Chapter 3:

Seiichirou flipped to another page in the kingdom directory. The court advisor watched him from a corner and after a few minutes, spoke up. "What are you looking for, again?"

"I must find her.... but I don't know her last name or where she lives."

"Do you know anything about this mystery girl of yours?" The advisor sat down at the table and pulled a large book to him.

"She has bright red, curly hair and large gold eyes.... she's very kind and interesting and she dances wonderfully." Seiichirou almost sighed dreamily but one look from the advisor made him cough and continue on his search. "Oh, and her stepmother is tall with wavy black hair and would be well-advised to pull her neckline up."

"Oh, are you talking about Kanoe?" The advisor said, and pulled out a piece of parchment to write down something.

"....You know of this woman?"

"Of course. Just about every man in the kingdom knows of Kanoe... especially her attempts to marry off her two daughters... though I haven't heard of another, third daughter..."

Seiichirou picked up the piece of parchment and looked at the directions on it. "She called Karen her servant.. I suppose she doesn't think of her as a daughter. Thank you, my friend. I'll be going out today to find Karen and bring her back.. don't get any escorts ready, I'll be fine by myself." Seiichirou hopped over the railing in the library and nearly ran up to his room to get dressed for going out.

The court advisor watched him amusedly. "I've never seen him so... taken with such a common girl."

* * * * *

Several hours later, Seiichirou was standing in front of the door to Kanoe's small cottage. He was a bit nervous, which was a new experience for him; being a prince, he'd never had much to worry about before. Karen had been extremely upset, though, and he was a little afraid that she might reject him, or even be unwilling to speak to him.

Shaking off his concerns, he knocked firmly on the door and tried to look regal. He closed his fingers around the glass slipper in his other hand, reminding himself of what was at stake.

Kanoe opened the door, and her sour expression immediately morphed into her best imitation of a charming smile when she saw who was behind it. "Your Majesty, what a pleasant surprise!" she cooed, curtsying to him. "To what do we owe the honor of your royal presence?"

Seiichirou cleared his throat and prepared to lie through his teeth. "Well, as you know, I am in search of a wife," he began. "And of course, only the most beautiful and refined woman is fit to be my bride. I've heard rumors that your daughters were the most beautiful in the land, and I was very sorry that I was unable to meet with them last night. Might I see them now?"

Kanoe's eyes were shining. "Of course!" She led him into the house. "Arashi! Satsuki!"

The two girls appeared almost immediately. When they saw him, they stood up a little straighter and stuck out their chests (which, since their necklines were nearly as low as Kanoe's, gave Seiichirou quite a view). He looked them over; they were both pretty, but their beauty was nothing compared to Karen's, and he had the feeling that all three women in the room saw him as a walking dollar sign rather than a man. He sighed, wishing he could just demand to see Karen now, but he decided it would probably be smartest to play along for now. And anyway, even though he was far from a spiteful and vengeful man, he was kind of enjoying stringing Kanoe along in return for her rude treatment of Karen the night before.

"You are both quite lovely," he said. Arashi blushed, and Satsuki just smiled knowingly. "It's going to be hard for me to choose between you." He noted Kanoe's self-satisfied smile.
"Oh, and there's another reason I stopped by," he said offhandedly. "Where is that servant girl I met last night?"

Anger flashed across Kanoe's face. "She is doing her chores. Once again, I am terribly sorry that your Majesty was forced to consort with a girl of such low stature. I assure you it will not happen again, and she is being duly punished."

"That's... good to hear," Seiichirou lied, gritting his teeth. "And I apologize for my outburst last night. I was not thinking clearly, and I see now that you were correct in disciplining her. May I speak with her? I'm afraid she might have gotten the wrong idea about our interactions last night. She may be only a lowly servant girl, but I do not wish to be cruel, and I'd like to tell her myself that I will be marrying one of your daughters."

Kanoe looked as if she was going to squeal with excitement. Instead, she cleared her throat and said in a measured voice, "Yes, well, you are kinder to her than I would be, but I suppose that reflects well on your upbringing. I shall fetch her." She clapped her hands loudly. "Wench! Come here!"

