Magic and Other Misdemeanors (The Sisters Grimm, Book 5)

by Michael Buckley

  "You're not going to touch them, mutt," the blond woman said, waving her sword in the air.

  "Or someone is going to get fixed," the woman in the coat added.

  The Wolf clambered to his feet and eyed the women. "Back off. These are my kills!"

  "You back off, or I'll take your other eye," the woman with the sword replied. It was then that Sabrina noticed that the Wolf's left eye was white with blindness and framed by an ugly scar.

  The monster growled and leaped at the blond woman. She swung her sword and hit the beast in the arm. The Wolf shrieked and swung back, hitting her so hard she flew against a tree. The brunette rubbed the glowing ring against her jacket and another blast rocketed at the monster. The Wolf leaped out of the way, dodging the projectile by inches.

  The woman with the sword sprang to her feet. With the Wolf in pain and confused, she climbed up onto his enormous back. Raising her weapon high over his head, she brought the hilt down hard between the beast's eyes. He staggered, dazed. "He's all yours, sister," she shouted to her companion.

  The dark-haired woman pulled a wand from inside her coat. She flicked her wrist and said, "Gimme some chains," and a ray of light shot out of the wand's tip. The woman's aim was perfect

  and a stream of particles fluttered out of the wand, forming a chain so thick it looked as if it could tie down a battleship. The chains themselves weaved around the Wolf, binding him tightly. He struggled, snarling and snapping at the women, but he was momentarily helpless.

  "Who are they?" Daphne whispered to her sister.

  Sabrina searched her memory for any reference to a couple of tough chicks who could take down the Big Bad Wolf. She'd never read anything in the family journals about them. "I was hoping you would know."

  The blond woman turned to Sabrina and looked at her closely. Suddenly her confident face turned pale, as if she had just seen a ghost. "It can't be... ," she began, but she didn't get to finish. The Wolf broke loose from the chains with a powerful shrug. He pounced forward, slamming into the women and knocking them both to the ground.

  "I've been waiting a long time for this meal," the Wolf said, licking his huge jaws.

  "Uh-uh-uh," said a voice from above them. It was deep but had a playful, boyish quality. Sabrina looked up and saw a man with golden hair descending from the trees. On his back were a pair of huge insectlike wings. "I hate it when people threaten my family. It's so... well, rude."

  An arrow flew from the crossbow in his hands. It hit the Wolf in the leg and the monster bellowed, crashing to the ground. The fairy attacked again, his head morphing into that of a saber-toothed tiger. He sunk his heavy fangs into the monster's back and the Wolf shrieked.

  "We need to go get help," Sabrina said to her sister. She snatched the little girl by the sleeve and pulled her into the woods, leaving the battle behind.

  "But the house is back the other way," Daphne cried.

  "We're not going to the house," Sabrina said. "Granny's at the bank, and so is our secret weapon."

  Chapter 6

  The girls hurried through the woods, clambering over rocks and down hills until they finally found a road. It was there that Daphne pulled away to catch her breath. "We should go back home and get Uncle Jake," the little girl said.

  "He's not there, remember?" Sabrina said. "Everyone is out running errands."

  "But what about those women and the fairy? We can't just leave them back there. He'll kill them," Daphne argued.

  "I think the three of them can defend themselves," Sabrina said as she scanned the edge of the forest in case the Wolf had indeed slaughtered the odd trio and was now on their trail. "Besides, we're just a couple of kids. We need help if we're going to try to stop Mr. Canis."

  "What kind of help?"

  Sabrina approached her sister. "You remember the key that Mr. Hamstead gave us before we left New York City?"

  Daphne slipped a hand inside of her shirt and pulled out a necklace. Dangling from its end was a small silver key with several numbers engraved on its side. "This?"

  Sabrina nodded. "Remember, Hamstead gave us this and told us to use it only if Mr. Canis ever lost control of the Wolf. It opens a safety-deposit box. Hamstead said there was a weapon inside that could stop the Wolf in his tracks."

