Freddie's Shadow Cards

by Jessica Brody

  The tea shop was ruined and the money for the costumes had to go to fix the broken pipe.

  Jordan couldn’t film any episodes of her Web show for a month.

  Carlos was in the infirmary with a busted shoulder.

  And what about me? Freddie thought as she lay in the pitch darkness of her dorm room. I lost my only shot at getting into the Auradonnas. The only thing that made me want to stay at Auradon Prep is gone.

  It was like they had all paid a price for using the cards to get what they wanted.

  Freddie suddenly remembered a conversation she’d had with her dad when she was a little girl.

  “Why do they call you the shadow man?” she’d asked him once as he tucked her into bed. The small candle by her bedside was casting a giant, eerie shadow of her father on the wall.

  Her father smiled his dark, sinister smile and said, “Because I demand a price for everything I do. Because every favor I grant has a shadow side, a dark consequence. That’s how you become powerful. That’s how you win.”

  Then he’d blown out the candle, extinguishing his dark shadow, and left the room.

  Now Freddie sat up in her bed and turned on the light, causing shadows to appear all around her Auradon Prep dorm room. The low light made them all twisted and disfigured. The four posts of her bed looked like long, sharp fingernails. The dresser with the mirror on top looked like an ugly monster with horns. The makeshift pirate ship sail that CJ had fashioned on her own bed looked like a murky swamp.

  And then there was Freddie’s own shadow, sitting faithfully beside her on the bed. It appeared to be mocking her.

  “I thought you were my friend,” she whispered quietly to the shadow. She could almost hear it laughing in response, calling her a fool. Because that’s exactly what she felt like: a fool. She had trusted the cards, she had trusted her own shadow, and both had betrayed her. In a sudden fit of rage, Freddie jumped out of bed and ripped all the sheets off the mattress. But her shadow just slunk to the floor.

  She turned on another light, trying to chase it away, but the shadow just jumped across the room to CJ’s bed.

  Freddie lunged at it, but it was too quick. That shadow was always one step ahead of her, always just managing to elude her. She took a step toward it but it leapt onto the pirate ship sail strung across CJ’s bed.

  With a roar, Freddie yanked the sail down and threw it to the floor. The shadow settled comfortably in a corner and just watched her.

  Fuming and breathless, Freddie stared it down.

  “I know how to get rid of you,” she threatened.

  The shadow didn’t reply.

  Freddie marched over to the first lamp and switched it off. Her shadow moved obediently closer to her. She swore it looked scared now.

  She crept over to the other lamp, the only light left in the room, poised her finger on the cord, and, with an evil grin, pulled down hard.

  The dorm room plunged into darkness and her shadow was finally, finally gone.

  As Freddie stood in the pitch-blackness, breathing heavily, something dawned on her. She switched the light back on and watched all the shadows in the room reappear, including her own.

  Every light casts a shadow, she realized.

  Everything has a dark side.

  Even in Auradon.

  “Of course,” she whispered aloud. “Shadow Cards.”

  That’s why they were called what they were called.

  It was just as her father had told her all those years ago.

  Every wish has a shadow side.

  Every favor has a price.

  And now the cards had collected their payment.

  Have you ever realized your amazing plan for getting exactly what you wanted had a dark side you never could have imagined?

  Yeah, me too.

  Freddie awoke the next morning to find the disaster she had made of her dorm room, and all the horrors of the day before came flooding back to her.

  The cards had tricked her.

  They had promised her things without warning her of the price.

  And worst of all, she worried they weren’t finished collecting.

  What if they weren’t satisfied with the payments they had received? What if they wreaked even more havoc on the school? What if she had unknowingly released evil shadow spirits at Auradon Prep and they never ever stopped destroying things?

  If she had learned anything growing up with her father it was that you should never trust a shadow man. He was always one step ahead of you. He was always finding a way to manipulate the situation. He always wanted more. And that deck of cards was basically just another shadow man.

  But that was all in the past. Now she just knew she had to fix this. She had to figure out how to reverse what she’d done to Ally, Jordan, Carlos, and herself. And she had to stop the cards from doing any more damage.

