'Welcome, my dear sister', greeted Philip of Bladenburg, as one of his valets helped a young, blond aristocrat in a light lilac dress leaving the carriage.
'I am so happy to be here, my dear brother. It seemed an ever-ending journey', sighed the aristocrat as she held the duke's hand.
Frederic, the duke of Bladenburg's twelve-year-old son, was smiling with bright eyes, whilst standing quietly in front of a row of servants near the monumental stone façade with towers filled with ivy. Then he shyly approached his aunt and offered her a bouquet of white and yellow roses. The housekeeper and the governess slowly followed him.
'Welcome, my dear aunt', slightly bowed the boy, 'I hope you enjoy your stay'.
'Thank you. I am pleased to meet you at last. You are such a kind and well-mannered boy'', complimented the aunt in a polite yet cold tone.
When Frederic was about to address the aunt again, she called, without looking back at the carriage:
'Mary, come greet your cousin'.
A girl holding a doll left the carriage. She was around eleven, had dark, long hair with curly tips and dressed in light yellow with a white hat.
'Welcome, Cousin Mary', greeted Frederic.
Mary slightly bowed without saying a word. As she remained silent, the mother frowned at her.
'I am delighted to meet you, aunt Philip and Cousin Frederic. Thank you for having us', uttered Mary.
While Frederic glanced puzzled at her doll, Mary was sighing and looking down, and the duke led his sister to the door. In the meantime, the housekeeper instructed a servant to take care of the carriage. The coachman and three other servants (a young cook, the lady's maid and Mary's maid) left the carriage and greeted the housekeeper, who widened their eyes realizing they were hoping to join the staff.
'I believe there is a misunderstanding... We do not have any room left for servants.'
The servants looked down and Mary ran to them.
'They are our family, as well. We had to leave so many staff in the Emerald kingdom. I couldn't stand it without them', opposed Mary, 'And you cannot leave them like that after such a long journey.'
The housekeeper and the governess looked at each other with wide eyes, while Mary's mother turned back and gazed furiously at the girl.
'Is there anything you can do for them?', she discretely asked the duke, 'They have helped us a lot...'
'They can work here for a while... Do not worry, Lotte, Mrs. Meyer will take care of that', he replied in a low voice before addressing the housekeeper, 'Mrs. Meyer, please, manage that'.
'As you wish, your grace', sighed Mrs. Meyer.
Mary sighed of relief and hugged her maid, who tenderly advised her to join her cousin. The girl reluctantly approached Frederic and he toured the manor with her, the housekeeper, and the governess. After dinner, Mary felt more positive about their stay and was looking forward to starting school in September. Yet those happy thoughts were soon clouded once she reminded of her father, in jail so far away.
Her bedroom was lavishly decorated in pink and white. There were two window doors with pink curtains giving access to a balcony that faced the garden. Between the windows and the canopy bed, there was a chest of drawers. In front of it there was a big, ornate desk, next to a dolls' castle. A huge wardrobe filled with dresses, hats and all sorts of clothes occupied most part of the door wall. In the middle, there was a pink carpet, a small table, and a white armchair. Attached to the bed, there was a big chest, where Mary placed her doll and a few toys. Right in front of the bed, there hang a huge mirror with a golden frame.
Mary watched her bedroom and plunged into one of her two bags. Once she found out a frame, she placed it in her desk and smiled with her head slightly tilted. On that moment, her mother knocked on the door and Mary let her in.
Lotte looked around, smiled, and sat on the bed.
'It looks exactly as I imagined. Your uncle was very nice to offer such a beautiful bedroom'.
'Yes, Mama, it is beautiful. But I don't need so many dresses...', replied Mary.
'That is almost sinful. So many girls dream of having a bedroom like this', reprimanded the mother.
'Yes, Mama', the girl agreed.
Lotte was about to leave, when she noticed a picture placed in the desk and widened her eyes.
'What is that thing doing here?', frowned the mother.
'I think he looks wonderful here', smiled Mary, 'In fact, he looks wonderful everywhere. He is so handsome...'
Lotte quickly took the picture and put it back in the bag, while Mary tried to stop her.
'I do not want to see that picture again, have you understood, young lady?', scolded the mother.
'But...', cried Mary.
'He is the source of your father's disgrace'.
'No, Papa did nothing wrong!', contested Mary.
'Shh..., please, I'm tired of this argument', said the mother in shiny eyes.
Mary threw a pillow at the door and fetched the picture from the bag. It was the engraved portrait of King Charles that the police had damaged. After her father was taken to prison, the girl was able to glue a part of it and reframe it with the help of two servants. As the girl admired and caressed the portrait, she calmed down.
Despite her sobs, Mary was so tired she quickly fell asleep that night. Through the translucent curtains of the bed, one could watch her in a fetal position and tears rolling down her cheeks. She was holding her doll and the portrait at the same time.
Charles, Cinderella, and the pets were tenderly watching the children sleeping in a tent in the boys' bedroom. Arthur was cuddling with Frances and Mimi occupied most of the space, often colliding with Daniel, who pushed her away. There were pillows and toys all over the place.
'They're so cute..., smiled Cinderella while tilting her head, 'but there's always such a mess...'
'I wonder who won the game...', imagined Charles.
Patch, Bingo, Chouchou and Papy smiled and began to fetch toys and place them on boxes, when Cinderella stopped them.
'That's their task', said Cinderella.
'They shouldn't expect you to tidy up their mess every single day', added Charles.
The pets did it gladly, but they understand the children could grow spoiled like Catherine and Jeanne. They were putting the toys down, when little Arthur yawned and opened his eyes.
'Mommy! Daddy!', called the toddler while seating and scratching his eyes.
Cinderella held him in his arms and kissed him, who kissed her in return and giggled with his eyes closed. Then he turned to Charles.
'Daddy, we Indians on', told Arthur.
