2. A quick, intense number on the wall
"No!" She groaned, trying desperately to escape. “B-please don't!” But it was no use. Something was heavy on her chest, pressing her into the mattress as the terrifying monster growled dangerously. Every now and then she heard a damp slither and she could almost see the merciless flash of sharp fangs in the sun, which were revealed as the flickered.
And suddenly Grandmother was no longer in her bed, but found herself sitting in the pan that was reserved for the Sunday roast. Her scalp itched from the sheer amount of dry herbs she was bathed in, and she had to hold back a sneeze. Her hands were tightly tied together and in front of her eyes stood Alfred Biolek in a handsome, darker version, sharpening the carving knife. Somehow the situation struck her as familiar, and she couldn't help but compare the similarities of her predicament with that of Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother.They were both just called "Grandmother", they both had a granddaughter who the bad wolf was after and they were both saved by that same granddaughter ... * Apparently Virginia missed her cue ... but maybe that's because of that that I'm gagged. *
The wolf now greased her skin, which had been dry from all the make-up, mumbled something about "that makes the whole thing extra crispy" and then reached for the cleaver, since it wouldn't fit in the oven as a whole.
Disgusted, Grandmother felt the sticky oil run down her cheek ... and sat up with a jerk, pushing Roland from her bed with a yelp. With one hand on her temple, she groaned indignantly as her dachshund jumped back onto her bed, barking. It must have been too much of a good thing yesterday. Not only had she been haunted by this nightmare for half the night, now she was brutally ripped from her - if not restful - sleep by an obviously hyperactive dog, and that always resulted in hard-to-get rid of migraines."But that's enough now, Roland!" Said Grandmother and gave the Dachshund a practiced, intimidating look. With a frown, she realized that she was still wearing her dressing gown, but shrugged it off, as she could also attribute that to excessive alcohol consumption.
She glanced in the mirror as she passed, her face like a dried peach, but she felt as beautiful as it did when she was introduced to society at the Ritz Carlton. But with her current looks, she wouldn't even make it onto a single cover - except maybe that of the senior newspaper.
As soon as grandmother stepped out into the corridor, she could tell with a probability bordering on certainty that someone was still in her apartment. "But yes, that's Virginia, she came yesterday ..." Shaking her head despite her head grumbling, she pushed open the door to the kitchen, from which her nose heard the delicious smell of fresh pancakes, fried bacon and fried eggs.Rooted in the arch of the doorway with eyes the size of soup plates, she saw the source of her dream at work in her kitchen.
“Jemine!” Wolf touched himself dramatically when he turned around and saw his grandma-in-law. "I'm almost going to have a heart attack! Besides, breakfast is not ready yet ..." With his brow furrowed, he refrained from telling Grandmother that she still had no fresh herbs and garlic in the house. * A good cook has to deal with what he finds in a kitchen! * - "Oh yes, I also conjured up something against your hangover ... How about a` quick, intense number on the wall`? "
Grandmother stared at the glass that her wolf held out, the contents of which looked like something she'd better not name, tried desperately to forget the words that this libertine had just uttered, and finally the shrill scream that was in her throat burned.“Grandmother!” Virginia came running out of the guest room, attracted by the screaming. She hadn't expected that she would wake up so early, judging by the number of empty champagne bottles that were scattered around the apartment.
"Virginia!" Shrieked Grandmother with more than a little panic in her voice. “What is this pervert doing in my kitchen?” She stumbled back a few steps until her back bumped against the hall wall.
"Pervert?" Repeated Wolf, offended. "I'm not a pervert! I'm not, Virginia," he said again when his fiancée came into view. "Huff-puff, I just offered her this pick-me-up ... You know, the 'fast, intense-'"
"Wolf!", Virginia cut him off in shock, sometimes her lover was just a tad too naive. "You can't say that, heaven! ... And, Grandmother ... it's all very easy to explain, you know? Let's sit down first, okay?"~ * + ^ + * ~
Far away, in the eternally cold 8th Kingdom, the icy north wind raged as always, lashing through the air with thorny blows. The entire surface was cracked as far as the eye could see, and it seemed as if the floor was about to break apart and let hot lava flow out, but it wasn't.
