Today fairy Beryl Bliss is chosen to open the second door of the advent calendar. She is so excited!

The door has a tiny rose quartz shaped mermaid on it. Beryl giggles in anticipation.

Behind the door is a tiny fountain statue, a mini replica of the Gemstone Glade fountain.

Beryl holds it in her hands in awe. Slowly her hands find the key, and she winds up the toy. The water begins to flow, a tiny stream of delight. Then it changes colour, yellow to green to orange to gold.

Beryl sets the toy on the ground as the other fairies gather around. A rainbow forms around the little fountain, playing with the waters, and then rising up and towards the Christmas Tree, finally disappearing in to the star on top. Where has it gone?

The toy starts to play soft music and the fairies begin to dance. The Christmas Party has begun early.

The Christmas angels are busy yet again, gently descending from a cloud of festive green and red. They hold a huge advent calendar in their hands, a wooden plaque with enticing doors. They gently place it near the Christmas tree, a new friend to play with, and attach log holders behind it, ensuring it is firm and secure before stepping back in happy admiration.

A green, gold and red mosaic of little doors, the advent calendar shines with a hidden light. A different crystal adorns each door. Reindeer and sleighs are pictured behind, Christmas stockings and logfires too. It is a picture of pure Christmas joy.

Fairies flock to the glade and stare in excitement. “Who shall go first?” they whisper. “Tourmaline Tina!” shouts someone. She blushes. “Very well then.”

The first door is bedecked with a tourmaline crystal: purple, green and blue. Tina opens the door cautiously.

A vial of white dust confronts her. “Why it must be magic snowdust!” she cries, taking the little bottle and sprinkling its contents all around.

The dust forms a cloud, growing bigger and then erupting in to tiny white fairies. “Snow fairies!” cries Tourmaline Tina in delight.

They fly around the glade, taking it all in with the joy of infants. Some fly higher, with a few reaching the star on top of the Christmas Tree, and disappearing inside. Where have they gone?

Silence sweeps Gemstone Glade. It is the peace of promise, the hush before something magical.

Christmas angels fly overhead, with glittering green wings and mistletoe in their hair. A shining green cloud joins them: only it is not a cloud, it is the Gemstone Glade Christmas tree being escorted by tens of angels.

It is that time of year again. Gemstone Glade comes to life at Christmas, every blade of grass festive, the air alive with seasonal joy. When its snows and the fountain freezes, it sparkles like the world’s largest diamond.

The tree is almost on the ground. Then it is here, tall and majestic. Fairies flutter around its branches, scattering magic snowdust. Then they adorn it with many coloured baubles: one colour for all the crystal fairies and angels of the glade.

Presents fall from the lower branches and assemble under the tree, a generous pile of different colours and sizes, but all carrying a slice of Gemstone Glade cheer, gifts for lucky children. The fairies laugh with Christmas glee.

A giant shining star tops the tree. A fairy flies up to it, and disappears inside. Where has she gone? We will find out shortly.

The branches rustle, singing in the breeze, the sweet music of Christmas carols heard from afar. The fairies are finished their work, and relax beneath the tree.

Christmas has arrived, and the magic is only just beginning.

The baubles shine like a sky of stars, as the hush descends once again, the quiet before the festive fun begins in earnest.

A hush caresses Gemstone Glade, an expectant silence, a promise of something more. A gentle creaking breaks the peace. A tree sways in time to the soft wind, as a door appears at the foot of its trunk.

It is a pink and green door, with a pink and green crystal stuck on its front and glitter around its edges. It screams fun.

Tourmaline Tina enters the glade, her body glowing purple, green and blue, and her wings fluttering with happiness. Cautiously, she opens the door.

Three smaller doors are behind, one yellow, one purple and one green.

Tourmaline Tina giggles. Which colour will it be today?

Gently she opens the purple door.

A small vial of purple dust is inside. Tourmaline Tina is delighted. This is magic dust.

She opens the vial and sprinkles dust all over her body. She glows brighter, and her wings flutter with joy, as they begin to grow in size and strength.

Tina flies around the glade, loving her new wings and full of joyous purple energy.

She flies over the fountain, and it turns purple as the dust falls from her. Tina laughs and flies away in to the forest to share her magic.

Malcolm the Mole traversed the earth effortlessly, a subterranean world all of its own. Today he was moving house, digging tunnels towards a new home to play in. A singing caressed his ears, a hum of heaven, sweet music for his soul. On he ploughed, as the music grew stronger.

A light ahead enveloped him, a quartz crystal shining with an inner glow. Malcolm stopped, as he soaked up the energy.

Gemstone Glade was quiet as the molehills appeared. There was a quiet humour in the air. Treasure was being unearthed, golden coins the cream on the top of each molehill.

The millionaire mole threw away his new found wealth so easily. The next visitors to Gemstone Glade would be very lucky indeed.

And still the mole burrowed underground, as if it could never stop.

