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kittycheshired · 1 year

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New Rules!

For the Ever After High Gift Exchange, Thank you @eah-exchange for hosting it!

This fic is for @feline17ff !

Summary:

After the events of Way to Wonderland, Chase is still stuck about what he is, or what he should do. Luckily his friends have a solution!

Chase Redford goes to Ever After High.

Rating: All. General

Characters: Chase Redford, Darling Charming, Alistair Wonderland, Red Queen, Kitty Cheshire, Madeline Hatter, Blondie Lockes

A message from me : this was super challenging omg, bc especially i havent written in a while, and chase has absolutely no content?? i tried to make him like socially awkward and not understand social cues. i hope you enjoy it, and merry christmas! i hope i did ur fav character justice! (i also had no idea who to make him dorm with, so i made up a random character)

“You should transfer to Ever After High.” Alistair suggested before smoothly popping a small chocolate in his mouth, seemingly to always carry them around in the pockets of his coat. The two teenagers were standing at one of the various tables with food. The Red Knight no longer adorned his helmet which made his body look proportionally wrong in comparison with his head, and the armor was also quite heavy. Chase raised an eyebrow at Alistair’s comment, grimacing a bit before his eyes grazed across the throne room and bustle of the party, before replying.

“Why?” Chase cleared his throat, his cheeks slightly flushing pink, as he was usually used to hiding behind his helmet. “I mean – it’s not like, I’m nervous, it’s just– that.. Will going to Ever After really benefit me? Has it benefited you? Bunny?”

Alistair seemingly paused a bit, as if weighing his options. Sure, he and Bunny basically had no choice but to attend Ever After High due to Kitty’s mom’s desire to see the world fall into ruin for a joke, but the change was actually a good thing! Of course his boundless curiosity had always led him to some sticky situations in Wonderland, but Ever After was nothing like Wonderland! It was bland, boring and normal, which was relieving in a way. You didn’t have to worry about hearing the horror stories of a Jabberwock and how it destroyed everything it touched. You wouldn’t have to worry about all of your nightmares coming true, when a deranged Evil Queen came to your home and attempted to make it into some sick, twisted version of her own fairytale… despite all that, Wonderland was still like his home, and he wouldn’t trade that for the world.

Alistair smiled lightly, placing a hand on Chase’s shoulder. “Look, all I’m saying is you should… think about it. I know we aren’t– particularly close, but maybe having a sense of normalcy will be good for you.”

Chase blinked, everything in Wonderland was already normal, there was no need to go to Ever After for a new sense of normalcy. The normalcy at Ever After High was different from Wonderland, so it wouldn’t be normal at all, it’d be totally different, and he’d be surrounded by other people, who he knew nothing about.

“But… this is normal, for me, at least. You weren’t born here– so it’s different for you.” Chase replied, looking at Alistair very seriously, as the other boy retracted his hand from Chase’s shoulder, wearing a hurt expression.

“Alistair! Mother wants to talk to you about your discoveries of that riddle book!” The snappy voice of Lizzie Hearts sounded from across the room, grabbing their attention, as the teenager had started to sound more and more like the future Queen she was going to become. Indeed, the Queen of Hearts was standing by her daughter, waving at the two boys. Alistair waved back, Chase didn’t, seeing as he nearly almost killed her daughter (He had a sinking feeling that if he made contact with the agitated Queen, it wouldn’t turn out very well).

“Alright, Lizzie!” Alistair walked off to the mother-daughter duo, not before sparing Chase a second glance. Chase signed in resignation, leaning against the snack table that contained a variety of food, but he ended up grabbing a cucumber sandwich, chewing it roughly.

Somehow Chase had gotten the impression that he had said something wrong to Alistair, which was ridiculous because he was being honest. His mother, the Red Queen, had always said honesty was a good thing, even if it hurt sometimes.

That explained a lot, actually. Chase was mostly used to following the Redford rules, (There was actually a handbook for it, and it was required for a family member to memorize all 127 pages of it. Or atleast get down to the basics.) They were all he had known his whole life, and he wasn’t about to let the chance of the Redford family taking him in, even if it was rather reluctantly, go to waste. So, he trained all his life to be the best Red Knight that he could be, since there was only one singular story running through Wonderland, everyone had to play their part to make sure the story was played out correctly.

