Joselle - The Great Grey Wolf and Little Ruby Riding Hood

“WHO IS IT?!?!” An old voice shouted through the halls of the small secluded cottage. The old woman in a cloak with old warty skin the color of milk stepped out.

“It’s me... Patrick.” Patrick, who usually would seem disgusted at the messy, dusty surroundings didn’t seem to mind, except that he tried not to touch anything.

“Oh Patrick... what do you want?!” The old woman demanded. She grinned at Patrick, revealing green teeth.

“I need your help... to get revenge,” Patrick replied smoothly.

This seemed to interest the old woman. “On whom?”

“On the Princess Ruby...”

“Ah... yes her... she’s been around for quite some time.” The old woman didn’t seem too surprised to hear that Ruby was alive. “What kind of spell will you have me do, Patrick?”

“Just to make her worst nightmare... of her lover not caring for her... to come true,” Patrick said.

The witch raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Well I can’t actually make her lover stop loving her... But... I can make her believe that he doesn’t love her.”

“Then do that! For God sakes, do I have to spell everything out, Bathilda?” Patrick yelled impatiently at the old witch.

“No... that would be my job, smart alec. Now go and I will do the spell...” Bathilda replied bitterly.

And Patrick walked out the door.

The witch walked over to a bowl filled with a golden substance, took a few items off of her dusty shelves, and started the spell:

“Make her cry!”
“MAKE HER CRY!”
“MAKE HER WANT TO DIE!”
“TEAR OUT HER HEART!”
“TEAR HER APART!”

The witch threw in some spider legs and some swamp water. The potion turned green.

“USE THE SPELL!”
“TO MAKE HER LIFE A LIVING HELL!”
“MAKE HER WEEP!”
“AND MAKE HER CRY!”
“MAKE HER WISH SHE WEREN’T ALIVE!!!!” the witch screamed at the top of her lungs.

The potion turned a deadly black and released a cloud of purple smoke. Bathilda coughed for a few moments, choking on the smoke, then stepped back. “Well, that should give the little brat what she deserves... for hurting my poor grandson...”

Ruby had been crying for almost an hour. Suddenly Silas came out of the bushes. “Silas?” Ruby looked up hopefully.

“Yes, love?” Silas said and sat down next to Ruby.

“I--- I have to tell you something,” Ruby said.

“Yes?”

“I’m... pregnant.” Ruby waited a few moments and saw the look on Silas’s face.

Silas had a look of hatred, and disgust on his face. “HOW DARE YOU!”

“How dare I what?” Ruby asked shakily.

“HOW DARE YOU FORCE THIS ON ME YOU LITTLE BITCH! YOU ARE A FILTHY CREATURE TO FORCE THIS UPON ME! YOU ARE JUST A SELFISH LITTLE BRAT!!! AND IT’S PROBABLY SOMEONE ELSE'S TOO, KNOWING WHAT YOU’RE LIKE!!!”

“But---- Silas----” Ruby said, tears drawing to her eyes. She’d never expected him to react like this.

“SHUT UP, YOU FOUL CREATURE! NEVER SPEAK TO ME AGAIN!!! YOU DESERVE TO SUFFER IN THIS PITIFUL PAIN!!!”

“Silas-- I never meant to---” Ruby said trembling.

“YOU GET OUT OF MY SIGHT!!!” Silas screamed at the top of his lungs.

“But--” Ruby didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence because Silas had just reached his hand up to hit her. Ruby covered her head and got up and ran away as fast as she could.

“RUN! YOU STUPID BITCH!!! RUN AND NEVER COME BACK!!!!!!!” Silas screamed. Finally when Ruby was out of sight he began to laugh. He began to cackle and laugh evilly into the distance, then slowly disappeared like a shadow.

Patrick walked down the street as people bowed low in his presence. He thought to himself, Idiots, so, so, pathetic. Well, once I’m king I’ll change all that. Patrick had just arrived at Bluetown with Jasmine.

Ruby had run for about thirty minutes, then fell. Oh WHY? WHY ME? I was better off having Patrick... Ruby pondered on this for a moment. No... never mind I wasn’t. Ruby continued walking after she picked herself up out of the dirt. I’m going to go back and stay at Mr. Kinston's...

