3

The ride to Manhattan was filled with anxiety and fear. Rachel had informed the Grimm family that her mother used to work at the Macy's Department store on West 34th Street. They decided to make it their first stop instead of Faerie. When Ferryport Landing had opened back up, Rachel's family decided to move to the quaint town, hoping to get away from the reminder of their mother's passing.

The family entered the store and made their way to the shoe department, which is the main area that Cynthia worked in. Relda took charge and walked up to the first person they saw.

"Excuse me," Relda looked for the woman's name tag. "Christy, I'm Relda Grimm, I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions."

Christy looked up and flashed a fake smile at the old woman. "How can I help you?"

"Do you have any record of a Cynthia Robbins that worked here?"

"I'm not allowed to say anything unless your family."

Rachel and Daniel stepped forward. "She's our mom," Rachel said.

"She died in an automobile accident a few years ago, but, I'm sure you knew that. Oliver works with the toys. He should be able to tell you more."

They went to the other side of the store to the toy department and found a man in dress clothes with red hair. Veronica paused and had an unsettled look in her eyes.

"What is it?" Henry asked.

"It's Oz," Veronica said, recalling the memories she had with her old best friend.

"Are you sure?" Henry placed his hand on his wife's shoulder to relax her a little.

"Positive," She whispered.

"You don't have to talk to him, 'Roni," Henry suggested.

Relda stepped forward, talking to the man instead.

"Hello, Oliver, I'm Relda Grimm, I was hoping you could answer a few questions for me,"

Oliver turned around and looked at the old woman. A hint of remembrance flashed in his eyes.

"How may I help you?"

"Is there anything you could tell me about a certain Cynthia Robbins that worked here?"

Oliver cleared his throat. "What is it that you want to know?"

"Anything would be helpful," Relda said in a certain, you-better-tell-me-tone.

"All I can say is that she had two children, one was biological and one was adopted. She passed a few years ago," Oliver answered in a short tone.

Relda thanked the man and the group walked out of the department store and into the cold city.

"Well that was a complete waste of time," Daniel complained.

"You might be surprised. We know Oz is still here. Realistically, Macy's is still his hideout," Relda said. "Rachel, where did you live before your mother passed?"

"East 35th near the deli,"

"Well, let's get going then, that's our next stop." And with that, the group made their way East. Daniel informed them that they lived in the apartment building right next to the only deli on the street in room 203.

Daniel and Rachel went to the door while the others waited at the end of the hallway. Rachel was the first to knock. A tight-lipped woman who appeared to be in her late fifties opened the door.

"May I help you," She sounded alarmingly bothered.

"I'm Rachel and this is my brother Daniel. We used to live here. Would you mind if we looked inside?"

"Come inside,"

The apartment looked almost the same as it did before. The same floral wallpaper on the walls and old wooden floors. Even the sofa was the same.

"I imagine it doesn't look much different. I didn't have the heart to fix things when I moved in. You can look around as you please,"

"Thank you," Rachel said. The siblings walked down the hall to the master bedroom. Rachel began to look around the room.

"What are you doing?" Daniel whispered disapprovingly.

"I used to see Mother mess with something under here at night," Rachel explained as she crouched down to look under the bed. On their way to the apartment, Relda had asked the two to think back to any memories they had from that apartment that seemed odd. Rachel's first thought was to look in her parents' old bedroom to see what her mother could have messed with.

It was the same bed that Rachel remembered which put her at an advantage. A red hatbox was the only thing under the bed. She pulled it out and told Daniel to look through it. She continued to look around the room but found nothing.

"Wow," Daniel said. Rachel looked over to see what her little brother was looking at. The hatbox had a journal inside it with their mother's name on it. Next to it in the box was pictures of her with several people, one of which included Puck.

"He lied?" Daniel said.

"I don't know. Quick, put everything in your satchel." He did as Rachel asked and the two went back into the living room.

"Thank you again, ma'am," Rachel said. They left the apartment before she could reply.

"Any luck?" Relda asked once Rachel and Daniel caught up with them.

"Definitely, but we should wait to tell you," Rachel said.

