#beauty and the beast reimagining

[helpesslywriting]

Penelope shut the door to the small house she lived in and turned the wooden lock over so that no one could burst in. She had to change after all. She felt as if her body were possessed by a spirit who knew exactly what needed to be done without forming a coherent thought behind the why. It was simply known. A well-worn machine going about it's usual task. As if she had done this many times before. Thoughts were not scattered like papers in the wind in her mind as they would have been normally. Reaching out and grabbing the thought to cross it off her mental to do list as the task was completed. She just simply moved.

Draw the curtains so no prying eyes could see into the house. Lock the back door so no well-meaning visitor could barge in to check on her. Douse the fire in the fireplace. Change clothes into a simple brown dress and white apron. Neatly fold the Union Day froc and put it in the box her mother had placed it in before her passing and place it back above the wardrobe where it had waited for more than a decade.

More years up there will not hurt it. Penelope heard herself somewhere in her consciousness say to herself. A thought sent her soul into rolling fits as she wondered. Will I ever have a chance again to wear my mother's gown? She didn't want to think about that just now. She got down from the stepping stool and replaced it in its proper home.

And so, on she went, flitting through the house like a specter on a mission going about her chores with no real plan forward or thoughts to occupy her. It wasn't until she realized she needed to refill a water pitcher that she paused and listened to the silence of the house around her. She could hear voices from the village filtering through the walls. Shouts for children or animals to behave and get back into place, calls for others to catch attention. Greetings and exclamations of life going on around her. She tightened her grip on the mug and swayed on the spot. The idea of going to the nearby well to fetch water made her feel like throwing up onto the floors.

She would, with no uncertainty, run into some of the older women of the village there and have to answer questions of why she was doing chores on her Union Day. She walked back to the kitchen and placed the pitcher on the end of her table before pulling out the chair and flopping down hard on the wooden seat.

She sat there, staring at the table, and tried to fight the wail that was clawing its way up her throat. She wanted to cry, scream and demand answers from Tav, from Korrin, from the gods themselves. Anyone who could help her make sense of this and abandon his void in her chest that was threatening to suck everything of hers inside.

Tears flowed over her lashes and down her cheeks, her shoulders began to shake and soon she was openly sobbing at the kitchen table. She folded her arms on the table and cradled her head as she wept to herself. Her lungs felt like they were threatening to collapse on her with each sob. Like a bag turned inside out because someone was grabbing too much.

Thoughts were flying through her head like arrows with no destination. What was the next step now? What was she supposed to do? Would they outcast her? Force her to marry someone else? Did she want to marry someone else? Would she simply be left alone? Would they want her to become a teacher or help the Priest to fill her days?

The uncertainty of what her fate would be made the room seem like it was tilting and turning out of her control although she was aware she was seated. The probability of her throwing up soon became too high to ignore and pray it passed. She grabbed the pitcher and hovered over it, fearing that trying for the bucket in the storage closet would be too much of a gamble.

Just as she thought she was going to retch, there was a knock on the door.

Penelope sat the pitcher on the edge of the table and stood from her chair. She thought she might stumble on the way to the door but once she made it, she pressed her body against the door to steady herself.

"Penelope?" It was the Priest Ackerman. The Unions must be done now. "Are you in there?" She had her hand on the simple round knob to feel if he tried to open the door, but it stayed still in her hand. "I understand you must be in quite a state of shock. I'm not trying to pry, but I want to make sure you are alright."

//

Ackerman had his bald head pushed against the door. Surely, she would not have had the time to do something drastic in the time it took him to finish the union ceremony and inform the other temple members to finish up the event while he went to check on her? He had heard sobbing coming from inside the one story wooden home as he approached, but since he had knocked the house had gone eerily silent and an wave of cold washed over him. He could count his heartbeats things had fell so silent. That is, until he heard the locking mechanism being turned over. He pulled back from the door and put his hands together in prayer. "Oh thank the gods, I was worried about you." he told her as a puffy, red rimmed eye looked at him from under auburn bangs. "May I come in, I feel like you shouldn't be alone right now--I know that might sound pushy my dear and you probably don't want to see anyone, least of all me today, but..." His heart was hammering in his chest, and his words rushing together to the point he had forgotten to take a breath and steady himself.

He was prepared for her to slam the door in his face, to cry and shout and scream at him for not stopping Tav's and Korrin's union ceremony. He felt guilty for missing signs that Tav was unhappy in his pairing with Penelope. By all accounts, from what he had observed and had been told by both parties, they were each looking forward to today.

The golden eye blinked sadly at him, and Ackerman felt his heart break a little for her. He wasn't too much older than her, and unpaired himself. But he knew that a lot of young women, Penelope included among them, had always looked forward to this day. She wanted to have a pairing, and she had been over the moon when it had been Tav.

"Penelope...please." He held out his hands, pleading. "If nothing else, allow me to sit with you until you feel like you have your feet under you. We don't have to say anything. I can't begin to imagine how you must feel, so I won't say that I do or that I can understand. But I want to help you..."

He jumped a little in surprise as she let go of the door and it swung open on its own, the hinges had started to pull away from the frame. She was walking toward the kitchen area of the first room and Ackerman took it as a sign to follow. He stepped inside, removed his shoes and closed the door behind him.

He had been here once before, when the accident that took her parents from her had happened. So, he had already known that her father, Stephen, had built the house himself by hand and wasn't a forethought sort of man. He had simply built a semi large box of a house and put one set of windows on each side of the house. It wasn't until his pairing with Penelope's mother, Alicia that the house had gotten interior walls to separate rooms from one another and turn it from a box to a true home.

One thing that hadn't changed though, was the large kitchen and dinning room area being just to the left of the entry way. When you stepped inside, you could see the kitchen counters and pantry as well as the long wooden table set with six chairs.

[pocketfullofpearlies]

RISE OF RED: A TALE OF HEADS AND HEARTS

(Descendants: Rise of Red Fanfiction/Re-imagining)

Chapter 4

“Where is that insolent girl?” the Queen of Hearts roared.

Tarrant stood quietly with Maddox, who still had evidence of his brief makeout session with Red on his neck.

“You’ve got a little something there, son,” Tarrant whispered.

“And do you have a problem with that, Dad? I’ve seen worse on you.”

“Touché.”

“You!” the Queen snapped, pointing at one of the guards standing outside with them. “Go get Princess Red down here now!”

“That won’t be necessary,” came Red’s voice as she stood in the doorway.

The Queen squinted in anger.

“What are you wearing? And what the hell did you do to your hair?”

Red smiled, running a hand through her locks.

“You like?”

“You look stupid.”

Red rolled her eyes as her mother turned round and began walking to the car.

She caught sight of Maddox who was scanning her from head to toe, surprised but ultimately attracted to her new look.

Red had cut up two different jackets and stitched them together to form a new one, which she wore on top of a black top with a red heart in the middle and black leather pants with red sides that hugged her legs perfectly and she had cut bangs and layers into her hair, and added some black to it.

Her makeup was dark and smudgy, matching her outfit and giving her an elevated, sultry look that was different from her usual style.

“Wow, Princess,” Maddox said, coming over to meet her. “You look enchanting.”

Red smiled. “Why, thank you. I really hope all this hides the fact that I’m more scared than a cake troll on his unbirthday.”

“There’s nothing to hide Princess; you’ll do great.”

He bowed before her slightly, taking her hand and planting a kiss on it, making Red’s head swim with sensations.

“I got you something,” Maddox whispered as he stood straight, Red’s flustered expression making him smirk.

He pressed something rectangular into the hand he held and Red looked down, only to see a phone.