Seiichirou took a few deep breaths. He was a peaceful man, and he most certainly did not believe in hitting women, but if Kanoe spoke to Karen like that one more time, she was going to be treading very dangerous ground.

Across the house, Karen heard Kanoe's shout and winced. She wondered what kind of terrible task the woman had thought up for her now. All morning, she'd been running around doing ridiculous chores like shining Arashi's shoes and cleaning Satsuki's mirror, and she had a feeling that Kanoe would never run out of pointless jobs to give her.

She hurried toward the voice, hoping that at least Kanoe would allow her to have some lunch sometime that day, for she was getting a little hungry. She stepped through the doorway and looked expectantly at her stepmother. "Yes, ma'am?"

"You have a visitor," Kanoe said with measured spite.

Karen turned slowly, and to her great dismay, she saw Seiichirou standing at the other side of the room staring at her. Horrified, she realized that she looked terrible-- her clothes were disheveled and torn, and her hair and face were nearly black with soot, dust and dirt. Ashamed, she turned her head away and stared at the floor while her sisters giggled cruelly behind her.

"The Prince has something to say to you regarding your terribly unrefined conduct last night," Kanoe went on, seeming to take pleasure in the way the girl's shoulders began to tremble. "And regarding his choice of a bride."

Karen heard footsteps, and realized that he was walking toward her. She couldn't bring herself to look up at him, until he reached out and gently clasped her hand. Shocked, she looked up into his face, and instead of the dismay and disgust she had expected, she saw the same gentle and kind smile he had given her many times the night before.

"I came to tell you that I have found my bride right here in this house," he said softly.

Karen's spirits soared for an instant, until Kanoe laughed aloud and said "Yes, he'll be marrying one of your stepsisters. Isn't that exciting?"

"Now, wait, madam," Seiichirou said, releasing Karen's hand and holding his own up. "There is one more condition. The woman I marry must be able to wear this shoe." His other hand came out from behind his back, holding the glass slipper.

Karen could barely contain a gasp of surprise as she saw the shoe. It should have vanished along with her dress and its mate, but there it was. A tiny bubble of hope erupted in her heart.

Kanoe raised an eyebrow but nodded. "Karen, bring in a chair so Arashi and Satsuki can sit down."

Karen was quick to obey and stood in the corner of the room as Satsuki sat down on the chair. Seiichirou knelt in front of her and flushed a little as Satsuki pulled her dress up to her thigh and held her foot out for him. Carefully so that the glass would not break, Seiichirou placed the shoe on the girl's foot. Try as he might, he could not get it to fit properly, for Satsuki's foot was too big.

Kanoe bit her lip and shoved Arashi forward. "Your foot is not as big as Satsuki's... I don't know why he even bothers trying your foot in it."

"I don't know, Mother..." Arashi grumbled and sat in the chair. She only pulled her skirt up to her knees, unlike her sister, and Seiichirou slipped the shoe onto her foot.

"A perfect fit!" Kanoe squealed and Karen felt her heart break in half again.

"Er... not quite, madam." Seiichirou gestured to the shoe. "Her foot is too small." Indeed it was, and the slipper was threatening to fall off.

"Oh, but surely you're not going to let just a little difference in size stop you from making your decision..."

"That was the requirement..." Seiichirou held the slipper in his hand. "Why don't you let Ka... your servant try it on?"

Kanoe grabbed Karen's arm and pulled her back. "There's no need. It is certainly not going to fit her."

"There's no harm in letting her try." Seiichirou's voice was carefully contained and Kanoe flinched at the tone and shoved Karen forward.

"Your Majesty, you're only wasting your time... however, if you feel that you must let her try it on..."

Seiichirou caught Karen's eye and smiled at her reassuringly. Nervously, she sat down in the chair, feeling her sisters' and stepmother's glares burning holes into her back. She held out her leg to him, and he carefully and gently slid the shoe onto her foot.

"Surely it fit Arashi better, didn't it?" Kanoe spoke up, chuckling nervously.
Seiichirou winked at Karen, then looked up at Kanoe and feigned shock. "I don't believe this, but it fits perfectly!"

Kanoe's eyes narrowed and her mouth set into a thin line. "Well, surely your Majesty isn't thinking of marrying this little wench. Imagine what a scandal it would be throughout the kingdom, the Prince marrying a servant!"

