Women were disappearing one by one in London; they vanished without warning, as though they had been swallowed up by the earth. As time went on, more and more people went missing—missing person posters filled the city and were stuck up everywhere.
We found ourselves standing in front of an old table, papers scattered across its surface—and a swan honking as it looked around; an elderly woman sat elegantly—though there were wrinkles on her face, she still looked beautiful for a woman of her age.
The woman stroked the goose's head beside her, "You've heard what's been happening in London of late, haven't you?" she asked in a gentle tone that could melt a child's heart.
"Yes, Mother, there have been so many young women going missing lately," Alice replied, her posture upright with her hands clasped behind her back.
That old woman was the one who'd given us enough money to get by right now. "Quite right, Alice. And since it's obvious, do I need to explain your mission?"
"No need, Mother. We have to find the culprit behind all the recent disappearances of women, am I right?" She answered firmly, and from the tone of her voice alone, anyone could tell she was a disciplined girl.
Mother laughed whilst continuing to stroke the white goose's head, "But I'm worried about you both, dear, which is why I've asked two other Fables to help you." Hearing that surprised us both; we'd never worked with other Fables before when receiving a mission from her.
"You may come out."
After those words left their mouths, two men emerged from the doors on the left and right. On the left, a man with ginger hair and a familiar face appeared; that green beanie immediately reminded me of who he was.
"Yo, I didn't expect to meet you lot this soon," he greeted us as if he were on friendly terms with us; I glanced over and saw Alice with her eyes wide and her mouth agape.
"Robin Hood?!" she blurted out his name; from her expression, it was clear she'd never have expected him to work for Mother and team up with us.
"Yeah, that's me," Robin said, covering his ear with his finger. "Long story short, Mother recruited me, and sometimes her pay is better than what I get from my thievery."
Hearing that revelation, Alice glanced at Mother, who nodded—confirming his explanation. "Mother takes all sorts of people; why are you surprised?" I said, and as I glanced at Robin, he turned his face away instantly.
"He feels awkward because I still remind him of his ex-fiancée, doesn't he?" It wasn't my voice or my inner voice speaking; it was the voice of a man with curly black hair parted to the side and blue eyes.
"Ah! You'd better keep quiet!" Robin protested to the man.
"And you…?" I asked; from his appearance, he looked like a detective.
He straightened his tie before introducing himself, "My name is Sherlock Holmes. You don't know me yet, but I already know you—Red and Alice, I presume?"
Hearing the name Alice, she immediately exclaimed, "Oh!" She recognised him straight away—leaving me alone, having no idea who the man on the right was. Alice nudged my shoulder before reminding me, "He's the one looking for information about Margaret and Henry!" she said, and that instantly jogged my memory; I recalled the notes left by the person with the initials S.H.
"Wait, how did you know what I was thinking?" I asked, and Alice, hearing that, was immediately intrigued; seeing our reaction was enough to make her laugh with amusement.
Holmes adjusted his glasses before smiling with pride, "That's the power of my Everafter; I can read your minds and recall everything in detail," he replied. He'd been expecting positive feedback, but instead he received looks of disgust from us—and from Robin too.
"Creep," the three of us said in perfect unison.
Before he could defend himself, a fit of laughter filled the room, and when we looked towards the sound, we found Mothert laughing at our interaction; she was even ignoring the goose beside her. "I wasn't wrong to put this team together! This might just be the best team I've put together in the last decade."
She stood up from her chair and placed her hands behind her back; in a soft tone, she said, "I pray for the success of your mission, Team Pyxis."