Wish retold: Chapter 1
Disclaimer: The characters that appear in this work do not belong to me, they were created by and belong to Disney.
My version of Disney Wish.
King Magnifico may not be perfect, but he never pretended his love and concern for his people. But when one 17-year-old girl decides that the way he has been ruling the kingdom of Rosas is no longer good enough, he must protect his people from her reckless actions at all costs. Please forgive my language level, I am not a native English speaker. Please leave me a review, any help with my writing will be appreciated 😊.
Asha
Her heart was beating like crazy, and thoughts were flying one over the other.
What will she start with? He will surely ask her why it should be her in a first place. So, wait... WHY?! She knew answer just a minute ago, so how come she can't remember it now? Oh my, she really can't remember! It's nothing, she'll definitely figure it out somehow, because she's been preparing for this moment for so long. Just calm down, the main thing is to breathe deeply. But if she wheezes like this, he'll definitely notice how nervous she is and sends her home right away. After all, he won't choose someone, who is so horrified by just a simple conversation, as his student. And what if she can't talk at all? What if...
"Well, here we are," familiar voice woke her up. Queen Amaya stopped in front of a huge half-opened door that led to a room with several shelves and tables that were cluttered with books and yet it didn't look neglected or messy.
The queen looked at her kindly and with a gentle nod of her head motioned for her to enter the room. Asha swallowed loudly and froze for a moment, but quickly moved and crossed the threshold. She found herself in a circular hall that was definitely some kind of study or something, but it was one of the most beautiful places she had ever seen. The floor was decorated with a golden ornament of the sun, and in order to see the ceiling, you had to tilt your head until your neck cracked. Asha, mesmerized by the beauty, did a double turn on the spot, sparks of zeal shining in her eyes.
Amaya, who had been standing in front of the door smiling until now, noticeably cleared her throat, attracting Asha's attention.
"The king will come in a moment, for now wait for him here. I'll keep my fingers crossed that it works out for you."
"Queen, um, thank you, but why?" stammered Asha, taken aback.
"For you are kind, and we all know well how you love the people of Rosas. You can't hide something like that. That's what you have in common with the king. Well, I'll leave you here to calm down," with these words she closed the big door and Asha was left all alone. To calm down? So, after all, she really can't hide her nervousness...
It didn't take long, and the curiosity of the artifacts and books sorted on the shelves overcame the nervousness. She walked just past the wall, reading title after title, when suddenly a glass case with a single book appeared in front of her. The glass was decorated with beautiful patterns of some kind of winged animals, maybe birds or something like that.
She was about to touch the display case when a voice called out from behind her: "That book is forbidden."
Asha jerked off so hard that she got slapped with her own hair. She quickly pushed them away from her face and stared at the man standing on the other side of the room in front of a large dark wall that reached to the top of the ceiling. Was that wall still there? How comes she didn't notice it before? But, dammit, there's a king standing in front of her and she's staring at the wall. Perfect. Just perfect.
"No… I just wanted to… Those pictures are so pretty…" with a silly smile on her face, she quickly touched the glass to distract him from her inability to finish any sentence. She shouldn't have done that. The moment her hand touched the display case, the pictures that had adorned it just a short while ago, came to life completely. Literally. If only that! Not only did they come to life, but they immediately targeted Asha and started poking her in the face, trying to get her away from the mysterious book. Asha desperately waved her arms up and down, but the nasty little critters didn't want to give up for the living world and continued to attack her.
"Oh, I… I'm sorry, I enchanted that book so that no one could get to it. Now... Wait..." he tried to calm Asha down, but she continued to toss and turn and jump from place to place. The king sighed, raised his hands, and made a strange gesture with his fingers, after which the small creatures immediately retreated and were carried by the air vortex that came from Magnifico's fingertips back to the display case, where they merged with the glass again.
"So that's it..." Magnifico smiled, but his smile froze on his face when he saw Asha, who was still frantically waving her arms to defend herself against the non-existent enemy.
"Um, are you okay?" he asked, a little amused and a little confused. Asha finally opened her eyes and when she saw that the danger was averted, she straightened abruptly in embarrassment and turned to face the King who was looking at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Me? Yes, of course, everything is fine!" the words came right out of her, and she wasn't sure if the king even understood her. She didn't even know if her heart was still beating or if it stopped because of shame.
"Well, heh, you're Asha, right?"
"Yes, Your Highness, ready and extremely honored for this opportunity!"
