Balor and Grinda are antagonists in the Magic Tree House book series. They are the main antagonists of Blizzard of the Blue Moon.
Biography[]
In Blizzard of the Blue Moon, Merlin sent Jack and Annie on their fourth and last mission where they must use actual magic in the most ideal way. This time, he is sending them to New York during the Great Depression on the Blue Moon (the rare second full moon in a month), where they must rescue a unicorn under a spell. This unicorn was in one of tapestries at the Cloisters, it woven in the Netherlands at the end of the 1400s. Annie realized that the people who wove this put the last unicorn under a spell. The poem Merlin gave said that the time was now that he would be free. However, they didn’t know his real name, even though Annie loves him like it said.
Suddenly, a boy and a girl arrived wearing a cloak a raincoat. Jack and Annie assumed it was their helpful friends, Teddy and Kathleen, so they hid to surprise them. However, they were then revealed to be Balor and Grinda, who followed the kids to the unicorn. Grinda unleashed him (without changing the tapestry) by saying his name, Dianthus, and Balor lassoed him with a black rope. Realizing the two have bad intentions, Jack and Annie jump out saying Dianthus is not for them. During the struggle, the two reveal that they intend to go back to the Otherworld and bring Dianthus to their master, the Dark Wizard. Jack and Annie decided to use a spell to bring a cloud down to the sky, this caused a large fog to cover them all allowing Jack, Annie, and Dianthus to escape.
Balor and Grinda managed to catch up to them by taking the A train (it was faster than riding a unicorn). Grinda grabbed Dianthus so Balor could put the rope back on him. Suddenly, Annie shouted the last spell, one she wanted to use since she first got the spell book, and turned the two scary teens into ducks. The two told them to fly south with the other ducks for the winter, so they did.
The real Teddy and Kathleen were a taxi driver and passenger, who told them to get off at the wrong subway stop and deserted them at the museum for the mission. They revealed that neither they, nor even Merlin, knew about Balor and Grinda. Then, Morgan and Merlin appeared, explaining that Dianthus was stolen from Camelot long ago, the weavers of the Netherlands rescued him, using their magic to hide them in the tapestries. Merlin knew the time was right and he could entrust the task of free him to Jack and Annie, but he didn’t intend for the Dark Wizard to send Balor and Grinda there too. Luckily for them, the duck spell should wear off in a few days and they’ll find their way home, but the Dark Wizard will punish them. They left the black rope behind so Merlin has Teddy to take to Camelot and have it destroyed.
Trivia[]
- The two resemble Teddy and Kathleen, who coincidentally helped Jack and Annie out on their missions in the "Using Magic Wisely" arc while in disguises. At the end of Blizzard of the Blue Moon, the two confirmed it was indeed them that helped and not Balor and Grinda.
- In Carnival at Candlelight, the two were gondoliers who rowed Jack and Annie around Venice during Carnival.
- In Season of the Sandstorms, Teddy and Kathleen were servants who took them the Room of the Tree in Ancient Baghdad.
- In Night of the New Magicians, they were a gentleman and lady. They gave a bike to Jack and Annie so they could use it to get to the Eiffel Tower during the 1889 Paris Exposition.
- Their master, the Dark Wizard, was previously mentioned, and involved with the plot of Christmas in Camelot. Morgan said he worked under Mordred.
| Magic Tree House Villains | ||
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Main books Merlin Missions Both | ||