Chapter 12

The royal entourage arrived in front of the large and old chateau. Akihiko felt something strange about the mansion. Like it had once been a happy place, but gold darkness had overshadowed it and its peace.

As he got up from the carriage, the double front doors opened and a blackhaired woman presented herself from the entrance. Two young boys followed behind her. Akihiko nearly gagged. He regonized those boys from the ball. Their outfits were hideous but not as bad as their ball suits.

"Your Highness," the blackhaired lady cooed, curtsying to the silverhaired prince. Her sons bowed deeply. "I am Madame Erina Fontenette-Takahashi and these.." She gestured behind her to the boys. "..are my lovely sons. Mizuki.."The grayish haired boy bowed again and smiled wide to the prince. "..and Sumi." The other grayhaired boy bowed. "What brings you here to our humble home?"

In the attic

Misaki was sobbing inconcolable. The mice brushed against him trying to comfort the small boy.

'Misaki..'

The boy looked up with tears in his eyes. There was no one in the room. But I swear I heard someone's voice coming from nowhere. It sounded familiar…

"Takahiro?.." He asked carefully.

'Oui Misaki. It's me.'

"But where are you?"

'I'm close by. Don't worry.'

"Why a-are you here?"

Takahiro's voice didn't answer right away. 'Look out of the window, Misaki.' He finally said.

Misaki was confused at what Takahiro said but stood up from the floor and walked to the small window. The glass was dusty and twisted from age but Misaki wiped it clean and looked outside.

"What is it that I'm supposed to be seeing?"

'Look down, mon petit.'

Misaki complied. Through the disorted glass, Misaki saw several figures standing there on the courtyard, which appeared to be men and horses. One of them was tall man who stood and was talking to Erina and he had silver coloured hair…

"Akihiko!" The boy gasped. "What is he doing here?"

'He came to find you, dear. But if you don't get to him now, he will leave and you will be stuck with your stepfamily for the rest of your life.' Takahiro explained.

"Takahiro! You have to help me." Misaki pleaded from the invincible voice.

"Non Misaki. I can't.'

Misaki didn't believe what he was hearing. "W-what do you mean you can't?"

'You're on your own with this. It is up to you to help yourself.'

Misaki was going to cry more. He wouldn't make it there on his own. He had always been too weak. He couldn't do it..

'Misaki, despite what you believe, you are not helpless. You have the power to be free, to make your own happiness. If you give up, Erina will take that from you. But if you try, you can prove to her, to the world and to yourself that you can be strong.'

The words seemed to have an affect on Misaki. His fury and fear faded away and they were replaced by a growing sense of determination. Rest of the tears dropped from his eyes and he smiled to his Fairy Godbrother even though he couldn't see him.

"Thank you, Takahiro." The boy said softly.

'Au revoir, Misaki.'

Misaki examined the window. It was sealed shut and it couldn't be opened. And he coulnd't pound it to get horsemen's attention. He had to escape another way.

The mice came to Misaki, clawing gently his trousers. Misaki looked down on them. "Do you guys have any ideas?"

To his surprise the mice started to scurrie around the room like they were trying to tell something that might help.

Outside

"Bonjour Madame." Akihiko greeted Erina. "I am looking for something very dear to me. Something that I lost two days ago. And I'm hoping to get it back."

"Oh, is that so?" Erina asked and turned to her sons with a devious look and then turning back to the royal party. "Well perhaps my children and I can help you with that." She gestured towards her house. " Do come in, Your Highness."

"Merci, madame." Akihiko said. Grand duke Hiroki followed suit with Nowaki helping him down and Hiroki blushing red.

In the parlor Erina told Sumi to fetch some tea. The boy pouted not wanting to do anything physical and was about to tell his mother to tell Misaki to do it, until a dark evil look from his mother silenced him. Scared, the boy scurried off to make some tea.

Hiroki observed the scene raising an eyebrow. "Do you not have any servants, Madame?"

Erina laughed lightly as though Hiroki had said something very amusing. "Oh we used to have several but they were a loss on our purse. We do everything by ourselves. Tragic but we get by."

She gestured the men to sit which they all did. Sumi entered, carrying the tea tray and walked precariously to the table in the center of the room. He looked relieved as he finally set the tray down.

"Mizuki." Erina said to the grayhaired boy. "pour some tea for these gentleman." The boy stood and did as he was told but not without a slight grimace. Once the tea was poured, Erina settled back and turned to the prince. "So, tell me, Your Highness, what is it that you have lost?"

Attic

The four mice brushed their soft furry bodies against Misaki's feet before scurrying across the room to the door. Misaki followed them, staring at his furry companions with confused eyes.

Kneeling down, he touched the mice one-by-one, encouraging them. "I don't know what you have planned or what are you trying to do, but I believe in you."

The mice rubbed themselves against the boys hand affectiontely and turned and squeezed their bodies underneath the heavy door.

Misaki watched on his knees beside the door and listened desperately for his friends. After ten minutes Suddenly the mice squeaked and then came the sound of scratching on the floor. He looked down and saw one of the mice squeezing under the door, struggling to pull something along with him.

Misaki reached with his fingers under the door and felt something thin and soft. He grasped it between his two fingers and pulled.

Misaki blinked. In his fingers he held a cotton sheet.

More scratching and squeaking came. Other mouse was pulling another sheet and pulled it inside the room. The other two mice came also with another sheet. Misaki stared confused about the mice doing.