'Great! How?', asked Charles while Cinderella put Arthur on Charles' lap.
'Fanny is clever', grinned Arthur with his eyes closed.
Charles and Cinderella smiled, and the little boy slid down to the ground.
'I want to make pee pee...'
'Let's go, then!', Cinderella held his hand, and they ran giggling all the way to the bathroom.
In the meantime, Charles opened the curtains, making Daniel, Frances and Mimi frown and complain.
'Oh, no... We're on vacations...', protested Frances.
'Aren't you playing at your friend's at 3?', reminded Charles.
'Yes...', confirmed Frances.
'Well, it's almost 10...', informed Charles, 'And we'll drop by Johanna's first'.
'Oh, no...', she plunged her head in the pillow, while Mimi rolled to Daniel's side, and he kicked her away.
'Well, kids, dress up and tidy the room before breakfast. Daniel, this time you're going to chop wood with me. We need it to cook, so hurry up, boy', asked Charles.
'I'll join you in a minute...', replied Daniel while turning to the other side.
Charles squinted his eyes. He was about to leave the bedroom when Mimi ran to the bathroom. After having taking care of little children, Charles and Cinderella went to the kitchen. The breakfast was almost ready and it was to time prepare lunch.
'Darling, could you please bring the big pumpkin?', she asked while stirring the oatmeal.
'Of course', smiled Charles.
He left for a few seconds and returned with a huge pumping. As he placed it in the kitchen counter, he admired it for a while and smiled. Charles was about to cut it, when he joked:
'Are you sure you want to make a soup out of it? This could be a nice six-horses carriage'.
Cinderella burst into laughter and Charles gazed at her with a tender smile. Then the couple laughed together. When they composed themselves, Charles and Cinderella gazed at each other and she looked absorptive at the oatmeal.
Cinderella was especially nervous these days, for they were expecting news from the Emerald kingdom. Realizing that Alex and her father stopped replying to their letters, the couple asked Paulette to visit them and report the news.
'Darling, sometimes I wonder if you will depart in vain... Even when you ruled it was so difficult to...', confessed Cinderella.
'I will never risk everything we have in vain...', assured Charles, 'But we need to know more... Let's not jump into conclusions.'
'Yes, let's wait for Paulette...', agreed Cinderella.
'Yes', agreed Charles.
Charles quickly cut the pumpkin in pieces. Then he called Daniel several times, reminding the boy he needed to instruct him to chop wood. But Daniel only replied late and asked for five minutes more. Charles sighed and started chopping alone.
After taking the oatmeal away from the fire and covering it, Cinderella called the children to join them to set up the table and eat breakfast. As she joined Charles in the garden, she took off her apron and admired him for a while. She knew Charles was growling inside and reminded him there was still a slice of apple pie.
'Thank you, honey. Let me just finish this', he smiled before chopping hard.
Cinderella smiled, folded her apron, and went back to the kitchen.
In the meantime, Frances had sneaked into her bedroom, and quickly dressed up herself. She sat at the desk, took a green pencil from her case and was tracing a line in her drawing pad, when Arthur and Mimi entered. They were still wearing their pajamas. Arthur was sucking his right thumb while Mimi held his left hand.
'Fanny, dress us!', asked Mimi whilst jumping, 'Breakfast is ready!'
'You are old enough to dress Arthur and yourself', declined Frances.
'Ok', promptly agreed Mimi.
They closed the door and Frances resumed drawing. However, the girl had a bad feeling. She hardly concentrated while listening to Arthur and Mimi's giggles next door. When she realized that they were taking too long, Frances went to the boys' bedroom to check on them.
The room was still chaotic, filled with pillows and toys around the tent in the middle. All the drawers of the chest were open. Arthur was rolling in the ground barefoot. He was wearing his teal shorts, a white shirt, and very large suspenders that Mimi was playing with.
Frances sighed and squinted her eyes at Mimi.
'You forgot the socks... And can't you see those are Daniel's suspenders?', scolded Frances.
'He seems to like them', grinned Mimi while she rolled in the ground.
'Could you be quiet one morning?', snarled Daniel while turning to the other side.
'Hey, you could at least tidy up the room and dress them up, but no!', complained Frances, 'You play with them only when you want to, and I always have to do the nasty work. So, wake up and be the big brother once in your lifetime', she threw Arthur's socks at Daniel's face and left.
'Fanfan is mad at us...', remarked Arthur looking down.
'No. She is made at Dan because he's lazy', explained Mimi.
Daniel sat down with his eyes half open and glanced sideways at Mimi.
'Now he's mad at us...', whispered Arthur.
'No, he's not', smiled Mimi.
Daniel growled, and arched his hands like claws.
'Oh, no, the big bag Woolf!', screamed Arthur and Mimi as Daniel ran after them.
When Daniel arrived in the kitchen, it was almost lunchtime. As the boy sat down, Charles and Cinderella frowned at him.
'Sorry, today I had to tidy the room and dress Arthur and Mimi up', apologized Daniel, 'I'll eat fast, so we can chop wood right away'.
'There's no need to. I've already chopped', replied Charles.
'But...'
'If we had waited for you, we couldn't make on time. Today I promised to meet Snow White and Molly in the prairie, Frances and Johanna are playing at a friend's house and Daddy must do shopping in the market', listed Cinderella.
'All right', said Daniel after munching a spoon of oatmeal.
'By the way, I need your assistance this afternoon', notified Charles.
Daniel stopped eating and widened his eyes.
'I need you to take care of Arthur and Mimi while I'm shopping', asked Charles.
'But... Dad... I'm meeting my friends by the lake. We'll sail today... Can't you ask Uncle Samson to do it?'
'Uncle Samson is assisting the dwarfs in the mine today...', replied Cinderella.
'Daniel, you cannot always expect someone else will do the work for you', scolded Charles.
'Hallelujah', muttered Frances.
