Finally, where the Queen Fairy had been, there was just a shimmering puddle.
Chapter Thirty-One
As bits of blinding gold fell all around me, I closed my eyes to keep from seeing stars for the rest of my life.
“Jenny!” Luken cried from somewhere above me. “Jenny, the queen is gone. She is really gone!”
I opened my eyes, trying to smile, but I could still barely see straight. Was there something really wrong with me?
“What is the matter?” Luken said, his smile disappearing. “Are you hurt?”
“Get…get Anthony.”
Luken nodded and ran off. Almost instantly, he came back with the gnome beside him.
“Jenny-girl, are you okay? What happened?” Anthony knelt over me, his face full of concern.
“My head,” I managed to whisper as things started to go black again.
Anthony got to work right away. He yanked off the fairy cuff—which was crumbling to dust on its own—and started working some healing magic on me. A minute later, Dr. Bradley joined in.
Karfum also rushed over and stuffed some shamrocks in my mouth. “These will do the trick,” he insisted. I was so exhausted that I obediently swallowed them down.
A second later, whether it was from the magic or the shamrocks, I started to feel better.
“My parents!” I said, trying to sit up. “Are they—?”
“They’re fine,” said Dr. Bradley. “Take it easy, Jenny. You have quite a nasty bump on your head.”
I didn’t care about all that. I scanned the room. Nearby, Luken was standing with Mahlia at his side, her arm draped protectively around his shoulders. For the first time, they looked like they were really mother and son.
“Jenny?” Luken said, coming over to me. “Are you all right?”
“I’m great!” I cried. “The queen’s gone. Luken, you did it. You defeated her!”
“We did it together,” he said, giving his mother a smile. I couldn’t believe the warmth flowing between them. Maybe the two of them could finally figure out a way to get along.
I spotted my parents stirring on the other side of the room, waking up from being knocked out. “Help me up,” I said to Anthony. “Please. I need to make sure my mom and dad are okay.”
Anthony nodded and helped me get to my feet. I was still a little dizzy, but that didn’t stop me. When I rushed over to my parents, my dad was looking up at me with puzzled eyes.
“Jenny, is that you?” He looked around. “What happened?”
“The Queen Fairy’s gone,” I said.
My mom sat up a few feet away, holding a hand up to her forehead like she had a headache. “How did we get here?” Her eyes went wide at the sight of me. “Jenny. It really is you, isn’t it? You look so…grown up!”
I stared at her, afraid to ask the question. “You—you know who I am? You remember what I looked like when you left?”
My mother laughed. “Of course I do! Now help me up so I can hug you! Is that my necklace you’re wearing? And my bracelet? Wait, am I seeing things, or do you have a tail?”
I couldn’t believe it. My parents knew me! Their memories were back! I pulled my mom and dad into a giant hug, not wanting to let them go. This time I didn’t cry. I just laughed and laughed, unable to believe that I had finally gotten my family back.
After a minute, Anthony and Dr. Bradley joined in our group hug so that we became more of a football huddle. I couldn’t remember ever being so happy.
Finally, when we could all let go of each other, it was time to figure out how to fix the mess the Queen Fairy had left behind. Luckily, the cuffs on all of our wrists were falling off, and the last of our mousy features were disappearing. My tail was getting smaller by the minute.
“I will check on the Committee,” Dr. Bradley said. He conjured himself a new cane before hobbling over to where the Committee members were starting to wake up. I wasn’t sure where all the stolen magic had gone when the Queen Fairy had disintegrated, but I had a feeling it had returned to where it was supposed to be. Which meant…
“The Land of Tales!” I said. “We need to go there and make sure everyone’s magic comes back. And Ilda, we need to figure out what to do with her. And my friends—”
“Jenny-girl, relax!” said Anthony. “You go rest up and be with your family. I’ll take care of everything, and I’ll bring Trish and Melissa home from the Land of Tales when they’re ready.”
I threw my arms around Anthony and held him tight. The last of my dizziness was gone. Now I just felt like my body was about to burst with joy. “Thank you!”
When the gnome was gone, I introduced Luken to my parents. I couldn’t let go of their hands, at least not yet.
“Now what happens?” I asked him. I glanced over to where Mahlia and Karfum were talking softly with each other.
Luken sighed. “The leprechauns will have their pots of gold returned to them, and all the prisoners will be allowed to go home, though it may take a few days to sort them all out. I am afraid it will also take some time to make Fairy Land run without magic.”
My mom gave him an encouraging smile. “Your world will be very different, but the Committee will help make it right again. We all will.”
“What about the theme park?” I said.
“My mother and I will rebuild it together, using my father’s designs.” Luken smiled shyly. “And maybe a few of my own.” He took his sketchbook out of his pocket and showed me a drawing he must have done earlier. It was of both of our families strapped into a Gravitron ride, all of us looking sick, terrified, and totally happy.
I laughed. “It’s about time you guys did the amusement-park thing again. It’ll make all the tickets and screaming and stuff make a lot more sense.”
“Thank you for your help, Jenny,” he said. “You have your family back now. Enjoy your time together.”
I grinned back at him. “You too.”
