CHAPTER 5

Just One of the Girls

Cerise pulled off her shoes and ran. She had forgotten how wonderful it was just to run at top speed. Although she had fun outdoors with Dexter, she always had to remember to slow her pace so he could keep up with her. It was so freeing to run like the wind through the forest! She was running happily when she heard a sound that made her stop in her tracks. It was vaguely familiar. What does that remind me of? Cerise wondered. It was a soft howl. It sounded like, well, it sounded like she did when she howled! Intrigued, she followed the sound and came upon a family of wolf pups with their mom. They were so cute! But as Cerise approached them, the pups huddled fearfully against their mom, and the mother wolf let out a low warning growl at Cerise.

Cerise realized she looked like a “normal” human girl to the wolf pups and their mom. She let down her hood and showed the wolves her ears. Then she threw back her head and howled with all her might. The pups suddenly sprang at her joyfully. She was one of them! Even the mama wolf changed her tune and wagged her tail happily at Cerise. Cerise sat on the ground and played with the adorable pups for a long time. Now she was even more homesick for her family. She missed her mom and dad so much! And it was such a pain to have to hide her ears all the time. Would she ever find anyplace where she felt comfortable enough to just be herself?

It was hard to tear herself away, but finally she hugged each pup good-bye and promised them she would come back and play with them again someday if she could. Then she set off running again, and this time she came upon a fairy different kind of family—a human one. She hid behind a tree and watched a mom, dad, and two children enjoying a picnic. She felt a pang of homesickness watching this family, too. Would she ever figure out hexactly where she belonged? But she knew one thing for certain: Even if she got stuck in this story forever after, she was not going to stay inside a castle all day! Cerise watched the little family for a bit and then continued on her way. She ran and ran until she came upon a pretty little village. She decided to stop running and catch her breath, and also check out the shops in the village. She thought maybe she’d find a little gift or souvenir to bring back to Dexter to cheer him up.

Cerise walked through the village. She was just starting to think that maybe she should start heading back to the castle when a building caught her eye. It was a library. There are more than enough books back at the castle, Cerise thought. But then again, Dexter would be disappointed if I told him I passed a library and didn’t take even a peek inside.

Cerise wandered through the library and made her way over to the fairytales aisle. She saw all the familiar books: Cinderella! Snow White! Goldilocks! The titles made her miss her friends at home. Then she picked up a copy of Beauty and the Beast. Hmmm. Maybe I should take a look at this, she thought. She pulled up a chair and began to read.

As she did, she discovered that Beauty loved flowers, especially roses. I love roses, too, Cerise thought. That’s one thing Beauty and I have in common. But Cerise realized that Beauty also cared a lot about her family and friends. She wanted to be there for everyone all at once. Cerise was starting to think she had a few things in common with Beauty ever after all.

Cerise also learned that the Beast wasn’t some big scary monster or even a dashing prince. Actually, he was a pretty nice guy who wasn’t fairy cool at all. He was a little embarrassed about being a beast and thought he wasn’t particularly good at anything. The Beast reminds me so much of Dexter, Cerise thought. Dexter hadn’t been fairy confident since they arrived here, and now she was realizing that he, just like the Beast, needed to be comfortable with himself to be truly happy. Cerise had a feeling that if she could convince Dexter to be happier being himself, they’d be home in no time. She couldn’t wait to get back to the castle and talk to him about it.

Cerise was on her way back to the castle when suddenly she heard someone yell, “Look out!” and a bookball landed beside her.

“Sorry! Can you throw it back?” a girl yelled. Cerise looked up and saw some bookball players waving at her.

Cerise looked at the ball timidly for a moment, unsure if she should let her wolflike talents show. But then the girl called to her again. “Come on! You look like you’ve got a great throw!” So Cerise grinned as she finally picked up the bookball and tossed it back—a perfect, straight throw to the girl.

“Wow! That was a hexcellent throw!” the girl shouted. “Would you like to play?”

“Yeah, sure,” Cerise called back and rushed over to the girls. But as she ran over, her heels kept getting stuck in the mud. She knew she couldn’t play dressed like this. “I’d love to join you guys, but my shoes keep slipping around and I don’t think I should play barefoot,” Cerise told them, already disappointed that she wouldn’t get to play. But the girls quickly chimed in that they had plenty of hextra gear, and Cerise was welcome to borrow their sneakers! After she changed her shoes, the girls jokingly fought over which team she would be on for a few minutes and then decided with a quick coin toss.

“You’re a natural,” one girl said to her. “Where did you learn to throw like that?”

“I…” Cerise hesitated. How could she explain her hextreme athleticism? I probably shouldn’t tell them I’m half-wolf, she thought to herself. Instead she shrugged her shoulders, smiled, and said, “Just born lucky, I guess.”

While Cerise was in the village, Dexter brought a huge basket of berries back to the castle for Cerise to bake more of her mom’s wildberry pies upon her return. Once he was back inside, Dexter looked at himself in the mirror again and reflected on becoming the Beast. He’d heard the expression “don’t judge a book by its cover” his entire life. He certainly hoped that was true in the Beast’s case. On the outside he was big and furry and intimidating. But on the inside he was still shy, quiet, and thoughtful. He wondered what was going on back at Ever After High. He wondered what his crush, Raven Queen, was up to. Did she land in a strange storybook, too? Was she worried about him? He sighed and walked into the library. He wished there was a book that could help him with his romantic dilemma. He scanned all the titles. What hexactly was he looking for? A how-to book entitled How to Make the Most Spelltacular Girl in the World Fall in Love with You When You Look Like a Beast would be just perfect. But he knew he probably wasn’t going to find that.

