Upside Down

Cruela De Vil

Jordan, my new friend and I were having a great time at the pond. We ate one more fish and were now looking into the stars. Mrs Brown walked towards us with horror written all over her face. "What!" she exclaimed. "Not my little fishies", then she pointed at me, "you, what have you done, you little pest this isn't your goddamn country where everything is edible". "Hgggggg ! ", she groaned in anger. She walked away, cursing and huffing and Jordan pitifully said,
" I am so sorry you had to see that, let's pack up and go inside". I noted in approval and we went inside. I slept in a troubled mood. Mrs Brown's words echoed in my head. After just one sentence, one looks and one stare I knew that she didn't want me here.

A week had passed and I had gotten the picture, I was here at the love of Mr Brown and his children but the mercy and pity *negative*of Mrs Brown. Sadly Mr Brown and his children were away from home most of the time so I was left alone with Mrs Brown. She made me do heavy chores that my tiny body couldn't carry and fed me like a dog. I remember she would say, " You had better be grateful  to God, for giving me the patience to put up with you". She was right. So I did as she said, chores or no chores, I was still in luxury. I had three meals a day, a bed, a room to call my own, I was lucky.  So months went by and soon I turned six. Mr Brown brought up the idea of me going to a certain place called school. I didn't know what school was by then but the idea if attending it made Mrs Brown even more furious with me. Why did she hate me? But I also couldn't blame her, I disturbed he peace, perhaps.
***
The next morning, that was  a Sunday I was awoken in the most horrible of ways. In the midst of my sleep, Mrs Brown poured ice cold water all over me. Oh my God! This woman had crossed the boundaries. I was shivering and weak but she looked at me like I was a new species of home sapiens. I wanted to smack the hell out of her but I couldn't, was too afraid so I knelt down and said, " Yes miss", she looked at me baffled, and amused. Fury and anger rose in her the lady was turning red then she stormed out of the room.
Dear God,
Bless her and forgive her,
She is blinded but spare her,
Amen.
That was my little prayer. I wanted to hate her but I couldn't, it didn't seem right. But I wasn't raised that way. Back home in Sudan to hate was to kill. It was to kill peace. We had very little of peace so we had to keep it.

I took a cold bath and walked down stairs, there I found Mr Brown together with his wife. Jordan was making breakfast, yes for a seven year old he was quite a star.
The others, Mark and Maleah, Mr Brown's other children were playing games on the television set. Mrs Brown was reading magazines. She gave me a look and she then looked back at her paper. Her thundering voice struck and I heard her call my name, oh what now. I ran to her and she signaled for me to bend down to her ear and she whispered, "Keep quiet if you know what's good for you". I looked at her and saw the Evil Queen in Cinderella, Queen Ravienna from Snow White but I was wrong.
She was the true replica of Cruela De Vil.