'Hey! But I did everything this morning. I took care of Arthur and Mimi, I dressed them up, and tidied up the room and the tent', listed Daniel.
'Imagine dressing them up every day', replied Frances.
Daniel glanced furiously at Frances and turned to the parents.
'If she can meet with her friends, why can't I meet with mine?', protested Daniel.
'And I want to play with Fanny's friends, too. It's not fair!', protested Mimi.
'It's rude to show up without being invited', Frances turned to Mimi.
'But I'm never invited!', cried Mimi.
As the three older siblings fought, Arthur sucked on his thumb.
'Enough!', scolded Charles with serious eyes and a firm voice.
Daniel, Frances and Mimi calmed down a bit, though they kept discretely grimacing at each other for a while.
'Daniel, you should have warned us you were playing with your friends. Frances is going, because she notified us in time', explained Charles.
'I know, but, please, let me go, Dad, please... We've just finished the raft yesterday and we were going to try it today. We finally have the ships and the raft'.
'Oh, dear, is it safe?', worried Cinderella.
'The best raft of the seven seas!', exclaimed Daniel.
Frances chuckled.
'They all know how to swim', tranquilized Charles.
'Please, today I will play the Blue Corsair', begged Daniel, 'I cannot miss this chance'.
Charles pondered for a while Daniel glanced with puppy eyes.
'All right, then, but just for two hours, while I drive Frances and Johanna to their friend's house. Then you'll meet me, Arthur and Mimi in the market square near the bakery', consented Charles.
Daniel sighed. Two hours felt like nothing... The boy eventually conformed himself and ate as fast as he could, to leave as earlier as possible.
After lunch, the family split. Cinderella grabbed a small basket to catch fruit with Snow White, Daniel ran to the lake followed by Patch, Bingo and Chouchou, Charles took the younger children with him in the carriage and off Cinderella a ride to the meeting point with Snow White, but she gently declined. She really wanted to stroll in the plain.
Mimi looked outside with her arms crossed all the way in the carriage. She badly greeted Johanna, when she joined them and made one last attempt to play with Frances and her friends. Regardless of Charles' explanations, Mimi watched the rich façade, imagined all the amazing toys and cried. Even Frances and Johanna felt bad for the girl, once they entered Alice's bedroom and saw her collection of teddy bears and beautiful dressed up dolls, the puppet theatre, the toy theatre, and a monumental doll castle they completely forgot Mimi. The doll castle had a large staircase coming out of a gallery with green curtains, a throne and ball room with large windows, the prince's chambers, the library, the kitchen, and a big clock tower.
'Wow!', exclaimed Johanna.
'I've never seen anything like it...', admired Frances.
'It's the Emerald castle', smiled Alice, 'And these are the dolls'.
The girl opened a velvet box filled with miniature dolls and introduced them one-by-one. Cinderella. Prince Charles. The step-mother. The first step-sister. The second step-sister. The godmother. The dog. The mice. The Prince's page. The King. The Queen. The evil Duke. The lady in love with the prince. The members of the court...
Mary and Frederic were leaving the carriage for a stroll with their tutor. Realizing that Mary still held her doll, Ms. Meyer tried to persuade her to leave the doll in the carriage so she could enjoy the stroll in a freer way, but the girl refused. Mary was wearing an elegant white dress with red stripes and a hat in the same pattern. As the housekeeper began touring the city, the children looked in opposed directions with empty eyes. Neither Mary's mother offered Frederic the maternal comfort he longed for, nor the duke of Bladenburg, often absent, helped Mary to overcome her father's capture. In a long, new park, Mary reminded herself of the park in the Emerald city where she used to stroll with her father. When she was about to burst into tears, she abruptly left the cousin and the tutor and ran away as far as possible to a corner where she could be alone.
Not far away from there stood Charles, Arthur, and Mimi, who had watched a puppet show in the park that helped Mimi to cheer up. Then the kids were hypnotized by a candy booth and Charles offered each one a lollipop.
'Don't worry. We won't tell Mommy', assured Mimi.
Charles chuckled.
'You can tell her this time. You haven't eaten candies in a while', smiled Charles.
Mimi smiled, naughty, making Charles' suspicious.
'Oh, boy, Daniel's birthday party...', reminded Charles after a while.
As they moved towards the market square, Charles held the children in his hands. Even absorbed in his thoughts, the young father was quite used to Mimi's sudden drives. But once he dropped her hand, the girl was unstoppable. He really needed Daniel to keep an eye on her during shopping.
Despite his attempts to chill out and spend quality time with the kids, he couldn't stop thinking about the Emerald kingdom and the invasion of Lohemia. What would Alex and his father-in-law say? And Cinderella's words echoed nonstop. It was so hard to put his ideas in action as a king. This could be even harder, and risk the safety and joy of Cinderella and the children... He couldn't leave without assuring their protection.
'Oh, Daddy, Daddy!', exclaimed Arthur and Mimi while jumping.
Charles suddenly got back to reality and widened his eyes.
'Oh, no... not the toy store...', he watched the showcase in horror.
Among teddy bears, board games, and doll houses, there stood two automata — a doll robotically moving her arms and crying 'Mama' and a dragon spitting a red fabric.
Cinderella was strolling in her way to meet Snow White at the mine where the dwarfs worked.
She was wearing a yellow dress with a blue ribbon at the waist and a straw hat she had constantly to hold on that windy day. At first, her calm pace gave way to all her worries about Charles, the war, the Emerald kingdom, their children. She then decided to walk faster, to join Snow White, Molly and the dwarfs as soon as possible.
Both women arrived at the same time. Samson and the dwarfs were delighted to see them, but they had to keep on working. Moreover, they had planned a female picnic with Molly, who was getting more fragile and enjoyed every kind gesture like this. Snow White was also aware of Cinderella's inner struggle, even though she never explicitly approached the subject. The princess knew her cousin was going to need her more than ever.
