Chapter Eight: Warts and Needles

Bloom wiggled her toes at the fire, her feet resting up on the stool while she watched Stella agonize over her wardrobe and jewellery. In Stella's words the fashion of the fairy tale world was "So intentionally rugged and awful" and she was trying to make the best of it, spending the last half an hour going over every article of clothing Red owned and making comments. After the whole situation with Countess Cassandra Bloom had literally been on her knees begging for the horror to stop, the older woman lying unconscious on her front lawn, Stella complaining loudly about her hand and Miss F charging out the front door wand in hand demanding to know where the danger was. So after a lot of explaining and panicking Bloom had convinced Miss F to zap the Countess back to her own home and to get Stella inside and out of the danger of punching anyone also. Bloom vividly remembered the words Miss F had said to her before she disappeared into a puff of smoke.

"The girl's got a hell of a right hook on her" Miss F remarked as they walked slowly toward the front gate, the street beyond strangely quiet for once. Bloom smiled "I've seen her use that right hook in order to secure a ridiculous amount of dresses in the past from pesky store clerks, she's my best friend"

After a moment "She didn't seem to have that attitude yesterday night when I met her, she seemed more...modest and shy. This girl is all..." Miss f did a big show of looking girly and observing her nails. Bloom laughed and nodded "I know It's terrible but don't worry" She opened the gate and waited until Miss F reached the other side "I'm all over it"

Miss F smiled back at her "Okay just be sure to-"

"Stay out of the woods and not go near any wolves" Bloom finished for her "Yeah I got it"

Miss F turned a fraction to walk away but paused for a moment; turning back to Bloom she gave her a serious look "Bloom I wouldn't bring this up unless it wasn't important but...I would like you to come and see me some time. Of course come in the day and walk fast through the woods but I really would like to talk to you about some things"

Bloom leaned forward and whispered "Things?"

"Magical things" Miss F whispered back and Bloom had the sudden urge to chuckle, Miss F seemed so paranoid in this universe, she always expected her to be level headed and strong. Bloom nodded solemnly and answered "Sure, soon" Soon...

"Ugh god I'm in the nine circles of magical hell" Stella muttered as she surveyed the three dresses she had draped over the wooden table, she stood with her hands on her hips and a quizzical expression.Her hair was washed and now slightly damp, she wore a lavender dress that was made out of cheap silk. It was the only thing in Red's wardrobe that even came close to Stella's standard of clothing "How do they live in these drab and colourless clothes, are they mentally insane or just posses bad taste?"

"Stella" Bloom warned the blond girl from her armchair "If you're gonna act like Cinderella you should at least dress like her. Cindy is very sweet and kind, with a sort of gentle nature"

Stella turned to her "And I don't have that?"

Bloom paused for a moment "NO" Stella rolled her eyes and turned back to the table "I don't want to be Cinderella, I've read the fairy tale and she's just such a pushover! I'm a princess, royalty with money and servants and a thousand dresses. Not some serving girl with tacky clothes that gets up at the crack of dawn to serve her own family. No! I won't do it!" She picked up a small pair of white fur gloves and slapped them down on the table.

"It's just for a day or two; don't princesses know how to act? Anyway I'm not sure how much you'll even be leaving this house that much, what with your little stunt this morning with Cassandra" Bloom rubbed her temple with a slight ache in her temple.

Stella chuckled and leaned against the fireplace "The witch had it coming! But on the plus side, you said that Brandon was the Prince I'm destined to marry" She gave a happy little bounce "I could live with that. I've always wanted to see him in that richly dressed suit with that sexy attitude only a prince can pull off" She stared off into the distance while twirling her hair around her fingers. Bloom furrowed her eyes brows and tried to not think too much into it. Truthfully she was feeling a bit lonely herself; she really wanted to see Sky. Probably one of the best things about this little adventure was that she got to fall in love with Sky all over again, it made her so happy. But getting there was a real bitch though. Stella snapped out of her thinking and gave Bloom a once over "So you're Red Riding Hood? I don't really know the story very well, since it's an earthly story and I was only interested in reading the ones about true love and princesses. But don't you have to be eaten by a wolf and if Miss F is your granny then shouldn't we be protecting her?"

