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  Horace’s finger slid across the page. “That takes us to the twenty-eighth.”

  “The sun went down after I got out of the pool and rose while we were with Miss Trang in her room. So it’s the twenty-ninth.”

  “Not anymore!” Baz pointed out the window. “It’s night again!”

  “So when it gets light, it will be April thirtieth, and Walpurgis Night is tonight!” Willa looked at Horace, and they both spun around to look at Mab.

  “Mab you’ve got to slow time down!”

  She looked panicked. “I don’t know if I can loop the yarn back in — it might have us going backward and forward at the same time!”

  “Do it!”

  At that moment, Tengu stuck his head in the door. “We found the dwarves.”

  The kitchen was far worse than the rest of the house. There were so many branches that nothing could be seen of the floor, ceiling, or walls. And in the nine hammocks lay the dwarves, wrapped in leafy cocoons with only their heads and feet sticking out. Their eyes were closed.

  Willa gasped. “Are they—?”

  “They’re asleep,” said Argus. “I can hear them breathing.”

  Robert filled the doorway, his arms full of swords and axes. “Where do you want ’em?” he asked brightly.

  Since the parlour was the most free of vines, they piled the weapons there. Robert went to chop the dwarves free while everyone else armed themselves. The rabbits had their own swords, as did Oberon. Willa found her sword in the pile and held it up.

  “I hope I only have to use this on plants,” she muttered. She moved to the window and watched as the sun leapt into the sky.

  Then it stopped.

  Mab let out a cry of victory and held up the scarf, now a great long loop with a twist in the middle. “Infinity,” she chirped with a triumphant smile. “I twisted it, attached the end to the beginning and tied a knot.”

  Horace was giving her work a close look. “The stitches aren’t pulling out. She’s stopped time.” He looked out the window. “But we’re still in this world.”

  Baz was looking at the scarf too, very impressed. “What kind of knot is that?”

  Mab floated up in the air and spun around. “Fairy secret.”

  “How long will it hold?” asked Horace.

  Mab shrugged. “I have no idea.”

  Now that the clock’s hands had stopped, Willa breathed easier. “Okay, so we’ve got a little time at least. How are you coming with that dragon skin?”

  Argus threw the bundle down in disgust, the strands still intact. “This thing is totally enchanted. Impossible to open.”

  Willa turned to Baz. “Didn’t you say dragons burn their skins after shedding them?”

  Baz slapped her forehead. “Of course! We’ll set it on fire!” She grabbed the bundle and moved to toss it in the fireplace.

  “Not there!” yelped Willa.

  Leaves were shooting down the chimney, filling the fireplace.

  “Let’s take it outside. I don’t want to burn the house down,” said Willa. “Again.”

  She looked in on Belle and Miss Trang before following the others outside. Miss Trang’s breathing was even more laboured than before.

  Belle looked at her in panic. “She won’t last much longer. You’ve got to do something!”

  “I think we have a solution,” replied Willa. “Just hang on for another minute!”

  Beside the pool, they were piling up kindling, chairs, beams, and the remains of Tabitha’s house. Baz placed the dragon-skin bundle on top of the wood.

  “Are you sure this will work?” Willa asked.

  Baz and Horace looked at each other and shrugged.

  “All right, we’ve got no choice.” Willa let out a whistle and called, “Roshni!”

  The phoenix flew down from the floating attic and fanned the pyre with her great wings. Just as a wisp of smoke curled up, however, it went out again. She tried again and again, with the same result.

  “The ground is too wet! Look!”

  Water welled up from the ground. The woodpile was sinking into the muck. Willa felt the earth grow soft and spongy beneath her feet.

  “We need to build it up off the ground.” Tengu started piling things higher.

  “Wait, I’ve got a better idea!” Willa dashed back into the house and up the stairs. On the roof of the second floor, she untied the rope to the attic, pulled it to the edge of the roof, and jumped off.

  She had expected to float to the ground, pulling the attic down like a balloon, but she only got about halfway to the ground, where she bobbed helplessly.

