Boring.

Our puppy, Prince — yes, the one we brought back from a fairy tale — runs up to me and paws at my leg.

“Hon,” my mom says to my dad. “Let’s put Prince downstairs so he doesn’t step on any lamp shards.”

My dad opens the basement door. “C’mon, Prince,” he says.

Prince scurries down the steps, behind my father. Our dog has been a pretty good listener lately. Last week, my dad even taught him to fetch the house keys from the kitchen table.

I turn on the vacuum cleaner. It’s actually a good thing Prince is in the basement because the noise of the vacuum freaks him out. I wonder what he’s doing down there.

I bite my lower lip. Hmm. What if he tries to knock on the mirror? What if that makes my dad suspicious?

I so wish my parents’ home office wasn’t down there. It freaks me out. They could discover our secret! Clearly, they should set their desks up in the living room and let us kids have the basement.

Plus, there are no lamps to break in the basement. There’s just an overhead light.

Um, and a magic mirror.

Maybe it’s best we play with the golden ball up here. Definitely don’t want to risk breaking that one.

Although I wish I was in the basement going through the magic mirror right now.

Hmm.

I may not be able to play cards with Frankie, watch screens, or have dessert, but I know one fun thing I can do.

My mom didn’t say anything about not going into fairy tales. So I wouldn’t even be breaking any rules.

Right?

Right.

* * *

At 11:45 P.M., my alarm jolts me awake, and I quickly get dressed — long-sleeved T-shirt, jeans, gray-and-white hoodie, and sneakers. Then I look for my watch. I need to wear it because it keeps track of what time it is back home. Fairy tale time almost always runs much slower than Smithville time. Like one day in a fairy tale could be an hour at home.

I spot the watch sitting on top of my jewelry box and grab it. My jewelry box is amazing. It’s decorated with images of fairy tale characters — but every time Jonah and I return from a story, the characters on the box change. Like Snow White, who’s now wearing my old pajamas.

Unfortunately, they were my favorite pair. But what are you gonna do? You win some, you lose some, right?

I creep into Jonah’s room. He leaps out of bed.

“I knew you’d want to go tonight,” he says with a laugh. He’s already in jeans, a sweatshirt, and his Cubs hat.

Prince, who’d been sleeping at the foot of Jonah’s bed, wakes up with a tiny bark and begins wagging his tail.

“Come on, then.” My brother and Prince follow me down the stairs. Prince always comes with us. He’d bark like crazy if we left him behind — and wake up our parents. No can do.