Michael Buckley - Once upon a crime

"I hated you!" he shouted. "You took every opportunity to remind me that I was weak and stupid!"

Suddenly, Puck fell to his knees. Tears streamed down his cheeks. Sabrina rushed to him, knelt down, and used her scarf to wipe them away.

"When I was barely out of diapers he took me aside and told me I would never be king. He said I was a disappointment to him and he would never give up his throne to me. I went to my mother in tears and she explained him to me. She said he was worried about the kingdom's future and feared that his successor would destroy it-even if that successor was his own son. But my mother swore that one day I would wear the crown, and he would never see it coming. Until then, I would have my own kingdom. Then she gave me my name: the Trickster King. I've worn it proudly ever since.

"When I got older he tried to force me to marry Moth. So I told the old man he was nuts. Disobeying your father is a crime in our world. He banished me. But, here I am, the King of Faerie anyway. My mother was right. He never saw it coming."

He stood up and wiped his eyes on his sleeve. "If you tell anyone I was crying, you'll regret it, pus-brain."

"I won't tell, stinkpot," Sabrina said affectionately. "Looks like you and me finally have something in common."

"What's that?"

"Families we're not sure we want to be part of," Sabrina replied.

"The old lady told me you're quitting," Puck said.

"I'm not quitting. I'm retiring. You can't quit something you never wanted to do in the first place," Sabrina said defensively.

"You can't quit something you never tried either."

"I tried! But people got hurt when I tried," Sabrina said. "Look at Mr. Canis, and you!"

"Oh, poor Sabrina. Such a walking disaster. I was there. Mr. Canis didn't get hurt because you were being stupid. You were the one that saved him, and the rest of us. If you hadn't done what you did we'd all be dead. The truth is, and I hate to admit it, but you're a hero and a pretty good one. You help people when no one else can. From what I hear that's what your mother did, too. It's in your blood, and blood isn't something you can walk away from."

"When did you suddenly become Mister Maturity?"

Puck laughed. "Don't worry. It won't last." Then he belched in her face. "See! It's over."

"So, I guess you're going to have to stay and take over what's left of Faerie," Sabrina said softly.

Before Puck could answer, there was a loud commotion up on the hill overlooking the river. People were shouting and screaming.

Puck and Sabrina looked at each other and then ran to find out what was going on.

Mr. Hamstead was lying on the ground. Bess knelt beside him. Tony Fats was hovering above the couple with clenched fists. Poor Mr. Hamstead looked as if he had been socked in the eye.

"I told you to leave my girl alone!" Tony Fats yelled.

"And I told you I'm not your girl anymore, Tony!" Bess cried.

Mr. Hamstead crawled to his feet. "Bess, I can handle this." He turned to Tony Fats. "Is this how you want to do it? That's fine with me."

The two men rushed at each other, throwing fists and landing horrible blows. Tony Fats was the first to fall but he quickly got up and knocked Mr. Hamstead into a mud puddle. The portly man fell with a painful thud.

Sabrina spotted Mr. Canis in the crowd. He was watching as if he had no concern for his friend. Sabrina raced to him and tugged on his sleeve. "We have to stop this. Mr. Hamstead is going to get hurt."

Mr. Canis shook his head. "The pig is tougher than he looks, child."

"Tony Fats is twice his size!" Sabrina cried. "And the Wolf is four times his size and Hamstead had no trouble taking me down. As I said, he's tougher than he looks."

Tony Fats kicked Hamstead mercilessly, forcing him to flounder in the mud. Each time their friend tried to get up, Tony attacked, keeping him on his hands and knees.

"You don't come to my town and steal my girl!" Tony Fats bellowed. "You don't know who you're messing with."

"Leave him alone, Tony!" Bess demanded.

Tony's face twisted into a demented smile. "I've got to teach your friend here how we do it in the big city." He lifted his leg to deliver another nasty kick, but this time Hamstead caught it. He pulled hard and Tony Fats fell onto his back. Hamstead leaped onto him and the two men wrestled for dominance.

Then, all at once, Sabrina saw a magic wand appear in Tony Fats's hand.

"Hamstead, look out!" Canis roared.

Mr. Hamstead must have spotted the wand himself as he sent an elbow into Tony's gut. The fairy godfather let out a wheeze and dropped the wand but then scampered to get it back. Hamstead was right on top of him and the two fought for control over the weapon. They rolled around in the mud, struggling viciously. But just as Mr. Hamstead gained the upper hand, a transformation came over him. His arms and legs suddenly shrank into stubby hoofed feet. His clothes disappeared and his pink skin blanched white. His ears migrated up his head and turned into furry points. In a matter of seconds Mr. Hamstead's true form was revealed. He was a pig.

But he was a pig with a magic wand in his snout. He flicked his head in a circle and a beam of magic shot out of the starry tip. It hit Tony Fats. There was a puff of smoke, and when it disappeared the big fairy godfather was gone, replaced with a beady-eyed rat. The rat twittered, sized up the enormous pig hovering over him, shrieked, and then raced off, disappearing over the hill.

"I told you so," Mr. Canis mumbled.

Sabrina nodded. She had to admit Mr. Hamstead was a lot more resourceful than she had ever given him credit for being. Daphne raced to the enormous pig and gave him a big hug around the neck.

"I'm so proud of you, Mr. Hamstead," the little girl said.

"Ernie?" a voice said from behind them. The pig looked up and Sabrina followed his gaze. Bess was standing there, looking confused and shocked. "Ernie, you're a…"

"Pig." Mr. Hamstead had suddenly morphed back to his human form. He looked as if he wanted to be a million miles away. "I'm a pig, Bess. One of the Three Little Pigs. I should have told you. It wasn't fair. I'm sorry."

Hamstead turned abruptly, pushed his way through the crowd, and disappeared.

"Ernie!" Bess cried after him, but he was gone. "We should go get him," Daphne said to her grandmother. "No, liebling"

Granny said sadly. "He needs some time to himself."

When they got back to the hotel, Mr. Canis decided to meditate while they waited for Hamstead to show up. The old man was sure the traffic out of town would test his temper. Granny bought a suitcase so they could pack the few things the family had purchased during their stay in the city. While they packed they enjoyed a big lunch, compliments of room service. Puck, who had come to see them off, spent most of the afternoon talking to the numerous pixies who visited at the hotel window. He gave them several orders and answered their questions, and they raced off to do his bidding. King Puck was already hard at work.

Sabrina slipped into the bathroom for some privacy. She washed her face, brushed her teeth, and studied herself in the mirror. She had her father's golden hair and blue eyes, but her face was Veronica's. She knew when she was older she would look a lot like her mother.

But as her mother's features stared back at her, she wondered why she hadn't gotten more of her mother's spirit. Why had

Veronica chosen to take on the family responsibility? Why had she chosen such a dangerous life? If only Veronica were awake and Sabrina could ask her.

She took her mother's pink wallet out of her pocket and opened it. Inside was the picture of Veronica, Sabrina, and Daphne. Next to it was the business card of her mother's best friend, Oz Diggs, also known as the Wonderful Wizard of Oz-a man who claimed to know her better than anyone. And suddenly Sabrina had an idea.