Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN INTO THE WOODS, PLAY OR MOVIE! I only own Tom and the plot!
Chapter 2: The Princess
Tom was awoken by a wet snowflake landing on his nose. "Yay! Snow!" he thought sarcasticly. Even though it was almost April, Winter weather could last until June. From the look of the sky it had to be at least 10 in the morning, which meant he'd probably have frozen toes by now. Even in this weather he couldn't help but wanting to sleep some more. He had been in the middle of a wonderful dream in which Tom was rich enough to escort the beautiful Cinderella to the Festival and woo her with his charming personality. He never wanted to wake up. But, sadly, it was another day and, luckly, the bakery would be open.
As Tom trudged through the heavy snow he thought of Cinderella, her wide, curious eyes, high cheekbones, full lips, pale skin, and, of corse, that brown hair. He couldn't keep his mind from wondering to her figure, her long, slim legs, wide and curvy hips... "stop it!" he thought. He was already out of the woods and meandering down the road to the bakery. As Tom peered in the window he counted at least four other people. Good, at least he won't seem odd. At least, if no one focused on his ragged, dirty clothes.
He opened the door and was hit with the mouth-watering smell of fresh bread. The baker was busy at the counter so Tom went in search of Cinderella. She wasn't in the front room, so he snuck past the counter while the baker and an old woman with her two blind daughters argued about how many rolls a baker's dozen was. As he turned a corner to peer up the stairs, he was almost ran over by two childeren who couldn't be older then 12. The girl in the wolf skin cape was weilding a knife as she chased the young boy and stole a cookie on her way out the door. With a laugh, Tom began to climb the stairs. He ended up in a small room only occupied by a cradle where a baby was sleeping, one child sized bed, two larger beds, and a young woman sweeping the floor. Cinderella. She looked up after a moment and raised her broom as though she'd stab him with it. She probably would. "I just want to talk," he managed to squeek out.
"So, the baby is the baker's, the boy named Jack killed a giant, and the girl with the knife who we call Red was eaten by a wolf and cut out of it's stomach by the baker. You all worked together to find a cow, a cape, some hair, and a shoe to give to a witch so the baker could have said baby. Do I have everything," he asked, just so he knew we were on the same page. "Yes," she replied bluntly. God, even her voice was beautiful. "You look familiar," he said. She replied with an amazing laugh, "Well we did meet last night." Oh, what Tom would give to hear those words in a different context. He ignored that thought, however, and said, "No, I feel like I've seen you before that." Tom never would have forgotten a face like hers. She could've been royalty...
"You're the princess," he realized. "I was," Cinderella answered with a snort. Now that caught my attention. No one left a prince once they were engaged, much less when they were married. Tom had to ask, "What happened?" "The prince will not be a good king. That's all you need to know," she said calmly. He sat there, trying to understand what just happened, when he heard the baker come up the stairs. Tom quickly stood to face the man. The baker's face filled with rage at the sight of Tom. "Get out of my house! Go home! It's almost nightfall," he yelled at Tom. Tom cowered back a bit but tried to act brave in front of Cinderella. "I have no home," he said, "I sleep in an old willow tree in the woods." He could almost feel Cinderella's eyes widening. "Would you happen to know where I could find some free housing," he asked the baker. The baker thought for a moment before answering, "you can stay here until the storm ends." Storm? Tom didn't know there was a storm. He turned to the window to see a blanket of snow on the ground below and a whirl of white and grey in the sky. He nodded his head, "thank you." What the baker said next made Cinderella's eyes grow even bigger. "You'll sleep with Cinderella in her bed. Red will have to sleep with Jack in the smaller bed."
A/N: Clifhanger! That's the second chapter of Wishes. Next chapter promises some Red/Jack sprinkles and story time. By the way, I see Cinderella as 17-18 and Red and Jack as 12-14 years old. I've had people ask me so just putting it out there. Please reveiw and favorite if you think it is worthy. No flames, but constructive critisim is always welcome. See you next chapter! Bye! ~Stay Classy~ (like the closer?)