Chapter Thirteen
MR. V
After burning through the midnight oil and four cups of coffee, plucked the page from the typewriter, Mr. V skimmed over the lines checking for typos and spelling errors, and carefully set it into the proper file folder that would be used for the much later adventures from their missions. He leaned back in his chair, his bones creaking and popping for sitting still for so long, satisfied with his work and saw that black cat sitting in the shadows at the edge of his desk. He blinked once, twice, then thrice to make sure he wasn't seeing things before rubbing his face to know he wasn't sleeping and grimaced at the cat. "Varuo."
"Someone is up busy working late," Varuo crooned with his tail tapping on the floor.
"You are too if you're here to check up on me." He snorted and sipped his coffee. "All I have to do is call the staff in to take the journals back."
"Well aren't you being good," the cat rolled his eyes at him then trotted over to his desk. Varuo hopped up on the desk and sat smack dab in the middle of the desk and looked seriously at Mr. V. "I must speak with you."
"Okay?" he gently pushed his chair a half roll back to put some distance between them. "What about?"
"We shall discuss it once you have dismissed the Staff for the night." He draped himself over the magic coaster. Mr. V felt his eyebrow twitch but held his coffee tightly in his hands. Varuo was unpleasant most days and avoided Mr. V whenever he could, the fact the black cat was reaching out to him meant that there was truly a serious matter to be discussed; he was sure it had something to do with Ms. Scatter. He stood with a huff and stretched his joints out before looking at the cat, "Very well."
He grabbed his cane and with three soft taps, butlers and maids all appeared. Eleven in total. Frederick, the oldest of the staff who was once a hunter, was Adam Apple Poison's Butler. He was old and grey and wrinkly with the most knowledge of all of the stories from Snow White because he could not kill her.
Tres, an older man with the cheeks as puffy as a bulldog and thinning black hair with brown eyes and buttons, stripes, and laces all in the patterns of threes was Jack Heart's Butler. He was one of the poor Card Soldiers that painted the Queen of Heart's roses red.
Izabella and Cubbi were Lady Jane Hook's Maid and Butler. Izabella was a petite woman with wavy caramel brown hair with touches of pink highlights and brown eyes. Cubbi was a tall broad-shouldered man with blond hair and thundering blue eyes. Lady Jane had to have one of each for when she had her tantrums when she was drunk. Izabella provided her with the right amount of magic to keep the hangovers away while Cubbi restrained her when necessary and stood guard in her room at night to prevent her from escaping too easily.
Diaval, Maleficent's raven whom she cast aside once he was no longer useful to her in his old age, was Malfie's Butler. Due to his old age Maleficent cursed him to be a human for the remainder of his days to walk about the Realm to endure a long and torturous death without flight.
Cecil de Vil, Cruella's brother and the failure of their family, was Dalmatia's Butler. Like the other Vil's he had the half and half black and white hair which he kept pulled back in a long ponytail and had the same cold black eyes. He was here because he had fallen in love with a young artist who he gave his everything to and was left with nothing in return.
Urchin, an orphan that had been found walking the streets of the Anti-Realm, was Eight Foot Joe's Butler and Ex-Friend. He had blonde hair, a scrunched nose covered in freckles, and seaweed green eyes. Although he was supposed to help Joe out, Joe did not seem to want his help in particular.
Sharma, Princess Jasmine's worrywart and OCD cousin tried to help the wrong person at the wrong time and ended up in the Anti-World, was Farja's Maid. She favors Jasmine but looks much older and is much more organized and has an extreme over compulsive disorder that actually keeps Farja's airheaded-ness in check and put together.
Shenzi, the female hyena from Scar's Realm in the world of lions, was Jamilia Scar's Maid. Not wanting to be a henchman any longer, Shenzi set out to discover her own path and eventually turned into a human after being in the Anti-Realm for so long. However, with low communication skills due to her Beast language, she got a job here and is one of the best guards to keep the low lives away from the castle; though she has made a mess of the backyard burying people. . .
Madelaine, a young blonde with green eyes who was sold by her circus ringleader, was Veil's Maid. She spoke little but worked very hard and had tremendous balance.
Cassandra, a glaring woman that walks as if she is in a ghostly trance, was Ember Shade Hades' Maid. She had curling long brown hair and piercing ice blue eyes that read in the innermost parts of the soul. She was here because she was destined to be.
