Hidden Identities
Disclaimer: I don't own anything in the entire world! Except, maybe, my car, a few books, some clothes, oh, that one pencil, and, um, maybe, a coke can and . . .
Summary: What if Hattie had not danced by and snatched off Ella's mask? What if Char had asked Ella THE question? What will Lela do?
Chapter Two: The Answer
Char looked up to me. I was frozen. Even my breathing stopped. All I could do was sit there, staring right back at him with my mouth open like a gaping fish.
Marry him? He had barely known Lela for three nights! Where had this come from?
My heart swelled at the thought of marrying Char, though. I loved him. We could finally be together.
No. Lela would be with Char. Not me. There was no way Lela could marry Char without him finding out Lela was me, Ella. I couldn't handle that.
The curse, which I had forgotten, flashed across my mind. Lela or Ella, I could ruin the kingdom if I married Char. I couldn't escape the curse!
But Char could.
"I – um, well, that is . . . this is a lot to think about!" I cried, standing up and trying to move around Char towards the exit back into the maze. If I could get past him, I wouldn't have to answer him with a yes or no. I could get away.
He looked surprised and still clung to my hand. I shook it to make him let it go, but he gripped it with an iron fist.
"You don't want to marry me? Why?"
Tears trickled through the slots of my mask. I furiously wiped them away with my free hand.
"I can't tell you!" I answered. I leaned back, trying to free my hand. Confusion clouded Char's face. "Please, let me go."
He did and I ended up tumbling back towards the cold water of the fountain. I almost screamed, but Char reached out and grabbed me. He set me back on the ground. At once I felt a coldness on my left foot.
My foot had slipped out of the glass slipper when I fell backwards. I looked down at my white bare toes peeking out from underneath my dress skirt. The other slipper was on, but where was the other one? Then, a thought struck me.
The glass slipper. The wedding of my Father. Char. He would figure me out if he saw the slipper! I have to find it!
Char, seeing that one of my feet was bare, began looking around for it. I wildly began to search as well. I spotted it by the edge of a bush a few feet away and started for it, but Char stopped me.
"Allow me." Char walked over to the bush and bent down to pick the slipper up. He seemed to momentarily forget my answer to his question.
"No!" I shouted. He looked up surprised. I tried to grab it away from him, but he just laughed and began to wipe off the leaves that covered it.
"Let me clean it for you," Char said. Then, he froze as the last leaf fell to the ground. In his hands laid the glass slipper we had found together. I couldn't tell what he was thinking; his face was an emotionless mask.
I stepped back from him. He turned to me, anger and pain and love written across his face.
"Where did you get this?" he asked slowly. Again, I took a step back towards the exit of the center of the maze.
"From a woman selling shoes in the market at Bast," I replied.
"Don't lie!"
He stepped forward, towards me. My heart was pounding wildly.
"I – I . . . don't know," I stammered. The curse reared up then. I gasped. Char had commanded me not to lie. The world started to spin. I looked up into his eyes, trying to fight the curse for as long as I could because I didn't want him to find me out this way.
He looked so torn from pain and a flash of hopefulness flashed through his eyes. He suddenly reached out and grabbed my mask. I could feel the threads tearing. Black dots formed in my vision. Already, my mouth was forming the words I was to say. "Stop! I got them at the-"
I shoved one hand halfway into my mouth and the other against his chest. The rest of the words were muffled into my hand. He couldn't hear the rest.
I continued to struggle against him, trying to keep my identity hidden. He was too strong. The mask snapped, suddenly, and it fell to the ground. Char held my hands in his and he stared into my eyes.
"Ella?" he gasped. Tears no longer trickled, but flooded my cheeks. And then the most horrible thing happened.
"There you are, Charmont! I've been looking for you everywhere!" Hattie cried as she ran through the entrance to the center of the maze. Then, the large clock began to chime for midnight. Its bongs echoed through the maze. I gasped. The carriage was gone for I could not make it through the maze in time. Char started at the sound of Hattie's voice and the first chime of midnight. I took the opportunity and tore from his arms and back into the winding passages of the maze, covering my face so Hattie would not see who I was.