Bloom closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the chair "Granny can handle herself, if she has the power to turn even Cinderella into a princess and the bravery to live out in the woods with a killer wolf on the loose then she's gonna be okay. Still I've seen the wolf...it's really...vicious"

"Bloom of the Dragon fire is scared of a little wolf? Do you not remember all the monsters we've faced and all the pesky villains we've brought down? The Trix must be worse than some little dog" Stella looked down at her nails and tried to pry the dirt from under them in disgust. Bloom felt a chill go down her spine, after a long time she whispered "This isn't just some dog Stella. I think it's something more, you guys have it easy all you have to do is fall in love and I have to battle a monster"

"Oh is Riven suddenly all smiles and rainbows? You're crazy if you don't think that Musa won't kill him before all this is over, that man is such a grouch. Totally don't know why she puts up with that beast"

Bloom came out of her dark thoughts of wolves and smiled "She's loves him"

Stella got a strange look on her face "I wish Tecna was here, she'd know how to explain it to me" Stella suddenly gave Bloom a threatening look "And don't tell her I said that, ever!"

"Okay" Bloom rose from her chair and stretched on her feet "I have to go and deal with some stuff, you stay here and don't let anyone inside" After a moment a thought she added "Unless it's a prince with a glass slipper then by all means go nuts" Stella smiled and clapped her hands, literally bouncing on the spot "I'm so excited. Brandon. The handsome prince desperately searching for his lost princess, I can't wait!"

Bloom walked to the door and pulled on the woollen and fur cloak, securing it tightly "I suppose there's no point in telling you to behave, is there?"

Stella had settled into the armchair with her legs crossed, a smug and mischievous look on her face, she shook her head with a sly smile. Bloom nodded and turned to the door, at the last moment she turned and pointed a finger at Stella "You. Stay. Here"

"Where are you going?!" Stella asked in a childish voice.

Bloom yelled through the closing door "To find Flora. She knows me and she knows I know you, if I ever want Brandon to find you and make you his queen I can't let Flora interfere; I have to make her stay away from the whole thing. I don't need fairy tales combining, I'm already confused enough"

...

"What do you mean you didn't cast the spell on Aurora?" Countess Cassandra asked in an annoyed voice, she stared through the window of her living room with a scornful expression. Even Queen Icy who sat behind her didn't want to test her in this mood, the queen shrugged her shoulders "Well I was planning to lure her up to the tower last night after the announcement of the future queen but a certain servant of yours made a scene and ruined everything. The stupid girl hasn't left her brothers side all day, she insists she can help find the missing girl, her and her stupid kind heart!"

Cassandra turned from the window and gave the queen a look, an ugly blackish bruise forming under both her eyes, her nose was also bent in a strange way "You swore you could get the prince to choose my daughter for queen, I didn't mean my step daughter the queen of the pig slop! Now I have to find a way to get Chimera and Prince Brandon together on my own terms!"

Icy resisted the urge to shoot to her feet "The plan was that you help me with my spell to get rid of the bloody princess and in exchange I would get the prince to marry your air headed daughter but that didn't happen now did it? All because of that damn servant of yours!" Icy paused and gave the countess a look "What happened to your face?"

Countess Cassandra fists her hands and screamed at the ceiling "That damn servant of mine! This morning she assaulted me in plain daylight for yelling at her, as is my rite to yell for disobeying my orders! The wench is out of control, a completely different person. And now she's staying with that farm girl next door, the orphan"

Icy paused and clocked her head to the side "The one with the red hair? She was at the ball last night, with your servant. She was also speaking to the prince's squire and the princess aurora, she could be troublesome" Icy rose and walked to the window, the two ladies watched as the girl in question exited her house while adjusting her cloak with a troubled expression "You know...we could hit four birds with one stone"

The countess whipped her head to stare at the white haired queen "What do you mean?"

Icy continued to watch the girl walk down the street "We can get rid of that pesky servant and that nosy friend of hers, we can also rid ourselves of the princess AND ensure a union between Chimera and the prince"

The countess was staring wide eyed now "How?"

Icy smiled and pointed a finger at the house next door "If she's left...then that means your servant is home all alone"

...

