| Gothilocks had lost her way in the forest, looking for belladonna to blanch her complexion, which just wasn't fair enough for her taste. Even though she was renowned for her lovely mane, which framed her little round face in shiny black ringlets, she still secretly coveted the pallor of that bitch Faustine, who was so wan and thin that she looked positively consumptive! "I'm going to get that ghostly hue," Gothilocks swore, "even if it kills me!" For a self-proclaimed "Child of the Night", the little darkling was starting to get uncharacteristically worried now that she noticed the crepuscular sky beginnning to drape over the treetops and settle in heavy folds 'twixt the branches. She had all but lost hope when she noticed a dingy little cottage in a clearing. She was feeling weary, as well as a little peckish, and figured this was the only shelter she was bound to find this deep in the woods. It was a wee bit forbidding and uninviting in its appearance, but it would have to do. She walked up to the curtained window, caught a glimpse of her reflection in the moonlight, and stopped to primp herself for her meeting with the denizens of this lowly hovel. She wanted to look her best so that they would automatically take her in on account of her jetty locks, and fetching good looks. She grabbed the heavy knocker, unusually ornate for such a paltry looking place, and rapped three times. No answer. She tried again, only this time a little harder, and to her surprise the door swung open! She sashayed across the threshold and stopped for a moment to take everything in, as well as look for a host to charm. "Hello there, is anybody home? Hello!" No reply. She noticed a table with three places set for supper. At the head of the table was a fancy dish with a thick red fluid in it. She picked up the inlaid utensil, at the side of the dish, and scooped up a spoonful. Eyeing it suspiciously, she mused, "What is this, borscht? Wait, there's no sour cream, it must be gazpacho! Either way, I don't do cold soup, and this stuff looks like it's starting to congeal." She dropped the spoon into the bowl, causing some of the dish's contents to spill onto the table, and moved on to the next seat. Before her sat a dish with a large marrowbone in it. The bone had many teeth marks on it, which indicated that it had been chewed a great deal by something with a large bite. "What, they let the family dog eat with them at the dinner table? Ew!" Disgusted, she pushed away the bone and went to the last place, where she found a dish full of nuts and berries. She figured this was as good as it was going to get without any hosts in sight, so she ate them all up, and washed it down with a swig of water from an Evian bottle she had in her satchel. Feeling sleepy, she went upstairs to the loft where the beds were kept. She saw a casket, which she climbed into, because she always wondered what it would feel like to be in one. It was too creepy for her though, and she began to feel claustrophobic, so she bailed. She saw a basket with cushions and blankets, but when close to them, she was repelled by the scent of animal sweat. Finally, she found a slab, which had a small cushion at the top, and even though it was a bit more like a table than a bed, it reminded her of some Japanese accomodations she had seen in a magazine. "This is no worse than my futon at home," she thought, and soon she was fast asleep. |