Hello dears! Looks like we're back for another exciting chapter of Kuki Enchanted! This story is almost at its end, and in turn, that makes me quite sad. This journey had been amazing. When my mother first found out about me writing this story on my IPhone she said that it was stupid. That I needed to stop writing fantasy and focus on reality. When she told me that, I thought that no one would review this story, but here we are, 97,432 words and 117 reviews later. And all I can possibly manage to say it thank you, so much, for all of your reviews and optimism, as well as your patience on the days I had writers block and could not think of anything to write.
You all are amazing, and I thank each and every one of you. I still go back and reread all of your amazing reviews.
And Un4getable, I might, I didn't think people still remembered that series, if more people ask me to bring it back, then I will. I'm glad you enjoyed that chapters!
Words: 4,145
Disclaimer: I don't own Codename: Kids Next Door or Ella Enchanted, I don't even own my own car.
Previously on: Kuki Enchanted:
At night, I searched my magic book for illustrations of Wally or anything written by him. I cared not if it was about his hatred for me, only to see his face. But the book fell open to pages written in Ayorthaian – written by Abba in her diary. I read eagerly, having been happy to read of how my friend was doing:
She wrote,
The inn has never had such important guests before. Prince Wally and his knights stayed here last night! Mother was so nervous; she backed into the trestle table while curtsying. It went over, and Aunt Eneppe's vase smashed into a hundred pieces. Mother, Father, I, Ecree, Emaurice, Ollo, and even Achada went down on our hands and knees, picking up shards of the glass so the prince wouldn't step on something. It was so crowded on the floor that I bumped into someone's shoulder. I turned to apologize; and I came face to face with the prince, who was crawling about on the floor with his knights with the rest of us.
The prince insisted on paying for the vase. He said it would never have happened if not for him making Mother so nervous. Then he apologized for knocking into me! I could not answer him. No words would come out. I could only nod and smile and hope I did not seem too much of a bumpkin. My hands accidently landed on top of a knights, Hoagie, hands. I have to admit, he was pretty cute.
At dinner, when I brought him his ale, I did manage to speak to him, perhaps because I truly had a question, not simply a wish to impress him. I told him I had been at finishing school when Kuki had ran away, and I asked if he knew whether she was safe. When I said her name, one of the knights called out,
"The ogre tamer. Whatever happened to her?" It had been Hoagie who asked the question.
The prince was quite for so long after my question that I worried I had offended him. However, when he spoke, he did not seem angry.
"You were her friend?" he asked. "You liked her?"
I told him Kuki was one of my best friends I ever had. He paused again, and I feared he would say that she had died or had been eaten by ogres. However, he finally answered that he believed her to be well and married to a rich gentleman. He added,
"She is happy, I think. She is rich, so that means that she is happy."
Without thinking, I blurted out, "Kuki doesn't care about riches." Then I realized that I had contradicted the prince!
"How do you know?" he asked me.
I answered, "At school everyone hated me because I wasn't wealthy and because I spoke with an accent. She was the only one who was kind.
"Perhaps she has changed," he said.
"I don't think so, your highness." I contradicted him twice! "One does not change like the winds."
That was the end of our conversation, and I shall remember it forever. I watched him all evening, before and after we talked. Before, he had talked and joked with his men. After, he spoke no more. Married! How could it be? I wish I could see Kuki again. Ask her myself what has befallen her. Where she and the prince not as close anymore as they were when we were in finishing school? Did they have some fight? I long to see her again. I know that Rachel misses her just as much as I do.
I wished I could see Abba and Rachel, too. I wished I could have seen Wally's face when she defended me, but no illustrations accompanied her journal.
December 27, the day of the first ball, dawned clear and mild, but by noon clouds had gathered and the wind had become sharp and cold.
My gowns were hung in Kami's wardrobe. The glass slippers Wally and I had found were safely buried at the bottom of my carpetbag. Since they would be hidden under my petticoats, there was little likelihood that Wally would see and be able to identify them.
Ace's preparations began after breakfast and continued endlessly.
"It's not tight enough, Kuki. Pull harder."
"Will that do?" My fingers were striped red and white from tugging at his collar. If he could not breathe, I was not to blame.
"Let me see." He bowed at himself in the mirror and rose, panting and smiling. "I shall be desolate if you don't remember me, Princess," he cooed at his reflection. Then he spoke over his shoulder. "Am I not stunning, Kuki? Don't you wish you could go to the ball?"
