Midnight Law

by Geanna Culbertson

  “Oh, I—”

  “Should probably run.”

  The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. The four of us looked around until we spotted the source of the smooth yet unsettling voice. In all my years as a princess, I had never seen such an incomparably white smile. Dentists would have sworn eternal allegiance to the creature on sight.

  The Cheshire Cat.

  The infamous feline sat in the high branch of a tree. Its lopsided, beanbag body draped in utter relaxation as its fluffy tail curled and uncurled like it had a mind of its own. Though the creature looked soft, something about the way its whiskers poked out made its face seem sharp. The cat’s fur was vibrant purple with navy stripes, or perhaps it was navy with purple stripes. It was a bit hard to tell.

  The Cheshire Cat smiled down at us with its unnervingly large grin and glowing green eyes.

  “Run from what?” I asked suspiciously.

  “So many things, really,” the cat said. “It’s almost hard to choose. There is what’s out there and what’s right here. You’re an unusual bunch. I’m surprised no one’s noticed the rot. Maybe all the ingredients started the same and some have spoiled over time?”

  “Ignore him,” Mauvrey said, stepping forward and turning to face us. “Tara did my sophomore year final project on Wonderland. The Cheshire Cat may be present in most stories about this place, but he is more frustrating than helpful. I would not even make eye contact.” She gestured for us to keep moving, but horrible, high-pitched, shrill screams, like enormous nails on chalkboards, flooded the forest.

  “Jubjub Birds,” the cat said. “Not to be more frustrating than helpful, but I overheard your charming conversation and just thought I’d warn you that the creatures feed on memories. There’s a hungry hunting pack the way you were headed. It’s a bad way to spend the day—having your face suctioned by a colorful bird. Change your course, if you please. Or don’t and find out for yourself. Free will and all that. I never want to be a wet blanket.”

  The screeching seemed to be getting louder.

  “Mauvrey,” I said, “I understand your opinion, but perhaps this time we do listen to the Cheshire Cat’s advice.”

  “I second that,” Kai said. “We’ll take another way. Come on.”

  She started to forge left, my teammates following. I trailed behind them, but glanced back at the cat. Its dazzling smile persisted and its eyes were glued to me. The cat wrapped its tail around a branch and then hung upside down like a possum, eyes and smile never leaving me.

  “Can I offer one other piece of advice?” Somehow I could hear him as if he spoke directly in my ear. I shivered from that. Then I nodded.

  “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” Then all of the cat vanished except for his upside-down grin, which remained hovering above the branch. Goosebumps crawled up my skin. I turned to jog after the others.

  We continued along, the chittering bird screams fading away. More good news—soon the tree canopy thinned out and we were able to see our green trail in the sky more clearly.

  “I wonder how far we are from the River of Tears?” Kai said. “SJ, couldn’t you have made the Griffin land closer to it?”

  “A human’s connection with a Griffin is not about control, Kai, but understanding. I cannot make another creature do anything and to try would be disrespectful.”

  Kai rolled her eyes. “You’re exhausting.”

  “I don’t know what you are,” I replied, then bit my lip.

  Daniel gave me strange look before saying, “Maybe I can check how we’re doing. Give me one sec.” He climbed one of the trees, out of sight in moments.

  “What do you see?” Kai called.

  “I see a river maybe two hundred feet from here. We may have bigger problems though.” He descended and pointed in the direction we had come from. “Over there I saw trees rustling, like when we were in the sky before.”

  “You think it is the Bandersnatch?” I asked.

  “Maybe. It’s definitely—”

  He paused as faint music filled the air. It was a guitar, or possibly a mandolin.

  “It’s coming from there,” Kai said, gesturing behind me at a cottage situated among the trees. I had not noticed it initially because its coloring made it blend in with the forest around it.

  “Argh!” Mauvrey clutched her head and stumbled backward.

  “Mauvrey!” I rushed to steady her. “Is it another memory?”

  She looked at me with panic, wide eyes showing dilated pupils. She nodded.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  Suddenly the music was overpowered by the nails-on-chalkboard shrill of a Jubjub Bird. The leaves of an adjacent bush rustled. We noticed bright yellow eyes staring at us through the foliage. Then—SCREECH!

