Here it is, chapter 2! Please keep the reviews coming, they are greatly appreciated! Also I apologize for any grammar/spelling mistakes… you can proofread 5 times but there will still be stuff you miss!

(This chapter was updated on 6/2/2016)

When the King's Guard had been informed by their captain that the Mystery Princess had finally been found, there was an audible sigh of relief that swept throughout the group- relief that not only that they wouldn't have to continue searching, but also that their King could finally rest and be happy.

There was much to do to prepare to leave, seeing as now preparations would have to be made for the King's intended to live in the palace. Kit had asked that a closed carriage to be sent to the house, despite Ella's protests. She'd told him that she had her horse, and she'd be more than willing to ride it back, but Kit argued that in the carriage they could have a moment alone, one that would be nearly impossible to have at the palace. In the end, Ella decided it was no use arguing with the king, and agreed, as long as her horse was to return with them, and remain under her care, to which Kit readily agreed. It had not taken long for the carriage to arrive, but during the wait Ella made no effort to be anywhere near the house, in fact she outright avoided it.

She had been bold in her confrontation- if that was what one could call it- with her stepmother. She didn't expect to be treated with mercy, if the Lady Tremaine ever got her hands on her again. Even though she knew that she was now safe, being under the watchful eye of the King's Guard, but she still felt very uneasy.

And so, she stayed far away from the house itself, and instead took a walk with Kit around the property. She showed him the gardens, and though they were nowhere near as grand as the ones at the palace, they were beautiful in their own right. Kit asked her a few questions about her life here and there, mostly to keep up conversation. It was obvious, however, that he was holding back, not wanting to pry, and for that Ella was grateful. There would be plenty of time to get to know one another, but she did not want to spoil the moment by explaining her sad life story.

They walked through the gardens, and Ella began clipping flowers from the garden, here and there, and she set Kit up with the task of holding them as they walked. She was making two bouquets, and the king did not ask why. Ella, for her part, was astonished of how accommodating and supportive he was being to her. It had been so long since someone had truly cared for her feelings and well-being that she'd forgotten what it was like. As she walked along, choosing pansies and hydrangeas, snowdrop anemone and lilac, Kit patiently held his arms to receive them, even helping to arrange them, or at least trying, while they spoke.

It was mostly small talk, really, just getting used to the idea of knowing one another. The weather, the beauty of the flowers, Ella pointing out details of the house that she found important or brief anecdotes about her childhood. Occasionally Kit would touch on the subject of her circumstances, though only when he knew it would not pain her to speak of it.

"I hope I am not being impertinent," Kit said, "but I do want to understand fully. I am to assume that the woman inside not your mother, as she claimed?" Ella stopped walking for a moment, and picked a few roses off of the bush next to her.

"Yes and no. The Lady Tremaine is my stepmother, and Anastasia and Drizella are her daughters. My parents are both dead."

"I am sorry, Kit said, after a short silence, taking squeezing her hand gently. Ella returned the squeeze, before heading over to clip a pair of tulips.

"It's been years," she said, handing the flowers back to Kit, "but I miss them terribly. I think of them all the time, even now."

Just then, as they were approaching the well at the back of the house, Ella heard familiar chatter coming from that direction. She looked and noticed that the mice had all congregated in that area, falling over the top of one another to get a view of her visitor.

"There you are!" Ella cried to them. They squeaked and chirped at her, calling her over, and, in Ella's mind at least, asking to be introduced. She walked over to them, leaving Kit behind.

"I am sorry, who are you talking to?" Kit said, following behind her as she approached the well. She quickly turned to him and stood so that her back blocked his view of the mice.

"Well, they're my… friends," she said, slowly. Of course she wanted Kit to meet her animal friends, the mice, geese… lizards… but she didn't want him to think she was crazy, or worse, take pity on her that she had only had mice for company these past few years. The last thing in the world she wanted from Kit was pity. She couldn't imagine what he would think of her when she introduced him to the mice.

"But please, before I introduce them to you, I want you to promise me that you won't think I have gone mad or something."

