Mandy hugged me for a long time. She wouldn't let go! Finally, Bertha came
to the kitchen with a message from father.
"Ella?" She called. "Your father would like to speak with you."
I groaned. "Do I have to?" I really didn't like my father very much.
"I think you should," said Mandy.
"Fine!" I left the kitchen and found my father already sitting at the head of the dining room table.
"Honestly!" he exclaimed. "Why are you always with that cook! You know we pay her to work alone, and there you are, cooking things, wearing your expensive new black mourning dress! When will you learn?"
"Sorry," I mumbled, taking a seat near father.
"How did you like Dame Olga's two daughters?"
"Umm.ok," I lied.
Father laughed. I didn't want to be laughed at, so I changed my mind.
"I guess they didn't mean to act rude." I said.
"I don't think that crossed their minds." Father said, still chuckling. "The older one is an unpleasant conniver and the younger is not very smart." He stopped laughing. He looked thoughtful. "Dame Olga is rich. She even has a title."
Why does that matter? I wondered. "Maybe you could go to finishing school with them," my father said.
"I don't think so," I said quickly before he got any ideas.
"I will think about it," he told me.
"Look what I have," he said changing the subject and taking something out from under the table. It was a many-faceted crystal wine glass. He poured some wine into the glass, and raised it towards the light. "See how it catches the light, Eleanor. It makes the wine sparkle like a garnet."
It was beautiful. It made me want to try the wine, it looked so sweet. "May I have a sip?"
"Of course, have you ever tasted wine?"
"No."
"Well by all means, go ahead. You are already 15."
I reached for the glass, but by accident my hand knocked it over. It fell to the ground and landed in two pieces, the stem and body.
"You oaf!" He cried. "I was going to sell that on ebay! Do you know how much that could have gone for? Now it is worthless!"
"Sorry," I muttered, feeling ashamed.
"That won't put the glass back together, will it? This summer I am sending you to finishing school with Dame Olga's two children. That will teach you! Now leave! Eat in your room or something."
I ran to my room. Finishing school during summer? With Hattie and Olive? How could he?
I changed into my old pair of jeans and a big sweatshirt, but then changed my mind and put on my comfiest pajamas and crawled into bed. I reached for the remote and turned on the television, but I didn't really pay attention to it. I was lying down on my bed with my eyes closed when I heard a knock on my door. I hoped it was Mandy and not my dad.
"Who is it?" I called.
"Its me, dear." Phew, it was Mandy.
"Come in!"
She came in holding a tray filled with food and a plastic bag with something in it. She set the tray on my bed. There was tomato soup, a grilled cheese sandwich, milk, and fresh baked chocolate chip cookies. I started devouring it all right away.
"When are your final exams?" she asked me.
"They start next week," I said with my mouth full. "One week of hard studying, one week of hard testing, and then I am free! At least I am free until I go to that stupid summer finishing school thing."
"Don't worry about it," she assured me. "Just handle one thing at a time and don't stress out too much. You can handle it. Swim team is over, none of your school clubs are meeting anymore, and you really have no more duties as vice president until next year."
I smiled at her.
Once I slowed down eating she said, "I have two very important things for you."
She put the plastic bag on my lap. The first thing I took out was a thick book. Great, very special. A book. It didn't even have a nice picture on the cover. Just a blank leather cover.
"Umm...thanks," I said to Mandy.
"Open it!" she said.
I did. It was a book of fairy tales! My favorite. If anybody ever says that it is possible to grow out of fairy tales, they are absolutely wrong. Just take "The Princess Bride," for example. It's the best, and definitely not intended for elementary school children.
"Thank you, Many!" I exclaimed, this time sincere. "I'll save it for finishing school so that the stories won't get boring."
"I don't think you have to worry about that," she said, smiling.
"Why not?"
"Well, look how many stories there are, and look how thin the pages are and how small the writing is. It will take you a while to finish all the stories, and they are all excellent. My friend wrote it herself."
"What is the second thing?" Mandy handed me a long box. Inside was a beautiful necklace that I had seen my mother wear often. It had a thin silver chain with a pear pendant. Tiny pearls seemed to be woven into the chain. I put it on.
"It looks beautiful on you! Well, I had better go now," said Mandy, picking up the food tray. On her way out she turned off the light, and I fell asleep with my fingers curled around the necklace.
.:~*~:.
I tried to make this chapter a little more original. I took some exact quotes from the part with the wine glass.or goblet, as it is in the book. I had to raise the rating on this story from a G to PG, just to be careful. She almost drinks the wine! I don't know if this is necessary, but having it be rated G makes it seem more Disney-like, and I think Ella Enchanted is more sophisticated than that!
Oh, and somebody asked me if I had ever read "The Wish." Let me tell you that I have read everything that Gail Carson Levine has written, with the exception of "Dave at Night." She is so talented to think of all that she writes!