  A very odd creature jumped from the bushes. It was like a round throw pillow with purple fuzz that puffed out like troll hair. The bird had stubby wings folded at its sides, and extremely muscular legs. Beneath its bright eyes and tiny yellow beak, there was a dark line on its face, which curved around the Jubjub Bird’s entire front half.

  “It’s not so bad,” Kai said.

  The Jubjub Bird hopped forward and then the line opened. It was a mouth, I realized. That mouth kept opening—the bird unhinging its jaw the way a snake did in preparation to eat a mouse. Its lower lip folded under its body and its top lip folded over its eyes until all you saw was a dinner-plate-sized open mouth—no teeth, but dripping with ooze.

  The bird screech-screamed and sprang toward Mauvrey with a speedy, powerful jump. On instinct, I tackled Mauvrey to the ground. The Jubjub Bird landed in the dirt, spun on its heels, and reloaded like a spring, but this time Daniel drew his sword and smacked it out of midair with the flat of his blade. It went tumbling against a tree.

  Kai glowed silver as she activated her levitation magic. The creature glowed too. A moment later she launched it through the canopy.

  I would have been relieved if not for the fact that as I helped Mauvrey up, we saw at least twenty yellow eyes watching us through the forest.

  “Plan?” I asked.

  “I like what that cat said,” Kai responded. “Run.”

  We turned and made a break for the cottage. I held Mauvrey’s hand to keep her steady as the shrill screams of the Jubjub Birds got closer and closer.

  Daniel hastily knocked on the door. I glanced back.

  Oh no.

  At least two dozen Jubjub Birds were hopping toward us.

  The music stopped and the door swung open. A woman in her mid-thirties with black braided hair much like mine met us in the doorway. She looked kind of familiar. Daniel shoved right past her, Kai on his heels. I was not a fan of rudely surging in, but there were bigger things to be concerned with. Mauvrey and I bolted inside and slammed the door shut behind us.

  “Excuse me?” the woman said with a thick accent I did not recognize. She eyed us critically. Her sharp features were made more intimidating by the fact that she was well over six feet tall. In her left hand she clutched a small, three-stringed mandolin, which must have been the source of the music we had heard.

  “We are terribly sorry to barge in like this,” I said. “But we are fleeing the Jubjub Birds.”

  “I wondered what all that racket was about,” she said flatly. “I suppose I understand. But for your sake I hope those memory suckers vacate the area soon. You can stay for a few minutes; then you must leave. The Storm of Lights starts soon and that is the best time to conduct a particular brew I am working on.”

  “You are a potionist?” I asked. Now I had time to properly take note of our surroundings. There were eight different sizes of cauldrons hanging from hooks on the ceiling above a worktable. Wooden cabinets were built into the walls over a connected countertop. The area of the counter beside the sink was littered with empty beakers that needed washing. Baskets of herbs and vegetation sat on a table near the front door.

  “I prefer the term Holy Woman,” she replied. “I do the Lord’s good work, what
ever that may mean. Potions, poisons, magic . . . something in between.”

  “Which lord?” I asked.

  “Whichever one can write a check that clears,” she replied. “I serve no particular ruler in Wonderland, or any of the realms. Dynasties are fragile and come and go like seasons. Loyalty gets you nowhere but the grave or a psychiatric hospital.”

  Daniel and I exchanged a concerned look. This lady seemed a bit off her rocker. Though the more I looked at her, the surer I became that her face was familiar.

  “Um, okay,” Daniel said. “Well, thanks for letting us hide out temporarily then.”

  “At least make yourselves useful while you are here.” With the hand not holding her mandolin she pulled two small pieces of parchment from her apron pocket. She handed one to Kai and another to Daniel. “I was about to begin gathering my ingredients, but you can get them out of the cabinets while I keep playing. It relaxes me before brewing.”

  “Um, would you mind not doing that?” Mauvrey said. “Sorry, it is just . . . music can have a weird, painful effect on me and I am still recovering from my last episode.”

