Wicked: The Witch's Daughter #55

Instructions

Kendra's POV: Her voice had lost its anger. She sounded frightened. I hurriedly looked down at the Grimmerie, searching the page for something I had missed. "No, no, no..." I whispered. The spell wasn't supposed to do this. It wasn't supposed to turn her into stone. I had misunderstood something. I had thought the spell would only take away her ability to use magic. I never meant for this to happen. "I didn't want this!" I cried. But the magic continued. The grayness slowly traveled farther, covering her hands and moving upward. I tried to stop the spell, but I couldn't. The magic was already moving on its own. "Please!" I shouted. "Stop!" But nothing happened. Madame Morrible stared at me as the transformation continued. For the first time, she looked genuinely afraid. I felt tears gathering in my eyes. I had wanted to protect my family. I had wanted to protect Oz. I had wanted to make things right. I had never wanted to hurt her. Slowly, the gray stone reached her shoulders, then her neck. Finally, the magic faded. Madame Morrible stood completely still, frozen in place like a statue. I stared at her in horror. The room was silent. I lowered my hand. "I didn't mean to..." I whispered. I barely noticed the sound of footsteps behind me. "Kendra." I turned quickly. Mom and Dad were standing in the doorway. For a moment, I forgot everything else. "Mom?" I ran to them. Mom pulled me into a hug so tightly that I almost couldn't breathe. "You came back," she whispered. "I had to," I said, tears filling my eyes. "I had to get you out." Dad wrapped an arm around both of us. "You did." I pulled away and looked back toward Madame Morrible. Mom followed my gaze, and her expression changed when she saw the stone figure. "Kendra..." "I didn't mean to," I said quickly. "The spell was supposed to stop her magic. I didn't know it would do that." Mom looked at the statue for a moment before looking back at me. "I believe you." Those words made my eyes fill with tears again. Before I could say anything else, a familiar voice echoed through the room. "Kendra!" I turned. Glinda stood in the doorway. She looked between me, Mom, and Dad before her eyes finally settled on Madame Morrible. Her expression changed completely. For several seconds, she didn't say anything. "I stopped her," I said quietly. Glinda looked at me. "I know." I lowered my eyes. "But I didn't mean for this to happen." Glinda walked toward me and gently placed a hand on my shoulder. "I know you didn't." I looked back at Mom and Dad, finally standing beside me again after all those months. We were together. I had succeeded in freeing them. But as I looked at Madame Morrible's stone form, I couldn't stop thinking about one thing. I had wanted to save everyone. I had wanted to make things right. Instead, I had done something I could never take back.