I trust that the boys aren't going to follow the original Cinderella fairy tale... 
That one's disturbing! Even so, it's better than the Disney one. xP
That one's disturbing! Even so, it's better than the Disney one. xP
GGray
New member
I trust that the boys aren't going to follow the original Cinderella fairy tale...
Not as disturbing as the original Sleeping Beauty...
More is coming soon!
GGray
New member
Meanwhile, back in Tim’s room, the rest of us were hard at work on the script changes.
“How are we going to do the blood?” asked Johnny, chewing on his pencil.
“Blood?” said Henry. “Are we working on the same play?”
“You know, for when the stepsisters slice off parts of their feet so the glass slipper fits ‘em,” said Johnny.
“Um, no,” said Pete. “Just no. Amy would freak.”
Johnny muttered something rude and flung his pencil across the room.
“ANYWAY,” said Pete loudly. “How are we going to add in sharing, being yourself, and following your dreams? Real suggestions only, please.”
“Well...following your dreams could how the fairy convinces her to go to the ball...and I guess she could share her riches with the stepsisters at the end...” Henry muttered, scribbling it down.
“And somebody could toss off a random line about how she was still ‘herself’ after becoming a princess,” said Pete. “That’s all the lessons. How about the other comments?”
Johnny grinned. “I was thinking we toss in a few lampshading remarks.”
“Elaborate,” said Pete.
“You know, lampshading. It’s when the author has somebody in the story point out how cliched or too-convenient something is. I read about it online.”
“Okay,” said Pete. “Any other ideas?”
“Well, I think the audience would be disappointed if Cinderella shared with the villains at the end,” Johnny said. “It’s unsatisfactory.”
“Look, we’re not attempting to create a classic here,” Pete reminded him. “I just want to get this over and done with. No use wasting more of my valuable time than I have to.”
“Actually, you were just complaining about how there wasn’t much to do,” Henry said.
“This isn’t a court,” said Johnny irritably. “We shouldn’t have to worry about what we say being used against us. Whose side are you on, anyway?”
“How are we going to do the blood?” asked Johnny, chewing on his pencil.
“Blood?” said Henry. “Are we working on the same play?”
“You know, for when the stepsisters slice off parts of their feet so the glass slipper fits ‘em,” said Johnny.
“Um, no,” said Pete. “Just no. Amy would freak.”
Johnny muttered something rude and flung his pencil across the room.
“ANYWAY,” said Pete loudly. “How are we going to add in sharing, being yourself, and following your dreams? Real suggestions only, please.”
“Well...following your dreams could how the fairy convinces her to go to the ball...and I guess she could share her riches with the stepsisters at the end...” Henry muttered, scribbling it down.
“And somebody could toss off a random line about how she was still ‘herself’ after becoming a princess,” said Pete. “That’s all the lessons. How about the other comments?”
Johnny grinned. “I was thinking we toss in a few lampshading remarks.”
“Elaborate,” said Pete.
“You know, lampshading. It’s when the author has somebody in the story point out how cliched or too-convenient something is. I read about it online.”
“Okay,” said Pete. “Any other ideas?”
“Well, I think the audience would be disappointed if Cinderella shared with the villains at the end,” Johnny said. “It’s unsatisfactory.”
“Look, we’re not attempting to create a classic here,” Pete reminded him. “I just want to get this over and done with. No use wasting more of my valuable time than I have to.”
“Actually, you were just complaining about how there wasn’t much to do,” Henry said.
“This isn’t a court,” said Johnny irritably. “We shouldn’t have to worry about what we say being used against us. Whose side are you on, anyway?”
Not as disturbing as the original Sleeping Beauty...
And THAT's the truth!
*shudders*It's a good thing that they left the foot-cutting part out.
Even if Amy didn't object, I'm sure the kid's parents would. xD
GGray
New member
“I was merely pointing out a fact,” said Henry.
“Oh, right, go all fancy-talking on us,” Johnny snapped. “Maybe you’re too old and smart to belong to the club. You’re so obsessed with facts, maybe you should go join the geek squad!”
“Relax,” Pete advised. “The same thing could be said about you and movies, Johnny. Let’s get back to the play.”
After several hours of hard work, we had it mostly finished.
“What’s next?” asked Teddy.
“Well, we have to get costumes,” Evelyn said.
