To Nick a Knack,
First find a feary—
any of the Folk will do.
Bind the powers of the moon,
sun, and dust of starlight too.
Wait a mite with milk in hand,
And a needle for blood’s bright band.
Find a shadow, sew it shut.
Make the first, a shallow cut.
Wait to see what follows then,
For it shall find each of your ken.
For this Knack, you’ll surely pay,
For that it is the Folk’s only way.
“Fine,” Mira breathed, wishing, in that moment, that she could take back her exhale. The Pink Lemonade Brigade’s scent was suffocating. Like she’d stumbled into a garden that had been bred for the smelliest of flowers. Individually, they might have been nice. But all together like this, overpowering was a more accurate word.
She tugged on the end of the ribbon, and the bow unknotted. The other ribbons fell away, leaving only the yellow paper to contend with. Mira slipped her finger into a fold in the paper and followed it up to the point where it had been stuck to itself with beeswax. (Another oddity of the Pink Lemonade Brigade was their inability to deal with a simple piece of tape. The one time she’d talked one of them into helping her wrap a present of her own had resulted in the entire roll of tape mummifying Auntie Marigold’s hand.)
The wax came away easily, and Mira pulled the paper away. Now all that remained was the box.
And what was inside it.Read More
A smile crept into the corners of Mira’s lips. Did this mean that she only had one more year to go with the Pink Lemonade Brigade? In general, she had nothing against the elderly, but there had always been something different—off—with the old ladies in the Pink Lemonade Brigade. Something that belied the way they looked and hinted at mystery.
Secrets.
Their eyes were too bright, too knowing, and they never came all at once. Instead, they seemed to prefer to visit one at a time over the course of a week or so every year. Most of them had long hair they twisted up into intricate knots that were often hidden by the ridiculously large floppy hats with flowers stuck round the bands they always wore.Read More
Official Proclamation
The one known as Mira Morganstein of the Mortal Realm has been found. As of yet, she poses no direct threat to our Realm, but that is likely to change before the next moon fall.
Every citizen is required by Queen Ravenna’s word to report any sightings, rumors, supposings, or information they may have gathered, found, or overheard dealing with or pertaining to Mira Morganstein.
Failure to do so will result in being banished to the Mortal Realm for the duration of seven moon falls. Remember: no matter how horrible death may be, there are far worse fates reserved for those whose loyalties lie with elsewhere.
LONG MAY THE QUEEN WIELD HER SCEPTER AND STAFF!
. . . TO BE CONTINUED . . .
© 2014 by Danyelle Leafty. All rights reserved. Originally published in Curiosities of the Moon.
What’s a little pre-declaration of war between rivals? 😜
Come back next Wednesday. The Pink Lemonade Brigade will be out in full force. 😀
If this is your first visit here, be sure to read the first installment of this episode. And be sure to come back tomorrow to learn a few more secrets about the UnderWhere.
Time froze as Mira’s gaze zeroed in on a boy-shaped patch of shadow in the center of her room. He looked to be only slightly shorter than she was, and he stood squarely in the center of the rag rug Nana had tied for her the year before.
She narrowed her eyes, but anything more detailed than boy-shaped swam strangely through her vision. Like she was trying to read a book underwater with the sun shining directly overhead.
“Who are you?” she squeaked, trying to calculate how fast she could get down to the kitchen. Her mom would know what to do, and even if she didn’t, at least Mira wouldn’t be alone in the craziness that was intent on intruding in her life.
The boy-shaped shadow paused as though deep in thought. “I’m really not quite sure,” he said apologetically.