Conner couldn’t imagine taking it overseas—he was shocked the suitcase wasn’t instantly decaying like a mummy exposed to the elements after thousands of years. “I don’t know what to say, Bob,” he said, hiding his reservations under a fake smile. He couldn’t refuse it after Bob had helped make the trip happen.
“No need to thank me,” Bob said, although a thank-you was the furthest thing from Conner’s mind. “Just do me a favor and get a sticker from Berlin for her.”
“It’s a she?”
“Oh, yes, her name is Betsy,” Bob said as he headed out of his stepson’s room. “Enjoy her! Oh, almost forgot, her left buckle needs a good push to lock. Just put your back into it and you’ll be fine.”
At the end of the week, Conner discovered exactly what Bob was talking about as he struggled to shut it with the new addition of pants. After three good pushes that almost threw out his back, he surrendered to Betsy.
“All right, maybe just six pairs of socks, four T-shirts, five pairs of underwear, two sweaters, pajamas, my lucky poker chip, a toothbrush, and one lucky rock will be enough,” Conner said. He removed the excess items from the suitcase and finished packing.
He was overdue for bed but Conner wanted to stay awake for a little while longer. He wanted to feel the excitement as long as he could. Thinking about the trip to Germany had been a great way for Conner to ignore the other thoughts he had been having lately. As he looked around his bedroom and listened to the absolute silence of the house, Conner couldn’t fight off the loneliness he had been suppressing. Something was missing from his life… His sister.
Conner opened his bedroom window to break the silence around him. Sycamore Drive was just as quiet as the house and did little to comfort him. He gazed up at the stars in the night sky. He wondered if Alex could see the same stars from wherever she was. Perhaps the Land of Stories was one of the stars he was looking at but it hadn’t been discovered yet. Wouldn’t that be an uplifting discovery? That he and his sister were only separated by light-years and not dimensions?
When Conner couldn’t stand the solitude anymore, he asked himself, “I wonder if she’s awake?”
Conner snuck down the stairs and into the family room. A large golden mirror hung there, on a wall it had all to itself. It was the mirror their grandmother had given them the last time they were together—it was the single object that allowed the twins to communicate between worlds.
He touched the golden frame and it started to shimmer and glow. It would glow for a few moments until Alex appeared in the mirror or return to its normal shade if she didn’t—and tonight she didn’t.
“She must be busy,” Conner said quietly to himself. “She’s always so busy.”
When he first arrived home from his last adventure in the fairy-tale world, Conner talked to his sister in the mirror every day for a couple of hours. She told him all about the lessons their grandmother was teaching her and the magic she was learning to use. He told her about his days at school and everything he had been taught, but her stories were always much more interesting.
Unfortunately, as Alex became more and more involved with the fairy-tale world, the twins’ daily conversations happened less and less often. Sometimes more than a week passed before they spoke. Sometimes Conner wondered if Alex even needed him anymore. He had always known that one day they would grow up and lead separate lives—he just never imagined it would happen so soon.
Conner touched the mirror again and waited, hoping his sister would arrive. He didn’t want to leave for Germany before having a chance to talk to her.
“I guess I’ll have to tell her about it when I get back,” Conner said, and headed to bed.
Just as he reached the stairs, he heard a small voice behind him say, “Conner? Are you there?”
Conner ran back to the mirror and his heart jumped. His sister was standing in the mirror before him. She wore a headband made of white carnations and a sparkling dress the same color as the sky. She seemed cheerful but Conner could tell she was very tired.
“Hi, Alex! How are you?” he asked.
“I’m great,” Alex said with a big smile. He could tell she was just as excited to see him as he was to see her. “You’re up late.”
“I couldn’t sleep,” Conner said. “Too excited, I guess.”
Alex scrunched her forehead. “Excited about what?” Before Conner could say anything, Alex had answered her own question. “Oh, you’re leaving for Germany tomorrow, aren’t you?!”
“Yes,” Conner said. “More like later today. It’s super late here.”
“I completely forgot! I’m so sorry!” Alex said, disappointed in herself for letting it slip her mind.
“No worries,” Conner said. He couldn’t care in the slightest, he was just happy to see her.
“I’ve been so busy with magic lessons and preparing for this silly Fairy Inaugural Ball,” Alex said. She rubbed her eyes. “I even forgot about our birthday! Isn’t that crazy? Grandma and Mother Goose made a cake and I had to ask them what it was for!”
It was Conner’s turn to scrunch his forehead. “Fairy Inaugural Ball? What is that?”
“It’s this big party the Fairy Council is throwing to celebrate me joining the Fairy Council,” Alex said, as if it were just any old fact.
“That’s amazing, Alex!” Conner said. “You’re joining the Fairy Council already? You must be the youngest fairy that’s ever joined!”
