Charmed

  Doormen open approaching coach doors and usher in riders, and the next group takes off in flight as magic carpets stop by those still in line to drop off giant packages and heavy items. In their beautiful satin gowns and smart dress coats and with their arms filled with bags, these royals and wannabes look like they don’t have a care in the world. I bet they don’t.

  “Psst, over here!” I hear someone say. I look at the back of the line and see Maxine, Ollie, and Jax crouched behind a pile of hay for the Pegasi. We rush over and I pull them to the water troughs where Pegasi are often not allowed to go and rest. I take one look at Ollie and punch him in the arm.

  “I know,” he sighs, his lips covered in caramel. “I had what Professor Harlow would call a relapse.” He offers me a cake. “Want one?”

  “We were this close to figuring out the code to the HEAS door,” Jax says dejectedly. “We just needed one more person to go in so we could figure out the last number.”

  “Not that anyone noticed I was there!” Maxine says miserably. “Now we’ve busted out and are going to get caught for nothing,” she adds.

  “Not for nothing,” Kayla says. “Look! A woman in a red cloak handed me a note.” She holds out a small scroll. We grab it and read the scrawled wording.

  STAY ON THE RIGHT SIDE. SCHOOL IS STILL THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE. AS YOU KNOW TOO WELL, KAYLA, DEALS CAN BE DANGEROUS. TELL YOUR HEADMISTRESS SHE WILL SOMEDAY REGRET MAKING ARRANGEMENTS WITH THOSE SHE DOES NOT TRUST COMPLETELY.

  “She must be the person at HEAS who has been giving Maxine notes,” Kayla says. “And now she is giving me one too. There must be a reason.”

  “I saw her in the square too, doing magic,” I tell the others. “She seemed familiar. If she’s really our source, she must know us somehow.”

  “Did you get a look at her?” Jax asks Kayla.

  Kayla shakes her head. “I couldn’t see her face. She moved so fast, but I think she’s talking about Rumpelstiltskin in this note.”

  Maxine covers her ears. “Don’t say his name!”

  “Do you think this source knows where my family is?” Kayla asks.

  “I’m not sure, but she’s definitely trying to help us, and she’ll probably contact us again soon,” Jax reasons, glancing around the crowded valet stand. “But if we want that to happen, first we need to get out of this village. My money is on taking one of these beauties.” He nods to the Pegasi.

  “Sure, let me just go into my dragon’s tooth purse and take out my money for a ride,” I say sarcastically. “No one is going to give us a lift, especially to FTRS. I say we go back to Gnome-olia and get a ride with them tomorrow.”

  “Ooh, the bak over soun grea idea.” Ollie’s words are muffled by a caramel cake he’s stuffed in his mouth. I grab the bag and toss it. He looks like he might cry.

  “No, we need to get back today,” Jax insists. “Pete will alert the school otherwise. We need to hitch a ride with someone going our way. Like those two.” Jax points to two girls who have just joined the back of the line. I’d recognize them anywhere by the curls in their hair, the long, green-and-royal-blue gowns, and the gloves on their hands. They’re Flora’s daughters, the wicked stepsisters, and despite whispers to the contrary, they are actually beautiful. And whiny.

  I overhear Azalea. “You said we’d have time to go to Pinocchio’s Puppet Theatre before we went back to school.” She stomps her feet. “You never do what I want!”

  Dahlia growls at her sister. “We’re not even supposed to leave school grounds. We were supposed to get a few new gowns for the royal dinner at Royal Manor and then head back. We’re supposed to be at Princess Rose’s RLW meeting.”

  “Why would I want to help with her wannabe royal club?” Azalea pouts, her curls bobbing up and down as she shakes her head. “I want to be royal, not pretend to be.”

  “She asked for our help, and we’re going to give it,” Dahlia insists. “It’s the quickest way into her inner circle. Mother said keep her close, remember?”

  Jax and I look at each other.

  “Now where is that magic carpet with our other packages?” Dahlia asks as the line moves forward. “If it doesn’t get here with those shoes, this whole trip will have been a waste. Those glass slippers have been on special order for weeks!”

