Okay, now for the disclaimer: Anything that you recognize from Ella Enchanted or Cinderella, does not belong to me, but EVERYTHING else does.

Chapter 6

Waiting

"So, now that I have written the letter to my father, will you tell me where we are?" asked Clair. This is getting ridiculous! I can not believe that I let him do this! I am so fed up with him bossing me around. I wonder if I am like that with my servants. No way, I am not bossy! But he makes me so angry!

"You can find out for yourself. We are invited to a ball tonight. We need to go get you a suitable dress to wear." Nicholas replied as he grabbed his cloak and walked over to the door of the room that Clair had been staying in. "Are you coming or not? I thought that you would grab any chance you got to get out of this room!" Laughing, Nicholas walked out and started to close the door. They had been waiting for three days since Nicholas had taken the letter Clair had written home to her father. During that time, she had been locked in her room, though it was nice. Nicholas had come in every once in a while to check that she was okay, and hadn't climbed out of a window, but still, she would have liked to at least leaver her room.

"Wait! You are not leaving me hear! Stop!" Clair shouted, grabbing her own cloak and rushing out the door to follow him. As they walked outside, Clair's anger started to boil. "You mean that I have been staying in a manor in the middle of some town, and you never even told me?!? What is wrong with you? You let me believe that I was in the middle of the woods of some strange country in a cabin! Nicholas, tell me where I am right this instant!" With each sentence, her voice rose until she was nearly shouting.

"Oh come on! You could have at least opened the curtains to you window. You could have very easily figured that out on your own. We are in the city of Lansing, where I live, and we have been staying in my father's manor. What is it with you the last couple of days anyways? You are not at all like what you used to be when we were kids. I mean, my gosh, you are starting to act like some of the princesses that I have met from other countries. You are becoming bossy, demanding, and a pain to be around! Why do you think that I rarely come to see you anymore up at the palace?"

"What? You think that I'm demanding? You should listen to my little sister's! They are demanding. All day, all they want to do is follow me around or play with dolls or play dress up for a pretend ball! They have to have their hair put up in a certain way, tucked into bed with the same stories, eat the same things for supper! And you call me demanding!"

"When I came to visit my uncle when we were little, I would always ask when I would get to play with you again. My uncle finally got to the point that he would tease me that he would have my father and the king discuss a betrothal for us. To get married! I got used to the idea after a while, that I would some day marry my best friend. But a few years ago, you started to be harder and harder to be around until I just stopped coming to visit you! The only reason that I have been in the city the last few weeks is because my uncle is ill! You came to me asking for help, and I thought I saw some of the old you again, but I guess I was wrong. You haven't changed at all! I don't even know why I am doing this for you." Nicholas was getting extremely angry with himself for telling her that. He was also upset that he let a girl of all people, to crawl under his skin so far! What is wrong with me? Why am I acting like a fool? She is the princess, whom I have 'kidnapped', and as soon as she gets home, I will never see her again. I swear, I will never go back to the city. Why? So that I don't have to see her? My head feels like I have a cotton ball stuffed in it every time I'm around her, so I keep acting like a fool! What is happening to me?

As they walked on in silence, Clair couldn't help but wonder what had been going on in her friend's head the last few years. She had thought that he was the one changing, not her. Shocked was all that she could think of to describe her reaction to what he had said. She knew that he had had a crush on her when they were really little, but when they got to the age when her father had wanted to start courting her, he seemed to have lost interest in her altogether. That must have been when I started to change. I can't believe that I was, am, such a fool, that I never noticed! Well, what is done is done. I just hope that I can get my friend back.

Soon they arrived at the seamstress's shop. As they walked in, an old lady came over and bowed formally to them. "Why Lord Nicholas, you never cease to amaze me at all the girls that flog around you! You have grown to quite the young gentleman over the years." she said.

Grinning, he took the lady's hand in his and kissed it as he bowed to her. "Why Agnes, I never knew that you were so fond of me! Why usually, it is all you can do to keep your voice down when you fuss at me for something! Have I done something right for a change?"

