Part 12 (1/2)
aWaita sheas evil,a Apple said to a squirrel, who was sweeping up wall debris with its fluffy tail. aSheas, like, honestly evil-evil. What if sheas wronga”or even just lied?a Squeak, said the squirrel.
During Snow Whiteas story, her mother had somehow survived sharing a castle with the Greatest Evil the World Has Ever Known and come out of it not only okay but Happily Ever After. What advice would her mother give?
Apple knew because Snow White had cross-st.i.tched the words on a pillow and propped it up in the informal receiving room: WHEN LIFE IS ALL DARK WOODS AND POISONED APPLES, REMEMBER YOU HAVE FRIENDS. Snow White had st.i.tched messages on other pillows, too, such as: SQUIRRELS WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN, UNLESS THEYaRE HIBERNATING; THERE ARE ALWAYS BIRDS; NATURE LOVES A BROOM; LOVE IS KNOWING A RABBIT NEEDS YOU; HUGS ARE HOW ITaS DONE; DOUBLE HUGS FOR THE GRUMPY; TREES AND DOGS ARE HAPPY, SO START BARKING; and others. Honestly, it was hard to find a sofa in the enormous White Castle that didnat sport a cross-st.i.tched pillow. But the REMEMBER YOU HAVE FRIENDS one offered the most insight to Apple at the moment.
Apple ran to Blondieas room and knocked. Blondie opened the door, rubbing her eyes. She was wearing fluffy bear slippers with a blue nightgown, her hair in curlers. When she saw Apple, she put a hand to her hair.
aItas naturally curly, I swear,a Blondie said. aThe curlers are just fora fora taming the, uhaa aBlondie, I need your help,a said Apple. aYou have everyoneas MirrorPhone credentials for your Mirrorcast show, right? Can you send out a private message to all the students who were in the Treasury that daya”everyone except Maddiea”and ask them to meet me there now?a The Evil Queen may have suggested they not ask others for help, but she most definitely had warned that telling Maddie would nullify the spell. Apple wouldnat risk breaking that rule.
She hurried back to the Treasury. Bright yellow caution tape that read BEWARE! BEWARE! BEWARE! crisscrossed the door. But the door itself was broken, its lock having been smashed by a swing of the jabberwockas tail, and Apple easily opened it. Apparently, with the Uni Cairn gone and the wall broken, the headmaster wasnat as worried about keeping the Treasury locked up tight.
Within minutes the small crowd gathered, looking through the threshold as if afraid to go in. After all, jabberwockies might be lurking.
aDear friends,a said Apple. aRaven and I are trying to save Maddie from banishment, but we need your help. Weare working on an Irrefutable Evidence spell. It will show the faculty what really happened here that evening, and if Maddie didnat break the unicorn-prison-thingy, then sheall be free.a aWhat if she did?a Blondie asked.
aWella but what if she didnat?a Apple said.
The crowd s.h.i.+fted. No one entered the room. Apple cleared her throat.
aUm, in order for the spell to work, the Treasury needs to be as close as possible to how it was before the riot. So I need your help. To clean it up. And fix it. Please.a Everyone looked around: the monster-sized hole in the wall, broken wall stones littering the floor, bashed pedestals, shattered gla.s.s display cases, treasures lying around, a giant helmet fallen from its gigantic suit of armor. The floor was swept, but fixing all that was broken seemed insurmountable.
aYeah, good luck with all this,a Sparrow said, turning to go.
aWe have to try!a said Apple. aPlease, for Maddie, we have to try.a Sparrow paused. The crowd s.h.i.+fted but still seemed unsure. Apple bit her lip, searching for something, anything to do. Her mind clung to the advice her mother had given her.
Smile, Apple. Smile like you mean it.
Could her mother have meant more than Apple thought? Maybe this group just needed to believe there was a chance of success. People would work for something once there was a hope it would work out.
So I have to believe first, Apple thought.
aWe can do this,a Apple said, smiling. aWe can do this,a she said, smiling bigger. And the longer she smiled, the more she believed it. aLook at all the talent in this room! Why, thereas almost nothing we canat do when we work together.a Now not only her smile felt confident, but Apple did, too, from the tiara shead pinned in her hair sometime yesterday down to her white ballet flats with gold thread trim.