“I know Her Majesty never let you have one, but I figured since you’re headed somewhere new without your special mirror, you could use this. I’ve already saved my number and installed a bunch of hacks and stuff; it’s good to go.”

“Maddox, I-“

“RED! IF YOU’RE NOT IN THIS CAR RIGHT NOW, SO HELP ME!”

“Go on, Princess. We’ll talk later.”

He winked at her and walked back to his dad, as Red stuffed the phone in the bag slung on her shoulder, sprinting down the stairs and into the car where her mother was sitting down cross-legged on one of the elaborately upholstered couches, absent-mindedly shuffling a deck of playing cards.

In true Wonderlandian style, the car looked normal on the outside, but was the size of a studio apartment on the inside.

Red sat opposite her mother and the driver started moving.

“Um, mum, do we even know the way to Auradon Prep?”

The Queen gave her a snide glance. “Your enchanted invitation card serves as a GPS for the driver and grants us entrance into the school. Do try and keep up.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

She turned to face the window and Red did the same, watching the huge Wonderland castle disappear as the car picked up speed.

They were approaching what seemed to be a dense forest and Red frowned in suspicion.

Her suspicion turned into fear when she saw a hole open up directly in front of the huge tree they were barreling towards.

“Mum! What’s that?” she cried in alarm.

This time the Queen groaned and glared at her daughter in frustration.

“Are you really this stupid, Redwina? You’re the Princess of Wonderland and you don’t know a rabbit hole looks like?”

Red’s face rivaled her name in colour as she shrunk into herself with embarrassment.

Of course; a rabbit hole. They were the entrances and exits to and from Wonderland, but fear curbed her tongue from admitting to her mother that she had never actually seen one because she had never had the opportunity to leave the kingdom, as they were basically locked.

She sat back and watched as the hole grew bigger and bigger till it was able to accommodate the car.

Once it was car-sized, they went through and Red saw darkness and swirls of undecipherable colours for the few seconds it took for them to get to Auradon.

Immediately the car starting moving on the Auradonian road, Red was struck by the stark difference between the general colour scheme and athmosphere of this new kingdom and the one she had called home her whole life.

While Wonderland was all rich, vibrant tones and deep, saturated hues, Auradon was all light pastels and bright, airy flushes of colour.

Red looked in amazement at the clean stretch of road in front of them, as well as the perfect, bright green trees on either side of it, which matching bushes and pretty little flowers that didn’t seem alive in the slightest.

They drove for a while before stopping in front of a very tall set of gleaming gold gates, surrounded by guards in crisp blue and gold uniforms.

The driver rolled down his window and held out her invitation letter to one of the guards who took it, scanned it over with a device and gave a hand signal, causing the gates to roll open.

The car began moving on a cobbled path that lead to the driveway directly in front of the castle that held the school’s main building.

The place was packed with parents, students and staff, bustling about and buzzing with the excitement of resumption day.

The car came to a stop and the doors were opened by footmen who helped the Queen and Red come down.

Red gasped as she got a full look at everything.

The castle was huge and imposing, made of grey stone that was clearly weathered, a testament to the decades it had been in existence. Right in the middle of the grounds in front of the cast was a statue of  King Adam, the former leader of Auradon. Around his statue was a circular bush arrangement with flowers, and there were similar arrangements on either side, forming wide walkways that lead to the open door.

Everything was decorated with blue and gold ribbons, drapes and balloons, and there was a large banner hanging over the door that read: “Welcome to Auradon Prep.”

Red turned to look at her mother who had even stormier expression on her face than before, if that was even possible.

That was when she noticed the stares and side glances being thrown their way, coupled with not so subtle whispers.

Before she could make sense of that, a girl with glasses and a clipboard approached them, visibly shaking despite the friendly smile on her face.

“U-um..welcome, Your Majesty,” she said, head down to avoid eye contact with the Queen, who ignored her like she wasn’t even there.

Red smirked at that. There were times when her mother’s nasty attitude was funny, especially when it wasn’t being directed at her.

“And w-welcome Princess Red. We’re pleased to have you.”

Her sugary sweet tone made Red cringe and roll her eyes. “Whatever, thanks.”

“I’m Dizzy, and-“

“-Sit down then?”

Dizzy adjusted her glasses with a nervous giggle, almost dropping her clipboard in the process. “Uh, no, m-my name is Dizzy, it’s short for Dizzerée, my mum’s name is Drizella and-“

“-Okay, I really don’t care.”

“Right, yes. So I’m here to assist you since this is your first time in Auradon. Welcome, again. Just follow me and I’ll get you started.”

As Dizzy finished her statement, the Queen started walking away.

“Your Majesty, if you could hold on…oh dear.”

Red laughed as Dizzy attempted to catch up with her, and followed behind them at her own pace.

She had almost caught up with them when she bumped into someone and came crashing down on the ground.

“What the-?”

“I am terribly sorry!”

Red looked up, rubbing her sore elbow as her eyes settled on the culprit, who was very, very good looking.

“Here let me help you up,” he said, his voice deep and musical.

He got up in a squat position and extended his hands to Red who squinted at him in annoyance and suspicion.

“I mean, I got you on the ground, the least I can do is get you back on your feet again.”

Red pushed herself off of the ground and onto her feet, dusting her hands off on her trousers.

He stood up as well, towering over her.

She looked at him, still suspicious. He was really tall, built like an athlete and his brown skin glowed, complimented by his bright hazel-coloured eyes that crinkled as he offered her an apologetic smile.

“I’m really sorry, Miss…”

“Red.”

“I’m sorry, Red. I hope you’re not hurt or anything.”

She folded her arms. “I’ll live.”

“My name’s Amir, by the way. I’m a student here…though I think that’s kinda obvious.”

“I also happen to be a student here…I think. I just got here.”

“Oh, that’s great. Where’d you come in from?”

“Wonderland.”

Amir gave a low whistle. “Wow. I’ve never met anyone from Wonderland before. Are they all as cool as you?”

“Well, I am their Princess, so definitely not.” Red smiled a little, finally warming up to Amir as he laughed at her joke.

“Princess Red?” Dizzy called out from ahead, waving her clipboard.

“I gotta go,” Red said with a sigh.

“I’ll see you around then, Red. It was nice bumping into you.”

Amir did a little cordial bow as Red turned to catch up with Dizzy and her mum.

“Where were you?” the Queen asked sharply.

Red opened her mouth to speak, but was dismissed by a wave of her mum’s hand.

“Doesn’t matter, we’re here now; let’s get you signed in.”

“Okay?”

She was once again surprised at her mother’s passive aggressive enthusiasm.

They got in line behind another girl and her mother who were almost done.

“Great! Chloe this is your dorm key and your student pass. You’ll be given every other thing you need during the general orientation tomorrow,” the pretty dark-skinned girl with colourful braids and makeup behind the table said, a friendly yet very bored expression on her face.

“Thank you dear,” the woman accompanying her daughter said before she turned around.

On sighting the Queen of Hearts, she gasped and grabbed her daughter’s arm.

“Mum?” Chloe asked in concern, following her mother’s line of vision which was fixed on Red and the Queen of Hearts.

“Bridget?” Queen Cinderella’s was quiet but quite audible and The Queen of Hearts paused immediately.

“Ella?”

“Oh, mon Dieu, it is you! Bridget, I-“

“-It’s The Queen of Hearts, now. You understand, right, Mrs. Charming?”

Queen Cinderella’s face fell in sadness. “Come on, Bri- Your Majesty- you don’t have to be like this.”

“Like what?” The Queen of Hearts retorted stunning Queen Cinderella into silence.

Chloe shifted to meet Red who was watching the interaction between the two queens.

