Sorry for the long delay, but I am back! I haven't given this up! Finally! After a second long bout of writer's block, I have, under the pressure of Hades, posted! *cheers all around* Thanks to all who have reviewed! *much hugs* I'm going to try to squeeze out the next (and very likely, the final) chapter as soon as I can. Thank you for being so patient with me!

Chapter 4:

Hades: HOW COULD YOU?!?! It was just getting good! And you had to go and make him LEAVE?!

Author: Hey, weren't you unconscious?

Hades: No... I'm Hades, I can do anything.

Author: That's my line! I'm the author!

Hades: *evil smirk*

Author: *locks Hades in a closet* I'll take you out when your next scene comes up! *puts in earplugs to block out the obscenities being screamed*

            Cindermushie wrung his hands together as the licorice shaped carriage clattered down the road, shrinking as it went. "Hurry!" he yelled, leaning out the window. "Hurry- gak!" The window had shrunk to smaller than his head.

            "I'm trying!" Skittery-horse bellowed. "It's a little hard to run with half horse legs, half human legs!"

            He looked at Skittery-horse, who was in mid transformation and made a face. "Yuck.... ya look like a side-show freak!"

            "At least I don't have my head stuck in a piece of licorice!"

            "True..."

            "You know it's gonna return to it's normal size... it'll crush ya neck," Skittery-horse pointed out, all human except for a horse-ish snout.

            "Yipes!" he squeaked. "I'll have to eat through it!" and he quickly devoured one end of the licorice to set himself free.

            "Now come on, let's get back to th' lodgin' house before the Wicked Newsie Trio comes back!"

            Cindermushie trotted after his friend. "Ya know... ya still got a horse face..."

            "I do?" Skittery felt his face, and indeed it was still horse-like. "Lil' Bit...! I's gonna kill 'er!"

* * *

            Back at the party, the crowd was buzzing about the mysterious handsome boy that had danced with the self-declared princess.

            "Who is he?"

            "Can I have a piece of that man?!"

            "Hey! What about me?!"

            On her birthday throne, Hades pondered deeply. Yes, who was the mysterious, gorgeous boy?

            "Uh, Hades?"

            "Not now, Jack, I's thinkin'. 'Sides, ya didn't refer t' me properly!"

            He rolled his eyes. "Sorry... Princess Hades?"

            Suddenly she sat up straight. "Search all of New York! I wanna find that studmuffin, an' I wanna find him NOW!" she declared loudly. "YOU! I don't know ya name, but start searchin' Queens! You! Yeah, you wit' the bucked teeth! Scour Manhattan!"

            Cupping his hands around his mouth, Jack said loudly, "HEYA, PRINCESS HADES!!"

            Turning to him, she yelled, "WHAT?! Don't yell at me, ya minion!"

            With a sigh, he produced a shoe. "Call off th' search. At least most of it."

            She eyed the shoe. "Jack, I don't care about ya shoes!"

            "It ain't my shoe! I found it on th' steps... it prob'ly belongs to the fella you's lookin' for. See, look here." He pointed to the maker's tag. "It's from a local Brooklyn shop, so he's prob'ly from Brooklyn."

            Hades picked up the shoe delicately and breathed in happily. "WHOOF! It stinks!" She held it a little further away. "Okay! Listen up everyone!"

            The crowd had returned to mingling during her little distraction and ignored her order.

            "I SAID LISTEN UP!" she yelled.

            Well... that shut everyone up.

            "Thank you." She held up the shoe. "Here is th' only remaining remnant of my one true love-"

            "Ya don't even know 'is name," Jack commented.

            "Shut up, bonehead!" Then she turned back to her captive audience. "Anyway, as I was sayin'. I'm gonna team up wit' my most trusted newsies an' search all of Brooklyn to find th' foot that fits this shoe!" Her guests erupted into cheers, though no one knew why.

            She smiled broadly and collected the trusted newsies she would use to find this mysterious guest. "Specs! 'Cause ya gots those glasses that help ya see better.... Dutchy! 'Cause you ... well, you's Dutch, I guess, and who knows, he might speak Dutch... Race!... Hey... where's Race?!"

* * *

            Race was still floating fifty feet above the lodging house. "Lil' BIIIIIIT!" he screamed.

            On the street below, Skittery and Cindermushie were racing to the lodging house, before anyone could return from the party.

            "Oh man," Skittery was complaining. "If my face doesn't change back, they're gonna suspect somethin' was up."

            Cindermushie glanced at him. "Ya know, it ain't that different..."

            "SHUT UP!"

            He shrugged and then paused. "Hey...." He grabbed Skittery's arm to stop him. Do ya hear that?"

            "Hear what?"

            Overhead, there was a sort of whirring noise. They looked up and saw a sort of fluffy, feathery white mass plummeting towards them. After a moment, they stepped apart and the white mass crashed into the ground. A moment later, Lil' Bit waveringly climbed to her feet. "Ouch..." She rubbed her hip and then adjusted her tutu and looked at the two boys. "Did I hear one of ya callin' my name?"

            "THAT'D BE ME!" Race bellowed from overhead.

            She looked up and gave him an odd look. "What are ya doin' way up there?"

            "You left me up here, ya-"

            "Ah ah." Cindermushie wagged his finger. "No profanity while I's around..."

            Race reduced his profanities to a low murmur.

            "Now," Again, Lil' Bit adjusted her tutu. "What do ya want?"

            "What do I want? What do I want?! I WANT DOWN FROM HERE!"

            She gave an agitated little huff. "A'right already! Ya don't gotta scream ya know." She muttered the counterspell that resulted in him plummeting wildly to the ground. Glancing at Skittery and Cindermushie, she asked, "Anything else?" Race landed with an "oof!" behind her and muttered a few obscenities.

            "Yeah... my face." Skittery pointed to the horse-like appearance of his face.

            "I don't see anything wrong with it. Looks the same as always..."

            He grit his teeth. "Lil' Biiiiit....."

            "Oh, alright." And she fixed his face back to human form. Glancing over her shoulder, she whispered, "You boys may wanna get back inside. The others'll be comin' home soon. An' I don't want all my nice secretive work ruined!" And with that, she flitted off.

            Upon her words of warning, and hearing the clatter of the carriages coming down the road, Cindermushie raced into the house with Skittery and Race on his tail. They had just dealt a very rapid game of "Go Fishin'" when the Wicked Newsie Trio stormed into the room.

            "Have a nice evening?" Cindermushie asked innocently, after telling Race to "Go Fishin'". "Hey Skitts... Got any nines?"

            "No, we didn't have a nice evening!" Blank replied with an agitated snort.

            "Some gorgeous guy came in and dance the whole evening with Princess Hades and no one else!" Shadow huffed.

            "Not to mention that she didn't dance with anyone else but old mystery man!" Mississippi added.

            Cindermushie smiled. "Well, that's too bad. Race, got any fours?"

            "Darn straight it's too bad!"

            "Go Fishin'."