Being adopted into the Redford family was.. Endearing, to say the least. ‘Redford’ was as much of a namesake as it was a surname, everyone either had frequent streaks of red, or their hair as a whole was a flamboyant red. Since Chase wasn’t blood-related to the family at all, he had taken to choppily dying parts of his naturally black hair, red. A large majority of the family liked Chase, but sometimes, whenever he arrived at family gatherings, small whispers and gossip often followed.

“He isn’t even a real Redford, why is he here?”

“I heard that his hair isn’t even partially red.”

“I heard that he was abandoned and his parents didn’t even want him!”

“I’d be ashamed if I was the Red Queen.”

Chase didn’t let the gossip bother him, he held his chin up high, but mostly kept to himself or ended up sneaking out of the family gatherings to go sit by rivers, listening to the way the waters rippled, the way the fish swam up the waterfalls, he liked the feeling of just being there in the moment.

“Chase. Redford.” Two voices mixed together, Chase, who was lost in his thoughts, nearly choked on his cucumber sandwich as he looked up to see Darling Charming and his mother, who was sporting her classic ruffled gown. Eyes watering, he regained his composure before he spoke.

“White Knight.” He bowed, a small smile formed on the girl’s lips, he turned to the Red Queen, “Mother. I’m surprised to see you here.”

A scoff escaped the Red Queen, as she set a peculiar gaze on her son. “Oh please, even though I may not be on the best of terms with our revered Queen, I was still worthy enough to be invited to her birthday party.” She held up the invitation, a certain sparkle in her dark grey eyes. “Pardon me, but you–” She turned to Darling, who, on reflex, straightened up and relaxed her face to look more demure. “Are you the White Knight? Who single handedly defeated my son in combat?”

Chase had fought back the urge to let out a groan. His mother was going to interrogate Darling, and then he would be scolded for not doing well enough.

“Yes, your majesty.” Darling smiled tightly, glancing at Chase. “Although, it was not easy. Your son is a formidable opponent.” She paused. “Not so formidable in the art of dancing, though.” The girl added on mischievously.

Chase’s face flushed as red as his namesake, as The Red Queen let out a chorus of laughter, tears threatening to spill. “Oh, you – are a card! What did you say your name was again?” The Red Queen questioned, interest written all over her pale face.

“Darling, Darling Charming. “Charming? I was aware that Charming families only taught the females to act maidenly. Who taught you how to handle a sword?”

“Well – myself. I sneaked around a lot, and I had lots of more opportunities when I was sent to Ever After.”

“Well! Aren’t you a crafty one?”

“Thank you, ma’am. Actually –” She turned away from the Red Queen to Chase, who just now noticed that Darling had a small rectangular box in her hand. “The reason I came over here with your mother was because I wanted to give you this, as a gift. You can open it later.”

“Oh, thank you, Darling.” Chase replied, taking the box and gazing at it curiously. “You’re welcome, now if you’ll excuse me, my brothers have been worried sick about me.. And royally angry at me, for not telling them I was the White Knight.” The Red Queen and Chase watched as Darling made her way back to her brothers. The blonde one practically enveloped her in a hug, while the other brother started chatting animatedly to her.

“Such a sweet girl, now, back to you, Chase.” Chase immediately straightened, waiting for the reprimanding to begin. Would he be sentenced to another round of vigorous training? Would he be forced to recatalog the whole Redford library again? Would he have to clean the pawn’s armor?

“I want you to go to Ever After High.”

“What?”

“I realized after your defeat.. In the chess match. I’ve always pushed you to where you think you weren’t doing enough, but that’s not true.” She reached up to cup his cheek, smiling softly at her son. “You are exceptional, and you always have been. Since you were.. adopted, I’ve always wanted you to be better, despite your unfair circumstances at not fitting in. Now, I realize that was my fatal error as a Queen, and as a mother. No matter what anyone says it does not matter if you are related to me through blood, or if you're adopted. You, Chase Redford, always are, and will be my wonderful son.”