"Good call. It's nearly dusk, we should stop at a hotel for the night." Henry advised.

They made their way to the nearest inn, which was a block down. Henry paid for two rooms, girls in one, boys in the other. Before everyone went to bed, they all met in the girls' room to look at what they found.

Daniel only took out the journal, unsure of whether or not he should share the photographs. They tried to read through it, but it was all in code and anything that wasn't were diary entries about Cynthia's day.

Without the key to the code, they all went to bed and decided to go to Faerie the next day. Henry wasn't thrilled about the idea but it seemed to be the best place to go next.

Veronica was unable to sleep that night. The thought of Oz being behind something hurt her more than she expected it to. She knew it was him, despite his altered appearance. Everything about Oliver's demeanor added up to it. By two in the morning, she had had enough. She decided to get up and make her way to the store, in hopes of finding something to give her hope that her previous best friend was still as loyal as she thought.

She got out of her shared bed with Relda and walked over to the window. She could see a few streets down. It was pitch black, aside from street lamps and the moonlight, but there was something behind the set of buildings that had an odd glow to it. That was West 34th street.

Veronica had a hunch and she needed to act on it in that moment. She pulled a long sleeve sweater and her overcoat from her travel bag and put them on. She grabbed her boots and pulled them on before walking out the door. The light was still on in the corridor. She was quiet but quick as she walked down the hallway, for fear that someone was following her.

She entered the cool elevator and pressed the main floor button. The ride was short and she made her way out the door in the same manner as earlier as soon as she got off.

Veronica began her walk to the department store in the brisk night. It was snowing heavily when she walked out and she tried her best to keep warm. Her sweater and coat helped but she was still shivering.

When she reached 34th Street, she saw someone walking in the same direction. The person stopped under a street light as they waited to go across the crosswalk. Because, even though it was half passed two the morning, the streets were still relatively busy. While the person was under the lamp, Veronica was able to catch a glimpse of their face.

It was Christy from the shoe department.

Veronica slinked into an alley, for fear of being seen and watched as Christy crossed the street. The ginger walked into Macy's and went towards Oz's old office.

Veronica's throat tightened at the thought of his office. She made her way across the street and turned into an alley right by the store where Oz's outside office door was. She pressed her back against the wall and felt for the handle, only to find that it was locked. Oz had told her in previous years that he kept a spare key in the flower pot on the fire escape. She went over and felt around inside the pot for it. Thankfully, it was in there still. She grabbed it and went to unlock the door.

As she tried to open it in the dim light, she felt something behind her. She turned around to see a figure, but she couldn't make out a face.

"What are you doing?" They asked. Veronica jumped a little but sighed in relief. It was Daniel.

"Daniel, how did you..?" Veronica whispered.

"I'm good at sneaking. I don't know how, but I am. It must run in my biological family." The boy shrugged his shoulders.

"How did you know I was over here?"

"I saw you leave when I left the room to use the restroom—Puck was in ours— and got curious,"

"Well, since you're here, would you like to help me find out what's going on with Oliver?"

"Only if you help me find out what's going on with my mom, although I'm pretty sure they're connected."

"I think so too. I saw Christy go inside the building a few minutes ago. I found Oz's old spare key so I should be able to get in."

Veronica tried to unlock the door for a few minutes without luck. After a while, though, she was able to get the door to open.

Oz's office was dark and gloomy and Veronica and Daniel both felt a strange presence in there that sent chills down their spines. There was one light in the room that came from a small square window on the door that led into the store. The brunettes walked over and squatted down, trying to peek through without getting caught.

Oliver, Christy, and another woman were fighting outside the door. Daniel put his ear to the door to better hear the conversation going on between them but they were being so loud that it wasn't necessary.

"I'm working on it!" The woman shouted in a fuss.

"We didn't think they would actually come," Christy pointed out.

"How are we supposed to do this if you two don't get them out?" Oliver screamed.

"They're Grimms, they don't give up. They would do anything to save their family. You of all people should know that." Christy remarked.

"Veronica won't be a part of my life any longer, I assure you. But, remember, we have to do this for her."

Veronica was taken aback. She knew Oliver was Oz, but someone admitting that hurt more than she thought.