Sally dumped a duffel bag out on Tim’s bed. “Here’s what I found in our costume stuff—two princess gowns, fairy wings, a few crowns, and some capes. Most of it was mine when I was younger.”
“All my old costumes got donated,” Anna Rose said. “How about you, Evelyn?”
“Mine, too. Why don’t we check some thrift shops?”
“Wait...it’s bad enough I’m wasting my time. I’m not wasting my money, too!” Rory protested.
“We must have more costumes,” Johnny said. “Did you check the storage closet?”
“Most of the too-small stuff got given away when we moved here,” Sally reminded him. “But I did find this Nazgul costume under your bed, Teddy.”
Johnny snatched it. “Hey, remember this? We were trying to scare the Spikers with it.”
“Hey, speaking of Spikers, don’t any of them have sisters? Maybe we can borrow some costumes,” said Sally.
“You’re kidding, right?” said Pete. “They’d rather cut them up than let us use them.”
“You wouldn’t go ask them, of course,” said Sally. “I would.”
“Well, Arch has a sister, but his family’s still in Hawaii with VidKid,” said Pete. “I think ‘Heelies’ has a kid sister. Why don’t you ask her?”
Sally went off to do this while the rest of us searched out apartments for anything we could turn into costumes. When we returned to Tim’s room (minus Tim, who was still out foraging), Sally was waiting.
“I got three more princess gowns and some more crowns,” she said. “Plus a whole bunch of fancy shoes and a battery-powered flashing wand. Her mom said she just outgrew a Disney Princess obsession.”
“Well, I found enough material in my mom’s fabric bin to make the rest of the capes,” said Anna Rose.
Henry tossed two stick horses on the bed. “The kids who play the horses can just ride these.”
“Where’d you get those from?” Johnny asked.
“The woman in the apartment next door let us borrow them,” Henry explained. “She said her grandkids won’t be over for another few weeks, so they won’t miss them.”
It took a while longer for Tim to get back, but when he did, it was worth it. He had managed to find a kid’s wagon that looked like a mini carriage.
“Where’d you get that?’ asked Teddy.
“Down two floors. That guy who collects random stuff. He said if we break it, there’ll be...uh...something to pay.”
“So, we’re bringing it into a daycare full of wild kids?” said Pete. “That doesn’t sound like a good idea.”
“We’ll only use it in the actual performance,” Evelyn decided. “Until then, we can stick it in our storage closet. Amy disapproves of clutter, so it’s basically empty except for a box of tofu coupons. In fact, we can stick all the stuff in there.”
“Oh, right, go all fancy-talking on us,” Johnny snapped. “Maybe you’re too old and smart to belong to the club. You’re so obsessed with facts, maybe you should go join the geek squad!”
“Relax,” Pete advised. “The same thing could be said about you and movies, Johnny. Let’s get back to the play.”
After several hours of hard work, we had it mostly finished.
“What’s next?” asked Teddy.
“Well, we have to get costumes,” Evelyn said.
Sally dumped a duffel bag out on Tim’s bed. “Here’s what I found in our costume stuff—two princess gowns, fairy wings, a few crowns, and some capes. Most of it was mine when I was younger.”
“All my old costumes got donated,” Anna Rose said. “How about you, Evelyn?”
“Mine, too. Why don’t we check some thrift shops?”
“Wait...it’s bad enough I’m wasting my time. I’m not wasting my money, too!” Rory protested.
“We must have more costumes,” Johnny said. “Did you check the storage closet?”
“Most of the too-small stuff got given away when we moved here,” Sally reminded him. “But I did find this Nazgul costume under your bed, Teddy.”
Johnny snatched it. “Hey, remember this? We were trying to scare the Spikers with it.”
“Hey, speaking of Spikers, don’t any of them have sisters? Maybe we can borrow some costumes,” said Sally.
“You’re kidding, right?” said Pete. “They’d rather cut them up than let us use them.”
“You wouldn’t go ask them, of course,” said Sally. “I would.”
“Well, Arch has a sister, but his family’s still in Hawaii with VidKid,” said Pete. “I think ‘Heelies’ has a kid sister. Why don’t you ask her?”
Sally went off to do this while the rest of us searched out apartments for anything we could turn into costumes. When we returned to Tim’s room (minus Tim, who was still out foraging), Sally was waiting.
“I got three more princess gowns and some more crowns,” she said. “Plus a whole bunch of fancy shoes and a battery-powered flashing wand. Her mom said she just outgrew a Disney Princess obsession.”