"Why would I think that?" Kit asked, looking thoroughly confused, though willing to play along.

"Just please, promise," Ella repeated. Kit still looked bewildered, but nodded. With a smile Ella stood to the side to reveal the little family of mice that were her dearest companions.

"This is Jacqueline, Teddy, Matilda, and..." she laughed as a particularly large mouse made his way slowly up the garden gate, "Gus Gus." The poor dear had been carrying an abundance of corn, more than he could carry on his own, and it was causing him to struggle.

"These are your pets?" Kit asked, reaching out and allowing Jacqueline to climb up onto his hand.

"No, I never think of them as my pets. They're all I have for company you see, the mice and the farm animals." She didn't look at Kit, for she didn't want to see the expression on his face. "My mother used to tell me that all animals can understand and speak to us, we must only have the ear for it." Kit laughed as Jacqueline introduced herself to him, though Ella was sure he didn't really understand her quite yet. He set the small mouse back on the well.

"Your mother sounds like a wise woman," he said, before turning to look out to the chateau. He seemed to be lost in thought, perhaps considering Ella's origins and her parentage.

Ella looked in the same direction, only when she turned her head she saw her stepmother watching them from one of the windows in the sitting room. She turned her attention back to Kit and the mice and the flowers she was cutting, trying desperately not to show any weakness now that she had just found her freedom.

"It appears the carriage has arrived," Kit said, looking out to the driveway where, indeed, a carriage from the palace was sitting.

"So it has," Ella said, though not with much excitement.

"Are you ready to leave now?" he asked her.

There was still one thing Ella desperately wanted to do, and she thought that the'd have more time to do it. "No, I am not ready quite yet," she told him. Kit had a questioning look on his face. "You're not?" he asked. Ella shook her head.

"That is, if you don't mind, before we leave I would like to say goodbye… to my parents." Kit looked at her with a touch of sorrow and more than a touch of sympathy on his face. Ella knew that he shared her experiences with losing his parents, but it was comforting, in a way, to know that he understood. "They're buried under a tree just beyond that meadow," she said, pointing in the proper direction.

"Then by all means, lead the way, my lady," Kit said, offering her his arm (the one that wasn't carrying the bouquets). Ella was grateful, for she was not sure when, if ever, she might be on the property again. As far as she knew, it now belonged wholly to her stepmother. And she had no intentions of coming back as long as that woman still resided inside her beloved childhood home. Kit cracked a joke about his feeling like a debutante with his flowers and a lovely escort on his arm, and at least it did something to break the somber mood, if nothing else.

When they arrived, Ella took the bouquets that she and Kit had made earlier from his arms and placed them down at the feet of the gravestones. Kit had not come to join her, presumably to give her a moment, a gesture she greatly appreciated. Ella sat in silence for a moment before speaking.

"They would have loved you," she said to Kit, without turning around to look at him. And it was true, she knew it to be so. Her father would have had a grand time quizzing him on all of the things Kit had seen and done, the people that he'd met from far off lands, and so on. Her mother would vastly approve of him, but tease him all the same. Ella hoped that her parents were looking down on her and happy that she had found someone to cherish her after such long years of neglect.

She heard soft footsteps in the grass approaching from behind her, and then felt a reassuring arm wrapped around her shoulders. They stayed there in silence for a few minutes, listening to the chirping birds and sound of the wind rustling through the trees, lost in their own thoughts.

After a little while, the couple hear the trotting of a horse approaching them, and they turned around to see the captain approaching them. He addressed Kit with a slight bow of the head.

"Your Majesty, everything is arranged, and we are ready to depart on your command. Miss," he said, turning his direction to me, "Do you have any belongings you wish to take with you?" Ella thought for a moment. Did she really have anything she wanted to take with her? After her father's death, she had very little in the way of possessions. Most of what she had left was destroyed in a twisted act of vengeance by the Lady Tremaine. But there were still a few things she could still take to the palace.

"Yes, Captain, there are," she responded.