"Right, for Cynthia," The woman agreed. Daniel gulped.

Veronica stared through the window, still in shock.

"You two should go back to your families for the night. We report in two days." Oz suggested. The others nodded their heads and left the store. Oz looked over at the door, locking eyes with his former friend.

Veronica gasped and snatched Daniel's wrist, bottling out the door and down the street. Oliver was right behind them. The two ran back to the inn as fast as their bodies would allow, desperately hoping to get away from him. When they reached the inn, Daniel went inside without Veronica in a rush. He pressed his back against the door and gasped for breath.

Veronica tried the handle to no avail. She turned around to find Oz standing in front of her.

"You have one last chance, 'Roni," He sneered.

"Stop, Oz," Veronica said angrily. She felt the stinging of tears in her eyes. Oz chuckled. "If I were you, I would keep your mouth shut. You don't want to make things worse."

Then Veronica punched him in the face.

She turned around and tried the door, finding it unlocked. After she shut the door, a small wave of regret went over her. But that was soon replaced with a strong sense of satisfaction. Oz deserved to be punched, and she was honored to be the one who did it.

"Are you okay?" Daniel asked.

"I'm fantastic. Come on, let's get you to bed." Veronica waved him in her direction and the two brunettes walked over to the elevator and went up to the second floor.

They walked down the long hall and to the boys' room, which was three doors down from the girls'. Daniel took the room key out of his trousers and opened the door.

"Goodnight, Daniel," Veronica gave him a half-smile.

"Goodnight," Daniel shut the door and went back to sleep.

Veronica walked back to her shared room and did the same.

Veronica woke up an hour later at six. Relda was the only one awake, so Veronica got out of bed and went to wake the others. After a few attempts, they obliged and the girls got ready to leave.

Henry knocked on the door a few minutes later.

"Hi, honey," Veronica said when she opened the door.

"Hi, sweetie," His head perked up to look around the room. "Is everyone well?"

"Yes, we're fine, Henry," Relda answered. "Why do you ask?"

"Daniel left last night for a few hours and I wanted to check."

"We went over to Macy's. We found quite a bit of information, actually." Veronica said.

"Perfect," Henry said. "Jake and I decided to get breakfast before going to Faerie. How does Skylight sound?" Skylight Breakfast was a Grimm family favorite when they lived in Manhattan before Henry and Veronica were put under the sleeping spell. Veronica, Sabrina, and Daphne's eyes lit up at the name and they nodded their heads eagerly.

"Okay, we'll meet in the lobby in ten minutes then?" Veronica nodded her head and her husband exited the room.

The girls finished getting their things together and tidying up the room. After, they made their way to the main lobby of the inn and met up with the boys. Henry checked them out before they all left to walk down the street to Skylight Breakfast.

The group walked in and found a table and listened to Daniel and Veronica's account of what happened a few hours before.

"So, they know who Cynthia is? Is she alive?" Robin asked. Rachel glared at him, knowing that he had lied about knowing her mother. She thought Puck was trustworthy.

"We're not sure. Either they knew her personally or they're working with her now. I just wish I knew who that girl was. Maybe we would have a better lead." Veronica said.

"What did she look like?"

"Short strawberry blonde hair, slightly overweight, and pinch-lipped. I think she had brown eyes. Oh, and she had the most adorable button nose!" She admired.

"She doesn't sound familiar," Relda, who seemed to have connections to everyone, thought aloud.

"What about what you found in the old apartment? Did they mention anything about a journal?" Jake asked.

"No," Daniel shook his head. "The only thing that wasn't written in code were journal entries about our family."

As the discussion went on, breakfast was served. Everyone had decided to order a stack of waffles and eggs with fruit salad. Relda had insisted on paying for it, saying if she wasn't allowed to make meals, she had to pay for them. Henry eventually lost the debate with his mother and gave in but still left a tip.

When they left the breakfast diner, they began the long walk to Central Park, where the entrance to Faerie was. It was a hidden kingdom and only Everafters knew about it, as expected. After a few hours of walking in the cold and harsh weather, they made it to the park entrance.