“Um, hi, I’m Chloe,” she whispered.

Red eyed her, scoffed and pushed past her.

“Come on, Mum.”

She held on to mother’s arm and turned her round to face Celia,  effectively ending the conversation.

The Queen snatched her arm out of Red’s, trying to hide her flusteredness with anger.

Celia coughed awkwardly and shuffled some papers, presenting them to Red.

“You can start filling these out, if you don’t mind.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

********************************************************

Queen Cinderella turned round, embarrassed. “Come on, Chloe.”

“You can head up to the Courtyard to wait for the Welcome Ceremony,” Dizzy said. “I’ll meet up with you later Chloe, okay?”

“See ya, Dizzy.”

“I need to sit down,” the Queen said, walking towards a nearby bench and balancing elegantly on it.

Chloe sat on the bench too, facing her.

“Maman, c’était quoi?(Mummy, what was that?).”

“Ça fait rien, bébé(It’s nothing, baby).”

“C’était pas rien! Qui était cette femme? Pourquoi elle t’a aggressée comme ça? Et sa fille, elle faisait la même chose?(It’s not nothing! Who was that woman? Why did she speak to you like that? And her daughter; why was she acting like that?).”

Queen Cinderella sighed, shaking her head. “C’est trop compliqué pour expliquer(It’s too complicated to explain).”

“There’s still some time; I’ll take the short version for now.”

For the first time ever, Chloe was witnessing her mother in a state of nervousness unknown to anyone she’d ever met, and it scared her.

”Well, Bridget- The Queen of Hearts- and I attended this school together, way back when all the Kingdoms were still divided and it was called Merlin Academy, a school that allowed all who came to attend it, despite still being one of the most prestigious in the world at the time. I was there with my step-sisters and she was there with her older sister, Princess Mirana. She was sweet and super nice to everyone and she became popular quickly; I was honoured to be her friend. But, not everyone liked her. And she was pranked…cruelly.

“It shattered her; she was never the same. She only attended half a semester after that before running away with her boyfriend. I tried reaching out to her, but I was also caught up with my relationship with your father. I mean, we were planning to get married after school, and as soon as we passed that milestone, we had your brother. Last I heard was that she had received the crown of Wonderland, not her sister, and that she had become an even worse dictator than their father. I didn’t even know she had a child.”

“So all that happened because of a prank?”

“It wasn’t just any old prank, my love. It was…torture.”

“Torture that turned her into a tyrant….figures.”

“I wish I’d tried harder to get to her. Maybe helped her? I don’t know.”

“Mum, it’s not your fault. You can’t blame yourself for what happened in her life or how she chose to act because of it.”

The Queen sighed again, looking down at her sparkly shoes.

“I guess you’re right. It’s probably too late to even want to do anything, anyway. Time is cruel in that manner.”

Chloe stood up, shook her curls out of her face and held her mother's hand. “Let’s get to the Courtyard. Aunt Faye might be there already, that’ll cheer you up.”

Queen Cinderella smiled at her daughter. “It will.” She stood too and smoothed out her gown. “Let’s go.”

***********************************************************************

"So you went to Auradon Prep with that lady?” Red questioned her mother, who was equal parts angry and flustered as they headed to the Courtyard.

“No, I went to Merlin Academy with her. That was what it was called before Adam came in and decided he wanted to lord it over everybody. I still don’t know how everyone just stood aside and let do all of this. Crushing all the kingdoms of the world into a singular authority, and casting out all the villains to a wretched island across the sea from his territory.”

“What of Wonderland? Why aren’t we part of the United States of Auradon? The Hatter wouldn’t teach me; he said you’d tell me everything when the time was right.”

The Queen pursed her lips and clenched the cards in her hands.

“What I will tell you now is that my father refused Adam’s silly offer outright. He wasn’t going to let some half-baked animal of a King tell him what to do. And since Adam had no proof of villainry in our lands, he couldn’t cast us all to the Isle. He just barricaded all the rabbit holes.”

"Wait...King Adam did that? I thought that was you."

"Nope, that was all him. He couldn't lock us up so he locked us in."

Red shivered, wondering how they must’ve hidden the evidence of some of the real things that went on in Wonderland, like the White Rabbit Gang and their crimes, the constant flow of drugs and hallucinogens in the markets and of course the yearly killing spree her mother embarked on which claimed not less than a hundred live each year, not to mention all the casual killings that happened every other day.

She had grown up seeing those things as normal, but knowing deep down that they weren’t right in the slightest. If King Adam had found out back then, they would have been put somewhere much much worse than an island of delinquents.

“But why’d you have it out for the lady? She seemed nice enough. Her daughter was an annoying piece of work, though.”

“Ella is one of the people I knew while I went here. They were all awful, awful nasty creatures who posed as the beloved monarchs and respectables of the world. But she didn’t pose in the same way they did. No, she took on the act of the poor little step-sister who was being treated poorly by her family, and I was there for her every step of the way. But when I needed her, where was she? Off with the prince that her damsel in distress act had won for her.”

They were in the Courtyard now, which was gradually filling up with students and their parents, people from all kingdoms and walks of life.

Red spotted the lady, Ella, and her daughter. It was almost impossible not to, with the shiny blonde hair and beautiful gown she wore, as well as the fact that everybody seemed to be going up to greet her.

The Queen of Hearts took a seat on the side opposite from them, and Red sat beside her.

They were near the front and she observed their surroundings, noting even more blue and gold decorations and a sort of stage set-up in front of them, as well tables on each side laden with fancy snacks and drinks.

“Mum, if the people here are so terrible, why’d you bring me?’

Her mother gave her a side glance and a small smile. “You’ll see in quite a bit, daughter dear.”

The uncomfortable feeling that had been festering in Red’s chest became stronger and she gulped.

Before she could say anything else, a pretty, petite woman in a dark blue gown with puffy bow-like sleeves and a sequined belt came up on the stage.

“Good afternoon everyone,” she said into the mic. “Oh, it’s such a pleasure to see you all. Do come in, grab a snack and get seated, we shall be starting this Welcome Ceremony in just a minute.”

The Queen of Hearts scoffed, her expression clouding over again as she glared at the new lady on stage.

“Who’s she?” Red had to ask.

“Fairy Godmother. Another piece of Auradonian scum.”

Red watched as the Fairy Godmother left the stage and immediately went to that Ella woman and her daughter. They hugged and laughed like family.

For a split second, Red wanted to imagine herself and her mum in their position; laughing, smiling, seemingly adored by everyone around.

But that would never be the case: even in their own kingdom people hated her mother, and her by extension.

She turned her head to get a glance of the other people filling up the seats and caught sight of Amir. He was talking to a beautiful woman with long, shiny black hair who was decked out in jewelry and wearing an opulently bedazzled blue sari and had the same perfect brown skin as him, as well a bearded man who had the same hazel eyes and dashing good looks, albeit his being more rugged. He laughed at something the man said and in the process saw Red looking at him. He smiled at her and the girl responded by internally shrieking and whipping round with speed.

Beside her, the Queen was still playing about with her cards, shuffling them between her hands and performing a few tricks.

That stirred up a memory in Red, of how her mother had taught her to flip and shuffle cards when she was younger. Cardistry was an art form well recognized throughout Wonderland and her mother had wanted her to be exceptional at it, leading to many teaching sessions that were quite fun to young Red and a somewhat compensation for all the instances that they didn’t spend time together. Unfortunately, Red picked up the skill too quickly and mastered too exceptionally that there was nothing more for the Queen to teach her, and that lead to the end of their sessions. What she would give to spend hours flipping cards with her again.