"Magnificent, ravishing. Yes, I wish I could." Anything to make him go.
Two hours later, after Sir Montgomery called him three times and threatened to leave without him, Ace had declared himself perfect and departed.
At last, I was free to bathe and dress. Instead of the kitchen soap I usually used, I helped myself to Sir Montgomery's store of bath oils and fragrant soaps. Kami produced a fleecy towel and a fine scrub brush.
"Tonight I'll be your lady-in-waiting," she said, pouring steaming water into the tub.
When your servant is your fairy godmother, you are never scalded, and your water never gets cold. You become sparkling clean, but the water never gets dirty.
I soaked away a year of cinders and grime and Sir Montgomery's orders and Ace's edicts and Nigel's demands. When I rose from the bath and stepped into the robe Kami held for me, I was no longer a scullery maid but the equal of anyone at Wally's ball.
My gown was a spring green embroidered with leaves of darker green and plump yellow buds. Kami had done her work well. In accordance with the latest fashion, my waist tapered to a narrow point, and my train trailed two feet behind me. In the glass, I saw Kami curtsy.
"You're lovely, Lady." She seemed close to tears. I hugged her. She squeezed me tight, and I inhaled the sweet smell of freshly baked muffins.
I turned back to the glass and raised my mask, which covered most of my forehead and half of my cheeks, with small holes for my eyes, the brilliant shade of amethyst stood out amongst the white of the mask. With half my head hidden, my mouth appeared strange and unknown, even to me. The transformation was thorough. With the mask, I was not Kuki.
Nor was I perfectly dressed. I had no jewels. My throat was unfashionably bare. But it would have to do. I didn't have to be the most elegant creature at the ball; I only had to see Wally.
When I ran down to our front door, I discovered that icy rain was falling in sheets. If I walked the quarter mile to the castle, I would be soaked. I could go to the ball without jewels, but not wet through and shivering.
"Kami! What can I do?" I asked in despair as I listened to the rain pound against the roof.
"Oh, sweet. You can stay home."
I knew there would be two more balls, and that it probably would not sleet tomorrow. Nevertheless, it might, and I had set my heart on going tonight.
"Isn't there some small magic – a fairy umbrella, something – that would keep me dry?"
"No, love. Not small magic."
The weather was such a stupid thing to separate me from Wally. Kami had not made the rain, but she could have ended it.
"I wish you were a real fairy, one who wasn't afraid to do anything." I had a mad idea and acted on it without considering its wisdom. I said the words Henrietta had taught me, "Henrietta, come to my aid." If anyone would think keeping me dry wasn't big magic, that one would be Henrietta.
"Kuki!" Kami protested. "Don't–"
The order came too late. Henrietta appeared between us.
She still looked old, but she stood straighter than the last time I had seen her, and many of her wrinkles had disappeared.
"Ahhh. Sweet child. You need my help." She smiled, and the young Henrietta shone through. "So long as it's not too big, I shall do what I can."
I explained how I was going to the ball, but had nothing to keep me dry.
"Going to a ball? Like that? No, it just won't do." She touched my neck, and it was hung so heavy with jewels that it took all my finishing school training to keep my head up.
Kami snorted.
"Perhaps it's too much for small magic," Henrietta agreed. The weight vanished, replaced by a thin silver chain from which hung a white lily made of the same kind of glass as my slippers. I felt a slight pressure on my head, and lifted off a tiara fashioned as a garland of the same flowers.
"It's beautiful."
Henrietta replaced it on my hair. "Now, you need a coach. That shouldn't be too troublesome."
"How can you call a coach small magic?" Kami demanded. "And horses, and a coachman, and footmen. People and animals! You have forgotten your lesson, Henrietta."
"No, I have not." She snapped, "I will not shape them from the air. I will form them out of real things. That should satisfy your scruples, Kami dear."
Kami grunted, which I knew was not agreement, but Henrietta continued gaily.
"Earlier this evening in Frell I spied The Crazy Cabbage Chum's cart filled with cabbages that he had harvested from the giants and sold them. A green coach will be very splendid."
A rumbling noise reached us. Outside, a mass, darker than the storm, took shape and grew larger. A seven-foot-high cabbage rolled toward us and came to rest in the street outside the manor.
I watched Henrietta. She muttered no incantations, waved no wand. For a moment, her gaze shifted, and she seemed to stare within, not out. Then she winked at me.
"Look, child."
The cabbage had been transformed into a gleaming coach with brass door handles and windows through which lacy curtains peeked.