And then Apple thought of Old King Cole, and she laughed. Some of the students looked startled, but Briar smiled and said, aWhat? Whatas funny?a aEverything!a said Apple. aI mean, isnat it? Kind of funny? What were we thinking, storming into the Treasury where things like jabberwocky prisons are kept? Well, we made a mess of things, but that doesnat mean we canat have fun while we fix it!a aIam always up for fun,a said Briar.
aBriar, you enchanting girl you,a said Apple.
aYes, Apple, you fabulous slice of pie?a said Briar.
aI think we need to rock this thing.a Briar put her hand on her hip. aI know youare not suggesting that I party-up this dismal scene, because you know Iall do it all the way.a aAll the way, Briar Beauty,a said Apple. aAll the way.a They b.u.mped fists.
aOh, hey, Melody Piper would be a great help for you, I think,a Apple said.
Briar got to work. Under her supervision, Ginger contributed some freshly made finger foods, and Melody Piper brought in her turntables and started the music. Briar got some people chanting parts of the songs, and good energy flowed through the room.
But much of the crowd just shuffled around the Treasury, unsure, perhaps, where and how to start fixing things.
Make eye contact, Appleas mother had said, but surely she had been talking about more than good manners. Look back, and look deeper.
At first glance, Blondie was a talkative, bubbly girl with really great curls. But as Apple looked closer, she noticed earnestness, an eagerness to be involveda and under her arm, her ever-present MirrorPad.
aBlondie, did you happen to film anything that happened that evening in the Treasury?a Apple asked.
aI did!a Blondie said, lifting up her MirrorPad. aYou know, in case something newsworthy happened I could use in my Mirrorcast. But just at the beginning, before I got distracted by all the crowns.a aThe beginning is perfect!a said Apple. aYou have a valuable record of how the Treasury looked. You will be in charge of returning the misplaced items where they should go.a Blondieas eyes brightened. aYes! Thank you! I will help make everything just right.a aCerise and d.u.c.h.ess, weall need supplies,a said Apple. aYouare so good at Basketball in Grimmnastics, Cerise, I bet you could be quick to gather materials in your basket. And in swan form, d.u.c.h.ess, youare such a fast flier. Will you two work together getting the builders what they need?a d.u.c.h.ess looked at Cerise out of the corner of her eye without deigning to turn toward her. She sniffed as if smelling something foul.
aWe could make it a race,a Cerise said. aYou know, just to keep things interesting.a d.u.c.h.essas lips curled into a smile.
aI could fix this wall if I had some grout,a Hunter called out.
Cerise smiled, too. There was a flash of red as Cerise ran and a puff of white as d.u.c.h.ess changed into a swan and took to the air, off to fetch grout for Hunter.
The wall looked like a big job, even for someone as skilled at making things as Hunter was. Besides, the pairing of d.u.c.h.ess and Cerise was giving Apple an idea. And Briar with Melody, too. Royal working with Rebela aOh, Lizzie!a Apple called.
aOff with her head,a Lizzie Hearts said automatically, though she didnat seem to mean it.
aLizzie, Iave seen you build the most amazing house of cards from your deck. And a bridge, too. It was truly inspiring.a Lizzie sniffed and kept looking just over Appleas head, as if making eye contact were beneath her.
aWhat I mean to say is, I think youare fairy, fairy talented.a Lizzie blinked rapidly and peeked at Apple. aReally?a Apple nodded, holding that eye contact and smiling confidently. aI really do. Iave always thought so.a Lizzie smiled, too, and for a moment she didnat look like a haughty, royal queena”she looked like the young girl she was beneath the Heart crown and behind the flamingo scepter. Apple began to suspect that the seemingly aloof daughter of the villainous Queen of Hearts actually had a tender heart.
aI was wondering,a Apple asked, acan you make more than houses and bridges of cards?a Lizzie leaned forward and whispered, aI can make anything.a aI suspected as much.a Apple took Lizzieas arm and walked her to where Hunter was working. aHow about a wall?a Lizzie pulled a deck of cards from her purse and shuffled them so they flipped through the air, arcing in the shape of a heart.
