Once upon a time there was a spunky young damsel named Keandra Little who worked as a waitress at the Lass Menagerie. As has previously been related in Knotty Chicken Little, Keandra normally wore a chicken-girl outfit at work, a costume yellow dress and a cap with a red comb, thus causing her regular customers to call her Chicken Little.
However, every December Keandra changed her work attire. She discarded her feathers for fur (fake, of course) to transform into a cute and sexy reindeer-girl – and, if anyone doubts it is possible to be cute and sexy dressed as a reindeer-girl, I invite you to visit the Lass Menagerie during the winter holiday season and observe Keandra's efforts for yourself. She wore a headband with furry, pointed ears and diminutive antlers, a strapless brown dress with a white trim, a choker and armbands with silver bells, matching boots, and an inviting smile that made customers forget they were receiving food of questionable quality.
"The prices are falling! The prices are falling!" Keandra exclaimed, waving her arms. She absolutely hated doing that, but the hostess, Lucille Parabola (dressed as always like a goose-girl) was watching her closely, so she had to. "What can I get you, Wolfy?" she asked.
"Hey, baby," said The Wolf, lowering his menu. "Join me, why don't you?"
"Now, Wolfy, we went through this last time. I can't join you while I'm at work!"
"Then join me for Christmas," he suggested. "You're closed that day."
"You mean, at your place?" asked Keandra.
"Yes, at my marvelous penthouse high above the clouds," said The Wolf. "Beautifully decorated for the holiday and filled with gifts so all that's left is some company to chase away my loneliness."
"I'd really like to…" Keandra began.
"Great, then it's a date!" The Wolf interrupted.
"…but I just can't." Keandra looked nervously over her shoulder. Lucille tapped her foot impatiently, glowering like a cat deprived of its bowl of cream. She liked her staff to keep things moving quickly. "Please order something, Wolfy, or I'll get into so much trouble!"
"I'll order something," he answered, "if you agree to spend Christmas with me."
"Can't you get some other fairytale heroine?" Keandra asked desperately.
"No, Red'll be with her grandmother, Cindy with her step-family, and Snow with the seven dwarves," said The Wolf. "Everyone's got someone, except you and me. That's why we need to be together, baby! Are you working Christmas Eve?"
"Yes," Keandra answered sadly. It was really unfair too, since originally Lucille had promised her she could have that day off!
"I'll pick you up when you get off," The Wolf decided.
"No, you won't, Wolfy," Keandra said as sternly as she could, which wasn't really all that much. "I'm sorry, but I just can't."
"Why can't you?" asked The Wolf.
Keandra was spared answering by Lucille, who, determined to hurry matters, steamed in with the grim resolve of an Arctic icebreaker encountering a sea of glaciers. "Is everything okay here?" the hostess asked.
"Yes, Goosey-Lucy," Keandra answered quickly. "Wolfy was just having a little trouble making up his mind, but he decided to go with his usual. Isn't that right, Wolfy?"
"Sure, baby," he agreed nonchalantly.
"What were you two talking about?" asked Lucille as Keandra scurried off, jingling all the way.
"She's coming over for Christmas Eve," The Wolf explained. "Isn't that wonderful?"
"How nice," Lucille said jealously, regretting she had agreed to spend the holidays with Hansel Ackerman, who, to put matters delicately, was no Prince Charming. There was simply no getting out of it, though, so she reluctantly squelched any thoughts of doing so. "I wouldn't have guessed it from her expression. Are you sure she'll about that?"
"Absolutely," The Wolf replied.
…..
Mistletoe hung from the ceiling, red and green streamers adorned the walls. Two stockings hung from the fireplace. A stately Douglas fir stood in the center of his living room, draped in tinsel and blinking lights and crowned with a star. Bright packages wrapped in ribbons circled the tree base. "We'll open them at midnight," The Wolf told Keandra.
Keandra wore her work uniform except for her boots. Her fingers curled and uncurled around her chair's armrests, creating a soft tintinnabulation from her wristbands. Cotton rope kept her forearms on the armrests. The material felt very soft against her skin, an indication, perhaps, that The Wolf planned to keep her bound for quite some time. Rope surrounded her torso and thighs in several loops, keeping her in place against the chair back and seat. Her ankles were tied crossed and drawn back, keeping her stocking-clad feet inches off the ground.
A bandana, decorated with festive printing of "Merry Christmas" in twenty different languages, was knotted in the center. This served as Keandra's gag and, while it did not keep her particularly quiet, it did prevent her from making coherent sounds. The Wolf did not mind if she made a little noise, as the neighbors on the floor below were away for the holidays. He had selected this as it was easy for him to remove and reapply when he offered his guest something to eat or drink.
"Speaking of which, baby, I'm ready for a late snack," The Wolf announced. "You want something to eat?"