Everyone followed Puck as he walked down pathways and made unexpected turns until he finally reached a statue. It was a statue of Hans Christian Andersen. He was shown sitting on a bench near a duck and reading his book, The Ugly Duckling. Thankfully, no one was around and the group was able to enter the secret kingdom with little trouble.

Henry was first. He placed his hand on the monument and said, "Knock, knock," the second he shut his mouth, he vanished. Everyone after that followed until was Daphne, Rachel, Sabrina, and Daniel left. Daphne was the only one who had done it aside from Sabrina who didn't remember. Daphne took charge and demonstrated what they had to do, despite the fact that they had just watched eight other people perform the same act. The other three were hesitant but followed her lead and soon were transported into a village.

Faerie truly was something out of a fairytale. It was mystical and gorgeous and something that felt so otherworldly to Sabrina. The entire kingdom had a feeling of magic there. After all, it was a place where faeries and Everafters of all types lived.

The kingdom was small and only had one long street. There, several apartments, shops, businesses, and restaurants were built. Surrounding the street was a large, stunning forest. Puck told them that many of Faerie's residents lived in the forest rather than in the village. A few miles away from the village was the castle where Puck used to live.

As they made their way to the castle, Sabrina wondered to herself how such a beautiful kingdom could be the dwelling place of such an evil person. Though, even Ferryport Landing, which seemed to be just as perfect, had its fair share of secrets. And not only that, Sabrina had to remember that as picturesque as the town was, it was deserted. Everyone was terrified for their lives because the faerie who murdered the king was loose. With this, Sabrina couldn't help but wonder who Moth would kill next.

The castle was magnificent. It hurt Sabrina's head to look up at the stone structure, as its height seemed to be immaculate. There were ten guards at the door, four more than normal according to Puck. They were searched by all ten of the guards before entering. And, even though Puck was technically the king of Faerie, he was stopped and searched along with the others.

Once, that was finished, they were escorted inside by another set of guards. Titania and Mustardseed, who knew of Puck's arrival were at the door to greet them.

Titania was beautiful, to say the least. Her brown hair cascaded down her back and seemed to dance even when she was still. And her blue eyes seemed to be so captivating, Sabrina hung onto the woman's every movement. She walked up to Puck and wrapped him into a hug, showering her son with kisses.

"Hello, Mother," He squeaked, trying to breathe in Titania's tight grasp.

"Welcome home, brother," Mustardseed said from behind them.

"It hasn't even been a week since I've seen you two." The boy pointed out.

"We went six years without seeing you before. I think your return deserves a proper welcome." Titania shot back.

"You don't mean a ball, do you, Mother?" Puck ground.

Titania grinned. "I do,"

Sabrina snickered, which caused Puck to give her a disapproving look so she stopped.

"Puck, come with me," His mother said. "The rest of you will be escorted to your rooms shortly.

A guard took Sabrina down a long series of turns, corridors, and stairs until finally, she reached a bedroom. It was everything you would expect a room to be in a castle and more. A four-poster bed, a walk-in closet the size of Sabrina's bedroom, a twenty-foot-tall window that looked out to all of Faerie. Once the guard left, Sabrina couldn't help but jump onto the bed and fall into a deep slumber.

She woke up a few hours later when one of the maids came in to tell Sabrina that dinner was ready and she was wanted in the dining room. She got up and made her way there, even though she didn't have the slightest idea of where said dining room was. After a series of turns and opening the wrong doors, however, she found it.

The dining room was rather simple. It had a long banquet table that could seat maybe twenty or so people with a chandelier above it. Sabrina tried to take a seat next to Puck but was stopped when a servant gestured for her to sit by Rachel.

The food in Faerie was delicious, despite being a series of goo with a few solids. After dinner, Titania insisted on giving a Grimms a tour of the castle. Sabrina knew it would take a very long time but didn't want to be disrespectful, so she kept quiet.

There wasn't as much to note on the castle. It still remained to be just as beautiful and they weren't even allowed to enter certain rooms. After what seemed to be an eternity, Titania completed the tour at the castle library. She had told her guests that they were welcome to use it anytime for resources, which Percy and Relda got quite excited about.

