My Sort of Fairy Tale Ending (8 page)

“Jenny, what are you doing?” said Luken, tugging on my arm. “We must go.”

“It's them,” I whispered. “I found them.” I started to put my hand on the glowing glass of the cell, my fingers shaking, but Luken grabbed my wrist and yanked it away.

“Are you mad?” he said. “That amount of magic could kill you!” Then the anger on Luken's face melted away as he glanced inside the cell. “These are your parents.”

I nodded. My parents. They were really here. The image the queen had shown me was real.

“Mom!” I cried, finding my voice. “Dad!”

“Jenny, stop!” Luken hissed. “Someone will hear you. We must go.”

I ignored him. I had to get to them. I had to make sure they were okay.

Frantic, I ripped off my sneaker and chucked it at the cell door. It hit the glass with a
dzzzz
that sounded like a fly in a bug zapper. The shoe fell onto the floor, every part of it glowing. When the light faded, my formerly white sneaker was black and charred.

I grabbed the shoe again, ready to throw it as many times as it took to get some of the magic to wear off. If that didn't work, I'd start throwing my whole body against the cell door.

Luken grabbed my shoulders. “Jenny, please. The fairies will find us, and then you will be able to do nothing to help your parents.”

I wanted to scream at him to leave me alone, that I wasn't going anywhere until my parents were free, but he was right. I couldn't break into the cell, and the last thing we needed was to get caught. Then I'd never have a chance to come back here.

As I took a step away from the glass, my head was spinning like I'd been holding my breath for too long. Even as I pulled my burned shoe back onto my foot, I couldn't stop looking at my parents. Before I knew it, tears were trickling down my face.

“Are you unwell?” said Luken, like he'd never seen tears before. It wouldn't surprise me if fairies never cried.

“No, I'm…I'm…” I didn't know what I was. “We have to get them out of there.”

Luken nodded. “And we will, but the guards could return at any moment.”

He was right, but as I wiped away my tears, I still couldn't move. Now that I'd found my parents, I didn't want to let them out of my sight. What if I never saw them again?

I wished I could at least make sure they were okay.

“Wait,” I said, an idea blooming in my brain. “You're a fairy, which means you can do the creepy dream thing.”

Luken let out a long sigh. “Technically yes, fairies are able to access dreams. But it is nothing I approve of. Our dreams should be our own.”

“Please, I need to know if my parents are okay. Can you look into their dreams and see what's being done to them?” I glanced down the long corridor. “To everyone? Why are they all having the exact same dream?”

“But—”

“I'm not going anywhere unless I know they're not being hurt!”

Luken sighed again. “All right, I will do it. Then we must return to our rooms.”

“Fine,” I said.

He nodded and closed his eyes, a look of intense concentration sweeping over his face. Then he got totally still, like a statue, and stopped breathing for a moment. I stopped breathing too as I watched him.

After a couple minutes, his eyes opened again. “I have never felt anything like it before,” he said. “They are there, and yet they are not.”

“What does that mean?”

“It is…hard to explain. Their thoughts are active, but their dreams are being controlled by an outside force.”

“But they're all right?”

“Yes,” said Luken. He shook his head. “I do not understand. Fairies are able to see dreams, but they should never control them. To do so is barbaric!”

“Well, then you obviously don't know your people very well. Look around. Everyone here is having their dreams controlled.”

“Why?” said Luken. “To what end?”

“You tell me,” I said.

A voice boomed down the hallway, interrupting our conversation: “He shall do no such thing.”

I spun around to see Mahlia and several fairy guards standing in the doorway. We'd been caught.

“Run!” I cried, grabbing Luken's hand.

With one last glance at my parents' motionless forms, I dragged Luken down the hallway away from Mahlia. I heard footsteps echo behind us, but that only made me run faster. I didn't know where we were going. We couldn't exactly sneak back into our rooms now and pretend nothing had happened. But I'd found my parents. That was the most important thing.

“Luken,” I said, panting. “Are there any of your tunnels around here?”

“Yes,” he said. “On the other side of the building. If we can just—”

He didn't get a chance to finish his thought. As we zipped around a corner, several figures appeared a few steps ahead of us. The Queen's Guard.

I put on the brakes and whirled around, hoping we could run back in the other direction. Unfortunately, another group of fairies was right behind us. Mahlia stood in the center, her long arms folded in front of her chest. For once, she wasn't smiling.