"Well, you see, I was told that whoever could wear this slipper was meant to be royalty," Seiichirou said with barely contained amusement. "So I guess I have no other choice than to marry her..."

He knelt down in front of a shocked Karen and clasped one of her hands in both of his. "My lady, I would be honored if you would agree to be my wife. I can't promise you a thrilling life-- being a royal is actually rather boring. But I think with you around it'd be a lot more interesting. Ever since our first dance last night, I haven't been able to see myself marrying anyone but you." He was blushing quite a bit by the time he finished his speech, but he managed a
hopeful smile. "Would you be my future Queen?" he finished softly.

Karen opened her mouth to reply but before she could say anything, Kanoe had grabbed her arm and pulled her quite painfully to her feet. "The answer is no. You will not marry this lowly servant."

"You are telling me who I can and cannot marry?" The atmosphere in the house became quite dark and Karen shivered at the look in Seiichirou's eyes.

"Of.. of course not, your Majesty... how.. however, you wouldn't want to marry this trash.. certainly Arashi or Satsuki would be a better pick."

"You will not choose my bride for me, madam." As calmly as he could, Seiichirou took Karen's hand in his own and pulled her close. "My decision is final... my bride will be this lovely woman, Karen."

Karen could barely contain her glee at both her wish coming true and the look of anger on Kanoe's face. She smiled at Seiichirou, "I would love to be your bride."

He smiled back. "Then let's go to the palace where I can announce our wedding." He was about to pull her out the door, when Karen stopped him.

"I.. I can't go to the palace all dirty like this..." she looked down at her clothes, flushing with humiliation. As if on cue, the lone slipped on her foot sparkled and surrounded her with white, shining light. When it faded away, she was clean and wearing the dress from the ball, once again beautiful and regal.

Seiichirou and her stepfamily blinked for a few moments before Seiichirou bowed to her. "My Princess, let me escort you to the palace." He smiled at her and Karen blushed as she took his arm.

* * * * *

The king and the rest of the royal court took an instant liking to Karen, who was not only beautiful but sweet, polite and friendly, with wonderful manners. Everyone agreed that Seiichirou had chosen a fine and worthy woman to be his wife. The wedding was scheduled for a week from the day Seiichirou visited Karen's house, and the couple spent that entire week together, getting to know each other better and falling even more in love with every passing hour.

The day before the wedding, Seiichirou and Karen were discussing the wedding menu with the cook when the court advisor hurried into the room. "Milady, there is someone here to see you," he said, bowing.

Karen smiled, taking Seiichirou's arm and making her way out into the hallway. "I've had so many visitors this week," she said. "It's so nice of everyone to stop by and wish us well."

Seiichirou smiled back at her, and she felt her heart flutter as it always did when he looked at her. She could still hardly dare to believe that it was true; after all the years of suffering and hardship, she was finally going to live a peaceful, free and happy life. Not only that, but she was going to be married to the kindest, most handsome man she had ever met. It was all so disgustingly sappy and so perfect that at any moment she expected to awaken from this
dream with Kanoe yelling at her to get the dishes done.

She stopped daydreaming when she realized they had reached the door, and opened it, smiling in expectation of the well-wishers she thought she would see behind it.

The smile froze on her face when she looked up and saw her stepmother and stepsisters instead.

Beside her, she felt Seiichirou grip her arm protectively. "You're not welcome here," he said simply, in a commanding tone. "Please leave on your own accord, or we will have to find someone to escort you off the premises."

Kanoe whimpered. "We mean no harm, your Majesty... we only wish to give you our best wishes and to beg forgiveness from our beloved daughter and sister." Arashi and Satsuki nodded their agreement.

Karen eyed her stepfamily with apprehension. She had lived with this family for years and she knew their tricks very well, and the sweet smile on Kanoe's face was certainly fake.

"May I please speak with my stepdaughter alone, your Majesty?" Kanoe asked, giving Seiichirou a pleading, almost-innocent look.

"No, I'm afraid that if you speak to my soon-to-be wife, you will have to speak to me as well." His grip on her arm tightened and he pulled her slightly away from the door.