  “Wait!” A girl in a simple tan-and-white apron and white dress scuffed with shoe polish is running. In her arms are four beautiful, shiny shoe boxes that are almost as big as she is. I see the stamp on the side and stare at it in surprise. Cobbler Glass Slippers—Get the Original. “Here you go, ladies!” she says. “The magic carpets were backed up so I delivered these freshly boxed shoes myself.” The voice, the brown hair tied back in a bow, the new clothes and shoes… I know before she even turns around who she is.

  “Anna.” The name slips from my lips.

  “That’s your sister?” Maxine is in awe. “She looks just like you!”

  “Is she a thief too?” Ollie asks, and I notice he got the cake bag back. Stinker.

  I shake my head. “No, she’s all sugar and sweetness.”

  “So you’re opposites?” Jax jokes and I glare at him.

  “Look at her boots!” Kayla marvels. “They’re so glittery.”

  “Business must really be booming.” I stare at Anna. “I can’t believe saving FTRS helped boost sales.”

  “You didn’t actually do it alone,” Jax reminds me and I shrug.

  We watch Anna try to hand Dahlia and Azalea the boxes.

  “How are we supposed to carry those?” Azalea holds up her arms full of bags.

  “We’re out of bags,” Anna says apologetically. “But I can wait with you ’til you get on your carriage so that you don’t have to carry them.”

  “Obviously,” Dahlia snaps. “That’s your job.”

  Hearing them talk down to Anna makes my blood boil, but my sister takes it like a pro.

  “Not a problem,” she says sweetly. “Cobbler Shoes is happy to help.”

  “If she distracts Azalea and Dahlia, we can get in their carriage and hitch a ride back,” Jax whispers. “We just need a diversion to get in.”

  “Anna won’t even take my Pegasi Posts.” I stare at my younger sister sadly. “She is not going to agree to help us.”

  “Attention, royals!” I hear Pete’s voice and shrink back. “I am looking for a group of thieves who have hit the peddler square this morning.” He rides down the line, and I cover my mouth to keep from laughing at the applesauce dripping down his shirt. Pete stops in front of Azalea, Dahlia, and Anna, who is trying to balance all the stepsisters’ boxes. “Aren’t you Gillian Cobbler’s sister?”

  “Yes,” says Anna, sounding surprisingly stubborn like me, “but she’s not here. You put her in Fairy Tale Reform School.”

  “Not today, sugarplum.” Pete looks around the area with beady eyes. “She’s broken out, and I’m going to find her and haul her back in. She’ll be there ’til next year at this rate!” He laughs loudly and his horse jumps. As Anna moves out of the way of the hooves, one of the boxes in her arms topples off the pile to the ground. A glass slipper with a broken heel falls out.

  “Look what you’ve done!” Azalea cries as Pete strolls on, talking to other passengers. “We waited weeks for those shoes!”

  “I’m so sorry.” Anna grabs the broken pieces and puts them back in the box. “I’ll replace them.” Her voice is shaky. “I can have a new pair ready next week.”

  “Next week?” Dahlia is irate. “You tell your father we need a new pair today.”

  “But”—Anna sounds nervous—“I don’t know if we have any more. They’re all special orders now and—”

  “You have one hour!” Dahlia snaps. She looks at Azalea. “We can go to your silly puppet theater while we wait and then take the Pegasi from Cobbler’s.”

  Azalea claps her hands. “Yay! We get to do what I want!”

  Dahlia rolls her eyes and looks at Anna. “One hour. No more or we want our money back for all the pairs.” She
drops the rest of her bags at Anna’s feet, and Azalea does the same. “You might as well carry all our bags while you’re at it. You don’t mind, do you?”

  “No.” Anna curtsies and I want to vomit.

  Azalea and Dahlia waltz off. With no leads, Pete disappears too. That’s when Anna bursts into tears, big tears rolling down her cheeks. I hear Maxine sniffle. She and Kayla knock me in the back at the same time. “Go!” they mouth.

  I walk from my hiding spot and pick up one of the boxes. “Hi, Anna Banana.”

  She stops crying immediately. “I should have known. Go away.” Anna tries to pick up all the boxes again and they tumble.

  “Let me help. You know you can’t manage alone, and you’re pressed for time.”

  Anna holds a hand up. “I don’t want to hear why you’re running away from FTRS with your friends and leaving your family behind.”

  “Anna,” I plead. “I’m not running away! I want to come home. That’s why I’m here. I’m trying to find a way to stop Alva.” My sister folds her arms and turns away.

