was going to happen. Did she think I would yell out, âOoohh goodie, a present! Gimme, gimmeâ? I might be shallow, but Iâm not dumb. The gift thing may have worked once, but if I fell for it a second time, I deserved to be zapped into oblivion.
Rexi motioned for me and Kato to stop. âMaybe if we stay put, Griz will keep flying ahead,â she whispered.
Stormball after stormball crashed through the grove, then nothing. After a solid minute with no new strikes, I whispered, âMaybe sheâs moved on.â
There was a slight rustle in the trees just behind us. I looked up and found tiny pinprick holes appearing in the canopy.
What in Grimmâs name was going on now?
Stupidly, I went over to investigate. Face tilted to the sky, I felt a drop on my cheek. I hissed quietly in pain because it burned. Like acid. Somehow the witch was making it rain acid, and it was coming down through the trees. A yip right above me. So not Griz, but the puppies.
I really didnât want to think about where the acid was coming from. I prayed it was drool. The alternative was too gross to think about.
The puppies spread out in a scatter pattern, making their acid melt through the trees. Rexiâs eyes bugged out and she made weird hand signals.
I mouthed, What?
She exhaled heavily and shook her head. We have to move , she mouthed back.
Right then, some splatter landed on Katoâs wing. With a mighty roar, Kato let the world know his pain.
And our location.
I didnât think; I just moved, shoving Kato out of the way. Milliseconds later, a stormball crashed in the exact spot where he had been standing.
âI see you,â Griz singsonged directly above us on her cloud.
âGo!â Rexi grabbed my hand and took off.
The world became a blur of gold as leaves whipped past my face. The trees behind us burst into flames, driving us forward. The grove was getting lighter, a sure sign that it was coming to an end.
I pointed to the tree line in front of us. âSplit up as soon as weâre out!â
Rexi nodded. We broke through the trees, and I aimed to veer right. My foot hit air.
We had run off a cliff.
âRule #14: For protection, a princess should never carry something as unladylike as a sword. Kitchen utensils are handy in a pinch.â
â Definitive Fairy-Tale Survival Guide, Volume 1
10
If I Only Had a Head
My dress plumed out around me, but it did nothing to slow my descent. Rexi and I fell like shrieking stones, still holding hands. Kato spread his wings and caught the wind.
I grabbed his paw and prayed to the Storymakers for a miracle. In answer to my prayer, we hovered for a moment. Then we sank again. Katoâs wings werenât strong enough to support all of our weight.
I let go of him.
Spinning wildly, turning end over end, the force ripped Rexi and I apart.
In my somersaults, I caught glimpses of the earth below. It was blue. My last thoughts before I hit were, Hooray, water is better than jagged rocks, and then, I donât know how to swim .
The air whooshed out of my lungs as I performed a spectacular belly flop. Momentarily stunned, my head became submerged. When my body decided to obey my brainâs commands again, it was too late. The weight of my dress pulled me down as effectively as any anchor.
The water was cold, and my fingers started to freeze up. I struggled with the pearl buttons at my back. If I could only get this Grimm-forsaken dress off.
My chest burned. The desire to take a breath was nearly overwhelming. As my vision closed in, something hit the water with a big splash. Probably a stormball. Maybe it would get me before I drowned.
Just when I thought I would give in to the urge to inhale, something pushed me to the surface. I started breathing a half beat before my mouth met air. Coughing the water back out of my lungs, I noticed that my hacking echoed. It looked like I had emerged under a shelf in a canyonâs wall.
Starting
Rexi motioned for me and Kato to stop. âMaybe if we stay put, Griz will keep flying ahead,â she whispered.
Stormball after stormball crashed through the grove, then nothing. After a solid minute with no new strikes, I whispered, âMaybe sheâs moved on.â
There was a slight rustle in the trees just behind us. I looked up and found tiny pinprick holes appearing in the canopy.
What in Grimmâs name was going on now?
Stupidly, I went over to investigate. Face tilted to the sky, I felt a drop on my cheek. I hissed quietly in pain because it burned. Like acid. Somehow the witch was making it rain acid, and it was coming down through the trees. A yip right above me. So not Griz, but the puppies.
I really didnât want to think about where the acid was coming from. I prayed it was drool. The alternative was too gross to think about.
The puppies spread out in a scatter pattern, making their acid melt through the trees. Rexiâs eyes bugged out and she made weird hand signals.
I mouthed, What?
She exhaled heavily and shook her head. We have to move , she mouthed back.
Right then, some splatter landed on Katoâs wing. With a mighty roar, Kato let the world know his pain.
And our location.
I didnât think; I just moved, shoving Kato out of the way. Milliseconds later, a stormball crashed in the exact spot where he had been standing.
âI see you,â Griz singsonged directly above us on her cloud.
âGo!â Rexi grabbed my hand and took off.
The world became a blur of gold as leaves whipped past my face. The trees behind us burst into flames, driving us forward. The grove was getting lighter, a sure sign that it was coming to an end.
I pointed to the tree line in front of us. âSplit up as soon as weâre out!â
Rexi nodded. We broke through the trees, and I aimed to veer right. My foot hit air.
We had run off a cliff.
âRule #14: For protection, a princess should never carry something as unladylike as a sword. Kitchen utensils are handy in a pinch.â
â Definitive Fairy-Tale Survival Guide, Volume 1
10
If I Only Had a Head
My dress plumed out around me, but it did nothing to slow my descent. Rexi and I fell like shrieking stones, still holding hands. Kato spread his wings and caught the wind.
I grabbed his paw and prayed to the Storymakers for a miracle. In answer to my prayer, we hovered for a moment. Then we sank again. Katoâs wings werenât strong enough to support all of our weight.
I let go of him.
Spinning wildly, turning end over end, the force ripped Rexi and I apart.
In my somersaults, I caught glimpses of the earth below. It was blue. My last thoughts before I hit were, Hooray, water is better than jagged rocks, and then, I donât know how to swim .
The air whooshed out of my lungs as I performed a spectacular belly flop. Momentarily stunned, my head became submerged. When my body decided to obey my brainâs commands again, it was too late. The weight of my dress pulled me down as effectively as any anchor.
The water was cold, and my fingers started to freeze up. I struggled with the pearl buttons at my back. If I could only get this Grimm-forsaken dress off.
My chest burned. The desire to take a breath was nearly overwhelming. As my vision closed in, something hit the water with a big splash. Probably a stormball. Maybe it would get me before I drowned.
Just when I thought I would give in to the urge to inhale, something pushed me to the surface. I started breathing a half beat before my mouth met air. Coughing the water back out of my lungs, I noticed that my hacking echoed. It looked like I had emerged under a shelf in a canyonâs wall.
Starting
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