p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;"Nearly eight months had passed since Cinderella was cast aside by her prince and forced to become a servant once again. Though she was heartbroken, the former princess dove right into her new role, working extra hard so as to take her mind off of her pain and sorrow. On the day that Kit and Charlotte married, Cinderella worked even harder, though she could not help but openly shed a few tears. Everyone in the palace truly felt for the poor woman, going so far as to curse the prince and his new bride behind their backs. Things took a turn for the worse, however, when Cinderella made a shocking discovery; she was with child. Determined not to let anyone find out, especially the father, Cinderella had run away and sought refuge in the home of her stepsister Anastasia and her husband Gabriel. As the months went by and her pregnancy progressed, Cinderella hid herself well as palace guards patrolled the streets in search of her. She could not believe that after everything he had done to her, the prince was still unwilling to leave her alone. With that in mind, any love she had left for her former husband was gone, replaced by resentment. Even if he eventually did find her one day, Cinderella was determined to fight back, and never let him be a part of her child's life. Unfortunately, that day came sooner than she expected. One morning, as Cinderella was helping her brother-in-law prepare the bread for his shop, the prince appeared at the front entrance, angrily pounding on the door. Panicking, Daniel rushed Cinderella into the back room, and then proceeded to answer the door. " Ah, Your Highness! What an honor to have you grace my humble home with your presence." He greeted, his voice dripping with sarcasm. " What brings you here?" Kit scowled. " Stop with the nonsense, Daniel. I am here to take Cinderella back to the palace. I know you are hiding her here." Glaring at the prince, Daniel replied, " Firstly, you no longer have the right to address me so familiarly. Secondly, I have no idea what you are talking about. Cinderella is not here. I have not seen her in months. Like you, my wife and I have been searching for her, but it seems she does not want to be found. Frankly, I do not blame her." Kit sighed. " Then it seems I have no choice. Guards, search the place!" Following his orders, half a dozen men pushed past Daniel and tore the place apart until at last they found Cinderella. " Your Highness, here is the servant girl you are looking for." One of the men announced, dragging the poor woman by her wrist. Kit's eyes widened at the sight of her, and he turned away for a moment, feeling tears threatening to spill. Composing himself, he turned back to face his former wife. " So this is why you were hiding from me. Well, well… it seems you have become even more of a problem than I thought possible." " Is that all I am to you? Your problem?" Cinderella snapped. " Yes!" Kit snapped back. " You seduced your way into my life, and caused a rift between me and my true love. Now you are carrying my child? Charlotte will not be happy about this. But then again, all problems can be solved one way or another." " You are right." Cinderella said, glaring at him. " All problems can be solved, which is why I decided to disappear and raise the child all on my own. You do not need to be a part of his or her life, and your beloved Charlotte need not find out about this. You can happily start a family of your own." Kit smirked. " Do you honestly think it is that simple? I am afraid I cannot take that risk, which is why I have a solution of my own; one which you must cooperate with." " Oh? Whatever it is, I am afraid I must refuse." Cinderella countered. " You do not have a choice!" Kit yelled. "Whether you agree with it or not, I will see it through!" Taking a deep breath, he continued more calmly, " Cinderella Tremaine, listen carefully. While Charlotte may not be happy at first, I know that she loves children and will happily accept this child as her own. So I hereby claim this child as my own, and once he is born he will be taken to the palace and given the life that he deserves as the child of a prince. But it is a life I will not allow you to be a part of. As soon as he is born, Charlotte will be the child's mother, and not you." At this point, Cinderella's face had become as white as a sheet, and an endless stream of tears poured from her eyes. " No…" She whispered. " You wouldn't dare! This is MY child, and I will not let you take him from me! Please, Your Highness, I beg you! This is my flesh and blood…. you cannot be so cruel as to deny me the chance to love and raise him as a mother should. Please do not do this! When you broke my heart and demanded a divorce, when you humiliated me in front of everyone and forced me into servitude… I accepted all that without complaint. But this I cannot accept." Kit laughed. " Your pleas are useless. I am taking the child, and that is the end of it." " You monster!" Daniel suddenly screamed, startling everyone as he lunged for the prince. The two men fell to the ground, engaging in a fierce scuffle. " Stop it! Both of you!" Cinderella cried. Suddenly, a sharp pain hit the crying woman like a thousand knives, causing her to collapse on the floor. Clutching her stomach, Cinderella gasped through the pain, " No… my baby… please… someone help me…" Finally noticing his sister-in-law, Daniel ceased fighting and crawled over to her. Kit followed suit, and the last thing Cinderella heard before darkness overtook her was Kit calling her name, his voice full of the love that he had had for her all those months ago. /span/p