The room was enormous and it seemed like it didn't end. There were floor to ceiling bookcases with study tables scattered around. Titania guided them around the library. It seemed almost impossible to not get lost in the room.

Suddenly, Titania paused. In front of them was a series of portraits, all with golden plaques underneath them.

"I forgot these were here," the queen remarked. She walked up to one and ran her finger across the frame. The plaque was labeled King Oberon Goodfellow of Faerie.

"Father," Robin whispered. Sabrina turned to look at him. His face fell.

Titania remained quiet for the next few moments. Daniel looked over at the other portraits. One was a painting of Robin and his mother.

"You lied," Daniel accused turning to Puck.

"What?" Puck asked.

"You said you didn't know my mother. That's a portrait of you and my mother!"

"Daniel, calm down-," Rachel said. She had been hurt to of the faerie's dishonesty but it wasn't worth causing an entire scene over. She was sure Puck had a decent explanation.

"That's Moth," Titania said.

"No, that's my mother, I'm sure of it," Daniel said.

"He's right. That's her," Rachel backed up.

"Do you have any pictures of her? Check the journal again." Jake cut in.

Rachel looked over at her brother and gave him a look that asked him to take out the photographs they found.

"I didn't show you guys these yesterday," Daniel started, fumbling around in his satchel. "There was this one picture— I didn't want you guys to see it." He took the stack of the photos out and handed them to Titania. Robin peered over his mother's shoulder. "That's my ex-fiancé all right,"

"But that's impossible. She looked eleven the last time we saw her. She must have been younger when you were first betrothed." Daphne argued.

"I was still nine then, I think. She was ten. I aged some after I left," Puck explained.

"What year was that?" Rachel asked.

"1910,"

"That's not right. She died that year but she definitely didn't look ten."

"There are certain spells-," Jake stopped himself before completing his sentence. No one commented, though, because what he said had been enough information to have an understanding of what Moth had possibly done.

After that, everyone agreed silently to go back to their rooms and rest for the night. Rachel followed Sabrina to her room and went inside with her. She sat down on the bed while Sabrina went into the bathroom to shower.

Sabrina came out of the bathroom about twenty minutes later, clothed in her nightdress with her hair in braids. Rachel was in the same position as earlier when her friend had gone to shower. Sabrina sat down on the bed and placed her hand on top of Rachel's

"What is it?" Sabrina asked.

Rachel didn't respond for several minutes. Eventually, though she spoke up. "My mother tried to kill you," it came out as meek and quiet but Sabrina could hear her friend clearly.

"Okay?"

"What are you 'okaying' about? I'm related to the person that tried to take your life!"

"You're forgetting that I forgot that she even tried to do that to me. Besides, I know you and I know you would never hurt me, no matter who gave birth to you."

"It just-," Rachel stood up from the room and paced before stopping. She sighed. "I don't know how to handle all of this. Yes fairytales exist and so do Everafters and I live in the town with the highest Everafter population but the fact that I'm linked to some sort of murder case and war...I'm not safe and neither is Daniel. Maybe I should just go back home and wait for you guys."

Sabrina stood up and walked over to her friend. "You are not in any danger, I promise. I will be right there to protect you at all times and so will my family. You're going to be fine." She pulled Rachel into a tight hug.

Suddenly, a knock sounded.

Sabrina pulled away and called, "Yes?"

"Sorry, are you two busy?" It was Robin.

"No, I was just leaving," Rachel said. She winked at Sabrina as she exited the bedroom. Sabrina rolled her eyes in response.

"Is she all right?" He asked.

"Just a little scared about Moth. She should be okay soon enough."

Sabrina walked over and sat on the bed. Puck was still by the door and didn't move. Sabrina waved him over and he sat next to her.

"So, should I be calling you your majesty or something?" Sabrina asked.

"Technically, you should have been calling me that ever since we first met but, puss brain is okay too."

Sabrina grinned at the familiarity of the moment.

"Faerie is beautiful. I don't know how you could stay away after your father died."

"It is, but the people aren't. After staying inside a castle for three thousand years you get bored, I had to leave at some point."

"I guess every town does have its flaws. It's just hard to imagine that this one does too."

