Fables 20

Issue 20 is the twentieth issue in Fables, with a cover date of February, 2004. It was published on December 10, 2003.

Synopsis
''The mysterious stranger in red is the talk of Fabletown. What happens when her old nemesis Bigby Wolf is the one assigned to debrief her? Meanwhile, Prince Charming has started his campaign to become the new mayor, and he's making lots of promises...''

Plot
Boy Blue had a rude awakening when he jumped out of bed and stuck his foot on a toy soldier's musket. Pinocchio was in the living room when Blue angrily came out, accusing him of carelessly leaving his toy soldiers on the floor after playing with them. Pinocchio calmly rebuked that those so-called "toy soldiers" were the only thing made by his father, Geppetto, that he could get out of the Homelands, making them far too precious for him to treat as mere toys, however, Flycatcher couldn't seem to wrap that fact around his thick head, so he would often play with them and then forget to put them away. Pinocchio also gives Blue a message from Bigby, who wanted him down at the business office as soon as he woke up.

Red Riding Hood relates the story of her capture after the fall of the Keep at World's End to King Cole, Bigby, and Snow White. It took her centuries of slaving away to earn the guards trust and make her escape through the gateway in Oz, that led to Canada. Unfortunately, goblins followed her through the gate and a fight broke out between them and her two escorts, with all ending up dead. Red Riding Hood eventually made her way, alone, to Fabletown. King Cole was very impressed, gleefully telling her she was the first Fable to escape the Homelands in more than a century, an event that would greatly increase morale in town. Snow White and Bigby exchange suspicious glances.

Meanwhile, a crowd gathers inside Fabletown's Candy Shop, as Prince Charming delivers his first mayoral campaign speech. Likening current mayor King Cole's reign as that of a king, where all money in the treasury is treated as his own, making himself rich, rather than spreading the wealth to improve the community as a mayor's first duty should be. Charming goes on to say that the Mundy's can go on welfare if they lose their job, be given mandatory medical help, and even sue if they think they're wronged. Whereas, he points out, in Fabletown, Fables are told to find a way to fix their problems themselves, or they'd be sent to The Farm. He asks the crowd if this seemed right to them, and in unison they replied, "No!". Prince Charming passes the petition around for everyone to sign. He promised free government sponsored glamours for any Fable that didn't quite look human enough to live in town. He also promises the Farm Fables will be given the same treatment, so that they may finally move to the city if they so wish.

Boy Blue waded through the gathering crown in front of the door to the business office, getting the door open far enough to let himself in. He starts to ask Bigby why he called him down, but then his words died in his throat at the sight of the woman. Red Riding Hood, the girl he thought he had lost at the Keep at World's End[1], stood before him. At first, neither one could believe the other was alive. Overjoyed to see her again, Boy Blue told her that he managed to get on the last boat out after it sailed. He moved closer and started to take her in his arms, but Red Riding Hood pulled back suddenly. She was hurt that he had just left her to die, thinking she was just a sex toy to him, just like the soldiers who captured her. Boy Blue protests, that isn't how he meant it to seem, but Red rebuffs him, asking him to leave her alone. From behind her desk, Snow White and Bigby watch the whole scene go down. Snow whispers that the reunion didn't seem to go very well. Bigby smiles as he corrects her, remarking that it actually made perfect sense. It was precisely the right move for Red Riding Hood to make.

Elsewhere in the city, three black suited gentleman wearing sunglasses walked past a hot dog stand, the vendor shouting for them to try his Red Hot Dogs. The three strangers appear to get insulted by being offered food, and one grabs the vendor by the throat, lifting him off the ground and calling him a "meathead". They demand that he tell them where Bullfinch Street is, and where they can find some guns. When the vendor threatens to call the police, the stranger holding him let's go, and he and his brothers quietly retreat down the sidewalk. One expresses to the others his reluctance to leave that "meathead" undisciplined, though their orders did state to avoid any affairs with authority figures. His "brother" muses that soon, all those in this world will know to respect their betters...

While King Cole is showing Red Riding Hood to the guestroom in his penthouse, Snow White meets Bigby in his office to discuss his suspicions. He begins by asking her to remember the time he served in both World Wars. Of course, the wars were considered Mundy business, but Bigby always felt that a wolf should protect his territory whenever it's threatened, and he's been on American soil longer than any Mundy. Snow White can't see how this had anything to do with what was happening now. Bigby responds that while he served in the trenches, he and his unit would sometimes trick the enemy by sending an agent over to their side pretending to be a defector. To make things look more real, he and the others would shoot at the fleeing agent, sometimes landing a hit or two, but never anywhere vital. It was a risky way to gather information, but it worked surprisingly well. Bigby believed this was the same tactic Red Riding Hood used. Both times, in fact. The first when she was "fleeing" the enemy soldiers at the Keep at World's End, and the second time when she was "attacked" by goblins on her way here. Of course, it was all just speculation right now, but Bigby planned on doing some investigating out of town. He suggests that Snow keep a close reign on King Cole in the meantime. Their jolly old mayor was getting a bit too excited over the new arrival. In the lobby, Bigby gives instructions to Grimble to do while he's away. Passing him in the hall is Prince Charming and Hobbes, discussing how they'll be sure to triple the amount of signatures once they visit the Farm.

King Cole serves his guest-of-honor a hearty dinner while going over a few minor requirements she'll have to go through before becoming a full-fledged citizen, among them, she'll need to be interviewed by Bigby Wolf as is standard procedure. Red Riding Hood starts to flip out at this. How could they keep doing this to her? First making her face the boy that abandoned her to get captured, and now they wanted to sic on her the same wolf that tried to kill her? She ran out of the building, crying they were all mad!

Featured Characters:

 * Bigby Wolf
 * Snow White
 * Boy Blue
 * Prince Charming

Supporting Characters:

 * Pinocchio
 * King Cole
 * Hobbes

Antagonists:

 * The Adversary (Behind the scenes)
 * Baba Yaga (Posing as Red Riding Hood)
 * Wooden Soldiers (First appearance)


 * Hugh (First appearance)
 * Drew (First appearance)
 * Lou (First appearance)

Other Characters:

 * Lady Beauty
 * Lord Beast
 * Grimble

Locations

 * New York City
 * Manhattan
 * Fabletown
 * Woodland Luxury Apartments
 * Fabletown Business Office
 * Homelands (Flashback only)