"Do you wish to have a guard assist you?"

"No, but I thank you. It's not much, and I can carry it all with me."

"As you wish, my lady," the Captain replied. "When you are ready, we will set off."

Kit told Ella that he would wait for her by the carriage, and Ella said a soft goodbye to her parents before setting off towards the house, head held high, and with much more confidence than she actually felt.

When she entered the house, there was no one to be seen, at first, and Ella preferred it that way. It seemed she'd already made her grand exit, and she didn't want another confrontation.

She snuck her way up the stairs of the attic, and though it took a while, she'd gotten used to it and was no longer out of breath from the climb as she used to be. She opened the door and headed straight to her loose floorboard, where she kept her most precious belongings. Her stepmother had destroyed her slipper and the beautiful paper papillon that her father had given her when she was young. But she had left some articles undamaged, whether because she didn't feel the need to or because she didn't feel they were worth anything anyway, it was hard to say. It didn't really matter to Ella. Her mother's miniature portrait was still there, perfectly intact, and so was the branch her father had left her. She also took with her a few old books (the ones she and her father had loved to read to one another), a few small pieces of jewelry that had once belonged to her mother, and her old stuffed rabbit, that she really only kept because it made her remember happier days. Perhaps she would give it to her own child someday. She took all this and put it in a worn canvas grocery sack, keeping the dead branch in her arms.

With that, Ella determined that she was ready to leave. She closed the window that had been left open from earlier, replaced the floorboard, and closed the door behind her. She supposed it was the last time she would see that room again. She walked down the stairs to the attic, and in turn down the stairs into the main foyer.

Ella stopped dead still at the foot of the stairs when she saw her stepmother looking back at her. It was awkward to say the least, as Ella had felt she'd said said everything that needed to be said to the woman. But they engaged in one last staring contest. Ella was surprised to find, upon looking into the Lady Tremaine's eyes, that there was a hint of fear in there, along with the hate and bitterness that she knew too well. What did she think would happen? Would Ella have a guard drag her to prison for mistreating her? Of course not. She would receive the same kindness that Ella had always attempted to show her. And so, clutching the branch to her chest and feeling the strength it gave her, she said nothing and walked out of the house. She held her head high and assumed the air of someone twice her age and a hundred times more important. She would never allow this woman to trample over her again.

"That's all you've brought?" Kit asked as she left the house.

"My most prized possessions," Ella told him, brandishing the branch in one hand with a broad grin on her face. Kit didn't say anything, only looked at her quizzically. "In time, I'll tell you all about it," Ella said.

"Your Majesty, are we ready to depart?" the captain asked. Kit turned to Ella, who nodded at him in contentment.

"Let's go home," he said, offering her a hand. With a deep breath, she took Kit's hand and allowed him to help her into the carriage.

Now Ella found herself in a lovely, spacious, and comfortable coach in the drive outside her house. It was nowhere near as grand as the one made from the pumpkin, but it was lovely all the same. She looked out the carriage window, her hands gripping the folds of her dress to keep from shaking. Had this really just happened? She could scarcely believe it. Mere hours ago she had given up all her hopes of ever seeing Kit again, of spending the rest of her life in servitude, of never truly finding happiness, and now she was sitting in a carriage with him, awaiting departure. It felt like a dream, even more so than the ball ever did.

"You don't have to be nervous." Kit said from his seat across from her.

Ella looked up at the king, the man who had just pulled her out of a life of torment and abuse and given her the hope of a happy future full of love. She gave him a sort of half smile and turned her attention back to the window. Now that her "happily ever after" seemed to actually be happening, she was too anxious to actually pay attention to him. She wasn't sure what she should be, if not nervous. She was to return to the castle with him. She was to, eventually, marry him, if they found that they still liked each other once reality set in. She would perhaps be queen one day. And just this morning she had resigned herself to never hope to leave the Tremaines. In fact, she half expected her stepmother to come running out of the house, to pull her back inside and punish her. For this surely couldn't be real.

