As time passed, life got worse for me. But things were okay. Father went from trip to trip with little time in between. He would be home for a few days, at most, before having to leave once again to make more money. Stepmother kept him busy. But one day was particularly horrible.

It began with my stepmother screaming for me to get up, I'd fallen asleep at the fireplace again by accident. My sisters, Roxanne and Zoe, had begun to create names for me based off of what I looked like in the morning. The Lady Morgana had called me numerous things before as well, but only because she could never remember my name. She was proper and they were all the names of servants that she had had in the past. I was beginning to think that it was her way of insulting me. There had been Beatrice, Dorothy, Emily, Molly, but the most common was Ella. That one had stuck.

"Ella!" I heard her yell from downstairs again. It was too early for me to remind her that my name was Leigh-Rose, not Ella, Beatrice, or any of the others she'd come to refer to me as. I heaved a heavy sigh and raced down the stairs to the kitchen, passing the mice on the floor and giving the little animals a small smile. After all, one must appreciate her friends and show them that she does.

"Yes Madame?" That was the name she'd asked me to call her, but I couldn't express my hatred of it without getting slapped.

"There is someone here for you," she motioned to the door and I followed her hand as I ignored the glare she gave me. Roxanne and Zoe were whispering about something to each other at the door.

"No no, it must be Ella. That's the best one. Ella's the dead maid, right?" Roxanne, the less intelligent of the two, asked her sister.

"Yes, you idiot. I'd thought of Cinder Wench or Dirty Ella," Zoe rolled her eyes but nodded anyways.

"How about… how about Cinderella?" Roxanne giggled, happy to have come up with something.

"Miss Leigh-Rose, I'm afraid I have some terrible news," the man at the door said. I had been smiling, he was an old friend of my father's. They'd gone on their expeditions together for years, his daughter and I had been good friends before my stepmother shut me away from the world two months ago. "Your father became ill on our way to Newporton, I'm sorry to say that he passed on in his sleep some days ago," he apologized. I froze, stunned at this news. "He requested that I bring you this, the rose you requested," he handed me the flower, just as lovely as it should have been. The thorns were still on it, as I had asked for them to be. I would have smiled, had I not just been told that my father, only living real family, was dead.

"Th-thank you Jackson," I nodded, wiping my eyes and giving a small, forced smile. He nodded and I had to walk away, taking a tall glass of water from the table and placing it on the table in the kitchen. It brightened up the dark room in a way that made me smile only slightly. This one was truly genuine. Though this flower would die soon, I would always have at least something to remember Father by.

The Prince

He had no way of knowing what this day would bring. It had started out in a good way, the servants rushing around the palace trying to make preparations for the ball that his father was forcing him to attend. After all, it was in honor of the grand Prince's eighteenth birthday.

There had been a time when Peter had wished to never grow up. Of course, being the boy he always had been, he still wanted the same thing. But his parents would never let that happen. The King Nathaniel and Queen Sophia had decided that, as the king had, there would be a ball for their oldest son's birthday. At this party of sorts he would find a wife from the princesses in attendance.

"Felix, is my horse ready?" The prince asked his manservant, his best friend.

"Of course your majesty, Neverland is all set and ready to go," the older boy nodded, stepping aside to allow the prince to mount his horse. The animal had been cared for and nurtured by the animal-loving prince since it was a foal, it hadn't known any life other than being the closest companion of the heir to the throne.

Peter, then seated upon the saddle of his horse, gave a little wave to his servant. "Thank you Felix, please inform mother and father that I will return by supper time," he gave a boyish smile and snapped the reigns, Neverland moving forward in a controlled, slow trot. The pace increased to a gallop and the rest of the guards continued behind him, allowing the prince to lead the way into the forest. The royal hunt had begun.

He never felt more alive than when he rode the horses, it was the closest he could get to flying as the birds always did. That was his dream. He longed for things to go back to how they had been when he was younger, his hands always busied with his instrument, a panpipe. He'd taught himself to play it when he was a small child and it had become another favorite pastime. His other had been inventing, creating things. His tutors and governesses had always said that he was incredibly smart, but he rarely put it to use when he wasn't building.

A large buck ran past him and Peter had to blink for a moment to register what was going on before him. One of the guards yelled and the young prince took off to capture it. But there was someone else in his way.

"Stop, you're going to hurt him!" The strange girl yelled.

"That's kind of the point, Miss. It's hunting, perhaps it is a sport you have heard of?" Peter shook his head, trying to maneuver Neverland around her horse but she got in his way to block him again. "You have to let me pass."

"Who says? What has he done to you?" It was obvious that she had no idea who he was.

"I say, do you not know who I am?" He looked surprised, one eyebrow was raised above the other.

"No…" she shook her head.

"I am… they call me Peter," he introduced, leaving out the 'Prince' part of his name. She was beautiful, had a certain fire to her that intrigued him. "What do they call you?"

"Never mind what the call me. But you still should not be chasing after that poor creature," she shook her head once again. It seemed that she did that a lot.

"Alright then, sounds reasonable," he just nodded, waiting to see what she would demand of him next.

"And where do you live, Mister Peter?" The girl questioned, skeptical.

"Why, at the palace of course," he laughed as her eyes widened in surprise, she must have realized who he was. Or, maybe not.

"Do they treat you well at the palace? Why is it that you are staying there?" She continued with her many questions.

"Yes, they do. I work as an apprentice, of sorts. You could call me that," he shrugged. "Are you going to tell me your name?" He asked politely. She opened her mouth to respond but was interrupted by a voice from behind.

"Your highness-"

"It's Peter! Just, it's simply Peter," the prince interrupted.

"Well, Peter, we must capture the beast before the men begin to wonder what you're doing here," it had been one of the guards speaking. Well, the captain of the royal guard to be exact. Jason Winters, a famed officer of high ranking in the military who had been hired at the palace to protect the royal family. He'd been happy to do so, saying that it was an honor.

"Please don't let them hurt him!" The fiery girl pleaded.

"It's hunting, that is what is done," he looked back at her with a frown.

"Just because it is what is done, doesn't mean that it is what is right," she fired back as she turned her horse.

"Right you are. Alright. Mister Winters, see to it that that buck specifically is not injured. I want it kept safe."

"As you wish," the officer nodded and returned to the hunting party.

"I hope to see you at my- I mean, the Prince's ball this Saturday night," he smiled at the girl.

"I hope to attend." And, with that, the girl was gone.