Instead, she held up her star-shaped wand and—

Zap!

A wave of energy hit my body, knocking me backward onto the stone floor. I tried to scramble to my feet, but for some reason they weren't working like they should. They were too short. And there were four of them. And there was something else attached to me, something that didn't feel right at all.

When I glanced over my shoulder, I realized it was a tail. A long, thin, disgusting rodent tail.

I'd been moused.

I stared down at my mouse body in horror. Four legs. Light brown fur. And a tail! My poufy pink dress had shrunk along with me, which meant I looked like a little rodent ballerina. Perfect.

Once the initial shock wore off, I realized I needed to get out of here and fast. I tried to scamper away, unsteady on my short legs, but Mahlia cut me off and scooped me up in her pale hand. I spotted Luken towering nearby. Lucky for him, he'd avoided getting moused.

“Let me go!” I cried, my voice like a tiny, garbled harmonica.

As Mahlia cupped me in her hand, I ran my mouse tongue over my sharp mouse teeth. Then I opened my mouth and chomped down on her thumb, goblin-style.

“Ouch!” she cried, but she didn't let me go. Instead, she waved her wand again, and a tiny, gold cage materialized around me.

All at once, I noticed how incredibly itchy my nose was. I kept twitching it, but that didn't do any good. I guess that's what happened when you had whiskers sprouting out of your face.

“Let Jenny go,” I heard Luken say.

“Impossible,” Mahlia answered. “The queen will already be displeased that she was able to run off. We cannot have her escaping before her majesty has gotten what she wants.”

“And what does she want, Mother? Why is she keeping Jenny and her parents here?”

My mouse ears perked up. Maybe I'd finally get some answers!

Mahlia just shook her head, sending white powder flying from her hair, and said, “It is not your concern.” She waved her wand, and a new cuff materialized around Luken's wrist to replace the one he'd deactivated. “Now return to your room and do not let me catch you sneaking around again, or I will have no choice but to punish you.”

“I thought you were doing all this to keep me safe,” said Luken. “And now you are threatening me?”

“I
am
keeping you safe!” Mahlia cried. “The only way to make certain nothing happens to you is to do what the queen wants.”

Luken was obviously done listening. He turned and stalked off, followed by two fairy guards.

I watched in amazement as Mahlia dabbed at tears in her eyes. I guess she really did care about her son, even if she was going about protecting him in the worst way possible.

As Mahlia took off down the hall, I struggled to find a way out of the tiny cage. I'd heard that mice could squeeze through impossibly small spaces, but when I tried to stick my head through the bars, it almost got stuck. So much for that idea. Worst of all, every time I moved around, my tail kept almost tripping me. How did real mice do it?

Finally, we got to a door that was just around the corner from the lab where I'd seen my parents. One of the fairy guards opened the door, and Mahlia brought me into what looked like a dimly lit storage room but smelled like a pet store. The gray walls were lined with gold cages, all filled with prisoners who'd been turned into mice and birds. I couldn't imagine what they'd all done to wind up here.

I expected Mahlia to put me into one of the bigger cages with some of the other mice. Instead, she placed my small cage by itself in the corner. She probably didn't want to take any chances that I'd find a way to escape.

Just before she left, Mahlia turned back to me and sighed. “I am sorry,” she said softly. Then she strode out of the room and locked the door behind her.

Okay. Now what?

“Anthony?” I called out. I was willing to bet the queen had quickly realized the gnome was not her true prince and had sent him here. I kept calling his name, but when I finally got an answer, it wasn't from Anthony.

“Jenny,” a squeaky voice said from somewhere nearby.

I turned to see a mouse peering back at me from the next cage over, her gray nose twitching. Thanks to the mouse's sparkly, purple sweater, I knew right away that she was Ilda.

Perfect. The fairies had put me next to one of the most manipulative people I'd ever met on my adventures. Those aliens sure knew how to push my buttons.

“What do you want?” I squeaked back, hating the sound of my tiny voice.

“I was waiting for you to end up here,” she said. “I'm glad you've finally come. I have something important to tell you.”

“Something important, huh?” I was in no mood for Ilda's mind games. “Let me guess. You're going to tell me my parents are here.”

The witch let out a chirping laugh. “That was part of it, but you seem to already know that.”

