Once Upon a FairyTale

Chapter Nine: Maxwell

"Did you see that?" Peter demanded, "She lit her hand on fire! She has magic!"

I rolled my eyes, "That's kiddie magic. Most likely she read that in a book somewhere and figured out how to copy it. Several people here consider themselves witches and warlocks, but can't do more than create a tiny flame."

"Are you sure? Maybe she's the witch you feel has the other book."

"Definitely not," I shook my head, "She's to soft. It takes a lot to be a witch. She doesn't have what it takes."

In all honesty, I was angry. She had no right to threaten to burn us out. I ought to have cursed her right then and there. But, I didn't. I needed to save up my strength for the party.

Peter and I returned to Alice's house. Peter went into Hatters room as I went to Alice's. We were searching for costumes.

Alice had exactly three. The first was a frilly Princess costume. It reminded me of Marie Antoinette. The second was a dress made out of playing cards. I wished to question this, but there was no one to question.

The last costume was the one I chose. It was a female pirate costume, complete with striped pants, billowing white shirt, and black vest. She even had the red coat, knee high leather boots, and large leather hat with a feather stick out the back.

That was the perfect costume. I folded it up and shoved it in my bag. Once that was done, I met Peter out in the living room. He looked miserable.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Peter pouted, "Hatter only has one costume, and it's four sizes to big."

"What's it of?"

"A kettle," Peter moaned, "It's a giant kettle made out of paper mache."

I sighed, "Alright, we'll find something for you to wear. Maybe Cruella has something."

Peter shrugged. We turned back and headed towards town. As was expected, we received the same looks we always got. People looked at us with disapproving glares. The glares only got worse when we walked into Cruella's shop.

It was well known that Cruella loved to use real animal furs. She obtained them illegally, but that didn't bother Peter and I. We did a lot of illegal stuff on our own.

HEr shop was situated below her apartment. The walls were covered with different designs of clothes she wished to sell. You could see her equipment she used to make said clothes.

Cruella herself was sitting in a long chair, flipping through a booklet. She was stick thin, and wore a size zero black dress. Over that dress was a thick fur coat. Her hair was dyed half black and half white. When she saw us, she sprouted a missing toothed grin.

"Maxie! Pete! Darlings! Come in, come in!"

We obliged. She walked up to both of us and kissed our cheeks. Peter and I sported matching scowls as she did. When she pulled away, however, we made sure she saw us smiling. It was hard for me to keep up the fake smile for very long.

"What can I do for you?" she asked.

Peter glanced around her shop, "I need a costume."

"For the mayor's party? I can't see him inviting you two."

I shook my head, "No, for something else. Do you have anything?"

"Well, I have several ideas, it depends on what you need," Cruella looked Peter up and down, "How about a crocodile, I just got a beautiful new shipment of skins."

Peter gagged, "Oh hell no, no crocodiles."

I sighed. Peter always had this phobia of crocodiles. He claims it's because of a 'bad experience' in his past.

"Well, what are you aiming for?" Cruella asked.

Peter thought for a moment, "Something that makes me look handsome. I want to get this girl to like me."

Cruella threw her head back and laughed. Her winkles bounced up and down, making her layers of makeup appear crusty and overdone.

"What about Prince Charming?" Cruella giggled, "All girls love a Prince."

Peter shook his head, "Any other ideas? Something cool."

Cruella grabbed a book off a nearby table. She flipped through it before coming upon the perfect picture, "Aha! How about this?"

She showed us the picture. It was a thin drawing of a pinstripe suit. The drawing wore the three piece suit with a black undershirt and white tie. It also had black loafers and a white hat with white ribbon. He held a gun and a defiant grin.

"All girls love a bad boy," Cruella leered.

Peter grinned, "Perfect, I'll take it."

Cruella cackled. She lead him to the back to retrieve the costume as I hung back. I felt no need to go back into her puppy killing area. Not that I had anything against it, the smell just made me sick.

Instead, I looked out the window. The girl passed by, the one who threatened to burn Peter and I. She walked with a spring in her step and a smile plastered across her face. I lifted an eyebrow.

How could she be so happy? Happiness was an illusion, it always gave way to despair. Yet, this girl seemed to cling to it like a lifeline. She seemed to be the embodiment of joy.

"What's her name?" I whispered.

As I whispered, I twirled my finger. The spell took effect, returning to my ear with the answer I demanded.

"Odette."

Odette, huh? That was an interesting name. I'd have to keep that in mind. Maybe she'd be at the party. If she was, she was in for a treat.

"Max," Peter called, "Let's go."

He held a small plastic bag with the costume inside. As we left, he waved goodbye to Cruella. I stared straight ahead.

We headed back towards our house. As we walked, we both realized a problem.

"How are we going to keep our faces from being recognized?" Peter asked, "If we're pretending to be Alice and The Hatter, they're going to realize our faces and voices are wrong."

I frowned, "There's a potion in my spellbook. It should change our appearance to be that of Alice and The Hatter. As for our voices, I'm not sure."

"Good enough for me. What do you need?"