WARNING: Spoilers!

Hello all readers! Welcome to yet another edition of Rewritten Stories— although, this issue contains two rewritten stories due to the recent blackouts. As you can see by the title, this month we are focusing on Little Red Riding Hood & Goldilocks and the Three Bears!

Before we dive into the first tale, let me give you a basic summary of the original story of Little Red Riding Hood:
A girl in a red cloak encounters a hungry wolf on her way to her grandmother’s house. The wolf, in the end (after some oscar-winning acting), manages to eat her grandmother! Luckily, a hunter comes along and manages to save her grandmother, and the near-dessert Little Red Riding Hood.

Now readers, here’s my version of the story!

(WARNING: Might give you nightmares for a couple of days.)

LITTLE MISS MURDER

She ran. And ran. And ran.

She tripped over a dip in the soft, gravelly soil.

But, she never stopped running.

Tweets from owls, and werewolf howls, and the crunch of bones under her feet were not enough for her to accept defeat whilst running.

Flashbacks of blood, and gore, and scars, and stains, and ripped curtains, and big ears, and teeth, and a raspy hoarse voice ran through her head like a never-ending nightmare.

Her life was a never ending nightmare.

First, her grandmother grew sick from a mysterious plague, drooling during her dreams, chanting and muttering utter nonsense, coughing out blood violently, wishing to see her only granddaughter before she went— before she went home.

Next, Little Red Riding Hood had been asked to go deliver a sugary sweet in a basket, as well as some good old beneficial medicine for her poor grandmother to eat…

And then she remembered.

Red suddenly stopped and dropped to the ground, kneeling over, breathing heavily, and crying silently—  her hands cold and clammy, goosebumps erupting everywhere.

There hadn’t been any medicine in that basket.

Only a croissant stuffed with pure, white cyanide.

Poison.

It hadn’t been Red’s idea.

It had been her mother’s.

Her mother, who was sick of taking care of her husband’s mum. Her mother, who had supposedly listened to her husband’s last wishes and taken great care of Lady Caddel. Her mother, who had threatened to pour the poison down Red’s throat if she didn’t bring her own, sweet, loving grandmother to her horrible end.

And Red had been a coward. She had agreed. She knew the consequences if she didn’t abide. And she knew that Lady Caddel didn’t have much time left anyway.

She had left the house to visit her grandmother for the last time.

But Red’s very own fairytale had then taken an unexpected turn; an unexpected twist in the blink of an eye.

A hairy, shaggy, ungroomed creature had been hiding in the area. It had red eyes as dark as blood and a smile filled with malicious intent. His stomach had grumbled as he watched Red slump through the forest with a whiff of sadness about her.

“First her fingers, then her toes,” the werewolf had rambled to himself. “What the best dinner is— only a good dog knows.”

The werewolf, without a second thought, had POUNCED from behind the tree and in front of the girl, glaring her down.

Red remembered screaming, her mouth agape. She had remembered staring at the beast with wide, terrified eyes.

The werewolf’s eyes had twinkled; only once, or maybe twice.

But that could have only meant one thing.

Murder.

Red recalled sprinting as fast as she could away from the monster. She had run over broken branches and jumped over boulders and swam hastily through streams, fighting against the powerful current before arriving at her grandmother’s house.

“HIDE!” She had silently screamed to herself. “Hurry, before it gets you; hurry before it tears you apart; hurry before it eats you!”

She had ducked and rolled behind a bush, her basket dropping to the ground as she shivered, as she quivered, as she thought about the 101 ways she could die that day…

Red remembered, watching the werewolf reach the clearing in which was Red’s grandmother’s house. He had sniffed the air, his stomach growling louder than ever, and picked up the scent of Red.

“The girl must be here somewhere,” he had mumbled to himself. He had sprinted from bush to bush, tearing them up, tearing them apart, and hurling them deeper into the forest. He had climbed up tree by tree, frustrated when he didn’t find Red.

Red had held her breath as he had circled around the clearing once more, and found a small, dainty, almost prominent looking bush.

Behind it had been Red, of course, but he hadn’t known that.

The werewolf had narrowed his blood-red eyes and bared his blood-stained, jagged teeth. Inch by inch, he had stepped closer to the bush. One step, two steps, three…

Nearly there…

He had reached out a gigantic paw, about to tear up the bush and gobble his dinner when suddenly…

“UGH!”

He had heard someone groan loudly from inside the cottage. “Who was that?” Had been etched all over the werewolf’s gruesome features.

The werewolf had left the bush for a moment and peeked inside a window.

There had been a woman there. A woman with blonde curls, a wrinkly, pale face, and a frilly nightgown on. A woman who looked much like the girl he had just been chasing. A woman who must have been a relative. A woman who the girl must have been planning to visit.

The werewolf had thought to himself for a moment, lightly tapping his chin. The woman was plump— she offered him a great dinner. And if the girl really was planning to visit, he could just devour her for dessert.