Suddenly the stage lights came on and a fog machine started blowing, immediately changing the vibe of the Courtyard.

A song started playing on the sound system as people who Red recognized as pirates came in dancing from all sides and corners.

The crowd gasped in surprise and awe as they performed their tricks and stunts, but Red and her mother were unimpressed.

This was like a typical entrance in Wonderland, nothing to get excited about.

After all the pirates had made their way to the front, Fairy Godmother got back up on the stage, taking hold of the mic again, but this time she had her magic wand, an equisitely designed instrument, with her.

“Auradon Prep, it has been my greatest pleasure serving you all these years, but times are changing and we must change with them. And so it is with immense joy that I announce and welcome your new Principal, Uma of the Isle!”

Applause and cheers began as the young woman strutted down from the entrance to the stage a smile on her face the whole time.

Red watched as she got on the stage and waved at everyone.

She was gorgeous, with deep brown skin that went with her long sister-locs that were a combination of blues, greens, silvers and black and matched her pirate style outfit; an aqua blue leather vest atop a scale designed top and leather flared pants of the same colour, with net-like tassles draped all over. Her black hat and boots had starfish accents on them and her jewelry was made of seashells with a stunning holographic colour effect.

If this was going to be her Principal, maybe life here wouldn’t be so bad after all.

Maybe this was why her mum wanted her here.

Uma looked out at the cheering crowd of students and parents and smiled.

A couple years ago, these people had all been deathly afraid of her and her crew of pirates, but now Harry was in charge of the Auradonian Sea Charter, Gil ran a gym and played for the tourney team at AU, and here she was, Principal of a school she had once vowed to tear down.

“Good afternoon, Auradon Prep! And welcome to a new era, an era of change- just like Fairy G graciously said –and acceptance. I never went to Auradon Prep, but I know the importance of looking past people’s faults and flaws. Which is why my first act as Principal was to invite a new kingdom to school here. We’re starting with one student now but in time, everyone who wants to come here will be able to.”

Red tried to stop the smile spreading on her face, but couldn’t. She was experiencing a happiness she hadn’t felt in a long time.

But that happiness was short lived.

Her mother’s card shuffling was making quite a bit of noise and Uma noticed it.

“Excuse me, ma’am,” Uma called out directly to The Queen of Hearts. “Do you mind?”

Red glanced at her mother franctically, fear building within her.

The Queen had a snide smile on her face, her reddish-brown eyes lit with ill intent.

It was a look Red knew well and that tripled the anxiety she felt.

“I do mind, actually,” she said, looking Uma dead in the eye as she shuffled her cards even more, performing elaborate tricks.

“Mum, what are you doing?” Red asked in worried concern as her mother slowly rose to her feet.

“Why, I’m playing my favourite game of course…”

She threw her cards in the air in a circular motion, caught them and then threw them again, this time giving a loud cry as they took to the air.

“WAR!”

[captain-jacks-coat]

my Once Upon A Time

Rumplestiltskin could predict the future. He didn't have to make the deal, but he chose to. He saw that the woman would become abusive towards her daughter, so he asked for her child so he could protect it.

The child was called Belle. Rumplestiltskin raised Belle as his own daughter and she was very happy.

Hansel and Gretel are orphans who can imagine things into existence. They run away from the orphanage, to find an exiled witch, who tries to feed them despite not having much herself. They imagine a gingerbread house into existence, and the witch adopts them.

One day, the witch disappears, and the villagers destroy the house. Without the witch to take care of them, Hansel and Gretel are alone and distraught. They attempt to imagine a world for them to live in, away from the people who want to hurt them. However, they imagine different worlds, and so the siblings are separated.

Hansel and Gretel's names are actually Peter and Alice. Peter imagines a world with pirates and mermaids and lost boys. Alice imagines a world with tea parties and talking caterpillars and painted roses.

The witch disappeared because she was trapped inside a mirror.

Aurora is forced to marry the prince of a neighbouring kingdom and turns to Maleficent for help.

Snow White loves Aurora. Snow's aunt, Maleficent, tries to help out by introducing the two. Aurora's fairy godmother, secretly an evil queen, doesn't approve and curses both girls into eternal sleep.

Prince Charming is childhood best friends with Snow. He kisses her forehead, which wakes her up. Snow attempts to kiss Aurora, but the nature of the curse means that she cannot go near Aurora. Aurora remains asleep.

Prince Charming doesn't go after the mystery princess and is forced to marry Snow after saving her. However, he rather likes newest servant girl - who is Cinderella, of course.

Ursula rescues the mermaid girls from their abusive father, Triton. They seek aid from above. The humans help them overthrow Triton, and the seas are divided so each of the princesses rule a different part. The sea and the land are now united.

Triton returns to his wife, the Evil Queen.

Goldilocks is homeless, and hides in the bears' house after being caught stealing food. When the bears return, they take pity on her and offer to take care of her. Goldilocks is raised by the bears.

Pinnochio was once a real boy who was cursed by the blue fairy (evil queen) after Gepetto refused to build the Magic Mirror for her. Gepetto builds a portal to send Pinnochio somewhere where a puppet can live. Pinnochio lands in Wonderland as a living puppet who can see through lies.

Alice, also known as The White Queen, falls in love with a madman who has an obsession with hats. Her adoptive sister, The Queen Of Hearts, is busy weaving a romance for a girl called Belle.

Belle, who lives with her inventor father Rumplestiltskin, gets sucked into one of her books. She falls in love with a character known as The Beast, and she becomes a fairy to free them from their curse. However, she can't stay with them, and she returns to the real world, and to her father.

Little Red Riding Hood is raised by the Werewolf, but she gets lost when she's little and the Werewolf thinks she intentionally ran away. The mother adopts her, and the Werewolf is really angry believing that the humans stole his child, and he swears revenge on the family.

Little Red Riding Hood meets a girl with golden hair who speaks Bear.

Rapunzel is a trans girl who is desperate to transition, but she is cursed to be stuck looking like a boy. Her adoptive mother is a sorceress who rescued her from an evil witch who wanted revenge on the vain royal family. She tells her mother that she is in fact a woman, and her mother searches for a spell to transition her.

Teenage Peter Pan flies to other worlds in search of his sister, but doesn't find her. However, he does find other girls and helps them. For example, a young princess called Rapunzel, who he brings back to Neverland for a little while and teaches her confidence, or Belle, who brings her father and chooses to stay with Peter, becoming the inventor fairy known as Tinkerbelle.

The Gingerbread House Witch is still trapped inside the Magic Mirror, which is unstable because it was made with dark magic. Maleficent employs Gepetto to study the Mirror, so she can free the Gingerbread House Witch, and hopefully find a way to wake up Aurora. She promises to restore Pinnochio if he helps, so he agrees.

The Werewolf finds Red Riding Hood and she remembers him. She takes him to meet her human family.

Peter Pan falls in love with a handsome teenage pirate captain.

Pinnochio lives with Hatter and Alice in Wonderland, and The Queen Of Hearts is now trying to fix things for Tinkerbelle.

Tinkerbelle falls in love with Peter's newest friend, Wendy, who can see dreams and stories.

Gepetto and Maleficent free the Gingerbread House Witch from the mirror, and they build another portal to Wonderland to try and find Pinnochio. Gepetto and Pinnochio reunite, as do the Gingerbread House Witch and Peter.

Maleficent stays behind to try and cure Aurora.

Charming, Cinderella and Snow go into the enchanted forest to try and find a cure for Aurora, and they find Red Riding Hood and Goldilocks, who help them survive in the forest. They meet the Dwarves who run an inn.

The Evil Queen and Triton discover Wonderland.

