“Do you really think heaven exists?”
“Of course I do!” Jade cried. “Cinderella, you might not know this, but there are other worlds out there. Worlds different than yours.” She gestured around her. “Not everyone is stuck in this hell hole you are. Not everyone is forced to do their step-mother’s dirty work. But you also need to know, that life is hard no matter where you go. There has to be a reason to everything. Someplace better, to go after we die. I have to believe that.”
Cinderella nodded, closing the stall door next to her, and leaning on the wall. “Do you think I’m being weak, Jade?”
“Weak?” Jade laughed. “Cinderella, I could never think you’re weak!”
“Why?”
“Because through everything, the good, the bad, the ugly you always had hope. You always stayed positive. You always believed that something good would happen, someday. It’s what kept me going, even in my darkest of days. Now, I need you to be hopeful. I need you to be positive. I need you to believe.”
Cinderella nodded, and she closed her eyes.
“Tell me what you want, Cinderella.”
“I want to be happy.”
“What else?”
“I want to find love. I want to have a family. I want to live my own life.”
“There you go. What else?”
“I want my step-mother to go to hell!” Cinderella snapped her eyes open, and she grabbed Jade by the arm. “Come on!”
“Where are we going?”
“To get my life back!” Cinderella shouted, racing across the grass. She hopped up the steps, bursting into the mansion.
“What…” Lady Tremaine turned, a cup of tea in her hand, her eyes widening when she saw them. “Cinderella! Get back to work!”
“No!” Cinderella shouted, stopping in front of the woman and jabbing a finger into her chest. “I will not do any more work for you, do you understand me? I am not your slave. I am not your maid. I am not your servant, and I will not sweep another bead of dirt off this floor! I will not mop any more of these floors, I will not dust, and I certainly will not do any more of your damned laundry! I am your step-daughter! Your family! I deserve better than to be treated like this!”
“So the little girl’s finally gathered some courage, huh?” Lady Tremaine smiled, lifting the cup of tea to her lips. “Interesting.”
“Don’t mock me!” Cinderella shouted, slapping her hand out and knocking the cup from Lady Tremaine’s hands. “You ruined everything for me! I met a man I fell in love with! A man, who has been searching everywhere for me, and who has not been able to find me because of you!”
“And just what are you going to do about it?”
“I’m going to get my life back!” Cinderella said, her eyes landing on the emerald necklace hanging around her step-mother’s neck. “You little witch!” She grabbed the necklace, ripping it from the woman’s neck.
“Hey!” Jade propped her hands on her hips. “Not all of us are bad!”
“Sorry, Jade.” Cinderella sent her an apologetic smile. “I didn’t mean you.” She held up the necklace. “Is this…”
“Yup. It’s the curse.” Jade took the necklace from her, studying it. “I’ve never actually seen anything like this before. But it’s powerful. I can feel it.” She dropped it to the ground, lifting her heel.
“No!”
She smashed her heel against the emerald, the dark, green liquid spewing across the tile. A moment later, a blue reign of light flashed in front of them.
“Oh, finally!” The older woman said, stretching her arms over her head, and lifting her head to look at Jade. “What took you so long?”
Jade propped her hands on her hips. “Now, why is it everyone seems to think that I’m some sort of miracle worker?”
“Fairy Godmother?” Cinderella stared at her. “Is it really you?”
“It is my dear,” the woman said, stretching her arms out and engulfing Cinderella in a hug.
“She kept you trapped?” Jade asked.
The Fairy Godmother nodded, lowering her hood, and shaking her white hair free. “Unfortunately, yes. After I turned you into a princess that night, your step-mother took me hostage. She cast a spell, summoning a very powerful witch. An evil witch, who put a curse on you, this mansion, and me. I was locked away, until you grew strong enough to set me free. It’s because of you she did, Jade. If you hadn’t come here. If you hadn’t told her about the hope our story inspired in you, she would have never had the strength to stand up to Lady Tremaine. And now, you, have a ball to get to.” She withdrew her wand from her sleeve. “Bippity! Boppity! Boo!”
