"Come out and dance," they called.
"We have no time. We must make our flower-buds," replied the May Fairies.
They made their wee round flower-buds and set them on the trees, and blew into them and puffed them out till they looked like tiny snowballs. Harder and harder they blew, until at last the flowers flew open. Then the trees looked as if showers of white stars had fallen on them from the sky in snow-time. How lovely they were! The little flies came from far and near to feast, buzzing out their thankfulness to the fairies for the sweet honey.
The Summer Fairies came with roses and forget-me-nots. "Come out and dance," they called.
"We have no time," called back the May Fairies. "We have to make our berries."
They gently loosened the white petals of the flowers and set them floating on the wind. Then they made the little green seed-balls into berries, blowing them big and round so that the seeds should have room to grow, and polishing the outsides till they turned red and glowed like garnets in the sunshine. What a feast the birds had!
When the fairies had finished it was autumn.
"Come and dance," called the Leaf Fairies as they fluttered past in their brown and crimson robes.
"We are coming," called back the May Fairies, "for now our work is done." They flew down from their tree-homes, free at last to dance through all the golden autumn days.