Chase swallowed roughly, tears softly streaming down his face as he pulled in his mother for a tight hug. “You haven’t had any chance to be a teenager. So going to Ever After with help. No restraint, no rules– at least not ones you’re used to.” “Mother.” Chase’s voice sounded hoarse. “I’m scared.” The Red Queen pulled back from the hug, gently kissing Chase’s forehead. “Don’t be, dear. It’s just a new stage in your life.. Now, I’ll be back, I’ll go get both of us some refreshments!”

As the Red Queen left, Chase proceeded to open the small box Darling had given him, inside he found the note.

The note read…

Dear Red Knight, Enclosed in this box is an item you may not be familiar with. It is called a MirrorPhone and is used to communicate with friends and family over the MirrorNet. I understand that using this device may cause confusion, so I put (hopefully) simple instructions along with the MirrorPhone to assist you. ☺ Enclosed in this note are also the following’s phone numbers; Alistair Wonderland, Bunny Blanc, Kitty Cheshire, Lizzie Hearts, Maddie Hatter, and mine. I hope that having your fellow Wonderlandians’ assistance at a moment’s notice will help you feel more at ease! This MirrorPhone was originally intended to be gifted for the Queen of Hearts, but then Lizzie informed me that she had thousands, and I didn’t know anyone else without a MirrorPhone, except you, that is. I hope that you can use this for communication while in Wonderland. I hope that interdimensional internet is a thing, and since Raven broke the Wonderland curse, it will be easier to maintain contact.

-Darling Charming

Chase moved aside the note to find a dark red MirrorPhone, and smiled.

One thing that was in the Redford handbook was to always have spare armor. You never knew when it would come in handy. This added to the fact that Chase barely had any clothes, just armor. He would probably get weird looks wearing his Red Knight armor, so he eventually just settled for wearing a white long sleeved blouse, accompanied with black leather pants and black boots.

A week later, his first impression of Ever After High was that it was abnormally bright. The abundance of dark colors and white made his brain contain numerous amounts of static, and not in a good way. As Chase made his way to his dorm room and down the hallway, he noticed that he got a lot of attention. As always, there were more stares.. and whispers.

“Isn't that the new boy from Wonderland? He looks so charming.”

“Right, he’s off-the-page! Maybe he could even rival Daring!”

“What?! No waaay.”

“Way.”

A red flush crawled up Chase’s neck as he hurried to get to his dorm, wishing to avoid contact with anyone. Unfortunately, that sentiment wasn’t shared because as soon as he took one step, a rectangular digital device was shoved in his face.. It looked like a MirrorPhone but bigger? Darling had hexted him and it was called… a MirrorPad! Behind the helm was a blonde curly haired girl, with big bright blue eyes, she was sporting a grin that was practically bigger then the Cheshire Cat’s, the small blinking red light of the MirrorPad made her look terrifying then any opponent Chase had ever faced.

“Welcome back to Just Right, my fairytale listeners! Blondie Lockes here, with another dose of news! Our classmates have just returned from Wonderland, which Raven Queen has lifted the curse from! Isn’t that amazing? Now, it appears that a new student has arrived at Ever After High!” Blondie shoved a microphone near Chase’s mouth, her body practically buzzing with eagerness. “Chase Redford, the former Red Knight who was defeated by Darling Charming in combat, has seemingly caught the attention of the female population of Ever After!” She giggled, the MirrorPad now being passed to one of Darling’s brothers.

“So, Chase, how do you feel about that? Has anyone caught your eye? Looking for a spot in the romance hexpartment?” She smiled at him brightly.

“Uhh– Well, I uh–” “Uh’s assorted with catnip!” A voice yelled out, the next thing he knew, his vision was obscured by lavender hair, and the smell of lilacs was ingrained in his senses. There was a mixture of voices, including an “Oh!, “Whoopsies!” and a faded “How rude!” before everything turned grayish and dull, then snapped back to color, even though all he could see was lavender hair, and he heard the suitcase fall on the ground with a loud thump.

“Kitty, can you get off my head?” Chase snapped, light headed and disoriented from disappearing from one place to another. “Of course, my shining Knight in red armor.” Kitty drawled, gently hopping off his head, and strolling over to where Madeline Hatter was giggling madly, whilst Chase glanced around to see that Kitty had promptly transported them by Chase’s designated dorm.