After waving Cinderella and Snow White goodbye and watching them walk away, Jolly sighed, walking reluctantly towards the mine.
'Go join them, if you want it to...', consented Boss.
Jolly widened his eyes.
'Really? But...'
'You worked well in the morning', admitted Boss.
Jolly jumped and hugged Boss, who smiled while rolling his eyes.
'Perfect! Charles loves these ones', smiled Cinderella once she filled her basket with vivid red apples.
Molly smiled and calmly bit an apple. She glanced blank, as her sight increasingly deteriorated.
'Thanks to that boy, we enjoy apples again', she reminded, making Cinderella and Snow White giggle.
'Do not get me wrong, my dear. I do not want to offend', she turned to Cinderella, 'To me, he will be always a boy'.
'He definitely is', giggled Cinderella, 'He could spend an entire night playing pirates with the children, imagining all sorts of adventures... I guess I have five children', joked Cinderella, making Molly and Snow White laugh.
'Do you consider Richard is one of your children as well?', asked Molly.
'Hm... I wouldn't say so... He's playful, but he doesn't turn into a boy like Charles. I think...', she started, as she spotted a figure approaching.
'...I think my fifth child is right there...', smiled Snow White.
Jolly ran to them, jumped to Snow White's lap, kissed her and they cuddled for while. Then he kissed and hugged Cinderella and kissed Molly's cheek.
'I totally saw this coming', smiled Snow White.
'Oh, I miss you... You haven't visited us much lately', complained the dwarf.
'That's true', agreed Cinderella.
'I know... I miss you too. We have been very busy... Richard has taken most of the responsibilities of his principate, so he spends part of the month abroad, and my father is sharing more work with me', explained Snow White.
'I see...', sighed Jolly.
'Hopefully things will calm down a bit', smiled Snow White.
Cinderella nodded yes and bit an apple. She sensed Snow White and Richard were taking more responsibilities due to the invasion of Lohemia and froze, absorbed in her worries for some time. Then she avoided those thoughts and wondered if Daniel was fine and if he had already joined Charles in the city.
'Well, Charles is a boy, but he also knows to play the father. Today he was quite mad at Daniel...', reminded Cinderella.
'What did Daniel do?', asked Jolly.
'He wakes up late, avoids all chores... He only wants to play', replied Cinderella.
'What a dream life...', sighed Jolly.
'Charles was exactly the same', smiled Molly, 'Well, he didn't do shores, though'.
'Oh, I know, even if Charles tries to pretend he was not', smiled Cinderella, making them giggle.
Then she turned serious.
'We want all the children to be self-reliant and to handle domestic chores, regardless of what our future holds. And Daniel needs to work and study more. He must be prepared to face something quite different', she added.
'When will you tell him?', asked Snow White.
'We tried to after his birthday party, but it felt wrong. He still is a child. We want him to enjoy every moment now, as he can', explained Cinderella.
'I think it is the wisest decision', agreed Molly, making Cinderella more comfortable.
Snow White smiled. She wasn't so sure about that.
'Maybe sometime this year...', she suggested.
'Yes, I think so', smiled Cinderella.
Snow White was about to cut a pie Gourmet had made for them, when they heard voices coming out from the left. A large group of people dragged themselves in miserable clothes, crying, and moaning. Jolly immediately put himself in front of Cinderella and Snow White, and watched them carefully.
'Poor souls... Was there any fire or disaster in that area?', wondered Cinderella.
'Not that I know...', replied Snow White, as she stood up.
The princess watched the crowd for a while and made a step in their direction until the dwarf stopped her.
'No, Snow White! It can be dangerous. You didn't bring your escort today', blocked Jolly.
Snow White nodded no, and Cinderella joined her.
'She's got me. Now I've been taking fencing lessons and I brought a short, light sword in my skirt', smiled Cinderella, while Jolly seemed unconvinced.
'Why are you frowning?', she squinted her eyes.
'Well... uh...'
'Charles is a great instructor, you know...'
'Yes, but...'
'Be careful', advised Molly, hardly watching the crow.
Cinderella left Jolly and joined Snow White, who had advanced a while. Then the dwarf followed them, always keeping an eye on Molly.
The group was mostly composed of women, children and elderly men or women.
'Hello. Good afternoon. You seem quite distressed. Is there something we can do you for you?', asked Snow White after greeting them with a slight bow.
Some cried, others shouted or spoke in an unintelligible language. Most of the adults and the older children showed sad, dirty faces without any sign of energy. The clothes all warned out, mended, or ripped. Only the youngest children seemed more oblivious. Even though, many of them cried nonstop or looked for food besides the apples several of them were catching in the trees.
'Is it some sort of dialect from the mountains over there?', wondered Cinderella.
'No, they're speaking Lohemian...', recognized Snow White.
Cinderella paled, anticipating the situation. Then an old man stood out and introduced himself in the dialect of the Emerald kingdom.
'My ladies, my name is Jiri. Since the invasion, the Emerald soldiers tire our villages, pile everything they find, they kill the men and take advantage of the women. As they approached our village, near the border, we escaped through the mountains. Is it safe to settle here in this plain? Is there water nearby?'
As he spoke in a tired breath, Cinderella closed her eyes and put her hand on her head.
'Yes, this plain is safe. We will provide you food and water right away. I'll do the best to provide a better shelter in the next days', assured Snow White.
'Thank you, beautiful lady', bowed the man holding his hands together and he began a prayer.
Snow White held both his hands and hugged the man, who felt so touched and exhausted that he almost collapsed. Cinderella and Snow White helped the man and a few women named Krista, Aska and Cilka, while Jolly watched the children crying.
Whilst Snow White comforted several people, Cinderella started to bring food from their picnic. With Jolly's assistance, she managed to bring all the snacks to feed the group and asked the dwarf if he could bring more food, especially bread from his cottage or the mine. Jolly nodded yes, placed some food near the refugees and left.
