A Good Little Devil

Summary

Charles MacLance, a roguish youth exiled to the austere household of his tyrannical aunt Mrs. MacMiche, discovers refuge in an elaborate fairy‑tale universe conjured alongside Juliet, a tender‑hearted blind girl. Their shared imagination births a sanctuary of sprites and whispered enchantments that shields Charles from the cold rigor of his lineage. The death of his aristocratic grandfather propels him into an elite boarding school, where the trappings of nobility erode his childhood reveries, steering him toward a polished engagement with a society belle. Yet the dormant spirit of his younger self resurfaces, compelling him to re‑embrace the benevolent fairies. Simultaneously, Mrs. MacMiche undergoes a metamorphosis, embracing belief in the unseen and extending an invitation for Charles to return. Reluctant at first, he gradually revives his forgotten memories, and with Juliet—now sighted—by his side, he consummates his transformation, proposing marriage. The narrative culminates in a harmonious tableau where Charles, Juliet, and the reformed aunt inhabit a shared realm of fantasy and affection.

Synopsis

Charles MacLance, a mischievous little boy sent to live with his cruel aunt, Mrs. MacMiche, takes his happiness from the make-believe world of fairies which he has created with Juliet, a little blind girl. When Charles' aristocratic grandfather dies, however, he is sent away to an expensive school, in preparation for his adult life as a lord. As he grows up, he forgets Juliet and his make-believe friends, and becomes engaged to a fashionable society girl, but the soul of his former self leaves him to rejoin the good fairies. Meanwhile, Mrs. MacMiche has come to believe in fairies, and in her new goodness, she asks Charles to come and live with her again. At first reluctant, Charles soon resurrects fond memories of the past. Juliet, whose sight has been restored, helps him to complete his change, and he asks her to marry him. In the end, the couple live happily with Mrs. MacMiche in their fantasy world.