The moment they stepped inside, Briar felt a shiver run down her spine. The interior of the hut was like something out of a nightmare. Bones and skeletons littered the floor, casting eerie shadows in the dim light. Alongside the bones were rows of cabinets filled with potions, some of them broken and in disarray. Crystal balls glimmered ominously from one cabinet, while another overflowed with mystical amulets.

Brooms lay forgotten in a corner, covered in dust. It was clear that the witch didn't bother with mundane tasks like cleaning. Cobwebs draped everything in sight, giving the room a sinister atmosphere.

In the center of the room, towering over the flickering flames of the fireplace, stood a chair crafted from weathered wood. It was an odd sight among the horrid surroundings. Leaning on the wall beside the fireplace were three skeletons with rotten flesh still attached to them.

"It is disgusting." Briar controlled herself from puking.

"My nanny used to tell us that Baba Yaga's hut is enchanted," Leon said. "It's only ugly on the outside and once you enter, it is a whole different world. Treasure chests full of gold and diamonds and rubies. And that's why people are dying to come here."

"Well, it's ugly on the outside and as well as the inside," Briar said.

"Only the good rumors about Baba Yaga are false," he looked at the room with disappointment. "I was expecting to see her lavish lifestyle."

"Let's forget about it and look for the book," Briar said taking a deep breath to steel herself for the task ahead. She glanced around the cluttered room, feeling a bit overwhelmed by the chaos before her. "Where do we even begin?"

She looked up at the ceiling and screamed. Suspended from the ceiling were heads, their hair tied with ropes to form a grotesque chandelier of sorts. Each head bore a wrinkled face, their eyes shut tight, and their lips twisted into unsettling grins.

She pointed a trembling finger upward. "What are those?"

Leon's face went white. "Deadheads," he muttered, his voice tinged with unease

Briar squinted at the wrinkled faces dangling above. "Are they... alive?" she asked.

"Relax," Leon reassured her. "There's nothing to fear. The heads are dead."

Briar's gaze darted around the room, but everywhere she looked, she was met with disturbing sights. The anxiety coursing through her veins refused to decrease, her heart racing and her hands trembling uncontrollably. "We need to find the book. I can't stand being in this place any longer."

"I'll search over here," Leon offered, indicating the right side of the room. "You check the other side."

Briar nodded and headed toward a small bookshelf tucked away in the corner. She carefully examined each book, flipping through their pages one by one. None of them seemed to match the description of the Ancient Book of Spells that the forest fairies had described.

After replacing the books on the shelf, she turned to Leon. "Did you have any luck?" she asked, hoping that he had found something useful.

"Look at this." Leon held up a small wooden wand with intricate carvings. He twirled it around, playing with it.

"Leon," Briar marched to him angrily and snatched the wand from him. "We are here for the book."

"Briar," he said, reaching for the wand again. "I stumbled upon this while searching. It might come in handy. Let me keep it."

"No," Briar replied firmly. "We're here for the book, not to play with random objects. Haven't you learned your lesson in the garden?"

"Oh, come on," Leon said with a laugh. "It's just a harmless wand. it's not going to eat us."

"You can't be sure," Briar insisted, handing the wand back to Leon and urging him to return it to its place. She resumed her search for the book, feeling the room grow darker as the sun began to set. Briar was determined not to spend the night in the witch's hut.

As Briar carefully maneuvered around the large glass jars containing the preserved body parts, one jar slipped from her grasp and crashed to the floor. Yellowish liquid splattered everywhere, filling the air with a pungent, acidic smell. To her horror, the teeth preserved inside the jar began to scurry away.

"Warning!" the hut bellowed. "You can't destroy the property."

"It's not my fault," Briar protested. "The jar was slippery."

"You're inside?" the hut questioned, sounding surprised. "Who let you in?"

"You did," Leon replied. "When we gave you a heart."

The hut gasped as if it had just realized its mistake. "Yes, heart. I love heart. But I should not have let you in. If my mistress found out, she would be furious. Get out, children."

"We are not going anywhere," Leon said stubbornly.

Suddenly, Briar had an idea. "Leon," she said, delighted. "I know how to find the book."

"How?" the prince asked.

"I'll tell you," she said and pulled the prince to a corner, away from the hut. Then she realized it was useless as they were inside the hut. It would hear them anyway. The walls literally had ears.

She cupped her hand around his ears and whispered, "The hut will give us the book."

"But why?" The prince whispered back.

