On My Way Home - Part #3
Ariana Merrill
Issue #3 (May 2008)
The lovely Eleanor has encountered many fairytale characters some as lovely as herself and others terrifying and wicked. Although our dear heroine continues to attempt to aid the helpless, she discovers she must return one of three magical items to the Good Witch who lives in the Emerald City, so Eleanor may return to her own home. Eleanor and her sidekick white rabbit continue their search along the fairytale countryside.
Ch. 10: The Princess and the Pea
“Who would have thought that I’d come across you while shopping for the wedding,” Cinderella said while leading Eleanor to a spare guest room.
“It is a bit unexpected to say the least,” answered Eleanor as Cinderella unlocked the door and gave her the key.
“So do you have a special someone in your life?”
“Not at the moment,” Eleanor said sitting down on the bed.
“Well, we’ll just have to fix that now won’t we?”
“That’s really not necessary.”
“Nonsense! You gave me the love of my life. The least I can do is help you find yours. Prince Charming’s younger brother is—.”
“Charming?” Eleanor asked sarcastically.
“Yes! And very handsome. You’ll love him, I’m sure.” Eleanor just smiled and nodded and let Cinderella continue talking. At the moment, she was not interested in the least about any handsome princes, especially any related to Cinderella’s arrogant prince. The only thing on Eleanor’s mind was going home.
*~*
The wedding was beautiful and elegant in every way. Cinderella’s dress had a long flowing train and a pure white veil. It was followed by food and dancing, at which time Cinderella detached herself momentarily from her new husband to speak a few words with her guest of honor.
“Congratulations,” said Eleanor smiling. She stood in a dark red gown that Cinderella had leant to her for the ceremony. The sleeves were extremely long and flowy, making it difficult for Eleanor to do anything with her hands.
“Thank y
ou ever so much. Have you seen Prince Charming’s brother yet?” Eleanor nodded, she had caught a glimpse of the young prince and he was everything Cinderella had promised. Handsome and debonair, he was all that a fairy tale prince should be. However, after Eleanor’s run in with Prince Charming, she was less than enthusiastic to meet any of his relatives and had kept her distance. This didn’t prove very difficult though, since every eligible maiden at the wedding had commenced every effort to win over the now most available member of the Charming family.
“Have you had a chance to speak with him?”
“No, but—.”
“That won’t do! You must be my sister-in-law, not any of these other women. Don’t worry; I’ll take care of everything.” Cinderella winked and rushed off.
“That’s not necessary!” Eleanor called out after the over-zealous princess. She quickly glanced around the ballroom in search of some place to hide. Her only options were underneath the buffet table, behind the orchestra, or through a door to her right. Eleanor chose the door. Turning the handle she snuck inside, away from the grand ballroom and all its inhabitants. Closing the door behind her, she surveyed her new surroundings.
A fire was lit in the fireplace and candles around the room illuminated the volumes of books. The stacks reached far up the vaulted ceiling. Surveying them closer, Eleanor realized that they all had a rather thick layer of dust that had settled on them from disuse. Choosing a book from one of the shelves, Eleanor settled comfortably into a large brown armchair next to the fire. She had just blown the dust off and opened it slightly when she heard a sneeze. Looking around, she saw no one in the room; everything was as it had been. She glanced up at the one portrait in the room and gasped. She dropped the book and stood up, certain the eyes of the man in the portrait had just blinked. Slowly walking towards the painting she gazed long and hard at it. It was difficult to see with the only light coming from the fireplace. After awhile Eleanor decided it had only been a trick of the shadows.
“Possessed portraits or not, I’m getting out of here.” Eleanor picked up the book she had dropped and replaced it on the shelf behind her. Turning back towards the door, she froze in her tracks; standing next to the portrait was a man.
“Please don’t be frightened,” he said walking towards the light of the fire. Eleanor’s eyes narrowed as she tried to make out the face in the shadows. When he reached the hearth his face was illumined by the light of the fire and Eleanor recognized him as Prince Charming’s younger brother, the very person she had been avoiding.
Eleanor exhaled slowly. “That was quite an entrance. I suppose Cinderella sent you in here.”
“Actually I was trying to get away from her. Please don’t misunderstand me, I’m very fond of my new sister-in-law, but she can be a bit too much to take all at once. I think I lost her though when I disappeared behind the stairs. The secret passage ways are only supposed to be used in emergencies, but being set up by my sister-in-law is an emergency. If you don’t mind a bit of company, I think I’ll hide out in here for awhile.”
“Won’t the adoring masses miss you?”
“Probably, but lets just hope they don’t find me. My brother is much more cut out for this than I am. But now he’s married.”
“And you’ve become the center of attention for so many females.”
He nodded and the sound of silence filled the room. “Forgive me, but I don’t think I caught your name.”
