Chapter 4: Sammie's Ransom
Minx stood looking into her crystal ball where an image of a little girl dressed in a purple wizard's outfit hurried through the dark woods. Bobby was at Minx's side peering into the crystal ball with her, his eyes wide.
"That's her, Grandma!" Bobby exclaimed, pointing at the image in the crystal. "She's the one who got me expelled!"
"I see," Minx replied. "So this little brat is actually the niece of that Cracklen fellow, eh? I've been meaning to have it out with him for some time.ever since that incident at the Annual Witch and Wizard's Cook-Off." She paused, smiling deceitfully. "And this proves the perfect opportunity to take my revenge on him."
Bobby looked at his grandmother, his eyes sharing the same devious gleam as hers. "What are you going to do?"
"You'll see, my boy." Minx patted Bobby's head, continuing to look into the crystal ball at Sammie. "Enjoy your freedom now, my dear, for it will be the last you'll experience for quite some time."
Sammie, meanwhile, had strayed so far from Cracklen's castle that she could no longer remember how to find her way back. But when she recalled his uncle's burning red eyes and how he had yelled at her, she managed to shake off the fear of becoming lost.
"Uncle Cracklen must really be mad at me," she said. "And I hate to think what he'll say if I go back." Sammie wiped away the tears that were still streaming down her face, and took a deep breath. "Why did he yell at me like that anyway? All I did was let him know how much a care." She sniffed hard. "Maybe he just doesn't like being reminded of his allergies so much."
A loud squawking soon interrupted Sammie's thoughts as a raven suddenly swooped down from the sky. She screamed and tried to duck out of the way as it came zooming toward her, but instead felt herself being scooped up by its sharp claws by the shoulders where it soared high into the air with her. Sammie, now terrified, reached out her arms and hollered, "Help! Uncle Cracklen!"
The raven flew through the darkness, clutching the ecstatic child, who was fidgeting, in its sharp claws that had a tight hold on her. They soon came to a castle shaped like an enormous skeleton. The raven let out a high- pitched cry and then flew into the castle through an open window; it dropped Sammie on the hard stone floor where she landed with a painful 'thud' to her rear.
"Good work," said Minx to the raven as it perched itself on her shoulder. She was standing before Sammie with her arms folded and staring down at her with burning yellow eyes.
"Ouch," Sammie said, getting to her feet and rubbing the area that had met with the floor. "That hurt." Once the pain had subsided, she noticed that the place she found herself in was one she didn't recognize in the least. After taking a moment to look around, she turned to Minx and asked, "Hey, what is this place?"
"My dear," Minx replied, "I think you'll find it quite an honor that this just happens to be my castle." She paused, examining the uneasy look on the little girl's face. "May I ask your name?"
"I.it's Sammie. Sammie De Spell."
Minx nodded. "And quite a lovely name at that." She extended her hand to Sammie. "I am Minx."
Sammie acknowledged Minx's hand and smiled uncomfortably. "H.hello."
"Tell me this: Do you have.an uncle?"
Sammie, thinking that the answer behind the question was just another excuse for someone to mock Cracklen, scowled and released her hand from Minx's. "Why?" Sammie said suspiciously.
"Why not? It's only a simple question with a simple answer. There's no reason to be afraid."
Sammie glared at Minx.
"Listen to me," Minx said, suddenly very impatient. "I know for a fact that you are related to Cracklen, and I can tell very easily that you share his stubbornness as well. I had my raven bring you here to me because holding you captive is the only way I'll be able to persuade that fool, Cracklen, to give me what I want."
"Hey!" Sammie shouted. "How dare you refer to my uncle as a fool!" She sprung foreword and stamped her foot down on top of Minx's as hard as she could. Minx held her aching foot with both hands and jumped up and down in pain. "You're the fool, you old bat!"
"You little ingrate! How dare you call me that!" Then Minx shouted, "Bobby, get in here!" Bobby appeared a moment later, and when he saw Sammie his jaw dropped. "You? What are you doing here?" He looked at Minx with pleading eyes. "Grandma, what's she-"
"Hush, Bobby. Just go and get the cage."
