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“I'm sure she only read them for the potion recipes,” I grumbled, trudging up the stairs again.

When we reached the fifth floor, the wizard was already waiting for us on the landing. Creepy.

He held his arm out to the side, indicating a door on the right. “Your place is through there. Please have a seat.”

I walked in, but the wizard stopped Rexi at the door. “Just the princess and the book, if you don't mind. I have some news she should hear alone.”

Rexi stepped back awkwardly from the wizard's palm facing her chest. “Um, sure, here,” she said and reluctantly parted with the book. “I'll just wait—”

“Right there is fine. Nikko will fetch you momentarily.” He shut the door in her face.

My earlier relief was turning into worry. He was snooty and treated everyone around him as inferior. Except me. He treated me with deference because I reminded him of that girl he used to love. Or because he knew about my power. I caught him eyeing my hair.

“Please take a seat in the chair.” He plucked a brass tray off the desk and offered it to me. “Refreshment?”

I sat in the plush chair next to a giant bouquet of poppies. I politely refused the tea and crumpets. “So what did you want to tell me that Rexi shouldn't hear?”

The wizard gave a little frown, like he was disappointed that I was cutting to the chase. “I thought you should know that I've found the Emerald Sorceress.”

“Alive?” I moved to the edge of my seat.

“Yes, actually, that's what my business was downstairs, contacting her to let her know you are all right.” The wizard walked closer to me. “Don't these flowers have just the loveliest fragrance?” He pushed the bouquet in my face so that the pollen went up my nose. The smell actually made me sick, like the wizard's cologne, but one hundred times stronger.

“Achoo!” The second sneeze turned into a yawn. “Fabulous, now what were you saying?”

“About your friend coming to meet you here and what she wants you to do.”

“Really?” I yawned loudly and completely inappropriately. “Excuse me.” I was mortified, but I couldn't seem to help it. I was just so tired. Verte was okay. I should be jumping for joy.

“Yes, she should be here in the morning. Any other questions, dear?” He looked at his watch.

“Yeah.” I bit back another yawn. “Why're you called the Wizard of Is? Why not the Ivory Wizard, or Gold…yawn…Guy.”

“It's an appropriate title for one who can master all that Is in the world. You look a little wilty, Princess. Is everything all right?” His face didn't match his words.

No, it wasn't. But my head wouldn't shake like I wanted it to. “I don't know what's wrong.”

He turned his lips in and nodded sympathetically. “Well, it has been an emotional and difficult few days. You can rest now. I just wanted you to know about your friend. Tomorrow, she and I can work together to craft a spell of reverse ozmosis.”

My eyes were closing without my consent. “And then my parents will be back?”

“Everything will be exactly the way it should.”

“When picking wildflowers, avoid the red poppy like the pox—unless you want a thousand-year nap.”

—
Alice's
Fairy-Tale
Field Guide to Wildflowers and Mushrooms

My eyes felt glued shut. I needed my hands just to pry them open. I got one open. Then the other. I was in a bed with red poppies everywhere. Took a deep breath. Smelled sweet.

Sleepy
now.

I wanted to wake up. But it was too dark.
Must
still
be
bedtime.
I rolled over to go back to sleep.

Thud. Splash. Sizzle.

My eyes popped open. Why was my face wet? Why was my hair popping like firecrackers? So confused. One piece at a time. I was on my back on the floor. There was a vase with wilted flowers tipped over next to me. I had probably knocked them off when I rolled out of bed.

Upsy daisy.

I used the four-poster bed to support me because my legs didn't want to. It felt like I hadn't moved in days. And my head was fuzzy, like it was filled with cotton candy. Looking around the room, I saw vases and vases of wilted flowers.

Weird, random decor.

I had no clue where I was. Worse than that, I had no clue
who
I was. Maybe taking a walk would help me see if something looked familiar. My feet were cold against the floor. Where were my shoes? I thought I remembered liking shoes. Well, that was one thing at least.

Outside the room there was a long hall of mirrors. I walked down it, not really recognizing the girl walking next to me in the mirror. She was barefoot and wearing an ugly dress. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be caught dead like that—and something was wrong with her hair.