"And so you see your majesty the whole thing was just a huge mess. My friend Cindy is really shy and hates to be the centre of attention" Bloom said as she sipped her tea facing the Princess Flora who as giving her her full attention "In fact I think that it would be best if...Prince Brandon were to find her himself...I think that would be better for everyone, with your help of course"

Flora put down her tea and clasped her hands together, she spoke after a long moment "Your friend Cinderella, I understand, is of a...umm...modest financial situation. You said this was a problem for her? I know my brother already knows that she's..."

"Poor?" Bloom finished for me, she could see that flora was trying to be un offensive and not judge. Best to help her through it.

Flora nodded "Yes and it didn't seem to be a problem with him. I think he loves her, very much. He's been in a state every since she ran away last night. Why did she run?"

"She doesn't believe she's worthy" Bloom explained in a courteous voice but on the inside she was holding in laughter. The image she was painting of Cindy was NOTHING like Stella was now, if she had her way Stella would barge into the castle and throw herself at Brandon but Bloom couldn't let that happen, there were rules! "If you could come and talk to her and perhaps convince her that she belongs with him then that would make her feel better, then you could tell Brandon where she is and he could come and find her at my house. They have their reunion without any complications or hesitations and everyone's happy" Okay there were rules to fairy tales you had to follow, like the ending being the same but there wasn't anything wrong with giving the characters a little nudge in the right direction. Plus the whole point of Flora's visit was to keep an eye on her; she didn't want Cassandra, Icy or the freaking King interfering with Flora's fairy tale. She already had enough trouble dealing with Stella's!

Flora nodded deep in thought "Yes you're right. They're obviously in love and if I want my brother to be happy then I have to convince my new sister in law that she is perfect for him. And he can NEVER know I interfered" Bloom nodded frantically "Alright let's go to your house!"

...

Stella stared up at the ceiling in total boredom; she was cuddled up in the armchair by the fire waiting for Bloom to come back. She was also anxiously waiting for trumpets to sound and announce the prince's arrival any minute now! Smiling she thought of how she'd get all teary and give the guy the small smile of a girl about to be propose too, then after accepting he'd swing her up into his arms and kiss her. Her thoughts were interrupted by a small knock on the door; Stella glanced at the door in curiosity. Well it's not trumpets! Stella stood and waltzed over to the door, fixing her hair she smiled and opened it.

And almost had a stroke.

On the threshold, instead of a handsome prince, hunched an old beggar lady with pale skin and a huge nose that threatened to poke Stella's eye out with a huge wart jutting out the end of it. She had to physically stop herself from cringing; forcing a smile she asked "Can I help you?"

The old woman spoke in a raspy voice "Hello my dear, I'm the towns old beggar lady" Stella clocked her head to the side with her sympathetic face "I travel from place to place and live off the land and the people's kind generosity, it's the only thing an old woman my age can do at this point in her life. And well, I was walking down your street enjoying the sunlight-"

"Oh I do love sunlight!" Stella gushed with a smile.

The woman smiled and nodded "Oh yes don't we all. And I happened to see that beautiful apple tree on the front lawn and I thought perhaps we could do a little bartering in exchange for a bushel or two?"

Unfortunately for Stella and everyone involved in this little adventure, Stella had skipped over the part in fairy tales where you're not supposed to invite old ladies with warts into your house talking about apples and stuff, she always would just skip to the happy ending and not bother to read the details. So it wasn't surprising when she exclaimed happily "Well of course you can! We always have more apples, don't we? What can you offer in exchange?"

The old woman gave the slightest hint of pure deviousness in her eyes but her voice remained the same "Well I do have this" From out of nowhere the old hag produced a long, finely stitched, red cloak. Stella's eyes went wide as she observed the fine piece of clothing, she mumbled in shock "Red Riding Hood" taking it into her hands she felt the heavy smooth fabric and felt a rush of excitement at helping Bloom with her own fairy tale. Stella nodded enthusiastically "Yes yes it's perfect, thank you!"

The old woman smiled "Oh but the clasp...it's a little broken. You'll need to sew it back on in order to keep the cloak usable and working, I just so happen to have the thread and needle all ready for you. Here you are my dear" The old hag produce a long piece of red thread and tied to the end was a needle with a strange purplish glint to the end. Stella accepted it thankfully "I'll sew it on right away! Here's your apple" She fetched a shining red apple from the basket and handed it to the old woman.

The woman smiled once again, more sinister this time, and said "You have a nice day dear"

...