“That was tea-rrific!” Madeline Hatter said as she pulled a cup of tea out of her hat, “Blondie was so caught off guard! It’s hilarious how Kitty and I were conveniently there at the same time you were feeling uncomfortable, Chase! Spelltacular thinking, Narrator!”

Chase blinked, not knowing what the mad girl was talking about. “How did you know I was feeling uncomfortable?”

“It was written all over your face!” Maddie was now pouring tea a cup, Kitty was now drinking a cup of tea that she poured as well. “Plus, the narrator told us how you were feeling, although they’re not Brooke. All I could hear was, ‘Chase’, ‘Chase that’ ‘Chase–” She was interrupted by the ringing of a clock from her hat. “Teatime for two! Sorry, Chase, Kitty and I are going out. I hope you have fun figuring out what to do.”

Madeline and Kitty waved, Kitty kissing Maddie's cheek, before they both disappeared in a gleam of purple sparkles. Chase sighed, he didn’t even have time to thank them for helping him escape Blondie. That girl seriously needed to understand the definition of ‘privacy’. Heaving the suitcase up, he read the nameplate on the door of the room. ‘Glenn North and Chase Redford” and pushed the door open.

One side of the room was completely bare, and the other side was decked out in an assortment of whites and greys, with hints of green. There was a boy with long platinum blonde hair, brown eyes, who was perched on his bed, reading a book labeled Dorothy’s Shoes: The Oz Debate. At Chase’s entrance, the boy looked up, setting his book down and marking it with a bookmark before closing it.

“You must be my new roommate, Chase Redford. The side of the room that’s a blank slate is yours. I’m Glenn North, son of the Good Witch of the North. I hope we can become friends in the future.” Glenn said in the most monotone voice, then went back to reading his book.

“You too.” Chase muttered back, setting his bag down on his bed, then finding an envelope addressed to him.

CHASE REDFORD - CLASS SCHEDULE

RIDDLING

TRACK AND SHIELD

GENERAL VILLANY

GRIMMNASTICS

MYTHOLOGY

CHEMYTHSTRY

As Chase gazed at the schedule, it didn’t seem to invoke any particular feeling at all. He felt like this was alright, and it would certainly be better then Wonderland High, given he never got to learn anything at all. As long as he had his Wonderlandian friends, it would be okay.

Hopefully.

#ever after high #eah exchange #eah #eah fanfic #chase redford #madeline hatter #alistair wonderland #kitty cheshire #red queen #blondie lockes

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feline17ff · 1 year

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Where in the world are those…brownies?

For the Ever After High Holiday Gift Exchange organized by @eah-exchange

This is a fic for @everafterwhy

Summary: Someone has stolen the chocolate brownies Lunch Lady Hagatha made! Right in the middle of hex-ams! The gang needs to solve this mystery before things get out of hand.

Rating: General. All.

Characters/ships: Maddie Hatter, Raven Queen, Apple White, Darling Charming, Rosabella Beauty

Holiday message for the @everafterwhy:

It was my first time participating in an exchange and the first time writing a mystery, I had big plans for it but mysteries are HARD. And so many characters in this one! Making the dialogue flow was a pickle! Plus irl stuff and procrastination. I hope I did your idea justice. I may have used Maddie a bit more than needed but I had difficulty to write this so it's justified, hehe. Sincerely hope you like it :) Happy holidays to you and @eah-exchange and everyone who reads or doesn't read this :)))

It was Beanstalk Sunday at Ever After High and the castle-teria was packed with students enjoying healthy servings of the nutritious vegetable.

But something else was going on.

And not just the sleep deprivation from studying for hex-ams.

Something else the students were actually looking forward to.

Sparrow was strumming his fingers at his table, Blondie was curling her finger through her hair, even Daring was using his handheld mirror to occasionally catch glimpses of the scene behind him: the door to the school kitchen.

Maddie, Raven, Apple, Darling, and Rosabella were seated at a table right next to the large wall-length windows. Apple noticed first, “Hey, why does it seem like everyone is waiting for something?”

Maddie slurped her beanstalk stalks like spaghetti with a loud slurp then replied, “I know, I know! That’s because…,” everyone leaned in, “they are!” She switched her plate with Raven’s and started eating anew.