The mirrors must be broken.

I heard scraping behind me and spun around in time to see a small puppy run into one of the rooms. Instantly I felt a visceral gut-clenching hatred. See, there was another clue. Apparently I was more of a cat person.

Did I have a cat? Or a pet? I willed myself to remember and caught fragments of memories. A little fuzzy thing in a basket. Toto or something. That must be it.

Satisfied, I continued down the hall. The door to the room at the end was cracked open. People were talking. A man and a woman.

It would be bad manners to interrupt. Someone once told me to always wait outside until they're done. But who? Maybe they were inside. I would listen and see if I recognized the voices. Maybe get a better idea of who and where I was.

“…poppies aren't working, are they?”

“If they were, I wouldn't have had to transport you here, now would I? I've removed the shoes, but she's got the magic of Oz in her blood now,” said the man.

“What's to stop me from killing her and torturing you? Giving my sister your head on a silver platter would be a very nice start to make up for your double-crossing us.”

“That wo-would be unwise,” the man stuttered. “After so many attempts, you know very well you don't have enough power to kill her. But with my help, we would be able to contain her.”

The woman sighed. “I'm listening.”

“The princess brought me the book. It's yours if you help me keep her here. And when your sister is free, she can use it with the power of Emerald and have none of the risk. Surely with that, the empress will forgive me.”

“Why would you want to keep her here?” She clucked her tongue. “Don't tell me you've fallen for the little twit. Are you trying to replace the first Emerald with this one?”

“What concern is it of yours? As long as you know where she is, you won't ever have to worry about your little mistake coming back to burn you.”

The woman growled something low, but I couldn't make it out.

Pushing my ear tighter to the door, I fell into the room and collided with a blond man. I started to apologize to him but realized I'd been confused. It wasn't a man at all. It was a green woman. An ugly green woman.

Why was I crying?

She offered me an emerald staff to help myself up. I took it and got to my feet. Then I hugged the woman fiercely, already forgetting what they were talking about.

“I don't know who you are, but I think I am very happy to see you.” I sniffled and wiped my nose against her sleeve.

“You don't recognize me, Dorthea?” the green-faced woman said, her eyes searching me over.

“Is that my name?” I turned it over in my head, tasting it to see if it felt right. “I don't remember. There are holes in my brain, and my memories keep falling out.”

The other person in the room scoffed and turned her eyes up. The green-faced woman glared at her and wrapped an arm around me. “My name is Verte, and you have been very sick with the curse. We had to leave the Emerald Palace to get help from a special, magnificent man named the Wizard of Is.” She pointed her red-tipped fingers to the other girl. “This is Rexi. She came with us from the palace. Does any of this sound familiar?”

The name Rexi did ring a bell. The girl's hair looked like she'd put her finger in a lightning bug jar and got electrocuted.

I looked back to Verte to answer her question. “I think so. I remember that girl being really rude. And there was this boy. Mother wanted me to marry him.” My heart started beating faster. There was something I needed to know, something just on the edge of what I could see. Teardrops fell onto my hands. “Are my parents here? I think I need to see them.”

Verte patted my back. “Hush now, child. They're still at the palace, but they're coming for the wedding. You were right; you are getting married. In fact, it's to the wizard I was telling you about earlier.”

Rexi made a strangled noise in her throat and looked like she'd swallowed a bug. A really gross bug.

With effort, I tried to recall the boy I was supposed to marry. I think I was upset at first, but now he gave me warm, fuzzy feelings. Even if I couldn't quite remember what he looked like. I could have sworn I had heard a man's voice, but only the two women were in the room. “Can I see him now?”

Verte got a strained look on her face. “Not right now, dearie. You are still very sick, and if you want to be all better for your wedding day, you'd better get your rest. Rexi will take you back to your room.”

The young girl sighed and helped me up. I was still kind of light-headed and leaned on her for support. We left the room and headed back down the hallway of mirrors.

I pulled myself back, so I could get a good look at Rexi. “Are we friends?”

She smiled sweetly. “Of course, the very bestest. Why would you ask?”

“Because if you were my friend, you would tell me if something was wrong.”

