Dreams of Stars (A Once Upon a Time/Jiminy Cricket fanfic)

Dreams of Stars Part 28

In the evening, Kaelin, Gus, and Nova arrived at Cinderella's house. It was a moderately-sized wooden house with a small stable attached to it. Its walls were gray, and its roof had dark brown, wooden shingles. Bushes, flowers, and vines grew close along the back wall, and the forest crowded into it on one side.

"Good, no one's around," Nova whispered as they crept into the stable area, "Remember what I told you. Don't let Cinderella's stepmother or stepsisters see you—only Cinderella. I'm sure she'll like you. Her fairy godmother said she loves animals." She gave them an encouraging smile. "Think you can take it from here?"

"I'm ready anytime," Gus replied. Kaelin nodded.

"Great. Watch out for mouse traps! If you need me, I'll be nearby most of the time. Bye!" She waved to them and flew off into the night.

Kaelin and Gus turned to the task before them. "Do you think we should go inside?" Kaelin asked.

"I think we should, and I think there's a way," Gus replied, "There's always a space small enough for a mouse to get into a house. You just have to know where to look." He scampered up to the wall on all fours and poked his nose into the corner formed by the wall and the ground. Kaelin joined him, and they began systematically inspecting the base of the house.

"How long have you been a mouse?" Kaelin questioned him casually.

"Well, I lose track of time like this, but maybe five years," Gus replied, "You?"

"Something like forty," Kaelin mumbled.

Gus stopped, turning to her in disbelief. "Did you just say forty? That's impossible!" he exclaimed.

"All I know is, I watched my brother grow old," Kaelin said.

Gus returned to sniffing the wall. "Goodness, I feel like a kid," he muttered.

Kaelin wasn't sure what to say to that, since she rather felt like a kid too around him. She focused on their task for a while. Then, after a few minutes, she cautiously asked, "What...what made you want to become a mouse?"

Gus laughed wryly. "You think I wanted it? No, it was dark magic that happened to me. I sort of...made a mistake around Rumpelstiltskin, and poof! I was a rodent. My parents weren't quite sure what to do with me after that, so I decided to go make my own way. Learned the secrets of being a pest." He winked back at her.

Kaelin was beginning to understand why the Blue Fairy had sent Gus along with her. Even though she had been a mouse longer, Gus seemed to have far more practical, mousey know-how than she had ever picked up in her years with Geppetto. Kaelin had never had to conceal herself, break into a house, or sneak food out of the pantry. Geppetto, Francesco, and Sofia had always known about her and had taken care of her.

"So, since you asked me that, I'm assuming that you actually wanted to become a mouse," Gus observed, "What made you want to become a mouse?"

"I wanted to...get away from somewhere," Kaelin replied quietly, "And be with someone."

"Hm." Gus nodded. "Vague."

"Maybe I'll tell you more about it later," Kaelin said.

Gus paused beside a crack in the wall. "I'm going to see if I can squeeze in here," he told her. Wedging his nose into the crack, he sucked in his belly and began wriggling through. His green, pointed cap fell off in the process. For a moment, it seemed that his haunches were stuck, but then they slid into the crack too. The tip of his tail vanished into the shadows. Then his paw stuck back out through the crack. "Can I have my cap back?" came his muffled voice from inside.