"Then we can begin," Magnifico moved to one of the tables, indicated some kind of symbols in the air with his fingers, and immediately a piece of parchment shot from under the books and easily landed on a piece of free space right in front of the king. A quill flew to him from the other end of the table and remained suspended in the air above the parchment, ready to record whatever the king wished.
The interview started with some common questions which Asha answered. Unfortunately, not the way she had been practicing for months before. And no, to the question of why the king should choose her as his student, her answer not only did not come to her mind, but was even confused with the answer to a completely different question. Realizing this she froze again and just stared blankly into the unknown while the king tried to process what she just said.
"Actually... It was my father. While he was still here, we sat together under the stars, and he told me that wish is the most beautiful part of ourselves. And that it is important to protect this part of us. Even though he was already sick, I felt with him like…" her voice broke, and her eyes well up, a single tear ran down her cheek. It had been so long ago, and the pain was still there, alive and gnawing.
Magnifico closed his eyes for a moment and a downhearted expression settled on his face.
"Your father—I think I remember him. He was a philosopher, wasn't he?'
Asha nodded, the memory of her father bringing a sad smile to her face.
"I know what it's like to live with such a loss. When I was very young, before I learned how to use magic, I lost my home and everything I held dear," he spoke quietly, almost in a whisper. Asha had never heard this voice of his before and had never seen his face filled with so much sadness and pain, but these feelings flashed across his face for just a tiny moment. Whenever he performed at the wishing ceremony, he appeared majestic, steadfast and powerful. A smile almost never left his face. He seemed somehow more... human now.
Magnifico looked up and stared at the charred tapestry on the wall. He walked towards it and Asha followed him. Some unknown village was depicted on it and in the right corner, which apparently suffered the most in the fire, a family.
"Nobody that young should have to go through something like that. It's not fair, is it?'
"Well, it's not," Asha replied, "that's why I want to help you. I don't want this to happen to anyone else. "
This time her voice was firm and sure. That was what drove her forward. She won't let something like this happen to anyone else.
Magnifico no doubt noticed her determination.
"Follow me," he smiled contentedly, walking towards the strange wall with Asha at his heels. As they stepped in front of it, the king cut through the air with his hand and the wall split in the very center and opened like a huge hidden gate. Suddenly, the hall grew by half and was flooded with light from the many windows that overlooked the courtyard where the wishing ceremonies took place every month.
"That is exactly my task. To make sure what happened to me doesn't happen to anyone here at Rosas. I will protect this kingdom and its people at all costs. And protecting people also means protecting this," he pointed to the ceiling with his hand. Or better said, to what was floating in the air below the ceiling. Countless glowing blue orbs with the images of various people from Rosas. Wishes...
Asha gasped in amazement.
"These are..."
"Exactly, the wishes of the people of Rosas that they passed on to me. Whatever they are, I'm here to protect every single one of them. When you see them like that, it's magical, isn't it?"
"Magic is an understatement," Asha whispered.
Magnifico grinned proudly and with quick movements of his hands created a whirlwind that carried the orbs towards them. They floated and danced right between them, one more beautiful than the other.
Asha was speechless from the beauty. Her gaze quickly jumped from one glowing ball to another, examining the images that appeared in them, but suddenly she held her breath. Sabino's wish floated in one of the orbs, the one that had just flown to her. Her Sabino. Without thinking, she reached for the wish and clasped it tightly in her arms with both hands. It was a beautiful wish. Her grandfather wished to play his guitar and inspire and delight those around him. A wish so simple and beautiful.
The king noticed her interest, but his face flashed with disappointment for a moment. He walked over to her and stared at the glowing orb.
"That's my grandfather, Sabino. Heh, today is his birthday. A hundred years exactly! "
"Wow, that's a respectable age," he apparently didn't know what else to say.
"Your majesty," Asha began timidly, her gaze fixed on the wish in her hands, "you… Could you consider… granting him a wish at the ceremony today?"
The king stood still, visibly taken aback: "Ah, so... You're getting straight to the point. Others usually wait at least a month or two, maybe a year, until..."
"Oh no, sir! I just... I'm sorry, I apologize. I'm terribly sorry! Don't think…"
"No, it's perfectly fine. So, let's take a look at this wish," he raised his hand and Asha placed the orb in his palm with hope and a smile. He began to look at it with interest.
"It is truly a beautiful wish. To inspire others like this. But for what? Perhaps to rebellion? Or to a coup? "
"What? He would never..."
"Asha, I'm sorry, but this wish is too dangerous."
