We're back for another prompt chapter, this time dealing with one of the princesses, along with a few uninvited guests.
Basil of Baker Street and the Case of the Three Belles
Prompt given by Nikolai777
The Beast's Castle, Magic Kingdom
It was like looking in a strange mirror, the figures that stood opposite to her. They all had the same brown hair (though both wore it longer than herself), with similar demeanors about themselves as well. The differences were noticeable, though: the one on the left had a more… "picturesque" look to her with an elaborate golden, shimmering ballgown, while the one on the right looked to be wearing clothing that was more befitting of men.
"Excuse me," the one on the right said, catching their attention. "Does either of you know where we are."
"This is my castle," the other two women said. They looked at each other. "No, this is my castle!"
Belle sighed. "Maybe we should introduce ourselves: I'm Belle, nice to meet both of you."
The look of confusion was evident on both of their faces. "I'm also Belle," the one on the left said.
"As am I," said the one on the right.
Belle sighed again. "This isn't getting us anywhere."
"Indeed it isn't, my dear," came a voice from above. The three women looked as a mouse in a detective outfit came sliding down the library banister, landing on a nearby table at the end.
"Oh, you poor thing," Belle said. "Did the enchantress curse you as well?"
"But Agatha broke the curse already," the Belle on the left said.
"Obviously he's returned to his true form, since we're not in Storybrooke anymore," the Belle on the right said. "This is the Enchanted Forest, correct?"
"The answer to all of your questions would be 'No,' my dears," the mouse said. "The name is Basil, the greatest mouse detective in London, at your service. I found my way into this castle to investigate strange happenings on the rooftops, and what should I find but three fair maidens locked in this tower."
"Strange things on the roof?" Belle repeated.
"Did you say we were locked in here?" the second Belle said.
"I'll answer what I can in time," Basil said. "What we should do is figure out what I am to call you. If you're all named Belle it could get confusing later on in this investigation."
"You can call me by my last name, Gold, if that will make it easier for you," the Belle in casual clothes said.
"And you may call me Rose," the Belle in the fancy dress said. "That's what my father calls me, his Rose."
Basil smiled and clapped his hands once. "Very good. Now then, seeing as all of you seem to come from the French fairy tale 'La Belle et la Bete,' I deduce that all of you are looking for your prince, correct?"
"I wouldn't call Rumple a prince, but I am looking for him," Mrs. Gold said. She looked at Belle and Rose and gave a hum. "Now that I look at both of you, you look like Belle from the Disney movie, and you look like the actress Emma Watson."
"Disney movie?" Belle said confused.
"Best not to think about that at the moment," Basil butted in. "Now that we know our goal, we just need a way to find your princes. Perhaps a magic mirror of some kind?"
"Oh, the magic mirror!" Belle said. "I left that back at father's house on my last visit there."
"Then there's no time to waste," Basil said. He hopped from the table and landed on Mrs. Gold's shoulder. "Onward to the next clue!"
[***]
The group made their way out of Belle's castle and through the forest to the provincial town, making small talk about their experiences as well. While Belle and Rose had very similar stories (though the finer details were quite different), Mrs. Gold had a whole different experience with her "Beast," Rumpelstiltskin. Once they got to the town, Belle couldn't notice that there was something very off about it.
"Well now, this is definitely not what I was expecting," Basil said. Instead of a colonial French town, there was a modern small town in front of them, with paved roads and modern buildings. There were a few oddities, though: occasionally there would be a fantasy-style house instead of a regular one, and there were animals in clothes walking around alongside humans as if it wasn't an odd occurrence.
"This looks like Storybrooke, but at the same time it isn't," Mrs. Gold noted.
"It's definitely not what I was expecting either," Rose said. "There are animals in clothes buying ice cream over there, and is that a flying elephant?"
Suddenly a fox in green walked up to the group, adjusting his feathered cap before addressing the group. "Welcome to Fantasyland, my dears, where stories of old come to life. The name's Robin Hood, and I've taken up protecting this town with my Merry Men while everyone adjusts to living together."