I was actually tempted to hug him but was saved from embarrassing myself by the Committee members’ demanding voices: “Adventurers! Come here, please.”
The old crones were back to normal.
When my parents and I went up to the table, the women were perched there as if nothing had happened. Even their hair was perfectly in place.
“We are grateful to you,” they said. Their eyes swung toward me. “Giving the Queen Fairy all of our magic was a risky plan. We are glad it worked. Otherwise—”
“Otherwise, you would’ve been really mad. I get it. Sorry. I couldn’t think of anything else to do.”
“No,” they said. “You misunderstand. It was risky, but it was necessary. Nothing else would have been sufficient to defeat the Queen Fairy. We are proud of you, Jennifer. We want you to return to being an adventurer. We would be honored if you would accept.”
I stared at them with my mouth hanging open. Had the Committee members actually said they were proud of me? First they’d risked basically everything to save my life, and then they’d actually complimented me? Maybe there was more to these old women than I’d realized.
“Of course I’ll go back to being an adventurer,” I said. “It’s what I do.”
“Wait,” my mom said. “Not so fast.”
I frowned at her. “What do you mean?”
“I think we all need a vacation first,” she said. “Some time as a family to get reacquainted.”
“Yes,” my dad added. “After that, we can talk about putting our lives at risk again.”
I nodded. They were right. I had plenty of time to be an adventurer. Right now, the most important thing was making up for all those years I’d missed with my parents.
“Very well,” the Committee members said. “Take all the time you need.” I waited for them to demand that we sign some paperwork, or to at least stamp a form or two, but they just smiled at us in unison and waved us a
way. If this was what working with the Committee was going to be like from now on, I could certainly get used to it! Especially if I had my parents by my side.
I turned to my mom and dad. “Let’s go home,” I said.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Aunt Evie had to drink about a gallon of tea before she believed that my parents were really back. She just kept staring at them and gulping down cup after cup of Earl Grey. Finally, she plucked a tiny black kitten off her shoulder and ran over to hug us all. I’d never seen her really cry before.
“What happened?” she said. “Where have you been all these years?”
“It’s a long story,” my dad said. “Maybe we’ll tell you another time.”
“No,” I cut in. “I think it’s time Aunt Evie knew the truth…about everything. She’s been so patient with me. It’s not fair to keep her in the dark anymore.”
My parents had some sort of silent conversation between them. Finally, they both nodded.
“Well, Sis,” my dad said, leading Aunt Evie back to her seat at the kitchen table. “You might want to prepare yourself for a pretty crazy story.”
It took the three of us a while to explain things to my aunt, starting with the existence of the magical worlds, and then moving on to our secret adventurer identities. When I told her about everything that had happened to me while my parents had been gone, my mom and dad wiped tears from their eyes.
“I wish we could have been there with you,” my mom said. “There’s so much we wanted to teach you when the time came.”
“It’s okay,” I said. “You’re here now. And we’ve got plenty of time.”
Then we told Aunt Evie about how my parents had given themselves up to the Queen Fairy seven years ago to keep me safe, and how we’d managed to finally defeat her today.
My aunt sat there petting the kitten the whole time, until it started to squirm in her lap. Finally, when we were done, she let out a soft laugh. Seeing its chance, the kitten quickly made a run for it and disappeared into the living room.
“That’s a lot to take in,” my aunt said. “And this is all really true?” I realized she was asking me specifically. I guess after all these years of the two of us living together, I was the one she trusted the most.
“Yes, Aunt Evie,” I said. “It’s the truth. I’m sorry we lied to you. It’ll never happen again. I promise.”
“And you were really a mouse?”
I laughed. “Yup. It was the itchiest time of my life.”
She nodded slowly. “All right.” And that was it. No more explanation or convincing needed. I guess when you spent your life talking to animals, hearing about magical worlds and power-hungry fairies wasn’t really that strange.
“So,” my dad said. “What do we do now?”
“Well,” I said, suddenly feeling shy. “There is one thing I’ve been dreaming of doing with you guys. If you’re up for it…”
“Whatever you want,” said my mom. “I think you’ve earned it.”
The four of us hopped in my aunt’s car and headed to a nearby mini-golf course to play together as a family for the first time ever.
Aunt Evie, of course, kept trying to hold her club upside down while a gecko perched on her head. My mom insisted on keeping score with a calculator, while my dad and I both practiced our swings in between turns, trying to outdo each other. During it all, the four of us were talking and laughing as if all that time we’d lost had never happened.
As my family and I played mini-golf with the sun setting in the background, I couldn’t stop grinning. This was it. This was exactly what I’d been waiting for all these years. It might have sounded dumb to anyone else, but I couldn’t imagine anything more perfect.
THE END
Acknowledgments
Here we are again. Normally, Jenny would roll her eyes at all this cheesy stuff, but she’s feeling pretty grateful right now. In fact, we both are. So let’s thank some people, shall we?
To Ray Brierly for reading more drafts of my books than anyone should ever be forced to (and for claiming to like each one).
To my family and friends for the endless hugs and support.
To my writing friends and online buddies, especially Megan Kudrolli, Alisa Libby, Heather Kelly, and Sarah Chessman.