Her concern must have shown more than she had hoped.

"Cinderella? Are you alright?"

This brought a smile to Ella's face. She hadn't told him her actual name, had she? She turned to him, a much more relaxed expression gracing her features and a twinkle of amusement in her eyes.

"Ella," she said, calmly.

"I am sorry?"

"My real name. It's just Ella, please. Actually, my proper name is Eleanor Ilene Beaumont. And I am fine, truly. Or, at least I will be." She smiled at Kit, and he returned the smile with a little chuckle. He leaned forward to her and took her hands in his own, looking into her eyes. Ella was sure she could get lost in eyes as blue as his.

"Alright then, Eleanor Ilene Beaumont. It's a pleasure and an honor to finally make your acquaintance." Ella giggled, before assuming a very dignified air.

"Likewise, Your Majesty. And the honor is all mine."

The couple heard a scuffle from outside. Apparently Ella's stepsisters had decided to see the carriage off, much to the abhorration of their mother. The Lady Tremaine called for the girls to get back inside the house, with all the grace she could muster in the presence of royalty, but Ella knew better. She'd be shrieking at them if the king weren't there.

"Goodbye!" they called to her, running out of the house just as the coachman was about to embark. Ella felt as though, in that small farewell, she had a little touch of forgiveness and closure with the two girls whom she had called 'sister'. She waved at them through the window, offering a gesture of forgiveness. Perhaps it was because she was not as bitter towards them as she was towards her stepmother, but she felt that she would not hold hard feelings towards the girls, should they ever meet again.

After what seemed like an eternity, the driver urged the horses to move, and the carriage lurched forward as they made their way off towards the palace. Ella looked back, back to her childhood home that had been the host of happiness and sorrow, and felt a tear in her eye. She blinked it away, not allowing any sadness to ruin what was to be the beginning of her happily ever after.

She felt a gentle hand squeeze hers, and she realized that Kit had moved over to sit beside her. She was glad of the comfort, and though she knew that he didn't fully understand her feelings at that moment, she promised herself that she would tell him, eventually.

"So," Ella began, hoping to change the subject, "What will happen, once we get back to the Palace?"

"Unfortunately, we will have to separate for a while. You'll be given a quick tour of the grounds and be shown your rooms, you'll meet some of the staff, you'll be introduced to your ladies in waiting, and then we will see each other again for dinner," Kit replied. "It'll be just us." Ella nodded, a little absently. Her nerves were beginning to return, and she felt butterflies in her stomach at the very thought of it all. She felt as though she could survive all this, with Kit at her side. But what would she do without him? How would she manage? Of course, the rational part of her knew she would be all right. There was nothing that she could not do if she only had courage and remained kind to those around her, and she was a perfectly capable young woman. But her entire life was changing, and Kit was the one thing she felt as though she could depend on.

The carriage ride didn't take very long, after all it wasn't really a long distance between her humble chateau and the immense properties of the palace. It had only ever seemed so far away to Ella because she never dreamt of ever seeing it up close.

It took quite a while for the entire Royal party to make its way down the long lane that led up to the Palace. When they arrived, Kit helped her out of the carriage, a small smile playing on his lips the whole time. He looked like he could barely contain his excitement, and Ella wondered what on earth he was thinking.

The Palace looked completely different in the daylight, without the fineries and trappings that a ball brought about. When Ella had been there the last time, the gardens were lit up by the light of the moon, there were fireworks lighting up the skies, and the very air seemed to be filled with magic. Now, the Palace stood regally in the bright spring sunlight, and Ella couldn't help but feel a bit intimidated at the thought of calling this magnificent place home. It was so… big. So grand. And she felt so small and insignificant in its presence.

But more immediately frightening was the sight in front of her. Nearly the entire royal staff had come out to welcome the King and his Mystery Princess back. Ella supposed the news that she had been found had caused an uproar with the staff, and she was sorry for it. They all stood, patiently and very still, waiting for any word. Ella wondered what on earth she must look like to these people. She didn't even look like a member of the staff- no, they at least had decent clothes and uniforms and weren't dressed in what practically amounted to rags. They didn't have a cloud of soot covering them night and day that took hours of scrubbing to remove (well, the chimney sweeps did, but that was to be expected). And she was to be their future queen, the cinder girl who looked like she'd just rolled out of the gutter.

