
A girl was outside a butcher’s shop. She saw a woman…a beautiful woman. This woman had scarlet hair wearing a scarlet dress, a scarlet bag and scarlet shoes. The woman was about to go inside but-
The girl pounced and held onto the bag. But the butcher caught her in the nick of time.
This girl is no ordinary girl. Her name is Nine and she is an orphan pickpocket with nothing to her name. She seemed pretty disappointed when the butcher caught her.
I wonder why…
Nine went back to an alley, where she stopped at the Nest of a Thousand Treasures and whispered “No Strawberries Today”.
Pockets, a man who found Nine when she was an orphan.
Pockets had found Nine and other thieves for they were orphans, but he greedily asked for something in return from all of them: To steal and get something nice for him.
Nine immediately got upset again at the thought.
Pockets immediately reminded her that if he hadn’t picked Nine up to his Nest, then she would be alone, on the streets…
The next day, Nine was looking everywhere for something to pick, but she saw the same scarlet haired woman with the scarlet bag.
Nine’s eyes goggled as she looked at her prey. She was ready…
POUNCE!
But this time, the woman was ready. She held her bag tight as many people ran to catch Nine.
Nine quickly fell into the woman and reached in her bag and found an ornament inside. She plucked it inside her satchel and ran for her life.
Finally, Nine is alone. She took out the ornament, only to find out that it was a mini house. She blinked once and she saw a door knocker on the door.
Nine, feeling pretty childish, knocked.
She laughed and put the house on the ground, but as she was about to leave, she saw the house…growing?
Yes! The house grew until full size. It had nine, ten, eleven floors!
Nine went in and she was introduced to Flabberghast (a wizard with auburn hair and an ancient sense), Eric (a troll), and Dr. Spoon (a spoon with high, qualifying grades, who is in search for his partner, Professor Dish and, weirdly, wearing a kilt).
They were extremely happy that she knocked, which only made Nine more astonished than she was at that moment.
Flabberghast explained that his sister, a very powerful witch, put a curse to this house and him, which included: Taking the wizard’s powers away; making any clothes they wear turn into a different color every ten minutes; putting different places if they went out the backyard; and not allowing the residents inside to get out.
Nine was able to get in and out whenever she wanted to, because she did not live there, which also made out a point that she was able to lift the curse.
Flabberghast showed her a letter that his sister gave him when the curse was put. Nine read it and the letter said that they had to say the magic words-
-but there weren’t any.
Flabberghast pointed out that they had to give something that they most loved.
The wizard gave his trophy (for hopscotch), Eric gave his most loveable duster, Dr. Spoon gave his kilt, and Nine…
Nine pulled out her music box. It was the only thing her parents gave her before she was left in the streets.
They all put it inside the wizard’s old cauldron before Nine went back ‘home’.
The next day, Nine went back but there was still nothing new.
Suddenly, a few minutes later, words began to fill the cauldron:
SONG WIN WAR.
Flabberghast immediately said it…
…but nothing happened.
In sudden bang, the back door started shaking and Nine went to the door. Ignoring her friends’ warnings, she opened the door.
To fall down a big black VOID!
Flabberghast, Eric, and Dr. Spoon immediately went down to fetch her, but the witch was already there.
Flabberghast’s sister, the witch who put the curse on the house, was standing there with her ancestors. Nine thought that she looked familiar…
She warned them that if her brother doesn’t say the magic words in time, they will cease to exist.
Nine figured out that the witch only gave the letters. She eventually arranged it into…
I WAS WRONG.
Flabberghast, dreading to say it, said it at last.
The witch, disgruntled, snapped her fingers.
The curse was broken! After 20 years.
Nine got to live there and she didn’t need to steal for her living now. She hadn’t got to go back to Pockets’ Nest anymore. She was happy now 🙂
The End.
Epilogue
A woman with a scarlet bag, scarlet shoes and scarlet hair knocked on the door of The Nest of a Thousand Treasures.
She whispered “No Strawberries Today”.
Pockets opened the door.
The woman told him that Nine will not be in nest anymore.
Why?
Because Pockets is wrong. Life does bring you strawberries. And Pockets is left confused.
The woman didn’t look back but smiled.
“Consequences.” muttered the Witch, Flabberghast’s sister, and she grinned more broadly.And may their adventures last forever…
:: end of story ::















