A/N: Nightwing and Red Robin go on patrol. While on a break, Nightwing uses his dream weaving ability to weave a fanciful fairy tale for Tim to later tell to his children. Narissa, Ethan, and Aimee are three of Tim's children. They only appear in the beginning of this story. They will appear in later stories as the Earth 14 stories progress.

Cinder Bat Fella

By

AJRedRobin and JasonToddLover

Part 7

After getting comfortable in the media room Tim started telling the rest of the story.

"Let's see, over the next twelve years, Fella was forced to work as a slave in his own house. Antonio had changed his mind about dismissing the servants, at least for a while. Fella was too small to do certain chores. He couldn't reach the table to serve the meals. Instead he was put to work feeding the chickens and cleaning the floors. Eventually, the servants were dismissed and he was forced to do all the work. Sometimes it was a good thing, because it distracted him from the cruelty of his stepbrothers and stepfather."

"Fella! You better have dinner done by the time we get back from my sons' fencing lessons or you will not be allowed to eat the scraps," Antonio groused. "Now, go to the market and don't doddle."

"Yes, sir." Fella grabbed an empty basket and walked to the market. He was given just enough money to buy what he needed to make dinner. He had other chores he had to complete once he returned. Stoke fires, sweep floors, clean the clothes, mending and ironing, clean the windows, polish furniture, feed the livestock. The list seemed to get longer throughout the day,

Fella watched as his stepbrothers left for their lessons at the palace. His thoughts turned to the princess and the day he got to ride with her on her pony. It was one of the happier moments in his life. While in the palace, a princess was soon coming of age and would soon have to marry."

King Bruce sighed as he watched his daughter. 'She has grown into a beautiful young woman.'

Saman'ta was outside fencing with Ricard. Whenever she practiced her lessons or went horseback riding, she kept thinking about the boy. She only saw him that one time. She never saw him, again. She was stuck seeing those stupid idiot brothers of his. She watched them out of the corner of her eye as they each picked up a foil, and making a show of examining the quality of the blade.

"Father must I take lessons with those boys?"

"No, my dear, you do not, if it displeases you so much," King Bruce stated. "You can take lessons in the palace courtyard. Ricard, please take the princess back to the palace. I am going to go talk with the fencing Master.

Even so, Saman'ta was curious. "I want to know what happened to the boy that was with them those years ago," She said to her father. "I liked him."

Vincent overheard the princess as he and his brother approached. "He died," Vincent replied, quickly.

"Yeah, that's it," Victor agreed. "He got sick and died."

King Bruce frowned. He recognized when someone was lying. He leaned down and whispered in her ear. "Don't believe them my daughter. Perhaps you will see him, again."

"But he did," Vincent said, not batting an eye. "Maybe we can go horseback riding together, share a horse?"

Saman'ta huffed. "You two are despicable."

"Come my daughter, let's go back to the palace. Your mother and I have something to discuss with you."

"Coming Papa. "

Ricard placed his foil down in the rack and followed, keeping a watchful eye on those two. Once all three were back in the palace, Ricard could let his guard down. He didn't trust those two. He wouldn't put it past them to try something. He had become the princess' personal guard and friend. And he took his duty very seriously.

"You know your mother and I have watched you grow into a beautiful young woman," King Bruce began the conversation that he wanted to have with his child. "It is time to think about getting married. Though you are my heir, you will need an heir. And your mother and I would love to hear the sound of little feet running around the palace once, again."

Jason had joined Ricard as they walked behind the king and princess as they held their very important conversation.

"I know how much you love being with the children of the servants in the palace," King Bruce stated. "I see the wistful look in your eyes. You are thinking of that boy and wishing he were here and having a child with him. But, that might not be possible. However, you may still have that family yet, by finding the right husband. Perhaps it is time to think about marriage and having a child of your own."

"A baby? Oh I always wanted a baby!" Saman'ta said enthusiastically.

"Your Majesty, I do not wish to interrupt, but shall we be hosting a party for her coming of age first?" Ricard suggested. "Maybe you'll meet some one there, Princess."

"Yes, you are right, Ricard. Unfortunately, I know for a fact there are no eligible princes of age. They are either too young or too old. However, we could open the party for our own kingdom. All eligible young men could attend. We could limit the age to 22? No older? What type of ball shall it be?"

"Papa, 22 is a fine limit," Saman'ta agreed. "I don't think I would want anyone older than that. Oh, I can't wait. Can we make it a mascaraed?"

"Now let me see. We will need to send out invitations to every family, even though not all will be able to attend. Shall we say two weeks from today?"

"Oh Papa can I hand deliver them? Please?"

"To over two hundred families?" King Bruce questioned. "That will take a very long time. I think my secretary Alfred should go with you. You must stay in the carriage for your own safety."

"Or you and Mommy take one half and Alfred and I take the other," Saman'ta negotiated with her father.

"Hmm, you make a good diplomat," King Bruce complimented his daughter. "All right. We need to get them printed out first. We'll include a feast as well. We'll put on a large spread."

"Oh daddy, thank you!" Saman'ta went to go talk to the printer on designing an invitation.

"Does Fella get to go to the ball? Narissa interrupted the story.

"You'll just have to wait and find out. There's more story yet to tell. Now where were we . . . "

After returning from the Market, Fella had other chores he had to do besides preparing vegetables for the evening meal to go with the roast he had been cooking since that morning. He got home from the market just five minutes ahead of his stepbrothers and he was startinh dinner when Vincent and Victor came in. He tried to follow his Mother's rule of being kind and even polite. "Did you have a good fencing lesson?"