While sharing food among the crowd, Cinderella noticed a mother of five struggling to breastfeed, while her two-year-old son cried for attention. Cinderella greeted the mother with a slight bow and gently caressed the child. Then she put him on her lap and gave the boy small roll breads.
'Not in my name... not in my name...', she whispered while feeding the famine toddler.
Not far away, Patch, Bingo, Chouchou and Papy watched Daniel and his friends playing in the lake. Daniel, Peter and Mary were in the raft, while Lenny, Jimmy, Lucy and Johnny, Joe and Mark, their friends that worked in the market. That summer they took an abandoned boat and decorated it with a mast, a sail, a few ropes, and a ship rudder, thanks to Woody, Samson and Charles' help. Then the kids started to build a raft by themselves and repaired another smaller boat. The children usually dressed themselves with coats and other clothes, but it was so hot that they only wore smaller props, like hats, eye patches or feathers. Daniel played Blue Corsair with a blue hat with dark feathers, Lenny played his enemy, Governor Van Boot, wearing a big, red hat with light feathers, Peter played Billy, the pirate, with an eye patch, Marianne played Strong Wind, a native American girl wearing a hair ribbon with a feather, Lucy played princess Margareta, Van Boot's guest and love interest, Jimmy played captain Bubbles and first officer Stewart, Johnny, Joe and Mark played hundreds of slaves tied in the basement. The three boys worked with their families at the market and didn't attend school. Yet they met Daniel and Peter once and began to play with them whenever they could, especially in the summer.
Patch sighed and walked back and forth, worried about the delay.
'I'll go there and remind him', volunteered Pappy.
'It's a pity... It looks like so amusing...', regretted the dog.
'Yes, look at that boat...', wished Bingo.
Chouchou rolled her eyes and Papy giggled. Then Patch agreed they were running out of time.
Daniel jumped from the raft to the boat and pointed his wooden sword at Lenny, while Peter and Marianne prepared to attack.
'Not so fast, governor Van Boot!', stopped Daniel.
'You, again! What do you want this time, Blue Corsair? Haven't you stolen enough of my gold?', asked Lenny.
'The gold you have stolen in first place', corrected Daniel, 'Now it's back to where it belongs and Strong Wind', Daniel glanced at Marianne, 'saved her tribe'.
Lenny roared and they started to clash their wooden swords, leaning the boat so much that he almost drowned. Jimmy, who played the captain, was supposed to stay at the rudder navigating the ship, but the boat was shaking so much that the boy grabbed a rope all the time.
Peter, wearing a patch in his left eye, jumped to the boat, and approached Jimmy with a wooden sword.
'Is there any problem, captain Cook?', teased Peter in a rough, pirate voice.
'Tell me, where are the prisoners?', asked Daniel when he touched Lenny's arm with his sword.
'Prisoners, what prisoners? The only passenger we have is the beautiful princess Margareta', replied Lenny.
Lucy slightly blushed and Lenny smiled.
'Don't try to fool me. I know there are hundreds of slaves in the basement', threatened Daniel.
'You won't get away this time, Blue Corsair', roared Lenny.
Marianne jumped to the boat and untied Johnny, Joe, and Mark.
'Free, at last!', exclaimed Joe.
'Now you can jump to the raft', whispered the girl.
'Thank you, Strong Wind', bowed the three.
'Here they are, Blue Corsair!', shouted Marianne.
'Well done, Strong Wind', praised Daniel.
When Johnny, Joe and Mark were about to jump to the raft, Lenny and Jimmy stopped them and Lenny threw a stick in the floor.
'This time you will burn with all the slaves in this ship, Blue Corsair. I wish you good luck', Lenny laughed cruelly and jumped to a life boat, taking Lucy with him and leaving Jimmy crying for help.
Daniel cursed Lenny for minutes. Then Johnny began to fill the boat with water to tame the fire.
'Hey, dude! What are you doing?', asked Daniel with his eyes wide open.
'If it is a fire, we need water', grinned Johnny.
Peter laughed and threw water at Marianne. She screamed and pointed her wooden sword at his throat.
'You again! We all promised we wouldn't throw water this time!', she squinted her eyes.
'Too late...', grinned Peter with his eyes closed.
As Marianne approached him, he laughed, jumped backwards and dove.
'Well, I guess we must ask Woody to repair it again...', concluded Daniel while scratching his hair.
At that moment, Papy approached him.
'Where have you been all this time, my Parrot?', joked Daniel.
Papy sighed and bit his collar.
'Oh, no... I'm having so much fun... Damn Frances! why did she had to visit her friend today?', cursed Daniel.
Then Papy bit Daniel's hair.
'All right! All right!', agreed the boy, then he put his hat in the floor and addressed his friends, 'Sorry, guys, but I have to leave earlier. I promised my father I would assist him today'.
'I must be going, too', added Johnny, 'I start my shift at five',
'If you knew you were leaving so soon, why did you play Blue Corsair?', protested Lenny from his small boat.
Daniel put his hand behind his head and grinned with his eyes closed.
'I play Blue Corsair now!', volunteered Joe.
'But we lost Johnny too and we need more slaves', replied Lenny.
'You could be Luko, the warrior slave. The chief of your tribe sent you to the New World because he felt threatened by your charisma and bravery', quickly imagined Marianne.
'It's sounds nice...', grinned Joe.
'What's charisma?', Mark whispered to Joe.
'Well, I think Peter could be both Blue Corsair and Billy this time', suggested Lucy.
'Cool...', replied Peter floating in the water, 'Hand me a rope'.
Then Daniel dove, started swimming towards the shore and Papy widened his eyes. From the medium boat, Johnny hesitated in joining Daniel.
'Dan, I can't show up all wet... I must take the raft and I must go now...', reminded Johnny.
Daniel realized he couldn't show up like that either. It would take him a bit to dry, even if it was a warm afternoon.
