Once Upon a Time: New Fairy Tales Paperback

as a croquet set, several pairs of boots, and a stuffed alligator.

“Beef stew,” he said, tasting what was in the kettle. “Would you like some?”

“I’m quite capable of hunting for myself, thank you,” said

Blanchefleur. “Don’t wait up. I have a feeling that when the Professor said you should be up by dawn, he meant it.”

That night, Ivan slept on the second floor of the tower, where he

found a bed, a desk, and a large traveling trunk with Oswald carved on it. He wondered if Oswald had been the professor’s last apprentice, the one who had been such a disappointment. In the middle of the night, he thought he felt Blanchefleur jump on the bed and curl up

next to his back. But when he woke up in the morning, she was gone.

Ivan was used to waking up at dawn, so wake up at dawn he did. He

found a small bathroom under the stairs, splashed water on his face, got dressed, and went downstairs. Blanchefleur was sitting on the table, staring at the kettle still set on it, with a look of disdain on her face.

“What is that mess?” she asked.

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? Blanchefleur ?

“I think it’s pea soup,” he said, after looking into the kettle. It smelled inviting, but then anything would have at that hour. Next to the kettle were a wooden bowl and spoon, as well as a napkin. “Did you put these here?” he asked Blanchefleur.

“Why would I do such a stupid thing?” she asked, and turned her

back to him. She began licking her fur, as though washing herself

were the most important thing in the world.

Ivan shrugged, spooned some of the pea soup into the bowl, and

had a plain but filling breakfast. Afterward, he washed the bowl and spoon. As soon as he had finished eating, the kettle had emptied again—evidently, it did not need washing. Then he sat down at the

table and pulled the first of Professor Owl’s notes toward him.

It was tedious work. First, he would read through the notes, which

were written in a cramped, slanting hand. Then, he would try to

add a paragraph to the file, as neatly and succinctly as he could. He had never paid much attention in school, and writing did not come easily to him. After the first botched attempt, he learned to compose his paragraphs on the backs of Professor Owl’s notes, so when he went to update the entries, he was not fumbling for words. By noon, he had finished additions to the entries on Justice, Rose, Darwin,

Theosophy, Venus, Armadillo, Badminton, and Indochina. His lunch

was chicken soup with noodles. He thought about having nothing

but soup, every morning, noon, and night for an entire year, and

longed for a sandwich.

He sat down at the table and picked up the pen, but his back and

hand hurt. He put the pen down. The sunlight out the window looked

so inviting. Perhaps he should go out and wander around the tower,

just for a little while? Where had Blanchefleur gone, anyway? He had not seen her since breakfast. He got up, stretched, and walked out.

It had been his habit, as long as he remembered, to wander around

as he wished. That was what he did now, walking around the tower

and then away from it, looking idly for Blanchefleur and finding only lizards. He wandered without thinking about where he was going or how long he had been gone. The sun began to sink in the west.

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? Theodora Goss ?

That was when he realized that he had been gone for hours. Well,

it would not matter, would it? He could always catch up with any

work he did not finish tomorrow. He walked back in the direction of the tower, only becoming lost once. It was dark when he reached it

again. He opened the door and walked in.

There were Professor Owl and Blanchefleur. The Professor was

perched on the table where Ivan had been sitting earlier that day,

scribbling furiously. Blanchefleur was saying, “What did you expect of someone named Idiot? I told you he would be useless.”