  The woman rolled her eyes. “Fine. But you are all pushing your luck, and my patience. Now hurry up.”

  Mauvrey, Daniel, and Kai trotted over to the cabinets. I turned to the woman who had taken us in. “Sorry again for inconveniencing you. My name is SJ, by the way.” I offered her my hand to shake and she accepted.

  “Mila,” she responded.

  I went to assist the others, who had opened several cabinets and were eyeing the shelves. Since Daniel and Mauvrey were working together on one side of the kitchen, I sighed and went to aid Kai. She worked fast. She had already gotten out six jars and placed them on the counter beside her.

  “How can I help?” I asked.

  She eyed me, then pointed up. “The last thing on this list is the mortar and pestle set. I can see it behind those jars on the top shelf. I could climb on the counter to grab it, but I don’t think Holy Woman over there would appreciate that. You’re taller. Can you reach it?”

  I glanced at the desired item and nodded. “Let me pass you some of the items in the way.” I started handing things to Kai—a jar with roots being preserved in some sort of jelly, a container of pigs’ feet, a clear bottle of brown rice. Kai set them on the counter. The final jar appeared empty until I touched it. Creatures like fleas whirred to life inside it when I did. Strange. I passed the jar to Kai.

  “I’d be careful with that,” Mila said, placing the ingredients Kai had already retrieved in a basket. “They’re Magic Mites. If they get inside your skin, you’ll fall victim to whatever poison or curse they were created to spread. The Magic Mites in that jar are carrying my End of Days brew.”

  I gazed down at the jar in Kai’s hands again and my eyes widened. The Magic Mites had stopped moving. Forgetting the mortar and pestle, I took the jar back from Kai. The insects swarmed to life once more. My eyes locked with Kai’s. I opened my mouth to speak. “Dan—”

  An intense crack of lightning shook the house. “That will be your cue to leave, children,” Mila said. She glanced out the window. “The Storm of Lights is starting and the Jubjub Birds have left. I have work to do, so off you go.”

  “Hold on . . .” I started.

  “Let’s go, SJ,” Kai said, shoving me toward the door.

  Daniel and Mauvrey stepped outside, Kai making sure I was close behind. The wind had picked up, rustling our feather cloaks and sending the trees around the cottage swaying. Daniel turned back to our hostess.

  “Hey, Mila, I don’t suppose you know time conversions between this realm and others?” He glanced at me. “It’s been a while since you asked Blue the time and I’d feel better if we could stay updated.”

  “Not really,” Mila replied. “I originally come from Earth, but even most people born in this realm wouldn’t be able to give you a straight answer about the current time. Conversions are not realistic either. Wonderland does not operate on one time zone. There are parts of the land where time moves slower, some where it moves faster, some where it moves backward, and even some places, like the Hatter’s Mad Tea Party across the river, where time is frozen altogether.”

  Daniel’s face creased with worry. “That explains why it felt like the wrong time when you spoke to Blue,” he said to me. “Since we entered Wonderland, we could’ve crossed into a bunch of time zones, some that went backward and made it earlier for us in Book, but others since then could have sped things up just as easily. We need to get out of this realm as soon as possible. While we’re here, midnight in Book could be in twenty minutes or twenty hours for all we know.”

  Lightning cracked the sky—lightning the color of cotton candy.

  “Good luck then,” Mila said. “Dasvidaniya.”

  At that we all paused, even Kai. The four of us stared at the woman.

  “What?” Daniel said.

  “It means goodbye in Russian, a language on Earth,” Mila replied.

  “Mila . . .” I said. “The Magic Mites carrying your End of Days brew. What does that potion do exactly?”

  “Once one of those Magic Mites enters a victim’s bloodstream, it’ll cause that person to experience intense hallucinations that lead to suicide.”

  “You’re Rasputin!” Daniel blurted.

  Mila gave him a strange look. “That’s a family name, originating from my great great grandfather. My full given name is Mila Tatyana Rasputin.”

  That is why she seemed so familiar; it was her face we saw in Wang Shu’s workshop!

