The Everafter War

by Michael Buckley

  Goldilocks said nothing but shook her head, her eyes fixed on the floor.

  “Let’s try one more time,” Daphne said hopefully.

  “It won’t help,” Uncle Jake said. “The spell is supposed to break immediately. He should be sitting up in bed already. This must be some new kind of sleeping spell we haven’t encountered before. I’ll call Briar and Snow. Maybe they will have some other ideas.”

  “So that’s it? We’re just giving up?” Sabrina cried, panicked.

  “Of course we’re not giving up,” Uncle Jake said. “We’re going back to the drawing board to find another solution.”

  Daphne flashed Sabrina a look that said “don’t freak out,” but it was way too late.

  “This is a stupid wild-goose chase!” Sabrina exclaimed. “The Master and the Scarlet Hand are probably laughing at us right now!”

  “Don’t give up hope, Sabrina,” Mirror said, reassuringly.

  “Give up hope?! I haven’t had any hope at all for two years.” Bitter tears washed down Sabrina's cheeks. Why was the world so unfair? What had she done to deserve so much pain?

  “Bummer,” Puck said.

  A faint knocking came from downstairs.

  “Puck, could you please find out who is at the front door?” Granny asked.

  “What am I? The butler?”

  “I’ll get it,” Sabrina said. She needed to get out of the room. The disappointment was threatening to suffocate her.

  “Whoever it is, don’t forget to invite them to move in,” Puck said sarcastically. “I’m sure the old lady will be happy to show them where we keep the towels!”

  “Freaking out isn’t going to help Mom and Dad,” Daphne said as she raced down the stairs after Sabrina. “Everyone wanted this to work. Goldilocks gave up everything to try to help. Exploding in frustration every time we have a setback is—well, it’s annoying.”

  Sabrina spun on her sister. “First of all, you don’t even know the meaning of most of the words in that last sentence,” she shouted. “Second, I have a right to be angry. This is the worst day of my life!”

  Sabrina threw the door open to find a rail-thin woman with a hooked beak of a nose and eyes like tiny black holes. She was dressed entirely in gray. Her handbag was gray. Her hair was gray. When she smiled, even her teeth were gray.

  “Ms. Smirt!” Sabrina gasped.

  “Hello, girls,” the woman said, coldly.

  “I think it’s about to get a lot worse,” Daphne groaned.

  “So nice to see that you remember me. It warms my heart.” Ms. Smirt sneered as she snatched them by the wrists and dragged them outside. They were across the lawn and in a taxicab before either of them could fight back.

  “Where are you taking us?” Daphne cried.

  “Back to the orphanage,” Smirt snapped. “Your grandmother is unfit to care for you. She kidnapped you from your foster father.”

  Sabrina remembered Mr. Greeley, a murderer with a criminal record as long as her leg. “That foster father was a serial killer. He attacked us with a crowbar!”

  “The father-child bond needs time to develop,” Smirt said as she fastened seat belts across the girls’ laps.

  “You can’t send us back to him,” Daphne shouted. “He’ll kill us!”

  “And what a tragedy that would be for us all! It doesn’t matter, anyway. Mr. Greeley is currently unavailable.”

  “So, he’s back in jail?” Sabrina asked.

  Smirt let out a telling “harrumph!”

  “I’ve found you a new foster family. The father happens to be an amateur knife thrower. He’s eager for some new targets—I mean, daughters,” she said, then tossed a twenty-dollar bill at the driver. “You got automatic locks in this thing?”

  Suddenly, Sabrina heard the cab’s doors lock. She pulled at the handle, but it wouldn’t budge.

  “To the train station, please,” she demanded. “And there’s another twenty in it for you if we make the 8:14 to Grand Central.”

  Tires squealed as the taxi tore out of the driveway and made a beeline for the Ferryport Landing train station.

  “You can’t take us back to the orphanage,” Sabrina said. “We’re not orphans. We found our mother and father.”

  “Oh, yes, I forgot about your wild fantasy life, Sophie,” Smirt said. “You know, there’s really nothing more unattractive than a child with an imagination.”

  “My name is Sabrina!” she shrieked.

  “Is it?” Smirt challenged with a smirk.

