If the Shoe Fits (Whatever After #2) by Sarah Mlynowski Read Free Book Online Page B

yellow sparkle! Farrah will fix Cinderella’s foot and then send us home with a poof.
    Farrah crosses her arms. “No.”
    “Exqueeze me?” Did I hear her right?
    “No,” she repeats.
    Cinderella blinks. And then blinks again. “I don’t understand. Why not?”
    “First of all, I don’t like being told what to do,” Farrah says, glaring at all of us. “And second, Cinderella, I don’t like this attitude of yours. Not one bit. You need to learn to rescue yourself! You need to learn to stand on your own two feet!”
    “But my foot feels broken!” Cinderella whines. “I can’t stand at all!”
    “Well, you’d better learn. You can’t rely on a prince to save you. You have to be self-reliant!”
    “What’s self-reliant?” Jonah asks.
    “It means relying on yourself,” I explain.
    “I’m self-reliant,” he says.
    I snort. “Please. You don’t even make your own bed.”
    “Does that mean you’re not going to fix my foot today?” Cinderella asks meekly.
    “I am not going to fix your foot today,” the fairy godmother says. I can’t believe how mean Farrah is being. None of the fairy tale versions mentioned this!
    “We really need you to fix Cinderella’s foot today ,” I say. “If the slipper doesn’t fit, we won’t be able to prove that Cinderella’s the right girl! Isn’t that why you sent her to the ball in the first place? So she could snag the prince?”
    “Noooo,” Farrah says. “I sent her so she could have a night out on the town!”
    “You never thought that the prince might fall in love with her?” I ask.
    “I’m fine with the prince falling in love with her — I just don’t want her to be so needy about it.” Farrah shakes her head at Cinderella. “You’re not my only charge, you know. I’m the prince’s fairy godmother, too. I’ve known him since he was a baby — no way do I want him getting stuck with a whiny damsel in distress. He needs a partner in his life. After all, a queen must be strong. If you can prove to me you won’t be hanging on to his shirttails, I’ll help you snag him. Got it? Show me you can stand on your own two feet and I’ll fix your foot. I’m willing to help you — but only if you help yourself first.”
    “But it will be too late!” I say. “The prince’s assistant is on his way now!”
    “The assistant is at the other end of the kingdom. He won’t make it here until Tuesday afternoon. I’ll give you until Tuesday at noon to call for me and prove your self-reliance. It’s Sunday morning. You have two and a half days. Make them count.”
    But — but — but … “Wait! Farrah? What about us? Can you help us find a magic mirror so we can go home?” I ask.
    It’s too late. She’s gone in a puff of sparkle.

T here’s no time for brainstorming ideas. We have to get right to work. Cinderella hobbles around the kitchen cleaning up the breakfast dishes while Jonah and I sweep the living room.
    More precisely, I hold the dustpan while Jonah attempts to sweep.
    He is the worst sweeper ever. He’s just running around with the broom, swishing it in every direction. I think he might be making the dust worse than it was before.
    “Focus, Jonah, focus!”
    He sweeps a piece of dirt into my mouth.
    “Jonah!” I say with a spit.
    “Sorry,” he says, but he’s laughing so I don’t really believe him.
    His face turns serious and he twists his bottom lip. “Abby, how are we going to get home?”
    “I, um, have a plan,” I say. Although to be honest, I don’t have a plan yet. I’m making it up right now. But I think it’s important for Jonah to trust that I always have a plan. It’s my job as the big sister.
    “Yeah?” he says. “What is it?”
    “Oh. Right. Well …”
    “You don’t have a plan, do you?”
    “I do, I do! We help Cinderella prove to Farrah that she can be self-reliant before noon on Tuesday.”
    “What is it about twelve o’clock in fairy tales?” Jonah asks. “Whether it’s noon or midnight,