Ever After - Ella Enchanted AU

Ever After - Chapter 11

Tikki had been to Lamia numerous times before she worked for Sir Dupain and Lady Cheng. Being a gift-giving fairy had often brought her into the noblest of houses that glittered in the sun and were littered with the extravagant things that the upper echelon enjoyed to collect. Coming back as a house fairy was a bit bittersweet, knowing that she could do so much more to help Marinette if only she were with them. She had plenty of contacts in Lamia, any number of which could know how to work around the gift giving laws in order to remove hers without going back to Plagg. But Marinette was gone, off into the wilderness in search of a fairy of chaos while Tikki was busy folding frocks and listening to Dame Mendeleiev talk controversial beauty products with the local beauty technician, a young man named Alec Cataldi.

"I want to look 25 at tonight's ball." The older woman mused, fawning over her reflection as she consulted the man from Mace-y's. "What do you suggest?"

The young man had a somewhat pained look on his face as he considered what all she was asking him to do. Tikki almost felt sorry for him considering he was being asked to do the impossible, trying to make mutton look like lamb. He rubbed his bald head, thinking hard for a moment before he broke out into what Tikki felt was a well rehearsed grin.

"May I recommend our newest procedure?" He suggested, taking out a small container of what looked like dark brown mush. Judging from the smell, it seemed something had died then been smashed apart. "It's bat feces and oxen blood. We're calling it Batox."

Dame Mendeleiev looked at the mush with a giddy spark in her eye. Tikki looked at it like he had suggested she had to eat it instead of rubbing it on her face, neither option sounding very appealing.

"It works wonders," Alec continued, "although I do caution you, some people have a temporarily bad reaction to it, but thats nothing to worry about."

"Wonderful." The dame mused greedily as the door to their summer home opened, the only other live in servant, an older butler called Hornby, standing at attention. "Announcing, Sir Tom."

Tikki almost dropped the laundry she had been folding out of sheer joy to see her larger than life employer walk through the door. "S-sir Tom!"

The nobleman turned to look at her with the same kind smile she had learned to love over the years before turning an unfamiliarly stony faced expression on his second wife and her beauty consultant. "Philece."

Dame Mendeleiev shoved the container of Batox away from her face hurriedly, her sharp features forming a pained smile that stretched her pasty skin unnaturally. "Tom. What are you doing here?"

Sir Tom crossed his arms over his broad chest, not looking convinced in the slightest, "I'm in town on business and heard you were here. I came to see Marinette, but Hornby has already told me that she's not here."

The older woman gave a fake gasp of surprise at her husbands stern tone. "Of course she's here, I don't know why Hornby would lie to you like that. She's..." her eyes darted around the room, looking for a way out of the hole she had dug herself before her eyes lit up with a sudden thought- "with Chloe and Sabrina, taking a tour of the castle."

Sir Tom didn't look entirely convinced, but having no proof as to whether or not it was the truth, he gave up hounding her and turned to look at his house fairy. He smiled kindly at her, his mustache twitching upward as he did. "Tikki, it's been a very long time since I've had a good cup of tea. Would you mind making me one?"

Tikki couldn't put down the girls' laundry fast enough, wiping her hands on her apron before walking out of the plush living room to follow Sir Tom to the kitchen. "It would be my honor, Sir Tom."