It was October, and for the
toons of Disney, that meant harmless spooky fun. Ghost stories,
games, cheesy movies, costumes, and on Halloween itself, a night of
putting up with tourists at the park.
Which is why they were getting their
celebrating out of the way early. Aladdin and Naveen had organized a
'Halloween adventure' with Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine of
Videoland, gathering up half of the princes to go zombie hunting.
The princesses, meanwhile, were
organizing a normal Halloween party. They'd invited Marvel and Star
Wars characters to come, but were politely turned down. They didn't
mind. It was rare that they got to dress up in something other than
frilly dresses, and for the more tomboyish members of the official
Disney Princesses, it was a chance to be a bit more creative in what
they wore.
Cinderella had volunteered her castle
for the party. Tiana had commandeered the kitchen staff almost
immediately, promising delicious treats for all. Pocahontas and
Mulan organized the party games and some old horror movies and
slasher films, while the rest of the princesses helped with the
decorating.
Cinderella, for her part, was happy to
have the company. She had been getting a bit more attention lately,
especially with her live-action movie coming out. She was feeling
real good about life in general, and felt that nothing could go
wrong.
There was a knock on the door.
Cinderella blinked. All her guests
were here, so who could that be? Maybe one of the superheroes or
jedis had come after all?
She opened the door... and sighed.
“Of course...” she said.
Standing in the doorway were several
of Maleficent's minions. Most were carrying buckets of candy.
Another was carrying a note and a white flag.
“Um...” Cinderella said, confused.
The minions put down the candy buckets and the note, and then ran
off, chittering and burbling.
Cinderella stared at the candy for a
long moment... and then called in the rest of the girls, bringing the
buckets into the main lounge.
Cinderella, Jasmine, Tiana, Mulan,
Pocahontas, Ariel, Aurora, Snow White, Belle, Rapunzel, and Merida
all stared at the buckets worriedly. Aurora read the note.
“'I realize that things have always
been rather tense between us,'” Aurora read.
“No bloody kidding,” Merida
muttered.
Aurora continued. “'...but after
getting a movie centered around myself and experiencing time as a
hero rather than a villainess, I'm starting to feel that perhaps an
advancement from truce into friendship is in order. Yes the candies
are enchanted, and yes, the enchantments are along the lines of my
particular tastes. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. The
enchantments will end automatically at the start of next month, but
only if you want them to. Enjoy, and have fun. Maleficent.”
The Princesses all stared at the
candy. “I don't trust it...” Snow White said after a long
moment. “I don't trust food given by an evil queen.”
“The villains all bow to her. Even
the Square-Enix ones that actively overpower her in the video games.
How can we be sure she's not lying?” Jasmine said.
“She admitted they were enchanted,”
Mulan said, scowling at the little orange pumpkin candies. “Plus
that wording at the end bothered me.”
Aurora frowned. “All I know her
from is the live action movie, in which she was my friend. We never
interacted during our original movie, remember? Not during the
games, either...”
Pocahontas frowned. “More's the
pity, then. You know what she's done, Aurora. Just as much as any
of us.”
“Intellectually I know, yes...”
Aurora said, fidgeting with the hem of her dress. “Emotionally...
All I can think of when someone says her name is my friend...”
The princesses stared at the candies
again. This time, Aurora spoke first. “Look... she said that the
effects would wear off automatically, right? So it can't hurt to
just give them a try.”
“Fine. You go first,” Cinderella
said sarcastically. When Aurora reached for one of the candies,
Cinderella panicked. “W-Wait, I was kidding!”
Aurora smiled. “It'll be okay,”
she said, popping the candy in her mouth and beginning to chew.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Elsewhere...
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
“I don't get it,” Pete said, the
toon cat discreetly placing the enchanted candies where Elsa and Anna
would notice them. He slipped a little in the icy palace, heading
back outside to join Maleficent. “You outright admitted what you
were doin' to Aurora and her group, right?”
Maleficent nodded. “I've grown fond
of her,” she said. “I see no reason to just spring this on her.”
Pete stroked his chin. “But we're
passin' out more candies without tellin' anyone what they do or if
they'll wear off,” he said.
Maleficent grinned. “Just because I
like the girl and played the hero in a movie doesn't mean I've
changed who I am. I am still MALEFICENT! Mistress of All Evil! And
this month, I fully intend to spread chaos!”
Pete sighed in relief. “Whew! Had
me worried there for a minute. Okay, next victims.”