'Sorry, I totally forgot. Go ahead, don't worry about me, you have to work', replied Daniel while floating.
Johnny took the raft and sailed back to the shore. When Daniel joined Patch, Bingo and Chouchou under the shadow of a tree, he laid down in the sun and tranquilized them.
'I'll be ready in a minute', he said before taking a nap.
Patch slowly slid down to the ground, while Bingo and Chouchou facepalmed.
'How many times do I have to say I didn't bring enough money?', roared Charles almost losing his patience while walking with Arthur and Mimi towards the grocery.
'You could ask to put it on the weekly bill, like you and Mommy do in the grocery', suggested Mimi while Arthur sniffed nonstop thinking about the dragon.
Charles squinted his eyes.
'You already have several dolls', declined Charles, 'Don't be spoiled'.
'But that one speaks!', protested Mimi.
'Every doll speaks, you just don't pay enough attention to it', made up Charles.
Mimi thought about it for a while. When she was looking suspiciously at Charles, Arthur burst into tears.
'There, there...', comforted Charles while carrying the toddler in his arms, 'I promise we will find a dragon some day'.
'Is there a dragon park, Daddy?'
'Perhaps... Why not?', encouraged Charles.
'Maybe because they don't exist...', muttered Mimi.
Charles threw a fulminating glance at her.
'Honestly, I don't get it... Dragons are lame. Unicorns with wings do exist and are much better', proudly stated Mimi, making Charles chuckle.
'Can I get a unicorn for Christmas?', asked Mimi with puppy eyes.
'And a dragon?', added Arthur.
'Dragons and Unicorns are sold out this year',
'I'm sure Santa has privileged access to them', guessed Mimi.
Charles made a poker face, and the bell clock rang five. He still had to pick up Frances and Johanna. There was no time to lose. He couldn't wait any longer for Daniel to make the shopping that Cinderella asked him to.
As Arthur calmed down, Charles put him in the ground and asked Mimi to hold the toddler's hand tight. Luckily, they were well acquainted with the grocer, the baker and the butcher and they didn't have to wait much in the line.
Daniel ran as fast as he could, stopping occasionally so Patch could catch up his breath. In his pockets, there were Bingo and Chouchou and Papy supervised them from above.
'Come on, boy, we're almost there', encouraged Daniel, panting, once they reached the city gate.
Once Patch felt better, Daniel resumed the race. He was turning around near the park, when he looked backwards to check on Patch and collided with a girl dressed in white and red. As they collapsed, her hat flew away, and Daniel fell above her.
'Oh, I'm so sorry... I'm terribly sorry...', apologized Daniel, kneeling before her.
'Apologies accepted, but you should be more careful', replied the girl.
She was so upset with the scratches on the knee and the pain on the left ankle that she barely paid attention to him. Then she looked up and they gazed at each other. Daniel blushed. She was beautiful and graceful. He felt instantly hypnotized by her green eyes. He had never seen a green like that. They seemed like emeralds. She also had a long, dark, and shiny hair with curly tips, rosy cheeks, a delicate nose, and lips.
The girl looked puzzled at him and slightly blushed as he starred nonstop. He was very cute and there was something very familiar about him.
'Have we met before?', asked she.
'No... well... I think I would remember that...', replied Daniel.
'Your face is so familiar... Have you ever been to the Emerald kingdom?', insisted she.
'No, miss. I was born and raised here', smiled Daniel.
'Never mind', she smiled with her eyes closed.
'Please, let me help you'.
Daniel offered his hand and she limped, leaning on him until they found a bench.
'I might have twisted my ankle', guessed the girl.
'I hope so... I mean, I hope there's nothing broken', Daniel nervously put his hand behind his neck.
'What's you're name?', asked Mary after sitting down.
'Daniel', replied he, 'And yours?'
'I'm Maria, but everyone calls me Mary'.
'Nice to meet you, Mary', greeted Daniel.
They smiled and blushed for a while in an awkward silence. Then Patch joined them panting and Mary admired with delight.
'Oh, may I pet him?', asked she.
'Yes, of course. He loves it. Patch might look like this great beast, but he's very gentle', introduced Daniel.
Patch was licking Mary's hands, making her giggle, when Daniel noticed drops of blood coming out of her right leg.
'Oh, God, are you bleeding?', he widened his eyes.
'Yes, a bit. I have a scratch on the knee', admitted Mary.
'You should clean that, then', suggested Daniel as he spotted the _chafariz-, 'I'll be right back. Patch, stay here'.
Mary smiled and Daniel ran to the fountain. He opened the left pocket so Bingo and Chouchou could drink and took a handkerchief from his right pocket. The boy was washing it when he heard familiar voices.
'Dan, Dan!'
'Well... well... well...'
Daniel widened his eyes and turned around.
Charles glanced furiously at him. He was carrying three full bags on the right, holding Mimi's hand on the left, and Mimi was holding Arthur's hand.
'I'm sorry, Dad... I was running to meet you when I bumped into a girl...'
Charles stern expression suddenly brightened up.
'Really? But that's amazing! If you bump into her once more, just say 'If destiny brought us back again, it means we should get to know each other'.
Daniel glanced sideways at him.
'It worked with your mother...', smiled Charles with his eyes closed.
'Dad, it's not that funny... She's hurt, and scratched her knee...'
As Daniel scolded Charles, he noticed Arthur sucking on his thumb and quickly grabbed the sibling.
'I'll be right back!', promised Daniel as he ran, leaving Charles quite puzzled.
'He uses Arthur to attract girls, you know...', explained Mimi.
'What!?'
'Oh, he's so cute...', praised Mary while tilting her head, 'How old are you, Arthur?'
Arthur showed two fingers.
'Almost three', he added.
'You're practically grownup', she smiled with her eyes closed.
Then he sat next to her on the bench, hugged Mary and she caressed his head. As Arthur monopolized her attention, Daniel glanced sideways and came up with an idea.