Charming, Cinderella and Snow leave the forest after finding nothing, to discover everyone else has gone to Wonderland and Maleficent is helping Aurora alone.

While the Queen of Hearts is trying to help Tinkerbelle, she spots Peter, and shows Alice, who tries to get to him but the Evil Queen smashes the Looking Glass.

Wendy begins to see the dreams of Aurora, and shows Tinkerbelle. Tinkerbelle makes the Captain's ship fly, and they ride Aurora's dreams into Aurora's world, where they meet Maleficent, Charming, Cinderella and Snow.

Peter trades his immortality, giving half his life to Aurora to wake her up.

Tinkerbelle, Peter, the Captain, Rumplestiltskin, Maleficent, Wendy, Aurora, Snow, Charming, Cinderella and the Lost Boys go through the portal to Wonderland.

Peter, Alice, and the Gingerbread House Witch reunite. Yay!

Pinnochio reveals that Cinderella is the mystery princess, and she confesses her love for Charming

BATTLE TIME

Triton sends his whole army of sea creatures and monsters.

Rumplestiltskin and Tinkerbelle build weapons for Alice's army

The Hatter and Cinderella make the armour

Wendy, Charming and the Lost Boys take care of the people

A crocodile tries to get to Peter, but the Captain takes his place. The crocodile bites off the Captain's hand.

There's a fair bit of fighting

Triton cuts off Maleficent's wings

Aurora and Snow raise an army of animals, the ravens supporting Maleficent and being her wings.

Triton becomes the Kraken, but he is defeated by the Gingerbread House Witch, who sends him god knows where.

The Evil Queen becomes the Jabberwocky, attacking Wonderland. The Queen Of Hearts fights her, cutting off the Jabberwocky's head and causing the Evil Queen to take her mortal form.

The Evil Queen makes one last desperate attempt, threatening to burn Pinnochio if they don't surrender

Geppeto becomes furious, sending the Evil Queen into a portal that causes her to fall to her death.

All curses are lifted.

The Captain takes a piece of Triton's trident and attaches it to a piece of metal, then attaches that to his hand. It looks like a hook, but it looks cool, so he keeps it.

Peter and Alice imagine hard enough that they manage to combine Neverland and Wonderland into one huge world. In the centre of it all, there is a Gingerbread Palace.

[droo216]

disney reimagined → quinta brunson as belle and alex minsky as the beast

[pixie-skull]

My 279th edit and a huge thank you to @little-bloodied-angel for the collab on this reimagining of Victoria and Emily from clay animation movie The Corpse Bride. This is my likely last reimagining of character(s) who are not hand drawn characters like 3D animation and clay animation to be 2D styled. I am especially grateful this series of reimaginings as I have not used one 2D character more than once and that was a personally goal for myself.

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 4/5

Book Blurb:

Music says things words never can. I love you. I miss you. I’m sorry I killed you.

Every night, Ceridwen Kinsley plays music on her rooftop for the spirit of her dead mother. A peaceful if odd ritual, until she witnesses a murder by something not quite human. The monstrous encounter earns her notoriety within the city and a visit from the reclusive Lord Protector Drystan Winterbourne.

Charged with protecting the backwater city of Teneboure by the king, Drystan is failing at his task, and he can’t afford another slip up. But when fate and the very monster he means to conquer bring Ceridwen to his notice, he seizes the opportunity and presents her with an offer: play music for him at his manor in exchange for the money her impoverished family desperately needs. Music eases the strain of his magic, and who better to hire than the woman whose tunes he secretly listens to at night?

At first, Ceridwen is put off by Drystan’s unkempt appearance and harsh demeanor, not to mention the odd ailment that plagues him. But as he embraces her passion for music and she draws the recluse out of his lonely tower, the two develop an unlikely attachment. Class lines begin to blur as fearful indifference shifts to unexpected desire, and Ceridwen yearns to help Drystan subdue the monster as well as provide for her family. However, the monster prowling the night isn’t their only enemy, and as terrible secrets come to light, protecting those they love may risk their lives and their hearts.

This retelling of Beauty and the Beast incorporates themes and motifs from Phantom of the Opera, and is set in a gaslamp fantasy world with strong gothic vibes. It should appeal to fans of romantic and atmospheric retellings and fairy tales by authors such as Hannah Whitten, Tessonja Odette, and Stephanie Garber.

While this is book 4 in the Reimagined Fairy Tales series, it can be read as a standalone.

Review:

A talented flutist who secretly plays music on her rooftop is suddenly drawn into the mysterious life of a reclusive duke with a monstrous secret. A unique twist on the classic Beauty and the Beast story with hints of Phantom of the Opera! Ceridwen plays her flute at night on her roof, in spirit of her mother who died. Yet on one fateful night when she is attacked she is rescued by a monster... or so she thought. The next day the famous reclusive Lord Protector Drystan Winterbourne offers her a deal: if she agrees to live in his manor and play music for him for one year he will provide her poor family with money to support them. It's too good of a deal but Ceridwen wants to provide for her family, so she agrees to the deal. Drystan might be a bit unkept and have a bit of a harsh demeanor... yet he is passionate about her music for some reason and she knows he is hiding a secret. Drystan is has only a few rules: do not enter the tower, never leave the grounds, and make sure to be in her room at night least the monster come for her. Drystan has a secret: he is the monster, or rather, one of the monsters in the town. He was cursed after being gifted with magic and now turns into a wolflike creature that he can barely control... the only thing that eases it is Ceridwen's music. Yet if he tells her the truth he risks losing the only thing that is keeping the beast at bay. Ceridwen and Drystan may be falling for each other, yet with the Drystan's many secrets... can their romance really survive when the truth gets out? I've loved reading Megan Van Dyke's reimagined fairy tale series so much and I have found that each one of them is such a unique and fun twist. I loved the gothic atmosphere and story in this on with the monster twist and the romance was sweet. It's definitely a fun read for fans of reimagined fairytales and I would absolutely recommend the series!

*Thank you Megan Van Dyke for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[hah-studios]

Okay so I finally watched that Belle anime and...I didn’t like it. Like at all.

BUT it got me thinking; if Hosoda can blatantly rip off Disney’s Beauty and the Beast I can blatantly rip off his internet batb au.

My rewrite/reimagining under the read more;

Okay so first off new characters! The main leads are two highschool kids of the same age but in rival schools both alike in dignity 

The female lead is Sayaka, a chubby girl who suffers from her lack of self confidence and self acceptance, unable to truly open up not only because of her looks but because of the trauma of losing her mind. Sayaka’s mother died from smoke inhalation in the same fire that left a nasty burn scar on Sayaka’s palm that she doesn’t like people to point out. When she receives what is basically a vr head set for this new virtual reality she makes an avatar that she finds beautiful and flawless. She dubs the avatar Belle and through it gets to sing without worrying people find her unpleasant to look at.

The male lead is Kazuhiko, a handsome japanese/european boy who goes to the school that rivals Sayaka. He is fonded over by both schools though and constantly has girls wanting to ask him out. Kazuhiko puts on a pleasant smile but secretly despises his popularity and his overly demanding home life. When he joins the virtual realty he makes an avatar dubbed the “Beast” a vicious looking avatar. With it he finally gets peace from his clingy classmates but also an outlet to release his frustration through battling without any real consequences (besides the avatars bitter at losing to him).

The story focuses on the two in both their real and virtual lives. Sayaka struggling to love herself and Kazuhiko struggling to be his true self. While they are slow to interact irl, in VR their avatars meet when Beast accidentally crashes Belle’s party while fighting but offers a rose as an apology/gift from a fan before rushing off. Belle will eventually find him again and they start to talk and form a close bond despite Belle’s many online suitors and Beast’s fear of being vulnerable.