Dexter was lonely and bored, and he didn’t find any clues in the castle that he thought could help him and Cerise get back to Ever After High. Dexter decided to take a little nap. He fell into a deep sleep and had a wonderful dream. He was back to being regular Dexter, but not as fearful or timid. He was brave, witty, and charming. He was dancing at a ball, and everyone wanted a chance to dance with him. And at the head of the line was none other than Raven Queen herself!

“Dex, you really are a great dancer,” Raven told him.

“Why, thank you. I’ve been told I’m light on my feet,” Dexter replied.

“I could dance with you forever after,” Raven confessed.

“Really? And you don’t mind how shy I am?” Dexter asked.

“You’re perfect just the way you are,” Raven replied.

Dexter twirled Raven around happily. Then suddenly, he felt warm. And heavy. And itchy. Was he sweating? He reached his hand up to wipe his brow, and he was shocked to see his hand was a paw, covered in fur! He was completely covered in fur! He was no longer Dexter Charming—he was the Beast!

He looked down at Raven, panicked. The last thing he wanted was to frighten her away. But she was still smiling dreamily up at him.

“Um, Raven?” he said cautiously.

“Yeah, Dex?” Raven answered.

“Um. Can you… um… see how I’ve changed?”

Raven laughed merrily. “Yeah, of course! How could I miss all that fur? But I still think you’re adorable!”

“I am?” Dexter said, shocked.

“Of course! I’d think you’re adorable, no matter how you look.”

All of a sudden, Raven changed, too! She was also covered in fur!

And the funny thing was, Dexter still found her adorable, too. It was then Dexter realized that how they looked—beast or not—didn’t matter. It was what was on the inside that counted.

“This is too good to be true!” Dexter exclaimed. “It’s like a dream… a dream… a drrrreaaam…”

Dexter opened his eyes and found himself on the couch. It wasn’t like a dream. It was a dream! Only a dream.

The staff had gone for the night, and he was completely alone. When is Cerise coming home? he wondered, starting to get worried. He’d thought he’d be happy with an entire library to himself and all the time in the world to read whatever he wanted, but he was too anxious about getting back to Ever After High to enjoy it. Then he remembered how much fun he’d had when he’d made Cerise her hood. He went back to her room and picked out a ball gown that he knew was too poufy and complicated for Cerise to ever want to wear. Then Dexter made her a brand-new hood!

As he was putting the finishing touches on the hexquisite emerald-green hood, he heard an odd noise. It sounded like… scratching near the front door. Cerise! She was finally home!

“Cerise! Is that you?” Dexter called out happily. But there was no response… just more scratchy noises. Then he heard a light tapping, as if someone was running across the castle floor.

“Cerise?” he called out again, a little more tentatively this time.

But there was still no answer, just more tapping and scratching noises.

Dexter decided to explore the castle. There must be some servants still hanging around, he thought. They probably decided to stay and forgot to tell me. First he checked the kitchen, but it was empty. Then he looked in the dining and living rooms, but no one was there. The more he searched, the more nervous Dexter grew.

Then he heard another noise—like someone scampering back and forth.

“Hello?” he shouted. He checked out the library next. The castle was huge, but he had searched every room. Whoever was in the castle was faster than he was; whenever he heard a noise, he rushed in that direction, but when he’d open a door, there was never anybody there. Whoever it was, he or she did not want to talk to Dexter!

Someone else is definitely in the castle, Dexter thought. And it’s not Cerise! I’ve got to get out of here! He quickly started gathering books to use as a barricade as he planned his escape.

Meanwhile, Cerise played bookball with her new friends all afternoon. It was so great to run around with other strong, athletic girls and be cheered for her athletic prowess. So much so that when the girls invited her to join them for a match that night, she immediately said yes. She didn’t think about the castle or Dexter or her promise to him to come home soon. She forgot about everything except the fun she was having just being herself.

Cerise was feeling so happy that she decided to treat herself to a nice dinner before the match, to keep her energy up. She found a little restaurant right by the field and ordered a big bowl of porridge. She tried to eat slowly and delicately, but how could she when the porridge was this delicious? And after all that running around, she was so hungry!

She heard another diner whisper to a friend, “Just look at the way she wolfed down her food!” Instead of worrying that they knew her secret, Cerise just laughed to herself. She felt so free here. No one really knew her, so what did it matter if she let her wolf side show?

After dinner she headed out for another hexciting bookball match with her new friends. By the end of the day, she was so tired that she got a room at the town’s inn. She fell fast asleep far, far away from the Beast’s castle.

“Cerise! Cerise! Where are you?” Dexter looked around fearfully. He was hiding behind an enormous stack of books in the castle garden. “Cerise! Please help!”

Cerise was racing through the forest. But every time she got close to Dexter, a giant wildberry pie blocked the path. And she could still hear Dexter calling for her. “Cerise, where are you? Help!”

“I hear you! I’m coming, Dex!” Cerise called back as she ran and ran, losing her hood in the woods. She knew her ears were exposed, but for once she didn’t care. Her classmates were in the woods with her, pointing at her ears. But all Cerise could think about was Dexter needing her help. She concentrated on following his voice to find her way back to the castle.

“Cerise! Help!” Dexter pleaded. “Ceriiiiiiise!”

Gasp! Cerise jumped out of bed with a start as she woke her from her horrible nightmare. Dexter looked like he was in trouble and scared. Guiltily, she remembered the promise she had made to Dexter. She had said she would be back that night, and now it was really late! She wished she had her MirrorPhone with her to send him a hext, but when they landed in the new fairytale, their phones had disappeared. Cerise left the inn as quickly as she could and rushed back to the castle. She hoped Dexter was okay and that he wasn’t too upset with her.