Twice Upon A Time (Unfinished Fairy Tales Book 2)
Page 32
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The goblin king and queen went to find their baby daughter, who was staying in an earthen-mound dwelling hidden under a thick cluster of trees and bushes. Normally they didn’t use this dwelling except in a case of emergency. Muscular goblin guards stood at the entrance, carrying heavy clubs and maces.
“Afternoon, Your Majesty.” The leader bowed. “The princess is inside, taking her nap. She might wake any time soon.”
Barthelius nodded. “You may reduce the number of guards, now that the queen and I are here.”
Pippi was lying on a soft bed formed of moss, her curly hair a bright contrast to the dark green moss. Not long after Barthelius and Morag entered, she stirred and opened her eyes. “Daddy? You’re back?”
Barthelius flew over to her. “Do you now realize the enormity of what you did?”
Pippi started to cry. “I… I’m so sorry, Daddy.”
“Husband,” Morag chided. “If it’s anyone’s fault, it should be Borg’s. How was Pippi to know?”
“She may be excused because of her age, but she has to be taught a lesson. Look at the consequences. Dozens have died, many more injured, and Katherine Wilson nearly lost her life. If I didn’t manage to send Krev back and give her that mark, she could have run out of oxygen and had brain death in minutes.”
Pippi jumped up. “Where’s Kat now?”
“I had Krev send her back to her own world. She isn’t from Athelia; she cannot survive living without oxygen.”
Pippi burst into tears again.
Barthelius remembered there was this human story in which a serpent convinced a woman to eat forbidden fruit. In a way, Borg reminded him of that serpent. “I know this isn’t entirely your fault,” he said gently, “but nevertheless, Borg would never have been able to create so much trouble if you didn’t help him in the first place. You have to do penance and make up for your mistakes.”
“No!” Morag rushed over and hugged her child. “Don’t you lay a finger on her. She knows that she committed a grave error.”
“She stole the ring. How many times have we told her that stealing is deplorable?” Barthelius narrowed his eyes. “Pippi, you could have asked me or your mother first. You didn’t have to listen to Borg and steal that ring for him. You must be taught a lesson.”
Pippi wiped her eyes. She was still sniffling, but she had calmed down. “What must I do?”
“We still have a few books lying around in the human world. Morag, you shall take Pippi, find all the remaining books, and destroy them. We cannot allow any human to have the chance to rip any book and be transported to Athelia again.”
“But not all cases are like Kat’s,” Morag protested. “Don’t you remember the last time it worked for that other human?”
“The risks aren’t worth it. It was my fault also for creating the books in the first place and placing the curse on the books. Now I have to pay for what I did. I will create a detector, and Morag, you must teach Pippi how to become invisible.” Barthelius squatted and placed his hands on his daughter’s shoulders. “Sweetie, if you don’t want something like Kat’s story happening again, then you must help me make all those books disappear.”
Pippi gazed at him, her eyes wide. “But Daddy… will Kat never be able to see Edward again?”
Morag patted her daughter’s head. “Darling, we’ve been through this so many times already.”
Barthelius stood up. He gazed at the mustard-yellow sky—the color of the sky in the goblin realm was quite different to the human world’s. “Destroying the books won’t be enough. After the books are gone, all the portals to the human world must be removed and the tunnels blown up. No human shall ever be able to travel to Athelia again.”
Afterword
Dear readers,
Thank you! I hope you enjoyed Twice Upon A Time. Kat and Edward’s story will be continued in Ever After, which will be released in 2017. To be the first to know exactly when Ever After will be published, sign up here: http://www.ayaling.com/newsletter.html
What you’ll get for joining the club:
1. Receive an exclusive short story told from Edward’s point of view, plus extra/deleted scenes. I may add new material from time to time once I get the ideas.
2. Be the first to know when I have a new release. New releases are usually discounted for a limited time.
3. Be the first to know when I give away free stuff, call for advanced readers, run a poll, or other fun activities.
See you next book!
~Aya~
Books by Aya
UNFINISHED FAIRY TALES
The Ugly Stepsister (Book 1)
Princess of Athelia (companion novella)
Twice Upon a Time (Book 2)
Ever After (Book 3, coming in 2017)
THE PRINCESS SERIES
Princesses Don’t Get Fat
Princesses Don’t Fight in Skirts
Princesses Don’t Become Engineers
GIRL WITH FLYING WEAPONS
Girl with Flying Weapons
About the Author
Aya is from Taiwan, where she struggles daily to contain her obsession with mouthwatering and unhealthy foods. Often she will devour a good book instead. Her favourite books include martial arts romances, fairy tale retellings, high fantasy, cozy mysteries, and manga.
www.ayaling.com