In contrast Sayaka and Kazuhiko, when they do meet up, Kazuhiko tries to court Sayaka despite the jealous girls after him and Sayaka’s own insistence he can do better.

I don’t have ALL the middle planned out BUT I can picture the climatic ending being Belle serenading to her audience only to approach Beast and reveal to the VR world that he is the one she is in love with.

After this serenade Kazuhiko, having realized Sayaka is Belle from an earlier scene, goes after Sayaka and reveals he’s the Beast by bringing up old conversations and even singing the same song Belle sang to him.

[robinwoodsfiction]

Storm & Solace on Audiobook

I have some exciting news! For those of you who prefer audiobooks, Storm & Solace is now available on audiobook. Woot! (Insert nerdy happy dance here. Or Belle in the library, because that’s how I feel). Yes, I do prefer the weight of a book in my hands, but my life doesn’t always permit me to read as much as I want to. So, audiobooks have become my friend. I often listen while driving or…

[tteokdoroki]

ᯓ★ ONCE UPON A FUCK ME !? — kinktober 2024 !

mirror mirror on the wall, who’s the filthiest fairytale of them all? your favourite storybook characters, reimagined.

✧ there’s a note from your fairy godmother - hello my angels !! welcome to another kinktober. i hope you guys are as excited as i am. wave your magic wand here ! to join the taglist. rb for a happy ending ₊˚⊹ ᥫ᭡.

✧ read the blurb - each of the following fairytales contain nsfw and dark themes. fem!reader. each fic comes with its own warnings. minors, blank and ageless blogs do not interact.

✐ᝰ.ᐟ CHAPTER ONE RAPUNZEL - satoru gojo.

[OCT 1ST ★ BONDAGE] once upon a time, a girl trapped in a tower with nothing but her extremely lavish, long hair as company decides…fuck it and sleeps with a handsome stranger to get what she wants.

additional kinks. orgasm control, sensory deprivation, edging, thigh riding, spit kink, outer-course, begging, switching.

✐ᝰ.ᐟ CHAPTER EIGHT BEAUTY & THE BEAST - katsuki bakugou.

[OCT 8TH ★ MONSTER FUCKING] once upon a time, a village girl thinks to herself — fuck it! being trapped inside a castle with a monstrous sexy bloody beast isn’t so bad… she might as well make it worth her while.

additional kinks. bath sex, soft sex, blood play, size kink, praise kink, body worship, body modifications.

✐ᝰ.ᐟ CHAPTER FIFTEEN CINDERELLA - tobio kageyama.

[OCT 15TH ★ MUTUAL MASTURBATION] once upon a time, a soon-to-be crowned princess, once down on her luck, says fuck it and settles on consummating her marriage with the crown prince before they’re actually due to be married.

additional kinks. oral sex, clothed sex, cherry chasing, first time, corruption.

✐ᝰ.ᐟ CHAPTER SIXTEEN THE LITTLE MERMAID - eijirou kirishima.

[OCT 16TH ★ FUCK OR DIE] once upon a time, a princess decides — fuck it! fuck the engagement. who cares when a sexy half-man, half -fish…prince? whatever! needs to drown her in an ocean of pleasure in order to survive…

additional kinks. underwater sex, ritualistic sex, voice kink, pain kink, choking, quickie.

✐ᝰ.ᐟ CHAPTER TWENTY TWO SLEEPING BEAUTY - seishiro nagi.

[OCT 22ND ★ SOMNOPHILIA] once upon a time, a brave knight, destined to marry someone she’d never met, says fuck it and plans to reap the rewards of saving the prince from eternal slumber. without realising that he’s already awake…

additional kinks. hold the moan, overstimulation, cockwarming, dacryphilia, outer-course, free use, dub con, cumplay.

✐ᝰ.ᐟ CHAPTER TWENTY NINE LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD - yuuji itadori.

[OCT 29TH ★ KNOTTING] once upon a time, a curious little girl says fuck it and disobeyes her mother’s only wish. stay on the path when you visit your granny, you don’t want to get snatched up by the big bad wolf.

additional kinks. wolf hybrids, mating season, oral fixation, sweat + scent kink, pregnancy kink, lactation, breeding, a/b/o.

✐ᝰ.ᐟ BONUS CHAPTER: GOLDILOCKS & THE THREE BEARS - bachira, isagi 'n nagi.

[OCT 31ST ★ CUCKING] once upon a time, a sweet little bear hybrid on her own in the woods decides... fuck it! she'll teach that pesky thief goldilocks what it really means to share. with the help of friends, of course.

additional kinks. bear hybrids, double penetration, mutual masturbation, deep throating, brat taming, exhibitionism, multiple orgasms, foursome, dub-con, coercion, marking, oral sex.

꒰ end. — all rights reserved © tteokdoroki 2024. do not copy, repost, translate, feed into ai & recommend elsewhere.

[lunemomo]

I’m working on a reimagining of Beauty and the Beast so I got a ton of time periods and aesthetics from my friends to help choose a setting and these are some ideas from what I chose at random!

[artbymagsn]

beauty and the beast (2021)

[helpesslywriting]

Ackerman watched as Penelope opened the pantry and kept herself busy. Gathering three red apples, a wooden bowl, a knife. She washed the apples in the clear water bucket before she gestured for him to take a seat before she sat down across from him and got to work with apple peeling.

Ackerman sank slowly down onto the seat across from her and watched silently for a moment. When she spoke it made him jump in shock. Her voice was thick from sobbing, her eyes locked on the slowly rotating apple as the peel pulled away from it.

"So now what happens."

"Well," Ackerman started and then folded his hands nearly and sat them on the table top. "I suppose that's for you to decide." He watched as her apple stopped moving in her hands for a moment...then another....before it started again. "Going unpaired is not terribly uncommon. But I understand it wasn't the future you had in mind for yourself..." His eyebrows were shaved like his head, but he felt the skin move to furrow his brow. "Honestly, what was he thinking. Pulling that stunt like that. It's very unbecoming and improper."

"So I'm not going to be sent away?"

"Sent away?" Ackerman choked, "Heavens no! Being unpaired isn't grounds for exile, Penelope!"

"Not for being unpaired," she corrected, "for fear I might..." She trailed off and Ackerman grimaced, he could see where her mind was taking her.

"But you're not...right?" He asked, watching her intently as she laid the long curling peel on the table and began slicing the apple expertly and placing the slices in the bowl one by one.

"No. Yes. Maybe." She shrugged, "I feel like I'm falling from a cliff blind folded. I can't see what's coming next. How to prepare for the landing. When I will land. I don't know what to do now. "

They both fell silent for a while, sounds of birds filtered through the closed windows, despite the attempt to shut the world out. After a while, Penelope picked up the second apple and began peeling it as well.

"It's understandable to feel that way." Ackerman sighed heavily and took a slice from the bowl and turned it over in his hand. "It was my understanding that you were over the moon about being paired and couldn't wait for your Union Day. I'm sorry that he made your rejection such a horrid spectacle at the last minute." He took a bite from the crisp apple and chewed in thought as he tried to covertly watch her reaction.

Since she kept peeling the apple without stopping, he continued after he swallowed. "To tell you the truth, out of everyone in that building. I think it should be said that you were the only one who behaved appropriately." He turned his apple slice over again and sighed heavily. "And the group that deserves the blame includes me. I apologize. As Temple leader I should have reacted quicker and put a stop to the ceremony so this could be settled in private."