  Daphne looked down at the silver key. "What's a safety-deposit box?"

  "It's like a safe. You put your valuables in it. They keep them at the bank."

  "That's where Granny is."

  "I know. She can help us too." Sabrina took Daphne's hand. "We have to hurry."

  Unfortunately the road they were on was the long way to town, and it took several hours of steady walking before they came across any hint of civilization. The first thing they recognized was a farm they had driven by many times. Granny had told them it was owned by Old McDonald, the farmer from the famous nursery rhyme. But as they approached, they were shocked to see that the farm looked as if it had been abandoned. The fields were overgrown with weeds, the barns were falling down on themselves, and the cattle pens and livestock houses were empty. As they got closer they realized that the farmer's house had been destroyed by a terrible fire. Oddly, the destruction appeared to have occurred long ago.

  "What happened?" Daphne said, asking the question Sabrina had knocking around in her own head.

  "I don't know," Sabrina said. "Did Granny mention this?"

  Daphne shook her head.

  "C'mon," Sabrina continued. "We can't hang out here all day. I think we've got another half an hour of walking before we get to Main Street."

  They soon came across the rusty railroad tracks that ran along the Hudson River and led to the train station in the center of town. As they walked along the tracks they saw more surprising scenes. The stern of an enormous sunken ship was sticking out of the water. Several broken-down cars lined the grassy beach. When they finally stepped into town, they noticed a sign above the train station. It had once read WELCOME TO FERRYPORT LANDING, but someone had crossed out the

  FERRYPORT

  and added a more sinister message. The sign now read BEWARE

  ! YOU ARE NOW ENTERING

  FAIRYPORT LANDING

  Even more shocking was the state of the town. The little shops were abandoned, their doors torn away and windows broken. Many stores were in flames. There were sounds of fire alarms in the distance, but no sign of any fire trucks. The streets were deserted, riddled with potholes and smoldering automobiles.

  Sabrina couldn't believe what she was seeing. "I guess Uncle Jake isn't doing such a good job of keeping Baba Yaga in check."

  "This is going to take an awful lot of Forgetful Dust," Daphne said as she gaped at all the destruction.

  When they came upon the bank, they were stunned to find the building was nothing but cinders. Everything inside it was burned to a black ash, including the tellers' windows, the ATM, and most important, the safety-deposit boxes. There was nothing left.

  "Granny!" Daphne cried, nearly in hysterics.

  Sabrina reached down and scooped up a handful of ash. It was cool to the touch.

  "Daphne, this happened a long time ago," Sabrina said, trying to reassure her sister while deciphering the puzzle before her. "If the bank burned down this morning, why is the ash cold?"

  Sabrina looked around at the little town. The streets were empty. In fact, there wasn't a living soul in sight. Where were all the people?

  "Something's wrong," she said. "I must be having another hallucination."

  "Well, I'm having the same one you are," Daphne said.

  Suddenly, the street went dark, as if something had blocked out the sun. Sabrina watched an enormous shadow zip across the street and vanish. The sunshine returned as fast as it disappeared.

  "Uh, what was that?" Daphne said nervously.

  Sabrina scanned the skies. "Must have been a cloud."

  Just then, there was an enormous roar, like the angry threats of a thousand lions. It rattled Sabrina's ears as well as a loose shard of glass in
the window of Dr. P's abandoned dentist office. The glass fell from its frame and broke on the pavement.

  "Clouds don't make noises like that," Daphne said. "Clouds don't make noises at all!"

  Sabrina continued studying the sky. She spotted something far off on the horizon. At first it was tiny--no bigger than a bird--but as it approached, Sabrina could see that it was actually quite large and incredibly fast. As it drew closer, Sabrina could make out its bright red wings, which spanned the width of a football field. They supported a huge, reptilian body covered in scales and a long tail that slashed through the air. The creature's neck was snakelike and it had enormous teeth. Sabrina had seen a drawing of it in an old children's book. She had even seen a movie about a kid who had one as a pet. But this thing was no pet.

