Sasha woke up really early in the morning. A thin beam of light was coming through the one tiny window in the farmer's cabin. She lay there for a few minutes, watching the tiny specks of dust dance in the morning light. Something about the light early in the morning made everything ordinary seem magical.
She grinned. Maybe it was magical. After all, the Fairyport Landing slogan was, "Where Fairy-tales come true!" But of course they were just saying that. Fairytales couldn't possibly be real, any more than a fiction book could.
Whether it was magical or not, this trip sure was going to be fun. Sasha jumped out of bed, went into the next room, and shook her dad awake.
"Wake up, Dad! This is going to be so fun, we just have to start right away!"
Her dad groggily rubbed his eyes. "Okay, okay, early-bird. I'm getting up," he swung his legs over to the side of the bed and sat up. "See?"
Sasha smiled and skipped back to her room to get dressed and look at the materials that the nice lady at the visitors' center had given them. Today was sure going to be fun!
Later, when her dad had sufficiently woken up, the two were walking as fast as they could towards Relda Grimm's Restaurant and Mystery Club. At least, Chuck was walking, and Sasha was going as fast as she could while not getting too far ahead.
Soon enough, they could both see a sign on an interesting-looking building. The building alone was enough to assure them both that it was the right place, but the multi-colored neon sign said "Granny Relda's" in loopy script anyway.
A nice-looking elderly woman whom Sasha immediately recognized as Granny Relda met them just outside the door. With a smile on her face she said, "Hello! Welcome to my home. I suppose you'd like to join the mystery?"
"Oh, yes!" Sasha exclaimed happily.
The worker dressed as Relda Grimm led them into the house, talking pleasantly all the while. She turned numerous keys in the various assorted locks on the door. "While you're staying in Fairyport Landing and are part of the Fairytale Mystery Club, I'll add you to the recognition system. You won't have to open all these locks, just say your name and the password (which I'll tell you once we're inside) and Mr. Canis will open the door for you. Everything all right? Okay, the mystery club is meeting right over there. Let me know if you need anything."
Concluding her lengthy speech, the elderly woman walked into the kitchen. As Sasha stared at her she began to hum, and cook the most strangely colored food. Pausing, the woman dressed as Granny Relda closed the door behind her.
Sasha shrugged and went over to the table where the Fairytale Mystery Club was meeting. She happily joined in and soon was deeply involved in helping solve the mystery of the Red Hand group. Who of the Everafters was in it? Who wasn't? How could they rescue the latest kidnapees?
While Sasha was very happy, Chuck wasn't. He leaned against a wall in the shadows with his hat pulled down, trying not to look at a book that said "Charles Grimm: Fairy Tale Accounts."