With everyone there and accounted for Mr. V walked down the line and handed them the journals that they were to return to their Recruits. As each one received the journal that they were supposed to return, they turned and left to fulfill their duties. As the last one filed out Mr. Po entered his office. He had a robe wrapped around him, as if he had just gotten out of bed. Mr. V couldn't help but raise his eyebrow at him. "What brings you here, Po?"
"I came to inform you that the Recruits have all gone to bed," Mr. Po answered with a soft chuckle. There was a worrisome look in his eye that told Mr. V that he was not here for a simple check-in. "For once they did as they were told with little to no fighting."
"They'll be gossiping when they get back to their rooms," Mr. V grunted and crossed his arms. Ms. Scatter's little outburst would have them teeming with curiosity for the next week. "Make sure you tell them not to harass Ms. Scatter with questions and things; that goes for you two as well."
"Wouldn't dream of it." Mr. Po's brow wrinkled with concern. "How is she?"
"As well as anyone can be in the situation, she set herself up for it," he sighed and ran a hand through his dreadlocks. "She's got a smile on her face and is pretending that everythin' is all right, but I think that it is safe to say she's definitely shaken by things."
"Did she tell you anymore about what she meant?" Mr. Po pressed with a voice thick with concern. "About how she broke her Realm?"
"No." He said flatly and gave him a warning look. "It is a sensitive matter for her and no one, I repeat, no one," he gave him a look forewarning him to keep Ms. Villa's mouth shut, "is to ask her any questions regarding that topic. She will talk to us when she's ready, so until then leave her be."
"Of course," Mr. Po cleared his throat awkwardly. Mr. V figured he was here in place of Villa to get some sort of information to appease her curiosities to keep her from prying into Scatter's life. "Is there anything else you need me to do?"
Mr. V shook his head and covered the yawn that rose up in his mouth. "Ms. Scatter and I already worked on the mission logs from the Recruits. You came in right as I was havin' them returned."
"I see," Mr. Po nodded his head. "You could have waited for me to arrive to help with that."
"I think Scatter wanted somethin' to do to take her mind off of things. . ." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Besides, the two of you were already taking care of the Recruits."
Mr. Po gave a nod of understanding before falling into a thoughtful silence, as though he wanted to say something to Mr. V. Mr. V could practically hear the gears turning his Mr. Po's skull and waited to hear what he had to say. However, Mr. Po surprised him by releasing a sigh and bidding him goodnight before leaving the way he came. With his arms crossed Mr. V watched as he entered the elevator and couldn't help but wonder what he wanted to ask him; perhaps it wasn't something important after all.
He rubbed his face irritably and turned to see Varuo, still draped across the desk, yawning at him as he waited for him to finish. The tip of his tail casually flicked in impatience. With the Staff, or the Failed Staff as Ms. Scatter dubbed them earlier, and with his fellow Hosts gone, he hoped that Varuo was ready for his discussion. He finished his coffee and set the mug on the table, "There, are you happy now?"
The cat yawned, stretched, and sat up, "More or less."
"What is it that you wanted to talk to me about?" He grunted as he looked at the cat expectantly.
"My Ashe, of course," he looked so stern as his ears stood up straight.
"What about Scatter?" Mr. V crossed his arms and tapped his finger impatiently.
"How. . ." his furry brow furrowed. "How is she doing?"
He almost couldn't believe his ears. "What?"
"Stupid peasant," he rolled his eyes. "How is Ashe doing?"
"Ms. Scatter is doing just fine," Now Mr. V's brow was furrowed, "at least from what I can tell."
"You obviously can tell very little judging by your translation and linguistic skills." Varuo scoffed.
Mr. V's right brow began to twitch, and he gritted his teeth as he could feel his lack of sleep catching up with him; or maybe it was just the cat getting on his nerves. "Get to the point you damn cat."
"Charming as always, Valentino." His black tail tapped irritably. "Ashe has been acting rather odd lately, and I need to know why."
"What do you mean she's acting odd?" he uncrossed his arms and grasped his cane. Mr. V knew very well what he meant but playing stupid to boost the cat's ego was sometimes best if he wanted to get more information out of him. Just like his companion, Varuo was particularly tight-lipped about anything involving their lives.