  “Um, help? Someone?”

  She felt a hand grab her left foot, and Argus pulled her downward, bringing the attic with her. He tied the rope to a tree. Tengu and Baz opened up the attic door and began pitching the driest kindling inside.

  “She’s stopped breathing!” Belle shrieked from a window. “Do something!” Dark clouds began to swirl overhead.

  “Roshni!” Baz called, tossing the bundle into the air. The phoenix caught it in her claws and flapped her wings. As the bundle ignited in her grip, there was a flash in the sky, and raindrops began to fall.

  “Quickly now!” breathed Willa.

  Roshni swooped up and flung the blazing bundle into the attic. They waited with bated breath, watching the attic float above their heads, rain spattering down around them.

  Then the room glowed warmly, and Willa saw flames. “It’s lit! Well done, Roshni!”

  When they burst into Miss Trang’s room, they found her sitting up in bed, her eyes alight with fury.

  “She’s free of the enchantment!” Belle chortled. “Just look at her!”

  Miss Trang was a sight indeed. She was filling out before their eyes, and as she grew larger, her skin smoothed out. Her head came to a rest at the ceiling, and she stretched out her arms, now as big as tree limbs, and smacked the sides of the room. Vines cracked and leaves rained down.

  “ENCHANT ME? ME?” The wind howled in her voice. Miss Trang was becoming less and less human; her eyes slid to the sides of her head as her face stretched into a long snout. Her great nostrils flared, and she wagged her head back and forth, scanning the room. “Who would DARE do such a thing?”

  “The spider! And Oberon!” Belle cackled.

  There was a flash of gold as Oberon fled the room.

  “You’d best stop growing,” counselled Horace. “The dwarves wouldn’t like it if you broke the house they’ve been working so hard on.”

  Miss Trang snarled but stopped expanding. As the others went to help Robert free the dwarves, Willa stayed behind.

  “Welcome back,” she said with a grin.

  “Sorry I slept in,” growled Miss Trang. “So … what’s new?”

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Return of the Trang

  Miss Trang was so big she could barely twist herself around in the room to look out the window. “Where did all the plants come from?”

  Willa told her quickly about the time holes. “A vine grew out of a time hole and spread to all this. There’s a giant Green Man at the back wall, grown up from that vine, and his mouth is an opening to the dark side.”

  Miss Trang looked at Willa in surprise. “You’re sure?”

  “Positive. I felt it. And there’s another Green Man at the other end of the time hole, connected to him by the vine.”

  Miss Trang shook her head in bewilderment. “I’ve never heard of anything like this. Has the dark side found a way to use time holes to travel around? And what about this spider who put the spell on me?”

  “I think she came from the dark side, and now she’s gone back. She was knitting and messing up time. Hold on.” Willa ran and brought the scarf to show her. “Walpurgis Night is tonight, so we stopped time to prevent it!”

  “You stopped time?
That’s cheeky.” Miss Trang turned the scarf over in her hands. “I’m glad I got back before you remodelled the entire universe!”

  Willa started to tell her about the dark horse and the poem, but Miss Trang shook her head. “I’ve got no patience for dreams and omens and cryptic rhymes. I’ll leave that to you to figure out. I just want to know one more thing. What in Odin’s name is that?”

  She pointed out the window at the attic, burning and sizzling a little in the rain as it bobbed at the end of the rope.

  “We burned your skin to release you. In that.”

  “My skin?” She perked up at the news. “That’s a lucky break. We must keep that flame alive.” She held up the scarf. “Once we’re ready, we’ll loosen the knot so night falls. The dark forces will get a surge of power, but the fire will be our refuge.”

  The smattering of rain increased, and Miss Trang noted it. “They’ll try to put it out, of course. We need someone utterly reliable to watch over the fire.”

  “Argus!” hollered Willa.

  He appeared in the doorway. “We’ve freed all the dwarves, and they’re hopping mad!”

  “I’ve got a job for you,” said Willa.

