When Your Novel Strikes Back

by Heather Lawson

  Chapter the Eighth – It’s A Date

  “No,” Dan said, shaking his head. “No way! Not gonna happen!”

  The girls had taken him to one side of the room so that they could discuss their options.

  “Dan, we’re trying to help Crast and Clay. They don’t want to be trapped here with Wax,” Heather said.

  Dan looked over her shoulder where Wax was chatting merrily with Clay and Crast. He frowned and turned back to the girls.

  “They look fine to me,” he said, folding his arms.

  Ayesha stomped on the ground and grabbed Dan by the scruff of his collar.

  “Now you look here,” she said, standing on her tip toes to get her face almost level with his. “Crast is my creation and I will be leaving here with her. Now you will go on that date with Wax and you will like it!”

  Dan opened his mouth to argue but Ayesha only tightened her grip on him and he sighed, nodding his head.

  “Fine,” he muttered.

  “Great!” Ayesha said, a huge smile suddenly on her face. She let go of Dan and smoothed out his shirt again.

  Dan looked at Ally and Heather, confused, but they were hiding behind their hands, trying to stifle their laughter. Ayesha was already skipping across the room back to Wax.

  “He’ll do it!” she announced happily.

  “Excellent!” Wax beamed. “Meet me back here in an hour and we’ll have a fantastic evening.”

  Wax clapped his hands together in excitement.

  “And what will the rest of us do in the meantime?” Heather asked, joining Ayesha again.

  “You can have a tour of my fortress,” Wax said. “Clay and his lovely new wife can show you around.”

  “Oh cool!” Ally said. “I’ve never really seen inside a fortress before.”

  “One hour Dan!” Wax called across the room to Dan, who was still standing where the girls had left him, arms folded and a scowl on his face. “One hour then you’re all mine!”

  Wax blew a kiss across to Dan and then left the room through a door behind him.

  “I can’t believe you talked me into this,” Dan mumbled as he joined the rest of the group again. “Do I seriously have to go through with this?”

  “Yes, you do!” Ayesha turned on him, the dark glare on her face again.

  “If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you to a chamber where you can change,” Clay said, motioning for Dan to follow him.

  “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing now?!” Dan argued, refusing to move.

  “If you want my brother to allow myself and Crast to leave then you must go along with what he wants,” Clay said, turning with a weary sigh. “I know the kind of outfit he would like you to wear and if you do wear it, he’ll be in more of a charitable mood.”

  “I really don’t like the sound of this,” Dan said, nervously following Clay.

  Ally, Ayesha and Heather followed them too, Crast walked behind them. Clay led them along another corridor and stopped in front of a door, opening it to reveal a rather nice looking bedroom. They all filed inside and looked around.

  A large, four poster bed stood at one end of the room and a large wardrobe with a large screen beside it sat at the other end. Ally, Ayesha and Heather sat on the bed, getting themselves comfortable, while Clay led Dan towards the wardrobe and pulled the screen in front of it so as to hide himself and Dan.

  “Wax is very into certain looks at certain times,” Crast told the girls while they waited for Dan and Clay to reappear.

  “I am not wearing that!” Dan shouted.

  “It’s really not as bad as it looks...just...stop moving!” Clay said.

  Ally, Ayesha and Heather leaned forwards slightly, trying to sneak a peek at what was going on. They jerked backwards as Dan stormed around the screen, pulling his t-shirt back on and dragging his shirt behind him.

  “There is no way I would ever wear that!”

  “What’s wrong?” Ally asked as Dan stopped beside the bed, pulling his shirt back on now.

  “I am not going through with this,” Dan said, throwing a glare in Ayesha direction.

  “Oh yes you are!” Ayesha said, pulling the laptop close to her and flicking it open.

  “Hey wha....? Hey, get off that thing!”

  “No! This is the only way to get you to co-operate!”

  “Give it here!”

  “No!”

  Dan lunged onto the bed, making to grab the laptop from Ayesha but she grabbed the laptop and ran to the window at the other side of the room, balancing the laptop on the window ledge and typing furiously. Ally and Heather watched on with amusement. Dan lay face down on the bed, keeping his face hidden although they could hear him mumbling something to himself, pounding his fists into the mattress.

  “Now, to fix this little problem,” Ayesha said, still typing.

  Dan suddenly rose from the bed, moving back towards the screen and Clay, a deep scowl on his face. He glared at Ayesha as he passed her, she shrugged and stuck out her tongue. She joined Heather and Ally back on the bed and they waited while Dan got changed.

  “I can’t believe you did this to me,” Dan said.

  Clay stepped out from behind the screen, a very serious look on his face.

  “It will help you tonight, he’ll be in a much more reasonable mood,” Clay said, looking behind the screen to where Dan was still standing. “Now, show the ladies your look. I’m sure they’ll give you a good opinion about your outfit.”

  “I really don’t think this is funny!” Dan said.

  “No one’s laughing!” Heather shouted back.

  “Yet,” Ayesha muttered under her breath.

  A big white, frilly, lacy monster emerged from behind the screen. Somewhere at the top of it was Dan’s head.

  “What is that supposed to be?” Crast asked.

  Clay looked at the girls and then back at Dan.

  “It’s a man dress, obviously,” he replied.

  “A… man dress?” Heather asked, sniggering.

  “I can barely walk in this thing!” Dan protested.

  “I think you look dashing,” Ally said, struggling to hold back her laughter.

  “Yeah,” Ayesha agreed. “Dashing and stupid.”

  “I look like a melted candle,” Dan huffed.

  They couldn’t hold back any longer, Ally, Ayesha and Heather burst out into fits of laughter. Dan attempted to fold his arms but the sleeves were too long and just flapped about as he tried to move them. This only caused the three of them to laugh even more.

  “That’s it!” Dan shouted. “I’m not doing this!”

  There was a soft knock on the door and one of Wax’s minions entered the room.

  “Master Wax is ready and waiting for you sir,” the minion said, bowing towards Dan. “Might I say that you look fabulous?”

  “No,” Dan said, attempting to storm past the minion but tripping every few steps on the dress. “No, you may not.”