“Eleanor.”
“Lovely to meet you Eleanor.”
“And you are?”
“You don’t know?” he asked surprised. Eleanor raised an eyebrow at him. “How extraordinarily rude of me. My name is Alexander.”
“So you’re not fond of all your fans Alexander? From the little time I spent with your brother, he seemed quite comfortable with it.”
“He is, but now he’s spoken for and has left me a victim for the chopping block that is courtship.”
Eleanor smiled, “I’ve never heard it referred to like that before, but it does seem suitable somehow in your case.”
“You have no idea. My parents have already begun to discuss possible matches for me now that they’ve finally succeeded in marrying off my brother. I suspect that this wedding is more for my benefit than the bride and groom’s.” The two laughed and Eleanor watched the shadows cast by the fire dance on the floor and furniture.
A servant entered and bowed low. “Ah, I’ve finally found you, your grace. Your presence is requested in the ballroom.”
“Thank you Bruno, I’ll be there momentarily.” The servant bowed again and retreated back out the door, closing it behind him.
“You can run but you can’t hide,” Eleanor commented.
“Yes, it seems as though they have found me. But before I leave I must thank you Eleanor. Talking with you was very refreshing and gave me one of the most comfortable conversations I’ve had in far too long.” Alexander raised Eleanor’s hand to his lips. “I greatly anticipate the next time our paths will cross again.” With that, he turned and left the library.
“Wow,” Eleanor sighed as she followed Alexander out the door. Bruno led a young woman to Alexander and the orchestra began to play a lively waltz. Many colored gowns twirled and swirled in front of Eleanor’s eyes as she watched the well-choreographed waltz.
“Just my luck. I finally meet a nice, good looking guy and he’s straight out of a fairy tale world.” Eleanor barely noticed when Cinderella came up to her and began to speak.
“I wasn’t able to chase down Alexander before and now he’s dancing with another girl. But don’t you worry; I’ll snag him for you sometime tonight.” But Eleanor wasn’t paying attention. With a silly grin on her face and more color in her cheeks, she watched Alexander waltz around the dance floor.
The night wore on, but Eleanor did not retire to her room. She stayed in hopes of talking with Alexander once again, but one young woman or another always consumed his time. Eleanor let out a large, unlady-like yawn and decided that enough was enough. No prince was worth falling asleep in her chair.
She had taken only a few steps up the staircase when she heard from behind her, “excuse me miss, but may I be so honored as to have the last dance of the evening?” Eleanor turned to find Alexander smiling and holding out his hand.
“I don’t know the steps.”
“It’s not hard, I’m sure you’ll catch on. Besides, I’ll lead.”
“Well in that case I’d be delighted.” She took his outstretched hand and accompanied him to the dance floor.
“Have you ever waltzed before?”
“No, but I’ve been watching people dance all night.”
“It’s a simple three step. Just one, two, three,” Alexander demonstrated.
“I’ll try,” Eleanor shrugged and the two began to move to the music.
“Not bad. Now let’s try a spin,” he said as he led her into a turn. “You see? It isn’t very hard at all,” they continued to dance.
“You make it easy.” Eleanor and Alexander danced around, practically flying over the wooden floor. Eleanor never enjoyed a dance so much in her life. It was nothing like the school dances she and Sadie went to where everyone just stood next to the walls or plastic punch bowl. All too soon, the music came to a halt and the orchestra began to pack up their instruments.
“Thank you for the dance Ms. Eleanor. I enjoyed it immensely.”
“Me too,” she glanced over at the orchestra. “But I think that’s my cue to go.”
“May I escort you to your room?”
“Thank you that would be nice.” They walked up the stairs and through one of the long corridors. “I think this is the room Cinderella gave me for the night,” said Eleanor, stopping in front of one of the doors.
Alexander took both of her hands in his. “Words cannot express what a pleasure it was to meet you tonight Eleanor. I am deeply grateful for having stumbled upon you in the library which I sought refuge in.”
“So am I.”
“I hope you have a restful night’s sleep.” Alexander drew close to Eleanor and kissed her gently on the cheek. “Until we meet again tomorrow.” He began to walk away down the corridor. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” returned Eleanor. Slipping the key Cinderella had given her into the lock Eleanor slid into her room and collapsed onto the bed, splaying out her arms and legs in all directions.
“You look unusually happy,” said the rabbit, jumping onto the bed in one large leap. “Did you find one of the objects?”
Eleanor sighed contentedly, “Nope.”
“Then why are you grinning like a Cheshire cat?”
“Alexander.”
“That prince? Oh come now, you can’t possibly be smitten with that royal idiot. Those princes are all alike; believe me I know. Each is dull, self-centered, and completely useless.”
