Personally I think I earned every penny of that seven million dollars Puck said laughing so hard that he rolled over onto his fat blubbery side Giggling he transformed
back into his true form an annoying eleven-year-old boy Sabrina’s head hurt too much for her to be angry at his recklessness She was exhausted and her arm felt as if it were ready to fall off She gazed around the barn A few bales of hay sat in the corner and an old plow lay rusting on the ground High on the wall several windows were wide open allowing the snowstorm to blow inside It was freezing but at least they were out of the wind Puck must have heard her teeth chattering because he did something so un-Puck like Sabrina couldn’t believe it He got up sat down behind her and let his enormous fairy wings sprout from his back Then he wrapped them around her to keep the bitter cold away It was the first truly nice thing the so-called Trickster King had ever done for her Instinctively she wanted to tease him for this rare moment of compassion but she bit her tongue Knowing Puck he’d storm off and she’d die an ice cube What was that thing she asked It’s called a Jabberwocky Puck said Two tons of teeth tail and terror From what I’ve heard they’re impossible to kill But don’t worry Grimm It’s gone It had its share of the Trickster King for one day We need to get help Sabrina said shivering I’m on it Puck said He reached into his pocket pulled out a small wooden flute and blew a couple of high-pitched notes Within seconds a swarm of little lights flooded through the open windows and surrounded the children They looked like fireflies but Sabrina knew better They were Puck’s pixie servants or as he called them his minions and they did whatever Puck asked of them especially if it was mischief They buzzed around their boy leader and waited for instructions Go get the old lady Puck said to them And bring me something to start a fire The pixies buzzed and darted out through the barn windows Moments later a wave of them returned carrying tree limbs and dead leaves They arranged these in a pile in front of the children then zipped away again Soon a second swarm returned carrying a single bottle of root beer which they gently placed in Puck’s hands You have served me well minions he said unscrewing the top and tossing it into a corner of the barn He chugged the whole drink and tossed the bottle aside He wiped his mouth on his sleeve Was that refreshing I’d hate for you to be thirsty Maybe you would like a sandwich too Sabrina snarled Keep your pants on the boy said I’m trying to keep you from turning into a Grimmsicle He unfolded his wings stood up and leaned over the pile of timber His eyes were watering apparently from all the gassy soda and suddenly he opened his mouth wide and belched The burp was deep and guttural and much to Sabrina’s surprise accompanied by a fireball that shot out of his mouth and ignited the firewood
I didn’t know you could do that she said Oh I’m full of surprises the boy said proudly as a rumbling sound came from his belly Want to see what I can do out the other end The little pixies buzzed and twittered To Sabrina it sounded as if they were encouraging him Uh no thanks she said edging closer to the fire Suit yourself he said then turned to his small servants The little lights let out a disappointed sound and zipped away When they were gone Puck wrapped his huge fairy wings around Sabrina again I’m sorry we couldn’t save your parents he whispered Sabrina wanted to cry She had been so close to rescuing Henry and Veronica and they had slipped through her fingers How was she supposed to fight the little girl in the red cloak who obviously had magical abilities and controlled a hulking freak with a zillion teeth Sabrina was just an ordinary eleven-year-old girl She was powerless She looked over her shoulder at Puck He was a fairy a creature of pure magic Puck could turn into all kinds of animals he could fly he had pixie servants and now apparently even his obnoxious bad habits were useful The boy was overflowing with power and it gave him a fearlessness Sabrina envied I’d prefer it if we kept the heroics to ourselves he said now interrupting her thoughts The last thing I need is you yapping to everyone in town about me being a hero I am most definitely not a hero I’m a villain Of the worst kind said Sabrina finishing the boy’s sentence And don’t you forget it How could I Sabrina asked her voice sounding thick in her own ears She was suddenly exhausted You tell me every ten minutes Puck didn’t respond and for a long moment the children were silent Go to sleep Grimm I won’t let anything bad happen to you Puck said And how much does that cost Don’t worry I’ll put it on your tab he replied
2 When Sabrina woke she was in a hospital room with a clunky plaster cast on her broken arm Her little sister Daphne sat on the edge of her bed busily scribbling GET WELL SOON on the cast with a black marker Daphne had been through a lot in the last year and a half both of them had The orphanage the insane foster families their nasty caseworker giants monsters and mayhem Through it all Sabrina had protected her sister the best she could growing up fast so that Daphne wouldn’t have to It was worth it to keep the ever-present smile on her little sister’s face Hey monkey Sabrina said Daphne screamed with joy and hugged her sister tightly Are you OK Sabrina asked I’m fine Daphne said kissing her sister on each cheek And Granny Relda She’s good She went to get a cup of coffee She’ll be right back Daphne took a step back crossed her arms and forced a disapproving scowl onto her face You’re grounded she said What Despite her tears Sabrina had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing You heard me You’re grounded What for For being a jerk Daphne said Mayor Charming gave us the Little Match Girl’s matches We were supposed to make a wish and step through the portal to save Mom and Dad together But you ran off all willy-nilly by yourself without even knowing what you were getting into You’re lucky you weren’t killed It was obvious that Daphne had rehearsed her lecture many times but the little girl’s sweet face and goofy overalls made it hard to take her seriously This is super-serious stuff Daphne said noticing the grin on Sabrina’s face This