"But your Majesty, I want one last chance to speak to my daughter... please?"

Karen looked up at Seiichirou. "Go ahead, I'll be fine."

He hesitated for a few moments before nodding his consent. "I'll be outside the door if you need me." He leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

Karen watched him go with a smile on her face, and was not-so-shocked when Kanoe grabbed her arm, digging her nails into the younger woman's skin. "I can't believe you," Kanoe hissed, dark rage on her face. "The house is a mess without you, cinderwench. How dare you leave home! It's your fault that the house is horrible now and that I've lost all my money." Karen tried to pull away, but Kanoe's grip was like steel. "I command you come back home immediately and clean the house... then maybe I'll sell you to make up for the money I've lost. The Prince was mad to choose you for a bride instead of one of my lovely daughters."

Karen was on the verge of crying out for Seiichirou when Satsuki and Arashi pulled Kanoe off her. "That's enough, Mother," Arashi said. "It's not Karen's fault."

Kanoe looked like she was about to scream when the door opened again and she put on her mask. "I couldn't help but over-hear." Seiichirou said calmly, as if he had walked in on a card game. "It seems to me, Madam," he said to Kanoe, "that if you are so obsessed with cleaning and with money, a simple servant job will do you well." He thought for a moment. "40 years in the laundry room with the rest of the maids will be fit, don't you think?" He gestured behind
him and two old maids came behind him and took Kanoe's arms.

"Come on, young lady. We'll go get you fitted for the uniform," one of the maids said and Karen and her stepsisters all smiled as their mother was dragged away.

Karen looked up at her husband and grinned. "My hero," she teased him.

He flushed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Her attitude was really beginning to get to me," he confessed, smiling a little.

Karen laughed, then turned to her stepsisters. "I know we've never gotten along, but thank you for sticking up for me just then," she said softly.

Arashi and Satsuki exchanged guilty looks, then looked back at Karen. "It's nothing," Arashi said finally. "With you gone, Mother was getting worse and worse, and we finally began to realize that maybe all her attempts to marry us off were doing us more harm than good."

"So we'd like to ask you to forgive us for being so jealous and cruel to you all those years," Satsuki spoke up. "We're glad that you're finally going to have a better life, and we're happy for the two of you."

Karen hesitated, then nodded. She knew that she and her sisters would never be really close after all the years of bad treatment, but at least they could stop hating each other now.

* * * * *

Finally, the day of Karen's dreams arrived. She stood nervously in her dressing room, watching her reflection. Her wedding gown was pure white with pearls and diamonds decorating the sleeves and skirt and matching gloves and veil. She blushed a little at the image and twirled around a little, holding the skirt out.

"Princess, it's time." An old woman said, opening the doorway and Karen's blush grew deeper. Carefully she placed the veil over her eyes, as was custom and left the room to go to the entrance of the ballroom. Outside the door, she met an equally as nervous Seiichirou.

He blushed when he saw her in her dress and carefully took her arm. "I love you..." he whispered, though his throat was a little bit too tight.

Karen giggled. "I love you too, Seiichirou." She smiled fondly at him and as the wedding music started, the couple began to walk down the long carpet, nobles standing on either side of the large room.

The ceremony went by in a blur, full of vows and speeches and gifts. Before Karen knew it, she and Seiichirou were seated at a table, receiving congratulations from guests. On her curly hair, there was a circlet and on her left finger, a shining gold ring.

After most of the guests had paid their respects and were gone, Seiichirou nudged his new bride, who was staring off into space. "See, you're daydreaming already. I told you the life of a royal wasn't too interesting," he teased gently.

Karen turned toward him, beaming. "No, not daydreaming. Just thinking about how wonderful all of this is."

Seiichirou nodded. "It must be nice to finally be comfortable and treated with respect after living with that... woman... for so long..." The tone of his voice made it obvious that if he had been a less polite man, he would have used a stronger word than "woman".

Karen laughed. "Well, yes, it is, but that's not the best part," she murmured, gazing fondly at him.

"It isn't?" He frowned in confusion. "Then what is?"

She answered not with words, but with a kiss.

And on that note, they lived happily ever after.


The End