Bright lights swirled around Cinderella, and a moment later she was standing in front of them, wearing a light blue dress.
“Ahh. I remember the night you first wore that dress,” the fairy Godmother said. “It was a magical night. Now about that carriage. Oh yes.” She wandered to the door, pointing her wand at the pumpkin. “This will do quite nicely.”
“Can I say the words?” Jade asked.
“You really are a sucker for fairytales, aren’t you?” Jaq asked, snickering, from where he was perched on her shoulder.
Jade shrugged. “I like a good romance. What can I say?” Even if she acted like she didn’t, she thought to herself, grinning.
Gus laughed. “Sucker!”
“Shut up, Gus!”
“Be my guest, my dear,” the Fairy Godmother said.
“Bippity! Boppity! Boo!”
Jade smiled, watching the carriage come to form. “We need horses!”
“I think we have plenty to choose from,” Cinderella said, nodding to the horses that were standing just outside the barn. “But I am not doing this alone. You’re coming with me!”
“I’m what?” Jade shook her head. “No! I can’t, Cinderella! It’s not my happy ending.”
“No, it’s not,” Cinderella said. “But you need the chance to remember what it’s like to live. You’ve been through a lot, Jade. You’ve lost a lot, and I’m willing to bet that man, that demon took something from you. What better way to get back in the game then at the ball?” She grinned. “Fairy Godmother, will you do the honors?”
“You betcha!” the Fairy Godmother said. “Bippity! Boppity! Boo!”
White lights reigned around Jade, and Jade watched them twirl around her. Her dark hair, curling into neat curls. A light, purple dress flowing down her body, and glass slippers appearing on her feet. “Oh.”
“You look beautiful,” Cinderella said, softly. “I’ll have some competition at the ball.”
“Please! You only have eyes for one man,” Jade said as they got in the chariot. “But who’s going to get us there?”
“Oh, don’t you worry,” the Fairy Godmother said, hopping up in front of the chariot. “Because this is one ball I’m not going to miss!”
“Wait!” Jade held up a hand, pointing inside the mansion. “Where did Lady Tremaine go?”
Cinderella shrugged. “Who knows. She’ll show up sooner or later. But right now, you and I have a ball to get to. Let’s go!”
“Gitty up!”
Josslyn leaned forward, pressing her heel into the side of the horse. She gripped its mane with her fingers, closing her eyes as the wind whipped around her. The rhythmic sound of the horse’s hooves on the pavement sounding in her ears.
“God, I miss this,” she whispered, slowing to a walk as they entered the town. She dismounted, glancing around at the stands lining the streets.
“Beautiful day, isn’t it, young lady?”
“It is.”
“Want to buy a book?” An older man asked, standing in front of his bookstore. “I’ve got only the best!”
“How about some lemonade?”
“Or maybe, you just need a man,” someone else said, stopping next to her, and leaning in close. He sniffed, “You do smell good.”
“You’d best get off of me,” Josslyn said, shoving him back. “Or trust me, you won’t have any manhood to speak
of.”
“Feisty. I like that.”
“Did you just come from the castle?” a young boy asked, gazing up at her. “I hear it’s haunted.”
“You know there’s a beast who lives up there, right?” another young boy asked, elbowing him. “No one dares to go see him.”
“I hear he’s cursed,” another man said.
“He needs to be put down!” another man said. “There’s no need for a monster in this town!”
“Yes!” The men chorused, pumping their fists in the air.
“You know who we should talk to, right?”
“He’s the strongest of all the men.”
“He’s taken down bears, rhinos, I think he even shot a moose.”
“Who?” Josslyn asked.
“Gaston.”
“Gaston?” Josslyn’s eyes widened, it can’t be this easy, can it? “Where is he?”
“Where he always is,” an older woman said, pointing behind her. “At the bar.”
