Chapter Thirteen: The Story

"All right." Haru sighed, and rolled her shoulders a bit. Her mouth went grim, and began muttering. "Cinderella… Cinderella… Cinder- got it!" The human girl smiled triumphantly at the group, and began the tale.

Once upon a time, in a land that wasn't as far away as you'd think, there was a young maiden. She was lovely, to be sure, with pale lavender fur and sparkling eyes, but to be honest, she wasn't all that concerned about her appearance. Her heart was big enough that all who knew her could not help but to love her. The fair cat's father was a fish merchant, very well respected, and he doted on his only daughter, who had the semblance of her dear departed mother.

Baron's glance unconsciously slipped down to Elly's face before sliding back up to the storyteller's. He ordered his heart to be still, but it wasn't listening all that well. It usually didn't.

But then one day, tragedy struck. Her dear father's ships were sunk at sea, and his fortune was lost to the fathoms below. Overnight, he had become a poor man and a sick one on top of that. He sold everything he had to pay his debts, even surrendering his wonderful clothes so that he could afford a doctor. But alas, the physician was a fraud, and the poor maiden was left on the streets with a dying father.

"Fear not, my child," he whispered to her, even as the angel of death drew close to collect his soul. "Good things come to those who are patient, and you'll need to be patient in this cold world, my girl." He handed her a special pearl necklace, the very last thing of worth he would ever own. "Your mother wore this on our wedding day, and I promised her that you would one day wear it at your own. Please, don't lose it."

"Never, Father," she declared, wrapping the precious treasure within an unassuming rag, to stave off thieves. "I will wear it one day, I promise."

Thus comforted, the old cat died, right in his beloved daughter's arms. She wept, naturally, for she had loved him more than life itself.

After the worst of her grief had run its course, she herself buried her father. It was a long and laborious task, for truly, she had never done common work before. But after her father was safely buried, she was faced with the grim task of finding work for herself.

She went from door to door, begging for work in exchange for shelter, but no one wanted anything to do with this dirty vagabond. Her lovely lavender fur became matted and dirty, and the look in her eye became vague and lost as she slowly gave herself up to perpetual hunger, since her skills with fishing and catching game were barely enough to keep her alive.

One day, perhaps a few months or even a year after her father's death, she had wandered to a stone bridge, and had taken shelter underneath it for the night. She was cold, tired, and hungry, but there was little she could do about that. Overcome by the sorrows life had brought her, she cried helplessly into the rag that contained her mother's beautiful pearl necklace. So loud were her sobs, that she could not hear the gentle footsteps of a stranger until he had placed his paw on her shoulder in a gesture of comfort.

She jumped away from the touch, alarmed at being caught alone by a strange male. But his voice was calm, and his eyes compassionate. Slowly, with offerings of travel food and water, he extracted her tale of woe from her. So touched was he, that he persuaded her to come with him to the palace, which had been his destination before hearing her sobs. She was more than a little apprehensive about approaching the palace, but trusted the kind stranger as he led her through one of the servants' entrances, and came to a large white kitchen, filled to the brim with delicious scents and bustling servants.

With singleness of purpose, the alley cat was lead through the masses until she was face to face with a large white longhair, who was obviously in charge of the kitchens. Her friend spoke rather firmly to the longhair, persuading her that after the frail cat at his side was given a bath and a few good meals, she would be able to earn her keep. The head cook said good-naturedly that the new helper would be quite at home under her care.

Overcome with gratitude, the starving cat fell at her rescuer's feet, thanking him over and over. The stranger was a bit embarrassed at the emotional display, but bowed politely and promised to check in on her from time to time.

As if there was nothing more important, the head cook herself took the pale cat to the baths, and gave her enough fish to satisfy her monstrous appetite. After that, she was as good as the head cook's granddaughter.

Not that things were always wonderful. There were always floors to be scrubbed, fishes to de-scale, and soups to stir. Not to mention the countless nobles and royals that treated her as if she were invisible, or even a terrible nuisance for not performing duties fast enough. But after a few weeks, the lavender cat grew accustomed to her new life, and even found a bit of happiness. Her friend was as good as his word, checking in on her at least once a week, or even managing to find her when she was cleaning the ballroom by herself for an unwitting accident. But she didn't mind, he was a good friend, and someone she could confide in whenever her former depression began to creep back.

And he trusted her, too. Although he was usually evasive about the exact duties he performed around the palace, she knew his secret fears, and his darkest secrets. After a time, the lavender cat concluded that her feelings for him were extending a little too far than what was right and proper. She was a servant, after all, and although he was probably one as well, he was still a higher class than her. She sadly concluded that a future with this wonderful and strange cat was absolutely out of the question, and tried to put her feelings aside.

