The group stood before a steep ivory tower. In a window near the top was a beautiful princess with the longest red hair Sabrina had ever seen. It hung down the side of the tower. The woman had braided it so that it was as thick and long as a rope. Climbing up the hair was a man, and on closer examination Sabrina realized it was Prince Charming.
Granny reached into her handbag and took out a pair of scissors. She handed them to Puck, who giggled with delight. A moment later, his wings were out and he was airborne. He fluttered above the prince, who was very high off the ground, and then started slicing the hair-rope in two. It wasn’t long before Puck had cut completely through it. Prince Charming fell to the ground and landed with his leg in a very unnatural position.
Before long, the revisers were munching away on the story and Granny found another door. The old woman whispered to the yarn that she wanted to visit Cinderella.
When they passed through the doorway, the family found themselves on top of a grand staircase as a beautiful blond woman in a crystal blue dress raced past them and down the stairs. She stumbled a bit and fell, losing her shoe. Once again, Prince Charming appeared, chasing her down the stairs.
Cinderella was met at the foot of the stairs by a pumpkin-shaped coach, but before the driver could help her inside, Granny told Puck to steal it. The boy flew down the stairs, leaped into the driving seat, and shoved the footman to the ground. He grabbed the reins and sped off, leaving Cinderella stranded in front of Charming’s castle. A moment later, a shimmering light engulfed the beautiful woman and she magically transformed back into a filthy, overworked housecleaner.
“Holy moly,” Daphne said, squeezing her nose. “She’s got the funk.”
Prince Charming raced to her side with the glass slipper in his hands. “Excuse me, but are you the owner of—aw geez, what is that smell?”
Cinderella ran off into the night, sobbing into her hands.
“Pretty girl, but not a big fan of the soap, is she?” Prince Charming said to Henry.
A door appeared behind them as Puck returned. His clothes were covered with the insides of a pumpkin. “That buggy changed while I was on it,” he complained. “I smell like a pie.”
“You are doing very well,” Granny said as revisers scurried up the staircase toward them. She whispered to the yarn and then opened the new door. “Let’s see what we can mess with in Hansel and Gretel’s story.”
The family was soon standing before a life-size gingerbread house with candy-cane windowpanes, a roof made of peanut brittle, and a walkway lined with gumdrops.
“I don’t think the children have showed up yet,” Granny said. “Puck, are you feeling hungry?”
The boy clapped his hands and rubbed them together greedily. “Starving! I can’t seem to get enough to eat these days.”
“It’s because you’re becoming a teenager,” the old woman explained.
Puck ignored her and sprang on the house, ripping parts of roof down and licking the door. He shoveled everything from the doorknob to the welcome mat into his mouth. In a matter of seconds, he was covered from head to toe in sticky, sugary candy. Cream filling was in his hair and icing ran down his shirt.
“Um, can I help with this one?” Daphne said.
Veronica laughed. “Be my guest.”
Daphne dove in with the same enthusiasm as Puck. She licked the windows and took a giant bite out of the house’s chewy foundation.
As she ate, two dumpy kids approached. They looked perplexed by the sight of other children already eating away at the house. Daphne spotted them and waved them off. “Just go home, kids. A witch lives here. She’ll put you in a cage and try to fatten you up. It’s an ugly story. Besides, birds are eating your trail of bread crumbs, so you better hurry.”
“Knuckleheads!” Puck said. “Didn’t you think animals might want to eat the bread? Next time why don’t you just leave a trail of winning lottery tickets?”
Hansel and Gretel looked offended and walked back the way they came.
“Here come the revisers,” Sabrina said, nodding at the edge of the forest. Luckily a door appeared in clearing.
“All right,” Granny said. “Let’s see if the Editor likes what we do to the Frog Prince. I think we can get the princess to try some frog legs for dinner.”
The family stepped through the void, but they did not land where they had aimed. Instead they found themselves back in the Editor’s library. The Editor was staring at them with shock and exasperation. Pinocchio had settled in a corner and barely looked up from the giant book on his lap.
“Enough. Enough! ENOUGH!!!! The chaos is overwhelming. I can’t keep up. You have to stop this assault on the Book right now.”
“There’s a very simple way to get us to stop,” Granny Relda said. “Let us into Snow White’s story.”