Jasmine sat on her bed at the hotel as she watched Gloria, her personal maid, put her clothes into the closet. Patrick had told her that Ruby should be arriving in Bluetown in a matter of hours. Good! She deserves it! Jasmine thought to herself. She and Patrick had separate rooms that were right next to each other. They were going to meet tonight.

Three hours later...

Knock, knock, knock. Mr. Kinston walked to the door. The shop had been closed for the day because he had a slight cold. “Coming-” Mr. Kinston called, then stopped. It was Ruby... she was a mess; her hair was messy, she was covered in dust, and, by the looks of it, had been crying. Mr. Kinston rushed to the door and quickly unlocked it. “Ruby! Come in, is everything all right?” Mr. Kinston asked in a fatherly tone.

Ruby cried and told him everything. Mr. Kinston pitied Ruby and decided it would be best for her to stay the night for her own safety.

Silas had gone back to see and apologize to Ruby and when he didn’t see her, he began to get panicked. What’s going on here!?! Silas asked himself. Where is Ruby... I know, I’ll track her scent. Silas smelled the air but only caught a faint whiff of Ruby’s scent. He followed it the best he could than just stopped. He didn’t understand it, why did her scent just stop? Wait a minute... there’s something else here! Silas could smell a soft scent of .... magic! Now he was really getting worried. If something magical was here, maybe Ruby was hurt!!! Wait... no, this was a different type of magic... this was a curse!

Jasmine slowly got out of bed and crept out the door. Knock, knock, knock! The door Jasmine had been knocking on was opened and Patrick stood inside. “Jasmine come in...”

Jasmine stepped inside. “So Patrick, do you have everything?” Jasmine asked.

Patrick pulled out some rope and a pocket knife. “Yes... she’s supposed to be hiding inside a bookstore.”

“Duh! I was the one who told you,” Jasmine said arrogantly. “Now we’ll have to go in... some sort of disguise...” Jasmine said as she began to pull out a bright pink dress made of pure silk. Patrick quickly grabbed the dress from Jasmine and tossed it on the floor.

“What are you thinking?!” Patrick scolded. “We must dress up as peasants! Then no one will know who we are!”

“OH! But it is like a disguise!” Jasmine tried to explain, “Who would dare to wear a spring dress in the middle of summer?” Jasmine seemed to have thought this was quite a good reason to wear it.

“No!” Patrick muttered stubbornly as he brought out a plain brown dress and slacks with a red plaid shirt.

“But--” Jasmine whined.

“NOW!” Patrick shouted just loud enough only Jasmine could hear, as he pointed to a closet for her to dress in.

Silas ran through the woods to find Rose... Oh this isn’t good... Silas thought to himself. Finally he found Rose; she was sitting on a rock near the edge of camp, brushing her hair. “Rose... come here!” Silas ordered under his breath.

“Oh but Silas, can’t you see that I’m busy----” Rose immediately stopped talking when she saw the look on Silas’s face. “Silas-- what’s wrong?” Rose said worriedly as she walked over to him.

“It’s Ruby...” Silas whispered as he and Rose walked over to a clearing away from camp.

“Did she tell you?” Rose asked.

“Well no... but I do know about the baby... But this is much worse... much, much worse!” Silas cried.

“What happened?” Rose asked, even more tense than before.

“I don’t know where she is and... I think we’ve been cursed!” Silas shouted.

Rose gasped, “CURSED! Oh--- oh no...” Rose thought for a moment, her face suddenly changing from worried to great seriousness. “Someone... or something is trying to tear you two apart...”

This worried Silas even more... “Who would want to keep me and Ruby apart...” Silas asked both himself and Rose. The two thought for a moment. “PATRICK!” Silas said in quick realization.

“Or Jasmine... Also, Silas, it could be anyone that doesn’t like a Riding-Hood,” Rose said as she looked over her shoulder to see that no one was listening. “What happened?” Rose asked Silas... “Since you upset Ruby to when you figured out that there was a curse?” Rose asked her brother.

