A Grimm Warning (The Land of Stories, #3)(81)

“Which you just lost in the election for queen,” Bree pieced together. “But now the kingdom is a republic because the new queen changed the government. Can she do that?”

“Evidently,” Red said, and pursed her lips at the thought of it.

“In our country we have a Congress and a House of Representatives to keep the president from doing things like that, I guess,” Bree said.

“Yes, well, I thought I did, too,” Red said with flared nostrils. “I hand selected representatives so I couldn’t be blamed for my biased decision making and the whole kingdom still turned on me. I don’t know where I went wrong.”

“But who is the queen of your country now?” Emmerich asked.

“Little Bo Bimbo,” Red replied without a hint of sarcasm. “She’s the ugliest, most horrendous creature to ever live in the Red Riding Hood Kingdom and she scared all the villagers into voting for her.”

“Now that sounds like politics in our world,” Bree said.

“I’ve never heard of Little Bo Bimbo,” Emmerich said, and shivered at the thought of her.

“Then you’re a very lucky man,” Red said. A small smile appeared on her face; it was very therapeutic for her to make things up about Little Bo Peep. She only wished she had done it during the election.

“They’re back!” Mother Goose said, pointing to the sky.

A shadow passed over the balcony and they looked to the sky and saw Alex and Conner descending on Lester’s back. They landed on the balcony and their friends eagerly approached them.

“Well, what did you find?” Mother Goose asked.

“The army recruited the prisoners!” Conner said as he hopped down from the giant goose. “The soldiers were training them for combat when we flew above their camp—there are thousands of them!”

Mother Goose placed a hand over her heart. “Oh dear,” she said. “What should we do next?”

“I’m thinking,” Alex said as she climbed down from Lester. “In the meantime, Mother Goose, please see that all the Fairy Council members gather in the hall as quickly as possible. Conner, go with her and tell the other fairies about what we’ve seen. The first thing I need to do is get the kings and queens to the Fairy Palace as quickly as possible so they can join in the conversation. This isn’t a Fairy Council matter; it’s an issue the entire Happily Ever After Assembly needs to discuss.”

Mother Goose and Conner nodded and headed inside the palace. Alex raised her wand in the air and then cracked it like a whip six times. A series of shimmering lights flashed around the balcony and six enormous swans the size of Lester magically appeared in front of her. Alex spun the tip of her wand above the palm of her hand and a stack of papers appeared. She rolled the papers and put one in each swan’s mouth.

“What are those?” Froggy asked.

“Invitations,” Alex said, and handed Froggy an extra copy to read.


To the members of the Royal Families,

An emergency has occurred and all members of the Happily Ever After Assembly and their families must report to the Fairy Palace immediately. We will provide details of the matter upon your arrival.

Thank you,

Alex Bailey, Acting Fairy Godmother



“I need you to take these to the kings and queens of the Corner Kingdom, the Charming Kingdom, the Northern Kingdom, the Eastern Kingdom, and the Bo Peep Republic as quickly as possible and bring the rulers back,” Alex instructed the first five swans, then turned to the sixth. “As for you, I have other acquaintances I’d like you to deliver this invitation to.”

She whispered further instructions into the swan’s ear so the others couldn’t hear.

“If they don’t cooperate, you have my permission to persuade them however you can,” she said. “Bring them back by the ankles if you must—these invitations are not optional. Now go.”

All six swans bowed and then launched into the air one at a time. They flew off in opposite directions at speeds birds had never flown before.

“Now what?” Red asked. “Do you think the kings and queens will take your message seriously?”

“We’ll have to wait and see,” Alex said, hoping with all her heart they would.

After a few hours of waiting, Red and Froggy took Bree and Emmerich inside to give Alex some time to think alone. She paced back and forth so many times she almost left a mark on the floor. When she was studying wars in History in school, Alex had never imagined that one day she would be in one, let alone leading it. Was she equipped to lead the Happily Ever After Assembly into a war against a general of an empire?

She prayed her strengths of common sense and logic would be enough to make up for her lack of battle strategy. She kept thinking about the great war heroes from her world, like Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. What would they have done if they were in her shoes? What sort of plan would they have created? What would her grandmother have done if she wasn’t ill?

Alex heard a commotion from above and looked up to the evening sky. One by one the swans came into view as they returned to the palace, bringing the kings and queens from opposite ends of the Land of Stories with them.

Alex sighed with relief as they all glided to her—she was so glad to see none of them had rejected her invitation.

Five swans landed on the balcony one after the other. The first swan carried King Chance, Queen Cinderella, and their two-year-old daughter, Princess Hope, from the Charming Kingdom. The second swan carried Queen Sleeping Beauty and King Chase from the Eastern Kingdom. The third swan carried Queen Snow White and King Chandler from the Northern Kingdom. The fourth swan carried Queen Rapunzel and her husband, Sir William, from the Corner Kingdom. And the fifth swan carried Queen Little Bo Peep.