight. She has been chosen to open today’s advent calendar door!

Her lilac body glistens as she flies to the multicoloured door, rainbows crisscrossing it in a symphony of vibrant colour.

Inside she finds a jar of sweets. Back at ground level, she opens it and the fairies all grab one. The sweets are different colours. As the fairies hold the sweets, tiny rainbows dance within them.

Jasper Jim is the first to place a sweet in his mouth. Immediately a rainbow twirls around his body! Jim moves and the rainbow moves with him.

The fairies laugh. They all begin eating, and then dance with their rainbow. Rainbows move around the glade as the fairies leap and twirl.

Jim swallows his sweet. The rainbow leaves him and flies to the fountain, merging with its waters which turn in to a rainbow cascade.

The other fairies swallow theirs too, and all the rainbows float towards the fountain. The fairies are laughing. This is such fun!

A unicorn enters the glade, and begins to drink the rainbow coloured water. As he finishes, a rainbow starts to twirl around his silver horn. He looks at the fairies, nods then is gone.

Slowly the rainbows rise from the fountain, and fly away over the trees.

Calum turns over in bed. A rainbow dances around his head, and enters his dreams. He sighs happily.

Tonight many children are blessed as they sleep, unhappiness swept away as the rainbows come and then go, taking all their worries with them.

In another world, the rainbows regroup, and dance to a silent music of the night. They will return to the glade one day, but for now their work is done.

One sweet remains in the jar in Gemstone Glade. It is patient. Soon, the right person will find it, and its healing powers will be released.

The fountain waters continue to flow, the memory of rainbows still real within them. They now contain rainbow energy forever. Whoever drinks from the fountain, will be blessed.

Angelite Amy flies happily towards her door, anticipation in her heart. Her blue body shines in the winter sun.

Her door is covered in pictures of snowmen, all wearing cosy scarves and mittens. Inside the door, there is a bundle of tiny fairy hats, gloves and scarves, all in different colours. She grabs as many as she can and returns to the ground. It is time for a fairy clothes party!

They have great fun trying on all the colours, trying to find the perfect fit.

Angelite Amy chooses a green scarf and purple hat, which both complement perfectly her blue body. As she begins to dance with the other fairies – many are waving scarves in the air – she notices how warm and comforted she feels.

These are magic winter clothes: they make you feel good on the inside as well as on the outside.

The golden dove appears and steals a mitten, flying off delighted with his find.

As the fairies dance, the unclaimed scarves on the ground fly up and begin their own dance mid-air. The fairies stop and stare. The scarves are beautiful as they twist and turn, a sight to behold.

Then they fly to the Christmas tree and wrap around the branches.

The fairies begin to dance again like there is no tomorrow. The Christmas Tree sways in time.

The Christmas party has begun in Gemstone Glade, and now it will not stop.

Petalite Polly flies gracefully to her door, pink body shining in the winter sun. The door is red and covered in miniscule bells. They ring softly as she opens it.

A tiny wooden sleigh is inside, bedecked with bells and mistletoe. It is red and has red crystals – rubies, garnet – encased in its sides.

Polly is delighted. She takes the toy sleigh and then places it gently on the frosty ground. The other fairies gather round, excited.

Polly strokes the smooth wood with appreciation. At her touch, the sleigh begins to grow, wood groaning, until it is the right size for the fairies to climb in.

Several jump in straight away: Jasper Jim, Herkimer Harry, Iolite Ina, Moonstone Marina and – of course – Petalite Polly.

The sleigh takes flight, high over the trees and further in to the forest. Then it descends in to another glade.

“Gemstone Glade has a sister!” gasps Jasper Jim.

The glade is full of statues of animals: a fox, an owl, a badger, a cat, and several reindeer.

In the centre is a hole in the ground, with steps descending down beneath the glade.

The fairies jump from the sleigh and rush down the steps. (Fear and caution is not a fairy trait.) They reach a stone corridor with soft red lighting. At its end is a red door covered in bells – just like the door on the advent calendar.

But this door is man size. It looms over the small fairies. Petalite Polly knocks at the door. It opens as if by magic.

Inside is a cave full to the ceiling with toys. The fairies gasp. At the back of the cave is an old man with a clipboard, ticking off names and whistling under his breath. He wears a red coat and black boats, and he looks like – or is he? – Father Christmas.

He turns to the fairies. “Welcome my friends! I have fairy gifts here too!”

The fairies spend an hour choosing crystal bracelets and necklaces, until they are bedecked like princes and princesses. Then it is time to go home. “I will tell you a secret,” confides Father Christmas. “There is a secret tunnel that connects my cave here to your Gemstone Glade. I challenge you to find it!”

The fairies laugh, they love a challenge. The sleigh is waiting for them, and when they arrive back the other fairies rush to greet them. There are presents to share for all.

Christmas has come early to Gemstone Glade. It begins to snow, and the day is complete.

Selenite Sue flies swiftly to her door, muttering under her breath, “Please be something good.”

The door is pure white. Quickly she opens it, then her mouth falls in disappointment.

A ball of frozen snow confronts her. Gingerly, she takes it in her hands, then returns to the ground. The other fairies look at it quizzically.

Sue runs her hand over the smooth ball, wondering why her door is so boring.

Suddenly she feels a vibration beneath her hand. She steps back. The ball of snow is growing. It doubles then trebles in size, taking on a form: a head, arms, a body! Why it is a snowman!

“I am a magic snowman,” murmurs the creature through his ruby crystal mouth, staring round the glade with obsidian eyes.

He shakes everyone’s hand politely. The fairies giggle, unsure how to react.

Then he strides over to the fountain: and gets in to have a swim! The fairies gasp.

He is still changing. As he swims, huge white wings emerge from his back.

He flaps them several times, as if trying them out. Then he is flying! Like an angel he swoops over the glade.

Then he is gone, high over the trees and away.

That night, as the fairies watch the stars in the clear frosty air, they imagine they see him there: an angel in the sky, looking for Christmas and finding the heavens instead.

Calum looks out his window, in a house in another world. There is a snowman in his garden. It waves, then it is gone. Calum smiles. Now he knows he need never be alone. He looks up at the starry sky, and can almost see his wishes coming true in the beauty of the cosmos.

Back in Gemstone Glade, snow begins to fall. There will be more snowmen tomorrow.