“That’s what I thought when I met Prince Charming, but Alexander is nothing like his brother. He’s sweet, intelligent, and well, charming. He’s practically perfect.”
“It would be best if you just forgot about him Eleanor. There’s no possible way you could ever be with him.”
“And why not?” Eleanor asked sitting straight up. “Am I not good enough for a prince? I may not be a princess, but--.”
“That’s not what I meant. Besides, I thought you wanted to go home.”
“I did. I do. I don’t know.”
“Don’t bother with him; he’s clouding your better judgment. You must focus on the task at hand. Find one of the objects.”
“I know, it’s just that—.”
“He’s incredibly handsome?”
“Well yes, but it’s so much more than that.” A knock came from the door. The rabbit jumped down and hid under the bed.
“Forget about him Eleanor, trust me.” She didn’t respond, but opened the door instead. In rushed Cinderella, still in her wedding dress.
“What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be with your new husband?” Eleanor asked.
“He can wait; this is true love I’m working on here!” Eleanor smiled to herself and shook her head. Cinderella didn’t seem to realize what she had just implied. “I just spoke with my mother-in-law and I learned something very interesting. Alexander is to be engaged in the morning!”
“What?! To who?”
“The girl hasn’t been chosen yet.”
“Ok, you lost me.”
“A contest is to take place tonight and the winner will have Alexander’s hand in marriage. That could be you!”
“I haven’t heard anything about a contest.”
“That’s because it’s a secret. But don’t worry; I’m here to help you overcome the competition. Under each of the mattresses in the female guest’s rooms of the palace has been placed a single pea. In the morning, each girl will be asked about how she slept. The girl who slept the worst will prove herself a true princess and be awarded with Alexander.”
Eleanor walked over to her bed and lifted up the mattress. Sure enough, beneath it was a green pea no bigger than the nail of her pinkie. “So the snobbiest and most spoiled girl is the true princess? Wow, that’s ironic. I wonder if Alexander knows about this or if it’s one of his parents’ schemes.”
“I’m not sure. But anyway, I just came to tell you.” Cinderella moved towards the door. “Goodnight, and don’t forget. Have a horrible night’s rest.” With that, Cinderella left in the same excited flurry she had arrived.
The rabbit hopped out from his hiding place and jumped back on the bed. “Did you hear that? It’s the royal pea! Now all we have to do is get the pea from under the mattress of whoever Alexander marries.”
“That may be easier than you think,” Eleanor said from behind the screen as she changed into a nightgown left by Cinderella.
“Pardon?”
“I want to marry him. That royal pea is under my mattress,” she said coming out and getting under the covers of her bed for the night.
“Eleanor…”
“Can you please not ruin this for me? Every girl in this world gets to live out her fantasy. I want that. I want to be the one to live happily ever after. It’s my turn.”
“But you’d be stealing someone else’s dream, someone else’s future.”
“So I’m supposed to sentence Alexander to a marriage with someone he doesn’t even like? Let alone love? I’m not going to do that to him.”
“So instead you’ll sentence him to death?” The rabbit hopped onto Eleanor’s stomach and looked down at her. “If you marry him tomorrow, you will kill him. He may have happiness for a day with you, but his life won’t be cut short if he marries someone else.”
Eleanor didn’t speak. Instead she picked up the rabbit off of her and put him on the pillow next to her head. Two tears rolled down her cheeks, which she wiped off on her own pillow.
“I really am sorry Eleanor.”
“This shouldn’t happen here. Since I’ve gotten to this world I’ve witnessed a murder attempt, been frightened out of my mind by a wolf, and had my heart broken. This is supposed to be a land of make-believe where everything turns out all right in the end.”
“There’s no place like that, not even here. Everywhere you go you will find fear, and evil, and pain. There’s no place, in any world that will protect you from that.”
“You’re just an optimist at heart aren’t you?” Eleanor blew out the candle next to her bed.
“It’s not all bad. You’ll also find courage, and goodness, and strength everywhere you go too. You can’t have one without the other.”
“It’s just not fair. I finally found the perfect guy and if I don’t leave him immediately I’ll unravel his story and kill him.”
“I know Eleanor, I know.” She put her arm around the white rabbit and fell asleep.
*~*
That morning, Eleanor was harshly awakened by trumpets announcing the beginning of the day. “Good morning!” the rabbit said entirely too cheerfully. Eleanor mumbled something unintelligible from under the blanket. “Time to get up. We need to get an early start so we can find the pea and be on our way.”
Eleanor peaked out from under the blanket. “Oh no, you’re a morning bunny.”
“Up, up!”
“Leave me alone,” grumbled Eleanor. The rabbit responded by jumping up and down repeatedly on top of her stomach. “Okay, okay. I give!” Eleanor sat up and yawned. “Sheesh, it’s entirely too early.” She tumbled out of bed and tried to find her jeans, shirt, and jacket.