  In record time, the taxi pulled into the station, where a train was waiting. With a firm pinch on the ear, Ms. Smirt hustled the girls aboard just as the doors were closing.

  “Daphne, don’t worry,” Sabrina whispered to her sister. She had many talents, but her greatest was the ability to devise escape plans. She began studying the exit doors, windows, and even the emergency brake cable. A daring escape was already coming together when Daphne spoke up.

  “I’ve got this one covered,” she said.

  “You what?” Sabrina asked.

  The little girl put her palm into her mouth and bit down on it.

  “What’s going on, Daphne?” Sabrina pressed.

  Her sister almost never plotted the escapes. Escaping was the exclusive domain of Sabrina Grimm. Was this another casualty of their strained relationship?

  “Zip it!” Ms. Smirt snapped. “I don’t want to sit on this train for two hours listening to a couple of chatterboxes.” She reached into her handbag for a book and flipped it open.

  “Ms. Smirt, have you ever heard of the Brothers Grimm?” Daphne asked.

  The caseworker scowled and set her book on her lap. “What is this nonsense?”

  “You’ve heard of the Brothers Grimm, right?”

  “They wrote fairy tales,” Ms. Smirt said, dismissing Daphne with a wave of her hand.

  Daphne shook her head. “That’s what most people think, but it’s not true. The Brothers Grimm didn’t write fictional stories; they recorded actual events. Their book is full of things that really happened. It’s so the rest of us can learn about Everafters.”

  Sabrina was shocked. Daphne was spilling the family secret to the worst possible person. They couldn’t trust Smirt any further than they could throw her.

  “What’s an Everafter?” the caseworker snapped.

  “That’s what fairy-tale characters like to be called,” the little girl explained. “‘Fairy-tale character’ is kind of a rude term. It implies that they aren’t real, and, like I was saying, the Brothers Grimm wrote about real events. Snow White is real. She ate a real poisoned apple. Cinderella, Prince Charming, Robin Hood—they’re all real, and they live in Ferryport Landing. The Queen of Hearts is the mayor. Sleeping Beauty is dating our uncle.”

  Ms. Smirt peered closely at Daphne. “Debbie, I hope they make straitjackets in your size.”

  “It’s Daphne,” she corrected.

  “Please be quiet,” Sabrina whispered in her sister’s ear.

  “OK, kid, I’ll bite. If fairy-tale characters are real, how come I haven’t met any?” the caseworker asked.

  “Because there’s a magical wall that surrounds this town and keeps the Everafters locked inside. Wilhelm Grimm and a witch named Baba Yaga built it to stop any evil Everafters from invading nearby towns.”

  “Of course,” Smirt said. She slapped her knee and let loose a loud, mocking cackle. “A magical wall!”

  “They call it ‘the barrier.’ The Brothers Grimm are our ancestors, and because of what they did, a lot of Everafters don’t like us,” Daphne said. “But—”

  “Daphne, stop. You’ve told her too much,” Sabrina begged.

  “Sabrina, I’ve got this,” Daphne snapped, then turned her attention back to Smirt. “As I was saying, we have a few enemies in Ferryport Landing, but we’ve got a few friends, too.”

  Suddenly there was a tap on the window. Sabrina gazed out, expecting to see the Hudson River rushing past. Instead, she saw Puck. He was flying alo
ngside the train, held aloft by his giant pink wings. He stuck his tongue out at her.

  Ms. Smirt was horrified. She shrieked and tumbled onto the floor, scampering underneath her seat like a cockroach.

  “Did you see that?” Ms. Smirt stammered. “There’s a boy out there. Flying! Outside the window!”

  Puck flew off, disappearing from view. A moment later, the ear-shattering screech of tearing metal filled the air. Something sailed past the window and splashed into the Hudson below. It looked like part of a train door.

  “Did the two of you plan this?” Sabrina asked Daphne.

  “Someone’s got to think ahead in this family,” she replied matter-of-factly.

  Seconds later, Puck strolled down the aisle with his wings fully extended. “Well, well, well. Look at me, saving your butts, again. You know, you’re kinda pathetic.” He knelt down to peer at Smirt. The woman shrieked in terror and tried to scurry even farther under the seat.

  “What is she doing down there?” he asked Sabrina.

