A Grim Fairy Tale

Chapter Fifty-Three

The alps could smell the stew and the bread before they even entered the house and by the time they reached the table, their mouths were watering. After hours and hours of working in a mine, it was very nice to come home to a hot meal. Especially one cooked by Alastor. Even Blitzo had to admit that he was culinary magician. Every meal he had ever served them was one that couldn't be described as anything but sensational to their taste buds.

"Hey what's taking so long kid? We're hungry!" Blitzo complain.

"Have some patience you hopeless glutton." Alastor said trying to shake the flour from his hands and apron. "Supper's not quite ready yet."

"How much longer?"

"About five or ten minutes."

"Plenty of time for you all to wash up." Charlotte said.

"Wash up?" Blitzo replied. "Wash up what?"

"You know, wash your hands before you eat. Don't you all do that?"

"I do." Alastor said.

"So do we." Millie answered for herself and her husband.

"But he never washes." Moxxie said. "Which is why we never let him cook."

"Why should I wash?" Blitzo asked. "I ain't goin nowhere and it ain't the new year or something."

"But you've been digging around all day in dirt. Your hands must be terribly filthy." Charlotte said.

"Don't waste your breath my dear, he's probably never washed a day in his life." Alastor said. "He definitely smells like it."

"Hey!"

"But washing up is common decency. Now really Blitzo, Alastor and I were decent enough to wash three times before, during, and after we cooked dinner. Surely you can at least wash once before eating that meal."

"Not happening Princess." Blitzo said defiantly.

But Charlotte was going to have to put her foot down this time. She was willing to tolerate a lot of things from people. Rude behavior, a nasty temper, even a few insults, but she would not stand for filth. She absolutely refused to eat at a table with someone who has grubby hands and dirty fingernails. Absolutely not.

"I'm afraid that will never do for me." She said. "Wash up or you'll not get a bite to eat."

"Yeah right. I don't have to listen to you."

"Wanna bet?" Alastor said. "She's the princess, what she says goes and I'll make sure of that. So if she wants you to wash, you'll wash or you'll never eat any of my food again. That's a promise."

"Oh really? And just how will you stop me from eating any of that food whenever I want to?"

Alastor only replied by getting up from his chair and standing real close to Blitzo, towering over him. Silently reminding the stubborn alp that he was two feet taller than him.

"Oh. Right."

So while Charlie kept an eye on the stew and set the table, Moxxie, Millie, and Alastor went into the next room wash their hands. They filled a bucket with water from the sink pump and using soap and rags, they soaked and scrubbed their hands. The alp couple had to scrub especially hard because their hands and even a little way up their arms, were covered in grime, ash, and dirt from spending hours in mine. Alastor didn't have wash as hard because his hands only had flour on them but he still did it anyway. Anything to please the princess.

"I knew this would happen!" Blitzo said. "You let a royal in here and the next thing you know, they takeover."

"Oh don't be ridiculous." Millie said. "The only thing she's insisted on is that we all come to the table clean. Now I don't think that's asking too much."