"No!" Char shouted, but I ran. I ran as fast as I could. Behind me I could hear Hattie stop him from coming after me.
"Let her go, my prince. She isn't worthy of you," Hattie said.
"You don't know what you're talking about!" Char shouted and proceeded to throw Hattie off of him and take off after me. I could hear his thundering footsteps against the ground behind me.
"Where's the exit?" I whispered frantically. The passages just seemed to wind around and around and around. The leaves and branches of the tall hedges tore at my gown as I rounded corners. The thump of my one shoe I wore, for Char had the other, slowed me down so I slipped it off and continued on.
"Ella!" Char shouted. His voice seemed distant. I glanced behind me and saw nothing. He had probably taken a wrong turn. I paused, trying to catch my breath, and clutched my slipper against the folds of my dress. "Ella? Where are you?"
His voice came from far to my right, where there was a dead end blocking me from him. I turned and began to walk the other way, hoping for any sign of a way out.
It took forever to get out. Char only went by me once more on the other side of a solid hedge.
I couldn't think as I walked and ran through the maze. The only thing I knew was that I had to get to Mandy. Mandy equaled safe.
I found a small hole at the bottom of a hedge that led outside the maze. My gown was dirty and ripped and my hair tumbled down my back as I stood up to see the royal stables on the other side of a small field.
A few horses were in the stables when I got to the brown door. Nobody was about. They were probably sleeping or drinking to the merry night. I ran to the nearest stall and led out a gray mare. She had been asleep, but was ready for the midnight ride. (AN: Ella knows how to ride a horse in my story)
"Go," I whispered to the horse and kicked it. The horse began to trot down the dirt path that led from the stables to the main road. I bounced along with the horse, clinging to her mane for there was no saddle.
"Hey! You there! What are you doing with His Majesty's horse?" a groom ran out of the stables after me. Scared, I kicked the horse with all my might and she took off down the road, galloping steadily.
We rode and rode down the road. No carriages or horses met us. Everyone was at the ball. Clouds that had been building off in the distance now thundered over head, threatening cold rain showers and lightening.
Crack! Boom! Lightening and thunder flew through the air. I jumped and clung to the mare's mane even tighter. I hated thunder because it was so loud. (AN: I'm not sure if Ella really is scared of thunder, but she is here. Oh, for future reference, anything that seems different from the story, like if I get some info wrong, it's supposed to be that way.) The rain began to pour in sheets and sheets of iciness. The mare quivered in the cold. Up ahead, lights from torches flickered as we neared the home.
"Lady what are you doing out here? What happened?" Mandy ran from the front door to where I sat on the horse. Shivering, I almost fell from the horse. Mandy helped me off.
"I – he . . . everything went wrong!" I cried and went limp in her arms. Mandy carried me back inside to the kitchen and set me down by the fire. She looked worriedly into my eyes.
"Did he find out Ella and Lela are the same?" Mandy asked. I nodded. She wrapped a blanket around me and bustled around making hot tea. "Who else?"
"No one. Maybe . . . Hattie." I sipped the tea. It warmed my stomach and slowly, I began to stop shaking.
"Oh, this is not good, Lady."
"I don't know if she knows, only that Char might tell her or she could have over heard him yell my name."
"We have to leave!" Mandy cried. "He should be here shortly!"
"No, we were in a . . . maze. I got out through a hole in the shrubs. He was still in there searching for me."
"Well, that gives us a head start. Are you okay to travel, sweet?"
I nodded. The tears had stopped and I just watched the flame of the fire consume the log that had been thrust in there.
"I'll go pack our bags. Get ready down here and we'll head off as soon as we can."
Mandy turned towards the exit of the kitchen and stopped. I heard her gasp and whirled around to see what she had stopped at. My eyes widened in fear.
"No one is going anywhere."
___
Author Notes: Who do you think is there? Mwahahahaha. I know. Find out next time on a new chapter of Hidden Identities!
New Update: There has been a concern on the whole idea of Char asking Lela to marry him. I know Char said he wasn't going to marry and all, but I just thought that it would make a fun story to have him ask Lela. So, no offense to anyone who thought or wants the question to be something else.