Eleanor walked down the grand staircase and found the ballroom filled with servants running every which way and sleepy-eyed people nibbling at breakfast. She descended the staircase and caught Alexander’s eye. He dismissed the waiter he was speaking with and walked over to her. He bowed slightly and greeted her. “Good morning Eleanor. It’s so lovely to see your beautiful face this morning. But you look sad, is something wrong?”
Eleanor looked up into the face of a man she could never be with. It was like a knife to her heart to have him so close when soon she would abandon the young prince to his destiny and never see him again. A lump began to form in her throat and she blinked away the tears that threatened to expose her true feelings. “No, I’m fine. My allergies are just acting up.”
Bruno quickly approached Alexander and said “Your parents request that you join them so they might begin this morning’s ceremony.”
“Thank you Bruno, I’ll be along in a minute.”
“They seemed very impatient to begin your grace.”
“I’m sure they are.” Alexander turned back to Eleanor. “But before I go, I must know something. Did you sleep well Eleanor?”
Alexander’s eyes were so hopeful that for a moment, Eleanor considered just giving in to her feelings and doing what seemed so easy and natural. With one answer she could be happy. But then reality came flooding back and she remembered the rabbit’s words of wisdom from the previous night. Taking a deep breath Eleanor answered, “Yes. I can’t remember the last time I had such a restful night’s sleep.”
Alexander tried to hide the look of disappointment that washed over his face with a fake smile and a nod of his head. “If you’ll excuse me, I must get back to my parents.”
“Of course,” Eleanor said barely above a whisper. She took a few shaky breaths as she watched him walk away. “Just breathe,” she reminded herself, taking a seat at one of the tables.
“Good morning soon-to-be sister-in-law!” Cinderella sat down in the chair next to Eleanor. “I noticed you were just speaking with Alexander. Did you tell him what a horrible night’s sleep you had?”
“No.”
“That’s all right. We’ll just call over the King and Queen and you can tell them.”
Eleanor shook her head. “No, I told him I slept very well.”
“What?” Cinderella asked confused. Before Eleanor could explain, the Queen began to clink a knife on her glass.
“Attention, attention! I would like to inform all of you of the happy news. Miss Gabriella Marriot has just become engaged to my charming son Alexander, and I would like to be the first to propose a toast to the happy couple! To Alexander and Gabriella!” Everyone took up their glasses and joined the Queen in toasting her son and his new fiancé. Eleanor turned to Cinderella, who was looking very surprised to say the least.
“I think I remember passing that young woman in the hall on the way to my room last night,” said Eleanor, searching for the information she needed to find the pea. “Did she stay in the west wing too?”
“No, she stayed in the north wing.”
“Are you sure? I could have sworn I passed her last night on the way to my room.”
“Yes, I’m sure. I remember because hers was the room I stayed in before I married Charming.”
“Oh? Which room was that?”
“Number 264.” Cinderella reached over and squeezed Eleanor’s hand. “Look at you, you brave girl! Here you are trying to be pleasant and make conversation when you’re clearly so upset at loosing Alexander. You poor thing!”
“You’re right, I was trying to be strong but this is a little too much for me to handle.” Eleanor decided to take this opportunity to go in search of the royal pea. “I think I’ll just go back to my room if you don’t mind.”
“Of course, I understand. Would you like me to go with you?”
“No that’s alright, thank you. I just need a little time to myself.” The two stood and Eleanor hugged Cinderella. “Thank you for everything. It was nice to have a friend close by.”
“Anytime. Remember, I’m always here if you need anything. That’s what friends are for.”
“Thank you,” Eleanor said again as she rose from her chair. She wondered how much longer Cinderella’s happiness would continue until her story rewound itself and started all over as she walked to the top of the stairs and stopped. She looked out over the ballroom one last time and let a solitary tear escape and roll down her cheek before wiping it away with the back of her hand. Alexander and his fiancé shared their first dance as an engaged couple. Gabriella looked ecstatic, but Alexander’s face was a blank slate from which no trace of emotion could escape. He had answered the call of duty and put his feelings aside.
“Goodbye Alexander,” Eleanor said quietly. “I hope you find your happy ending.” With that she left them all behind her.
*~*
“And how exactly did you plan on getting in her room?” asked the rabbit.
“I hadn’t quite figured that part out yet,” Eleanor said as she jiggled the doorknob to the locked door of room 264. “I was kind of just making it up as I went along. Since when do the people around here lock their doors?”
The rabbit’s ears perked at the sound of creaking wheels. A maid came around the corner pushing a cart filled with clean towels. “Excuse me!” Eleanor called. “Do you think you could help me? I seem to have locked myself out of my room.”
