Table of Contents Cover Title Page Dedication Introduction Chapter 1 THE GINGERBREAD WITCH Chapter 2 JACK RIDDLE Chapter 3 THE TREE GUARDIAN Chapter 4 THE CAROUSEL CAULDRON Chapter 5 ESCAPE Chapter 6 HOME SWEET HOME Chapter 7 MR SCRIMP S NASTY ORDEAL Chapter 8 PROFESSOR AMBROSIUS FOOTNOTE Chapter 9 HANSEL AND GRETEL Chapter 10 SMASH Chapter 11 THE PROPHECY Chapter 12 THE WHITE WITCH Chapter 13 THE MERMAIDS TALE
CHAPTER 1 THE GINGERBREAD WITCH The year 1610 Gretel lay in front of the dying fire and listened to the muffled church bells They rang through the night reaching her in the tiny one roomed shack Her whole family lay sleeping around her and their snores were thick in the smelly air She counted the bells silently in her head Nine ten eleven twelve She smiled Midnight She slipped out from under the threadbare blanket and stood up shivering Quiet as a ghost she tiptoed past the slumbering bodies on the floor Mmmmmmuuummpph Gretel froze and held her breath Her little sister one of six lay next to her feet The young girl had stirred when Gretel tried to edge past her But no she was still sleeping her mouth hanging open Gretel let out a small sigh of relief Reaching the front door she lifted the bolt and slipped into the woods outside She walked quickly through the trees using the moonlight to find her way Frost crunched in the grass beneath her bare feet and she shivered in her thin woolen dress But Gretel needed to reach the village before daybreak She really wanted a good seat to watch the hanging
After half an hour she reached the boundary of the forest In front of her was an ancient wooden gate She grasped the top feeling its pitted rough surface She pulled it to one side and stepped into the village The gate groaned and slammed shut behind her She walked across the cobblestones ignoring the sharp edges on her cold feet In front of her right in the middle of the village square was her destination The hangman's gallows But she hesitated when she saw the wooden structure loom before her A twisted rope hung from the top and a wicked looking noose was attached to the end She stared at it with a mixture of fear and fascination It hadn't been there the day before But the villagers had all heard the thump of the workmen's hammers and knew what was being built and why The Gingerbread Witch would hang the next day The wind suddenly whistled through the square making the wooden boards creak and moan Gretel gasped as the rope swung slowly in the breeze It looked like it was reaching for her But she lifted her chin and walked stubbornly to the foot of the platform Ain't nothin or nobody gonna stop me from seein this she whispered into the deserted square There was a high pitched giggle from the trees behind her She froze What if it was the fairy folk She was here all alone with them at night Gretel was terrified of the fairy folk They were evil little monsters who curdled the cows milk and stole children She didn't want the fairy folk to take her away But nothing happened there was only the whistling wind Carefully she crept underneath the gallows and sat down at the back far from sight Pulling her dress down over her knees for warmth she settled down to wait for dawn
Gretel was woken by the sound of shouting a few hours later Stiff from sleeping in the cold she rubbed the grit from her eyes and peered out from her hiding place under the gallows A crowd had gathered in the village square and the sun had now risen There were no real roads in the village just decades of mud and horse manure trampled down until the ground was solid Unless it rained then the villagers squelched through ankle deep stinking sewage Most of them didn't own a toilet so they just tipped their leavings into the street Luckily today the filthy ground was frozen solid and covered in a fine veil of frost The villagers huddled together as they headed to the gallows Excitement flowed through the crowd and several children skipped around the edges The hanging was about to begin The crowd roared Gretel peered through the cracks in the wood and saw a group of soldiers heading toward her They were dragging the woman known as the Gingerbread Witch to the gallows Gretel made a squeaking noise and clapped her hands over her mouth to muffle the sound She heard the clump clump of the soldiers heavy boots as they walked up the stairs over her head She craned her neck and looked up through the slats just in time to see the woman thrown to her knees directly above Gretel The rope swung sluggishly in the breeze above the woman who knelt stunned beneath it Gretel gazed upward in awe She'd never seen a witch up close before The witch's hair was a pure white blond She had sad gentle brown eyes which stared at the crowd from a thin face Gretel heard a rustling from the crowd and looked back through the cracks to see what was happening now A man wearing a fancy suit made of black velvet and a large three cornered hat strode through the crowd It parted respectfully to let him through Gretel frowned then realized who he was the town mayor The mayor walked solemnly to the foot of the gallows He cleared his throat and unraveled a scroll of yellowed parchment In a booming voice he read out the woman's crime She has been found guilty of Witchcraft The crowd gasped and pressed in closer the better to see the wretched woman The noise level rose as they muttered among themselves A filthy man with a glass eye whispered I always knew it I did I tells you I saw her clear as day with me own eye feeding people potions He paused and scratched one of the fleas in his hair Or was it potatoes