"Again, he looks just like a character straight out of a Disney movie," Mrs. Gold muttered.
Belle ignored the comment and greeted Robin Hood, asking for directions to her house. The outlaw happily directed them towards a small cottage on the edge of town, its red roof making it stand out on the forest backdrop.
"If I remember right, I left the mirror in the kitchen," Belle said, going there to investigate.
"It's odd how similar yet different we are, even just by looking around your house," Rose said. "Your father is an inventor, while mine makes music boxes. You also seem to be more well-off than my family was."
"Yet you still both traded your lives for your father's and taught a beast how to love," Mrs. Gold said.
Rose gave a hum just as Belle returned with an ornate mirror in her hands. "Here it is," she said, holding it up for the others to see. "Now then, show me where Adam is."
The mirror crackled with green magic, the reflective surface shifting to show what looked like a giant castle with blue and white coloring. "Another castle? Perhaps he is visiting other royalty," Rose guessed.
"That's odd," Belle stated. "The mirror normally shows exactly what you ask it."
"There is a lot of magic in the air as of late," Robin Hood said. "There might be some interference from an outside source."
"Then the game is afoot," Basil said, hopping over to Belle's shoulder. "I saw this very castle on our why here, so if this mirror is our only clue, we must follow it to its end."
"I'll take you there," Robin offered. "No one has ventured outside of Fantasyland, so you'll need some protection on your way there. I'll see if there is anyone else that wants to journey with us as well."
"Thank you," Belle said. She turned to Rose and Mrs. Gold and asked, "Are you going to go on this adventure with us as well."
"I think I'll stay here," Rose said.
"As will I," Mrs. Gold added. "Our loved ones are still out there somewhere, so we might have to go on our own adventures to find them."
Belle smiled in understanding and handed the two the magic mirror. "Then please, take this. It'll help you find who you're looking for as well."
[***]
Unknown Location
HE waited in anticipation, looking towards the wall where a single full-sized mirror awaited him. The image on the mirror slowly changed, showing the ones he was waiting for on the other side.
"We have obtained the magic mirror," Rose said, her voice monotone and static.
"And the princess is on her way towards your domain," Mrs. Gold said, her voice equally emotionless.
"Then the time will come soon when I will be free of this prison," HE said, yellow eyes wandering around the many trinkets in the room with him. "The masters of these realms think that I am still bound in the Wasteland, but soon their champions will be the reason that I will be released! Go now, my Blotlings, and seek more powerful artifacts for me to use in my conquest of the Magic Kingdoms!"
Rose and Mrs. Gold replied with a "Yes, Master," before transforming into shapeless, black creatures that looked to be made of ink, running off to do HIS bidding. There was only one villain that HE could be, one that even the other villains would not dare associate with:
The Phantom Blot was making his move.
Author's Note
Bet you didn't expect that ending, did ya? I did say that I would be integrating the prompts with the main story going forward, and now we know who the big bad is going to be. Also, it looks like Belle is playing a part in the story as well, but we'll have to wait awhile before her group come back into focus.
This chapter was really fun to write. I wanted at least one chapter to poke fun at how there are multiple versions of characters thanks to the live-action reboots, and Belle was my choice for that since she is not only in the live-action remake of "Beauty and the Beast," but is also a character in the TV show "Once Upon A Time."
Next time, we'll check in with Oswald and what the others of the prophecy are up to.
Characters that premiered this chapter:
Belle (Beauty and the Beast)
Belle (Beauty and the Beast [2017 remake])
Belle (Once Upon A Time)
Basil of Baker Street (The Great Mouse Detective)
Robin Hood (Robin Hood)
The Beast/ Adam (Beauty and the Beast) Mentioned only
Rumpelstiltskin (Once Upon A Time) Mentioned only
Robin's Merry Men (Robin Hood) Mentioned only
The Phantom Blot (first appeared in "Mickey Outwits the Phantom Blot")
Blotlings (Epic Mickey)