She batted her eyes and smiled brighter. “Absolutely.”

Rexi opened the door to the room. While I had been gone, all the dead flowers had been cleared away and replaced with new ones.

“So you think it's okay to marry this wizard guy?” I continued my earlier point while Rexi helped me back into bed and under the covers.

Her smiled tightened, and when she spoke, her voice sounded odd, like she had stuffed something up her nose. “Fairy-tale wedding and happily ever after. Isn't that what every princess wants?”

“I guess so.” I yawned. “Hey, Rexi,” I called sleepily.

She was out the door but poked her head back in. “What?”

“Will you tell Verte the mirrors are broken?”

“What do you mean?”

“They…
yawn
…have the wrong…
yawn
…reflection. Yours is really pale with silver hai…” I trailed off into sleep before I could finish.

“Rule #71: When making the seating chart for your royal wedding, don't put dwarves near the champagne fountain.”

—
Definitive Fairy-Tale Wedding Survival Guide

“Today is a magnificent day.”

I opened my eyes but immediately had to squint because of the bright light streaming in from the window.

“What day is it today?” I croaked. My throat felt dry, like it was out of practice.

“It's your wedding day—the most important day of a young princess's life.” Verte bustled around the room.

My heart nearly exploded. “I'm getting married?” I squeaked.

Verte clucked disapprovingly at me. “Don't you remember? We had this conversation already. You've spent all this week getting better for it.”

I vaguely remembered the conversation now. But wasn't that yesterday? My sense of time was completely wonky, and I couldn't remember a single thing in between that chat and this moment, let alone a week's worth.

Verte continued to flit about the room, finally going to the corner and opening an armoire. Inside hung a dress that sparkled with diamonds and emerald beading. “Your mother sent it. Something came up at the Emerald Palace and she won't be able to come. She left you a letter. Would you like to read it?”

Somehow I wasn't surprised that my mom wasn't coming. For some reason, I couldn't even picture her ever leaving the palace. Still, what kind of mother didn't show up at her own daughter's wedding? “Yes, please.” I swung my legs to dangle off the bed and greedily waited for my letter, since that was all I could have of her.

“Are you all right, my dear?” Verte sat down on the bed next to me.

I attempted to summon a smile. It would have been easier to tell the suns not to rise. “It feels like I haven't seen my parents in ages.”

Verte patted my hand. “As soon as today's important business is settled, everything will be exactly as it should.” She got off the bed and opened the door. Rexi stood in the doorway with a tray of food. “Eat your breakfast,” Verte said as Rexi brought it in. “Every bite. Once you're married, you'll need all your strength.” Verte cackled at her own joke and hobbled out of the room.

Rexi set the breakfast tray down on the table and motioned for me to take a seat. The tray was brimming with all sorts of goodies: mini cheesecakes, burrberry croissants, chocolate wands, and an apple. They looked and smelled delicious. Adorning the tray was a white agave lily. All of my favorite things—and I was extra pleased that I remembered that these were my favorite things.

I looked around the room to see what else I could glean about my life. The walls were bare and sterile. The nightstand held a single vase of gardenias. The room seemed…empty. “Weren't there a whole bunch of red flowers here earlier?”

Wearing the tight smile again, Rexi plucked a flower from the nearby vase. “Yes, but I find white to be much more appropriate for a wedding.” She started plucking the petals off to emphasize each word. “It symbolizes new beginnings, a blank slate, if you will.” Her smile got big and toothy, like she was doing a commercial for sparkle toothpaste. I had the urge to say,
Grandma, what big teeth you have.

She called for Nikko, who had brought a satin pillow. On it was a silver hair comb adorned with a large, white flower. She clapped in pleasure. “Let's get you ready for your big day.”

A loud commotion came from outside my window, and I peeked out to see what was going on. People were running around yelling like Munchkins while some kind of animal roared and reared up. The huge beast was being led by chains—kind of. Even with ten men, they had a hard time getting the big, winged creature to cooperate.

“What in Grimm's name is that?”

I wondered if that was one of the beasts threatening my kingdom.