  The problem was she had no idea how she was going to accomplish that.

  When breakfast time rolled around, Freddie didn’t even bother going downstairs to the banquet hall. She didn’t want to face Ally and Jordan again and she wasn’t hungry anyway. There was a sickly, sour feeling in her stomach that she couldn’t identify, but it felt like it was eating her alive.

  And worst of all, she had no one to talk to about any of it.

  Mal was busy consoling Ben about the royal tour Freddie’s cards had sabotaged. Evie was busy helping Carlos with his dislocated shoulder (also the fault of the cards). And Jordan and Ally weren’t even speaking to her.

  It wasn’t like Freddie had anyone else to go to. Who around here would even understand? Who at Auradon Prep could possibly know what it’s like to deal with evil shadow forces set on ruining your life?

  No one there could understand the kind of dark, sinister magic Freddie was dealing with, let alone help.

  She simply had to accept the fact that there was no fix to the Shadow Cards. There was no light for this darkness. She couldn’t just undo a flood in the tea shop or unsuspend Jordan’s Web show or undislocate Carlos’s shoulder.

  If she was to fix this mess, she’d need to find someone who knew how to counteract shadow magic. Someone with the power to reverse black magic spells. And the only person she’d ever heard of who could do that was…

  “Slithering snakes!” Freddie jumped to her feet as an idea came to her. “Why didn’t I think of that before?”

  She didn’t waste another minute; she didn’t have another minute to waste. She sprinted out of her dorm room and ran all the way to the banquet hall. She scanned the crowded room until she found Ally and Jordan. They were sitting at separate tables, still not talking to each other after the big fight they’d all gotten into the day before.

  They both looked horrible. Ally had puffy eyes, probably from crying all night, and even Jordan, who was always so put together, looked like she’d barely even glanced in a mirror that morning.

  Freddie darted over to Ally’s table, grabbed her by the hand, yanked her out of her chair, and dragged her toward the other side of the hall. Ally griped and complained the whole way.

  “I have to talk to you guys,” Freddie said urgently when she and Ally had reached Jordan’s table. The two girls would barely even look at each other.

  “What?” Jordan asked coldly, glaring at Freddie.

  Freddie took a deep breath. “I think I know how to fix this. All of this.”

  Ally looked curious. But it was Jordan who smirked, crossed her arms over her chest, and said, “I’m listening.”

  Freddie smiled. “How do you guys feel about taking a little field trip the Bayou D’Orleans?”

  I have an idea.

  I just hope it works!

  “What’s in the bayou?” Jordan asked once they had all reconvened inside Jordan’s lamp, which was basically just her bedroom except it was inside a genie’s lamp.

  Freddie hadn’t wanted to talk about her plan in the middle of the banquet hall because she was afraid someone would overhear.

  Freddie’s eyes lit
up as she prepared to tell Ally and Jordan her big idea. “Someone who can help us undo the Shadow Cards’ curse.”

  Ally looked skeptical. “Who?”

  “Mama Odie!” Freddie said with excitement.

  “Who?” Jordan echoed.

  Freddie had expected a better response than that. She sighed. “She’s the voodoo queen of the bayou.”

  “Nuh-uh,” Ally immediately retorted. “No more voodoo magic.”

  “No, you don’t understand,” Freddie tried to explain. “She uses voodoo for good. My dad always hated her. He complained about her constantly. Back when they both lived in the bayou they were rivals. She was the light side and he was the dark side of the voodoo arts. My dad got banished to the Isle of the Lost, but she’s still in the bayou! Because she’s good. She can help us. She can reverse the spell.”

  “Really?” Jordan asked, and Freddie could tell she was starting to come around.

  “Yes, really,” Freddie insisted. “She can get you your Web show back and—” she turned to Ally. “She can fix up the tea shop. She’ll solve everything!”

  “How do you know?” Ally said. “Have you talked to her?”

  Freddie balked slightly at this. “No. Not really. But I just know. Dad was always griping about her undoing his best shadow spells. I know if we go see her and tell her what happened, she’ll help.”