"Mice will make plump horses," she said.
Six fat brown mice raced across the tiles of the hall. They vanished, and six horses appeared before the coach, and six lizards were transformed into footmen.
"They're wonderful!" I said. "Thank you."
She beamed.
Kami glowered. "Anything can happen, you idiot!"
"What can happen? I will make it safer. Kuki, child, you will have to leave the ball early. At midnight, your coach will become a cabbage again, and the animals will regain their original shape until your next ball. The tiara and necklace will disappear."
I would have only three hours with Wally. They would have to be enough.
"Maybe I should go with Kuki." Jack said, looking sheepishly and scratching the back of his neck. I hadn't even noticed he was there.
"What is your name?" Henrietta asked Jack. I thought she would have been mad at him for spying on us.
"Jackson Elliot Daniels, ma'am." Jack replied, standing tall, back straight. A pose I knew all too well, seeing that his brothers used it when trying to make an impression on girls. That boy really needed better role models.
"Well, Jackson Elliot Daniels, you will make a splendid coachman." She said, and with a wave her wand, Jack's attire changed to that of a coachman of the finest quality.
"Ah, how glorious to be young and going to a ball." And with that final word, Henrietta vanished.
Glorious! Yes, to see Wally. Nothing more. "Goodbye, Kami," I said.
"Wait!" She ran to the kitchen.
I stood impatiently and gazed outside. As I watched, a green carpet unfurled itself and rolled from the coach's door to ours. If I waited much longer, it would be wet and useless.
Kami returned with her umbrella, uncompromisingly black and with two bent spokes.
"Here, love. I hope you will not be sorry. I won't hug you and mess up your dress." She kissed me on the cheek. "Go now."
I stepped onto the carpet and Jack raised the umbrella over my head as we ran to the open door.
A few guests were still arriving when my carriage reached the castle. Before I emerged, I made certain my mask was securely tied.
I had been here before, as a week-old infant brought to meet my sovereign, but not since. The hall was twice as tall as Sir Montgomery's. Every wall was covered with tapestries: hunting scenes, court scenes, pastoral scenes. Along the walls to my right and to my left a line of marble pillars marched to the end of the hall. I tried not to gape. Soon I would be counting windows.
"Mistress . . ." A young squire offered me a glass of wine. It was delightful not to be a servant at this event. "The prince is greeting his guests. There is the queue." He waved at a file of courtiers, mostly women that wound from the huge double doors to the prince, a small figure at the far reach of the hall. Most of the women had already unmasked, so Wally would be sure to see their lovely eyes or classical noses.
Next to the queue of women awaiting to meet Wally, was an equally long line waiting to meet with his sister, Sydney.
The squire added, "They are each scheming to make the prince propose marriage on the spot" He bowed. "Dance with me, Lady. The line will wait."
An order. A group of musicians played near the prince, and perhaps a dozen guests danced.
"With pleasure," I said, pitching my voice a tone lower than usual.
My eyes kept straying from my partner. Wally smiled at each guest, bowed, nodded, spoke. Once he laughed. Making him laugh had been my domain. The damsel who caused the laughter was of middle height, slender, with blond, wavy hair cascading to her waist. She had removed her mask, but her back was turned, so I could not see her face.
Ace and Nigel and Sir Montgomery weren't in Sydney's line. They were probably off eating somewhere, but Ace would certainly return soon. He would not leave a room for long while Sydney occupied it.
My dance ended as the clock struck the quarter before ten.
"Thank you," I said.
"No squire can hold a lady's attention tonight." He left me.
Just over two hours remained. I retired to a chair at the edge of the hall, as close to Wally as I dared.
Three gentlemen asked me to dance, but I declined each invitation. I became simply a pair of eyes, staring through my mask at Wally. I needed no ears because I was too far off to hear his voice, no words because I was too distant for speech, and no thoughts – those I saved for later.
He bent his head. I loved the hairs on the nape of his neck. He moved his lips. I admired their changing shape. He clasped a hand. I blessed his fingers.
Once, the power of my gaze drew his eyes. I looked away quickly and noticed Ace, hovering a few feet before the room holding Sydney, his lips clenched in a fawning smile.
I scanned the room, and in shock, saw Aunt Morgan speaking with one of Wally's knights, Sir Ethan, I recalled. She was nodding her head politely, and then laughed. I knew it was one of her genuine laughs for her emerald eyes sparkled just as Father's would when he would laugh. I smiled to myself, leaving the sight of her, hoping that she would not recognize her old dress, or me, as I was still under orders from Mother not to talk to her again. And I couldn't ask Kami to counter command since Mother also told me not to tell anyone.
