Congratulations!
Winner : Mikiko Miyakawa
Along with writing, she is also a pianist/composer. Her work can be found here: http://mikikopiano.jimdo.com
Prompt
Scare Me
Story: Without a Magic Mirror
Once upon a time, there was a kingdom whose law prohibited women’s makeup. Its young Queen Naomi was adorable, but didn’t care about her appearance. So even women who were less beautiful than the Queen often looked more beautiful with Western style makeup. That is why King Alon, husband of Queen Naomi, set the prohibition before he proposed to her. The police arrested women with makeup, just as the kingdoms around arrested women without head covering.
If Queen Naomi had asked “Mirror, mirror, who is the fairest in the land?" King Alon would always have replied, “My Queen, you are the fairest in the land.”
But actually, Queen Naomi hated mirrors, unlike her sister, Princess Shayna. Rather, she was interested in charitable work with humanity.
For example, she asked King Alon to abolish the death penalty for the charge of having plastic surgery.
Like illegal drugs, makeup prohibition had induced the addicted women to go for plastic surgery. And many quacks had created out-of-control problems. So the nation had to set something to stop the unstoppable trend. Whereas Queen Naomi said,
“The death penalty is outdated. I think we should be aware of the global standard, as a prosperous country.”
Then, King Alon readily approved his wife’s request, and the penalty for plastic surgeries turned to seven years in jail, instead of capital punishment.
King Alon was popular among the nation, not only for his actor-like looks, but also for his political ability. His prohibition of makeup was well-accepted, because he explained it was to esteem women’s natural beauty, as well as to preserve their traditional makeup with only powder and rouge. Yes, no one knew that the King’s actual intent for this prohibition was different.
Peaceful days passed and Halloween came. This day was the only day in a year when everyone could wear makeup. Only scary makeup was allowed, while beauty makeup was still a prohibition. It was Queen Naomi’s idea to set this exceptional day to please the nation that liked the Western event.
The Queen was working daily on donating the cosmetics, which were seized from the arrested women and smugglers, to the developing countries. She stored some of these cosmetics to use them in a free Halloween makeup workshop at a downtown church.
Queen Naomi hired volunteer girls from art schools to teach people how to apply peculiar makeup in this workshop. Among these girls was a girl with charming makeup, like the rock band Kiss. Her eyes were framed by a bat-like black shape as Gene Simmons did. On her cheeks were the cat-like whiskers like Peter Criss. When she ran into this girl, the Queen was mesmerized and talked to her cheerfully, “Hello. I like your makeup.”
The girl smiled and answered, “Thank you, your majesty. Would you like me to draw your face like this?”
The Queen, a big fan of Kiss, shouted, “Oh can you? Please!”
While the batcatgirl was making up Queen Naomi’s face, the Queen was observing people. They looked really joyful, which made her happy.
“Well, it is done, your majesty.” The batcatgirl said in a familiar voice, handing a mirror to the Queen. She was so excited and said,
“It’s perfect, thank you. I will be taking a walk to show this to everyone.”
Queen Naomi stood up vigorously and walked out from the church hall. Soon, the batcatgirl was running after her and said,
“Your majesty, I forgot to apply lotion for finishing.”
The isle was noisy and packed with people in costumes. So the batcatgirl led the Queen to a tiny confession room and gently patted soaked cottons on Queen Naomi’s makeup.
“All right. Please have a nice time,” the batcatgirl said politely.
Queen Naomi nodded pleasantly and walked out of the church. She felt awesome on the street, knowing that no one recognized her because of the makeup. It was like a princess in “Roman Holiday.” Or, to her surprise, everyone passing by her looked scared in seeing her face.
She asked herself, “Why is Kiss makeup so surprising? I think that man with the skull head is much scarier.” Over time, she felt something was wrong. A group of people were now pointing toward her. The approaching sirens of patrol cars accelerated her anxiety.
Finally, the sirens stopped in front of her, and she was surrounded by cops. In seconds, she was handcuffed.
“Please don’t. I am Queen Naomi,” she screamed.
“Nice cosplay,” said a cop cynically, pushing her into a patrol car.
“No, you don’t recognize me because of my makeup.” Queen Naomi insisted. But the other cop, who was starting the car, said sympathetically, “Unfortunately, your charge is your makeup. Your Queen look-alike is successful though.”
“But today is Halloween,” the Queen refuted in a tearful voice.