"Oh please," he rolled his eyes. "You cannot tell me you haven't noticed the eye color difference? Her eyes are so brown they're black. Lately they've been flashing amber or gold; it is very concerning."
Mr. V gave a halfhearted shrug, "I just thought it was something she did when she was irritated with me."
"Oh please, you really think that she would show flashes of her true powers to you because you simply bother and tease her?" He hissed slightly as he glared at Mr. V. "You are quite bold to think so highly of yourself."
"You know that is not what I meant tomcat," he pointed his cane at him as he had an even glare towards the cat. "Quit makin' me guess and tell me what is going on!"
"For someone who is supposed to be running things around here," Varuo merely sat higher and straighter to look down on him, "you certainly don't know much about your staff."
"Varuo," his grip on his cane tightened as he fought the urge to swat at the cat. "I swear –"
"Silence, peasant, I am trying to warn you." He sat ultimately still. "Do not make her stay in that room with the Wardrobe again."
"The Wardrobe?" He blinked in utter confusion. That is practically all he heard was that there was something going on in the Wardrobe room. "Did something happen?"
"Yes," Varuo's voice grew quiet and his little ears dropped slightly. "Yes, something did happen."
All the anger in him went cold and sent chills down his spine as he looked at the cat. "Is Scatter okay?"
"Ashe is fine, now, so to speak. . ." his tail began to flick again. "She is fine so long as she is not in that room, however, she would probably be much better if you stopped asking her questions or probing her about her past." Mr. V remained completely still. He was guilty of that this evening, and though he managed to warn Mr. Po to keep Villa's nosey nose out of things, there was no guarantee how well she would listen. "I know how nosey that Villa is so it is a good thing that you already told her to not pester Ashe, but still even you should know better. Some scars run deeper than the surface, and you don't want to see what has been lying deep within her. . ."
"What are you getting at, Varuo?"
"You know I hate repeating myself, Valentino." His eyes narrowed. "But I shall repeat it again for you, so pay attention. Do not allow her or make her go into the room with the Wardrobe, and do not bring up anything that would remind her of her past. She has already accidentally undone one Realm, she does not need to undo another one."
Mr. V dropped his cane. She had even told him herself, he only half believed her. He thought she was making the story up or blowing it out of proportion due to some sort of guilt she felt. If Varuo was really, really, really being honest, then it really happened. She really did destroy her Realm, or as Varuo worded, she undid her Realm. "What - ?"
"Don't even ask what happened, Valentino." He spoke sternly and his pupils turned into slits. "Just know that when those pretty eyes flash gold, something is coming undone."
And with that, the black cat hopped off the table and padded his way through the shadows and disappeared. Mr. V was left alone in his office with nothing but questions further filling his head. For Varuo to tell him to back off meant that there was much more to this than he knew; so, he needed to discover more. Perhaps the library would have more information. He left his coffee mug on the desk and immediately left his office to go to the elevator.
How does one destroy a Realm? Or as Varuo put it, undo a Realm?
Is that Realm forgotten?
Can the Realm be returned?
What happened to the Door Between Realms?
How has Ms. Scatter lived this long without her Realm?
If the Fantasia Realm was an Ancient Realm, just how old was Ms. Scatter?
The elevator dinged and Mr. V automatically went to the library. With the staff and the Recruits all turning in for the evening hours the first floor of the castle was silent; though the ghosts that loomed overhead had no problems whispering to keep him company. The tapping of his shoes and the clacking of his cane echoed down the halls as he walked, and he felt the eyes of the ghosts on him as they followed him down the long halls.
"Mr. V, Mr. V, Mr. V, Mr. V~ " The ghosts' voices echoed. "What are you doing here?"
"None of your concern." He grunted and pushed the large double doors open. The ancient smell of molding glue, fading pages, and long forgotten stories wafted in the air. He marched over to the Section of Realms and walked down the aisle searching for the books that held the histories and secrets of other Realms. The other Recruits would not be able to find this section as easily as their stories that they were trying to alter, and if they did their books that they would need would magically disappear. With Apfel being the first Realm in the 'A' category Mr. V walked all the way to the 'F' section.
