"But father, how are we going to get there?"

Rey braced herself as Plutt realised at this late stage, the day before the Royal Ball, that the old wagon just wasn't going to give the image a future princess should be aspiring to. He didn't want to be a laughing stock.

"Girl! Get into town and hire a carriage. Make sure it's cheap." He handed her a bag of coin that didn't have much weight to it. Even Rey could tell it was going to be slim pickings the day before the ball and with a tight budget. Plutt had invested heavily in his daughters' attire and the transportation aspect had been overlooked. The coffers were looking low and Plutt would need to be particularly underhanded to refill them again, if the marrying into royalty plan fell through.

Rey went to Mr Chewbacca's but as expected, he was fully booked, and Rey just didn't have the extra coin to be able to persuade him to cancel someone else in favour of Plutt. Besides there was no love lost between them both. It would take A LOT of coin to persuade him to do Plutt a favour.

Chewie however seemed to take pity on Rey.

"Look, I have one carriage, but I don't usually hire it out. It's seen better days and you had better hope the weather stays fine. It's not been used in some time. A bit of elbow grease will get it looking the part again. The horses I have left are unruly, and I have no coachmen left so Plutt will have to drive it himself. What you have will just about cover it."

Chewie wasn't kidding. The carriage was dusty, worn and the horses, Artoo and Threepio, seemed to be pulling in different directions. Eventually she steered the carriage, marked "Falcon", into Niima House's courtyard.

"What on earth is that?" Plutt bellowed as she was untethering the horses and settling them into the stables overnight with Beebee. Artoo was particularly frisky and badly behaved.

"It's all Chewie had left. Don't worry I can scrub it up."

The girls hearing the commotion came to the window. "Father, we can't go in THAT!"

Plutt whipped Rey soundly and after she'd served dinner, she was required to start cleaning the carriage and grooming the horses to make the best of what Plutt thought was a bad deal instigated by Rey herself.

Rey worked all night, brushing Artoo and Threepio and scrubbing the carriage as far as she felt able to without wearing the paint away. Once all the grime was cleared off, she had to admit from a distance the Falcon would look the part. Not up close though.

Her candle had burned low by the time she crawled onto her pallet and pulled the thin blanket over her. It felt as though she had closed her eyes for half an hour until the cockerel cried and it was time to get up and start what was likely to be a more exhausting day than usual.

She fed the animals and then went to begin the family breakfasts. She hoped if this plan went ahead Plutt might be able to afford more servants to make the load more bearable. Her mouth watered as usual, as she fried bacon, eggs and sausages, but she satisfied the ache in her own belly with the remains of a stale loaf and with leftover beef from the family dinner two days ago that had dried out and was on the turn.

After breakfast, Rey was asked what time the coachman would be arriving. "There is no coachman. Don't worry, I can drive. I've been driving the wagon for years."

"Absolutely no way," Plutt was the first to bellow. "You're going nowhere near that palace."

"Can you imagine, a girl coachman, scruffy and in rags? We'll be a laughing stock."

"Daddy, do something. How can you expect us to bag the Prince if we turn up like some country bumpkin from a backwater?"

Plutt seemed hassled and conflicted.

"It's okay. I can scrub up and dress as a boy." It's not as if she had much in the way of lumps and bumps to hide. If she tied her hair up it should be fine.

"Hmmmm..." Plutt thought long and hard. "Run to Teedo's. Tell him I'll pay him well if he borrows you some nice boots, breaches, jacket, shirt and a hat for the night. He's short and skinny enough. Should fit you. But you speak to no one while you're there. I won't have you reflecting bad on us."

"I won't."

Rey ran to town and found the ever unpleasant Teedo, who sneered and passed some sarcastic comment, but in the promise of payment provided her with a cream jacket with brass buttons, brown trousers, boots, a cream shirt that was probably white once, and a black, gold trimmed hat.

After the circus of petticoats, hair, accessories and make up was over and the girls and Plutt were having their pre ball nibbles and tea, Rey took herself off to use the left over tepid bath water and scrub herself as hard as she had the coach. Even she had to be fairly disgusted at the colour of the water afterward. She would empty it out later, when the rest of the household had tucked themselves into their feather beds.

Rey felt the nicest she ever had as she tucked her shirt into the breaches and then added her jacket. She put her hair up in three buns just peeking out under her hat. She felt smart and clean. Maybe this would be a good night after all for her, a break from her usual routine despite all of the extra work.

Talzin giggled as Rey headed into the parlour to help gather up belongings to load into the carriage which was now tethered outside the front door "Oh my God, you've actually pulled it off. You look like such a boy!"

Plutt seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "Good job. Let's go."