“Well, I found enough material in my mom’s fabric bin to make the rest of the capes,” said Anna Rose.
Henry tossed two stick horses on the bed. “The kids who play the horses can just ride these.”
“Where’d you get those from?” Johnny asked.
“The woman in the apartment next door let us borrow them,” Henry explained. “She said her grandkids won’t be over for another few weeks, so they won’t miss them.”
It took a while longer for Tim to get back, but when he did, it was worth it. He had managed to find a kid’s wagon that looked like a mini carriage.
“Where’d you get that?’ asked Teddy.
“Down two floors. That guy who collects random stuff. He said if we break it, there’ll be...uh...something to pay.”
“So, we’re bringing it into a daycare full of wild kids?” said Pete. “That doesn’t sound like a good idea.”
“We’ll only use it in the actual performance,” Evelyn decided. “Until then, we can stick it in our storage closet. Amy disapproves of clutter, so it’s basically empty except for a box of tofu coupons. In fact, we can stick all the stuff in there.”
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Tofu coupons. Hee hee!
Celebrilomiel
New member
I've been following this story for quite some time, and I really enjoy it. Keep up the good work! Henry is my favorite character - the voice of sanity, the restraining hand of knowledge. I like that.
GGray
New member
After doing this, we Pals headed off to Pete’s apartment to play a little AxeQuest. After all, we needed to do SOMETHING fun for a change.
The next afternoon, we took the bus to Happy Angels, lugging along the costumes and props we’d collected (minus the carriage, naturally). The same worker opened the door.
“What’s in the boxes?” she asked.
“Costumes for the play,” explained Sally. The worker nodded and pointed us down the hall.
“Man, they have lame security around here,” Johnny whispered to Pete. “She didn’t even look in the boxes! How does she know there isn’t a nefarious bomb concealed under that innocent layer of princess gowns?”
“Who’d want to blow up a day care?” Pete whispered back.
“Us, after a few more days of play prep,” Johnny replied.
We hesitated in front of the sinister green door for a minute before Evelyn pushed it open.
“Hey! It’s those mean kids who wouldn’t let me be Cinderella!” Olivia called the moment she saw us. (This time her shirt said I Only Date Cute Guys. We have no clue what the manufacturers were thinking. Or the buyer of the shirt, either.)
“Olivia, you know what we talked about yesterday,” said Irene.
In response to this, Olivia gave us a collective evil stare.
“Um...we have some costumes here for the play,” said Anna Rose. “Do you have any princess gowns here?”
“Try in there,” said Irene, pointing to the dress-up bin. In it, we found three more gowns and a fairy costume (minus the wings).
It took a while, but at last each girl had an assigned dress. The fights over who got which one were annoying, not to mention dumb. These were PRINCESS GOWNS, not football jerseys or something important like that! The capes were a lot easier to hand out.
Next, Evelyn passed out the copies of the script.
“I can’t read all these words,” said the kid who played the fairy godmother.
“We’ll tell you what it says, Sophia,” said the other worker.
“I can read the whole thing,” bragged Olivia.
“Yes, we know,” said Irene patiently.
“My mom says my reading skills are exceptional,” Olivia continued. “I know what that means. Do you know what that means?”
“Uh, yeah! She’s in COLLEGE,” muttered Teddy.
Olivia totally ignored him. “It means I’m smarter than all the other kids here. Even Rohan. And he’s ten. That’s two times my age.”
“How about we get on with the play?” said Sally in a slightly raised voice.
More happened after that— a lot more—but it’s torture just thinking about it. We somehow managed to survive, and were out of there like a shot the second the scheduled time was up.
“Now I know why Irene locks herself in her room and goes on the computer when she gets home,” Tim said as we waited for the bus. “Seriously, somebody needs to bring Olivia back to reality.”
“I wonder if she’s got any siblings,” said Johnny. “I hope not. Imagine living with her 24/7!”
“Maybe we can still get out of this,” said Rory.
Teddy didn’t sound hopeful. “How?”
Rory thought. “Hm...we could tell the daycare we’re moving to Alaska next week.”
“All three of our families?” said Henry. “There’s no way they’d believe that—especially when Irene shows up at work after next week.”
The next afternoon, we took the bus to Happy Angels, lugging along the costumes and props we’d collected (minus the carriage, naturally). The same worker opened the door.