Taking her hand back, she almost slapped him because of his sarcasm. "I was just trying to impress the lady you are with for you because shirley, she is with you over her father's orders. Now are you going to introduce her, or do I have to play a million questions trying to figure it out?"

Sweeping an elegant curtsy that would impress any court, Clair answered her before Nicholas could even think of shushing her. "Why Lady, you do have such a nice shop here! Please excuse Nicholas' rude manners, he still has much yet to learn of how to treat a lady. To answer for him, my name is Lady Saline Freedmen. But please, call me Saline."

"Why! Aren't you a jewel?" Agnes said, blushing profusely, and laughing hysterically. "Did you hear her Nicholas? She called me a lady! Oh, my dear, I am no such thing, just a simple seamstress, but I must say, you are definitely right about Nick having no manners! Oh my, I haven't laughed this hard in a long time." Straightening, she decided that it was time for business. "Please forgive me Lady. Now what can I do for you on such a fine day?"

"We have come for you to make a gown for the Lady Saline." Nicholas replied, giving Clair a glair that clearly told her that he was going to talk to her later. "I was asked by my father to be an escort for the Saline at the ball tonight, so she needs an appropriate gown for the occasion."

"Then you have come to the right place. Now if you would not mind waiting out here, I shall take Lady Saline into the back to get fitted, and for her to pick out fabric. We shall hardly take up most of the morning.

As they walked out of the shop, Nicholas led Clair to a grove of trees at the end of the lane. "What where you thinking? You should have let me talk for you! What if you had let something slip? Then we would have been in a very tight spot. You are lucky that your father never lets you out of the palace walls, or else someone here might recognize you! I am not going to have my head chopped off because of your fool plan!"

"And what was I supposed to do? Stand there and act like a fool mute while you dig yourself into a whole the way you were acting? What would I have said while she was getting her measurements? She asked me about where I was from! What it was like to live in a manor, if I was related to any royalty! What should I have done Nick? Act like a girl with no brains in her head? Act like the stubborn demanding and bossy princess that I am? Is that what I should have done? Treated her like she was dirt? Look, I may have changed, but I am not an idiot. Everybody deserves to be treated with as much respect as I am given at home. You should try it sometime! Maybe you might even find a girl that likes you half as much as..." she cut off what she was going to say quickly.

"Half as much as who Clair? Half as much as who?" Nicholas demanded. "I can't believe I am even listening to you. You don't even know these people. The people that your father rules! You should, if you ever want to become a good queen! Oh, was I not supposed to mention that? Your destiny to become queen? I know you hate it, but I am sure that whoever you marry will just love to have all that power. What, you don't care for power? Oh my, have I offended you? Wait, where are you going? Stop! Clair!" he shouted as Clair raced on down through the grove until she was out of breath, but still, she kept walking until she found herself weeping next to a pond that had a waterfall cascading into it from a stream up the hill.

Am I truly that horrible? I thought that we were friends, but maybe it was just so that he could get his family higher up in my fathers favor. I can't believe that he would say such things! I bet that he doesn't even care that he hurt my feelings. Well I don't care about him, so why should he care about me? What was I going to say anyways, that he might even find someone who cares half as much about him as I do? What am I thinking? I don't care for him. That kiss meant nothing! I think that he is an incompetent fool who has no manners and doesn't care how badly he hurts others.

While she was sitting next to the pond, she didn't notice that someone was watching her. Since she didn't stir, the watcher decided to move a little closer, to see what she did, and how oblivious she was at the moment. As he moved, he accidentally brushed up against a bush with some birds in it, making them all fly out. He stopped quickly and dove behind a tree because he saw that Clair had noticed and was looking for who was behind her. "Who's there?" she asked. Frightened that she would not like the answer, Clair swiftly stood grabbing a stick to defend herself if necessary. "Who's there? I know I saw someone, so you might as well come out where I can see you before I come in there after you!"

Quickly stepping out from behind the tree, her watcher come out enough so that just his face was still hidden from the shadows. "Is this good enough Princess?" he asked.

"You know who I am? How did you find out? Do I know you? Your voice sounds familiar." she asked him.

"You should." he responded, stepping the rest of the way out of the woods. Gasping, Clair dropped the stick.