Bloom walked side by side with Flora peeking over her shoulder every three seconds to make sure the queen or king or prince or squire wasn't lurking behind them, it made her very uneasy to think of what would happen if she ran into any of them. Flora walked calmly with grace and her head held high and Bloom was pleasantly surprised to notice that she seemed more confident and commanding in this universe, whenever a servant would cross them she bow her head politely instead of smiling and sputtering out a "Hello" like back home. They rounded a corner to walk into the grand foyer when Bloom stopped dead in her tracks, after a moment she gripped Flora by the shoulders and hoisted her back around the corner.

"What are you doing? What's wrong?" Flora asked looking around the hall for an signs of danger. Bloom was peeking around the corner with wide eyes.

"Holy crap would you look at that?" Bloom muttered quietly.

Flora leaned over beside her and chuckled "It's just Brandon and Sky"

"And half the royal guard! If we go out that way we'll have twenty guys tackling us within seconds" Bloom explained, eyeing the mass of heavily armoured guards with dread. They all clearing blocked the exit and had a feeling trying to sneak past them would prove insanely difficult, especially if Sky saw her. Groaning under her breath she looked over at Flora who was smiling next to her "Something amusing your highness?"

Flora smiled wider "Oh it's just so nice to see Brandon so focussed on getting your friend back; I've known him since he was little and let me tell you, he was a total ladies man up until last night. I think Cinderella is the first girl ever to reject him but I think that's what makes him love her more" Flora sighed and rested her head against Bloom's shoulder dreamily. Bloom noted that she looked a little envious and felt a small bit on envy herself. What she wouldn't give to go and run into Sky's arms at this moment. Sighing she stood up straight "Is there a back entrance to this place?"

Flora nodded and took her by the hand leading her back down the hall. Soon they were walking out into the warm sunshine and finally Bloom let out the breath she had been holding since they started walking again, sneaking around castles was a tense thing. But all of that air came choking back in when she spotted a man on a white horse riding toward them, she was also surprised when Flora gasped and dragged her into a nearby stable. Bloom almost tripped and landed in the hay but only Flora's tight grip on her wrist stopped her "Hey! Whatcha doing?"

Flora was practically hyperventilating, gripping the wooden door with both hands and peeking out the crack in between the wood "It's him!"

Bloom waited for a moment for her to continue but when she stayed silent Bloom just trotted over to the door and peeked out, and then laughed. The scene was so perfect! HELIA on a white horse with his hair all loose and clean white and brown pants and shirt were finely stitched and he had this far away look on his face, the one you get when you stare at the ocean at sunset. And Flora was practically drooling over him. Oh gods of Magix...thank you! Thank you so much! "Oh do you know him?" Bloom asked an innocent voice.

Flora swallowed "A little. We umm, we met about a week ago in the forest, I was picking flowers and he just appeared out of nowhere. We talked and he said he was a friend of my brothers; we rode back to the castle together. I don't even know his name!" Flora closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the wooden door, a red blush creeping into her cheeks.

Bloom wanted to giggle girlishly but instead she asked "You really like him?"

Flora peeked over at her and whispered "I don't know him! That would be shameless of me to have feelings for a gentleman that I don't even know, there are things a princess must find out before she becomes emotionally attached to a man-why are you laughing?!"

Bloom was in tears "Oh Princess Aurora! That's adorable! Could you get any sweeter?" She faced the girl with a smile "You don't need to know him; you just have to know what you feel! In your heart. Listen to the heart, screw what you brain and I suspect what the queen says. If you like him go and talk to him"

Flora's face paled slightly but after a moment she nodded, opening the door she exited the stable and walked toward Helia who was leading his horse over to the stable boy. Whipping out the creases in her dress she walked up behind him and smiled "H-hello" Helia turned around and gave her a surprised smile, Bloom could feel the heat from her face all the way beside the stable.

"Hello, you're here" He said simply.

"Yes I'm here" Flora replied with a small laugh that was full of nerves "I was hoping to run into you again. Ever since that day in the forest I've been wondering about you"

Helia smiled "Me too, it's not every day I meet a beautiful princess in the woods, hard thing to forget"

Flora laughed and fidgeted "You didn't come to the ball last night?"

Helia inclined his head to the right "I wanted too, I'm sorry. I had things to do, I couldn't miss them. But I also felt a little hesitant...about coming"

Flora looked up at him curiously "Oh why?"