"Yes, ma'am." He skulked out of the room and came back carrying a small, wire-mesh cage. He set it down at Minx's feet.
"Now put her in it."
Bobby's face filled with disbelief. "What? Me? Are you serious?"
"Don't you dare touch me," Sammie warned him.
"Honestly, Bobby," Minx sighed. "You can't even follow a simple order. How do you ever expect to become a wizard?" Before Sammie had a chance to escape, Minx scooped her up by the shoulders and tossed her carelessly into the cage where she slid to the back and banged her head against the cold bars.
"Do you have to be so rough?" demanded Sammie, sitting up.
"Be quiet," Minx snapped.
"She's always getting roughed up, Grandma," Bobby explained. "She asks for it at school every day."
"That's just because of you," Sammie said.
"Shut up!"
Sammie stuck her tongue out at him.
"Will you two be quiet?" Minx snapped, and both Sammie and Bobby stopped their bickering at once. "I'm going into the dungeon to write a ransom letter to Cracklen. Bobby, I want you to keep an eye on this brat until I get back."
"Please don't make me deliver the letter to him," whined Bobby. "It's so far and I don't feel like going-"
"Oh, quit complaining! Of course I'm not appointing you for such a task. I'm sending my raven with the letter to Cracklen's castle. All I need you to do is make sure that his little wretch of a niece doesn't escape, and she had better not or else you won't get any allowance this week." Without another word, Minx turned and exited the room.
"I can't believe Sunny Bunny actually talked us into helping that creep, Cracklen," Andy whined as he and the others trudged alongside Tic and Tac through the woods.
"Don't think of this as helping Cracklen," admonished Ann. "Remember, we're going to look for Sammie."
Andy sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
"I know!" Sunny Bunny exclaimed suddenly. He reached into the pocket of his trousers and pulled out his magic pen. "We can ask the pen where Sammie is."
"That's a great idea, Sunny Bunny," Ann said. "Hurry and ask it something."
"All right." He paused for a moment, thinking. "Pen, do you know where Sammie is?"
Sunny Bunny and his friends, along with Tic and Tac, watched in as the pen leaped from his paws and wrote across the sky: Yes, I have the answer.
"Well, that doesn't provide us with much help does it?" Tic said irritably.
"We don't have time to waste on a silly pen," added Tac. "Either you Raggedys help us find Sammie or we go on without you. Cracklen's in no mood to have us return without her. So, what's it going to be?"
Sunny Bunny turned to the two henchmen, his face filled with despair. He refocused his attention on the pen and said, "Will you take us to where Sammie is?"
They all watched the pen as it wrote across the ground, Yes, I will. It then scribbled a second message, which read: Come on, this way, with three arrows (( ( () pointing down the path leading further into the woods.
"It wants us to go this way," advised Sunny Bunny. The pen shot through the air into the woods where Sunny Bunny and the others hurried after it.
Cracklen was sitting in the armchair of the library, which was dimly lit, with an open photo album spread across his lap. In it was pictures of him as a child, as well as a few with Sammie. As he turned the pages, his eyes caught sight of a picture of a little girl with a round smiling face and hair the color of gold. She wore a short-sleeved blouse with a black ribbon and pleated skirt. Her head sported a black witch's hat. She had her arm around a miserable-looking little boy dressed in a blue cloak whose long nose stuck out from underneath a blue wizard's hat. Cracklen ran his long fingers over the photograph as a single tear splashed on top of the little girl's cheek. "Gabriella," he whispered. A loud tapping at his window soon interrupted Cracklen, causing him to grunt petulantly as he rose from the chair. He set the photo album down on an end table beside the chair, and approached the window. There he found a raven clutching an envelope in his beak.
"A raven?" Cracklen said surprisingly. "But only Minx-" Without hesitation he opened the window and the raven flew into the castle, perching itself on a coat hook on the other side of the room. Cracklen scowled as he joined it and snatched the letter out of its beak. "Well, let's see what your mistress has brought, shall we?" He tore open the envelope and read the contents of the letter:
Cracklen,
By now you have probably figured out that your niece is nowhere to be found, and I am quite pleased to inform you that she is in my keep. Therefore, you have nothing to worry about. That is, of course, as long as you do exactly as I say. But I believe that you'll find my following requests quite adequate indeed.