“What’s in the boxes?” she asked.
“Costumes for the play,” explained Sally. The worker nodded and pointed us down the hall.
“Man, they have lame security around here,” Johnny whispered to Pete. “She didn’t even look in the boxes! How does she know there isn’t a nefarious bomb concealed under that innocent layer of princess gowns?”
“Who’d want to blow up a day care?” Pete whispered back.
“Us, after a few more days of play prep,” Johnny replied.
We hesitated in front of the sinister green door for a minute before Evelyn pushed it open.
“Hey! It’s those mean kids who wouldn’t let me be Cinderella!” Olivia called the moment she saw us. (This time her shirt said I Only Date Cute Guys. We have no clue what the manufacturers were thinking. Or the buyer of the shirt, either.)
“Olivia, you know what we talked about yesterday,” said Irene.
In response to this, Olivia gave us a collective evil stare.
“Um...we have some costumes here for the play,” said Anna Rose. “Do you have any princess gowns here?”
“Try in there,” said Irene, pointing to the dress-up bin. In it, we found three more gowns and a fairy costume (minus the wings).
It took a while, but at last each girl had an assigned dress. The fights over who got which one were annoying, not to mention dumb. These were PRINCESS GOWNS, not football jerseys or something important like that! The capes were a lot easier to hand out.
Next, Evelyn passed out the copies of the script.
“I can’t read all these words,” said the kid who played the fairy godmother.
“We’ll tell you what it says, Sophia,” said the other worker.
“I can read the whole thing,” bragged Olivia.
“Yes, we know,” said Irene patiently.
“My mom says my reading skills are exceptional,” Olivia continued. “I know what that means. Do you know what that means?”
“Uh, yeah! She’s in COLLEGE,” muttered Teddy.
Olivia totally ignored him. “It means I’m smarter than all the other kids here. Even Rohan. And he’s ten. That’s two times my age.”
“How about we get on with the play?” said Sally in a slightly raised voice.
More happened after that— a lot more—but it’s torture just thinking about it. We somehow managed to survive, and were out of there like a shot the second the scheduled time was up.
“Now I know why Irene locks herself in her room and goes on the computer when she gets home,” Tim said as we waited for the bus. “Seriously, somebody needs to bring Olivia back to reality.”
“I wonder if she’s got any siblings,” said Johnny. “I hope not. Imagine living with her 24/7!”
“Maybe we can still get out of this,” said Rory.
Teddy didn’t sound hopeful. “How?”
Rory thought. “Hm...we could tell the daycare we’re moving to Alaska next week.”
“All three of our families?” said Henry. “There’s no way they’d believe that—especially when Irene shows up at work after next week.”
Sopespian
Well-known member
I LAUGHED OUT LOUD at this one.
Celebrilomiel
New member
Heh. Nice thought, Rory, but it needs a bit of work. Perhaps chicken pox would be a better idea.
This one was great. You must spend a lot of time around bratty young children to write Olivia so perfectly. I pity you.
You must spend a lot of time around bratty young children to write Olivia so perfectly. I pity you.
GGray
New member
This one was great.
I work at a daycare.
Olivia is basically a combo of two girls there. (Neither is named Olivia.) And the shirt slogans are real.
GGray
New member
“No matter what alibi we come up with, Amy will wreck it,” Pete reminded us. “Our best bet is to just speed through this as fast as possible.”
“And there’s always the lame security to brighten things up,” said Johnny. “If worst came to worst, we could always sneak in a baking soda bomb.”
“What would that accomplish, besides getting us arrested?” asked Henry.
“Nothing, really,” said Johnny. “But it would be fun. Anyway, there’s a poster in the Happy Angels hallway encouraging kids to express themselves. It would just be a unique expression of extreme frustration.”
“I don’t know Irene puts up with those brats,” Sally said, probably to change the subject. “She must really like kids.”
“She doesn’t,” said Tim. “She likes money. Happy Angels pays more than Burger Bud’s.”
“Well, Ed works at Burger Bud’s,” said Pete. “There’s annoying people there, too. One time, this guy was so mad because there were onions on his burger that he whipped it back at the takeout window. Ed slammed it just in time.”
“I thought Ed was the cashier,” Henry said.
“This was last summer,” said Pete. “Ed got the guy’s license plate number. He wanted to sue the guy for assault, but Dad talked him out of it. He told Ed that if he sued every rude guy he came across, he’d be in court for the rest of his life. Anyway, by next week Ed forgot all about it.”