Apfel Realm
Beast Realms
Car Realm
Dinosaur Realm
Enchanted Realm
Fantasy Realm
Fish Realm
Gothic Realm
Ghost Realm
Hero Realm
He immediately stopped and back peddled to the 'F' section and snatched the book of Fantasy from the shelf. He snapped open the cover, skimmed over the index before his eyes landed on the Fantasia Realm itself.
The Fantasia Realm of 1940
A world of music, beauty, and nature that grows and changes with each season and every new song that is played. A story is told with every song and all of the mythical beings that lived within lived peaceful lives of utter happiness and prosperity until the terrible evil was born from the mountain and turned it into a volcano.
Stories told within this Realm:
"The Sorcerer's Apprentice"
"The Rite of Spring"
"Dance of the Hours"
"Night on Bald Mountain"
"Ave Maria"
There was no mention of horrible circumstances in the first portion of the book. However, as he turned to the second half of the book, he found many blank pages.
The Fantasia Realm of 2000
The ever-growing world of music, beauty, and nature that has discovered new evils from within the volcano and has caused a massive disappearance to any more stories that could have grown . . .
The current status of this Realm is unknown since all life forces and forms of contacts, as well as the Door Between Realms, have miraculously disappeared.
Stories told within this Realm:
"The Pines of Rome"
"Rhapsody in Blue"
"The Steadfast Tin Soldier"
"Carnival of the Animals"
"The Sorcerer's Apprentice"
"Pomp and Circumstance"
"The Firebird"
Mr. V's brow furrowed as he flipped through the second half of the book. The first six titles all had some sort of story to them with pictures included, there were blank pages where the pictures of the Realm would have been there, but the entire story of "The Firebird" was completely blank. He flipped to the back of the book, just to make sure there was nothing hidden within, examined the pages to make sure they weren't glued together, before shaking his head in disbelief. Other than the golden and beautifully drawn title, there was nothing; no pictures, no story, nothing on 'The Firebird'; it was as if it didn't exist or hadn't happened yet. He tapped the handle of his cane to cause the skull bulb handle to glow purple to turn into a black light and he shined it over the pages, just in case they were written in invisible ink; there was nothing. It was as if the story had never happened, yet it was listed. . .
"Peculiar," Mr. V murmured to himself and flipped between the pages, as if half expecting the words to reappear on the pages. "Very peculiar. . ."
Ever so carefully, after being satisfied that the story would not reappear, he snapped the book closed and placed it back on the shelf. As it sat back in its place on the shelf, Mr. V could only stare at the book. It held more secrets than it wanted to show, and Mr. V was determined to uncover this secret. He would leave Ms. Scatter alone and would not ask her his questions, but he would most definitely get answers to his questions; one way or another.
Author's Note:
Thank you for reading! I hope you're enjoying it so far!
So here's just a little more information on the Failed Staff just so you as the reader can see who and where and what I pulled from. Who knows, maybe you'll recognize some of these names and it might make you a little nostalgic if you ever watched any of these.
Frederick - The Hunter & my own character by name only- Adam Apple Poison's Butler.
Tres - Number Three Card Soldier & my own character by name only - Jack Heart's Butler.
Izabella & Cubbi - Jake and the Neverland Pirates - Lady Jane Hook's Maid and Butler.
Diaval - Maleficent's raven from Maleficent - Malfie's Butler.
Cecil De Vil - Failed Uncle from 101 Dalmatians - Dalmatia's Butler.
Urchin (from the Little Mermaid TV Show) -The Orphan Merman - Eight Foot Joe's Butler and Ex-Friend.
Sharma (from the Aladdin TV show) - Jasmine's Cousin - Farja's Maid.
Shenzi - Female Hyena from Lion King -Jamilia Scar's Maid.
Madellaine - Hunchback of Notre Dame Two - Veil's Maid.
Cassandra (from the Hercules TV show) - Trojan War Prophet - Shade Hades' Maid
For those of you who have seen Fantasia, and for those who haven't, did you know that there was more than one? This was a little tricky to piece together, but I like where this is going so far. Let me know what you think. Also, what do you think about Ms. Villa and Mr. Po?
Please remember to leave a comment or review and share your thoughts with me! If you haven't been reading my other stories yet, I have one about Apple Poison, Jack Heart, and Ashe Scatter please check it out! Thank you for coming along with me on the journey, stay tuned!
Ko-fi/SarahtheWriter