Little did the two know that they were being watched by Tino. Oh they’re gonna get it! They’re gonna get it! Oh won’t Papa be surprised when I tell him Silas is in love with a Riding-Hood! (Tino had only been there since he heard his older sister yell something about a curse) Hmmm... should I tell Papa now? OR... should I tell him later... There is nothing like a bit of blackmail. Tino slowly backed away from the two and began to laugh.

Oh why had I even left home? Ruby began to ask herself, when a vision of Patrick came to her mind. Never mind... Oh, I’m so hot in here... I’ll just go outside and get some fresh air. Ruby walked down the stairs, and went out the door.

The darkness surrounded Ruby, leaving only small bits of light that gleamed in a few windows around her. Oh wow! What a beautiful night... If only Silas were here-- The thought of Silas upset her deeply. Why had he gotten so angry? That wasn’t the Silas she knew. She sighed to herself when all of a sudden a pair of hands grabbed her from behind and hit her on the head.

After an hour or two Ruby finally began to gain consciousness. “Where, where am I?” Ruby asked as she kept her eyes shut. Ruby then heard a voice, a very familiar voice from her past. Ruby opened her eyes and realized that she was in the basement of a building. She was tied to a chair and had some drying blood on the side of her head.

“You are here, Ruby, for leaving and abusing the Riding-Hood name!” It was Patrick.

Ruby had a sharp intake of breath. “P-P-Patrick... how did you know that I was alive?” Ruby asked, not wanting to really know the answer.

“Jasmine,” Patrick called. Jasmine stepped out into the dimly lit room. She was wearing a common dress, but seemed too distracted to notice.

“I told him, Ruby,” Jasmine said plainly.

“But Jasmine, why?” Ruby asked, stuck in between confusion and tears.

“Because, Ruby, you left me to marry this man.”

“But I thought you wanted him...” Ruby said, surprised.

“I did... at first, then I began to wonder why you had left. Then one day I looked into the mirror given to you by the Ninth Kingdom and found out just why... Patrick wasn’t refined and sweet, he was a terribly, terribly evil person that was wrapped up in himself!” At this, Patrick glared evilly at Jasmine. “Then I saw Silas, and I just knew that you only cared for yourself and didn’t care about what would happen to me! You didn’t think about what was going to happen to me if I married him! You just cared about yourself and no one else around you! Now I know you do not deserve death... you deserve the life that you were born into, the life that made all the decisions for you, the LIFE YOU WISH YOU’D NEVER HAD!!!” Jasmine screamed bitterly, then broke into sobs.

“You see all the pain you have inflicted on others, Ruby? You see how miserable that you have made everyone that you have ever loved? Your father has been in a deep depression for the past two months, and your sister has carried the burden of your secret that I am surprised didn’t drive her insane. Silas... you broke his heart after leaving him... and I don’t think you should break any more hearts, Ruby...” Patrick said slowly, going into a snakelike whisper.

Ruby could only think about how horrible her life had become this night.

“Jasmine, you may now go...” Patrick ordered as he turned back to Ruby, and Jasmine left the small room.

“Why can’t you just leave me alone...” Ruby cried to herself.

Patrick, ignoring this, said, “I know what it is you’re hiding...”

A sudden feeling of fear engulfed Ruby. “Wha- what did you say?”

“I said, I know that you are going to have that beast’s child...” Patrick said, disgusted, as he came closer to Ruby and bent down, looking her in the eye. “And if you don’t do as I say, I will make sure that not only you, but that mongrel, will suffer and die as well.” With that, Patrick snuffed out the candle that had been lighting the room and left, allowing Ruby to see two guards on the other side of the door before she was engulfed by the darkness.

“Rose, come on!” Silas said motioning his sister to the clearing. They were once again going to use the magic mirror. Rose finally reached the clearing.

“Okay, let me try for once...” Rose said to her brother, and Silas handed her the mirror.

“Mirror! Awake from your slumber.
There has been a horrible BLUNDER!
A curse has been placed on a young women dear,
And both me and my brother are filled with fear!
What shall we do? Who can we call?
What will make this terrible curse fall?”

