House on Thornrose Lane :
“You’re late.”
Spinning toward the smoky voice, Serena let out a long breath that she hadn’t realized she was holding, before smiling innocently up at the man. “I was having so much fun I didn’t realize how late it was! I certainly didn’t mean to leave you waiting. But then, it isn’t completely my fault, since you didn’t even tell me why we were meeting here. Is it really that important?”
Seiya stood against a white marble pillar, his black tunic silhouetted against the stone behind him. “Very important.”
Seeing that he didn’t plan on offering any further explanation, Serena frowned and folded her arms over her chest. “Well? Are you going to explain what’s so important? Maybe tell me what it is you want me to do, or why you and Andrew and that strange fairy girl think I’m some sort of ‘Chosen One’?” Her voice was rising, agitation building as his charcoal eyes only stared down on her, not seeming to care about a single word she said. He seemed as uninterested in her as he would be in a fly on his shoulder. Serena briefly imagined him reaching out and swatting her away.
He did not swat at her, however, but turned toward the ballroom at the sound of a great chime echoing through the palace. One strike, two strikes, three strikes, the clock continued to count off the seconds to midnight. Serena stood, momentarily shocked by the flicker in his eyes, the first time she had seen a hint of something more in the depths of boredom. Was it concern? Or maybe even compassions? Stunned, perhaps even a bit worried now herself, she followed his gaze, seeing the red light from the chandeliers within spread flickering veins over the marble stairs.
Above the music, Serena thought she heard the yelling of a man, calling to something, someone. Then a girl appeared in the doorway. Serena recognized her from before, the beautiful brunette who had entered the ball with such a captivating presence. Her gold skirt was gathered into both of her hands as she scurried breathlessly down the steps, her long hair, having fallen out of its braid, bounced off of her shoulders as she descended toward Serena and Seiya. She was ignorant of the few onlookers who had turned to watch her leave.
Prince Nephlite emerged from the curtained doorway not far behind the girl. “Please, stop!” he yelled, following her, though the distance grew between them with every step he took.
Serena hardly noticed when Seiya grabbed her arm and pulled her farther to the side of the staircase, letting the mysterious girl flee through the dispersed crowd. As she passed, Serena noticed that her beautiful face was stricken with worry.
The clock struck four. Five. Six. Seven times.
“Please, wait! I don’t even know your name!” Nephlite desperately continued. The girl paid him no heed, her escape only pausing momentarily when she stumbled on the steps and one of her shoes tumbled away from her foot. For a moment it looked as if she would turn to claim the slipper, but instead she grabbed the other shoe off of her foot and ran faster than she had before with the slipper clutched in her hand.
Eight. Nine.
Her gold dress could be seen half way out the garden by the time Nephlite had reached the bottom of the steps. He ran right past the shoe, ignoring the knights and the couples and Seiya and Serena as they watched the scene with wonderment. A lavishly decorated carriage awaited the girl just beyond the gate to the castle and she jumped into it without looking back and was sped instantly into the empty streets of the city.
Ten. Eleven.
By the dropping of the prince’s shoulders once he finally reached the castle walls, Serena knew that the carriage was out of view and Nephlite wouldn’t have a clue as to which way the girl had gone.
Twelve.
Nephlite stood alone in the garden as the last chime hung in the cool evening air, then slowly turned back toward the castle and tediously, dejectedly began to make his way up the wide pathway. The music inside was upbeat and oblivious to the escape of the prince’s beautiful stranger.
When he was close enough for Serena to see the candlelight on his face, she felt her heart clamp painfully inside. Nephlite’s handsome face was full of distress. His slow steps guided him past the glittering shoe on the stairs as he moved with lowered shoulders, dragging feet, and drooping head.
“How very tragic,” Seiya murmured behind her. His voice sounded engrossed and pained. Serena realized that his hand was still gently rested against her arm, part on her glove and most on her skin. She shuddered—in surprise or fear she didn’t know.
“Prince Nephlite, wait!” she called, pulling her arm away from Seiya as the prince brushed past her.
He stalled on the stairs, his head slightly listing toward her.
“Look! She left this! You can still find her!”
Serena strode forward and snatched up the girl’s slipper, turning toward Nephlite with it proudly displayed in her hand. His deep blue eyes looked at the shoe for a long moment, undisturbed within their ocean depths. Serena’s heart ached for him, her gloved fingers twitching around the slipper. It was unsurprisingly made of glass, and so small that it barely stretched the full length of her hand. She wondered if such small feet were possible, especially as the girl had seemed taller than Serena’s petite 4’11” form by at least a head. Of course, Serena knew that logically the girl must have extraordinarily small feet, so that her slipper would fit no other girl in the kingdom.
Nephlite didn’t know that—yet.
“You see how small it is? How many girls could possibly fit into such small slippers? There can only be one in your entire kingdom. You can find her, Prince Nephlite. We’ll find her. I’ll help you.”