Rexi looked out the window too, her face set into hard lines. “
That
is dinner for the feast.” She stomped to the door. “Nikko, help the princess get dressed and make sure she eats. Everything. I'll take care of preparations for the barbecue.”

She stayed by the door for a minute more, watching me expectantly. Picking up one of the chocolate wands, I took a bite. Apparently satisfied, she turned and left.

As soon as she was gone, I pulled a face and tossed the wand back on the tray. The candy tasted sour and a little funny, like maybe it was stale or had gone bad.

Nikko set about pinning my hair into some intricate style. He was surprisingly nimble, considering he had big apelike hands, and but he probably got a lot of practice since he so much hair of his own—all over his body, not just under a hat, which looked like some kind of upside-down takeout food box. In fact, I didn't want to be rude, but he looked rather much like a gorilla. While he worked on my hair, I gingerly examined the flowered headpiece he'd brought up. I'd never seen anything like it. Delicate white petals shot up through the middle and seemed to cascade over like a waterfall.

“Mind the thorns, Lady Emerald. Sometimes even the most beautiful things can bite,” Nikko whispered. It was the first time I had heard his voice. It didn't really match the oafish old man.

Following his warning, I looked closer at the bloom. Sure enough, hidden beneath the flower's head were sharp, spindly thorns.

“It's called a lotus rose.” He continued to whisper as if he were afraid to be overheard even though we were the only two people in the room. “It used to be the symbol of a powerful sorceress. I haven't seen one in many years. Did you know that if you tried to grow it in a garden, it would never bloom? The flower only blossoms in the most horrendous conditions. But when it does, it's strong and almost nothing can kill it.” Nikko gently took the flower from my hand and pinned it into my hair. “There. All done.”

“Is there a looking glass handy so I can see it?” I asked and glanced around the barren room.

“I'm sorry, but the wizard has sent away all the mirrors. They had some sort of magical malfunction.” Nikko pulled the wedding dress out of the armoire and laid it on the bed. He looked from it to me, then back to it again, blushing.

I took pity on him since I didn't think that
ladies
handmaiden
was in his typical job description. “You really don't have to stay while I get dressed. I'm sure I can manage myself.”

He looked around, distressed, probably worried his boss would yell at him for leaving me alone. “I don't—”

Placing a hand softly on his arm, I gently nudged him out. “You can stand just outside the door, and I'll knock when I'm ready for you to come in.”

Looking relieved, Nikko bowed and scurried out the door, closing it. I think I heard the snick of a lock. Honestly, what was everyone so jumpy about? Worried that I would become a runaway bride or something?

My memories were starting to come back to me. I remembered bits of my childhood, like tagging along with Verte because everyone was always too busy for me. And the desperate desire to please my parents but always falling short.

Well, not this time.

I picked up the dress and thought of my mother's wedding portrait that hung just outside the ballroom. Hopefully, the borrowed dress looked half as good on me. Slipping it on felt, in some small way, like she was here with me. This was what she wanted—no,
needed
me to do. But I would have been lying if I had said I didn't have cold feet.

Speaking of, where were my shoes? I opened the armoire to check and see if my mom had sent some. When I bent over to look along the bottom, I got dizzy and sick to my stomach. The piece of chocolate wand I had earlier came back up.

Yuck. It tasted even worse the second time.

It seemed important to both Rexi and Verte that I eat, and it was clear from the sampling of my favorites that they had put a lot of thought into preparing it. I didn't want their feelings to get hurt, but I was too nervous to keep anything else down. And throwing up on my intended's feet would not make a very good impression.

I looked out the window. The beast and his handlers were gone. The only thing directly below was a litter of golden retriever pups.

“Here, puppy puppies,” I called, rapping on the open glass.

They all looked up, ears perked, tilting their heads.

“Are you hungry?” I held the tray out the window and tipped it over, allowing the food to fall to the dogs below. They gobbled it rabidly.

With that little piece of ingenuity taken care of, I set the tray back down and restarted my search for shoes. There was one thing I knew for sure: I had a lot of them. “One pair must be around here…”

A twinkle under the bed caught my eye. There's no elegant way to squat down in a wedding dress, but I managed. Aside from a few dust gerbils, there was a pair of silver slippers with two-inch ruby heels. I loved them on sight.