Thank you so much to all of my reviewers! Please give me more constructive criticism! Thank you again! ~Gwen
"Ella?" She called. "Your father would like to speak with you."
I groaned. "Do I have to?" I really didn't like my father very much.
"I think you should," said Mandy.
"Fine!" I left the kitchen and found my father already sitting at the head of the dining room table.
"Honestly!" he exclaimed. "Why are you always with that cook! You know we pay her to work alone, and there you are, cooking things, wearing your expensive new black mourning dress! When will you learn?"
"Sorry," I mumbled, taking a seat near father.
"How did you like Dame Olga's two daughters?"
"Umm.ok," I lied.
Father laughed. I didn't want to be laughed at, so I changed my mind.
"I guess they didn't mean to act rude." I said.
"I don't think that crossed their minds." Father said, still chuckling. "The older one is an unpleasant conniver and the younger is not very smart." He stopped laughing. He looked thoughtful. "Dame Olga is rich. She even has a title."
Why does that matter? I wondered. "Maybe you could go to finishing school with them," my father said.
"I don't think so," I said quickly before he got any ideas.
"I will think about it," he told me.
"Look what I have," he said changing the subject and taking something out from under the table. It was a many-faceted crystal wine glass. He poured some wine into the glass, and raised it towards the light. "See how it catches the light, Eleanor. It makes the wine sparkle like a garnet."
It was beautiful. It made me want to try the wine, it looked so sweet. "May I have a sip?"
"Of course, have you ever tasted wine?"
"No."
"Well by all means, go ahead. You are already 15."
I reached for the glass, but by accident my hand knocked it over. It fell to the ground and landed in two pieces, the stem and body.
"You oaf!" He cried. "I was going to sell that on ebay! Do you know how much that could have gone for? Now it is worthless!"
"Sorry," I muttered, feeling ashamed.
"That won't put the glass back together, will it? This summer I am sending you to finishing school with Dame Olga's two children. That will teach you! Now leave! Eat in your room or something."
I ran to my room. Finishing school during summer? With Hattie and Olive? How could he?
I changed into my old pair of jeans and a big sweatshirt, but then changed my mind and put on my comfiest pajamas and crawled into bed. I reached for the remote and turned on the television, but I didn't really pay attention to it. I was lying down on my bed with my eyes closed when I heard a knock on my door. I hoped it was Mandy and not my dad.
"Who is it?" I called.
"Its me, dear." Phew, it was Mandy.
"Come in!"
She came in holding a tray filled with food and a plastic bag with something in it. She set the tray on my bed. There was tomato soup, a grilled cheese sandwich, milk, and fresh baked chocolate chip cookies. I started devouring it all right away.
"When are your final exams?" she asked me.
"They start next week," I said with my mouth full. "One week of hard studying, one week of hard testing, and then I am free! At least I am free until I go to that stupid summer finishing school thing."
"Don't worry about it," she assured me. "Just handle one thing at a time and don't stress out too much. You can handle it. Swim team is over, none of your school clubs are meeting anymore, and you really have no more duties as vice president until next year."
I smiled at her.
Once I slowed down eating she said, "I have two very important things for you."
She put the plastic bag on my lap. The first thing I took out was a thick book. Great, very special. A book. It didn't even have a nice picture on the cover. Just a blank leather cover.
"Umm...thanks," I said to Mandy.
"Open it!" she said.
I did. It was a book of fairy tales! My favorite. If anybody ever says that it is possible to grow out of fairy tales, they are absolutely wrong. Just take "The Princess Bride," for example. It's the best, and definitely not intended for elementary school children.
"Thank you, Many!" I exclaimed, this time sincere. "I'll save it for finishing school so that the stories won't get boring."
"I don't think you have to worry about that," she said, smiling.
"Why not?"
"Well, look how many stories there are, and look how thin the pages are and how small the writing is. It will take you a while to finish all the stories, and they are all excellent. My friend wrote it herself."
"What is the second thing?" Mandy handed me a long box. Inside was a beautiful necklace that I had seen my mother wear often. It had a thin silver chain with a pear pendant. Tiny pearls seemed to be woven into the chain. I put it on.
"It looks beautiful on you! Well, I had better go now," said Mandy, picking up the food tray. On her way out she turned off the light, and I fell asleep with my fingers curled around the necklace.
.:~*~:.
I tried to make this chapter a little more original. I took some exact quotes from the part with the wine glass.or goblet, as it is in the book. I had to raise the rating on this story from a G to PG, just to be careful. She almost drinks the wine! I don't know if this is necessary, but having it be rated G makes it seem more Disney-like, and I think Ella Enchanted is more sophisticated than that!
Oh, and somebody asked me if I had ever read "The Wish." Let me tell you that I have read everything that Gail Carson Levine has written, with the exception of "Dave at Night." She is so talented to think of all that she writes!
Thank you so much to all of my reviewers! Please give me more constructive criticism! Thank you again! ~Gwen