  “Hiding, I guess.”

  Puck leaned closer to Ms. Smirt and said, too loudly for the cramped space, “I found you! You’re it!”

  “Get him away from me!” Ms. Smirt whimpered.

  Puck laughed and dragged the caseworker to her feet. Daphne stepped up to the trembling woman and patted her hand, gently. It did little to calm her. She was speechless. Her jaw fell open over and over, and she couldn’t stop staring at Puck’s wings.

  “This is good-bye, Ms. Smirt,” said Daphne.

  “Wait! We can’t go yet. We forgot the merciless kicking. That’s my favorite part of the plan!” Puck said.

  “I vetoed the kicking,” Daphne said. “We’re going to send Ms. Smirt back home unharmed.”

  Puck scowled. “Party pooper.”

  “What plan? What on earth is happening here?” Sabrina cried.

  Before she could get an answer, the train conductor’s voice came over the speaker system. “Next stop, Poughkeepsie!”

  Daphne’s face fell. “Uh-oh.”

  Puck blanched, and his mischievous grin vanished. “Uh-oh.”

  “Two ‘uh-oh’s? What’s wrong?” Sabrina cried, panicking and spinning around in search of the threat. What monster do we need to run from now?

  “The barrier!” Daphne shouted. “Puck! Run!”

  Puck bolted, but it was too late. As the train passed through the invisible wall, he was knocked off his feet and sent sailing down the aisle.

  “How do you stop this thing?” Puck cried, flailing helplessly as he was pushed along the train by the unseen magic.

  Sabrina ran to the emergency brake cable and yanked it with all her might. The brakes screeched, and the train decelerated rapidly, causing suitcases and passengers alike to fly in every direction. Puck crashed into the steel door at the end of the car, knocking it off its hinges. His body kept skidding along the floor into the next car. He was going to crash into the next door but not with enough force to break through. The barrier would slowly crush him before the train completely stopped. Sabrina looked around frantically for something to use to smash the door open. But, when she looked back to Puck, the boy fairy had transformed into a full-size rhinoceros.

  He lowered his head just as his diamond-hard horn plowed through the next train door.

  “He turned into a rhino,” Ms. Smirt said, finally regaining the ability to speak.

  “Yeah, he does that,” Daphne said, then grabbed Sabrina by the hand. “C’mon!”

  The girls rushed after Puck, watching him blow through door after door and pushing past terrified commuters. Luckily, no one was injured, but many cowered behind copies of the New York Times, and Sabrina suspected that a few wet their pants.

  When the trio reached the last car, Puck crashed through its door, tumbling out onto the tracks. The girls leaped to the ground after him. There was a crowd of people waiting to greet them.

  Uncle Jake, Granny Relda, Elvis, Goldilocks, Red Riding Hood, and the three bears were all standing at the side of the tracks. Puck quickly morphed back into his true form, but Sabrina barely noticed. There were two people waiting there who made her wonder if she was hallucinating. She blinked a few times and then looked to her grandmother, who was grinning widely.

  Henry and Veronica Grimm, her parents, waited with outstretched arms.

  “Mom? Dad?” she cried.

  Henry and Veronica rushed to the girls and scooped them up. Veronica peppered Sabrina and Daphne with kisses. Henry squeezed so hard, Sabrina could barely breathe. She loved every second of it.

  “Girls,” their father choked. “My dear, sweet girls.”

  “But I thought our plan didn’t work,” Daphne said.

  “It must have worked!” Henry said.

  “You know your father. He loves to sleep late,” Veronica explained.

  Henry and Veronica stepped back to study their daughters. “Girls, you look so different,” her father said.

  Veronica held Daphne’s face in her hand. “You’re so . . . big.”

  “You’ve been asleep a really long time,” Daphne said.

  Henry turned to Granny Relda with questioning eyes.

  “How long?” he asked.

  “Nearly two years,” the old woman said, sadly.

  “Two years!” Veronica cried.

  Sabrina’s parents looked as if someone had punched them in the gut, the shock clear on their faces. “Th-that can’t be true,” Henry stammered.

  “I’m afraid it is,” Uncle Jake said.

  Henry turned to Goldilocks. “What are you doing here?” he asked.

  “There’s a lot to tell you,” Granny Relda said.