The wind howled like a hungry wolf, dragging the original ice sculptures into ever more unusual and pointed shapes that covered the plain and changed again and again due to the constantly unfriendly weather, so that you could quickly lose your bearings if you wanted to orient yourself to certain ice shapes .
One looked in vain for human footprints in the snow and ice, and even if someone dared venture outside under these conditions, the evidence would have been removed within minutes by the wind and hail.
Only the toughest animals could survive in the icy conditions, such as weatherproof reindeer, snow deer and other game.Martens and moles lived beneath the thick layer of ice. Some of the greenery that the herbivores used as food grew on this level.
The 8th Kingdom was inhabited by only a few people, all of whom were known for their cool, if not icy, hospitality. The underground igloos in which they lived provided some protection from the no less unfriendly weather of the northernmost area of ​​the 9 kingdoms.
There was only one construction above ground, and that was the Queen's Palace, the Ice Queen. The building towered imposingly towards the sky in the middle of the kingdom, transparent peaks of ice pointed in all directions and reflected the rays of the sun, which, despite their intensity, could never melt the snow. Dangerously honed, the building flashed, and its cruel beauty alone prevented anyone from approaching it without serious thoughts of suicide.
~ * + ^ + * ~
"I really have to leave again, Wendell," said Cinderella regretfully.It had taken so long to see her grandson again after Whitney ... The death of her son had been one of the reasons why she had locked herself in her castle, why she wanted to shut out the whole world in her pain , in their loss. But now, after his murder had finally been avenged, she was alive again, and her son lived on in Wendell, he would make a great ruler, and if he had found the right one, then the line of Cinderella would continue through his descendants become. "I cannot leave my kingdom unattended for more than a few days, as you know."
"I understand, grandmother," replied Wendell, just as sad about her oh-so-short stay. He would have liked to have learned more, learned more from the legendary Cinderella, whom he was allowed to call grandmother, he didn't know much about his family on his father's side. But since the contact had now been made, it would not break off so quickly."Come with me to my carriage," she told him and walked on, sure that her grandson would follow her. Her famous golden shoes clattered heavily on the fine parquet floors.
Wendell smiled, hurried after her and, after he caught up with her, let her hook onto him. "But of course."
~ * + ^ + * ~
"Damn it, damn it!" Tony cursed indignantly as he made another tap. “I'm a visionary, not a goddamn graphic artist!” The design of the play castle that he was supposed to tackle for Prince Wendell turned out to be more persistent than expected. The ideas were all in his head, but unfortunately it didn't want to be put on paper like that.
He was also concerned with what Wolf had said to him when he and Virginia returned to New York. *Grandfather? What he meant by that ... Even though the two are engaged now - which has happened too quickly for me - I can't really get used to the idea that he and she ... he and she ... my little one , innocent daughter and that half animal!Was it really such a good idea to let the two go alone? *
"Anthony?" Called a familiar voice and made the person start startled. "Now that my grandmother has already left, I wanted to see how you are ..."
"Prince", he greeted automatically and added a "Wendell" to the back a little late when he had to remind himself, like recently, that Snow White's grandson was no longer a dog.
The new king smiled patronizingly and stepped closer to the desk on which all the drafts lay laid out. "'Wendell' is enough, Anthony, that's an advantage of a Valiant ..."
"Really?" He asked, grinning stupidly.
"No, but you have a special permit," laughed Wendell and gave Tony a friendly slap on the shoulder, so that Tony tipped over and emptied the inkwell, the ink now running over the only remaining sheet of paper.
"No," moaned Tony, trying to save what could be saved with an old handkerchief.Unfortunately, all attempts were fruitless. "No matter what the heck?", He finally sighed and threw all the papers in the trash at once. "Wasn't worth anything anyway ..."
Wendell smiled sympathetically. "What's on your mind, old friend?"
"Hey! I'm not 'old', I'm just old enough-" That was typical again. Once he wasn't to blame for something, it was passed over. If Wendell hadn't nudged him, it wouldn't have happened. Although, to be fair, he had to admit that the drafts would have ended up in the circular file anyway.
"-to become a grandfather," interrupted Wendell.
Tony's head jerked around in alarm and he recognized a friendly glint in the king's eyes, which completely missed the narrow-mindedness prevailing in his dog form. "What? Where