But then, it happened. There was a royal proclamation made to the entire kingdom, summoning all the eligible and unattached females to come to a ball in the prince's honor. The ball in question was a rather blatant excuse to pressure the prince into choosing a bride, for his father the king was growing impatient to become a grandfather.

The servants were busier than ever before, to prepare for the big night, and our lavender cat was no exception. Dismally, she remembered the parties she had gone to when her father was still alive, and wished for the chance to attend such a party one final time. The prince himself did not matter that much to her, for she had never personally seen him, but her heart and legs did so long to dance the night away.

But she had learned by now not to put so much trust in dreams. Some of the more confident servants were able to sew or borrow fine dresses with the intent to capture the prince, but she herself knew that it was hopeless. Even though she had been able to keep her mother's fine necklace, she had no way of producing a dress fine enough not to be laughed out of the ballroom.

But fate had a different plan in store for her. The night of the ball, the head cook pulled her aside, and began to speak in a fast whisper.

"I'll manage fine without you tonight, but there is a present waiting for you in your little room. Make haste while the night is young."

Confused by the cryptic remark, the lavender cat ran to her little room, and pulled the curtain shut behind her. She looked at her modest bed and gasped, for lying across it was a breath-taking dress that was so pale, one would think that it had been woven from moonbeams.

Overcome with excitement, she put on the dress and brushed her glossy fur until it glowed. In a moment of weakness, she retrieved her mother's beloved necklace from its hiding place and clasped it around her slender neck.

Now she was the equal of any girl at the ball. On soft steps, she made her way through the empty corridors, and subtly slipped into the ballroom through one of the smaller entrances.

The ballroom was alive with color, as dancers swept across the floor with beautiful grace. She couldn't help but stare, almost hypnotized by the lovely picture.

Dimly, she heard someone behind her ask for a dance. She turned around and gasped, for it was her friend.

But unlike the other times she had seen him, his clothes were the finest to be had, and there was a modest crown on his brow.

The prince smiled warmly, though a little guiltily, and asked her again for a dance. But, she was so stunned by her friend's true identity that all thought failed her. Familiar with her little quirks, the prince decided to sweep her off her paws and guide her onto the dance floor.

Despite her blank thoughts, the training of her youth gradually returned to her limbs, and she was able to dance quite well with her good friend.

Under his breath, so that the others would not hear, the prince apologized for keeping this last terrible secret from her, for he had been afraid for months that she wouldn't like him as a person anymore if he told her of his true standing in court, and even before his feelings for her had gone too far, he had enjoyed having a friend that honestly liked him without thought to rank.

It was he that had produced the gown she now danced in, and he who had told the head cook to pass along the cryptic message. His father had ordered him to find a bride at the ball, but in truth, he had already found her.

Right there, in front of the entire court, the prince got down on one knee, took his beloved by the paw, and humbly asked for the privilege of becoming her husband, for he had never given thought to any other girl.

By now, her mind had returned to working, and a thousand different emotions flowed through her like a cyclone. But there was a dominant emotion to these, and that was love.

To the prince, she said yes.

Haru looked at her captive audience with amusement, giggling a little. "That's the end of the story, by the way," she added.

Baron blinked, suddenly noticing that his lungs were on fire from lack of oxygen. He hit himself once on the chest to help the breathing process. "My, but you tell a good tale!" he finally managed to say.

Hashi grinned proudly, and slapped his sister's back affectionately. "That's my sis. You tell her a story, and she'll find a way to twist it to something new!"

"Wouldn't the girl have found out by then that he was the prince?" Thomas asked speculatively. "I mean, it's a little hard for them to be discreet."

"For the sake of arguments, let's say that the head cook had orders to specifically put her on tasks that would keep her away from the prince while he was being the prince," Haru offered. The young tomcat thought about the idea, but found nothing wrong with it.

Suddenly, Lily gasped. "How did it get so late?!"

Baron immediately cocked his head to the west, where the sun was slowly sinking behind the cattail grass. He chuckled a bit, and grudgingly got to his feet while gathering dishes. "Come along now. Time to head home." At least the basket would be lighter on the return trip.

Elly had fallen asleep halfway through the story, so Haru cradled her tenderly in her arms while taking soft strides, rather than waking the girl up.

As the Baron walked beside his nanny, and the children around them, he felt very content with how the day had been executed.

Like everything was the way that it should be.