  “Anna?” Jax asks questioningly. I see the others slip out of the shadows. “I’m Jax. This is Kayla, Gilly’s roommate, and our friends Maxine and Ollie.”

  Ollie bows. “Lovely to meet you, miss.” He offers her the snack bag. “Caramel cake?”

  “Gilly is telling you the truth,” Jax says, giving Anna a magnetic smile. I can tell she’s mesmerized already. “We’re only in the village to gather information on Alva and the threat to the kingdom.” He moves closer to my sister. “If we can stop her, Gilly will be able to come home. All she talks about is you and your siblings.”

  The corners of Anna’s mouth turn upward. She catches me staring and frowns again.

  “But if Gilly and the rest of us are caught, she’ll be stuck at FTRS longer,” Jax continues. “We have a ride back—Azalea and Dahlia—if we can get in their carriage. All we need you to do—”

  “I’m not helping criminals!” Anna begins to walk away and Jax steps in front of her, putting a hand on her shoulder. He looks very royal standing there like that.

  “We just need you to look the other way when we slip into the back of the carriage. That’s it. In exchange, we’ll help you carry all these bags back, and none of us will say a word about Gilly, your fight, or thieving. Deal?”

  Anna is silent for a moment. “Okay.”

  Everyone grabs a package and we begin the walk in silence. It’s just a few blocks, but we have to walk slowly to watch for Pete. We pass the Teakettle Twins’ large porcelain teapot duplex, which has steam escaping from the spout, and Hansel and Gretel’s candy-inspired cottage. I hear a lot of chatter near Mother Goose’s Nursery Day Care, but we keep our heads down.

  Soon, I see the familiar boot-shaped sign above Father’s shop: Cobbler Shoes. Azalea and Dahlia’s carriage is already waiting. Jax holds open the back of the carriage for us to slip inside. Maxine, Kayla, and Ollie go first. I begin piling in boxes and bags, and then it’s my turn to disappear. I look at my sister standing there with her arms crossed.

  “I love you, Anna Banana.” She refuses to look at me. “I’ll be home before you know it. I’m going to make you proud that I’m your sister.”

  Anna smiles ever so slightly. “You should get going. They’ll be back soon.”

  I climb aboard and Jax gets in behind me. We bury ourselves behind packages and go unseen when Anna adds a new, blue, glittered shoe box behind us a few minutes later. It isn’t long before I hear Azalea and Dahlia bickering and climbing into the carriage in front of us. The Pegasi take flight and the packages around us shift, but I say not a word.

  I just stare at my hands where the item I’ve had clenched in them has been hidden the whole time. The glass shines even in the darkness. I stare at the broken glass heel, trying to remember how poor our home and life were before FTRS, and how far my family has come since I became famous. I will never let it get that bad for them again.

  Before I know it, the Pegasi are descending and we’re back at Fairy Tale Reform School. We shrink back as the girls remove the carriage flap to grab their packages. They’re so busy arguing that they don’t even notice when one of them grabs my foot instead of the bag next to it. Finally, with the cart empty, they throw the flap back down and the carriage is quiet once more. Still, we wait. Jax and I look at each other, thinking the same thing. Within seconds, the carriage will start to move toward the stables. We’ll get out there, and it will be as if we’ve never left.

  I hear Maxine breathe a sigh of relief. “We did it!” she whispers a little too loudly.

  WHOOSH!

  A furry hand with long nails pulls the flap back, and I blink at the bright light of day. Professor Wolfington’s hairy face comes into view, a devilish smile playing on his lips. Behind him, Headmistress Flora looks less amused.

  “Ah, Miss Gillian, Mr. Jax, and company. Glad to have you back,” Professor Wolfington says as if we’ve just rejoined the party. “We’ve been expecting you.”

  Happily Ever After Scrolls

  Brought to you by FairyWeb—magically appearing on scrolls throughout Enchantasia for the past ten years!

  Students Break Out of Fairy Tale Reform School!

  by Beatrice Beez

  Five students at Fairy Tale Reform School sneaked off the grounds this morning in the back of a Gnome-olia Bakery carriage. Gillian Cobbler, beloved for her heroism in the battle to stop Alva, apparently led the charge that included Ollie Funklehouse, Maxine Hockler, Kayla Wingtip, and Jax Porter.