'You know. He is the reason why I bumped into you. I was in such a hurry to join my father, who had asked me to take care of him and my youngest sister', Daniel explained as he carried Arthur on his arms and caressed the toddler, who didn't seem very pleased.
'Oh, you're such a responsible brother...', praised Mary.
'I must. I'm the older brother', smiled Daniel, 'And I just love taking care of these little ones.'
Patch, Bingo, Chouchou and Papy giggled, while Arthur began slight kicks.
'Danny, put me down', asked the toddler.
'What's the matter with you? You enjoy the lap so much. Do you want a piggyback ride?', asked Daniel.
'No, down!', insisted Arthur.
'I think he means it...', countered Mary.
'That's just brotherly love', Daniel laughed nervously.
Then Arthur spotted Charles and Mimi and opened his arms.
'Daddy!', exclaimed Arthur kicking all the way to the ground.
Mary turned around and watched Arthur running to Charles, who put the bags in the ground for a moment to lift the boy in his arms. Daniel's father was so handsome and strangely familiar to her. As Mary watched him taking care of the little children with such delight, Daniel crossed his arms. Yet when he examined Mary more attentively, he noticed tears in her eyes and assumed something had happened to her father. Perhaps she was an orphan, he thought, and he cared even more for her.
'Mary, I almost forgot. Here's a wet handkerchief to clean your wound', offered Daniel.
'Oh, thank you. You're so gentle', smiled Mary as she accepted the handkerchief.
She was finishing cleaning her knees and her drops of blood, when Charles, Arthur and Mimi approached them. Charles kneeled before her and smiled with his tender light blue eyes.
'I apologize for my son. He was in a hurry to join me when he bumped into you', said Charles.
'I understand. Do not worry', smiled Mary.
'I hope you're feeling better', said Charles.
'It is a bit hard to walk, but I think it isn't serious, thank you, Sir', smiled she.
'We'll take you home anyway. It's the least we can do', offered Charles, while Daniel beamed.
'Oh, but I don't want to be a nuisance', declined Mary.
'Not at all. We still must pick up my eldest daughter and there's still plenty of room in the carriage. I will bring it here to make it easier for you. In the meantime, could you please take care of Arthur and Mimi?', asked Charles.
'Of course!', exclaimed Daniel and Mary.
Charles smiled and took the bags with him. Daniel introduced Mimi, who talked all the time about the recent doll that speaks, while Arthur told them about the dragon at the toy store, making Mary laugh. In between, she recalled Daniel's father, how he made her feel so happy. She felt like she had always known him and Daniel. How could that be possible?
When Charles came back, he carried Mary in his arms. Seeing Daniel so annoyed, Mimi asked for his lap.
'But you're not wounded...', Daniel glanced sideways.
'It doesn't matter. Carry me!', asked she with a huge grin.
Daniel sighed and held her in his arms, while Patch led little Arthur towards the carriage.
Charles waited fifteen minutes for Frances and Johanna, who ran to him filled with joy.
'I see it was quite amusing', guessed Charles as Frances hugged him.
'It was amazing!', exclaimed Johanna, 'I have never seen a doll castle!'
'Oh, Daddy, Alice has the most beautiful toys I've ever seen!', exclaimed Frances and added after careful thought, 'Actually, we are almost finishing the story. Could you wait more five minutes, please?'
Frances begged, sliding down at his feet, while Johanna made puppy eyes.
'No, that is out of question! I've spent the entire day waiting for your brother and now you kept me waiting more than fifteen minutes. That's enough', denied Charles.
The girls look down.
'Besides, we have to drive an injured girl home, so hurry up', added Charles.
'An injured girl?', asked Johanna.
'What happened?', asked Frances.
'Your brother will tell you later. Come on, girls, hurry up'.
They looked at each other, sighed and started to pack their things.
When Frances and Johanna joined the carriage, they were surprised by the beautiful girl dressed in fancy clothes. They supposed Daniel had been courting her and tried not to giggle. They sat down in front of Daniel, Arthur, and Mary, put Mimi between them, and introduced themselves. Then Charles asked the direction for Mary's home.
'Actually, I've just moved in this kingdom... It's a bit difficult to explain... Well, do you know the manor of the duke of Bladenburg?'
Charles made a poker face and Daniel widened his eyes.
'Yes...', replied Charles.
'That's it. I'm his niece. My mother and I are staying here for a while', explained Mary.
Realizing that Daniel, Frances and Johanna seemed a bit upset, she asked if everything was all right.
'Oh, yes, of course', replied Charles and the children.
As the carriage started moving, Mary relaxed in her seat, but was still curious about that strange reaction.
'You said you came from a foreign kingdom. Where, exactly?', asked Frances.
'From the Emerald kingdom', answered Mary.
'Oh, my father told me it's beautiful', praised Johanna, 'I've never been there, though'.
Mary smiled and watched the landscape unfolding, as Mimi began to jump nonstop.
'Mimi, what are you doing?', scolded Frances.
'I'm wondering if I jump higher when the carriage is moving', replied Mimi.
'Mimi, stop that. You'll hurt yourself', warned Daniel.
Mimi stuck out her tongue and kept jumping.
'Mimi, you're being so rude! Come on, stop it!', Frances raised her voice.
But Mimi kept jumping. Patch tried to calm her down, but nothing could stop her. Then Daniel asked Mary to hold Arthur, grabbed Mimi, and sat her down between Frances and Johanna, who held her from each side.
'No, leave me alone! You never let me do what I want', protested Mimi, pushing Daniel and Frances.
The girl threw herself to the ground and started crying. Then the carriage stopped, Charles opened the door, and raised his voice.
'Mimi, you'll seat down immediately and obey to your brother and sister!', ordered Charles with fulminating eyes.
Mimi sniffed and slowly stand up, looking down and sat down.