“Of course miss,” answered the maid as she unlocked the door. “And here are some clean towels as well.”
“Thank you so much.” The maid wheeled her cart around the corner and Eleanor entered the room with the rabbit hopping along behind her. “Not too bad for just winging it, hu?”
“That was luck. Hurry now, we need to get that pea.”
“Wow! Would you look at this room? She’s got fruit baskets, mints on her pillow, and even a view of the royal gardens!”
“Focus Eleanor. Find the pea.”
“Okay, but I’m taking some of this fruit. She got the guy; I can at least get some fruit.” Eleanor lifted up the mattress and found a minuscule pea no bigger than a peanut. “This tiny little thing is supposed to be magical?”
“Looks can be deceiving.”
“They better be or else Glinda won’t have enough magic to make another pair of slippers,” Eleanor said as she took a bite out of a pear.
Ch.11: Reality Check
“Miss Avory is here to see you,” Gertrude told Glinda who was sitting in her office study.
“Already? She couldn’t possibly have found and retrieved one of the items so soon.” Gertrude shrugged. “Send her in.”
Glinda heard her secretary tell Eleanor “She will see you now,” and the girl waltzed in.
“Eleanor, I wasn’t planning on seeing you again so soon. This certainly is a welcome surprise!” Glinda glided over and took one of Eleanor’s hands in her own. She led her over to the couch and the two sat side by side. “Now tell me, did you retrieve one of the items?”
Eleanor nodded, “I did.”
“Fantastic! Let me see it.” Eleanor obediently held out her hand, where the pea sat in the middle of her palm. “The royal pea! It’s so small.”
“That’s what I said too.” Glinda took the pea from Eleanor.
“Well done Eleanor. I’m very impressed.”
“So it’ll work? You can make the ruby red slippers?”
Glinda smiled to herself, “Oh yes.” She held up the pea between her thumb and forefinger, examining it closely.
“How will you do it? Do you need a big black cauldron to put the pea in and mix it with things like eye of newt?”
“Heavens no child! Whatever gave you that idea?”
“Pop culture?” Eleanor shrugged. Glinda however, was not listening to Eleanor’s answer. Instead she took a pink wand from over the mantle place that was in a glass case.
“I haven’t been able to use this in quite a while,” she said, holding the wand like an old friend. She carefully unscrewed the end and popped the pea inside. Screwing the end back on, she flicked the wand once and sparks flew out of the tip.
“That’s a good thing, right?”
“Yes child. It’s a very good thing.”
“Just making sure, because when my brother’s car shoots out sparks, that’s a bad thing.”
“Stand back,” Glinda commanded. Eleanor moved to the other side of the room. With one grand wave of the wand, a pair of ruby red slippers appeared on the floor.
“No magic words?” asked Eleanor, a bit disappointed. The whole thing seemed rather anti-climactic to her. Glinda took off her own shoes and put on the red ones. “I hate to tell you this, but those shoes really don’t go with the rest of your outfit. But they’ll go okay with mine so if you don’t mind I’ll just put them on and be on my way home.”
Glinda laughed, “Foolish child. You really thought I’d give you something as incredibly powerful as these slippers?”
“Well, I did. Right up until you started laughing all crazy. Now I’m starting to have my doubts.”
“With these shoes I will rule both of our worlds. I can go to your home and bring all the people of this fairy tale realm with me. The curse of time will hold no sway over them in your world. They will be free to live their lives! And I will reign over the new era, the Final Happily Ever After.”
“Won’t that create a tear in all the stories?”
“Yes and this world will be destroyed. But that’s of no consequence for we shall all be in the new world, your world. And I will make all of your people pay for what you have done to us, making us prisoners in our own lives, slaves to a happy ending. It is time for you all to be the prisoners, the slaves. I’ll cross over at midnight and my people will no longer have to suffer!”
Eleanor glared at Glinda. “What is WRONG with you people? Why don’t you act like your characters? You’re supposed to be the good witch and here you are plotting to destroy the world! Well I’ve got news for you; it’s not going to happen because I won’t let it!” Eleanor rushed at Glinda, desperate to stop her from ruining both worlds. But the ruby red slippers and royal pea reapplied Glinda’s former power and with a flick of the wand, Eleanor found herself in a dungeon and behind bars for the first time in her life.
“You’ll never get away with this you with!” she yelled in futility, grabbing the iron bars. “Glinda!” she called out at the top of her lungs.
Ch. 12: The Final Happily Ever After
Sitting in a corner with her arms crossed defiantly in front of her, Eleanor tried to think of a way to escape. The ground was as hard as concrete, so it was no use to try and dig a way out and there were no windows. The keys hung on the opposite wall, just close enough to taunt the prisoner. Eleanor stared at them, silently willing them closer to her, but it was no use, she was stuck. She groaned loudly and ran at the iron bars, shaking them as before.
