My Very UnFairy Tale Life (7 page)

Chapter 11

I stared at the Committee, sure I'd heard wrong. “My what?”

“Your parents.”

“What are you talking about?”

“My dear ladies,” said Dr. Bradley, hobbling forward. “Perhaps this is not the best time to—”

“Unacceptable!”

Dr. Bradley pushed up his glasses. “But surely, it is too soon—”

“No, I want to hear this,” I interrupted. My heart was drumming in my chest. I turned back to the Committee. “Are you saying my parents were adventurers?”

The women exchanged uncertain looks. “We should not have spoken of this.”

“Tell me!” I said. “Who were they? What happened to them?”

The Committee members whispered among themselves for a moment. Finally, they nodded in unison and turned back to me. “As we said, your parents were the greatest of adventurers. No one knows what became of them. They were on a mission when they disappeared. It is most regrettable.”

“
Regrettable?
” How could they talk about my parents like they were a set of lost keys? “What mission? Why didn't anyone tell me?”

“It is classified information,” said the Committee. “Released only to top-priority personnel.”

“They're my parents! Doesn't that make me top priority?”

“You are too young,” said the Committee. “Such information is only released after the age of eighteen.”

“Why didn't anyone tell me?” I repeated. The giant room suddenly felt too small, and I could hardly breathe. How could any of what they'd said be true? All this time I'd thought my parents had just been normal people who'd mysteriously vanished, and now it turned out they'd disappeared because they'd been adventurers?

“Jenny,” said Dr. Bradley, his voice low and sad. “I wanted desperately to tell you. But perhaps it was for the best. Think how upset you would have been if—”

“I'm upset right now! You lied to me! How could you expect me to become an adventurer when adventuring made my parents disappear?”

“It wasn't his place to tell you,” said the Committee. “It was not yet time.”

“What gives you the right to decide something like that?”

“We are the Committee. If you are to be an adventurer, you will agree to follow our rules.”

“Well, I don't agree to follow your rules anymore. If you don't tell me what happened to my parents, I'm never going on another adventure!”

The hall throbbed with stunned silence.

“You cannot threaten us in this manner,” the Committee said finally. “You cannot simply quit. You signed the contract.”

“Yes, I can.” I grabbed the contract still hanging in the air and tore it in half. The Committee let out a collective gasp.

“Jenny, I implore you—” Dr. Bradley began.

“No!” I said. “I'm sick of having no friends and always getting hurt and following orders just because I'm told to. I don't want to be an adventurer anymore. I just want to be a normal girl.” I ripped the contract in half again, and then again, until it was just a bunch of tiny pieces of paper. Then I threw the pieces in the air and watched them fall around me like confetti.

“You have destroyed the contract!” said the Committee. “Your behavior is unacceptable! Unacceptable!”

An instant later, invisible hands dragged me away from the Committee's table. This time I didn't struggle. I couldn't have been happier to get away from the Committee. I never wanted to see those women again.

After the invisible hands dumped me on the floor of the waiting room, I scrambled to my feet. My head was pounding. I didn't even notice Anthony the Gnome sitting in one of the nearby chairs until his voice echoed through the room.

“There you are,” he said, popping a jelly bean in his mouth. “That was taking forever.”

I wanted to tear the jelly beans from his hands and mash them into nothing. How could he have tricked me into signing that contract? But just then Dr. Bradley opened the door and limped in.

“Thank goodness you're here, Anthony,” he said. “Maybe you can talk some sense into her.”

“About what?”

“I quit,” I told him. “I tore up that fake contract you made me sign, and I told the Committee I was done following their stupid rules.”

Anthony gaped at me. For once, he seemed to be speechless.

“I've never seen the Committee members so angry,” said Dr. Bradley.

“It's their fault for lying to me,” I said. “Now, will one of you tell me what happened to my parents? What kind of mission were they on?”

Dr. Bradley shook his head. “I'm afraid we don't know. Their adventures were of the utmost secrecy. All I can tell you is that the magical worlds were greatly saddened when they didn't return.”

Anthony nodded, his usual smile gone. “I must have eaten a wheelbarrow full of chocolate the day I found out. Your parents were the best.”

I looked away. I didn't think I could stand to hear any more. “Please take me home.”

“But leaving now would be a grave mistake,” said Dr. Bradley. “The Committee might still be willing to accept your apology.”

I almost laughed. “I don't have anything to apologize for. They're the ones who tricked me. Why should I work for them?”

“Because the magical worlds need you, Jenny. You're one of the most talented adventurers we've had in a long time.”

“All I do is say cheesy things and get hurt by crazed unicorns and psycho sorcerers. Anyone could do that.” I shook my head. “I'm done. Being an adventurer used to be fun. But now…” I didn't want to disappear like my parents had. I didn't want to go to a magical world and never come back. And I didn't want to be around people who lied to me. “I just want my normal life back.”