Red remembered watching the werewolf think once, think twice, before bursting into the cottage through the window. He had skidded on the polished, wooden floor with a SCREECH and left claw marks everywhere. At last, he had looked up and smiled at the delusional lady.

“Oh, Red!” She blubbered after getting up from her messy bed and making her way towards the werewolf. “How pleased am I to see you -”

She had stopped in her tracks, noticing the werewolf.

“Oh Red,” she had muttered, appearing concerned. “What big ears you have!”

“The better to listen to you with, grandma.”

“But what big eyes you have!”

“The better to see you with, grandma.”

“Oh, but what big TEETH you have!”

“The better to EAT you with, grandma!” The werewolf had growled loudly before pouncing at the old lady.

Red had been looking through the bedroom window and had witnessed everything. It had been over in a couple of seconds, but she knew that it would remain intact in her memory forever.

The way the werewolf chomped Lady Caddel’s head off. The way he ripped her limbs off before swallowing them whole. The way he crunched her bones like he had a whole feast to himself.

Red remembered feeling something inside her. Something furious. Something mad. Something that knocked her sanity off a mountain cliff. Something red.

Something that had made her shove one of her shaking hands into her basket before pulling out the croissant.

Inside the cottage, the werewolf had been busy running around and tearing gashes in the curtains, bouncing on Lady Caddel’s bed, and licking his lips with pure satisfaction.

Suddenly, he had started shrinking too.

His ears had disappeared and reappeared on the sides of his head. His head had shrunk and all the hair on his body had disappeared, only leaving a hairy patch on the top of his head. His arms and legs had grown shorter. Clothes had appeared out of nowhere on his body. His teeth-like-daggers had turned into human teeth and his claws had turned into fingernails.

He had just become human again, and had looked around curiously, wondering about how he had gotten himself there.

Red had decided then and there that it was time to make a tough decision. She didn’t care that this man was innocent and that the other half of him had murdered his grandma— not this half. She didn’t care that he had another life with him, probably a wife and children too. She didn’t care about anything except for the fact that her grandmother was dead— all because of this werewolf.

So, Red had slammed the door open with the poisoned croissant in her hand, and put on her sweetest and most sugary smile.

“Good day sir,” she had said, beaming.

“Good day to you too,” the man had said, still with an air of confusion about him. “Do you know why I’m here? There’s ripped curtains and blood on the floor… it is quite creepy, and I really would like to leave…”

Red remembered feeling a stab of guilt but had shoved it away, focusing on her anger instead.

“Oh!” she had said instead. “Maybe we can get out of this together? Take this croissant—it’ll refresh you and help you think!”

“Oh… of course, thank you so much!”

The man had taken the croissant and licked his pink lips, his red eyes closing as he took a bite, savouring the delicious taste.

Red remembered closing her eyes and looking away so she wouldn’t have to watch the man gag, choke, and die. After a minute of strangled breathing, everything went quiet, so she had whipped around once more, only to find the man dead on the ground, his chest still, his eyes glassy and unseeing.

She had blinked once, then twice, before bolting out of the cottage.

Red snapped back to the present, and looked up at the moonlit sky above her, sending a prayer to God to forgive her for her sins.

But deep down, she knew that nothing could ever reverse this.

Nothing could ever reverse what she had done tonight.

And Red knew that she couldn’t go back home either.

She wouldn’t be known as Little Red Riding Hood anymore.

She would be known as Little Miss Murder.

—

Before we dive into the second tale, let me give you a basic summary of Goldilocks And The Three Bears:
Goldilocks, a young girl, enters a house that belongs to a family of three bears. She tests their porridge, trying to find the most perfect bowl. She tries their chairs for whichever is “just right.” She tries sleeping on their beds, to find the most comfortable one. Unfortunately, the family of bears arrive back at their home and Goldilocks gets scared and runs off.

Now, here’s my version!

GOLDILOCKS AND THE ABANDONED SHACK

Goldilocks skipped through the beautiful meadows of Golden Valley. She hopped over tree logs and giggled as vivid butterflies in shades of coral, tangerine, buttercup, and lime aqua came anywhere near her. Oh, how beautiful, how serene! Goldilocks wished that she were one of those butterflies— flying around happily, sipping nectar and having a feast. Oh, how wonderful, how free!

As Goldilocks was travelling and weaving a path through the tall grass that tickled her legs, she came upon an old, weathering shack atop a cliff. Hm? That was strange. What was a little shack doing in the middle of nowhere? It looked dangerously unstable too. Would anyone seriously live in there? What if the house toppled right off the cliff…?

Goldilocks slowly walked over to the front door of the shack and rapped her knuckles on it three times. Once—nobody answered—twice—still no one—thrice—and the door fell down on the other side! Goldilocks blinked, surprised, and stepped in cautiously. It wouldn’t hurt if she poked around a little, right? After all, she was just curious.