“Well I hope you have a better escape plan that that,” commented the white rabbit hopping down the stairs.
“Rabbit! I’m so glad to see you! You need to get the keys and let me out of here. Glinda isn’t a good witch at all. She’s going to destroy this world and enslave everyone in my world and it’s all my fault! I even did her dirty work for her. We have to stop that Pepto Bismal colored freak!”
“And just how am I going to reach those keys on the wall? They must be at least five feet up. I’m a rabbit, not a kangaroo.”
“I didn’t think about that I guess. I was just so happy to see a friendly face. What are you doing here anyway? I thought you had another one of your meetings.”
“I came to save you instead as soon as I heard.”
“How did you know I needed rescuing? And how did you know where to find me?” asked Eleanor as she lay down on her stomach so she was face to face with the furry little fellow who was just a little too big to fit through the bars.
“Let’s just say that word travels fast around here. And what better place to look for a prisoner than in a dungeon? But I’m afraid I’m not much help. I tried winging it like you do, but it doesn’t seem to be working all that well for me. I have no idea how to free you.”
“That’s alright,” she said scratching the rabbit’s ears through the bars, “I appreciate the effort. You came to help me when you heard I was in trouble. You didn’t have to, but you did anyway. Thank you.” Eleanor planted a kiss between the rabbit’s large ears in gratitude.
She jumped back suddenly, not sure what exactly was going on. A cloud of white fog encompassed the animal and a bright light flashed. Eleanor shielded her eyes with her arms, and when she looked again her jaw dropped with surprise. Standing before her was a man wearing a tan jacket and brown pants where the rabbit used to be. Eleanor looked at him incredulously. “What…where…what did you do with my rabbit?” she sputtered.
“Don’t tell me you’ve never heard of the Frog Prince before,” the man replied.
“But you are…were a rabbit.”
“The same rules apply.”
“You’d really think I would have seen something like this coming by now.”
“But then there’d be no fairy tale.”
“Who are you?” Eleanor asked.
“My name is Cedric. I was transformed into a rabbit by a witch. But the kiss of a loving woman set me free.” Eleanor blushed, suddenly shy around her friend. “But enough about me,” said Cedric taking the keys easily from off the wall. “We have to get you out of here.”
The dungeon gate swung open and Eleanor stepped out. “But how will we stop Glinda?”
“I was hoping you would have a plan. Like I said, I’m just winging it.” Cedric grinned sheepishly. “I guess I’m not much of a knight in shining armor.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out.” Eleanor bit her lower lip in concentration. “We have the element of surprise, which has to count for something. Glinda is going to cross over at midnight.”
“That’s two hours from now.”
“She needs the shoes and the wand…” Eleanor’s eyes lit up and she smiled. “How good is your aim Cedric?” she questioned the young man.
“Up until the witch took my opposable thumbs, I used to be quite good at archery.”
“How good?”
“Well I don’t like to brag, but I won the archery tournament the last three years in a row.”
“Perfect,” Eleanor said with a smile.
*~*
“Are you sure this will work?” Cedric and Eleanor carefully made their way through the many halls of Glinda’s mansion, pausing occasionally to hide from those passing by.
“Of course it will. Trust me. Besides, it’s all we’ve got.”
“That’s reassuring,” said Cedric as he readjusted the bow and arrows slung over his shoulder that they found in the armory.
“Are you sure Glinda will be in the courtyard?”
“Yes, it’s the only place big enough for a portal.” Cedric winked at Eleanor, “Trust me.” From the second story, the two looked out of one of the windows overlooking the balcony and the courtyard. Sure enough, there was Glinda impatiently pacing and occasionally glancing up at the large clock on one of the walls encircling the garden. The hands read 11:55 p.m.
“It’s now or never,” said Eleanor and she turned to leave. Cedric grabbed her by the arm and spun her back around to face him. He took her face in his hands and kissed her.
“For good luck,” he said.
Eleanor smiled up at him. “Thanks. But who needs luck when you’ve got pure desperation?” Cedric smiled back at her and she ran off to stop Glinda.
*~*
Eleanor crept through the garden being careful not to make a sound. She placed herself behind a rather large piece of shrubbery and watched as Glinda paced the ground. She looked up towards the second floor and could barely make out Cedric’s frame hiding in the shadows of the balcony behind a pillar. A flicker of light momentarily rose before it was extinguished again. Eleanor nervously looked back at Glinda, but she hadn’t noticed the brief addition of light.