A proud and eager smile grew on her face. “Yes,” she said. “Grandma thinks I’m ready. I’m not sure I agree with her, though; I still have so much to learn—”
“You know how protective Grandma is. She would protect the ocean from a raindrop,” Conner said. “If she thinks you’re ready then you must be!”
“I suppose,” Alex said, still very unsure of herself. “It’s just a lot of responsibility. Being part of the council means I’m automatically part of the Happily Ever After Assembly—which means having to give my input on so many decisions—which means so many people and creatures will look up to me for guidance—”
“There wouldn’t still be a Happily Ever After Assembly if it wasn’t for you,” Conner reminded her. “That whole world is in your debt forever after defeating the Enchantress. I wouldn’t worry.”
Alex looked into his eyes and smiled. “Thanks, Conner.” His reassurance always meant more to her than anyone else’s.
“How is Grandma, by the way?” Conner asked.
“She’s good,” Alex said. “She misses you and Mom terribly—almost as much as I do. She’s taught me so much over the past couple months. Really, Conner, you would be so impressed with some of the things I can do now.”
Conner laughed. “Alex, I’ve been impressed by you since the womb. I’m sure your part of the uterus was much neater and more organized than mine.”
Alex laughed out loud against her will—she missed her brother’s sense of humor but she still didn’t want to encourage it. “Really, Conner? A uterus joke? Come on. You’re lucky Mom isn’t awake to hear you,” she said. “Is Mom doing all right? She’s always very happy when she talks to me but we both know what a great front she can put up.”
Conner nodded. “She’s doing good, actually. She misses you but I’ve only caught her crying over an old photo of us together once or twice since we got back. Bob makes her really happy. I had almost forgotten what it was like to see her so happy all the time—it’s like Dad is around again.”
“That’s great to hear,” Alex said. “Dad would have been so excited about your Germany trip. He’d probably be going with you if he was still alive—I wish I could go.”
Conner looked at the clock. “Speaking of which, I better get to bed soon. I leave for the airport in, like, three hours.”
Alex’s face fell. “Aw, that’s too bad. I’ve missed you so much—it’s been great to catch up,” she said. “I’ve just been so busy. Sometimes a whole week will pass and I’ll feel like it was only a day or two.”
“You’re still happy, though, right?” He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. He would know if she was lying to him.
“Um…” Alex thought about all her lessons, all her tasks, and despite how overwhelmed and tired she was, she told him the truth. “Honestly… I’ve never been happier! I get up every morning with a smile on my face because living here is like waking up to a dream that never ends!”
The twins shared a smile, each knowing this was the truth. As hard as it was to be without her, Conner knew Alex was where she belonged and was having the time of her life.
“I wish there was a way I could take you to Germany with me,” Conner said.
“Me too!” Alex said. “But I doubt there’s a story the Brothers Grimm wrote that we haven’t heard from Grandma or Dad or—wait a second…” Her eyes fell to the bottom of the mirror. “Is the right side of your mirror’s frame loose?”
Conner inspected the corner of his mirror. “Nope—but wait, I think the left side is.”
“Can you gently pull it back and uncover the corner of the glass?” Alex asked as she did the same on her side.
“Check!” Conner said.
“Oh, good!” Alex said. “Now, can you gently chip off a piece without cracking—”
Clink! Conner held up a piece of glass bigger than the palm of his hand. “Like this?”
Clink! Alex broke off a piece of her own mirror—it was a smaller and neater piece than her brother’s but neither commented on that.
“Perfect! Now look into it!” Alex looked down into hers.
Conner looked into the small piece of mirror in his hand and saw his sister’s face staring up at him. “Amazing!” he said with a laugh. “Now I can keep you in my pocket the whole time! It’s like video chat!”
“Terrific!” Alex said. “I’ve always wanted to see Europe! Now go get some rest; you don’t want to be exhausted before you get to Germany.”
“Okay. Good night, Alex,” Conner said. “I’ll call you—or, um, reflect you rather—as soon as I get off the plane!”
“I’ll look forward to it,” Alex said, so pleased she would be a part of his trip. “I love you, Conner!”
“I love you, too, Alex,” Conner said. And with that, the twins faded from each other’s mirrors and returned to their separate lives.
Conner climbed the stairs and placed his piece of mirror gently into his sticker-covered suitcase. He lay in bed and closed his eyes tightly but couldn’t fall asleep—seeing his sister had rejuvenated him completely, causing all the excitement about the following day to come rushing back.
He laughed at himself as he lay there. “I’ve ridden a magical goose, climbed a giant beanstalk, swum to an enchanted underwater cave on a sea turtle’s back, and sailed on a flying ship across the skies of another dimension.…,” Conner listed to himself. “But I’m excited about getting on a plane tomorrow! Oh, brother…”