"It's not really your fault." She said quietly, then heaved a heavy, shaking sigh. "He had this planned out; I fear. He wanted the spectacle. He can't speak in front of a crowd to save his life; he always forgets what he's going to say unless he practices it before hand." She scoffed and shook her head. "That's why I just left. I knew there was nothing to work out, in the end. He planned this. He put effort into remembering what he wanted to say. He wanted her, and he wanted it to happen this way." She lowered the apple peel to the table with the other and looked up at Ackerman. "So, who am I to stop him, or try to insert myself where I am clearly not wanted." As she spoke, more tears fell from her eyes. "I just wish I didn't feel quite so lost." She put down the knife and wiped her eyes with her free hand.

"You're not lost," Ackerman reached out across the table and put his hand on her cheek. "You just had an awful thing be done to you, and you're hurt. It will take time to heal. Don't rush yourself on anyone's account."

"People will talk." She sobbed as more tears fell and wet his hand. He got up from his seat and rushed around the table to kneel by her chair.

"They will. And I'm afraid there's nothing you or I can do to stop them. I truly wish I could Penelope. You are not at fault for this and you, if anyone, are the victim here. Other people are not your concern right now. Your concern is your how heart and future." He took the apple from her hand as it looked as though she was going to drop it any second and felt her lean against him and sob into his shoulder. He cradled her head and stroked her back gently. "I wish I could take this burden from you, truly." He said softly as she blubbered into his purple robe. "But it your hurt, and sadly, I don't think even the gods can mend a broken heart overnight."

Her sobs became louder, and her shoulders trembled as she cried into his shoulder.

[pocketfullofpearlies]

RISE OF RED: A TALE OF HEADS AND HEARTS

(Descendants: Rise of Red Fan fiction/Re-imagining)

Chapter 3

Clothes? Check.

Shoes? Check.

"Chloe!"

Skincare and makeup? Check.

"Chloe!"

Jewelry? Check.

Interior decor for room? Check.

Devices? Check.

"Chloe!"

Extra notebooks and journals?

Extra notebooks and journals!

"CHLOE!"

King Charming's raised voice jolted his daughter out of her thoughts and she blinked at him, putting her sword down at her side.

"Dad..why'd you stop?"

"Maybe because you zoned out for almost three minutes there, hon. If this had been an actual battle ground, you'd be long gone by now,'' King Charming said, walking over to a table at the side and grabbing a glass of water.

Chloe groaned and itched at her neck awkwardly.

''I'm sorry, Daddy. I know I got you out here so I could do some sword training with you to get my mind off of things, yet here I am still stressing over the fact that I might not have enough notebooks for the semester.''

''I doubt that'll be an issue, Chloe,'' a calm, soft, lightly accented voice spoke, causing both Chloe and the King to turn round.

Queen Cinderella walked in to meet her husband and daughter, looking elegant in a simple yet stunning day gown that was silvery-white but shone with a blue hue when hit by the light. The dress complimented her gorgeous brown skin and went well with her honey blonde hair, done up in braids and held in an intricate fish-tail plait.

Chloe loved the way her mother's bedazzled crown was placed on her bed of glorious hair, although she already looked like royalty regardless of it.

''If you run out, which I doubt you will,'' she continued, ''the school has more than enough that you can use, ma cherie.''

''I never once carried a book at the beginning of a new semester,'' the King said, going up to meet his wife.

''And yet he always managed to pass excellently well,'' the Queen said, leaning into her husband's arms.

''What can I say? I am charming,'' he said, giving her a soft kiss on the lips.

''Mmm....that's debatable,'' she teased.

Chloe rolled her eyes playfully.

Her parents were never shy in expressing their love for each other.

Her phone buzzed from a pocket in her pants and she pulled it out only to see yet other text from her older brother.

AP Tip #765: Compliment the lunch lady and she'll give you the Bayou Special like we had at Queen Tiana's restaurant last time we visited.

''Qui est-ce, bébé? (Who is it, baby?)'' the Queen when she noticed Chloe typing back a reply.

''It's just Chad, Mum,'' Chloe answered. ''And now he's video calling.''

She picked and raised her phone up immediately greeted by her brother's smiling face.

''Bonjour, baby sis,'' he said, shaking his golden curls out of his face.

Chad had inherited his features from their grandfather, having fair skin, hair the colour of a wheat field and eyes like a tropical waterfall.

Chloe, on the other hand, had combined their parents looks, with her skin that was a perfect light brown, deeper toned blonde hair like their mother and eyes like a flickering fireplace that matched their father's.

''I assume the pink thong on your lamp doesn't belong to you?'' she whispered back.

''H-how did that get there?'' Chad laughed awkwardly, moving his phone so it wouldn't show.

''Tell Audrey I said hi,'' Chloe said, still in a low voice.

''Yeah, well, she's out getting her hair done so I'll see her much later.''

''Are you talking to Chad, baby? Bring the phone over!'' Queen Cinderella said, gesturing for Chloe to come.

''Mommy! Pops!'' Chad said immediately the Queen took the phone from Chloe.

''Chadwick, mon fils!(my son!)'' the Queen gushed.

''How you doing, bud?'' asked the King.

''About to finish getting ready for the tourney match. You still coming?''

''Of course! Your mum's gonna drop Chlo off, help her settle down and join us there.''

''Really wish I could be there with you, Chloster, but Jay has been on everyone's asses about the game-''

''-Language, Chadwick!'' his mother scolded.

''Yeah, watch your tone around your mama, college boy,'' the King warned, his voice strict, but giving his son a wink through the screen.

''What happened to your manners, your royal blondness?'' Chloe teased.

Chad made a face at her and was about to continue talking when Chloe's phone started beeping and buzzing.

''What's that?'' he asked.

''The alarm I set so mum and I would leave the castle on time,'' she replied, tapping her phone screen to deactivate it.

''I think we'd better head out now, ma cherie. It's a two hour drive to Auradon if we don't run into any traffic,'' the Queen said.

Chloe nodded but her brother noticed how her face fell slightly.

''Hey, it's gonna be okay, Chlo. Auradon Prep is the-''

''-the best, I know,'' she completed. ''And it's even more special because mum and dad went there and so did you.''

''Exactly! It'll be a breeze. Don't be such a worry wart like mum.''

''Very funny, Chadwick," the Queen said sarcastically, but with a small smile on her face .“I’ll see you when I’m done at AP.”

“See you soon, Mummy,” Chad said. “Bye, Dad. Eat rocks, Chlo. Love you.”

The call went off and Chloe sighed, pocketing her phone.

“I guess it’s time to say the final goodbyes,” she said, looking at her dad.

“Aww, hon.”

King Charming wrapped his daughter in a big hug, resting his head on top of her blonde curls.

“I’m gonna miss you, mouse,” he said.

“Me too, Daddy.”

Chloe inhaled his clean, woody scent, knowing she wouldn’t get to smell his cologne for the next few months.

“My princess,” the king said, when he released her from the hug, admiring her features that were so similar to his own.

Queen Cinderella watched them, blinking rapidly to avoiding tearing up.

“Your Majesty,” a servant said, bowing as he stood in the doorway. “All the princess’ bags have been loaded into the car.”

“Thank you, Mithius,” the Queen said. “My loves, I’ll be in the car too.”

She kissed her husband again and stroked Chloe’s face lovingly.

“You can put any last minute things from your room in your rucksack,” the king said as she walked away, “including a new pair of shoes your mum and I got for the semester.”

That made Chloe light up and she beamed.

“Really?”

“But of course. Our baby can’t start school without some new kicks. It’s like a family tradition.”

“Now I’m gonna miss you more than ever.”

“I know, I know. What can I say? I’m amazing.”

“Daddy!”