Eleanor sank down to the ground and kneeled; ready to sprint forward at any moment. Though she had never been on the track team at her school, she had seen the runners practice their sprints that way. Suddenly, a solitary arrow flew through the night air. Instead of a pointed end was a small ball, which Cedric had briefly lit on fire. Still hot, the blunt end of the arrow struck Glinda on her right hand with full force and her wand fell to the ground. The witch cried out in pain and surprise. At this moment, Eleanor rushed forward and grabbed the wand from the spot it had fallen.
Glinda saw her and laughed. “And just what do you plan to do with that deary? You don’t know how to use a wand.” Another arrow whistled through the night air between the two women with a rope attached to the end. It struck the trunk of a tree and the rope drew tight. With more ease than any prince, Cedric slipped down the rope to the garden. Upon reaching the ground he took the wand from Eleanor and responded “But I do.”
“That was awesome!” cried Eleanor.
“Cedric,” said Glinda. “I knew you’d show up at some point. I should have killed you when I had the chance instead of turning you into a rabbit.”
“Good to see you too Mother.”
“Mother?” Eleanor asked confused. “Your mother is the witch that turned you into a bunny? And I thought my family was dysfunctional.”
“Are you going to shoot me son?” Cedric gazed fixedly at his mother, but did not respond. “That’s what I thought. You never could do what was necessary.”
“Don’t listen to her.” Eleanor tried to be supportive.
“I suppose she’s the one that kissed you.” Glinda turned to Eleanor. “Couldn’t find a man so you had to resort to animals?” Eleanor glared back at her and took a step towards the supposedly good witch and pointed her finger at her accusingly.
“That’s uncalled for.” But Eleanor barely got the words out of her mouth when Glinda pounced on her and held the young woman in front of her in a headlock as a shield. For an older woman she was surprisingly strong.
“Let her go!” Cedric demanded.
“Just shoot her Cedric!”
“Oh he won’t do that. If I know my boy, and I think I do, he’s far too afraid he might miss and hit you instead. He simply never can do what needs to be done. And now you’re too late!” With that, Glinda clicked her ruby red heels together and the two women disappeared. Cedric turned around in circles, desperately searching for them.
“Eleanor!” he frantically called out, but heard no answer.
In the shadow of a large tree, Glinda held Eleanor at bay with one hand covering her mouth and the other arm around her neck. Eleanor bit Glinda’s hand and yelled out to Cedric. “Insolent youth!” Glinda cried out before clicking her heels together again and transporting them to another part of the garden. Cedric ran to the spot where they were concealed, but was too late.
Eleanor and Glinda popped up behind a fountain at the opposite end of the large courtyard. To her despair, Eleanor realized that no matter how hard he tried; Cedric would not be able to save her. She could bite Glinda again and again and call out to him, but as long as she was still wearing the magic slippers, Glinda could transport them to a new hiding place before he could reach them. If she was going to escape, she would have to do it herself.
Afraid and disoriented, Eleanor began to panic. She closed her eyes, but only saw frightening images of the past. She relieved the moment Snow White fell to the floor, poisoned by the apple and could hear the evil Queen cackling as if she was right there. She saw the wolf again, stalking her like a beast of prey. An overwhelming sense of panic boiled up from the pit of Eleanor’s stomach, and she felt as though she was going to throw up. How had it all come to this? she thought. Then she pictured her family and Sadie. She would never see them again. Cedric’s voice floated up out of her memory from just a few days earlier. “It’s all right to be afraid. Fear is a part of life. But you can’t let it control you.” He was right. Eleanor’s eyes flashed open angrily, she had had enough.
Remembering the self-defense classes she and Sadie had taken at the gym, Eleanor sprang into action. One of their first lessons at the class was to stop panicking, if your attacker had you in a hold from behind there was a simple maneuver to use. Eleanor pushed her back into Glinda and positioned her chin next to Glinda’s elbow. She then pushed Glinda’s elbow upwards and slid out the bottom.
She turned on the witch and with one fluid motion, slammed the palm of her hand upwards at Glinda’s nose, which broke on contact. Distracted by the pain and watering of her eyes, Glinda easily fell backwards when Eleanor pushed her. By this time, Cedric had followed the sounds of the fight and found them just as Eleanor ripped the red slippers off of Glinda’s feet.
“How did you do that?” Cedric asked surprised.
“I was really motivated,” Eleanor answered.
*~*
From the balcony on the third floor, Eleanor could see far across the landscape. She was tired, but couldn’t fall asleep. She was still too jumpy from her fight with Glinda. Eleanor heard the sound of footsteps outside her door and went to open it. Upon opening it she found Cedric with his hand on the doorknob.
“Oh, I didn’t realize you were awake. I was just going to leave this next to the bed for you,” he explained holding up the red slippers. “You certainly earned them.”
“How’s your mother?”
“Fine. I put her in the basement dungeons along with extra blankets, a pillow, and a spare mattress.”