His dejected eyes were still glued to the slipper. Serena could see the muscles flexing in his jaw and a strained gulp, but then a hint of hope flashed in his eyes. His gaze darted to hers, then back to the slipper, and he slowly smiled. To Serena, the curling of his lips was like the sun climbing over the horizon after a stormy night. The prince reached both his hands forward, his fingertips shaking as he gently took the shoe into his grip, cradling it as if it would break. And, indeed, it might have.
“Yes, we’ll find her. You and I, Lady Serena. And then . . . then I’ll marry her.”
Serena beamed up at him. “We’ll set out tomorrow!”
His eyes were still locked on the slipper, but he nodded in her direction, the grin growing on his face. “Yes, I’ll have the servants wake you at dawn. Thank you, Lady Serena, for everything.”
She didn’t know how to respond nor was she given time as Prince Nephlite turned and walked up the stairs, still holding the shoe before him. She thought it a miracle he didn’t trip on the steps, really that he didn’t falter at all as he disappeared into the glowing room where the music played.
When he was gone, Serena let out a loud groan. “Now I have to get up at dawn!” she wailed, crossing her arms and pouting. If Seiya had a reaction to her antics, he didn’t voice it.
“You’ve done a wonderful job, Lady Serena,” Andrew said, suddenly appearing from behind a pillar on the other side of the steps. Serena turned to see him with a broad smile upon his lips and a small fairy on his shoulder. She recognized Hota, dressed all in amethyst purple.
“Yes, that was pretty good for an amateur,” the fairy agreed with a wink, her dragonfly wings fluttering slightly against Andrew’s cropped hair and proudly displayed pointed ears.
“Now all we have to do is find the girl and get Prince Nephlite to ask for her hand in marriage. It will be so simple! And the second he sees her, he will undoubtedly fall madly in love, just as he did tonight. It will be a splendid romance, and the wedding will be glorious!” Andrew’s smile grew with every word.
Hota glanced at the elf from the corner of her eye. “Now, don’t get overzealous! Drama is key in a good story, you know that! I have a feeling this tale has not yet met its climax. The prince and his mysterious cinder girl have a ways to go yet. Remember, he doesn’t know her social class. He believes that she’s a noble. And there is the cruel stepmother still to deal with.”
Andrew waved his hand as if to brush away the skepticism. “Nonsense, love will prevail. Besides, we have Lady Serena on our side. I’m sure she can help us to overcome any obstacle.”
“Wait. A. Minute.” Serena could feel her scowl making permanent wrinkles in her forehead as she held a palm up toward the elf and fairy. “Just how do you know she is called cinder girl? And what makes you think she has a cruel stepmother?” she growled.
Andrew and Hota glanced from each other to the fuming girl before them in surprise. Hota placed her hands on her hips and lifted her wings to hover a few inches over Andrew’s shoulder.
“First of all, I’m that girl’s fairy godmother, I ought to know what her bratty sisters call her! And secondly, we’re the guardians! It’s our job to know everything about these people!”
Serena gawked at the tiny girl. A thousand questions ran through her head, but they only came out in sputters.
“You—you’re her fairy godmother?”
Hota seemed puzzled at the outburst. “And just why is that so surprising?”
“Because you’re . . . I mean, you look so . . . young.”
Hota looked down at herself, her black hair falling in locks over her face as she smoothed down the shiny material around her waist. “Yeah, so?”
Serena shook her head. “Never mind, I guess it isn’t important. But you know where Cinderella lives then? Where we can find her?”
The fairy beamed proudly. “Of course I do.”
“Great! That will save us so much time!”
“But I won’t tell you.”
Serena felt her shoulders sag. “Why not?”
Giggling, the tiny girl brushed her hair back with one hand. “Because that would take all of the adventure out of the plot! How much fun would it be if the prince found the girl right away? It holds no anticipation, no anxiety, no fear! No build up of emotion before the final climactic scene!” Her head was high, her hands balled into fists before her breast. Her voice carried a tone of utmost importance.
Serena didn’t have a clue what she was talking about. Throwing her hands into the air, she let out an enraged scream. “You act like this is just some child’s story book! I realize we may be living in a fairy-tale world right now, but it’s still these people’s lives we’re talking about, not just some made up characters you can treat like puppets in your crazy story!” Drawing in ragged breaths, she looked from Hota to Andrew to Seiya and back to the girl. They were all staring at her with benign, almost sorrowful, expressions.
“You’re wrong,” Andrew finally spoke up, his pale green eyes watching Serena hesitantly.
“What do you mean, I’m ‘wrong’?”
“They are only characters in a book. They were created by people in another world, for people in another world. They are like puppets, going about in the imaginary world of another, waiting for someone from that world to tell them where to go, what to do, who to love. Unknowingly, they wait for the Chosen One to come and sort out the tangled web of their lives, to give them purpose; to give them drama, romance, and even tragedy. Unknowingly, they wait for you, Lady Serena. We have all waited for you.”