A unicorn entered the glade, resting its horn on a molehill. The mole felt the healing energy straight away, as it burrowed further, unstoppable in its quest to build the best molehill ever. The molehills were here to stay, for a while at least, as coins shone in the sun.

It was time to play. Gemstone Glade sighed as a gust of wind fingered the trees. Anticipation was in the air.

Then she was there, the tiny orange fairy Carnelian Caroline. Sparkles shimmered in the air. Caroline laughed as she blew bubbles, bright orange globes which blew around the glade gaily.

The fountain turned orange. The hedgehogs in the woods turned in their sleep, chuckles in their chest.

The leaves in the trees glowed with an orange undertone. Caroline laughed again. Wherever she flew, joy and fun followed.

Two small children hesitated at the edge of the glade, silhouettes against the sun. They were soul walkers – their bodies asleep far away, sweet dreams soothing their minds and leading them here.

“Come and play!” invited Caroline. Nervously the children entered the glade, looking around as if all their Christmases had come at once.

Caroline blew bubbles their way, growing larger and larger in tune to the fairy magic inside. The children climbed on to a bubble each, rising and circling the glade. Their joyous laughter joined the sound of the wind. Happiness ruled the day, as a sun that surely could not set turned slowly orange and pink.

Orange light suffused the glade with giggles.

It was time to play.

Hazel lived in the woods around Gemstone Glade. The day he found the glade was the best day of his life. A haven for hedgehogs, the fountain was programmed to recognise their presence. A small secret door opened at the foot of the stonework, and a tiny fountain was revealed, healing waters spilling out, shining with a golden glow. Hazel gulped greedily, and immediately felt refreshed, energised and uplifted.

Like all hedgehogs, Hazel only came out at night. Gemstone Glade was suffused by the soft blue waters of the main fountain. Sometimes, a unicorn would come. Hazel would freeze as the unicorn sniffed around him. Then the unicorn would neigh and retreat, understanding his shyness.

At the edge of the glade were magic trees. They had a secret deep inside. As Hazel approached, the trees opened the secret door at the foot of their trunk. Inside were hedgehog bedrooms, stairs connecting level upon level, room for a mum with all her babies. The beds were comfortable, and as Hazel curled up to sleep he know that he would enjoy the best dream ever. He was not disappointed.

An auburn haired fairy flies around the fountain, golden dress and sparkling green eyes alive with anticipation. It is Tangerine Agate Tessa, crystalline energy around her in orange smoke. She waves her golden wand high as she performs a healing spell on the waters.

The fountain bubbles, orange fairy lights rising in a dance of sunshine colour. Tiny fairies fly in to the night, the music of magic in their ears and words of sugar in their mouths as they visit little children all over the world, delving in to their dreams like a blessing from heaven.

Words are whispered, sweet tasting. The children turn over, self-esteem boosted and joy in their hearts. Tomorrow, they will awake with hope and high spirits, confident in the knowledge that wishes can come true. Some will remember an orange firefly dancing with them; others will only vaguely recall a happy dream.

Tangerine Agate Tessa has more work to do. As the tiny fairies depart, she turns to the unicorns who have just entered the glade. It is time to impart magic to their unicorn horns. Swiftly she dances around them with her smoking wand. Their horns glow with an inner sun.

The fountain continues to bubble, a soft song in the breeze, the sound of a better world.

The winter gardens were quiet, stillness a soldier in the evening shadows. Terrapins slept in their pond, dreams stroking their minds with magic.

They were in Gemstone Glade, a place they had sleepshifted to before.

The sun shone brightly, sparkling in the tranquil waters of the fountain. The terrapins swam with glee, the water singing to their souls, a soft song of sanctuary.

Slowly, new forms emerged in the water. Baby terrapins, shells of shining crystal, all the colours of  the rainbow. The secret of Gemstone Glade, and the fertility spell in the fountain. The terrapins looked at their soul children in stunned surprise.

The infant terrapins continued to swim, a miracle of life. Gemstone Glade was their home now. When the adult terrapins awoke, heartache would lace the memory of their babies,  gone but never forgotten. They would see them again in their dreams.

Marvellous entered Gemstone Glade, softly neighing, dancing though the drifting snowflakes. She came here when she could, between helping unhappy children.

Her unicorn horn glistened in the winter sun, shining all the colours of the rainbow. She was unique: no other unicorn in this world had a multi-coloured horn. And it was magic.

All last night she had soared through the night sky, dropping down where her heart called her. Then, on each child’s bedroom window, she had drawn a heart in ice, a morning gift to be marvelled at, a heart of hope, healing emanating from its still core.

Here, in the glade, Marvellous sighed with happiness. The fountain bubbled merrily in the chill winter air, unfrozen and alive with possibility. Slowly water rose upwards, and then formed the shape of a heart. The heart drifted above Marvellous, and then dissolved, showering her with its healing energy. Marvellous neighed with delight. The magic of a heart was hers forever.