“But, Jenny, it's not that simple,” said Dr. Bradley.

“He's right, Jenny-girl. Why would you want to go back to your boring old life anyway? Your friends don't even remember who you are.”

I blinked at him. “What did you say?”

The rosy color drained out of Anthony's cheeks. “Oh, um, I just mean—”

“What Anthony means is you've lost touch with them,” Dr. Bradley interrupted. “It will be hard to make new friends after all this time.”

“That's not what he said.” I marched up to Anthony. “You said they don't remember who I am.” I thought of the empty stares I always got from Melissa and Trish anytime I tried to talk to them, and the way they'd act as if I were a complete stranger. What if they weren't mad at me? What if they really had no idea who I was? “What did you do to them?” I demanded.

Anthony gulped and looked to Dr. Bradley for help.

“Jenny,” said the doctor. “Believe me, neither of us meant to—”

“Tell me!”

“We had to do it, Jenny-girl. Melissa and Trish heard you talking to me about one of your adventures. They knew way more than they should have. We needed to wipe their memories to make sure the magical worlds were kept secret.”

“Please understand,” said Dr. Bradley, “the Committee would never allow regular humans to know of other worlds. Your earth is very young and has yet to develop its own magic.” He sighed before continuing, his voice barely above a whisper. “Our intention wasn't to make your friends forget you, just what they'd heard. But we must have miscalculated.”

“So you took
all
their memories of me?”

Anthony stepped forward. “We tried to reverse the spell, but that didn't work.”

“We hoped it would wear off in time, and it still may,” Dr. Bradley added. “Sometimes something as simple as a sudden shock can reverse the spell.”

I couldn't believe it. Had they been lying to me about everything? “So because the Committee is paranoid about the spread of magic, my friends can't have
any
memories of me?”

“Please believe that I am very sorry. And so is Anthony.”

The gnome nodded. For once he looked genuinely concerned. But I didn't care how Anthony felt. I hated him. I hated them both.

“I want to go home right now,” I said.

“But—”

“Take me home!”

Dr. Bradley gave a reluctant nod and looked at Anthony. The gnome sighed and snapped his fingers.
Pop!

I was pulled out of the world, tossed around, and dumped onto my kitchen floor, alongside Anthony and Dr. Bradley.

As I got to my feet, Aunt Evie came into the room holding a mug of tea.

“Oh,” she said, looking back and forth between the gnome and the doctor.

“It's all right, Aunt Evie. They're leaving.”

“Jenny…” Dr. Bradley pleaded, but I shook my head. I didn't want to hear anything else he had to say.

“I'm done. It's over. I'm never going on an adventure again.”

Dr. Bradley looked on the verge of begging, but Anthony gave him a pat on the shoulder. “Come on, old man. It's obvious we're not wanted here.” Then he took Dr. Bradley's arm and led him out the door.

“Were those friends of yours?” asked Aunt Evie.

“No,” I said. “Don't worry. They won't bother us anymore.” Then I sank down at the kitchen table and put my head in my arms.

“Are you all right, kitten?” said Aunt Evie.

I shook my head, tears trickling onto my sleeves. Everything in my life had been a lie: my parents, my friends, Dr. Bradley. I had thought being an adventurer would be fun and exciting. Instead, it had taken everything I cared about away from me. And now I'd never get any of it back.

“There, there,” said Aunt Evie, sitting down beside me and scratching the top of my head. “How about a nice saucer of warm milk?”

Chapter 12

Monday morning felt like the first day of school all over again. For once, I was going to arrive as a regular, normal girl. The last time I'd been so excited to get on the school bus had been in kindergarten on Halloween. Unfortunately, that had turned out to be a day of disappointment.

It was one of the few memories I had of my mother, even though I couldn't quite remember her face. She'd sewn me an Indiana Jones costume, complete with a whip made out of yarn. My mother had even pinned a plastic cobra to my sleeve so I could glance over at it and mutter, “I hate snakes!” To top it all off, I had secretly collected spiders for days and put them into a small jar.

When I'd arrived at school, I had swashbuckled my way into my classroom, released the spiders onto the floor, and started saving my classmates from certain doom. The day had ended in the principal's office, and I hadn't been a fan of Halloween, or school, ever since. A few months later, my parents had disappeared, and I'd had no one to make costumes for me anymore.

But today would be different, I told myself. It wouldn't end in disappointment.

Before I left the house, I took a few practice swings with my mini-golf club to help calm my nerves. My injured arm was finally back to normal, and my favorite pink ball sailed into the cup like it couldn't wait to go in. That had to be a lucky sign, I decided as I slipped the ball into my pocket. Today would be the first day of the rest of my amazingly average life.