  "Run!" Sabrina yelled as she latched onto her sister's hand. Together they sped down the broken street, dodging potholes and burned-out cars.

  "Sabrina, is that what I think it is?" Daphne shouted over the monster's wail.

  And then the creature fell from the sky and landed in their path. It crouched down, almost like a cat, and sniffed the air around them. Its breath smelled of fumes and sulfur.

  "Yes. It's a dragon," Sabrina whispered.

  The creature roared once more and a blast of blisteringly hot air danced across Sabrina's skin. Luckily the beast was too far away to burn them.

  "Heads up, kiddies!" said a voice from above. Sabrina looked to the sky, sure that the voice belonged to their only hope--Puck. But it wasn't Puck. Instead, it was the strange fairy they had encountered in the woods. He fell out of the sky like a missile and planted his feet on top of the dragon's snout. The impact forced the beast's chin into the pavement, stunning it for a few moments. Then it reared back and belched a ball of flame at the fairy. The winged man was quick in the air, darting back and forth with amazing speed and agility, and the deadly missile never reached its target. But the dragon was not discouraged. It let loose a dozen more blasts at the flying man, edging closer to him with each attempt. Luckily, the fairy steered the monster away from Sabrina and Daphne.

  "You have to come with us," said a voice from behind them. The girls spun around to find the blond warrior woman. She had her sword drawn, while her sister, the dark-haired woman, was holding a wand that glowed with green energy.

  "We're not going anywhere with you," Sabrina said, stepping in front of her sister. She clenched her fists and snarled, preparing for a fight if the older women wanted one. She set her feet the way Ms. White had taught her, but before she could even take a swing, the fairy snatched her and Daphne off the ground and hoisted them onto his shoulders like they were a couple of sacks of potatoes.

  "There's no time to explain," the fair-haired woman said. "We have to get to safety. If they find you out here, they will kill you.

  "Who?" Daphne cried. "Who will kill us?"

  "The Scarlet Hand."

  Sabrina and Daphne shouted a million questions, but every one was ignored. Instead, the dark-haired woman reached into one of the many pockets on her jacket and took out what appeared to be a tiny blue marble. With her other hand she snatched Sabrina by the arm. The blond woman grabbed Sabrina by the other arm and then latched onto Daphne.

  "Don't forget about me," the fairy said as he planted a kiss on the blond woman and put an arm around her waist. A moment later Sabrina felt energy swirl around her body. It seemed to invade her pores, rush through her bloodstream, and dance on the edges of her mind. She looked over at her sister to find that Daphne's hair was standing on end, and she had to assume her own was doing the same. There was a bright flash of light, like someone was snapping a picture, and then Sabrina felt a far more peculiar sensation. It wasn't uncomfortable or painful, but it felt as if her body was being folded neatly into halves, then folded again, and again, and again, until she was a tiny fragment of herself--so small she was invisible--and then she was folded once more and vanished from existence.

  * * *

  When the lights came on, Sabrina found herself lying on a pile of rags in a filthy room. Scattered about were musty books, old furniture, and boxes of odd trinkets. She scanned the room, puzzled by its familiarity. She had been here before, but where was here? She looked up at the filthy chandelier and then at a table covered in potions and odd books. One of them she could clearly see was bound with what looked like human skin. She fought a wave of revulsion.

  "We're inside Baba Yaga's house," Sabrina croaked.

  "What?" Daphne said groggily. The little girl was lying right next to Sabrina. "I was having a dream about ice cream."

  "Do you know how we got here?" Sabrina asked.

  Daphne shook her head.

  "It's really freaky," a voice said from behind them. Sabrina spun around to find the grown-up fairy sitting on a chair, watching over them. "When is your birthday?"

  "It's in two days," Sabrina replied suspiciously. "I'll be twelve."

  Just then, the warrior sisters entered the room. Sabrina studied them, noticing the scar that ran along the dark-haired woman's face. It started at the bottom of her earlobe and ran down to just below her chin. It was an ugly wound and from what Sabrina could tell, fairly fresh.