"I'm sure there are a fair amount of good citizens here, but with every good thing comes a bad."

"Like you and me?"

"Well, they don't call me the Trickster King for nothing,"

"And they don't call me the Queen of the Sneaks for nothing,"

"No one calls you that,"

"Who calls you the Trickster King then?"

Puck didn't answer and Sabrina smirked pridefully.

"I want to see it,"

Puck cocked an eyebrow. "See what?"

"The rest of Faerie. It has to be gigantic. I want to see-feel what it's like."

I could take you," The boy blurted.

"Oh, uh, okay, um, thanks,"

"Anytime," Puck began to rub his hand up and down his arm nervously. "I think I'm gonna go to my room for the night. I'll see you in the morning, Sabrina." He stood up and left the room before Sabrina could reply.

She sat still after. She didn't know why, maybe she was waiting to see if someone else wanted to see her, or maybe she was hoping someone would come back to talk to her. She stood up and went over to turn off the light. She crawled into her bed and went to sleep.

She was in the Ferryport Landing schoolhouse when she woke up. The windows were boarded up and the desks were empty. On the other side of the building, were two figures. She recognized them seconds later as Daniel and Rachel.

In their hands were ignited torches. They each held them high. Sabrina watched in shock as they moved over to the side, revealing Moth. Their mother.

Moth walked down the aisle towards her enemy cunningly. She smiled menacingly, not caring to even speak to the girl, and turned around, strutting out of the building.

Before she exited, she looked at her children. They both nodded their heads and threw the torches on the ground.

Sabrina woke with a start. She forgot how bad her nightmares could get, but she surely didn't expect her best friend and her little brother to be in it.

She couldn't sleep after the dream either. Seeing Rachel in that light only made her wonder what that shared blood could mean. Without fully thinking, she got out of her bed and exited the bedroom. The castle halls were empty, with sconces lit on the walls.

Something in Sabrina was desperate to see the portrait of the prisoner. And though she couldn't explain why, the force pulling her was impossible to escape. She rushed down the halls, making sure her steps were light and airy so she wouldn't be heard by others.

She reached the library doors and tried them, finding them unlocked. The doors seemed to scream bloody murder when the blond opened them. She paused in fear for a moment, knowing a guard would come and take her to the dungeon without her consent within a moment's notice. No one came, though, contrary to her assumption.

She entered the library swiftly and shut the door so quickly that it only let out one cry. Attempting to remember the way, she weaved through the seemingly endless shelves before pausing in front of the portraits.

There were only seven of them-five single portraits and two couple portraits. Sabrina stared at them. The first was of the late King Oberon, Puck's father. In the portrait, he had brown hair and green eyes. The same eyes that Puck had. Titania was next to him, along with their couple portrait after that. They looked so happy in the painting it was hard to understand the constant fighting Puck mentioned. Though that seemed to be a pattern in the world, Sabrina thought to herself.

Puck looked abnormally timid in his. He looked tired and sad like he was scared of something. He was depicted with the same expression, Sabrina noticed, in the couple portrait with Moth. Mustardseed and Moth looked happy in theirs, as expected.

She stared at them for a little too long, because, when she snapped out of her trance, sunlight was coming through the windows.

In fear that her parents would begin to search for her, she rushed out of the library to check the dining hall for her family. As she jogged down the hall, she found her family outside of Relda's room, seemingly distraught.

Henry was on the ground kneeling in shock and fear. Jake looked at his niece in a sense of remorse that made Sabrina's stomach drop.

"What happened?" Sabrina asked.

Uncle Jake's eyes were glued to the floor now. He couldn't bring himself to look at her as he broke the news.

"Granny's gone." He said.

Guest replies:

Smiley 2 . Aug 29

Okay, great chapter.
SQUEEEEEEEEEEEL.

I really hope Rachel and Red become sisters-in-laws

Ooh... sorry 'Brina for this:

Sabrina and Puck sitting in a tre PUCKABRINA

YAAAAAAAYAYYYYYYYYYyayyayYyyy

Can't wait for more...

Reply:

Aww thanks:) YES I KNOW RIGHT? The vibe of that scene SENT me