Chapter Three: Found Out
Disclaimer: I don't own anything in the entire world! Except, maybe, my car, a few books, some clothes, oh, that one pencil, and, um, maybe, a coke can and . . .
Summary: What if Hattie had not danced by and snatched off Ella's mask? What if Char had asked Ella THE question? What will Lela do?
Chapter Two: The Answer
Char looked up to me. I was frozen. Even my breathing stopped. All I could do was sit there, staring right back at him with my mouth open like a gaping fish.
Marry him? He had barely known Lela for three nights! Where had this come from?
My heart swelled at the thought of marrying Char, though. I loved him. We could finally be together.
No. Lela would be with Char. Not me. There was no way Lela could marry Char without him finding out Lela was me, Ella. I couldn't handle that.
The curse, which I had forgotten, flashed across my mind. Lela or Ella, I could ruin the kingdom if I married Char. I couldn't escape the curse!
But Char could.
"I – um, well, that is . . . this is a lot to think about!" I cried, standing up and trying to move around Char towards the exit back into the maze. If I could get past him, I wouldn't have to answer him with a yes or no. I could get away.
He looked surprised and still clung to my hand. I shook it to make him let it go, but he gripped it with an iron fist.
"You don't want to marry me? Why?"
Tears trickled through the slots of my mask. I furiously wiped them away with my free hand.
"I can't tell you!" I answered. I leaned back, trying to free my hand. Confusion clouded Char's face. "Please, let me go."
He did and I ended up tumbling back towards the cold water of the fountain. I almost screamed, but Char reached out and grabbed me. He set me back on the ground. At once I felt a coldness on my left foot.
My foot had slipped out of the glass slipper when I fell backwards. I looked down at my white bare toes peeking out from underneath my dress skirt. The other slipper was on, but where was the other one? Then, a thought struck me.
The glass slipper. The wedding of my Father. Char. He would figure me out if he saw the slipper! I have to find it!
Char, seeing that one of my feet was bare, began looking around for it. I wildly began to search as well. I spotted it by the edge of a bush a few feet away and started for it, but Char stopped me.
"Allow me." Char walked over to the bush and bent down to pick the slipper up. He seemed to momentarily forget my answer to his question.
"No!" I shouted. He looked up surprised. I tried to grab it away from him, but he just laughed and began to wipe off the leaves that covered it.
"Let me clean it for you," Char said. Then, he froze as the last leaf fell to the ground. In his hands laid the glass slipper we had found together. I couldn't tell what he was thinking; his face was an emotionless mask.
I stepped back from him. He turned to me, anger and pain and love written across his face.
"Where did you get this?" he asked slowly. Again, I took a step back towards the exit of the center of the maze.
"From a woman selling shoes in the market at Bast," I replied.
"Don't lie!"
He stepped forward, towards me. My heart was pounding wildly.
"I – I . . . don't know," I stammered. The curse reared up then. I gasped. Char had commanded me not to lie. The world started to spin. I looked up into his eyes, trying to fight the curse for as long as I could because I didn't want him to find me out this way.
He looked so torn from pain and a flash of hopefulness flashed through his eyes. He suddenly reached out and grabbed my mask. I could feel the threads tearing. Black dots formed in my vision. Already, my mouth was forming the words I was to say. "Stop! I got them at the-"
I shoved one hand halfway into my mouth and the other against his chest. The rest of the words were muffled into my hand. He couldn't hear the rest.
I continued to struggle against him, trying to keep my identity hidden. He was too strong. The mask snapped, suddenly, and it fell to the ground. Char held my hands in his and he stared into my eyes.
"Ella?" he gasped. Tears no longer trickled, but flooded my cheeks. And then the most horrible thing happened.
"There you are, Charmont! I've been looking for you everywhere!" Hattie cried as she ran through the entrance to the center of the maze. Then, the large clock began to chime for midnight. Its bongs echoed through the maze. I gasped. The carriage was gone for I could not make it through the maze in time. Char started at the sound of Hattie's voice and the first chime of midnight. I took the opportunity and tore from his arms and back into the winding passages of the maze, covering my face so Hattie would not see who I was.