When I got on the bus, no one said a word to me, which wasn't unusual. But they also stared at me like I was some kind of sea monster. I sat in a seat by myself and tried to ignore the strange looks. When I got to homeroom, the staring continued. I wasn't sure what was wrong. Did I have a tarantula on my head? Or had I gotten so good at being invisible over the past three years that everyone was surprised to see me?

When the teacher came in, she scanned the room, humming under her breath. But when her eyes stopped on me, her face changed. She looked down at the list in her hand and studied it carefully.

“Are you new, dear?” the teacher asked finally.

I stared back at her, not sure what to say.

She raised her eyebrows and walked over to my desk. “Dear?” she asked again. “Are you new?”

I swallowed. “I'm Jenny.” The other kids gave me curious looks, as if I really was the new girl. What was going on?

“Is today your first day?” the teacher tried again. Clearly, she was flagging the new girl as a dummy.

“I guess so,” I said finally.

“You'll have to go to the office. I don't have you on my list.”

“Oh…okay.” I stood up, feeling like my head weighed twice as much as usual.

“Trish?” said the teacher. “Can you show our new student the way to the office?”

Trish nodded and hopped up from her desk. I wanted to yell that I knew the way to the office, that I knew every part of the school! But I clamped my mouth shut and let Trish lead me out into the hallway. I didn't know what was happening. Had Anthony and Dr. Bradley done something to
everyone
at my school?

“Where did you move from?” Trish asked as we walked along. Her voice seemed higher than I remembered it, like she'd swallowed a squeaky toy. I had to take a deep breath before I could answer. It still hurt that my once best friend had no idea who I was.

“California,” I said.

“Cool!” Trish squealed. “Do you know any famous actors?”

“Um, no.”

Trish's face fell. “Oh. Well, this place is really boring. You'll be begging your parents to take you back to your old school by the end of the week.”

I swallowed hard. My parents. If no one remembered who I was, I'd have to explain that I didn't have a normal family like they all did. But how was I supposed to tell people that my parents had disappeared in some magical kingdom and that my aunt was better at talking to animals than to humans?

Finally, we came to the main office. I went up to the secretary, hoping that this had all been some big misunderstanding and that the entire school hadn't forgotten me.

“Can I help you?” the secretary asked.

“Hi. I guess I'm new.”

She gave me a blank look for a moment. Then her eyes lit up. “Are you Jenny?”

“Yes!”

“Your grandfather said you would be coming in today.” She searched through a pile of papers on her desk.

“My grandfather?”

“Yes, he came in earlier this morning and said you would be joining us.”

“He did?” Of course the secretary had to mean Dr. Bradley.

“He left a note for you.” She handed me a small, cream envelope. “And I have your old school records here somewhere…”

I took a deep breath and opened the envelope. The letter was written in fancy ancient-looking script, the kind that you'd find on a scroll.

Dear Jenny,

I must apologize once again for using magic on those close to you. Over the years Anthony and I were forced to use a Distraction Powder on your teachers and classmates to make your absences less noticeable. The powder is generally harmless, but when the dosage is suddenly stopped, it often causes a lapse in memory. I am sorry to say it may prove to be permanent. However, I hope you look upon this as a chance to begin anew at your school, to create the magic-free life you desire.

Sincerest apologies,

Dr. Bartholomew Bradley

I realized suddenly how blind I'd been. I'd thought a side effect of magic was that normal people just naturally forgot the strange things they'd seen. But Dr. Bradley and Anthony had been altering everyone's minds all along. I'd been so wrapped up in my adventures that I hadn't noticed all the things the doctor and Anthony had been doing behind my back.

“Your grandfather is such a sweet old man,” the secretary was saying. “It's a shame he has to go into a nursing home, but I guess we all have our time. Ah, here they are!” The secretary dug out a few pieces of paper. She studied them intently, copying down some information onto a form. When I looked at my “old school records,” I was amazed to find that the pieces of paper were absolutely blank. Apparently, there was no end to Dr. Bradley's magic.

“Here's your class schedule,” said the secretary finally. I looked at the yellow piece of paper and smirked. My schedule was no different than it had been the week before. “Good luck,” she added with a warm smile.

“Thanks.”

As I turned to go, Trish fell in step beside me. Walking down the hall with her almost made me feel like I had my old life back. Too bad Trish had no idea that we'd both had chicken pox in second grade or that we'd once colored our hair with permanent marker, or all the other things that had been erased from her memory. If those things only existed in my head, then maybe we really were total strangers.

“Do you want to come over after school today and watch TV?” Trish asked after a minute. “You can meet my friend Melissa.”

I couldn't help smiling. “Sure!” Maybe things weren't so bad after all. This was my chance to get my old friends back and maybe even make some new ones. I could finally catch up on all I'd missed the past few years.

“Then you can tell us all about California!” Trish squeaked.

My smile disappeared. Was I really going to have to spend the rest of my life lying about who I was?