"No, I'd like to be untied," Keandra tried to say, but The Wolf laughed in his easy way. "Tomorrow we'll have a turkey dinner with all the trimmings," he told her, "but for now, I'll whip us up some chili. Don't worry, it won't take long."
"Take all the time you like," Keandra mumbled incoherently, since the longer he was away the better her chances of escape would be. She listened as he started banging the cooking utensils in the kitchen, waiting until she judged from the sounds he that would be too busy to look in on her. She acted quickly. By repeatedly straining and relaxing her arm muscles, she had already loosened the ropes binding her to the armrests. With a sudden motion, she slipped her hands from the restraints, her bells jangling. The noise was actually quite gentle, but to her, they seemed to blare as aloud as a fire alarm.
"You okay in there, baby?" called out The Wolf, whose sharps ears missed little.
Keandra held her breath, but luckily The Wolf did not come back to check on her. She lightly tossed the cloth from her mouth and worked her nimble fingers on the knots binding her thighs and then her ankles. Now only her torso remained bound. Those knots were out of reach of her busy fingers, but, with her greater mobility, she felt confident of she could slip from those ropes as well. If only The Wolf could stay in the kitchen for just a little bit longer!
"Time to add the spices. You like it hot or mild?"
Keandra almost said "hot", but stopped herself just in time by placing her hand over her mouth. She thought about ignoring his question, "but, if I do, he might come in to ask," she reasoned. Keeping her hand in place, she gave a loud, "Mpfff!"
"Hot it is," agreed The Wolf, who figured out her meaning well enough. "What kind of beans do you want? I've got black beans and kidney beans."
"Kidney beans," Keandra decided, remembering to use her hand as a gag. She wriggled her body lower and lower in the chair. It was proving harder than she had hoped, but she had to keep going.
"Some grated cheese would go well on top," The Wolf announced. "You want some?"
Keandra sighed and placed the gag back in her mouth, reasoning it would be easier than remembering to cover her mouth all the time. She mewed her answer that yes, some cheese would be lovely.
"Got cheddar and pepper jack," offered The Wolf.
"Cheddar," Keandra mumbled, sliding yet lower in her chair. Was she ever going to get loose of these ropes?"
"Medium, sharp, or extra sharp?" asked The Wolf, apparently not having any mild on hand.
"It doesn't matter, since I'm not going to be here to eat it anyhow," Keandra longed to say, but instead called out, "Sharp!" as she finally wiggled completely free. The chair tumbled over with a soft thump, and her bells seemed to jangle louder than ever. The Wolf was making a terrible racket in the kitchen, though, so he might not have heard the noise. Still, Keandra didn't intend to wait to find out. She hurriedly slipped on a boot.
"Chili's ready, baby!" called out The Wolf.
Keandra groaned as she jammed her other foot into a boot. Why couldn't it have taken him just a hair longer? She would be gone in two minutes!
"Hey, some tortillas would go great with this!" said The Wolf. "Should I zap some in the microwave?"
"Yes!" shouted Keandra, grabbing her coat and handbag. Anything to keep him busy! She dropped the "Merry Christmas" bandana onto the coat rack and retrieved her winter scarf, winding it carefully about herself, making sure to cover her lower face. "In case he asks me anything else," she reasoned, which of course he did.
"Wheat ones or corn?"
"Whatever!" Keandra shouted, carefully removing her costume headband, which she placed in a large coat pocket before jamming on her woolen cap. She hurried to the elevator and swiftly turned the security key. The Wolf seemed to be saying something else, but Keandra didn't hear what; she hurriedly tucked the key away, hopped inside the elevator, and then hopped back out again. "My gloves!" she exclaimed.
"What about your gloves, baby?" asked The Wolf.
Keandra gasped in alarm; it was easy to forget The Wolf had such sharp hearing! One glove lay on a small stand right by the elevator. Where was the other? She hunted frantically, straining to hear the sounds of The Wolf leaving the kitchen. Where was it? Perhaps it would be better to leave without it… no, there it was, on the floor! She pounced for it, alarmingly aware of the jangling of her bells. She flew back to the elevator and sighed in relief as she sped downwards to freedom.
"Why didn't Wolfy listen to me? I told him I couldn't come for his celebration, but instead he tied me up and carried me off!" she fumed silently. For a miracle, she managed to hail a passing taxi without much delay despite the holiday and the bad weather. She continued her thoughts as she rode home. "He seems to think he can solve any problem by tying someone up, but this is one time it won't work!"
…..
Keandra let her television randomly select a channel. She didn't care what was on, just so long as it provided a bit of noise to make her feel less alone at home. She checked her refrigerator and sighed at its sparse contents; was that half-eaten chicken salad still any good? Probably not, she decided, tossing it away. She checked her mobile and sighed at the lengthy text from Lucille detailing her evening with Hansel, which apparently had not gone very well.
