The Mind Behind The Beanie || ✔

Figuring It Out and Getting There, or, At Least Trying

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"I think you're onto something!" Jack said.  "Conner, do you remember the night we followed the Masked Man to the Witches' Brew?  The witches were meeting because they were afraid they'd get blamed for the emissions children- they were paranoid a witch hunt was coming.  It's very likely they began plotting to take over the fairy-tale world as a way to protect themselves."
"Then the Masked Man invaded with the Literary Army," Goldilocks said.  "The witches probably kidnapped Emmerich so they would leverage against your uncle, so maybe they plan to use Alex as leverage against us!"
"Of course the witches are up to some vile scheme," Red said.  "I mean, they're witches- hello!  I wouldn't be surprised if that goat who took Charlie had something to do with it!    The Lost Boys and I found the missing children in her basement- Morina probably kidnapped them to purposely stir u paranoia in the witch community so they had a reason to plot a takeover!  I bet she's behind the whole thing!"
I froze and looked at Red in astonishment.  If she wS correct, it was unsettling how easy it was for her to guess Morina's intentions.  I mean, the theory sounded correct, if you thought about it, but the fact that her brain swerved hat way was odd.
"Don't look at me that way," Red said.  "It takes a conniving genius to know a conniving genius.  Obviously, there's a type of woman Charlie's attracted to."
"But how would the witches know we're planning to defeat the Literary Army? How do they know we're a threat." Conner asked, taking the thought right out of my mind.
But, the fact that I had reached the answer first kind of surprised me, and at the same time didn't.
I looked at him like the answer was obvious. 
"Conner, they figured out Emmerich was your cousin before you or your uncle did," I reminded him.  "I'm sure it wouldn't be hard for a witch to look into a crystal ball and figure out what we're doing with a bunch of interdimensional beings inside a children's hospital!"  Honestly, I don't know how the boy wasn't used to the 'fairy tale' way.  Any witch could look through to the other side of the universe and see what's happening.  At least, that's what the storybooks said, and since all of these characters were from storybooks, it only made sense that every detail was true. 
"Let's lay everything out on the table before we go any further," Conner said. 
"Which table?" the Tin Woodman asked. 
"Also a figure of speech," Conner said. We had had some trouble wi5 the Tin Woodman and other characters and our dialect.  "Not on,y do we have to liberate the fairy-tale world from the scariest villains in literature and slay a mythological creature before it turns us all to stone, but we also have to defeat and an evil coven of witches before they use my sister against us."
All of u exchanged frightened, wide-eyed glances.  The Blissworm cheered.  I mostly agreed with him, I couldn't wait for the battle to begin.  The best reward for sneaking out of the house at night!
Xxx
"We know where your sister is!" Charlotte panted.  We had made some preliminary plans, with lost of interruptions from different characters.  Charlotte and Bob had just come running down from their shifts on the third floor, where Trollbella had fetched them from.
"You what?" Conner asked incredulously. 
"Turn on the news!" Bob told the pirates. "Channel four! Hurry!"
"But Ricky just let Lucy perform in his club!" Auburn Sally said.
"CHANGE THE CHANNEL!" the entire room yelled in unison.
The pirates reluctantly changed the channel, and everyone gathered around the television to watch the news.  A reporter appeared on the screen, broadcasting live from someplace in NewYork City. 
"I'm standing on the corner of Thirty-Ninth Street and Fifth Avenue n Manhattan, where police have stopped all vehicle and pedestrians from going any farther," the reporter said. "The NYPD is preventing everyone from entering a two-block radius around the main branch of the New York Public Library.  Police officials have yet to say the reason for such precautions but one thing is certain, something dangerous is happening at the library."
The station played shaky footage from a helicopter that was flying over the library.  I strained to see anything that would be helpful, but my eyes caught nothing but the red and blue police lights.
"This isn't the first peculiar incident in the area this week," the camera now switched back to the reporter. "As I mentioned earlier, just a few days ago the wreckage of a bathroom mysteriously appeared in the middle of Bryant Park, just behind the library. The dumpers have yet to be identified."