"Well" Helia looked embarrassed now, he glanced at the hay covered ground "The truth is I was worried that If I came to the ball then maybe I'd be disappointed and find you with a fiancée or a husband?"

Flora laughed in relief "Oh gosh no! No I'm not married, well not yet anyway. But now that we have met up again...maybe we could introduce ourselves properly" Flora stood up straighter and did a little curtsey "I'm Princess Aurora"

Helia bowed back "Prince Helia" He took her hand and gave it a light kiss. Flora went as red as ever, eyes going wide and smile getting impossibly big. Bloom chuckled and watched them in excitement, then a strange thought came into her head. Hmm, if I hadn't came here and spoken to Flora and had us sneak out the back, would they still have met? I'll bring it up with Stella...Oh Stella! I've let her at the house for over a whole hour; god knows what damage she's done. Please please restrain yourself Stella! Bloom sighed and walked over to the smiling couple, she bowed her head at Helia and addressed Flora "Your majesty we should be going, time is running out"

Flora nodded seriously "Oh of course!" She turned back to Helia "Will you be staying for dinner, I'd like it if we could talk some more"

"Princess I wouldn't miss it for the world" Helia bowed again and walked away. Bloom had to drag Flora from the stables and get her into a carriage after that.

...

Stella happily waited next to the wooden table with glee, she was happy about being able to help Bloom find her red cloak and it had only cost her an apple! So she was ready to burst with excitement when she heard a carriage pull up outside, her first thought was Brandon but when she saw Flora and Bloom emerge from the carriage she got a bit confused. Bloom would want her to act modest and stuff for the princess and be like Cinderella. Stella suppressed a groan and smiled instead, opening the door and walk out onto the lawn.

She saw Bloom give her a warning look over Flora's shoulder but Stella ignored it. She smiled and bowed for the richly dress Princess "Your majesty, it's an honour"

Flora smiled at her with a grateful expression and took her hand "No, the honour is mine. I've been wanting to see you since last night, so has my brother. He's been looking for you ever since you ran; he was so confused and happy at the same time. You have no idea how much we've all been waiting for this moment, the moment when my brother would fall in love with a nice, beautiful girl"

Stella was stunned in silence; she'd never heard Flora so formal before. Polite maybe but not THIS polite "Umm, I'm glad I could just meet him and see what a wonderful man he is"

Flora nodded and smiled with glee "I understand you have some hesitations about entering the royal life and I'm here to help you sort them out. To help you understand that even though you're of humble birth you'll fit right in"

Stella's smile faltered and she glared over at Bloom with rage. Hesitations! What the hell? I'm not nervous! What has Bloom been spoon feeding them in that castle; I'm ready to go now. I could show them a thing or two about being a princess! Bloom spotted the look and quickly jumped in "Why don't we go inside and have some tea?"

The three girls walked into the cute warm little house and sat down at the table, Flora was strangely fascinated by the little cottage and kept observing all the little knick knacks around everywhere. Once seated Stella started to pour the tea and listen to Flora talk while Bloom excused herself for a moment to walk into the laundry room. Stella thought nothing of it and continued to listen to Flora try and convince about the great lifestyle of being in the royal family, so you can imagine her surprise when Bloom suddenly appeared behind her and slammed a shovel into the back of Flora's head.

Stella shot from her chair and screamed, eyes going back and forth between Bloom and Flora in panic. Flora had been knocked out and was slumped over the table while Bloom stood over her looking smug "What-What the hell is wrong with you?! Why did you do that?! Don't you know she's a princess?!" Stella yelled, running a hand over Flora's hair to check for any bleeding.

Bloom put down the shovel and sighed "I'm testing something"

Stella gave her a panic look "What?! Have you lost your marbles?"

Bloom sat down next to the unconscious Flora "Listen, when Musa came back to her old self she had just fallen down a cliff and you had just hit your head falling down the palace stairs, I think this should bring her back to her old self. And no offense but you suck at acting like a peasant"

Stella lowered herself into a chair and tried to slow her heart, sweat had formed on her forehead and she was ready to pass out "D-don't do that again, please"

"Not promising anything" Bloom replied while she picked up her tea and slipped it, looking over she noticed a long red cloak hanging over the post on the bed and gave it a curious look "Stella...what happened while I was gone?"