  Ally bit her lip. “I don’t know. Magic got us into this mess. Is it really the best idea to use it to get out?”

  “Well, I’m down,” Jordan said.

  Ally and Freddie turned toward her and said in unison, “You are?”

  “Yeah,” Jordan said. “Let’s do this. Let’s get this show on the road. I need that Web show back ASAP before I start losing subscribers.”

  Freddie beamed. She knew she liked Jordan.

  “B-b-but,” Ally stammered, clearly not convinced yet. “But we can’t just leave.”

  “The bayou is not that far,” Jordan pointed out. “We’ll be gone less than a day. I’m in.” Jordan made an ambiguous gesture toward Ally. “I don’t know about her.”

  “Um,” Ally said hesitantly. “Um.”

  “C’mon,” Jordan coaxed with annoyance. “Stop daydreaming for one second and make a decision already!”

  “Fine!” Ally yelled. “I’ll go.” She reeled on Freddie. “But even if this works, I’m still not letting you into the Auradonnas.”

  “Good,” Jordan said, taking command. “Then it’s settled. I’ll secure the transportation and we’ll meet at the King Beast statue in an hour.”

  An hour later, Freddie showed up at the big statue of King Beast in front of the school.

  Ally and Jordan were already there, backs turned toward each other, staring at their phones like they were each pretending the other didn’t exist.

  Seeing them ignore each other gave Freddie that unfamiliar sickly feeling in her stomach again, the same one she’d had in her dorm room earlier.

  What is that? she thought. Whatever it is, I don’t like it.

  Freddie cleared her throat. “So, who’s ready for an epic adventure into the bayou?” She was trying to sound upbeat in hopes of lifting the girls’ spirits. It didn’t work. They glanced up at her momentarily, each mumbling something incomprehensible, before returning to their phones. Freddie didn’t blame them. She wasn’t exactly an upbeat kind of girl. Dark and brooding always seemed to fit her best.

  She sighed and glanced around the empty street in front of them. “Where’s this transportation you were going to secure?” she asked Jordan.

  But before Jordan could answer, Freddie heard an obnoxiously shrill honking sound, and a second later, a car in the brightest shade of orange Freddie had ever seen pulled up to the curb.

  It was a minivan. And Fairy Godmother was driving it.

  “Yoo-hoo!” she called out the open window. “Who’s ready for a road trip?”

  Freddie leaned in to Jordan and whispered. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  “Is she coming with us?” Ally asked, blinking her huge eyes in wonderment.

  “No,” Jordan said behind her hand. “I told her we needed transpo for a school project and she offered to let us take her car.”

  Fairy Godmother opened the car door and hopped out, clasping her hands together. “I just love seeing you three girls working together and getting along so well.”

  “Say what now?” Freddie asked Jordan.

  “Oh, right,” Jordan added quietly. “And she thinks we’re all the bestest of besties, so just go with it, okay?”

  Before either Freddie or Ally could argue, Jordan stretched her arms out wide and pulled both girls into a hug. “I know, right?” she crooned to Fairy Godmother. “I just love these two to pieces!”

  “I did not agree to this,” Freddie mumbled under her breath.

  “Just play along,” Jordan mumbled back as she released them.

  Freddie sighed and slipped into her role. “What can I say? These two are the greatest!”

  Jordan turned on the charm for Fairy Godmother. “It’s so nice of you to let us drive this”—Jordan gestured toward the car—“lovely automobile.”

  Fairy Godmother glanced back at her minivan and gave a wistful sigh. “It is lovely, isn’t it? The color is custom! Pumpkin orange! And it has eighteen cup holders! I call it the Bobbidi Buggy!”

  “Well, it’s perfect,” Jordan said, giving Freddie a nudge.

  “Wicked awesome,” Freddie added with a totally fake smile.

  Fairy Godmother beamed as she handed Jordan the keys.

  “Well, you three have fun together!” Fairy Godmother said.

