Hansel and the Gingerbread Queen: A Retelling of Hansel and Gretel (A Villain's Ever After) by Lea Doué

Author:Lea Doué [Doué, Lea]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: Butterwing Publishing
Published: 2021-09-16T16:00:00+00:00

“I WONDER IF THAT SPOON wand would work on me,” Hansel mused later as they readied themselves for another visit by the gingerbread man.

Evony tucked the spoon into her bodice and laughed, nervous and absurdly giddy at the same time. “Perhaps we’ll try it someday.” The thought of waking up the next morning and seeing Hansel once again pleased her and frightened her all at once.

“I’m not sure I want to look like a blueberry pie, but it suits you.” His gaze held both mirth and appreciation.

She rolled her eyes and pushed the chairs under the table as far as possible. The wand had dressed her in layers and layers of purple-blue skirts, which made walking around the kitchen a challenge. The bodice was the same color, overlayed in golden-brown ribbons like the crisscross pattern of a lattice pie crust, complete with a buttery sheen. Her hair had been swept up and adorned with too many large white chrysanthemums.

Cork pointed at her, laughing, and said, “Your head looks like the whipped—ah!”

Broom pushed him off the counter and then continued sweeping up as much of the orange pixie dust as he could, muttering about selling the stuff to the troll at the bridge someday. By the time he finished, there was so little left that Magnus would be hard pressed to see it even if he had an eagle’s eyesight.

Cork climbed back onto the counter, and the two brownies took their places. While Gretel flew to the cellar through the chink in the floor, Evony settled Juniper and the cookies under his basket with an arrangement of hyssop on top.

Hansel approached Evony where she stood in front of the counter. She was afraid to move far in the heavy skirts.

“Will you be all right?” He spoke softly and took her hands. “Do you need anything?”

She needed for all of this to be over. “I’ll be fine.” The warmth of his hands made her realize how cold her own were. “Magnus hasn’t caught on yet to what we’re doing. Tonight shouldn’t be any different.”

“It’s not hard to fool a cookie,” Juniper said from his hiding spot.

“I’ll be ready if you need me.” Hansel cupped her face in his hand. He rearranged a chrysanthemum petal that had strayed too close to her ear.

If he didn’t go soon, she might break down and tell him just how much she needed him. Ever since Juniper had arrived, she’d never felt alone. He was her companion and that would never change. But she was learning that a human-dragon bond was not the same as that between a man and a woman.

“You should join Gretel now,” she whispered.

He obeyed, and the door softly thumped shut behind him.

Evony stood by herself in the cottage, knowing she wasn’t truly alone. Magnus’s whistling echoed outside the window. Everything was in order, except ... the chest!

She rushed over and pushed the chest on top of the cellar door, her skirts knocking over a chair in the process. She had no time to pick it up and hurried back to her place.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.