Free A Farewell to Charms by Lindsey Leavitt Page A

impossibly skinny legs and a graceful neck. It didn’t have the same sharp angles as Vanna’s work, but this was just a start, and…it worked. This was better than anything I could have created on my own. My magic worked to help a princess. I did exactly what I’d wanted to do.
    “Perfect, Your Highness!” the director called out. “We’ll speed up the frames, add some music, have you talk about your work…Just perfect. Even better than the gymnastics bit would have been.”
    I didn’t even notice that the crown prince was standing right behind me. He looked down at me with pride. “Everything my daughter touches turns to gold. She’s a magical girl.”
    You have no idea.
    The camera crew began to pack up, and Janin stepped in to wheel me over to the sink to wash my hands.
    Prince Kaito started to kick in his mother’s arms. “No, Kaito. This studio is dirty.”
    He squirmed some more, and she finally sighed and set him down. He popped right up into a standing position.
    “Oh, he’s going to do it,” Janin whispered. “This couldn’t be any more perfect.”
    Kaito flashed a smile at the crew, already fumbling for the cameras. It was like he knew to wait, knew what his duty was. The crown prince held out his arms in delight. Kaito lifted a chubby thigh and took one step. We beamed, not wanting to cheer just yet, but all aware how big this moment was. The whole country would get to witness his first step.
    But before the prince could walk any more, an alarm blared. We covered our ears. Kaito flopped onto the ground and started to bawl. His mother scooped him up.
    A guard rushed in. “The crown jewels! Your Majesty, someone has stolen the crown jewels!”
    And then the smoke bomb went off.

T he room erupted into chaos. Men in black suits spilled into the studio, circling around each royal and rushing us out. Janin kept her hands firmly on my wheelchair, insisting that she push me through the smoke-filled hallways. We coughed our way through corridor after corridor, following the set escape route. The grand front hall was a mass of people—military, police, paramedics, and more men in black suits. So many people crowded in to “help” that the end result was disorder.
    Janin leaned down and whispered, “I know an easier way out to the garden that’ll be safer.”
    She took a quick right down another hall and then another, until I could hardly hear the sirens. At first, I was grateful just to be away from the crowd—my leg had been bumped twice already. But after the fourth turn, I was starting to get worried. “This doesn’t look like there’s an exit,” I said. “Maybe we should go back.”
    “Don’t worry, Desi, Your job is just about done.”
    I turned around in the chair as much as I could. Desi? HOW DID JANIN KNOW MY NAME? “What are you talking…Who are you?”
    Janin stopped at a door and knocked four times. She wheeled me into the darkened space. I tried to stand up, but she pushed me back down in my seat.
    “Took you long enough,” said a voice that was obviously trying to sound deeper than it was. A flashlight went on, right in my face, so I couldn’t see who was shining it. What I did see, though, was the shiner’s pants. Black, tight. A cat-suit just like the one Sora had on earlier.
    Traitor.
    “Did she put the makeup on yet?”
    “Didn’t have time,” Janin said. “We’re lucky I got her away from security.”
    “I think she’ll change on her own now that I’m here,” the voice said again.
    “Did you get the jewels?” Janin asked.
    “They’re in my backpack.”
    “Sora!” I shouted. “This is illegal! I command you to, uh, unhand me. Take me back to my parents before they arrest you.”
    There was laughter. Eerily familiar laughter. The lights flicked on to reveal a messy office, perhaps belonging to someone on the staff. There was a futon to my right and a mini-fridge. Sitting on the desk was a girl in a catsuit, and she looked nothing like Sora.
    The girl