Page 2 of Switched

“They are not dumb!” I snap, unable to control myself. “Maybe they’ve realized they made the wrong choice, but now they have no way to get back home. Did you ever think of that?”

Jax puts a hand on my shoulder. The HEAS reporter has stopped wanding, and all my professors are looking at me: Professor Wolfington, Professor Harlow, Madame Cleo (visible in a mirror made of sea glass that Professor Blackbeard is holding), and Rapunzel, who runs our Royal Ladies-in-Waiting club. Rapunzel shakes her head at me ever so slightly.

Fiddlesticks.

So much for flying under the radar this morning.

“Sorry!” I shout to the reporter and the others. “Please proceed with the wand thingy. I’ll be quiet and not point out that we’re running fifteen minutes behind schedule and some of us have to be in Wanding: How to Block Curses in an hour.”

Headmistress Flora glances at the large clock in the foyer. “Ms. Cobbler makes a valid point. Our new professors will be arriving any moment. We should get the ribbon cutting underway.”

There is a murmur of excitement over the mention of new teachers.

Our group has been making bets on what villain Flora turned who is coming to work here. Or maybe it’s a princess. We do tend to employ both these days.

Could it be the Little Mermaid, Madame Cleo’s bestie?

Or the Ice Queen? Some days, this large, magical castle does get quite warm. Maybe she could cool things down.

Or Hua Mulan? She’s supposed to be one of the greatest warriors ever. We could use her. Or Little Red Riding Hood! I think of the bow and arrow she gave me on our quest to find the golden goose, and I grin to myself. Maybe Red is the one who is going to teach our From Mischief-Maker to Model Citizen classes! It makes perfect sense! I smile at Professor Wolfington. I bet he convinced Red to leave the Hollow Woods and teach at Fairy Tale Reform School.

“Without further ado,” says Princess Ella in a breathy voice, “the royal court would like to open the doors to Fairy Tale Reform School’s new library.” Everyone starts to cheer as Ella cuts the ribbon with a large pair of scissors. “It is our hope that the knowledge and dreams you find in the books behind these doors will help you on your journey to not only find yourself, but also to help defend Enchantasia.”

Everyone rushes to the doors. I’m not sure most people hear Princess Ella’s speech, but it is actually kind of inspiring.

“Ooh!” says the crowd, stopping dead in their tracks as the doors magically open.

Maxine’s mouth begins to drool again. “It’s like the library goes on forever!”

I squint into the light. Somehow, it feels like the library is actually outdoors on a grassy field. I blink, and the background changes to a snowy mountaintop. I blink again, and I’m standing on a riverbank. Gingerbread, how does the room’s view keep changing? And why can’t I see a ceiling? Or walls? The floors, however, sparkle like glass, and it’s as if the bookcases go on and on forever.

Somewhere in this jungle of books is the one that will give me answers. I just know it.

My friends and I join the slow procession into the library as Miri shouts various instructions from mirrors hanging from stands around the room.

“No touching any books until the Magical Librarian arrives! There are rules about these books that must be followed!”

Jocelyn snickers. “Whoever heard of a book having rules? It’s not a person.”

“No food, drinks, spelling, or wands allowed in the library,” Miri adds. “Books are meant to be read, not eaten by your fairy pets! The top floors of the library are for older students only and require permission from the Magical Librarian. First floor only today! No running or flying in the library! And please, keep your voices down!” she yells. Obviously, Miri is exempt from the rules.

“Did you hear that?” I whisper to Jax. “Top floors require permission. That must be where the best books on villains are. Let’s go!”

Headmistress Flora steps into my path before I reach the first winding staircase.

“Ms. Cobbler, where do you think you’re going? As Miri explained, we are staying on the first floor today.”

It’s almost as if she knows what I’m after.

“But—” I start to protest.

“Gillian, I told you before,” Flora says wearily. “There are days for fighting and days for celebrating, and today is a celebration. Open your eyes and marvel at this place!”

I sigh heavily and let my eyes drift upward. The room is so majestic that I feel like I’m standing in the middle of a royal court palace. There are water fountains with cherub statues that talk and glittering signs that flash to show what books are on which floor. There must be thousands of books in here, shelved on four different floors. The categories fly by: Potions, Spells, Magic Tricks, Hexes, Surviving the High Seas, How to Talk to Animals, and From Wicked to Winning Self-Help Books. I don’t see a villain category or the History of Enchantasia section, but they have to be here. A large atrium beckons us forward. It looks so enchanting with all the stained glass windows that seem to reach the school’s highest turret. Magic carpets float in the air, waiting to take readers up to out-of-reach shelves, while kids run to cushy, oversize pillows perfect for curling up on for hours of reading, studying, or napping.

Swish! A magic carpet races over my head, carrying books to different shelves. I watch several more zoom past, swooping by a fairy librarian station where workers are reading magical scrolls and wanding books out of thin air.

“Isn’t that your sister?” I ask Kayla, pointing out a fairy with shimmery, blue wings on the second floor. The fairy stacks books on a rug that zooms over the atrium to a shelf on another floor.