1). I want you to explain to The Blue Mountain School for Wizards and Witches that it was Sammie who is responsible for the fight and not Bobby.
2). Your magic wand.
Sincerely Yours,
Minx
P.S.: If you fail to meet all or only one of these requirements, I can guarantee you that you'll never see that brat of yours again so I suggest that you think very hard on what you plan to do. You have twenty-four hours to decide.
"Darn that old hag!" Cracklen shouted as he banged his fist into his open palm. He stormed over to his desk and shoved several cluttering items to one side where they fell noisily to the floor. "So she thinks she can hold my niece for ransom, does she? Well, we'll just see about that!" He pulled open one of the desk's drawers and removed a pen and paper. He then wrote:
Minx,
Since I am writing you can easily guess that I received your letter. Why else on earth would I waste my time writing to such a despicable creature such as you? I will make this perfectly clear to you right now: I want my niece back and I want to know that she is safe in her own bed before the night is over. I think you know that your blunder of a grandson is responsible for the fight at The Blue Mountain School for Wizards and Witches, but you are just too stubborn to admit it. You think Bobby is so perfect that he could never do anything wrong, but guess what? You couldn't be more wrong. Did he even think to mention that he and his little hooligans were responsible for breaking Sammie's wrist? If I were you I'd ask him about it immediately. I sent Tic and Tac to get Sammie and when they return she had better be with them or I shall be forced to take drastic action.
Cracklen
Cracklen folded the letter, stuck it in an envelope and handed it to the raven. "Take this to Minx," he said, and then watched the raven as it flew through the window and out into the night.
That's it for now. So, what do you think? Much different from the CBS version, huh? Isn't it so sweet the way Sammie sticks up for Cracklen? Awww! ^_^ Let me know what you think and if the reviews are good I'll be sure to post more asap!
Minx stood looking into her crystal ball where an image of a little girl dressed in a purple wizard's outfit hurried through the dark woods. Bobby was at Minx's side peering into the crystal ball with her, his eyes wide.
"That's her, Grandma!" Bobby exclaimed, pointing at the image in the crystal. "She's the one who got me expelled!"
"I see," Minx replied. "So this little brat is actually the niece of that Cracklen fellow, eh? I've been meaning to have it out with him for some time.ever since that incident at the Annual Witch and Wizard's Cook-Off." She paused, smiling deceitfully. "And this proves the perfect opportunity to take my revenge on him."
Bobby looked at his grandmother, his eyes sharing the same devious gleam as hers. "What are you going to do?"
"You'll see, my boy." Minx patted Bobby's head, continuing to look into the crystal ball at Sammie. "Enjoy your freedom now, my dear, for it will be the last you'll experience for quite some time."
Sammie, meanwhile, had strayed so far from Cracklen's castle that she could no longer remember how to find her way back. But when she recalled his uncle's burning red eyes and how he had yelled at her, she managed to shake off the fear of becoming lost.
"Uncle Cracklen must really be mad at me," she said. "And I hate to think what he'll say if I go back." Sammie wiped away the tears that were still streaming down her face, and took a deep breath. "Why did he yell at me like that anyway? All I did was let him know how much a care." She sniffed hard. "Maybe he just doesn't like being reminded of his allergies so much."
A loud squawking soon interrupted Sammie's thoughts as a raven suddenly swooped down from the sky. She screamed and tried to duck out of the way as it came zooming toward her, but instead felt herself being scooped up by its sharp claws by the shoulders where it soared high into the air with her. Sammie, now terrified, reached out her arms and hollered, "Help! Uncle Cracklen!"
The raven flew through the darkness, clutching the ecstatic child, who was fidgeting, in its sharp claws that had a tight hold on her. They soon came to a castle shaped like an enormous skeleton. The raven let out a high- pitched cry and then flew into the castle through an open window; it dropped Sammie on the hard stone floor where she landed with a painful 'thud' to her rear.