“What about the guards? They didn’t try to help her?”
“Her guards and the few others who are still loyal to her are in the dungeons as well. I sent a messenger pigeon off for help after I got the bow and arrows from the armory. Some friends of mine showed up and we staged a rather peaceful takeover after you finished off Glinda.”
“Good job!” Eleanor said impressed.
“Well we’ve been planning it since before I was turned into a rabbit. A revolution has been a long time in coming for this world.”
“Have you decided whether or not you’re going to turn Glinda into the Department of Magical Misuse?”
“I don’t know. She took my wand and turned me into a rabbit, but she’s still my mother.” Eleanor nodded. “I could turn her into an animal of some sort, but maybe I’ll just put her in an old folk’s home where she can play bingo and not hurt anyone.” Cedric smiled. “What about you? What are you going to do now?”
“Go home,” Eleanor said quietly. Cedric looked a bit disappointed. “It’s strange though, I think I’m going to miss it here. I’ve grown accustomed to it all somehow. I heard the stories so many times growing up that this place just seems…natural. But I have to go home, I miss it terribly.”
“I understand. Crazy as it may sound, I missed my home too even after my mother changed me into an animal.” Cedric pulled an object out of his pocket and handed it to Eleanor. “If you’re going home you might need this.”
“My Grandmother’s watch! I forgot about that. Why did you take it in the first place?”
“I wanted to examine it. Since it was a time piece from your world, I thought it might be able to help with the unraveling problem we have here.”
“Can it?”
“Neither I nor any of my allies could find anything about it that might help us.”
“I’m sorry. Will you be all right?” asked Eleanor.
“I think so. We’ll just have to find another way to fight the curse.”
“Thank you for everything. I never would have been able to do it without you.”
“Sure you would’ve,” Cedric assured her. “It just would have taken you a little longer, that’s all. But you’re welcome anyway.” Eleanor put on the red slippers. “Will you do me a favor though Eleanor?”
“Of course.”
“Don’t write any of this down when you get home.” She nodded understandingly
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” Looking down at the shoes Eleanor said, “This sounds so corny, but there really is no place like home. Dorothy knew what she was talking about.” She squeezed her eyes shut and began to click her heels together while reciting the well-known phrase, there’s no place like home.
Ch.13: Coming Home
Eleanor opened her eyes, but couldn’t see much due to her dark surroundings. It took a few moments for her to realize that she was back where she started, at the bottom of the mining shaft. A light shone down from the top of the hole against the night sky. Eleanor squinted up at it and tried to shield her eyes.
A familiar voice called down, “Eleanor?”
“Dad?” she yelled back towards the bright light.
“Oh thank God.” Eleanor heard her mother’s voice. “Don’t worry sweetheart, you’ll be out of there in no time!” A rope was lowered down from above and a fireman climbed down to Eleanor.
“You had quite a fall there miss. Can you move everything?” the fireman asked.
Eleanor lifted herself up carefully from the dirt. “I think so.”
“You just hold on to me and we’ll have you out of here before you know it.” Eleanor put her arms around the fireman’s neck and the two were lifted to safety.
Upon reaching the surface, Eleanor’s mother rushed over to inspect her daughter. “Are you hurt? Is anything broken?”
“My left arm is pretty sore, but I think I’ll be okay.”
“We’ll get you checked out by a doctor hun,” said Eleanor’s father.
“Thank God you were with Sadie,” Mrs. Avory said relieved.
“Where is she?” Eleanor asked.
“Right here,” came Sadie’s voice from behind Eleanor.
“She ran all the way back to school to get help. I don’t want to even think about what would have happened if she hadn’t been with you.”
Eleanor smiled up at Sadie, “Thanks, I sure do owe you one.”
“Don’t worry about it,” she answered. Eleanor’s parents led her towards one of the emergency jeeps that they had come in. Eleanor carefully climbed into the back and Sadie followed after her. Mr. and Mrs. Avory went to thank the rescue team.
“You must have been so scared down there in the dark,” said Sadie.
“I can honestly say that I’ve never been more horrified in my life then I was after I fell down that shaft,” Eleanor said to Sadie. “But somehow, it was all okay. Because fear will pass, and when it does you’re left with yourself. The way it should be.” She rested her head against the side of the jeep. “You’ll never believe what happened to me Sadie.” Her friend looked at her curiously. “I saw this white rabbit down there and he stole Gran’s watch and…,” Eleanor trailed off when she noticed the look of disbelief on Sadie’s face.
“How’s your head feeling?” Sadie asked, gently touching a bump on the side of Eleanor’s forehead. But Eleanor just shook her head and stared up at the stars beginning to shine in the late evening. Real or not, Eleanor knew that this was a night she’d never forget.
The End