aHunter, youare royally talented at fixing things,a said Apple. aCan you and Lizzie work together to remake the wall and window again?a aIt would be my pleasure. A Huntsman is ever ready to save the day.a Hunter put his fists on his hips, striking a pose. Out of nowhere, trumpets played a fanfare. Apple startled. No matter how many times she witnessed the Huntsman-To-the-Rescue Move, those trumpets always caught her off guard.
aI knew I could count on you!a said Apple. aOh, Cedar, could you clean up the gla.s.s from the broken display cases? I think anyone else might risk getting cut.a aBeing made of wood has its advantages!a Cedar said.
aCupid, you always have good advice. Know of a way to mend broken gla.s.s?a Cupid fluttered over to Apple, landing between her and Cedar. Apple noticed she wore her quiver of heart-tipped arrows but not her bow. Raven had that, hopefully perfecting the Irrefutable Evidence spell with her mother.
aMy arrows mend broken hearts when I manage to shoot straight, which I rarely do,a said Cupid. aLittle-known fact: I canat hit the broad side of a palace.a aThat must be awkward, given your destiny.a Cupid shrugged, her countenance as rosy as her pink hair. aItas okay. Iave found people would rather have good, solid love advice than an arrow shot through their heart anyway. But my arrow tips are handy for mending things besides hearts. If I could get someone to hold the gla.s.s bits together for meaa Her gaze drifted over to Dexter.
aDexter!a said Apple. aI need a prince to come to the rescue of Cedar and Cupid.a aOf course!a said Dexter. aIam happy to help any damsel, or anyone really. Iall do what I can. Uma whereas Raven, by the way? Just wondering.a aRaven will be here soon,a said Apple. aHey, Kitty, we need to get that helmet back onto the giant suit of armor. If you held on to it and disappeared, reappearing up on the shoulders of the armor, would the helmet go with you?a aMaybeaa Kitty Ches.h.i.+re said. She made a low, purring noise. aBut fixing things isnat really my thing, oh Fairest One of All.a aWould you do it for Maddie?a Kitty wrinkled her nose like a cat offered a bath. But she nodded. aFor Maddie.a aDaring, can you help Kitty?a Apple asked.
aI think Iam better suited to something more dangerous and heroic.a Daring straightened his crown.
Apple looked at Daring and looked closer. Explaining the why of it all again wasnat going to change his mind. Logic did not motivate her future Prince Charming. So Apple tilted her head, batted her eyelashes, and said, aPlease?a Daring bowed. aWell! Of course, my future queen. Anything for you.a Daring began to examine the helmet. aI shall require a rope to tie the helmet to the suit!a aUmaa Apple looked around. aHolly, could you help out?a Holly hefted her hundred feet of hair. aOf course! Rule three in our Princessology hextbook says a princess is always helpful. But rule fourteen says a princess must be dignified at all times. Do you think using my hair as a rope is dignified?a She gazed hopefully at Apple.
aDonat worry, I believe being helpful is dignified,a Apple said.
Holly breathed out in relief. aOh good. Itall take me a few minutes to braid a strand, and then Iall cut it out.a aOh!a said Apple. aCutting a lock out of your fablelous hair! Are you sure?a aIt grows back fast, trust me,a said Holly. aBesides, anything for Maddie. I dreamed about Ever After High for years! I want everything to stay as magical as the first moment I arrived. And it wonat be, not even close, if Maddie isnat here anymore.a aWe canat afford any interruptions if weare going to get this done on time,a said Apple. aAshlynn, can you ask some of your wee friends to keep watch and warn us if any faculty member is coming?a aOf course!a said Ashlynn. aI know a very nice family of mice living in the wall near here, ooh, and just the sweetest little cricket.aa Ashlynn wandered off with a far-off expression, shouting, aOh, mousey!a aApple,a said Blondie, aone of the seven-league boots slid under Charonas boat, and I canat reach it.a aHmma we need a tool, or else someone small. Hopper, can you lend a flipper?a Apple asked.
aI canat just change at will, you know,a said Hopper, straightening his bow tie.
Apple studied him a momenta”looking deeper, as her mother had adviseda”and caught him casting a furtive glance at Briar.
aOh, Briar!a said Apple. aCould you help us out for a minute?a Briar left Melody to run over, because Briar rarely walked if she could run instead.
aWhatas up?a aCould you tell Hopper here how das.h.i.+ng he looks today?a aIa uha hi, Briara umaa Hopper stuttered.