"Good work," said Minx to the raven as it perched itself on her shoulder. She was standing before Sammie with her arms folded and staring down at her with burning yellow eyes.
"Ouch," Sammie said, getting to her feet and rubbing the area that had met with the floor. "That hurt." Once the pain had subsided, she noticed that the place she found herself in was one she didn't recognize in the least. After taking a moment to look around, she turned to Minx and asked, "Hey, what is this place?"
"My dear," Minx replied, "I think you'll find it quite an honor that this just happens to be my castle." She paused, examining the uneasy look on the little girl's face. "May I ask your name?"
"I.it's Sammie. Sammie De Spell."
Minx nodded. "And quite a lovely name at that." She extended her hand to Sammie. "I am Minx."
Sammie acknowledged Minx's hand and smiled uncomfortably. "H.hello."
"Tell me this: Do you have.an uncle?"
Sammie, thinking that the answer behind the question was just another excuse for someone to mock Cracklen, scowled and released her hand from Minx's. "Why?" Sammie said suspiciously.
"Why not? It's only a simple question with a simple answer. There's no reason to be afraid."
Sammie glared at Minx.
"Listen to me," Minx said, suddenly very impatient. "I know for a fact that you are related to Cracklen, and I can tell very easily that you share his stubbornness as well. I had my raven bring you here to me because holding you captive is the only way I'll be able to persuade that fool, Cracklen, to give me what I want."
"Hey!" Sammie shouted. "How dare you refer to my uncle as a fool!" She sprung foreword and stamped her foot down on top of Minx's as hard as she could. Minx held her aching foot with both hands and jumped up and down in pain. "You're the fool, you old bat!"
"You little ingrate! How dare you call me that!" Then Minx shouted, "Bobby, get in here!" Bobby appeared a moment later, and when he saw Sammie his jaw dropped. "You? What are you doing here?" He looked at Minx with pleading eyes. "Grandma, what's she-"
"Hush, Bobby. Just go and get the cage."
"Yes, ma'am." He skulked out of the room and came back carrying a small, wire-mesh cage. He set it down at Minx's feet.
"Now put her in it."
Bobby's face filled with disbelief. "What? Me? Are you serious?"
"Don't you dare touch me," Sammie warned him.
"Honestly, Bobby," Minx sighed. "You can't even follow a simple order. How do you ever expect to become a wizard?" Before Sammie had a chance to escape, Minx scooped her up by the shoulders and tossed her carelessly into the cage where she slid to the back and banged her head against the cold bars.
"Do you have to be so rough?" demanded Sammie, sitting up.
"Be quiet," Minx snapped.
"She's always getting roughed up, Grandma," Bobby explained. "She asks for it at school every day."
"That's just because of you," Sammie said.
"Shut up!"
Sammie stuck her tongue out at him.
"Will you two be quiet?" Minx snapped, and both Sammie and Bobby stopped their bickering at once. "I'm going into the dungeon to write a ransom letter to Cracklen. Bobby, I want you to keep an eye on this brat until I get back."
"Please don't make me deliver the letter to him," whined Bobby. "It's so far and I don't feel like going-"
"Oh, quit complaining! Of course I'm not appointing you for such a task. I'm sending my raven with the letter to Cracklen's castle. All I need you to do is make sure that his little wretch of a niece doesn't escape, and she had better not or else you won't get any allowance this week." Without another word, Minx turned and exited the room.
"I can't believe Sunny Bunny actually talked us into helping that creep, Cracklen," Andy whined as he and the others trudged alongside Tic and Tac through the woods.
"Don't think of this as helping Cracklen," admonished Ann. "Remember, we're going to look for Sammie."
Andy sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
"I know!" Sunny Bunny exclaimed suddenly. He reached into the pocket of his trousers and pulled out his magic pen. "We can ask the pen where Sammie is."
"That's a great idea, Sunny Bunny," Ann said. "Hurry and ask it something."
"All right." He paused for a moment, thinking. "Pen, do you know where Sammie is?"
