“Magical incidents?” Conner asked. “Like what?”
“There have been hundreds of things they’ve covered up over the years! Mermaid skeletons washing ashore in North America, pixies being photographed in Europe, trolls found wandering the deserts of Australia—you name it! The Sisters Grimm realized creatures from the fairy-tale world were crossing into the Otherworld, but they didn’t understand how. Your grandmother and the fairies were in charge of all the portals, so how were the creatures getting through without their help?”
“Magic?”
“No—science!” Bree said. “The Sisters Grimm discovered that the fairy-tale world is just an alternative dimension of the Otherworld. They’re like race cars on the same track. However, the Otherworld used to move at a much faster speed than the fairy-tale world. So every so often, the worlds would briefly overlap—or rather, collide. Each time the worlds collided, unbeknownst to the fairies, a portal between worlds would briefly appear. Over the centuries, thousands of magical creatures have accidentally stumbled through a portal and wound up in the Otherworld. But about sixteen years ago, the worlds stopped colliding and the portals stopped appearing altogether.”
“Why? What happened?”
Bree laughed. “Do you really have to ask?”
“Wait—it’s because me and my sister were born!” Conner exclaimed. “We are children of both worlds, and our birth magically set the Otherworld and the fairy-tale world on similar speeds.”
“Right!” Bree said. “And race cars moving at similar speeds take a lot longer to overlap.”
“So, how long until the worlds collide again?”
“The Sisters Grimm predict it’s very soon. They’re also worried that when it happens again, the overlap may be permanent. It won’t be a portal that appears, but a bridge that connects the worlds forever.”
“Do they know where the bridge will appear?” Conner asked.
“They’ve scientifically mapped everything out,” Bree said. “Judging by all the locations of past portals, they’re expecting the bridge to appear in the middle of New York City.”
“New York City!” Conner said. “What are the chances?”
“I don’t think it’s a coincidence, Conner,” Bree said. “This is a huge interdimensional phenomenon! The Sisters Grimm can’t be the only ones who know about it. And if they were able to discover it using science, I imagine someone else has discovered it using magic. If your sister was kidnapped by a witch, there’s a reason she took her to New York City, and I’d bet serious money it has something to do with the worlds colliding.”
Conner was pushed back into his seat again, only this time it wasn’t from the force of the aircraft, but from fear. Apparently he was wrong—something could trouble him more than he already was troubled.
“Attention, ladies and gentlemen,” a flight attendant said over the speakers. “The captain has turned on the seat belt sign, as he expects turbulence ahead. We ask that you stay in your seats, because things are about to get very bumpy.”
Conner sighed. “She can say that again.”
CHAPTER SIX
PRISONERS OF THE MIRROR
Froggy frantically searched every mirror in the Northern Palace for someone who could help him contact Alex and Conner. He figured the twins were most likely in hiding with the royal families, so if he found a person who knew where they were hiding, he could send them a message and warn them about the Literary Army’s plans to invade the Otherworld.
The more he searched, the more doubtful his mission became. Each room in the palace was either empty or occupied by the Queen of Hearts’ card soldiers, the Wicked Witch’s flying monkeys, or one of Captain Hook’s pirates. Occasionally Froggy would spot a servant in the palace, but they were never far from the despicable emperors or their loathsome henchmen. When the servants weren’t forced to serve, they were locked away in the dungeon, where there were no mirrors for Froggy to communicate through.
Even if Froggy could find someone willing to help, it was very unlikely they’d know how to reach the twins. Still, he continued his exhausting pursuit regardless of its improbability. Soon he learned that help wasn’t as impossible as he’d thought—he was just searching the wrong side of the mirrors.
“Hello.”
A soft voice made Froggy jump. His eyes darted back and forth between the palace mirrors as he searched for the source, but he couldn’t find where the voice was coming from.
“I’m not in the palace, silly,” it laughed. “I’m right behind you.”
Froggy looked over his shoulder and jumped when he discovered he wasn’t alone in the mirror dimension. Walking toward him out of the darkness was a young girl. She had long raven hair and pale white skin and didn’t look a day over eight years old. Froggy had become so used to isolation, it took him a moment to realize the girl wasn’t a hallucination.
“Oh my word,” he said in disbelief. “You’re a… a…person!”
The little girl giggled. “Of course I’m a person. What else would I be?”
“Forgive me for being overwhelmed,” Froggy apologized. “I’m just so relieved to see someone else. I didn’t realize there were others trapped in mirrors.”
“Oh, there are hundreds of people trapped in mirrors,” she said. “I find dozens of them each day.”
Froggy searched the darkness around him but didn’t find a single soul besides the young girl.
“But where are they?” he asked. “I’ve been in this world for weeks and I haven’t seen anyone but you.”
The little girl smiled at Froggy like he was an amusing cartoon.
“You don’t have to be trapped inside a mirror to be trapped in the mirror,” she said. “Think about all the people who stare at their reflections and dislike what they see. Think about all the people who base their happiness solely on what they look like. Think about all the people who don’t enjoy life because they don’t enjoy their appearance. If you ask me, the mirror imprisons us all.”
Froggy went silent for a few moments. He hadn’t expected such insight to come from someone so young.
“When you put it that way, I suppose this is the second time I’ve been trapped in a mirror,” he said.
“When was the first?” she asked.
“A long time ago, when I was cursed to look like a frog,” he explained. “I was so ashamed of how I looked, I spent years hiding from the rest of the world. I let my fear of what others might think of me dictate my whole life. Fortunately, I overcame my fears before it was too late.”
“What changed your mind?”
“I found the greatest love and friendship of my life while I felt the ugliest,” he said with a smile. “If that doesn’t prove how little appearance matters, I don’t know what else would.”