Then Charles closed the door and went back to the driver seat. The tense atmosphere lasted for a few minutes until Mary broke the ice.
'I miss my father's reprehensions', confessed the girl.
Daniel looked down. He assumed once more that her father had died, while Frances and Johanna looked puzzled.
'That's weird...', remarked Johanna, 'Who likes when parents scold?'
'Perhaps because he is abroad and you miss him', supposed Frances.
'Yes, he is abroad in prison. And I don't have any news from him in a month', revealed Mary.
'In prison?', asked Frances, Johanna and Mimi.
Mary nodded yes and Daniel looked tenderly at her.
'I'm sorry...', lamented Daniel.
Mary smiled and gazed at him.
'Why is he in prison?', asked Johanna.
Mary watched the window in tears, but composed herself. Then she turned to Frances and Johanna.
'Once upon a time there was a king and a queen that actually cared about their people', began Mary.
'Oh, great, I love stories!', exclaimed Mimi, jumping to Frances' lap.
'Shhh...', silenced Frances, Johanna and Daniel, 'Don't interrupt'.
'Go on, Mary', encouraged Frances.
Mary smiled and continued.
'King Charles and queen Cinderella were young and full of dreams to improve the lives of the poor...'
'Did you say Cinderella? Isn't that the story of the maid that wore glass slippers and danced with the prince?', asked Johanna.
'Yes... now I'm confused too...', agreed Frances.
'Will you shut up, girls?', scolded Daniel.
'Don't worry', Mary smiled at Daniel, making him blush, and continued, 'Well, yes... It is the same story, indeed, but after their wedding and coronation'.
'Ohh...', said Mimi and Johanna, whilst Daniel, Frances and Arthur listened with attention.
'King Charles planned to improve the kingdom in many ways, and decreased the taxes of the less fortunate, but the most powerful felt threatened by him and killed him when we was on a trip. He was 19 and had ruled for almost three years. Queen Cinderella, their baby son, and the former King and Queen disappeared since then', concluded Mary.
'Oh, that's so sad...', lamented Frances.
'Thus, Cinderella didn't live happily ever after?', asked Johanna almost in tears.
'I don't know…', replied Mary.
'It doesn't seem a happy story to me', countered Daniel quite puzzled.
Mary smiled and looked through the window.
'Many people believe King Charles, queen Cinderella and the prince are still alive and that they will return to save us from oppression', she paused, looked down with tearful eyes and proceeded, 'The current king is an evil man. He invented a special Police that looks for everyone opposing the king. We are not allowed to complain. King Rudolph hides all traces of misery and those who resist him in a big prison outside the city. My father confronted him and was sent to prison a month ago. I do not have news from him since then'.
Daniel, Frances and Johanna watched Mary with their eyes wide open. Then they looked down, thinking about her grief, and looking for words to comfort her. They felt so lucky for having their parents and living in peace. Mimi and Arthur felt a bit puzzled, but understood the essential, that Mary's father was in prison. Arthur cuddled with Mary and Mimi jumped to her lap was well.
'Oh, Mary... that's so sad...', said Johanna.
'You're very brave, Mary. I would be devastated if my Daddy was in prison...', imagined Frances.
Daniel looked at Mary in the eyes and she gazed him in return.
'I wish I could do something... I really do...', he said, making her blush.
'Today you made me smile and laugh for the first time in the last months. I'm very grateful', she thanked, making Daniel blush, while the girls tried to control their giggles.
'You can always count on us, Mary', smiled Frances.
'Yes, welcome to the Green-Valley kingdom!', smiled Johanna.
'Welcome! Welcome!', repeated Arthur, as Mimi jumped repeating 'You can count on me, too!'
'Thank you. You're so kind', smiled Mary with her eyes closed as Arthur and Mimi hugged her tight.
When they finally arrived at the duke of Bladenburg's manor, Daniel assisted Mary leaving the carriage and walking, as she was still limping. Charles quickly left the driver's seat, kneeled before Mary, and looked tenderly in her eyes.
'Mary, we will all pray for your father', he promised.
Despite her efforts to control herself, Mary burst into tears and hugged Charles, who hugged her tight in return. In his arms, the girl felt safe and cared since for the first time since her father's arrest.
Daniel watched them slightly upset. Then he made up his mind and understood how devasting it was for Mary. He couldn't imagine himself without his father.
When Charles, the children and the pets arrived home, Cinderella was still absent. Charles sat in an armchair the living room for a while, recalling Mary's words.
Regardless of Paulette's reports from the Emerald kingdom, Charles was going to act, and no one could stop him this time. He was still reluctant to the idea of taking the crown back and pondered whether he should do that, if he should pave the way for a Constitutional Monarchy, or a Republican State, or a different political system, truly democratic and free. But at that moment he realized how he was delaying urgent action with those thoughts. He had to start planning a coup and work on the political outcomes along the process.
'Dad...', shily called Daniel before entering the room.
'Yes, Dan', replied Charles.
'Can you teach me to chop wood now?', asked the boy.
Charles smiled tenderly, stood up and patted the boy in the back.
'Let's go, then', encouraged Charles, as Daniel smiled.
On their way to the garden, they crossed Frances, Arthur and Mimi, who hugged Charles and presented him with a cardbox filled with his portraits drawn by Frances and Mimi and hearts and green scribbles depicting dragons by Arthur. Charles kissed the children, hugged them tight, and raised Arthur and Mimi in his arms. Then Samson and Paulette knocked on the door and the children ran to the front door. The father had just put Arthur and Mimi down and was about to welcome Samson and Paulette, when he heard noises coming out of the kitchen. As he abruptly opened the kitchen door, he faced Cinderella. Her yellow dress was all stained with dirt, her hair all messed up, her eyes in tears.
'Honey, what happened?', he walked towards her.
Cinderella looked into his eyes, and ran to him, crying nonstop. Charles hugged her tight, kissed and caressed her head until she calmed down.
To be continued