As she advanced into the shack, she noticed how dusty it was. Dust lined the walls, the boarded windows, the curtains, and the gigantic chairs—the gigantic chairs? “Why are the chairs so… big?” Goldilocks whispered to herself. “No sort of monster lives here… right?”

Goldilocks sat on the biggest chair of them all. She grunted as soon as she did—it was as hard as rock! She moved to the next chair—and oh, this one was just too soft. She moved on to the last chair, the smallest of them all, hoping it would be comfortable—and it was!

Goldilocks remained on the smallest chair, thinking to herself. What sort of creature—three of them—would live in a shack on the edge of a cliff? An unstable shack too? Was it a monster?

Goldilocks got up from her chair, and walked across the room to the other side, where she made her way up a creaky staircase.

Wait. Had the shack shaken just then? Goldilocks brushed the thought off. She had probably just imagined it.

After climbing for what seemed an eternity, at last she reached a bedroom.

In the middle of the bedroom were three beds, lined up neatly against the wall with a small gap between them. Goldilocks jumped onto the largest, and immediately regretted it. She let out a small scream and clamped her mouth shut. This bed was made of wood!

She hastily made her way over to the second bed… and hastily got out. It was way too soft—almost like it was made of flowers!

However, when Goldilocks reached the third bed, she noticed how it seemed to be just the right size. And also, the perfect colour. And as soon as she sat down, she discovered that it was the perfect material too.

“This bed is just right!” Goldilocks exclaimed. As soon as those words left her mouth, she toppled off the bed.

Goldilocks got back up again, brushing herself off and eyeing the ceiling of the shack. It was trembling—the floor was rumbling—and Goldilocks was shaking, although she couldn’t tell if it was her or the shack.

Goldilocks lunged for the door of the bedroom and rolled down the lengthy staircase of the shack. She eventually reached the end, and rubbed her head dizzily. She made a quick dash for the front door, but was thrown back when the shack started tipping to the side. No no no!

Suddenly, a giant monster covered with golden fur sprinted into the shack and grabbed Goldilocks. Wait, no, it was a bear! The bear pushed Goldilocks out the front door and to safety.

Goldilocks blinked in a daze. Had that bear just saved her? Suddenly, she realised that he was still in the shack. She hurried to her feet, running towards the shack. But she was too late.

The shack toppled over and
right
down
the
cliff.

“No!” She cried. Goldilocks dropped to her knees, grief all over her face. Two more golden bears appeared behind her, but she didn’t pay attention to them. That bear had sacrificed himself—for her!

But that was when she heard cries of despair. Goldilocks approached the edge of the cliff, and looked down below—into the eyes of the golden bear from before! He was hanging on to a tree that had been growing in a small crack in the cliff—but Goldilocks had no idea how to get him up.

“Bear!” She yelled. “Can you come up?”

“No!” He yelled back. “I can’t. No one, not even you and my family combined, is able to get me back up.”

“Please, Bear!” Goldilocks yelled over the sound of the wind, tears flying off her cheeks. “I don’t want you to die! I want to repay you for your kindness!”

“Life is short, Goldilocks, face it. We all have to die soon enough. And you can repay me by being kind to someone else…” The bear was starting to let go now. Slowly, slowly, he started slipping.

Now he was only holding on by one paw.

Goldilocks tried a different tactic. “What about your family?” She cried. “Don’t you want to stay? For them?”

“My family is strong,” the bear said, his eyes growing wet. “They can survive without me. Please tell them I love them.”

“Don’t go!” Goldilocks cried as thunder crashed above. But it was too late. The bear had already let go. Goldilocks watched as the golden ball, seemingly small, fell towards the waves and ocean below with a big SPLASH!

She let out a shaky breath, and stood up with wobbly knees. Goldilocks turned around to face the other bears.

“You know,” the bigger one whispered shakily, staring at her with her big eyes. “That was very kind of you. Looking for him once the shack tipped. Offering to save him.”

“Thanks,” she mumbled. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, we are,” the smaller one squeaked, reaching up to brush a tear out of his eye. “It’s just like father said—everyone has to die soon enough.”

“I guess your father’s right,” Goldilocks sniffled, kicking a rock. “Did you originally reside in this shack?”

“Yes. We had to move due to it weathering down over the years. My husband heard a small scream and came to find you. He’s always been a kind being,” the bigger bear added thoughtfully.

“I—I owe you guys. It’s because of me that he’s dead.”

“No!” The bears cried in unison. “It’s not your fault that the shack is unstable! He was just being kind to you. You are going to listen to his last wishes, right?”

“Yes, of course I will,” Goldilocks brightened with a small smile dancing on her lips. “After all, everyone deserves kindness, as you never know what they are going through.”

Written by Hazel Antler.
Proofread by Daphne Clarke.