“Then what?” I couldn't help being curious, despite myself. Even if Ilda had done nothing but lie to me when I'd first met her, she was also the reason I'd finally found out where to look for my mom and dad.

“Your parents,” she said in a dramatic whisper, “are here in Fairy Land
willingly
.”

I stared at her. “What do you mean?”

“They agreed to be kept here and used as part of the Queen Fairy's plan.”

“No way. They would never help her.”

“It's the truth, Jenny. The queen told me herself. After she snatched your parents from my land, she threatened to kidnap you too, if they refused to help her. They agreed to do whatever it took to keep you safe, even if it meant never seeing you again.”

I wanted to tell myself she was lying. After all, Ilda loved saying things that upset me. Then again, she had no reason to lie now. She was trapped here just like I was.

Could it be true? Had my parents spent all these years trapped in Fairy Land because they'd been trying to protect me from that glowing psycho fairy? If they'd been willing to make that kind of deal with her, then they'd obviously had no idea how to defeat the queen.

I sank to the floor of my cage, feeling like something was pressing down on me. If my parents—the greatest adventurers in history—hadn't been able to bring down the Queen Fairy, then what chance did I have?

The hours ticked by as I sat in my miniscule cage, totally out of ideas. In the morning, I'd be brought to the Queen Fairy to give her my answer. Not only was I no closer to rescuing my parents, but now I had to deal with a constant, overwhelming cheese craving.

I tried to focus on the comforting weight around my neck of my mother's necklace, which had shrunk down to mouse-size along with me, and let it soothe me. Hopefully, my mom's jewelry would go back to normal when I was human again.
If
I was ever human again.

Okay, this wasn't helping.

I was so on edge that I didn't think I'd be able to get even a minute of sleep, but after a while my eyelids started to droop. Great. The fairies were probably luring me into one of their creepy dreams again. I tried to fight it, but my eyes didn't listen to me. My lids got heavier and heavier until it felt like fingers were pressing them shut.

Finally, I stopped struggling, curled up in a tight ball, and let the dream take me away.

This time I was in the Land of Tales, outside of Princess Nartha's palace. Just like during my real mission, I was trying to convince the villagers that I was there to help them.
Un
like in my real mission, the Committee members suddenly materialized alongside Jasmine, another adventurer about my age. I expected the old women to scold me for breaking the rules—that's what they always did when I was around—but this time they surprised me by shaking their heads sadly and telling me they would understand if I betrayed them to save my parents. Even Jasmine, who was the most cautious and law-abiding person I'd ever met, agreed that getting my mom and dad back was the most important thing.

As if to prove just how serious they were, the Committee members snapped their fingers, and a signed and stamped form flew down from the sky with the words “Permission granted” written across it. Having the Committee members' blessing should have made me happy. Instead, I felt horrible for even thinking of betraying them. And sure enough, the prickle in the back of my brain was there again, stronger than ever.

“I want to wake up,” I said, just like I'd done the first night. “Now.” Once again, it worked.

I opened my eyes, my mind spinning. Even in my mouse state, the fairies had been controlling my dream, trying to tell me that turning over the Committee was my only choice. But that couldn't be true. There had to be another solution.

I sat up, wide awake, an idea bouncing around in my tiny mouse brain. Maybe there was a way I could get my parents back
and
keep the Committee safe. And get rid of that glowing faux-Cinderella once and for all.

•••

What felt like days (but was only hours) later, Mahlia and her fairy guards appeared in the storage room. The animals around me erupted in squeaks and chirps, desperate to be let out. Mahlia ignored all of them and came straight over to me. Then she picked up my cage and brought me to the elevator so we could ride to the top floor.

The whole way up, as the fairies screamed, my furry body shivered with excitement while my nose itched even worse than before. My plan had to work. It just had to.

When I got to the Queen Fairy's throne room, I noticed she'd dressed it up since the last time I'd been here. The whole place sparkled like a gaudy chandelier. The Queen Fairy stepped forward, looking like she could generate electricity. I shuddered to think what her touch might feel like.

Mahlia placed my cage directly in front of the throne, and then she and her guards left the room.

It was only then that I noticed another smaller throne had been placed next to the queen's. And on that throne, surrounded by towers of candy, was none other than Anthony.

What on earth? I'd thought Anthony was being kept prisoner somewhere, and instead he was here stuffing himself with candy and pretending to be a ruler?