Realization dawned to him. A wide smile formed to his lips. "You are geniuses, little ones."

In the parlor

"Well..It's not exactly a thing." Akihiko began. He didn't want to tell too much. His instincts told him that he couldn't trust this woman he was talking to. A quick glance to his friend Hiroki's direction told him that he felt the same.

Erina kept smiling. "Go on." She encouraged. Beside her the boys exchanged excited looks.

Akihiko continued. "You were at the ball two nights ago, madame, am I right?" He asked. Erina nodded. "At the ball I made an acquaintance with anextraordinary person. They left behind something rather important. I was hoping to return it to them.

"Oh?" Erina put on the most innocent look on her face. "I thought it was you who lost something, Your Highness?"

"Yes. I lost the person who I am referring. He turned to the boys. "You look familiar." He said causing the boys to go flustered. "I met you at the ball, didn't I? In the receiving line."

"Oui!" The boys shouted in unison, thrilled that the prince remembered them.

Attic

As the mice continued to bring sheet after sheet into the tiny attic room, Misaki was busying himself with tying the pieces together, end-to-end, creating a long rope.

Finally the rope was over twentyeight sheets long, knotted. Misaki hurriedly tied one end tightly to the door handle. It was old and heavy. It was guaranteed not to come loose.

Now all the boy needed was something to break the thick glass of window.

"You guys have anymore ideas?"

The mice sat on the floor, as though they had no thoughts. Misaki sighed, guessing he was on his own with this part.

He smacked his palm against his forehead, trying to come up with something. Come on, Misaki. You can figure this out. He thought inside his head. There must be something here that I can use..

Suddenly like magic he thought about his glass slipper inside the tiny chest. He rushed over to it dug the buried slipper from the bottom. He examined the shoe that Takahiro had given him. He looked at the heel. It was made of glass like the whole slipper but it felt really thick. It still looked like it would break if he hit the window with it. But.. If the slipper was made with magic, it was just the thing he needed.

Misaki stood and made his way to the window, slipper in his hand. He placed a hand on the glass, trying to find the weakest point. He took a deep breath and raised the shoe, the heel facing outward.

He brought it down as fast and hard as he could and striked the glass with a loud 'thunk'. Close examination showed that the edge of the heel had produced a tiny chip to the window's glass.

Encouraged, the small boy repeated the action and slowly the glass weakened as the glass heel chipped it away without breaking the important remembrance.

Downstairs

Hiroki heard a tinkling sound of shattering glass and lifted up his head.

"Did you hear that?" He asked Akihiko and Nowaki in a hushed tone.

Both of them heard the sound too but it was so faint that they thought it was their imagination. "I think so." Akihiko said also in a quiet voice.

"It was coming somewhere up." Nowaki said.

"Something wrong?" Erina asked the men.

"Um, nothing, madame", Hiroki replied.

"Is there anyone else in this household besides you and your sons?" Asked Akihiko.

Erina coughed a little before answering. "Why no, Your Highness. Just us. Why do you ask?"

"The man who directed us here said that your late husband had a son by his first wife, Madame Takahashi." The prince stated. Erina's face paled and Akihiko raised an eyebrow. What is she hiding?

"He..he ran off!" She cried. "Years ago!"

"Ran off?" Akihiko repeated.

"Oui! What an ungrateful rapscallion he was." Erina gained her anger back. "We did everything for him and how does he repay for us? By stealing money from us and running away! Spoiled child by his mother and father, I'm afraid."

"And you have no idea where he might have gone?" Akihiko kept questioning. "Did he sent some kind of letter? Did he made any kind of contact?"

"No. Goodness no. Bon Dieu knows where he is or if he's still alive!"

"How long has it been?" Hiroki asked.

"Six..no eight! Eight years, more like!" Erina was sickly white.

"How much money did he take with him when he left?"

"Oh, I don't remember. Maybe three or four hundred." The black haired lady was growing more troubled. "What does all of this have to do with you search?!" She barked, irritated.

Attic

Misaki wrapped the blanket from the old dusty closet and knocked the rest of the glass out of the windowpane. When the window was sufficiently clear of shards, he dropped the blanket and picked up the rope of sheets, tossing it out of the open window.

"Okay, little ones." Misaki said to the mice. "Time to get out of here."

He bend down and placed the glass slipper carefully in his pocket. The mice squeaked and waved at the boy as if saying good luck. Misaki waved and pet them before pulling himself to the sill of the window. Misaki took the rope tightly into his tiny fists, carefully slid from the window and swung off.

Misaki swung uncontollably with the makesifth rope and made a quiet scream, scared. His feet brushed the rough stone side of the tower. He moved his legs quickly and managed to get feet on the wall, leaving him in a half-bend position.

Hang on tight. He thought when he started to climb slowly down the tower wall.

Inside

"Forgive us, madame." Akihiko apologized half-heartedly holding his hand up. "We were merely curious."

"Bien." Erina said, flustered but regained herself. "Now, what about this person you are looking for, Your Highness."

Akihiko nearly rolled his eyes and grimaced. "I was hoping they lived here but… now I think that I should look somewhere else."

"I'm terribly sorry that I couldn't help you, Highness." Erina said with dignity. "But..before you depart, may I ask a question?"

Mon petit = Little one

Au revoir = Goodbye

Bon Dieu = Good God

Bien = Well