  “But what’s important is we’re together now,” Sabrina said brightly, trying to shift everyone’s attention back to the happy reunion. All the worries that had haunted her over the last two years evaporated. The incredible weight of being responsible for herself and Daphne lifted from her shoulders, and for the first time in years she felt like a kid.

  Just in time to ruin Sabrina’s happy moment, Ms. Smirt scurried through the busted train door. She smoothed her gray suit and struggled with a broken heel on one of her shoes. She straightened, as if mustering all of her strength. “These children are wards of the state, and they’re coming with me, flying boy or no flying boy.”

  “Who is this woman?” Henry asked.

  “She’s our caseworker,” Sabrina explained. “When you vanished, we were sent to live in an orphanage. She placed us with foster parents.”

  “Horrible, evil foster parents,” Daphne said. “She sent us to live with a man who was terrified of soap!”

  “Don’t forget the family with the Bengal tiger living in their house!” Sabrina said.

  “And the guy who had us collect roadkill for his restaurant!”

  Veronica grabbed Smirt by the collar. “Have you been mistreating my children?”

  “I did what was in the best interests of your brood,” Smirt sneered as she tried to break free.

  “I think that what’s in the best interest of my ‘brood’ is for them to watch me knock you out,” Veronica said.

  “Are you threatening me?” the caseworker gasped.

  “Of course I am,” Veronica replied.

  Smirt finally broke free and scampered back up onto the train.

  “We can’t let her go. She knows everything. She’ll go back to the city and tell everyone what she’s learned,” Sabrina said.

  “Exactly.” Daphne grinned. “They’ll think she’s a nutcase. They’ll either fire her or give her a straitjacket of her own.”

  Sabrina was astounded. Daphne’s idea was genius. It finally rid them of Smirt and the orphanage forever. Actually, the little girl’s plan was even better than anything Sabrina would have dreamed up.

  “OK, but we should probably put some forgetful dust on the other passengers,” Granny Relda suggested. “I suspect seeing a rhino on their morning commute has given them a serious case of the frights.”

>   “You can’t erase it from their brains! Freaking people out is my art, and I just created a masterpiece, old lady!” Puck protested.

  “I’m afraid we have no choice, liebling,” Granny Relda said. “And when we’re finished, we’ll need to hurry home. There is so much to tell Henry and Veronica.”

  “Forget it, Mom,” Henry said, taking his girls’ hands in his own. “We’re leaving as soon as the girls are packed.”

  “Leaving?” Granny cried.

  Sabrina and Daphne eyed one another in astonishment.

  Henry nodded. “Yes. We’re getting out of Ferryport Landing as fast as we can.”

  2

  “Big brother, this is not one of your best ideas,” Jake said. “You’ve been missing for two years—do you realize what that means? Most people think you and Veronica are dead. Your apartment has been sold. There’s mountains of paperwork you’d need to do before you can get any of your money. Neither one of you has a job, and if you’re smart, you’ll steer clear of that caseworker and the board of child welfare. There’s so much to sort out, and we can help.”

  “He makes some good points, Henry,” Veronica said. “Maybe we should stay put until we get everything settled.”

  Sabrina’s father shook his head stubbornly. “Getting out of Ferryport Landing is more important than any of those inconveniences.”

  Granny Relda looked to be on the verge of tears. Sabrina had never seen her so upset. “But, Henry—”

  “It’s not open for discussion, Mom,” he snapped.

  Veronica frowned but held her tongue.

  “I don’t think you’ll be able to get to Manhattan until the train gets cleaned up,” Goldilocks said, gesturing to the mess still on the tracks.

  “Fine,” Henry growled, and then marched up the embankment to the parking lot. The group followed in tense silence. Soon, they found the family’s ancient car. Oil leaked onto the asphalt, and a mysterious green fluid seeped from the muffler.

  “I can’t believe you still drive this hunk of junk, Jake,” Veronica said.

  “She’s family,” Jake said. “You can’t abandon family.”

  Henry’s face went red. A fight was on the horizon.

  This day was not turning out the way Sabrina had dreamed. “How did you get everyone into the car?” she asked, hoping to change the subject. “You couldn’t fit the bears inside even if you squeezed.”