"Dangerous? Sabino wouldn't do anything to harm anyone in Rosas!"
"I'm sure he wouldn't," the king's face lost all expression. He raised his hand sharply and all the wishes, including Sabino's, flew back into the air, out of Asha's reach. Magnifico turned his back on her and walked towards the table on which was a cauldron and various alchemical devices.
Asha suddenly realized what was going on here.
"Do... do some wishes never come true?"
"Not some. The majority."
"But... That's not right! People give them to you with the hope that you will grant them their wishes. S-s-s-... So, if you don't intend to fulfill them, why don't you just return them?"
"What did you say?"
"Those wishes belong to the people of Rosas! If you don't fulfill them, they have the right to try to do it themselves!"
Magnifico placed some kind of vial with purple liquid back on the table and turned to Asha. His mouth was half open, apparently, he couldn't believe what he just heard.
It took him a while to regain his words: "Asha, are you even listening? You must understand that it is not possible to fulfill every wish.''
"And Sabino's? What is so dangerous about him? "
"Maybe nothing and maybe everything, Asha. I-I'm not saying that he belongs to people who have ulterior motives and that he would abuse the fulfillment of his wish, but we can't afford to take risks. My job is to protect Rosas and my people. Unfortunately, not everyone has only good intentions and you can never tell in advance. Think about it. "
"What about the wishes of others? Is each of them dangerous? Or... they just don't suit you?" she almost swallowed the last words.
Magnifico frowned this time and sighed heavily. Without taking his eyes off of Asha, he snapped his fingers and several wishes descended in front of him. He picked up the first one and showed it to her. In it, the woman flew up to the clouds together with the birds.
"They don't suit ME?! Just imagine this. I'm giving wings to this woman today, fine. What if tomorrow she falls and breaks her neck? Some children will lose their mother because of MY decision!"
The king released the orb back into the air and took another in his hands, where the young man became a legendary thief, whose adventures were written about in books.
"There's nothing wrong with wanting adventure, but if I grant this wish, how many people will he hurt on his way to glory, huh?! And if I give him back his wish and he tries to grant it himself, how many families will lose everything they have because of him before I stop him?! This particular person is the best baker in the entire kingdom today. He supports himself and his family with an honest trade. What will happen if I restore his memory of this particular wish? What will happen, Asha? Do you know the answer? "
"And this," the woman in the next orb steered the ship floating in space, "I guess it doesn't even need comment."
Asha stood speechless.
"I made a promise to protect my people and I will do it even if it means their wishes will never come true. At least they will live in safety and without memories of wishes, that would never come true anyway, they will also be happy."
Magnifico looked at Asha for a while longer, waiting for her reaction, but it still didn't come. He straightened up, adjusted his cloak, and turned his back on Asha again, "I think it's best if you go home now."
Asha was taken over by those words. She suddenly felt a courage so enormous that it overshadowed everything else.
"People in Rosas are good! They deserve more than" she screamed.
The king, calm until now, couldn't take it anymore. He turned sharply to her with something terrifying in his eyes: "I DECIDE WHO DESERVES WHAT! Those who murdered my family also just wanted to fulfill their wishes! Their vile, selfish, greedy wishes!"
This blast made Asha flinch. Just at that moment, the door to the hall opened and the queen entered.
"My king, the ceremony is about to begin. You should get ready," she finally broke the heavy silence. The king immediately turned his attention to her, but Asha kept her eyes on him.
"Did something happen?" Amaya called again.
"Everything is fine," Magnifico said with a new-found composure. He ran a hand through his hair, which now also looked like it had been blasted.
"Amaya, please escort Asha to the courtyard, she definitely wants to attend the ceremony with her loved ones."
"Oh, well then... sure, as you wish," the queen smiled, seemingly confused, and waved her hand at Asha, who only now realized what these words meant. With slumped shoulders, she walked towards the door, but just before she went down the spiral staircase, the king called out to her: "Asha, I will not fulfill his wish, but I will protect it like all the others. And I want you to know that even though I don't accept you as my student, it doesn't mean that your or your mother's wish will never come true. You have the same chance as everyone else."
Asha was speechless. She looked down at the ground and left the room. She could not believe the king's words. Today she signed her doom. And what's worse, she also destroyed the chances of her loved ones. How is she going to tell them? How will she tell her Sabino that his wonderful wish will never come true?
No! She can't let it go. Now that she knows his wish, she will do everything to make it come true. There was a spark in her eyes.