  "I don't remember this happening," the fairy said to the women. "But then again, you two were always running off on your own back then. Did it happen and you just didn't tell me?

  The blond woman shook her head. "This definitely did not happen."

  "It appears as if the phenomenon has occurred again," the woman with the scar replied.

  "What are you talking about?" Sabrina demanded. "What phenomenon?"

  "We should take them to William," the dark-haired woman said, ignoring Sabrina's questions.

  "We should take them as far away from here as possible," her sister argued. "Who knows what could happen if they got hurt."

  "You need to take us home," Sabrina interrupted. "Everything has gone crazy. The town is in ruins, there are dragons flying around, and Mr. Canis has lost control of himself. I know he looks like a monster, but that thing you were fighting is our friend."

  The brown-haired woman's face looked tense. "That creature is no one's friend," she said sternly. "We barely got away with our lives."

  "You don't understand," Sabrina argued. "My family can help. We fix problems all the time. You need to let us go home."

  "I'm afraid we can't do that," the blond woman said.

  "Oh yeah? Who do you think you are, kidnapping us?"

  The blond woman reached out for a handshake. "My name is Sabrina Grimm. This is my sister, Daphne Grimm, and my husband, Puck."

  Sabrina and Daphne stared at them. "You people are nutballs!" Sabrina cried. "Mucho nutballs-o!"

  The woman claiming to be Daphne ignored the insult. "House, head for the mountains!" she shouted, and the house made an abrupt turn, jostling the girls until they both fell to the floor. If there had been any lingering doubt in Sabrina's mind that they were in Baba Yaga's home, it was now gone.

  The blond woman who called herself Sabrina helped Sabrina and Daphne back to their feet. "I'm guessing that you're pretty confused, but we'll sort this out as soon as we get back to the camp."

  "What camp?"

  Again, their questions were ignored and the house marched on, thumping and bouncing with every step. Sabrina couldn't be sure, but she felt as if it might be running at a full sprint.

  * * *

  The camp was really a fortress surrounded by high walls made of logs. It was built in the shape of a square, with four tall towers at each corner. The towers had lookouts and each was equipped with a large cannonlike weapon that had water dripping from its barrel. Long hoses ran out of the back of the weapons and down the inside of the walls. Sabrina watched from a window of Baba

  Yaga's house as an immense gate swung open to allow them to enter the compound. Once the witch's house was inside, the gate was closed again and then reinforced with beams to prevent it from being opened from outside.

  Inside stood a
dozen tiny cabins made from stones, a small farm, a pen for cattle and chickens, and what looked like an elaborate obstacle course. Men and women rushed through it while a small man barked orders at them.

  The house trotted over to a well and awkwardly dropped to the ground. Sabrina noticed the long tubes attached to the cannons ran down into the well, and she understood that the weapons in the towers shot water, probably at approaching dragons.

  A moment later, the fairy who claimed to be Puck opened the door. Waiting outside was an elderly man wearing what appeared to be a burlap sack he had fashioned into a shirt and pants.

  "How goes it, Faithful John?" the fairy asked, taking the man's hand and shaking it vigorously.

  "All is quiet, so all is good," the man said with a smile.

  "Where's William?" the woman with the scar asked as she stepped outside.

  "He's on patrol but should be back soon," Faithful John replied. Just then, there was a loud trumpeting. "I guess that's him."

  The doors swung open once more and a great white horse charged through. A rugged man, dressed in purple slacks and a white shirt, sat atop the horse. His hair was long and dark and he held a sword in one hand and the horse's reins in the other. Sabrina and Daphne had to jump out of the horse's path for fear of being trampled.

  "The Hand has a platoon of card soldiers by the river!" the man shouted. "Tell the general that we might be able to attack at dusk."

  Faithful John nodded and raced toward a tent on the other side of the camp.

  As for the man on the horse, he leaped off while the great doors of the camp were once again secured. Sabrina took a closer look at him. He was shockingly handsome, despite his unkempt beard, long hair, and filthy clothing. There was also something very familiar about him, though she couldn't be sure just what.