"Shut your trap! Because of you the princess doesn't want to be around us."

"Boil some water. I'm going to take a bath," Vincent tossed his sweaty clothes to Fella. "And wash my clothes!"

Victor tossed his clothes at him as well, following his brother.

Fella grabbed their clothes and put them in the basket to be washed. He then put on the large copper teakettle on the stove for hot water then he went back to fixing dinner.

~Walk out this place,~ Virgil the cat meowed.

"I wish I could Virgil. I made a promise. Besides, I own the house, but what money do I have. They only pay me when I go to the market. I'm not allowed to spend anything for myself. I have to make do with the rags that they give me for my own cloths and the scraps that they feed me. Where would I go? I don't even know my own name. Momma never told me what that was. She said I would find my name in the attic. And I haven't found it yet."

"You talking to that cat again?" Vincent scoffed. "Where's our dinner? Our father will be coming home soon."

Virgil hissed at the brothers and walked back into the kitchen.

Fella sighed. He pulled the bread he had been baking out of the oven and checked the roast that was over the cooking fire. He worked on getting the vegetables prepared. He stopped to set up the table. He wasn't allowed to eat with them, not since before his stepmother died. He had to wait until they were done. He was lucky they sometimes wasted food like crazy.

"Have that table set then go back to your corner in the kitchen!" Victor ordered.

Fella continued to prepare dinner and putting dishes on the table. Fella knew if he didn't, he might receive a flogging later. While he worked, Fella hummed a song to himself. Ever since his stepmother told Fella that he belonged to a different family, he would image all kinds of things. He made up a song about it. Fella sung the words in his head. 'I'm as mild and as meek as a mouse, when I hear a command I obey, but I know of a spot in my house, where no one can stand in my way. In my own little corner in my own little chair, I can be whatever I want to be. On the wings of my fancy, I can fly anywhere and the world will open its arms to me. I'm a young Norwegian prince or a milkman. I'm the greatest primo don in Milan . . . '

Antonio Alcazar walked in quickly. "Stop that infernal humming!" he shouted. "I want to speak to my son's! Come here. Hurry."

Fella stopped what he was doing and started to approach when Antonio glared at him.

"My own sons!"

"Yes, Sir." Fella went back to setting everything out on the table. He put out plates, cups, forks and knives, and the necessary utensils for the food.

"Yes father what is it?" Vincent sat down on the table wondering what his father was going to say. Victor joined him.

"I was in the market picking up payments for what was owed me, when I saw the princess. I overheard what she was doing. She was passing invitations out to a ball and she is coming in this direction. There are whispers saying she is looking for a husband."

'The princess?' Fella dropped the plate of vegetables he had been carrying. The plate shattered on the floor. He hadn't seen her since she was four.

"CLUMSY FOOL! Clean that up!"

Fella bent down and picked up the broken pieces and wiped up the spilled vegetables.

"Hurry! She will be here any minute!"

Saman'ta checked the address on the envelope. "This one Alfred." She had the invitation in hand. So far she had checked every address that she had. Maybe her father had it. Then again, maybe the boy is here. This was the last house on her list. She went up to the door and knocked.

"I'll answer it," Victor raced to the door.

"Get out of sight," Vincent told Fella. "In the kitchen now."

"I . . . I was hoping . . . " Fella hesitated.

"Hoping for what?" Antonio questioned. "To get a glimpse of the Princess? You're in nothing but rags. We can't have you being seen on this very important occasion. Out of sight now, or I'll have you flogged."

"Yes, sir," Fella replied quietly. He went into the kitchen partially closing the door. He looked through the crack to see what was going on.

Saman'ta was about to knock a second time when the door was thrown open. She was surprised to see one of the two boys who were at her fencing lessons, but she covered up her surprise.

"Hello! So you have been invited to the ball I am hosting. " Saman'ta knew she had to always be polite. That is the princess way. Though she was trying to see beyond the idiot boys to see if that one boy was there. She didn't see him.

"Oh wow!" Vincent snatched the invitation. "We'll need new clothes."

"Let me see it!" Victor tried to snatch the invitation from his brother.

"I shall take it, and please forgive my sons' behavior. They are just excited," Antonio stated. "I shall see that they are on their best behavior."

Saman'ta sighed with disappointed. He really wasn't here. Maybe her father might have delivered an invitation all ready, but that couldn't be right. He came with those boys. "I'll over look it this time. See to it that they are taught better manners by that time. Don't forget everyone who is eligible may attend." She stressed this loud enough just in case she was mistaken and he was there, just out of sight. She was about to return to here carriage when a black cat with one white ear approached her.

Virgil the cat looked up at the girl. "Meeeoow."

"Oh kitty. Come here," Saman'ta gasped. 'This must be his cat,' she thought. 'You're just as he described.' She leaned down to pet the cat and whispered to him. He must be here. "Well, if you do see him, tell him he's invited too," Princess Saman'ta giggled. She didn't know if the cat really could do that, but it was fun to pretend that he could. Who knows, maybe the cat was magical, like her.

"Princess, we must be returning to the palace and begin the next phase of the preparations," Alfred stated.

"All right Alfred, that was my last stop anyway." Saman'ta wished she didn't have to invite those boys, but they were eligible. And she was required to invite all the eligible boys in the village in the kingdom of Gotham. 'If I don't see that boy ever again, I certainly won't be choosing either one of them.' Saman'ta climbed into the carriage. "Let's go home, Alfred."

Continues with Part 8

A/N: Credit: In my Own Little Corner . . . Song segment: Roger's and Hammerstein's Cinderella (televised live 1964).