The gnome didn't notice me as he shoveled handful after handful of sugary treats into his mouth so fast that the small crown on his head was shaking. He was now wearing two glass loafers. The queen must have decided he was her true prince, after all.

It was only when the queen stood up and said, “Jenny the Adventurer,” that Anthony stopped eating and looked up.

“Jenny-girl, is that you?” He giggled. “The mouse look suits you almost as much as the royal look suits me.”

I couldn't believe it. Was he really going to ignore everything the queen had done just because she'd given him all the candy he could want? Didn't he care that she'd taken my parents and imprisoned tons of people? And that thanks to the fairies, I now had a
tail
?

“Anthony, what are you doing?” I demanded.

As he grinned back at me, I noticed that his eyes were weirdly glazed over. Either the queen had put some kind of spell on him or he'd had so much sugar that it had sent his brain into overload. “I know it seems hasty, Jenny-girl, but I'm getting married! The wedding's tomorrow. I'm sure you're invited. Imagine, after all these years of being just a magical guide, I finally get to be the one giving orders!”

“My dear,” the Queen Fairy said to Anthony in a sickeningly sweet voice, “remember what we talked about. You must stay quiet while I conduct my business.”

“Oh, right,” he said. “Sorry, pookie.” Then he went back to popping candy in his mouth.

“Now, Jenny,” said the queen. “Your three days are up. Have you made a decision?”

“Yup,” I squeaked in reply. “My answer is yes. I'll do it. I'll help you get to the Committee.”

“Excellent,” she said immediately, like she'd known all along that I'd agree to her proposal. “Tell me their location.”

“I don't know their location. How many times do I have to tell you that?”

“If that is true, then you have nothing to trade.” The Queen Fairy raised her hand like she was going to summon her guards.

“No, wait! Just because I don't know where the Committee is, that doesn't mean I don't have a way to get there.”

“Explain.”

“Anthony can send me.”

The gnome stopped licking the armrest of his throne—which was apparently also made out of candy—and his glazed-over eyes focused on me. “Wait, what?” he said.

The Queen Fairy's smile dimmed. “Darling,” she said to Anthony, “you did not tell me you could bring me to the Committee.”

He shrugged. “You never asked. Besides, I still have this on, remember?” He held up the orange cuff that was blocking him from using his magic.

The queen turned to me. “Our deal is off. If my fiancé can take me, then I do not need your help.”

Uh-oh. This wasn't how the plan was supposed to go. “But—but if you send me to the Committee members first, I'll talk them into surrendering to you. Then you won't even have to fight them. Think of all the magic you'll save!”

She laughed. “Do you really think I am a fool? I will not simply release you.”

“Of course not,” I said. “I'll have a cuff on, remember? You'll know exactly where I am.”

As the queen seemed to consider what I'd said, I had to stop my brain from running through all the things that could go wrong with my plan. What if Anthony sent me to the Committee and the members didn't listen to me? What if I couldn't convince the old women to take my cuff off right away and the Queen Fairy managed to track us down? What if this was the absolute worst plan I'd ever come up with?

Shut
up, brain!
This plan had to work or I was totally out of options.

Finally, the Queen Fairy stood up. “Very well.”

Score!

“Jenny-girl,” Anthony said, “you know I'd do anything for your parents, but are you sure about this?” Maybe he hadn't completely lost his mind, after all.

“I'm sure,” I said, hoping that through his sugar haze, he could tell this was all part of my plan. I turned back to the queen. “Before we do anything, how about turning me back into a human? If I go off to the Committee like this, someone might step on me and mess up everything.”

The queen sighed. Then she waved her hand and—
zap
!

My legs got longer and longer, my body larger and larger, and my skin less and less furry, until…I was me again!

“
Achoo!
” An unbelievably satisfying sneeze exploded out of me. Finally, the itching in my nose stopped.

“All right,” said the queen. “Now go.”

“Wait.” I had to find a way to whisper my plan to Anthony first. “I just want to—”

“No,” she said. “I am tired of waiting. If you do not go now, our deal is off.”

Before I could say anything else, a deafening
Pop!
filled the throne room.

I whirled around, hoping to see a Committee-led army coming to rescue us. Instead, there was only a sole figure in the middle of the room, holding a wooden cane instead of a weapon.

Dr. Bradley.