I moved on, finding Rachel and Nigel talking at one of the tables, Rachel risking glances from the corner of her eye, I followed her trail and saw Sydney and Harvey dancing! They really did make a cute couple. (My new pairing! I was so excited to get to this part of the plot line! EK!)
I looked over at the sight of Abba, dancing with Sir Hoagie. She was blushing madly as Hoagie talked.
My gaze filtered back to Wally, his query slowly dwindling.
He spoke to the last guest. Last but one, and I noticed who it was right away, it was Elizabeth, which meant that Eva was nearby. Then it dawned on me why Jack really wanted to come. (dear lord... this must be my curse!) If Elizabeth was here, then so would Eva. And Jack was alone. All I could think about was how I really needed to find that boy some better role models other than his older brothers.
Bang bang, bangity bang, bang bang, bangy bangity bang. I officially hated Barney Patrick Daniels for getting his stupid, and incredibly catchy, song stuck in my head.
My resolution to be unseen gave way. The last in line would be me. I rose and hurried to reach him before Elizabeth could pounce.
I curtsied. He bowed. When we both straightened, I found I had grown closer to his height.
"What is your name, Lady?" He smiled politely.
I found my voice with difficulty, making sure to speak a few octaves higher than my normal voice. "Catherine."
We were silent.
"Do you live here in Frell, Lady Catherine?"
"In Bast, Your Highness." I replied, naming a town near the Elves' Forest.
He looked past me, ready to move on. "I hope you enjoy the ball and your stay in Frell."
I could not let him go that easy. "Abensa ohudo. Isseni imi essete urebu amouffa." I spoke with a heavy Kyrrian accent.
"You speak Ayorthaian!" His attention was captured.
"Not well. I have an uncle who was born there. He is a singer. His voice can charm wood."
Wally's smile was genuine now. "I miss their songs. I was glad to leave, but now I miss everything."
I hummed a stanza of Abba's favorite song, a sad one, about a farmer whose family is starving. Wally joined me, singing softly. Near us, heads turned. I saw Elizabeth frown with her smile still frozen in place.
When we finished, he bowed again. "Would you favour me with a dance?"
Over all the others, I was his choice! I curtsied, and he took my hand.
Our hands knew each other. Wally looked at me, startled. "Have we met before, Lady?"
"I have never left Bast, but I have longed to see Frell my whole life."
He nodded.
The clock struck eleven.
The dance was a gavotte, too spirited for talk. Rapid movement was a relief in the midst of so much feeling. We flew through the hall, perfectly in step. Wally smiled at me. I smiled back, happy.
We separated. I twined arms with a succession of momentary partners – dukes, earls, knights, squires – and back to Wally. A final whirl, and the dance ended.
"I love a gavotte," I said, touching to make sure my mask was still properly in place. "The rush, the sweep, the whoosh!" What nonsense was I talking?
"It's the same with stair rails, the same feeling," he said. "Do you like to slide?" His voice was eager.
Stair rails! Did he suspect me? I forced a sigh. "No, Majesty. I am terrified of heights."
"Oh." His polite tone had returned.
"Do you?"
"Do I what?"
"Like to slide down stair rails?"
"Oh, yes. I used to." He used to? I hope that didn't have anything to do with me.
"I wish I could enjoy it. This fear of heights is an affliction."
He nodded, a show of sympathy but not much interest. I was losing him.
"Especially," I added, "as I have grown taller."
He stared. Then he laughed in surprised delight. I was a fool for behaving so much like myself. The clock struck the half hour.
Wally started. "Half after eleven! I've neglected my guests." He became the courteous host again. "Refreshments are in the next room, if you care to partake of them." He waved at an archway. Then, "I'll look for you later."
He hoped to see me again! Catherine, that is, not Kuki.
I hurried out of the hall. Outside, the sleet had stopped. The cabbage coach glistened in a line of black carriages. I climbed in, wondering where Jack was, probably still with Eva. Five minutes later her arrived, his face flushed and his outfit disheveled.
"You need better role models." I told him as he mounted the coach, waving me off with his hand.
When we arrived at home, Jack handed me out, remounted, and flicked his whip. The horses started off.
Okay folks, that's all for this chapter! I hope you enjoyed reading it just as much as I enjoyed writing it for your enjoyment.
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