She cupped her hands around his ears again. "The hut let us in, but it shouldn't have. Now watch what I'm doing."

The prince nodded as Briar walked back to the jars of preserved animals. "Hut, where is the Ancient Book of Spells?"

"You dare to enter Baba Yaga's hut and ask for her most beloved book," the hut said. "I'll never help you, intruders."

Briar smiled. "Are you sure?" She picked a jar that contained two brains joined by a greenish nerve and smashed it on the floor.

"Hey!" the hut yelled. "What are you doing?"

"Are you going to tell us, or should I break more?" she threatened, picking another jar.

"I can't betray Baba Yaga," the hut cried out.

"You already did," Briar said, her tone confident. "You let us in. Baba Yaga will not be pleased. And if we break all the things, she would be more furious. We just want to read the book. For a project. You know, for our school. That's all. Then we will leave."

She glanced at Leon, who wore a mischievous grin. "Yeah, just a little homework."

"I'll never help you," the hut protested weakly, its resolve faltering.

"Fine," Briar said, determination flashing in her eyes. "Let's get in more trouble."

She swiftly returned the jar to its place and dashed towards the nearest potion cabinet. With a firm grip, she yanked the glass door open and beckoned to Leon. "Leon," she called out. "Give me a hand with this. Let's make some noise."

The prince gladly joined her, grasping the other side of the cabinet.

They both feigned exertion as they pushed against the cabinet, deliberately letting a few potion bottles slip to the floor.

"One, two..." Briar counted, as they leaned the cabinet further and further.

"STOP!" the hut yelled. "YOU WIN!"

They carefully placed the cabinet back in its original position. Briar crossed her arms across her chest. "Where is the book?"

"Behind the skeletons," the hut said. "Inside the secret wardrobe."

Briar and Leon pushed aside the skeletons with decaying flesh, clearing the way to a hidden wardrobe. Briar yanked the door open. But instead of revealing the book, the door broke loose from its hinges and crashed down on top of her. Briar, unable to keep her balance, tumbled to the ground, pinned beneath the weight of the heavy wooden door.

"Leon!" the princess yelped.

Leon quickly rushed to Briar's side and helped her free herself from under the door.

"You broke the wardrobe!" the hut yelled.

"It was already broken," Briar replied, brushing dust off her gown.

She approached the wardrobe, hoping to find the Ancient Book of Spells. However, all she found inside were a few robes, peculiar black and yellow stones, and a sturdy iron chest.

Briar and Leon gripped the iron chest from either side and carefully maneuvered it to the center of the room.

With darkness enveloping the room, Briar called out to the hut. "Can we get some light in here?"

Reluctantly, the hut grumbled its agreement, and suddenly, candles scattered throughout the room burst into flame, casting a warm glow across the space.

Leon and Briar sat before the chest. It was miraculously cleaned and gleaming in the soft candlelight. It was secured by a large iron padlock.

"Can you break the lock?" Briar asked, twisting the padlock.

"No need for that," Leon replied calmly, retrieving a key ring from his pocket. It was a sight to behold, adorned with keys crafted from gold, silver, iron, and even bones.

Briar gaped at the prince. "Where did you get it?"

"Found it with the wand and decided to keep it. Don't get mad," Leon confessed with a grin.

"You know what? You have the potential to make a great thief," Briar chuckled. "But I'll not be mad if one of the keys unlocks the chest."

As luck would have it, the iron key slid smoothly into the padlock and turned with a satisfying click. Briar smiled triumphantly and lifted the lid of the chest.

Suddenly, a cobra raised its head, hissing menacingly at her.

The princess screamed, leaping away from the chest in terror.

The snake lazily slithered out of the chest and fixed its gaze on them.

"Go away!" Briar yelled, her voice trembling with fear. Leon swiftly slipped his sword beneath the snake, lifted it, and hurled it out of the window.

"I've had my fill of insects and snakes for one day," Briar declared, her nerves still on edge.

The chest was filled with numerous red velvet pouches. Despite Briar's warning, Leon opened one, only to find nails and hair inside. "I thought there would be diamonds," he muttered, disappointed, as he let the pouches fall to the side.

At the bottom of the chest lay a red book with silver moons and stars on the cover.

"Yes," Briar said, smiling. "The Ancient Book of Spells." As she reached out to pick up the book, a sharp pain shot through her hand as if a scorpion had bitten her. With a yelp, she dropped the book.

And to Briar and Leon's amazement, the book scurried away from them.

___