The king chuckled. “Your mum and I will come visit you regularly, mouse, don’t worry. Plus I’m sure you’re gonna make so many new friends; you won’t ever be lonely.”

Chloe laughed with him. “Yeah, sure.”

“I mean it. Now, go on. You don’t want to keep your mama waiting.”

After one last hug and a trip to her room to pick up some notebooks and her new shoes, Chloe was seated with her mum in their cream coloured limousine.

“This is it, Cherie. You’re on your way to a bright and beautiful future,” Queen Cinderella said, smiling sweetly at her daughter.

“Is that how you felt on your first day?”

“You mean my first day in a new school in a whole new country with step-sisters that hated my guts? Absolutely not.”

“My bad; you definitely had it worse.”

“Well, it’s not a competition, dear. And my greatest joy is that you and your brother have never faced any of the difficulties I did.”

“Do you think grandmere and grandpere would’ve wanted you to attend Auradon Prep? Grandpere was a lord, right?”

“He was, and the title was supposed to be passed onto me when he died, but my step-mother had other ideas and I didn’t have the power to go against her. When we moved from France down here, the only reason she put me in school at all was to avoid suspicion, and even though my step-sisters literally wanted to die at the prospect of me being in the same school as them, she couldn’t bear the thought of anyone thinking she couldn’t afford the best money could buy for even someone as lowly as me.”

“And as chance would have it, you met a French prince that swept you off your feet, and your life has been a fairytale ever since.”

“That’s why I want you to go there and find your own. We can’t keep you hidden away in Cinderellasburg forever. The world deserves to meet you, and you deserve to experience it all.”

“You make it all sound so dreamy, but I don’t know, I’m still scared. I hope I can live up to the legacy you, Dad and Chad have set…..okay maybe just you and Dad’s legacy. You get what I mean, though.”

Queen Cinderella laughed at Chloe’s expression, reaching out to arrange her curls.

“Just be yourself, Chloe. Be true to who you are; don’t compromise. You’re perfect. Okay?”

Chloe smiled gratefully. “Merci, maman.”

Her phone buzzed and she looked at the screen, brightening up immediately.

“It’s Dizzy. She’s asking if we’re on the way,’ she told her mum as she began rapidly typing out a reply.

“Tell her we’ll be there in half an hour, and that her mum can only use a vacation as an excuse to not call back three times before it gets sus.”

“I am not telling my cousin that you just used the word ‘sus’.”

“I know for a fact that I used it within the right context.”

Chloe bit back a snort, raising her eyes from her phone briefly to see her mum’s nose in the air sassily.

It was from moments like this that one could tell where Chad got some of his whims from.

“Ooh, Dizzy says Aunt Faye’s going to be at the Welcome Ceremony today.”

“Yes, she’s officially handing over the role of Principal to Uma today. The ceremony’s going to be incredible.”

“Wait…Uma the pirate? My Principal? Okay, now I can’t wait to get to school.”

The minutes in the car seemed to fly away as a comfortable silence washed over mother and daughter.

Before Chloe knew it, they were driving over the smooth, cobbled paths of Auradon Prep.

The car was parked in the designated spot for the Charmings in the parking lot and the Queen and princess came down.

As usual, there were bows and greetings directed to them the moment they were sighted.

Chloe smiled politely in return as they walked the path together, only to hear an ear-shattering squeal that made her smile double in size.

Dizzy, her step-cousin, ran up to meet them, wearing a green, silky romper with reddish brown hair styled atop her head in space buns that were both childish and mature at once.

“Hey,” they chorused as soon as she got to them and they shared a hug.

“It’s so good to see you again, Chloe. You look sooo cute. And Aunt Ella, ravishing as always. Is that a custom design?”

“But of course. I designed it specially for my baby’s big day.”

Dizzy observed the dress closely, nodding in awe and approval.

“The stitch work is phenomenal.”

“I know. The mice really outdid themselves on this one.”

“I’ll definitely come round the castle sometime to check out your new work. But for now, I need to get Chloe settled it.”

Chloe then noticed the bedazzled ear-piece Dizzy was wearing and the clipboard and pen in her right hand.

“I’m still on the clock right now, but you can just join the line over there to meet my girl Celia. I’ve already picked out the perfect room for you in the system beforehand, so all you have to do is sign in with Celia and pick up your dorm key, okay?”

“Okay,” Chloe said with a nod.

Dizzy gave her step-aunt and cousin one last smile before she walked past them to continue welcoming new students.

“You ready, angel?” Queen Cinderella asked.

Chloe took in a deep breath and released.

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” 

[imaginal-ai]

"Beauty and the Beast" (0001)

(The Fairy Tales Reimagined Series)

[fairytalesfromthesmp]

Settle into your seats, folks, we’ve got some new stories to tell. We are proud to present…

Fairytales from the SMP: Volume II

This year’s storybook consists of twelve incredible fairytales reimagined by a few wonderful minds of the dsmp fandom! Follow some of your favorites through tales of family, friendship, romance, and more as we dive into this spellbinding collection.

Thank you to everyone who made this possible! To all the writers, artists, betas, and backups, this wouldn’t have been possible without you. Thank you to the mods, new and old, and thank you to all who joined us in this journey, come and gone. You’ve all made this worthwhile!

Be sure to give lots of love to all these people because without them, this collab would be nothing more than a dream!

Little Red Riding Hood - Written by Ocean ( @bottleofchaos ), Illustrated by Taizi ( @rebelwithoutabroom ) and Yumi ( @mahikamihan )

Snow White & The Seven Dwarves - Written by Stardust ( @chasing-stardust-22 ), Illustrated by Ocean

Hansel and Gretel - Written by Day ( @day-time-dream ), Illustrated by Zuzu ( @zuzypiia ) and Orange ( @fresh-flames )

Jack and the Beanstalk - Written by Lupine ( @iced-sweet-dt ), Illustrated by Michy ( @michygranger23 )

The Tortoise and the Hare - Written by Blank ( @blankerthought ), Illustrated by Calder ( @day-mark ) and Curo ( @curoopeez )

Robin Hood - Written by Scoops ( @scoops404 ), Illustrated by Thal ( @thal-chandra ) and Root ( @rutadales )

Prince and the Pauper - Written by Cadence ( @dwtdog ), Illustrated by Blank

The Seal Catcher - Written by Chelsey ( @czargasm ), Illustrated by Bicho ( @bicho-callejero ) and VoidPidgeon ( @voidpidgeon )

The Three Musketeers - Written by Amie/Bagel ( @bagelrites ), Illustrated by Litchi ( @llitchilitchi ) and Vi ( @icecreamvi )

Beauty and the Beast - Written by Taizi, Illustrated by VoidPidgeon and Wolflyn ( @wolflyndraws )

The Unwilling Mermaid - Written by Sword ( @swordfright ), Illustrated by Root and Kenjo ( @kenjo-arts )

Rapunzel - Written by Crow ( @mello-when-hi ), Illustrated by Calder and Shishi ( @shishi-neraoiba )

Beta Readers: Echo ( @timetravelkoolaid ), Luna ( @milktearosethorn ), Scrims ( @scrimblyprimbly ), Lobelia ( @unholy-virtue ), Vee ( @twirlybumblevee ), Spri ( @showcontrols ), and Jinx ( @nyxcandie )

Backups: Backup Writer Rav ( @raviolihailstorm ), Backup Writer Lobelia, and Backup Artist Harmony ( @harmingharmony )

[pixie-skull]

My 228th edit and so grateful my pal @little-bloodied-angel recommended Monster in Paris. This film charming, cute character designs that look like stop motion characters but computer generated. So making this reimagining felt obvious and besides this acting as an early happy birthday edit for my friend, was fun to make in general.