Rose had always seemed to have been better at poetry then Silas and now this proved it! The mirror rippled and the familiar face appeared.

“Gather your friends”
“From all over the place”
“You’ll need their help”
“No matter the case!”

“Then travel to a castle of red”
“Where your loved one soon will be wed”
“But be careful on whom you choose!”
“They must be friends of Ruby and YOU!”

“Then rescue her during the night”
“And prepare yourself for a long, long fight!”
“But most important of all,”
“Do not fall!”
“Do not give up!”
“For this will destroy this cursed bad luck!”

“You hear that? Silas, who are some of the friends?” Rose asked.

“Um... Let me think...” Silas replied to his sister. During the rest of the night Silas and Rose wrote down the names of the closest people they could trust. Daniel, Mr. Kinston, and possibly James were all the people so far on their list. Now all they had to do was find them.

Rose walked down the street of Bluetown, heading for the stables where Danny would be. “Hey David,” Rose said to Danny’s older brother.

“Ay 'ello Rosie, if you’re looking for Dan, he’s in the house,” David said, pointing in the direction of the house. Danny lived with his brother and father. His mother had died about five years ago, when Dan was only fourteen. They lived in a two story house right next to the stables and barn. Rosie stepped inside; she had only come in here a couple of times.

“Hey Dan,” Rosie said as she came in, seeing him in the kitchen washing some dishes.

Dan looked up for a moment to see Rose and smiled. “Ay how’s my little Rosie?”

“Just fine Danny, but I need your help,” Rose said grimly. Daniel looked at Rose for a moment and she continued, “You see it’s about the Princess Ruby...”

“What about it? Everyone knows that she’s dead,” Danny replied casually.

“No she isn’t dead Dan...” Rose said.

Dan looked up at Rose wide-eyed, “You must be jokin’! How, when? Why?” Dan said in disbelief.

“I really don’t know why.... but it was just about two and a half months ago... I believe. And she ran away.”

“All right! Funny joke...” Dan laughed uneasily. “Why would ye want me to help a Riding-Hood when yer family has been hating them for years?”

“Dan, this isn’t for me... this is for Silas. They have become mates for life... and now Ruby has been kidnapped and is in the castle, awaiting marriage to Prince Piper.”

Daniel stood there, gaping. “Wow...” was all that Daniel could say.

“There is also something else,” Rose said quietly.

“What?”

“A child...”

“What do ye mean a child?” Dan asked.

Man how thick could a guy get? This was happening a lot lately. “You know a ‘Little One’ ‘Child’ ‘Baby’ ‘Wee One’ ‘Small Fry’ ‘Cutie’ ‘A thing girls drool over’!!!” Rose usually didn’t get upset like this, but this was for her brother.

“Oh sorry...” Daniel said sadly. Rose immediately took pity on him.

“Oh Danny, I’m sorry for yelling.” Rose came up and hugged Danny. As a smile spread across his face while she hugged him.

Works every time... Danny thought to himself and then turned back to Rose. “Of course I’d help ya! What should I do?” Daniel asked.

“Well I really don’t know at the moment but as long as you’re willing to help, Danny, we’ll think of something... I’ll come back when I’ve talked to Silas about it,” Rose replied, grateful that Danny was going to help.

Rose and Danny kissed each other good bye, and then Rose left.

Silas walked through the camp looking for James. Finally he found him, sitting and smoking a wooden pipe. “Hey James... I really need to talk to you. In private,” Silas said to his only older brother.

James looked up at Silas and took the pipe out of his mouth. “Sure Silas, what is it?”

Silas guided James over to the same clearing he and Rose were at before. “James... you must promise not to tell anyone...” Silas said quietly.

“You have my word Silas,” James replied in the same hushed voice.

“Well I-- you know that girl you smelled on me before?” James nodded his head. “Well she’s my mate... and I’m going to be a father.”

A wide smile spread across James’ face. “Oh that’s all?” James said still smiling.

“No James... now’s the part you mustn’t ever tell to anyone... It’s the Princess Ruby.”