Josslyn glanced behind her at the small, dark building and blew out a breath. Spinning on her heel, she shoved through the crowd and pushed through the doors. They squeaked, swinging loudly behind her and she blinked as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Her eyes landing on a young man, with long, black hair pulled back into a ponytail, drinking away. He definitely looks like a hunter, she thought, starting toward him. Eyeing his beige colored pants and shirt, her eyes trailing down to his black boots. This can’t be Brandon, can it?
“Gaston!” a young man ran up to him. “Did you hear? Did you hear? This woman, she came from the castle! Now’s your chance to put a beast on your wall!”
“I’m retired, Marty,” Gaston said, lifting his mug, and swallowing his beer. “You know that. Ever since I last faced the beast.” He glanced down at his arm, at the bite mark lying there. “There’s no way I’m going back there.”
“You tried to take the beast out?” Josslyn asked, taking a seat next to him. “Why?”
“He took his girl,” the man named Marty said. “What would you do if your child were taken from you?”
“Everything,” Gaston said, throwing his head back and taking another large gulp from his beer. “Now I’ll never see my little girl again.”
“Your little girl?” Josslyn’s eyes widened. Holy crap! Is this really him?
“You should tell her about what happened,” Marty told him.
“Why?”
“Because she has the right to know!”
“It’s not really any of my business,” Josslyn said, softly. “Although I am curious about what happened. I hear you’re quite the hunter. Bears, rhinos, a moose? What was it about this one you couldn’t go through with?”
“I wish I knew,” Gaston said, softly. “I went there with every intention of killing the beast. He’s a nuisance! Scaring off anyone who dares to get even close to the castle, but for some reason I couldn’t do it! There we were, face to face, he had me pinned to the ground and I had my spear in my hand. But there was a look in his eyes, a look that made me stop, and then he attacked.” He pointed to the bite mark on his arm. “He could have killed me, but he didn’t.”
“Why do you think that is?”
Gaston shrugged. “Hell if I know, but I refuse to go back to that castle.”
“I think you have to,” Josslyn said, softly. She took the mug from Gaston, taking a sip. “Oh. You have terrible taste in beer!” She spit the beer out, gagging.
“Why on earth would I ever go back there? It’s a death sentence!”
“Because he needs your help, Gaston. He’s in trouble.”
“Well, I could have told you that.”
“No! Like big trouble, Gaston! He’s under a curse!”
“Lady, you’re crazy. There are no such thing as curses.”
“Yes there are! And if you don’t do something he’s going to die!”
“Me? Why me?”
“Because you’re connected, Gaston.” Josslyn leaned forward, laying a hand on his arm. “Gaston, just think about it. Why did he stop? He could have killed you. Torn you to shreds, but he didn’t, why? It’s because you’re connected! You’re the only one who can free him.”
“You’re crazy, Lady!”
“Maybe, but there’s a young girl in that castle that needs you, Gaston. Isn’t she worth the risk? Or are you too scared to save your own flesh and blood?” Reasoning with him isn’t working, she thought, maybe goading him will.
“I’m not scared!”
“Then prove it,” Josslyn said, glancing behind her at the men in the bar as they readied their weapons. Watching as a small, grizzly looking man cleared his throat.
“We have lived in fear far too long!” the man shouted, addressing the crowd around him. “The beast in that castle, he’s taken everything from us! Our food. Our family. Our friends. Are we going to sit by and allow him to take any more from us?”
“No!”
“Then let’s take back what’s rightfully ours! Let’s kill the beast!”
Hoots and shouts went up around the room. Josslyn turned back to Gaston, whispering in his ear. “Sounds like those men are going after the beast,” she said. “What happens if your daughter gets hurt in the process? Could you live with knowing you could have prevented it?”
Gaston shook his head. “No. I couldn’t.”
“Then get off your ass and get up to that castle! Save your daughter, Gaston!”
Gaston eyed her. “You’re different from anyone I’ve met before.” He finished his beer and shoved away from the table. “But you’re right. My daughter is the most important thing to me, and she’s counting on me to save her.”
“And what about him? Do you think you can save him?”
“I’m a hunter, Lady. I don’t save beasts, I kill them, and I am going to go get myself a beast!”
“Julie!”