Sunny Bunny and his friends, along with Tic and Tac, watched in as the pen leaped from his paws and wrote across the sky: Yes, I have the answer.
"Well, that doesn't provide us with much help does it?" Tic said irritably.
"We don't have time to waste on a silly pen," added Tac. "Either you Raggedys help us find Sammie or we go on without you. Cracklen's in no mood to have us return without her. So, what's it going to be?"
Sunny Bunny turned to the two henchmen, his face filled with despair. He refocused his attention on the pen and said, "Will you take us to where Sammie is?"
They all watched the pen as it wrote across the ground, Yes, I will. It then scribbled a second message, which read: Come on, this way, with three arrows (( ( () pointing down the path leading further into the woods.
"It wants us to go this way," advised Sunny Bunny. The pen shot through the air into the woods where Sunny Bunny and the others hurried after it.
Cracklen was sitting in the armchair of the library, which was dimly lit, with an open photo album spread across his lap. In it was pictures of him as a child, as well as a few with Sammie. As he turned the pages, his eyes caught sight of a picture of a little girl with a round smiling face and hair the color of gold. She wore a short-sleeved blouse with a black ribbon and pleated skirt. Her head sported a black witch's hat. She had her arm around a miserable-looking little boy dressed in a blue cloak whose long nose stuck out from underneath a blue wizard's hat. Cracklen ran his long fingers over the photograph as a single tear splashed on top of the little girl's cheek. "Gabriella," he whispered. A loud tapping at his window soon interrupted Cracklen, causing him to grunt petulantly as he rose from the chair. He set the photo album down on an end table beside the chair, and approached the window. There he found a raven clutching an envelope in his beak.
"A raven?" Cracklen said surprisingly. "But only Minx-" Without hesitation he opened the window and the raven flew into the castle, perching itself on a coat hook on the other side of the room. Cracklen scowled as he joined it and snatched the letter out of its beak. "Well, let's see what your mistress has brought, shall we?" He tore open the envelope and read the contents of the letter:
Cracklen,
By now you have probably figured out that your niece is nowhere to be found, and I am quite pleased to inform you that she is in my keep. Therefore, you have nothing to worry about. That is, of course, as long as you do exactly as I say. But I believe that you'll find my following requests quite adequate indeed.
1). I want you to explain to The Blue Mountain School for Wizards and Witches that it was Sammie who is responsible for the fight and not Bobby.
2). Your magic wand.
Sincerely Yours,
Minx
P.S.: If you fail to meet all or only one of these requirements, I can guarantee you that you'll never see that brat of yours again so I suggest that you think very hard on what you plan to do. You have twenty-four hours to decide.
"Darn that old hag!" Cracklen shouted as he banged his fist into his open palm. He stormed over to his desk and shoved several cluttering items to one side where they fell noisily to the floor. "So she thinks she can hold my niece for ransom, does she? Well, we'll just see about that!" He pulled open one of the desk's drawers and removed a pen and paper. He then wrote:
Minx,
Since I am writing you can easily guess that I received your letter. Why else on earth would I waste my time writing to such a despicable creature such as you? I will make this perfectly clear to you right now: I want my niece back and I want to know that she is safe in her own bed before the night is over. I think you know that your blunder of a grandson is responsible for the fight at The Blue Mountain School for Wizards and Witches, but you are just too stubborn to admit it. You think Bobby is so perfect that he could never do anything wrong, but guess what? You couldn't be more wrong. Did he even think to mention that he and his little hooligans were responsible for breaking Sammie's wrist? If I were you I'd ask him about it immediately. I sent Tic and Tac to get Sammie and when they return she had better be with them or I shall be forced to take drastic action.
Cracklen
Cracklen folded the letter, stuck it in an envelope and handed it to the raven. "Take this to Minx," he said, and then watched the raven as it flew through the window and out into the night.
That's it for now. So, what do you think? Much different from the CBS version, huh? Isn't it so sweet the way Sammie sticks up for Cracklen? Awww! ^_^ Let me know what you think and if the reviews are good I'll be sure to post more asap!