“Thank you, Maddie. Can you tell me what they're waiting for?”

“Yes, I can!” She took another loud slurp of her beanstalk meal.

Raven gave Apple a nod and a placating hand, then turned to Maddie. “What are they waiting for, Maddie?”

“Hmm, Narrator?”

They were waiting for the lunch staff to serve the chocolate brownies made from an old Ever After recipe that was lost to time and only recently discovered by Lunch Lady Hagatha.

“Thanks, Narrator! They’re waiting for chocolate brownies! Lady Hagatha found an old Ever After recipe.”

Rosabella pushed back her glasses, “An old recipe? I hope they’re sourced organically. But why does everyone except us know about these brownies?”

Everyone at the table shook their heads and shrugged.

“Maybe it was because we were too busy with the Dragon Games?” suggested Darling.

There was silence for a moment where they stared at each other.

Then the five nodded.

“Yeah, makes sense.”

“We were busy.”

“Lots to do.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Glad that plot point is resolved.”

As if on cue, the door to the kitchen swung open and Lunch Lady Hagatha came out. Every one of the students stood up and ran to be the first one in line.

But Lady Hagatha shook her head and yelled at the top of her lungs, “NO BROWNIES!”

There was outrage.

“Why? We’ve been waiting for those brownies all day!”

Lady Hagatha just shrugged and replied, “Someone stole ‘em.”

Various versions of “What?” and “That’s not fairest!” could be heard throughout the room.The looming threat of exams, on top of the anxiety and sleep deprivation, were messing with everyone’s brains, making them antsy. The students even started blaming each other!

Sparrow, his Merry Men, and Kitty seemed to be the prime targets, being mischief makers and having been heard talking about the brownies the most.

After a few minutes of pointless blame, a shrill shout echoed, "It. Wasn't. Me!" Kitty stood up, slammed her tray down, then disappeared, her frown being the last thing visible before it too vanished.

It was definitely very serious if Kitty, the enjoyer of mischief, left the scene of mischief.

Baba Yaga entered the castle-teria soon after, perhaps Kitty had disappeared to her office? A very serious debacle indeed if the mischief maker contacted the authority figure themselves.

“Now, now. I know we were all looking forward to those delicious brownies," she said, "but that doesn’t mean we should start blaming each other without a shadow of proof. Please, if the perpetrator will come to my office, I’m sure we can work something out.”

Silence.

She clasped her hands, "Glad that's settled," and floated out back to her chicken bird office.

But that wasn't the end.

The blame game continued.

Those chocolate brownies were quite the treat apparently.

Well, that's what the five girls were assuming, based on all the commotion around them that had unfolded in the span of a few minutes.

Rosabella raised her voice loud enough for the table, "Who would do such a thing? I do hope they come forward soon. Look what one bad deed can do," she tsked.

Apple agreed. "Yes, totally unfairest." Then she turned to Maddie, "As co-presidents, it is our duty to do something about this, isn't that right?"

"Indubitably."

"Great! I suggest—"

"—solving this mystery? A great idea!" she turned to the rest of the table, "Gang, looks like we have a mystery to solve!"

Darling grinned and pumped her fist in the air without hesitation, "Awesome! I've been meaning to do something funner than studying for hex-ams," she rolled her eyes.

Raven briefly glanced, “All the best, you guys," She was almost done putting the finishing touches on her sandwich, just had to slice it in two now, but where was that knife? She looked all around and finally spotted it under their table. She reached for it but when she sat back up, her sandwich was gone! Disappeared! Vanished! Into thin air! She looked right and left, where could her sandwich have gone?

Then she saw Maddie daintily wiping her mouth.

“Maddie. Did you see my sandwich?”

“Why, yes, I did see it, Raven. I saw you make the most delicious sandwich with my own eyes!”

“Yes, but did you see where it went?”

“Yes, I did!”

“And that would be…” she smiled encouragingly at her friend.

“I saw it go into my mouth!”

“Your mouth? Did you eat my sandwich? I didn’t know you were so hungry, Maddie.”

“What can I say, solving a mystery always gives me such an appetite. For sandwiches and particularly delicious snacks that are most definitely not dog treats as some would incorrectly believe.”