  “As for the Magic Mites, if you’re interested, I’m sorry but I cannot sell you any of my stock right now,” she added. “I have a regular buyer in Book.”

  “I do not suppose his name is Arian?” I asked on a hunch.

  Mila nodded. “Do you know him?”

  Do we know him?

  “What else has he bought from you?” Daniel asked, stepping forward assertively.

  More lightning, this time neon blue.

  “I cannot say,” Mila replied. “He has paid for my silence in exchange for helping me track down a person who has eluded my family, and justice, for several generations.”

  “Mila,” I tried. “This information matters to us. Perhaps we can make a trade?”

  Three separate bursts of lighting streaked the sky—pink, blue, and green.

  “You really need to go,” Mila said, glancing up. “The Storm of Lights will be in full force soon and I have work to do.”

  “No, please,” I said. “My friends and I know many people in other realms. We have resources too and can offer you great reward for your help. As a princess, I—”

  Mila’s hand around my throat cut off my next words. “I don’t do business with princesses,” she snarled, throwing me to the ground.

  “SJ!” Daniel rushed to my aid.

  “Be thankful that is all the spite I show you,” Mila said, stepping back inside with a sniff, her expression venomous. “When I find Princess Anastasia, she will be decimated in the most violent way possible for hiding from the Rasputin family for so long.”

  She slammed the door in our faces. The wind continued to increase as I got to my feet.

  Daniel helped me up. I held onto his arm once we stood. “Daniel, I need to tell—”

  “Watch out!” Mauvrey yelled.

  An enormous beast burst through the trees and tackled Daniel and me, pinning us to the ground with its paws.

  OH MY—

  The creature’s disproportionately large head loomed over us. It looked like a dalmatian crossed with a crocodile. I caught glimpses of black-and-white fur and a long neck wearing a collar with “Snatchy” spelled out in crystals before the monster’s mouth took up my view. It snapped in our faces, providing us with a close-up view of its protruding incisors. A jade-colored tongue emerged next. The tongue moved toward us like a snake.

  All of a sudden, the monster seized with electricity. As the monster was touching us, we were electrocuted too
. However, with it being at least ten times our weight, it absorbed the bulk of the shock.

  The creature’s fur smoked and it staggered away with a yelp, but did not go down.

  Daniel and I scrambled up as Mauvrey called back the wires of her electric gloves. The creature reared. Instead of charging at her as I expected, its neck extended rapidly toward her like a slinky. Mauvrey threw herself to the ground to avoid its snapping jaws. The monster pivoted and looked at Kai. It recoiled its neck then stretched it again, but Kai lit up with silver energy, and so did the monster. She looked strained—this was a big beast after all—but her levitation magic won out and allowed her to halt the creature’s head and neck before reaching her. Then she grunted and thrust the entire monster roughly against a tree.

  I fished three ice potions out of my potions sack and moved in to finish the job. A moment later, the monster was contained in a solid block of ice. Only then did I have time to notice the large wicker basket strapped to its back, as if the creature planned on going shopping at a farmers’ market.

  “So this is the Bandersnatch.” Daniel approached it slowly and rapped on the ice. “SJ, I’ve never asked, but how long do your ice potions hold?”

  “I am not certain. I suppose it varies depending on strength of the creature, temperature, and other factors like outside assistance . . .” I walked toward our imprisoned monster.

  “I vote we do not stick around to collect data on the subject,” Mauvrey said. “This Bandersnatch is a lot nastier than the fairytale history book depictions Tara and I have seen. More importantly, I do not want to be anywhere near that Mila woman. She did not seem to know that I was the person her Magic Mites were intended for, but anyone who would make such a curse cannot be trustworthy company.”

  “Agreed,” Daniel said. “Let’s get moving.” Then he paused. “Mauvrey, did any important memories come back when Mila’s music hit you? You seemed pretty upset.”

  Mauvrey’s complexion turned ashen and her eyes darted to Kai for a quick second. Then my friend gulped before looking straight at Daniel. “I will talk about it later. This is not the time or the place.”