“Right, but spooky makeup only. You are too beautiful, aren’t you? ” replied the driving cop clerically, adjusting the rearview mirror toward her.
She looked in the mirror. There was her frightened face with beauty makeup on.
King Alon decided not to claim the discharge of Queen Naomi. He felt terrible when thinking about his precious wife in jail, but he was a trusted king at the same time. He could not betray the nation by going against the law and giving his wife an accommodation.
Her beauty makeup was one thing. But a muscle scanner, which was the obligation of those who were arrested, revealed that Queen Naomi had had plastic surgery in the past.
King Alon sighed deeply, standing in the main hall of the palace.
“Someone must have set her up,” said one of the King’s close advisors, regretfully. “Someone who knows that Queen Naomi loves Kiss, your majesty. This girl could be one of your fans, who is jealous of Queen Naomi.”
However, both the advisor and the King knew there was no evidence. According to Queen Naomi’s testimony, the police had tried to find the batcatgirl, who might have wiped off the Queen’s Halloween makeup partly to make it into beauty makeup. Some people had remembered a batcatgirl with the Queen. But no one had identified the girl nor had they seen the girl wipe off the makeup.
There was a knock and another advisor came in. He bowed and handed a document to the king, saying “A letter from King Berel, your majesty.”
King Berel is the leader of a kingdom nearby, and the father of Queen Naomi.
“What did he say, your majesty?” the first advisor asked hastily.
“He was furious and said they are provoking war toward us if we don’t send her back to them.”
The advisors were speechless for a while and went out of the hall quietly.
Left alone, King Alon murmured.
“I wonder why I am not angry at Queen Naomi, even though she had plastic surgery.”
He sat on a chair and looked around slowly.
“If she put her makeup on herself, why? Option No. 1, she had another man. Option No.2, she wanted to leave me, so she planned everything to be arrested. If so, it is quite understandable that she had asked me to abolish the death penalty for the charge of plastic surgery.”
The hall without Queen Naomi looked bigger.
“It is nice of the advisor to say the Queen could have been set up. But I guess he just tried to comfort me. You see, Police never arrested the Queen on ordinary days, whatever the reason. And this Halloween was totally her idea.”
He sighed and held his head in his hands.
“Anyway, she does not like me. It is time to send her back to her country.”
Princess Shayna, an elder sister of Queen Naomi, rushed to Queen Naomi’s room as she heard her sister was home. After a hug, Princess Shayna asked her, “Why didn’t you tell King Alon that you had plastic surgery because you wanted to be chosen by him?”
Queen Naomi weakly replied, “No, he won’t believe me. He didn’t even believe that someone put beauty makeup on me. It’s over.”
“Are you sure, Naomi? You won’t be accused because the surgery was before your marriage, and it is not illegal in our country. I feel guilty as I am the one who recommended you to have plastic surgery. I am sorry.”
“No need to apologize, Shayna. It is just because you happened to know a good doctor who can keep secret.”
“But still, I think you could make King Alon understand that everything you did was to support him.”
“That is not necessary. King Alon will earn more trust of the nation if he divorces me. That’s what I want.”
“Really? You’re so sweet, Naomi. Let me know if there is something I can do for you. Meet me at dinner later, okay?”
Princess Shayna gave her sister a hug again and left the room.
Queen Naomi moved by the window and saw her pale countenance reflected on the pane. She recalled the days when she had looked in a mirror all the time. Her eyelids had been single one day and double the other day. In order to get rid of this nuisance, she had a little surgery to stabilize her double eyelids. It was not because she wanted to be beautiful, but because she wanted to be free from a mirror. Namely, she assumed King Alon did not like women who cared about their appearance, judging from the fact that he prohibited makeup.
“If there were such thing as a magic mirror always speaking the truth, as in the tale of Snow White, I could go back to King Alon.”
She told to herself, watching the first snow falling.
After going back to her room, Princess Shayna sat in front of the dresser and started her makeup, which was her hobby. She talked to the mirror,
“At least Naomi got a beautiful memory because of me. That’s what a sister is for.”
She continued her makeup as she felt blessed and muttered, “King Alon will take a new bride, and it could be me, as he and our father need to be relatives for the peace of the two kingdoms. Maybe I need more plastic surgery, though.”
Princess Shayna finished her makeup and looked into the mirror with satisfaction. In there was the batcatgirl, who had been with Queen Naomi at the church.
Any mirror is always speaking the truth.