"Why is she telling me all about it?" Keandra grumbled. She didn't consider Lucille her friend, not after the reneged promise about having Christmas Eve off. She skimmed the message hurriedly, gathering that Lucille had such a disappointing time that she had abruptly walked out on Hansel.
"Well, that's terrible," said Keandra. "Who does that to someone else, especially on Christmas Eve?" She realized, of course, she couldn't tell her work supervisor how she truly felt, but she didn't want to pretend she supported her decision, either. "I'll text her back later when I figure out what to say," she decided.
"Tell us, Professor, what is SAD?"
Keandra glanced at the television.
"SAD stands for Seasonal Affective Disorder," the Professor replied. He had a long beard and half-moon eyeglasses, which, along with his wise and kindly demeanor, made him appear remarkably like the headmaster of a fictional school of magic. "When the end of the year nears, sufferers become depressed. This is not normal depression, I stress, but one purely associated with this time."
"But what causes SAD, Professor?" the interviewer asked.
"Some authorities blame it on the shorter amount of sunlight during the winter," he answered. "I hold, however, that it may have more to do with people's unrealistic expectations of the holiday season. They may feel an obligation to be jolly. Yet many do not! The hectic nature of this time may make them feel greatly stressed. They may feel there is something wrong with themselves for their failure to feel properly festive, which further fuels their downward spiral into the bleakest abyss of the psyche."
"That sounds very serious!" the interviewer exclaimed.
"Indeed it is!" the Professor agreed, shaking his head somberly. He looked straight at the camera. "Do you know someone who seems unusually depressed this holiday season?" he demanded.
"No, nobody," said Keandra, uneasily reaching for the remote so she could change the channel.
"Somebody complaining of being lonely, perhaps?"
"Wolfy asked me to help him chase his loneliness away," Keandra recalled. "Where is that remote? I had it just a second ago!"
"If so, you must do something to help him!" the Professor thundered. "If not, he may do something drastic! Something you could have prevented, if only you had cared enough to help!"
"I'm sure Wolfy won't do anything too drastic," Keandra told herself.
"Do not attempt to justify your inaction by telling yourself you're sure he won't do anything too drastic!" the Professor ordered.
Keandra gulped. A dreadful possibility occurred to her. The Wolf enjoyed tying up damsels very much, as she well knew. Therefore, he always kept a considerable amount of rope on hand. Or paw, rather, she corrected herself. What if, in his loneliness and despair, he used it to do something drastic? Something unthinkable? What if he… Keandra shuddered, hardly daring to think such a terrible thought… what if he used that rope to… to….
"You must act now!" the Professor ordered in a voice of steel. "You must save him from the worst!"
"Yes, I must!" Keandra shouted, standing suddenly. A vision sprang into her head of The Wolf, brought so low that he resorted to horrendous extremity of gathering a length of rope, which he wound around Lucille before carrying her, struggling, off to his penthouse. She shuddered as she saw her supervisor, wearing her goose-girl costume, seated, bound and gagged in The Wolf's penthouse, in the very chair from which Keandra had escaped not so very much earlier!
"Surely he wouldn't!" Keandra exclaimed, but then paused, remembering the hostess talking to him at the Lass Menagerie. Who knew what they had discussed? And, of course, Lucille was suddenly available! It was hard to imagine The Wolf being so desperate he would actually want Lucille's company, but she simply couldn't take the chance. The professor had paused, almost seeming to await her decision. She snatched up her handbag, noting she had accidentally… certainly accidentally, placed The Wolf's elevator key inside when she had left. "No, I won't let you do anything so horrible, Wolfy! Hold on, I'm coming back!"
…..
The bandana with the knot in its center still hung from the coat rack, right where she had left it. She draped it over one shoulder and carefully placed the reindeer headband over her head. She headed for the chair, relieved to find it empty. She could hear The Wolf in the kitchen. "Well, I'm back again," she whispered. "I'm glad, really. I didn't want to spend Christmas all by myself, all sad and lonely, my only hope of company being Lucille. Wait, I mean, I didn't want that for Wolfy, of course!"
She seated herself, placed the bandana knot in her mouth, and carefully tied the ends. She gathered a length of the cotton rope, lying on the floor where she had left it, wondering how she would tie herself. "Hey, baby, let me help you with that," The Wolf offered, not showing the slightest surprise at her sudden reappearance.
"Thanks," Keandra mumbled into her gag. She watched him closely as he bound her, being much more careful with the ropes on her arms. "I'm not getting loose this time," she realized.
The microwave pinged. "Your chili just finished reheating!" The Wolf exclaimed. "I'll feed you some and then see about opening the presents. It's going to be the best Christmas ever, baby!"
