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One sunny Saturday, three siblings gathered in their backyard treehouse. Their parents had built it for them a couple of holidays ago, and it quickly became their private hideaway. Inside, they’d worked hard to make it as cozy as possible.
Una Haddock, the youngest, had painted vibrant flowers and butterflies on the walls. Her older brother, Boden, had created a mural of an ocean at sunrise and sunset. Their eldest brother, Hiccup, had painted the ceiling to look like a starry night sky. They’d all pitched in with the furnishings, and Hiccup was glad their father had hung a swing for Una and Boden, plus proper steps for their dogs to climb up.
The three of them sat cross-legged on the floor, dressed in casual clothes, their dogs sprawled beside them. Hiccup’s auburn hair framed his face, messy as ever, while Boden’s was pulled back in a short ponytail. Una’s lilac-tipped blond hair shimmered as she bounced her blue eyes between her brothers.
Hiccup and Boden shared the same bright green eyes—full of mischief and intelligence. In Dragon City, everyone had dogs, since their dragons had been reincarnated into various breeds. But right now, what mattered was why they were gathered in the treehouse: several books lay in front of them. Their mother, Valka, had strongly encouraged them to read instead of playing video games.
Hiccup often read to his younger siblings, which helped them bond. They always felt he brought the stories to life better than reading them silently. Today, they felt like having a book club chat about the books they’d been reading lately, so they laid out a few from the Disney Twisted Tales series. Each had picked one: Hiccup chose Beauty and the Beast, Boden went with Cinderella, and Una picked Tiana.
“Alright, let’s call this book club meeting to order,” Hiccup declared, holding up Beauty and the Beast. “We’ve just finished the latest book, but let’s agree not to get the one based on Pinocchio since none of us like that movie.”
“Right?” Boden huffed. “And we can’t get the Sword in the Stone one because it’s only available in the UK.”
“We’re missing Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Peter Pan, and Alice in Wonderland,” Una added, crossing her arms. “Honestly, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty don’t do much in their films. Peter Pan has been told to death, and don’t even get me started on Alice in Wonderland. It’s like a bad acid trip!”
Hiccup chuckled, pushing his glasses up. “Exactly! That’s why we’re skipping those. So, should I start with Tale as Old as Time?”
“Yep, let’s dive in!” Boden and Una said together, their faces lighting up.
Hiccup cleared his throat. “Okay, I think we can all agree the books are way better than the movies. They should’ve been the films, or at least a special edition.”
“Seriously!” Boden said, his green eyes gleaming. “It would be amazing to see these stories come to life, no matter if it’s traditional animation or CGI.”
“And we get so much more insight into why the Enchantress, Rosalind, cursed the prince,” Hiccup added. “She and her people faced racism and hate. It’s crazy how relevant those themes are today.”
“Right? It’s like systemic racism,” Una said, resting her chin on her hand, blue eyes intense. “Some people take drastic actions to protect their own, but they don’t always think about the consequences.”
“I can see where Belle gets her strength from,” Boden said. “It’s not just her love for reading. It’s from her mom—she really knows how to stand up for herself.”
“Good point,” Hiccup agreed. “But Gaston’s still a jerk. Even if the village starts to see through him after he kills the antagonist, he’s still a misogynist.”
Una wrinkled her nose. “I can’t imagine being tortured for a decade. The trauma—both mental and physical—would be awful.”
“True. Trauma runs deep, little sister,” Hiccup said softly. He gave her a proud look, his green eyes sparkling. “I’m honestly so proud of how smart you are, Una. You always get to the heart of things.”
Una blushed, her blue eyes softening. “Thanks, Hiccup.”
“Rosalind’s a complicated character,” Una continued. “She lets her temper get the best of her, but she tries to make up for it.”
“She does fix her mistakes, but she doesn’t really learn from them,” Boden said, scratching his head. “It’s like... she keeps repeating herself.”
“Exactly!” Hiccup nodded. “Punishing an innocent child for his parents’ sins led to her being imprisoned for ten years. Belle sums it up perfectly: we can’t judge a whole culture based on a few. We should only judge individuals once we know them.”
“Well said, Hiccup,” Una praised, brightening. “I must say, though, I find This Is Love way better than all the Cinderella movies. It shows Cinderella being honest about how much she suffered under her stepmother.”
“It never made sense why she didn’t just leave,” Boden admitted, tapping his chin. “I get that people sometimes stay with their abusers, but there was nothing stopping her from walking away.”
“In the book, she was forced to escape being sold as an enslaved person, and she managed to get a decent job at the palace,” Hiccup pointed out. “I also like how they named the kingdom and city properly.”
“Right? It shows you have to create your own happily ever after—it’s not handed to you,” Una said. “And true love is more than just trying on a shoe. They actually got to know each other.”
Boden tapped his chin again. “The themes of abuse, finding happiness, and standing up for yourself are powerful. But it’s also about working hard and not giving up. Plus, there’s still racism against fairies in the book.”
“I love how they took a throwaway character like the Duke and made him worse than Lady Tremaine,” Hiccup added. “It’s great to see the different shades of evil.”
Una shifted, tucking her legs under her, her lilac-tipped hair falling softly to the side. “Tiana understands the value of hard work, but she also learns to let go. I get why she took the Shadow Man’s deal to see her dad again,” she said quietly. “But we can’t change the past. We have to accept that our loved ones will die, and that’s why it’s so important to make the most of our time together.”
“I appreciate how authentic they made the time period and location of the story,” Boden said. “But I wish people who write fanfics would remember that spell check and grammar programs aren’t programmed for slang.”
“True,” Hiccup agreed, brushing his hair back. “Spell check and programs like Grammarly focus on perfect grammar, but real people don’t always talk like that.”
“Still,” Una said, smiling, “I love how they portrayed Tiana and Naveen, no matter the timeline.”
“Yep,” Hiccup said with a satisfied nod. “Stories should focus more on character development and plot than fancy words or, like in the movies, special effects and musical numbers. Good storytelling comes from the heart.”
“People have been telling stories since the dawn of time,” Boden said. “The lessons we learn from them are what truly matter.”
“You’re so right, little brother,” Hiccup said with a grin. “Speaking of good things, I’m craving chocolate chip cookies. Should we see if Mom made any?”
“I really hope so!” Una cheered, her blue eyes sparkling with excitement.
Their book club meeting ended as they raced to the kitchen, their laughter echoing through the treehouse.