"Uhhh—"

“—So you’re in?” Darling asked Raven, her hand tightly gripping the table in excitement.

“Well, um—” Raven began, only to be cut off.

“Of course we are! Can’t solve a mystery without two characters to always use as bait!”

“What?”

“Don’t worry, just give us these snacks,” she searched for, then took out a box of snacks from under her hat, “and we’ll be more than willing to be used as bait!”

“Why? What’s so special about those snacks?” Raven reached for the box but Maddie handed it to Rosabella.

“Nu-uh,” she tutted, “these snacks are a secret tool that will help us later. Now, let’s go solve a mystery, gang!” And she dragged her friends off towards the castle-teria kitchen.

—------------------

The gang entered the kitchen only to be met with gingerbread men, elves, and pixies busy at work banking and cooking mountains of food. There was no way they could get an investigation done here, it was total pandemonium.

“Cook, cook as fast as you can!”

“Elf, pixie, mend that stew!”

So, each girl slowly walked backwards out of the kitchen.

“What should we do now?” Apple said. “We can’t possibly investigate in that very unwonderlandiful mess in there!”

“Hmm,” Darling started. “What if…we go…when it isn't so messy in there?”

Raven raised an eyebrow, “What do you mean, Darling?”

“I mean…stealth mission! Tonight!”

“Excellent idea, Darling Charming! Certainly no harm, no fowl feathers in a twist if there are no wings a-flapping!”

Rosabella looked at Maddie uncertainly, “Uh, right!”

“Not to say that’s not a good plan," Apple began kindly, "but the lunch ladies lock the castle-teria after their shift. How will we unlock it?”

“Oh, I can do that.” Everyone except Maddie turned to look at Raven. “What?”

“Nothing, nothing. So," Apple grinned, “We have a plan! We’ll get in tonight, investigate, and catch whoever’s stealing those chocolate brownies!”

—------------------

“Okay, guys. Here’s the plan.”

The five had met up outside the castle-teria after hours, ready to catch the brownie thief.

Apple continued whispering, “Raven will unlock the door using her magic–”

“Done.” Raven blew the remaining purple fire off her hand.

“Raven. You’re fable-ous.”

“Why yes. Yes, I am.”

One by one they entered the kitchen.

“Okay. Now, we look for any clues we can find about the mysterious Ever After thief that stole those brownies,” Darling declared.

“I suggest we split up.” Maddie interrupted.

“Good idea,” said Darling.

“Quick question. What do we do if we bump into the thief?” asked Rosabella.

“Oh, I know!” Maddie popped up in front of her, “We run!”

“Run?”

“Run!”

“But we want to catch this thief, Maddie.” Apple reminded.

“Yeah!” Maddie didn't look the slightest perturbed.

“Umm, Maddie.” Darling tried her luck. “Why would we run if we want to catch it?”

“To set a trap for it later of course!”

“Why not set a trap now?” spoke up Rosabella.

“Oh? Sure, we can do that, I guess,” she tapped her cheek, then nodded. “Yeah, we can do that! Let’s do it!”

Darling thought out loud, "Okay, so let's see what we know about the thief? So, what do we know?"

"It likes chocolate," Rosabella said.

"It likes that new recipe," Raven added.

Then Maddie asked, "But where do those brownies go? Do they eat them all in one night?"

"If they do," Apple said with a wince, "then they're in for one big bad stomach ache!"

"You're right. Hmm," Darling was lost in thought. "Who could it be?"

Raven was the first one, "We can just hide and see who comes in?"

"Hmm, we could, but what if we can't catch them in time?"

"Darling, you can use your magic touch when they're stealing the brownies," suggested Rosabella.

"And one of us can stand by the light switch," Apple said, "and we can sprinkle some powdered sugar or something messy for good measure."

"Oooh, that's a great idea!"

"And Apple and I can have our mirror pads ready to record them as soon the lights are on," said Raven.

Apple bit her lip hesitantly, "But we're not going to mirrorcast them or publish them in the yearbook, are we? That seems…heartless."

"Oh, no, never. But they won't know that!"

"Evilly genius, Raven!"

