Tales of the Disneyverse

Zero to Nothing

          It had been quite some time since Jacqueline stepped foot in the Hercules realm. It was one of the many worlds in the Disneyverse that just did not interest her that much, until that day. Following on the advice of her "spirit mother," Jacqueline found herself walking through Thebes and hoping to run into the girl named "Genevieve," whose voice she and Joanie heard. Before she arrived, Jacqueline figured it would be a difficult task, since there were so many people in the ancient Greek city. But, upon arriving there, the first thing they noticed was how lacking the city was in citizens. It was rather odd to them, since Thebes normally bustled with activity.

            "Where is everyone?" Joanie questioned.  

            Jacqueline already knew before Joanie even asked. "They've been erased...by the rift."  

            Joanie looked to her in shock. "I thought it only tore up worlds, but it can erase the people in them, too?"  

            "That's just the first step – the 'tearing up' part comes much later, if there are any lucky enough to have been cleared before it happens."  

            Joanie shook her head, disgusted. "This is horrible."  

            "This is science." Jacqueline said. "Courtesy of Bunsen Honeydew and Beaker."  

            "Hey, over there!" A voice called out to them (or, more precisely, Jacqueline). They followed it to see a woman in the distance, standing at the base of the towering bronze statue of Hercules.  

            Joanie put on a hopeful smile. "Well, looks like one's still around."  

            Curiously, Jacqueline walked towards the woman. As she got closer to her, she noticed something rather familiar about her. Then, half a distance from her, Jacqueline stopped cold. "Oh, no."  

            The woman standing there – donned in a gray sleeveless military crop top, black pleather leggings, and black knee-high heeled boots beneath a red overcoat and complete with a pointed blue sorcerer hat with a "white crescent moon and stars" design – was Sheryl, her previous incarnation. She looked exactly the way Jacqueline remembered shortly before Sheryl reincarnated into her. Joanie sensed how unsettled Jacqueline was near her predecessor and knew the reasons why. "Don't let your personal feelings get in the way of what we're doing."  

            "I don't want to have anything to do with her." Jacqueline whispered, not wanting Sheryl to see her talking to thin air from sixteen feet away. "She is the physical embodiment of my greatest failure!"  

            "I know, sweetie. I know." Joanie said, her tone sounding much like her elder self but slightly off with her younger self speaking in it. "But you must put that aside for the sake of the Disneyverse. We need her."  

            Jacqueline took a few slow deep breaths. Gathering courage as well as confidence, she continued approaching her predecessor. First thing Joanie noted about Sheryl was the woman's astounding height. Compared with Jacqueline, Sheryl was like an Amazon.  

            "Hello, Wonder Woman," exclaimed the impressed Joanie, whose compliment was only heard by an annoyed Jacqueline. "It's not very difficult to tell that she used to be you. My goodness, she's a big one!" Her attention then shifted to another part of the woman. "And those clothes – Pam Grier would be proud of that look. It literally suits the body. How did you pick it out? There aren't many JCP's in the Disneyverse."  

            Jacqueline was ready to find a way to mute Joanie; she had forgotten how "chatty" her mother was, especially in spirit form. It was another reason why she spent minimal time conversing with her. "She is the one who picked it out. With each new body I take on, I have a different...fashion sense."