Chapter 1: Hansel and Gretal ( The Witch Version)
“Help, help!” Sarah cried.
“Oh be quite, you taste as good if you struggle.” Complained Marla the witch “ugh” she grunted as she rolled the pot into the Furness. “There you go sweetheart, little Sarah is just what I need to fill up my day.” Marla adjusted the timer for when her meal will be ready, and walked outside into the cold, bitter, winter air. Fixing some falling candy canes near her door, stood back and admired her house made entirely of candy. A fence made of licorice snaking around her property, gumy bears as stepping stones up the walkway. The walls made up of dark, delicious bread, with icing lining every rim and edge. Dumbbell, chocolate, marshmallows, candy canes, sour worms, gumy bears, caramel. Any mouth-watering, kid attracting food was on her house; Marla called it ‘The Gingerbread House Upgrade’. The point was to attract kids, and kids attract her appetite.

Rinnnngggg! The witches’ portal phone interrupted her thoughts. Growling Marla went to answer the phone. On her way she couldn’t help but inhale the little girl Sarah smell.

“Hmmmmm, something a cookin!” She chimed to herself. “Ech hem” clearing he throat, she picked up the phone “Helloo?” Marla said in a sweet innocent voice, hoping it was yet another child.

“Darling, oh how I missed you so much” gushed her mother

“Ugh, hello mother” back to her disappointed self.

“When are you flying in sweetie? Your father and I need to make plans on when to prepare for you and Glinda”

“Glinda is coming?” She growled

“No honey, her pet alligator is coming. Of course she’s coming Marla! She is your sister and I expect you to be nice. It’s Christmas after all.” Her mother griped.
Beep Beep Beep!! “Got to go, my uh ‘soups’ done.” She put up the phone and prepared her homemade meal.

Cold, eye-watering air slammed into the witches face as she soared through the darkened woods, letting all of her worries fall with the departing snowflakes into the never-ending blanket of ice. “Mmmmm” Marla deeply inhaled. SNAP! Her head jerked up, an evil grin marked her face and a twisted laugh escaped her lips. There were children nearby. A boy and a girl, maybe a couple of years apart, scared, cold and hungry. I’ll let them go a little longer before I guide them to my place, she thought to herself.

“Until we meet again my pretties” She whispered, and with that, she disappeared in to the night.
“Have a holly, jolly Christmas. O’ my golly what a holly jolly Christmas this is”
Mother’s house smelled like mouth-watering food, Christmas decorations hung over every furniture in the house. A feast was being prepared on the table.

“Oh my!” mother squealed. “You look even more stunning then last time I saw you!”
Marla shrugged away the complement, like she got them every day from adoring fans.
“Have a holly, jolly Christmas. O’ my golly what a holly jolly Christmas this is” Marla cringed at that voice.
“Well hello Mr. Grinch!” Glinda emerged from the kitchen. Her voice rang like sweet bells chiming, Marla fought the urge to cover hers ears. She looked Glinda over and couldn’t help but gawk at her appearance. Glinda was wearing slim, green dress that complemented her figure. Her deep red curls spilled over her shoulders and flowed with her movement. Her teeth gave the Christmas lights a run for their money the way they sparkled.
“Girls, don’t start” mother warned.
“I was kidding mother” Glinda giggled. Typical!
The dinner went by in a blur, Glinda being perfect, Mother and Father fighting for her attention. Marla kept drifting off in her own thoughts of those two children. Finally the dinner ended and back to the ‘Ginger-Bread House Upgrade!’
Perfect! The children were taking things off her house and eating them. She put on the blind, old lady illusion and grabbed her cane and awkwardly stumbled outside.
“Ahh!”They screamed
“Oh, no no no, don’t be frightened. I won’t hurt you” She sweetly soothed. Marla purposely went in the wrong direction o push the fact that she was blind.
“Hansel, I don’t think she can see” the little girl stated.
“I don’t think she can either Gretel” Replied the boy. Ah! So the names of my meal are Hansel and Gretel, very new and rich. I like it.
“Come in, come in children, you must be so tired and hungry poor things” The witch bellowed. So Marla, Hansel and Gretel all filed into the house
“O’ my goodness!” they gasped. There was a delicious feast set upon the table. Hansel and Gretel ate like nothing ev er before. Every single thing that Marla made, they ate. When the children were done they could hardly keep from falling over.
“I Shirley can’t let you go out like this, you shall stay the night. Here I have two little beds for when my grandchildren come over. You can use them” The witch lied. She doesn’t have any grandchildren, never have and never will.
“Really? Oh thank you so much Ms. Marla” Shrieked Gretel. The witch tucked them into their cozy beds and turned out the lights.
“Good night children, sweet dreams” Whispered the Marla, followed by an evil laugh that sent shivers down their spines.
“Wake up you filthy pigs, GET UP!” Yelled the witch. Marla shook them awake and grabbed Hansel by his neck, dragged him over to the storage cell and locked him in .
“Help me Gretel!” screamed Hansel
“And you little girl, how well can you cook?” asked the witch
“I’m okay, I’m not that good”
“Well your good enough, get to cookin. I have to get some meat on his bones” sneered Marla

Time passed boring for the witch. She was growing hungrier by the minute. Every so often she would check Hansel’s fatness to see if he was getting any ‘meatier’. Until the glorious moment that he got to be just about the right size.

“oh little boy” Marla said to Hansel.”It is time to put you in the pot”
“Noooooooo!” Screamed Gretel “But Ms. Marla the pot is too small, Hansel won’t fit in it.”She explained.
“Oh yes he can, a person my size could fit in it.”
“Hansel is simply to big Ms. Marla”
“Grrrr!” Marla growled “look I will show you it’s not too small” The witch climbed into the pot and fit just fine. Sarah fit in here just fine, why can’t he? She thought to herself. Wait, it’s rolling. Why is it rolling toward the fire? She looked back at and screamed the kids as Hansel and Gretel pushed her into the fire to her death.

Instead of dying, witches have to return to a family relative so Marla got banished to live with her sister Glinda.

“Oh well, what a nice surprise this is.” Cooed Glinda. Marla growled, she wanted to throw up from knowing she had to live with her sister.
“ So considering your punishment, I don’t believe you deserve to be called a name. Since you will be living in the West of my kingdom, therefore you will be known as ‘ Wicked Witch of The West.”
Marla stared at her as if she’d gone crazy.
Smiling Glinda said.

“Welcome to Oz!”