To Ammi-Joan Paquette for believing in Jenny from the beginning.
To Aubrey Poole and the rest of the Sourcebooks team for making Jenny’s (and my) journey an amazing one.
And to all the incredible UnFairy Tale readers out there who’ve made me feel like a real author.
About the Author
Sedman Photography
Born in Poland and raised in the United States, Anna Staniszewski grew up loving stories (especially fairy tales) in both Polish and English. After studying theater at Sarah Lawrence College, she attended the Center for the Study of Children’s Literature at Simmons College. She was named the 2006–2007 Writer-in-Residence at the Boston Public Library and a winner of the 2009 PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award. Currently, Anna lives outside Boston with her husband and their adorably crazy dog, Emma. When she’s not writing, Anna spends her time teaching, reading, and shooting hoops with leprechauns. You can visit her at www.annastan.com.
Be the first to discover Anna Staniszewski’s brand-new series!
Wanted: Maid for the most
popular kids in 8th grade.
Cleaning up after the in-crowd
gets Rachel all the best dirt.
Rachel can’t believe she has to give up her Saturdays to scrub other people’s toilets. So. Gross. But she kinda, sorta stole $287.22 from her college fund that she’s got to pay back ASAP or her mom will ground her for life. Which is even worse than working for her mom’s new cleaning business. Maybe. After all, becoming a maid is definitely not going to help her already loserish reputation.
But Rachel picks up more than smelly socks on the job. As maid to some of the most popular kids in school, Rachel suddenly has all the dirt on the eighth-grade in-crowd. Her formerly boring diary is now filled with juicy secrets. And when her crush offers to pay her to spy on his girlfriend, Rachel has to decide if she’s willing to get her hands dirty…
Read on for an excerpt
from The Dirt Diary
“Rachel, what are you doing with that toilet brush?” Mom calls as she comes out of the house with a mountain of paper towels in her arms.
“Um, practicing?” I say, realizing I’ve been absently twirling the brush like a baton. I give it one more dramatic spin before chucking it into the back of our dented minivan. Really, I was distracted while calculating how much money I need to earn in the next month ($287.22) to keep from getting in huge trouble, but that is definitely not something I can admit to Mom.
“All right, are we ready for our first day?” she says as she slides the minivan door shut. She’s grinning so widely that the skin by her ears is wrinkling.
I nod and try to smile back. I can’t believe I actually volunteered to give up my Saturdays to inhale bleach, but my efforts will all be worth it in the end. Fingers, toes, and eyes crossed.
We pull out of the driveway and head toward one of the fancy housing developments across town. To stop my feet from nervously tapping in my sneakers, I focus on my baking plans for the weekend. My mission is to create the ultimate to-die-for brownie. If that doesn’t get everyone’s attention at the Spring Dance bake sale next month, nothing will.
“I’m so glad you changed your mind about working with me,” Mom says, pushing her honey-colored bangs off her forehead. “It’ll be nice to spend some time together again.”
“Yeah, it’ll be fun,” I say, my voice high and squeaky. “I looove Windex!” I find myself doing what could be a cheerleading hand motion to show her just how excited I am.
Mom’s eyebrows scrunch together, and I tell myself to calm down. Mom miraculo
usly accepted that I’d suddenly changed my whole attitude about her new cleaning business in the span of two days. She cannot know the reason why.
“Just remember that we need to make a good impression today, so try to be friendly, all right?” she says, glancing over at me.
Something stabs at the pit of my stomach. “You mean, try to act normal.”
Mom sighs. “Rachel, why do you have to be so down on yourself? You’re going to be in high school next year. It’s time to get some self-confidence.” Mom has never had an awkward day in her life, so she thinks being freakishly shy is just something you can switch off like an infomercial.
“I do have confidence,” I insist. At least, I do in my ability to make an amazing dessert. Dad always says my recipes are a little piece of heaven on a plate. I just hope heavenly is enough to get the most votes at the bake sale this year.
Thinking about Dad makes a familiar ache spread through my chest. Ever since he moved to Florida two months ago—right before Valentine’s Day, no less—nothing has felt right. Even Mom, who usually tries to smile and plan her way through every crisis, has been acting totally weird for weeks. That’s why I have to make my Get-My-Parents-Back-Together Plan work, even if it means scrubbing every toilet in town. Our family just doesn’t make sense without Dad.
A few minutes later, Mom and I pull into a neighborhood of gigantic houses. All the lawns and bushes are blindingly green, even though it’s only the end of April. For some reason, I imagine the neon grass tasting like kiwi. Would a kiwi brownie be too weird?
We stop in front of a stone monstrosity with two towers, one on each side of the house. I can almost imagine archers camped out in the towers, on the lookout for intruders. A tiny brook winds around the house and under a bridge at the end of the driveway. That’s right: these people actually have a moat.
After I drag myself out of the car, Mom loads me up with some cleaning supplies. I glance down at the mop in my hands. “Mom?” I say, pointing to a label on the end of the handle with the word “mop” helpfully written across it. “Am I going to have to take away your label maker?”
My Sort of Fairy Tale Ending Page 12