A happy look suddenly changed to one of shock on James’ face. “That can’t be... She’s supposed to be dead, Silas... This all doesn’t make sense,” James whispered back.

“I know but she’s alive...” Silas explained everything that had happened so far, from the moment he'd met Ruby to the time she was kidnapped.

After Silas was done, James was just gawking. “Oh, my god...”

“James, please don’t tell anyone...”

“I won’t... what can I do to help?” James said.

That’s my older brother! Silas thought to himself.

Ruby slowly opened her eyes. She was... where was she? Ruby looked at the surroundings around her. There was a small window to her right, and a portrait in front of her. She was laying in a small but beautiful bed. I know where I am! This, this is one of the guest bedrooms... oh no... that must mean that I’m... at the castle. Ruby slowly began to panic.

Ruby ran to the window, and looked down. She was four stories up! Oh, it would be too high to jump or even climb. How am I supposed to get out of here? Ruby heard the door behind her open. Ruby spun around, only to see Jasmine. “Jas-Jasmine...”

“Hello Ruby... I suppose that you are fine?” Ruby nodded to Jasmine. “Good, good... In a week, you and Patrick will be married. No... Father doesn’t know. Patrick has wished to keep it a secret,” Jasmine said, bitterly, yet somehow sad.

“Jasmine... why did you do this to me? Why must I marry Patrick? I was so happy... and I thought that you would be happy...” Ruby said sadly.

“You hurt me, Ruby. That’s why... That is why I am helping Patrick marry you. After I realized my worth to Patrick, as a belonging of some sort, I felt dirty. I felt betrayal from you... from everyone. And now I think... it’s about time you feel that sense of betrayal and filth!” Jasmine shouted back.

“All right...” Ruby said under her breath.

“What did you just say?” Jasmine asked.

“I said that you are right... I don’t deserve to live the life I wanted... I deserve the life that I was born into... you are right Jasmine... you are right.”

Silas and Rose had worked the next three days looking for one of Ruby’s close friends... from before she'd met Silas. Finally they thought of Lavender. Immediately Silas talked to Lavender through the mirror and explained the situation. Now everyone was gathered inside Mr. Kinston’s bookstore (he had agreed to help them in any way that he could, since he was too old to join in any adventure).

“All right everyone... the night of the wedding is this Sunday,” Silas said proudly. “Since this event will take place and all of the kingdoms are invited, I suggest that we use Princess Lavender’s invitation to get admittance into the castle,” Silas said glancing at Lavender.

“Yes but how are we expected to get past the guards? They’ll be mighty suspicious with all of us coming in by one invitation,” Daniel questioned.

“I have a solution to that... You see, with every grand event such as this, the guests are expected to bring some sort of gift,” Lavender replied politely.

“Yes! And that’s how we’ll get in the castle - we’ll all hide inside Lavender’s gift. Now, how will we get there?” Silas began to think, but his thoughts were cut short by Rose.

“I know! We could use one of Danny’s horses...” Rose looked lovingly at Daniel and grabbed his hand. “Will that be all right, Danny?” Rose asked Daniel, not leaving his eyes.

“Oh, that’ll be great... I’d do anything for ya Rosie...”

cough, cough “Excuse me... EXCUSE ME!!! Hey you two cut it out!” Silas finally shouted into their ears, bringing Daniel and Rose back for the moment.

“Hey Silas... there is just one flaw in your plan...” James said, finally speaking.

“What?” Silas asked.

“WHAT WILL WE DO WHEN WE’RE INSIDE?!?” James yelled at his brother (not angrily, but kind of in the way you would say ‘are you stupid or something?’)

“Uh... I really don’t know, I guess we’ll just wing it,” Silas said, and James rolled his eyes.

“You’ve got to have a better plan than that, Silas! Can’t you see? Where is the intelligent little brother I used to know?” James said.

“I think he’s been bitten by the love-bug, James,” Rose said.

“Well we need some sort of plan,” James repeated.

“I know, I know... just give me some time...” Silas replied quietly. “Now we will all meet here Saturday and prepare. By then I’ll have a plan...” Silas said.

“I hope...” Silas whispered as everyone left.