“Julie!”
“Julie!”
“Where’d she go?” Flounder asked, nervously, glancing around him. “I don’t like this, Sebastian.”
“Me neither,” Sebastian said, scrambling up on top of a rock, and raising a claw to his head. He stared out into the distance. “She was right here! How did she get past us?”
“She’s a fast learner,” Flounder said. “She’s adapted to the seas very well, but this is shark territory, Sebastian. We’re sitting ducks out here!”
“Then be quiet!” Sebastian snapped. “And help me look for her! She doesn’t know these seas like we do. There’s no way she can hide from us forever.”
Like hell I can’t, Julie thought, peering over the rock and staring at the two. Sadness washing over her as she watched them, hating that she’d abandoned them. But it was for their own good. She’d been sent here for one reason. To put the fairytale back the way it was supposed to be. The way she remembered it, but she couldn’t do that if she was putting Sebastian and Flounder in danger.
She dove downward, picking up a sea shell. She rotated the object in her hand, staring at the beauty of it, and a scream sounded nearby.
She jerked her head up, swinging around, just as a Great White shark came into view. It circled Sebastian and Flounder, lunging forward.
“Sebastian!”
Crap! She glanced around her, her gaze landing on the metal rod laying on the sea floor just below her. She grabbed the object and swam forward as fast as she could. She dove in front of Sebastian and Flounder, striking the shark in the mouth with the rod.
“Julie!”
“So much for me trying to keep you guys out of danger,” Julie muttered, glancing over her shoulder at them. “Sorry, guys.”
“Julie! Watch out!”
She swung her head around as the shark dove toward her. She raised the rod, and its large teeth sunk into the metal, tearing it in two.
“Crap! Come on! We have to go!” Julie cried, grabbing Sebastian and Flounder. She dove forward, the shark swimming close behind them. It opened its large mouth, and Julie dove downward again. Its sharp teeth
just missing her fin.
“Over there!” Sebastian shouted.
“There’s a small channel leading to the cove!” Flounder cried, gulping, as the shark neared them. “If we can get there, he won’t be able to get us!”
“Yes. It’s just getting there, without being chomped into a bazillion pieces, that’s the challenge.” Julie said, glancing over her shoulder again. The shark circled around the rock, cutting them off. “Crap!”
“He’s blocking our path!”
“Not if I have anything to say about it!” Sebastian cried, raising his claw, and letting out a loud whistle.
A loud splash sounded behind them. A school of fish whipped around them and headed for the shark. They swam around him, and the shark chomped his sharp teeth forward. It grabbed one of the fish, swallowing it, and chomped its sharp teeth again, going after another.
“He’s distracted,” Flounder said. “Maybe we can sneak past him.”
“Do you really want to take that chance?” Julie asked.
“It’s the only chance we have!”
Julie swallowed, nodding. She drew in a deep breath and swam forward. She swam past the shark, eyeing it, as they got closer. Its big head swung toward her, and it lunged forward.
“Now!”
They moved forward, swimming as fast as they could, disappearing inside the channel.
“Whoo! That was close!” Julie cried, leaning back against the wall. The shark lunged forward, its nose smacking against the opening, but not being able to get to in. “But dang! Those things are not nice!”
“You’re telling me,” Flounder said, shaking. “They are scary, Julie! I was almost eaten by one, once! But then Ariel saved me. She even has the scar on her arm.” He bowed his head. “I miss her.”
“I know,” Julie whispered. “Which is why I’m going to do my best to bring her back to you.”
“A foolish thing to do, if you ask me.”
The voice sounded from behind them, and Julie jumped. She glanced over her shoulder, her eyes widening as Ursula stepped out from the shadows. She narrowed her eyes. “Ursula.”
“Hello, my dear. I see you were able to survive my carnage.” Ursula smiled, her eight tentacles flowing around her as she swam forward. She grabbed Julie by the chin, studying her. “You know, she said you would come. Although, I didn’t expect someone with so much power, to be so weak.”
Once Upon a Hallow’s Eve Page 9
