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Licorice & the Nutcracker

Female Reader x Male Monsters

The gate is pretty big. I won't be able to climb it and jump over without breaking something, that's for damn sure. I'm not strong enough to bend bars, no matter how much I may be able to tell myself otherwise. The tops of the walls and gates have brambles covering them, and they do not look pleasant to sit on, no siree. So I step back and peer at the castle beyond, surrounded by dark clouds and an ominous air.

"Young lady," a kindly passerby calls to me, "it's best not to stand so close to the palace gates. You could become cursed as well."

I smile brightly at him, folding my arm across my waist as I make a bow. "Good afternoon to you, kind sir! I am not worried about a curse. I am simply trying to complete a job."

He looks at me in confusion and points at gates. "What job could you have there? No one is allowed in there. Barely anyone ever comes out."

"Barely?" I gasp in elation, clapping my hands together with glee. "So people do come out? Tell me," I sidle up close to the gentleman and take his arm. "Where would someone from the inside come from in order to get on the outside?"

His look of befuddlement increases. "There is a staff entrance, around the back. But it doesn't open from the outside, and there is always a guard there."

"Then why is there no guard at the gate?" I ask.

"Because people can see the castle from the gates!" The man finally pulls away from me. "If you're not from around here, you should educate yourself on the castle before something bad happens to you." He walks away quickly.

I wave as he leaves, then immediately look back at the gate. "Okay. I bet if I found a thick rug, I could use it to cover the briars." I scoff and put my hands on my hips, then begin to pace back and forth. "But how would I get that up there? I have to get in there somehow."

I check my bag, making sure I have all my supplies with me. My box, my makeup kit, my extra shoes, and of course my dolls. I take out my kit and set it on the sidewalk as I open it up. Undoing one latch makes the many drawers inside open, and the shelves pop out in a tiered effect. I start searching through each one. Perhaps I have something inside to help.

A small box in the kit contains broken fragments of jewelry and other trinkets. I take a length of chain from a necklace, and a chipped hook with some fishing line attached. I tie the two together, creating a miniature grappling hook. "Maybe you will do the trick," I say with a smile. "Now all I need is the rug." I look around, and across the street I see two young girls playing. Both wear cloaks made from thick wool.

From my makeup kit I take a bottle of nail lacquer. Then I cross the street, approaching the girls. "Yoo-hoo! Young ladies!" I bow for them like I did for the man. "Might I bribe one of you for the lining of your cloak?" I present the bottle of nail lacquer to them. "I'll give you this."

They look at one another questioningly. I can see that one is irritated, while the other is far more curious. "Why just the lining?" she asks.

"It is all I need." I answer. "What do you say?"

"My mom will get mad," the other girl replies.

The first girl takes off her cloak and hands it to me. I give her the nail lacquer, then slowly and carefully remove the lining. It's thick wool too, so it should work. I hand the girl back her cloak. "Thank you very much. Now," I smile at them, "would you like to see a trick?"

"What kind of trick?" the second girl asks.

I pull out my miniature grappling hook. "See this? I need it to be ten times this big. But how can I possibly make it grow?"