  Ally linked arms with Freddie. “I can’t imagine us having anything else!” she said in an over-the-top bubbly voice.

  “Wonderful!” Fairy Godmother said as she turned and pranced into the castle. As soon as she was out of sight, Ally dropped Freddie’s arm, Freddie’s smile fell from her face, and Jordan snapped in a brusque tone, “Everybody in. Let’s get this over with.”

  So, I’m not 100 percent sure how we’ll find Mama Odie. I guess we’ll figure that out once this car comes to a halt. And I really hope it does.

  I’m starting to wish we had taken that magic carpet.

  The car ride to the bayou was uncomfortable, to say the least. No one spoke. Freddie tried to hum a song to pass the time but she was quickly shushed by Ally and Jordan, who apparently wanted to ride in complete silence.

  As they drove, Freddie stared out the window and thought about the last time she had visited the bayou with her real bestie, CJ.

  She wondered what CJ was doing right then. Where she was, who she was meeting. What she was plundering. It made her smile to think about CJ wreaking havoc on the seas of Auradon in her mighty pirate ship.

  Then she wondered what CJ would have done in this situation. Would she have gone out of her way to help a bunch of AKs solve their problems? Even if she was the one to blame for them?

  Freddie almost laughed aloud at the thought.

  Most definitely not.

  CJ would have just taken off, leaving the mess behind her, the way she always did. She loved leaving disaster in her wake.

  But Freddie was different. She realized that now. She didn’t want to be just a VK. And she certainly didn’t want to be an AK, either. She wanted to be something in between.

  She wanted to do the right thing.

  And she was positive this was it.

  Well, almost positive.

  When they arrived at the bayou, everyone was still grumpy and on edge. Freddie decided to take command of the situation. The faster she could get them all to Mama Odie’s and fix this mess, the faster they could put it all behind them.

  “Okay,” Freddie said, stepping out of the car and stretching her legs. “We need to figure out a plan.”

  “A plan?” Ally said, slamming her door. “I thought you said you had a plan.”

  “I do,” Freddie said. “My plan is to get to the bayou and find Mama
Odie. Now we just need a plan on how to do that.”

  “You mean, we came all the way out here and you don’t even know where Mama Odie is?” Jordan shrieked.

  “Of course, I know where she is,” Freddie defended. “She’s in the bayou.”

  Exasperated, Jordan gestured around at the large and bustling city they were currently smack dab in the middle of. “Uh, hello? The bayou is huge!”

  “This was a terrible idea,” Ally cried. “I don’t know how I let you two talk me into this. This is going to be a catastrophe. We’re never going to find her. The tea shop will never get fixed. And Mum is going to yell at me when she gets home. And…”

  As Ally continued to rant incessantly, Jordan whispered to Freddie, “She gets a little cranky when she’s hungry.”

  Ally stopped talking and looked eagerly at Jordan. “Hungry? Who’s hungry? You’re hungry? I’m hungry, too. Is anyone else hungry?”

  Freddie snorted out a laugh. “Okay, let’s get something to eat and we’ll talk about what we’re going to do next.” Her eyes scanned their surroundings until she spotted the marina in the distance and a familiar little restaurant with a red sign.

  Her lips curved into a smile. “C’mon. I know just the place.”

  The three girls sat at a table in the Bass Notes and Beignets jazz club, stuffing their faces with delicious hot beignets. Freddie could already feel that with sugar in their stomachs and sultry jazz music in their ears, the girls’ spirits were lifting.

  Freddie was so happy to be back there. It was the most at home she’d felt in a long time.

  “I’ve never heard this kind of music before,” Ally said, swaying gently to the beat of the instrumental song coming from the small stage in the back of the club. “What is it?”

  Freddie’s forehead wrinkled. “You’ve never heard jazz music before?”

  Ally shrugged. “Mum always played classical in the house when I was growing up.”

  “Well, this is the sound I grew up on,” Freddie said.

  “It’s very…” Ally searched for the right word. “Unique.”

  “Jazz music is super versatile,” Freddie explained. “You can pretty much take any song and make it jazz.”