"No!" Char shouted, but I ran. I ran as fast as I could. Behind me I could hear Hattie stop him from coming after me.
"Let her go, my prince. She isn't worthy of you," Hattie said.
"You don't know what you're talking about!" Char shouted and proceeded to throw Hattie off of him and take off after me. I could hear his thundering footsteps against the ground behind me.
"Where's the exit?" I whispered frantically. The passages just seemed to wind around and around and around. The leaves and branches of the tall hedges tore at my gown as I rounded corners. The thump of my one shoe I wore, for Char had the other, slowed me down so I slipped it off and continued on.
"Ella!" Char shouted. His voice seemed distant. I glanced behind me and saw nothing. He had probably taken a wrong turn. I paused, trying to catch my breath, and clutched my slipper against the folds of my dress. "Ella? Where are you?"
His voice came from far to my right, where there was a dead end blocking me from him. I turned and began to walk the other way, hoping for any sign of a way out.
It took forever to get out. Char only went by me once more on the other side of a solid hedge.
I couldn't think as I walked and ran through the maze. The only thing I knew was that I had to get to Mandy. Mandy equaled safe.
I found a small hole at the bottom of a hedge that led outside the maze. My gown was dirty and ripped and my hair tumbled down my back as I stood up to see the royal stables on the other side of a small field.
A few horses were in the stables when I got to the brown door. Nobody was about. They were probably sleeping or drinking to the merry night. I ran to the nearest stall and led out a gray mare. She had been asleep, but was ready for the midnight ride. (AN: Ella knows how to ride a horse in my story)
"Go," I whispered to the horse and kicked it. The horse began to trot down the dirt path that led from the stables to the main road. I bounced along with the horse, clinging to her mane for there was no saddle.
"Hey! You there! What are you doing with His Majesty's horse?" a groom ran out of the stables after me. Scared, I kicked the horse with all my might and she took off down the road, galloping steadily.
We rode and rode down the road. No carriages or horses met us. Everyone was at the ball. Clouds that had been building off in the distance now thundered over head, threatening cold rain showers and lightening.
Crack! Boom! Lightening and thunder flew through the air. I jumped and clung to the mare's mane even tighter. I hated thunder because it was so loud. (AN: I'm not sure if Ella really is scared of thunder, but she is here. Oh, for future reference, anything that seems different from the story, like if I get some info wrong, it's supposed to be that way.) The rain began to pour in sheets and sheets of iciness. The mare quivered in the cold. Up ahead, lights from torches flickered as we neared the home.
"Lady what are you doing out here? What happened?" Mandy ran from the front door to where I sat on the horse. Shivering, I almost fell from the horse. Mandy helped me off.
"I – he . . . everything went wrong!" I cried and went limp in her arms. Mandy carried me back inside to the kitchen and set me down by the fire. She looked worriedly into my eyes.
"Did he find out Ella and Lela are the same?" Mandy asked. I nodded. She wrapped a blanket around me and bustled around making hot tea. "Who else?"
"No one. Maybe . . . Hattie." I sipped the tea. It warmed my stomach and slowly, I began to stop shaking.
"Oh, this is not good, Lady."
"I don't know if she knows, only that Char might tell her or she could have over heard him yell my name."
"We have to leave!" Mandy cried. "He should be here shortly!"
"No, we were in a . . . maze. I got out through a hole in the shrubs. He was still in there searching for me."
"Well, that gives us a head start. Are you okay to travel, sweet?"
I nodded. The tears had stopped and I just watched the flame of the fire consume the log that had been thrust in there.
"I'll go pack our bags. Get ready down here and we'll head off as soon as we can."
Mandy turned towards the exit of the kitchen and stopped. I heard her gasp and whirled around to see what she had stopped at. My eyes widened in fear.
"No one is going anywhere."
___
Author Notes: Who do you think is there? Mwahahahaha. I know. Find out next time on a new chapter of Hidden Identities!
New Update: There has been a concern on the whole idea of Char asking Lela to marry him. I know Char said he wasn't going to marry and all, but I just thought that it would make a fun story to have him ask Lela. So, no offense to anyone who thought or wants the question to be something else.
Chapter Three: Found Out