"Apple…"

"I meant that as a compliment! But yeah, sorry."

Maddie nodded, then asked, "So, we know what to do when the thief comes, but what do we do when they don't?"

"Hmm, a very good observation, co-president! But I guess we'll just have to try again next time then."

"Gotcha, Madame President! Now, what are we waiting for? They're almost here!"

There was a sputter of confusion but everyone started finding hiding places as they whisper-shouted at Maddie.

"How do you know that, Maddie?" Rosabella asked.

"Because the author had trouble writing this mystery so decided to nip it right now!"

Rosabella and Apple, who weren't used to Maddie's or Wonderland's antics, said at the same time, "What?"

Raven rolled her eyes fondly, "It's her magic touch."

"Oh."

—

Someone unlocked the kitchen door. One figure entered, and then another.

They tried to sneak in softly, seemingly well aware of their surroundings even in the dark. They stood over the trays of brownies and started eating with such discretion as if they were professionals trained in the art.

Halfway through, Raven switched on the lights, her mirrorpad ready.

On the other side, Apple did the same.

Darling flipped her hair and used her magic touch, slowing down the perpetrators.

Rosabella and Maddie came out of their hiding spots, Maddie with an oversized sandwich she somehow made in the few seconds she spent in her hiding spot.

"Hello, Ever After High," Raven pressed record (to be deleted later), "look who we have here! Your classmates and brownie thieves, Helga and Gus Crumb!"

"Gasp," said Darling with a smirk.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Gus tried to say, but a mouthful of brownies and being in slow motion while wearing PJs laced with powdered sugar didn't exactly help his case.

Darling resumed the two to their normal speed.

“Yes, Gus and I were just, uh, catching the thief, same as you,” both cousins nodded furiously.

"Give it up, you two," said Rosabella.

"We caught you snow and four!" said Maddie.

"Yeah!" agreed Darling.

Helga and Gus stared at Darling, "What?"

"She means fair and square," translated Raven.

"Ohhhh," drawled the two. Then Gus added, "Makes sense, makes sense, I get it. It's because ‘fair as snow’, and two is a squared number."

"Very smart of you, cousin!"

"Thank you, Helga!"

"Alright. Now that that's settled. What should we do with these two, Ms yearbook editor and co-president, and other co-president."

"Ooh, I have a hex-cellent idea!" Apple clasped her hands, a glint in her eye while the two cousins shared a nervous glance.

—

Helga and Gus Crumb had admitted to stealing then duplicating a key to the school kitchen during a busy rush hour at the start of their year at Ever After High.

When the new brownies turned out to actually be good, they decided to steal them all to themselves as a reward for the stressful hex-ams.

Of course, this didn't fly with anyone. The two were put on lunch serving duty for a week. But their knowledge of tasty treats and youthful energy made them a favorite with the lunch staff, so they received extra brownies every day, some punishment that turned out to be.

"What's wrong, Maddie?" Rosabella slid her tray and sat down next to her.

"I didn't get to be used as bait. I didn't get those snacks to persuade me to be used as bait." She sighed and slumped down on the table.

"Aww, don't worry. I still have those snacks in my dorm. I can give them to you if you'd like."

"It's not the same," she sighed again.

"Aww," Apple interrupted, "So you'll only have those snacks during a mystery and only when you're being used as bait to set a trap for a villain?"

“That's exactly right, Ms Girl Detective!” Maddie perked up. "Got any good mysteries?"

“Haha, no, sorry. But 'girl detective'? I like the sound of that! We’re all girl detectives now, aren’t we?”

The group muttered in agreement.

“Sure, lock it down, Holmesie!” Maddie had gotten her gusto back.

“What?” Apple asked, confused.

“Yes, forced, I know. But anyway, we did it!" she sat back straight and pumped both fists in the air," You're right, we did it! We solved one mystery! That means we'll have so many more mysteries now! A new mystery every week! The victims always closely related to us, and a themed mystery every holiday!"

Apple, Raven, Darling and Rosabella tried to make sense of Maddie's ramblings, but then caught each other's eyes and laughed.

"Sure, Maddie. Whatever you say."

------------------

The End

#ever after high #eah fanfic #eah exchange #my writing #everafterwhy

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