  “I thought something smelled like stale bread when five young people wandered through the cinnamon roll department in oversized bakers’ clothes,” says Nigel Stuveson, senior cinnamon roll supervisor four. “Then we received a note asking us to look for a group of kids. I put sugar and spice together and realized it had to be that lot.”

  At the same time Nigel was calling the Dwarf Police Squad chief, FTRS also received a tip from an anonymous source about the breakout. By this point, the chief learned about the stolen caramel cakes and broken apple cart in the village firsthand. “I knew they wouldn’t get far without help, so I checked the list of Pegasi flights in and out of FTRS yesterday afternoon and saw one leaving from Cobbler Shoes with the headmistress’s daughters. I had a hunch they’d be in that carriage. Now we’re looking into whether Gilly’s sister was involved in helping her escape.”

  Further investigation found that Anna Cobbler, Gilly’s younger sister, was an accomplice in the incident, and she has been given a first offense by the Dwarf Police Squad. (Three will land a child in Fairy Tale Reform School.) Headmistress Flora says her own daughters were unaware they had stowaways aboard their carriage and played no part in the students’ disappearance.

  Fairy Tale Reform School’s chief critic, Millicent Gertrude, mother of student Ronald Gertrude, says this latest incident proves how important it is for visitation day to be earlier than planned. “I’m pleased Headmistress Flora has moved up visitation day,” says Millicent, who tells HEAS that parents will visit the school in two weeks. “Parents need to see whether FTRS is a safe place for their children. With Alva and the Evil Queen on the loose, children cannot be escaping the school grounds.”

  While rumors of a Royal Manor break-in by gargoyles last week have not been confirmed or denied by the princesses, Headmistress Flora continues to stress that FTRS is the best place for wayward children to be in these dark times. “All the students involved have been reprimanded for their behavior, and school security procedures are being reevaluated. With students this clever on our roster, we need to stay vigilant.”

  Keep checking your Happily Ever After Scrolls for more coverage on the search for Alva and Fairy Tale Reform School’s woes!

  CHAPTER 9

  Wicked Trouble

  “What were you thinking?”

  I’ve never heard the Wicked Stepmother this unhinged. She’s kicking up hay in the Pegasi stables as she paces in front of us, looking like she might pull every l
ast hair out of her normally neatly wound bun. Kayla, Ollie, Jax, Maxine, and I are lined up like we’re about to be sent to the gallows, while Professor Wolfington and Professor Blackbeard keep a watchful eye. Blackbeard’s sword looks particularly menacing hanging from his scabbard. Madame Cleo is here too, having been beamed in by Miri’s mirror in the stables, which has a horse motif etched in bronze on the frame.

  “Stowing away in a Gnome-olia Bakery truck? Stealing a dozen caramel cakes? Evading the Dwarf Police Squad? Breaking an apple cart? You broke out of Fairy Tale Reform School!” Flora repeats our offenses as if we don’t remember them. “Do you know what havoc you caused for both the school and yourselves?” Her dark eyes flash. “Pete wanted to sentence the lot of you to another two years for this crime. You’re lucky I talked him down to an additional three-month sentence!”

  “Only three months?” Ollie sounds a wee bit gleeful. “That’s awesome! I was thinking six at least.”

  “Me too,” seconds Kayla, talking to Ollie as if they’re the only two in the stables. “For a minute, I thought she was going to say a year. No one’s ever broken out of school before!” The two high-five.

  Flora unbuttons the brooch that clasps her tailored dress shirt closed and loosens her collar like this is all too much for her to handle. “And you two.” She points a finger at Azalea and Dahlia, who are fidgeting uncomfortably and keep banging into the shopping bags at their feet. Flora begins looking through their purchases. “I took away your Magic Express cards, and yet somehow here you both are with bags from Combing the Sea, Pinocchio’s Puppet Theatre, the Pied Piper’s Music Emporium, and Red’s Ready for Anything. What’s this?” She peers at the red lettering on the box as Macho and Mighty, Jax’s and my favorite Pegasi, neigh a warning from their nearby stall. “Learn How to Defend Yourself Kits? Boxes of glass slippers and new gowns? Your shopping habits have gotten out of control!”