Red Shoes & the 7 Dwarfs

Chapter 10: Painting the Castle

"Alright, let's get this painting party started!" Hans cheered as they all lined up with paintbrushes in hand. Since Prince Average's visit, the seven dwarfs had to dislodge the cannon ball from the wall which caused the façade of the castle appearance to collapse. But with Pino, Nocchi, and Cchio's help, they were able to get it back up, though it still needed a fresh coat of paint.

Merlin flimsily held his brush as he continued sighing whilst staring at Red Shoes, who caught him a few times and found herself blushing. Merlin turned away bashfully as Red Shoes bit her lower lip, when suddenly she heard a small voice tell her that Merlin only liked her because she was Red Shoes. What if he actually likes me for me? Red Shoes thought to herself as she felt a small glimmer of hope and continued painting cheerfully. The rest of the day went by quickly as Red Shoes and Merlin found themselves talking in the barn alone whilst laughing.

"Hahaha! You should have seen his big ugly face when bunny came running at him!" Merlin exclaimed.

"That's how you see everything isn't it?" Red Shoes asked as she stopped laughing.

"See what? With my eyes?" Merlin ceased laughing and looked up at her.

"You always talks about what someone looks like." Red Shoes pulled her knees into her chest.

"I do? I wouldn't say that." Merlin said rather surprised.

"But I can't wait till you see the real me." Merlin smiled as he puffed out his chest.

"And what is the real you like?" Red Shoes asked as she looked over at him.

"You might not believe this, but the real me is famous, handsome, and even popular!" Merlin said enthusiastically.

"Not short, stumpy, and green." Merlin sighed as he looked down at the ground.

"Yeah you're short, stumpy, and green, but you're also a wonderful and charming person." Red Shoes said sweetly as she looked at him lovingly.

"I'm not explaining myself right. If you saw the real me, you'd know exactly what I mean." Merlin said with a certain gusto.

"I think I can see the real you. And I like you, just the way you are." Red Shoes said so honestly as she tucked some hair behind her ear.

"He, haha! That's hilarious. Close your eyes. And imagine the real me. I guarantee it'll be different." Merlin smiled brightly.

"Ok." Red Shoes closed her eyes as Prince Merlin appeared.

"I, I think I do feel something different." Red Shoes nodded.

"Really?" Prince Merlin asked excitedly.

"But, eyes opened or closed, to me you're still Merlin. Now tell me, who am I to you?" Red Shoes leaned over towards Prince Merlin, her eyes still closed.

"You're a gift. A gift that will transform me into someone amazing. Just like you are amazing." Though Prince Merlin said honestly, he was still thinking about the curse and his outward appearance.

Red Shoes finally opened her eyes as she noticed Merlin was staring right at her and was about to kiss her. She was a bit taken aback, but she smiled to herself, not against the idea of kissing him. Though she thought for a moment, and didn't think it fair to withhold who she truly was from Merlin, especially since she was truly beginning to fall in love with him. Merlin began whistling, embarrassed, as he scratched the back of his head and turned away.

"Actually, I want to show you something too." Red Shoes got up and sat down on a barrel as she tried to get her shoes off, but for some reason, they weren't coming off.

"Haha, you need some help?" Merlin asked.

"No, I got it." Red Shoes struggled as she attempted one more time to get them off, but it didn't work.

"You know what, yeah, help would be great." Red Shoes smiled when Merlin got up and tried to pull them off, but they were stuck. He tried over and over again, even attempting to use magic, but it bounced off them and struck him instead. He eventually gave up and laughed nervously.

"You know what the weird thing is? They're really comfortable." Red Shoes looked down as Merlin chuckled. The two made their way back towards the "castle" and went their separate ways as Red Shoes dreamed of Merlin.