  Miss Trang nodded. “You must guard the fire out there. Keep it burning at all cost.”

  Argus blinked every eye in surprise. “There are others who would do a much better job.”

  Miss Trang looked at Willa, who shook her head. “No one is more reliable than you, Argus. I would trust you with my life.”

  Argus stood straighter, and his eyes — all of them — shone bright. “I’ll take care of it,” he said simply, and with a quick nod he hurried outside.

  Miss Trang handed Willa the scarf. “You look after this.” As Willa slipped it into her pocket, Miss Trang looked her right in the eye. “Pull out all the powers you’ve got, Willa. I’m not sure exactly what we’re up against here, so we’re just going to have to stay alert and seize whatever opportunity presents itself.”

  Willa nodded, and Miss Trang began twisting herself toward the door. “I want to see this plant man for myself before we bring on the night.” At the doorway she paused, too big to fit through. She planted her shoulders against the doorframe. “Stand back!”

  Willa shrank to the far wall as Miss Trang pushed through, splintering the doorway and sending a spray of plaster into the hall. She crawled toward the front door.

  “Stop growing until you get outside!” Willa shouted, but Miss Trang didn’t seem to be able to control herself. Her body continued to lengthen as she moved through the front hall, her clothing splitting and falling away, her tail shooting out behind.

  There was another ear-splitting CRACK as Miss Trang burst through the front door.

  It wasn’t long before a crowd had gathered on the front porch. Belle, Baz, Horace, Tengu, Robert, dwarves, fairies, rabbits … everyone was there watching with wide eyes. Miss Trang lay before them in the yard, her long, lizardy form growing ever larger.

  “She’s back!” boomed Robert.

  “Atta girl!” cheered Baz.

  The rabbits hopped up and down, the fairies flashed about, the dwarves clapped and hollered. There was a buzz of optimism in the air.

  “Miss Trang will handle everything.”

  “Of course she will!”

  “Good old Trang!”

  The world beyond the front gate was frozen and oblivious to the action in the yard. Willa looked up at the sun, framed by clouds, hanging motionless in the sky. Everyone was so spellbound by the dragon’s transformation that Willa was the only one to see the black shape drop from the roof onto Tengu’s shoulder.

  “The basilisk!” she gasped. “Tengu! Don’t look!”

  Tengu’s face split in a huge grin. Slowly he turned, and looked the basilisk straight in the eye. Willa held her breath, terrified.

  A moment passed.

  Then another.

  Nothing happened. Tengu let out a whoop and wrapped the basilisk in a bear hug. The creature smiled and clucked contentedly.

  Willa clutched Horace’s arm. “He didn’t turn to stone!”

  “A-apparently not,” Horace stammered.

  The basilisk turned its head toward them and Willa found herself staring into its strange, pale yellow eyes.

  She waited, and again nothing happened. Remembering to breathe, she turned to Horace. He was smiling.

  “We did it!” he crowed. “An unprecedented accomplishment! This is the first basilisk in history to be trained and rendered harmless. I must write the Academy of Beasts and Apparitions about this.”

  Another cheer went up, and Willa turned to see a full-grown dragon in the yard. She stretched the entire width of the property and stood weakly, blinking in the light. Her legs seemed a little wobbly as she moved slowly around the side of the house.

  Everyone followed. A light drizzle was falling, and the ground under their feet was sodden and muddy. Argus was rigging a large tarp to shield the attic from the rain, while Roshni watched from the roof of the house. The dragon paused beside the pool.

  “Willa?” she called.

  Willa pushed through the others; someone pressed her sword into her hand. She pointed out the vine emerging from the time hole and snaking off into the woods. “The Green Man is at the end of that.”

  Miss Trang began to cough. Her legs buckled under her, and she hit the ground with a thud.

  “Are you all right?” Willa asked anxiously.

  “Perfectly fine!” Miss Trang snapped back, wearily hauling herself to her feet. She gazed into the trees. “Take me to him now,” she said softly. “Take me to the Green Man.”

