Jess was about to follow her when she spotted a familiar and very unwelcome sight. An eerie orb of yellow-green light was floating into Garden Grove. She nudged Lily.
“Oh, no!” Lily whispered miserably. “Grizelda’s back!”
Chapter Three
Grizelda’s Back!
“I wish Goldie was here,” Lily whispered. “We’ve never had to face Grizelda without her help before.”
“Well, we’re going to have to now,” Jess said grimly.
They stood in front of the Muddlepups, shielding them from the wicked witch. The orb of light grew bigger, then... Cra-ack! It exploded, spitting out angry yellow-green sparks.
The sparks faded and revealed the tall, thin witch. She wore a black cloak over a shiny purple tunic and black pants. Long green hair swirled wildly around her head. Her black boots had high heels and sharply pointed toes.
“Ha!” she shrieked. “I might have known you girls would be here. Interfering, as usual! Go away!”
“You go away,” Jess said bravely.
“There’s nothing for you here, Grizelda!” said Lily.
Grizelda’s laughter echoed around Garden Grove. “Nothing? Nothing?” she cackled. “I want those magical plants for a powerful potion, and I’m going to have them.”
She reached for a bubbling buttercup, but Patch sprang in front of it and stood his ground, trembling.
“Yap! Yap! Grrr!” he barked.
Grizelda smiled a snarly smile, took a deep breath, and blew.
Whooosh!
Patch was blown backward by the witch’s icy breath. He rolled over and over, yelping in fright.
“Patch!” Mrs. Muddlepup cried out. “Leave my puppy alone!”
Lily ran to scoop up the frightened puppy. He lay in her arms, shaking, as she comforted him.
“We won’t let you take the plants from the Muddlepups!” Jess shouted at the witch. “We won’t!”
Grizelda turned her gaze on Jess. “We’ll see about that,” she sneered. “I’m too clever for you.”
She spread her cloak wide, looming over Patch and Lily. Her lips moved as she muttered to herself.
“She’s casting a spell!” cried Jess. “Run, everybody!”
But it was too late. Lily felt Patch’s little body sag in her arms. She looked down to see his eyes close as he fell into a deep, magical sleep.
“Oh, no!” Lily glared at Grizelda. “What have you done?”
“Ha!” shrieked Grizelda. “You’ve got until sunset to work it out. Give Garden Grove and its magical flowers to me, or the puppy will sleep... forever. Haaa!”
Jess, Lily, and the Muddlepups gazed in horror as the witch snapped her fingers and disappeared in an explosion of spitting yellow sparks.
Mrs. Muddlepup ran to Lily, and together, they laid Patch down on a soft cushion of moss. His paws twitched and he made a little snuffling sound before starting to snore softly.
“Wake up, Patch,” his mother urged, gently shaking him.
Poppy lifted one of her brother’s ears and called, “Wakey, wakey!”
Mr. Muddlepup fetched a hazelnut cracker and held it under the puppy’s nose. “It’s his favorite,” he explained.
But Patch just kept snoring.
“Let’s take him inside,” Lily said, and carried him indoors. Mrs. Muddlepup made a soft, cozy nest of blankets for her to lay him in.
“We have to wake up Patch,” Jess said. “But we can’t let Grizelda have Garden Grove, either. If we’re going to stop her wicked plan, we have to work out a way to wake him up on our own.”
“But how?” Lily wondered out loud. “What should we do?”
“I wish Goldie was here!” Jess frowned.
They were both thinking hard when Poppy tugged on Lily’s sleeve.
“Ask Mrs. Taptree!” said the puppy. “She’s got books about everything in her library. Me and Patch borrow them all the time.”
Lily and Jess grinned.
“My dad says you can always find help in a book,” said Jess. “That’s a brilliant idea, Poppy!”
Chapter Four
Mrs. Taptree’s Library
Lily and Jess told Mr. and Mrs. Muddlepup where they were going. To their delight, Poppy insisted on coming, too. She led them on a long walk through the forest. At last, they reached the hollowed-out trunk of a chestnut tree. Inside, they could hear the tap-tap-tap of a woodpecker.
“This is Mrs. Taptree’s library,” Poppy said.
“I can’t believe that at home we were looking after some woodpeckers,” Lily murmured excitedly, “and now we’re about to talk to one!”
From inside the hole in the tree, a high voice squawked, “Come in! Books for all in my library! Quick! Quick!”
“How is there room for a library in there?” asked Jess. But she stepped into the hole, Lily and Poppy close behind her.
The girls were amazed to see it was much larger inside than it looked from outside. They were in a room lined with bookshelves and packed with books. At one end, three ladders stood side by side.
“Welcome!” said the voice. Mrs. Taptree the woodpecker fluttered down from the top shelf. “Hello, young Poppy. What kind of book are you three looking for today?”
Poppy introduced the girls and they all explained about Patch.
“Dear me, we must do something,” said Mrs. Taptree. “We’re sure to find an answer in one of my books. Let’s look.” She clapped her wings and said, “Ladders!”
Instantly, the ladders magically slid along the bookshelves.
“Wow!” said Jess.
“Just say left or right, up or down, or even, ‘Find a book about bees’,” said Mrs. Taptree. “The ladders will take you where you want to go.”
They began searching. Poppy examined the books along the bottom shelf, and the girls stepped onto the ladders.
“Left!” said Lily, and slid to the plant section.
“Magic books, please,” Jess called, grinning as her ladder whizzed along.
Suddenly, two young woodpeckers burst in, wings flapping. “Mom! Quick! Quick! Can we have chestnut cake, please, can we?” said one. Then he saw Jess and Lily. “Ooh, what are those?”
“They’re girls,” said Mrs. Taptree. “Lily and Jess, these are my chicks, Dig and Tipper. If you two go out to play while I help the girls find a book, I’ll give you some cake when we’ve finished. Off you go, chicks—quick, quick!”
“All right, Mom,” said Dig, running out. But Tipper knocked over a pile of books as she flapped past.
Lily stepped over to pick them up. “Hey, Jess!” she said, opening one. “This is about magic potions.” She flicked through it, then yelled, “I think I’ve found something! A recipe for Rise and Shine potion. It says, ‘Guaranteed to wake sleepers from even the deepest slumber.’ ”
“Fantastic!” said Jess.
Poppy’s soft brown eyes looked anxiously at the girls. “Can we use it to wake Patch?”
Lily hugged her. “Of course. All we have to do is find the right ingredients!”