“How come?” asked Rory.
“He had to work a double shift because another guy was sick, and he saw a huge fight in the parking lot. It went on for twenty minutes.”
“Where was the security guard?” Henry asked.
“He was on the other side of the building busy with some personal stuff,” said Pete. “He was breaking up with his girlfriend. I guess she was screaming so loud he didn’t hear the fight.”
“Whoa, is this the Burger Bud’s we know and love?” gasped Johnny. “How come this stuff never happens when we’re there?”
“Ed was working the midnight shift,” Pete explained.
Tim looked worried. “Don’t let Amy know. She barely ever lets me go there with you guys as it is. If she finds out, she’ll start making calls and writing letters, and before you know it, the whole chain will be shut down.”
“She couldn’t,” said Teddy.
“Actually, she could,” said Evelyn. “She shut down Queenie Apple’s a while back. Well, her and the other members of the New Organic Progressives. N.O.P.’s for short.”
“Is that a religion?” Teddy asked cautiously.
“Um, no. It’s this one group that pickets fast food places and stuff like that,” said Tim.
Henry was skeptical. “How did this organization shut down a restaurant?”
“Well, Queenie Apple’s was this local place that served fast food. The N.O.P.’s claimed their marketing was causing kids to choose Queenie's Qwik Kids' Meals over healthy stuff. They pelted Queenie’s with lawsuits and stuff til they caved.”
“That is evil,” Johnny stated. “I had no idea Amy had such vast power!”
The arrival of the bus put an end to this interesting conversation.
“And there’s always the lame security to brighten things up,” said Johnny. “If worst came to worst, we could always sneak in a baking soda bomb.”
“What would that accomplish, besides getting us arrested?” asked Henry.
“Nothing, really,” said Johnny. “But it would be fun. Anyway, there’s a poster in the Happy Angels hallway encouraging kids to express themselves. It would just be a unique expression of extreme frustration.”
“I don’t know Irene puts up with those brats,” Sally said, probably to change the subject. “She must really like kids.”
“She doesn’t,” said Tim. “She likes money. Happy Angels pays more than Burger Bud’s.”
“Well, Ed works at Burger Bud’s,” said Pete. “There’s annoying people there, too. One time, this guy was so mad because there were onions on his burger that he whipped it back at the takeout window. Ed slammed it just in time.”
“I thought Ed was the cashier,” Henry said.
“This was last summer,” said Pete. “Ed got the guy’s license plate number. He wanted to sue the guy for assault, but Dad talked him out of it. He told Ed that if he sued every rude guy he came across, he’d be in court for the rest of his life. Anyway, by next week Ed forgot all about it.”
“How come?” asked Rory.
“He had to work a double shift because another guy was sick, and he saw a huge fight in the parking lot. It went on for twenty minutes.”
“Where was the security guard?” Henry asked.
“He was on the other side of the building busy with some personal stuff,” said Pete. “He was breaking up with his girlfriend. I guess she was screaming so loud he didn’t hear the fight.”
“Whoa, is this the Burger Bud’s we know and love?” gasped Johnny. “How come this stuff never happens when we’re there?”
“Ed was working the midnight shift,” Pete explained.
Tim looked worried. “Don’t let Amy know. She barely ever lets me go there with you guys as it is. If she finds out, she’ll start making calls and writing letters, and before you know it, the whole chain will be shut down.”
“She couldn’t,” said Teddy.
“Actually, she could,” said Evelyn. “She shut down Queenie Apple’s a while back. Well, her and the other members of the New Organic Progressives. N.O.P.’s for short.”
“Is that a religion?” Teddy asked cautiously.
“Um, no. It’s this one group that pickets fast food places and stuff like that,” said Tim.
Henry was skeptical. “How did this organization shut down a restaurant?”
“Well, Queenie Apple’s was this local place that served fast food. The N.O.P.’s claimed their marketing was causing kids to choose Queenie's Qwik Kids' Meals over healthy stuff. They pelted Queenie’s with lawsuits and stuff til they caved.”
“That is evil,” Johnny stated. “I had no idea Amy had such vast power!”
The arrival of the bus put an end to this interesting conversation.
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Sopespian
Well-known member
Ha! Worked at A&W for three years, and have never met this guy yet. I'd have to say I'm pretty blessed!