  Willa led the way through the trees, flanked by Baz and Tengu, the basilisk curled around his neck like a slimy black scarf. Behind them, the dwarves and Robert hacked at the wall of vines to clear the way, and Miss Trang brought up the rear, ripping through the foliage. Everyone else stayed behind at the pool.

  “Why doesn’t she fly?” Tengu whispered, looking back anxiously at Miss Trang.

  “I think she’s too weak,” murmured Willa.

  They emerged finally in front of the wall, face-to-face with the Green Man, who sat quietly, watching them. Miss Trang broke through the last curtain of vines and swayed forward. Leaning in close, she looked him carefully up and down. Then she sniffed.

  “All this fuss over a weed?” she huffed, and slashed with her talons, ripping his face right off. The Green Man did not flinch. His features quickly reformed, and he looked out at the dragon once more, this time with eyes narrowed and mouth curled into a sneer.

  Miss Trang took a step back, inhaled deeply, and gave him a fiery blast. Willa knew it was much less than she was capable of at full strength; it merely singed the Green Man’s leaves. New growth sprouted and oozed over the burned bits in moments, and he smiled in triumph, lifting his arms. With a flick of his fingers, his arms shot forward, his hands slamming into Miss Trang and throwing her back into the trees, where vines slithered over her, lashing her down.

  Robert, the dwarves, and Baz sprang to her side, attacking the vines until Miss Trang could struggle free. She charged at the Green Man, flapping her wings and rising just high enough to drop onto him from above. Gripping him with her razor-sharp claws, she began tearing him to shreds.

  The others joined the battle, hacking at him from all sides. Baz valiantly sprang here and there, dodging his thrashing tree trunk arms to claw and bite. Willa swung her sword, Robert and Tengu wielded their axes, and the dwarves patiently hacked and chopped, but the more they destroyed, the quicker the Green Man seemed to regenerate. Wounds were only visible for a few seconds before new greenery swarmed over them. The only advantage they seemed to have over him was that he wasn’t able to stand; his legs were firmly anchored where they merged together into the main vine.

  Miss Trang was making no headway against him, and she wa
s tiring. Baz fell back from the attack to focus on freeing the dragon from the branches and tendrils that kept encircling her.

  Willa stepped back to catch her breath. She knew they were getting nowhere. Their only hope was the black horse’s rhyme. She had to see Gwyneth.

  “Keep at it!” she yelled to Tengu. “I’ll be back!”

  Willa sprinted back through the trees. When she reached the pool, a strange sight met her eyes. Rain was pouring down, but only in the vicinity of the attic fire, which was still alight under the shelter of the tarp. Argus held down one corner of the tarp as the wind and rain gusted around him. The others — fairies, rabbits, Belle, and Horace — were tossing pieces of wood into the attic.

  “Great work, everyone! Keep it going!” Willa hollered as she raced up. “I’ll be right back!” And with her sword still in hand, she plunged into the pool.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Walpurgis Night

  Willa climbed out of the well. It was twilight, and shouts and the clang of battle sounded from the woods.

  In the clearing, several figures were battling the Green Man. The ground around them was writhing with vines, and two warriors were struggling to cut themselves free from them. As Willa rushed to their aid she heard a loud shriek.

  She spun around to see Gwyneth leap at the Green Man, swinging her sword over her head to bring it crashing down on a branch. Her blow freed Loom, who leapt onto her shoulder. Gwyneth let out another cry, and everyone retreated, running toward Willa.

  “Hullo!” Gwyneth grinned at Willa as she joined their dash to the clearing. They gathered at the well, and Gwyneth scanned the group.

  “Nine. Brilliant, we’re all here.” Gwyneth turned back to Willa. “These are my cousins, the elves.”

  They smiled and nodded. The elves were slim, fair, and pale, all roughly the same height as Willa, though it was impossible to guess their ages.

  “Gratwin here …” Gwyneth gestured to one sheepish-looking fellow, “thought it was a good idea to try cuttin’ its head off.”