“They're gorgeous.” I stroked the sides and felt a little electric charge run down my spine. Setting down the shoes, I lifted my gown and stepped into them. Immediately I felt better; my head even cleared a little.

I lowered my dress. The hem barely grazed the floor, meaning the shoes would stay hidden and no one would see that the ruby clashed with the emeralds sewn onto my dress.

A tepid knock on the door. “Princess, all your guests are waiting. May I come in?” The quiet voice was muffled even further through the wood.

“Yes, Nikko. I'm ready.” And I was. I felt better than I had in days—I think. Putting on those shoes had clicked something into place. Things were going to be all right. I could feel it.

Nikko stepped in the room and gasped.

I chuckled awkwardly and toyed with my skirt. “Hopefully that's the good kind of shock as opposed to the ‘emperor's new clothes' kind.”

His eyes brightened and the corners crinkled in. “I see you found the shoes I snuck in for you.” He stared at me for another moment before his eyes clouded over as if he remembered something. “Have you finished your breakfast?”

I proudly pointed to the empty tray. “Every bite.”

“Then there's nothing left to do, is there?” Nikko chewed his lower lip, like he wanted to say something else. “I really wish I could be of more help.” His golden bucket hat flashed a bit.

Taking a deep breath, I rolled my shoulders back. “It's okay. I'm ready. Let's go.”

Nikko still looked hesitant but held out his arm to escort me. “As you wish.” He led me up the stairs to the top of the tower. Off to the right of the landing, there was a large hole in the marble wall. And just underneath the hole was a single tawny feather.

I picked it up and twirled it through my fingers, playing with the soft, downy end. “What the hex made this hole?”

Nikko stumbled slightly, tripping over his shoelace or something. When he straightened, he said, “A bird, Your Majesty.”

Must have been a big bird.

“There you are! What took you so long? Everyone is waiting.” Rexi hustled toward us. She couldn't go very fast since she had somehow squeezed herself into a little silver lamé cocktail dress—that was two sizes too small.

“Rexi, please don't take this the wrong way, but is there any way you could change your clothes? That dress looks really tacky, and your opal necklace, while lovely, is a little much, and the bright red clashes, don't you think?” I tried to put it as nicely as I could, but still, it had to be said. After all, it was my wedding—the only one I was ever going to have—and I didn't want anyone looking like they got dressed at the Three Blind Mice Boutique.

Rexi's jaw dropped so low she looked like a boa constrictor. Nikko turned paler than Snow White's tuchus and slowly backed away.

She snapped her mouth shut with an audible click. “I'm sorry but that's not possible; there is simply no time. Here.” Shoving a bouquet of flowers into my hand, she next turned her anger to the man at my side. “What are you staring at, Nikko? Go outside and check on our other royal pain.” Her curled lip attempted to smile sweetly. “I mean
guest
.” Then she stormed back in the direction she had come from.

“She is so not my maid of honor anymore,” I muttered, fluffing up the flowers in my bouquet. “Ouch.” Blood welled up on my finger from the thorn.

“I did try to warn you, Highness,” Nikko said but wouldn't look me in the eye.

I shrugged it off. “It's no big deal. Just a little blood. But I did just think of a way you can help. If there is another royal guest, will you please send them up?”

A smile broke across the gentleman's face. “Yes, Your Majesty. I can do that.” Then he bounded down the stairs, some two at a time.

Rexi gestured impatiently from the double doors at the end of the hall. No reason to delay the inevitable. As I walked down the hallway, the old superstition entered my head.
Something
borrowed, something blue. Something magic, for love so true.
I had the borrowed dress and I had the magic shoes. I didn't have anything blue though.

Wait, maybe I did.
I
think
my
fiancé's eyes are blue, a lovely but unusual shade
. I remembered the first time I had looked into those eyes, and with a deep breath, I pushed open the doors.

Inside was a grand ballroom, everything opulent to the point of excess. There were floating chandeliers, a champagne waterfall, even a five-piece orchestra that was playing itself.