Holding hands with Kit, they both approached the staff, where they were greeted by the head butler and the housekeeper. Ella fought hard to only focus on the woman in front of her, and not look at the appraising stares she was certain she would receive from the rest of the household.

"Your Majesty," the head housekeeper said, offering a low curtsy in Kit's direction. "Welcome back. I trust your search went well?"

"Mrs. Greyson," Kit said, greeting her with a nod of the head. "I would like the pleasure of introducing you to Ella Beaumont." Ella gave a small curtsy, trying to be as dignified as it was possible to be, not wanting to make a bad impression.

"My lady," Prudence said, curtsying to Ella in turn. "It is an honor. I would ask that you call me Prudence. We'll get to know each other very well, I should think." Though her words were welcoming, her tone was haughty and a little cold. Prudence was a tall, wiry woman, with a sharp chin and even sharper nose. She wore her hair in a tight bun, and she had the look of a woman who would take absolutely no nonsense, even from the king himself. She could not have been much more than 10 years Ella's senior, but her demeanor gave off the air of someone much older and wiser than anyone else in the room. A matronly figure if Ella had ever seen one.

Yes, she was an intimidating sight to behold, but Ella could sense a hint of kindness and sincerity in her eyes. She could tell that this was a woman who cared, though she didn't like to show it often.

"Thank you, Prudence," Ella responded in kind. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance".

The butler approached behind Prudence, offering a stiff, formal, no-nonsense bow to Kit and Ella. This man was also wore his authority in a dignified manner, and Ella was sure that the rest of the staff must both fear and admire him. He had dark brown eyes that were shrewd and all-seeing. He was not a tall man, but the way he carried himself made him seem twice his actual size. His greying hair conveyed the sense of wisdom and paternal guidance that made Ella believe he was a force to be reckoned with in the royal household.

"Your Majesty," he said, stiffly but somehow warmly. Kit gave a quick nod to him, and turned to Ella.

"May I present the Head Butler, Rupert." Ella curtsied to him, and tried not to appear like a frightened child. She gave him her kindest look, and though this Rupert did not seem an unpleasant sort of man, he seemed to look perpetually cross. Ella hoped that there was the same kindness in him that she saw in Prudence. Perhaps he grew warmer upon getting to know him. Standing up, Rupert spoke.

"Now, if you two would follow me, I'll show the lady a bit of the palace and we can all prepare for dinner."

Ella was silent as she followed behind the two, Kit ever at her side. The couple was led through the main gates, up the large staircase, but not through the corridor to the left that lead to the main ballroom, where Ella had gone the night of the ball. From there, they were lead through a huge set of solid wooden doors into the Great Hall.

The Great Hall was immense. It was the largest room Ella had ever seen. The floors were made of polished marble. There were tapestries hanging from the walls that must have dated back several hundred years. On each of the large pillars hung the blue and gold banner of the royal family. There were windows reaching from the floor to the towering ceiling, letting light pour in from all directions. Ella was stunned as they walked through, Prudence's voice echoing as she was giving a speech about the history of the palace.

"Well? What do you think?" Kit asked in a hushed tone, as they strode behind Prudence.

"It's… overwhelming," Ella said, looking up at the incredible mural on the ceiling, and suddenly feeling very small. "But it's lovely."

"You'll get used to it," he said. "I hope it won't be long before you consider this your home." Ella gave him a smile and he returned it warmly. She discreetly wove her arm around his, trying to convey how happy she was to be there. It was obvious that Kit sought her approval of his home, and she wanted to put his mind at ease.

"And now, my lady, if you'll just follow me. I'm sure His Majesty has much to do. You'll be shown to your rooms and cleaned up to be presented tonight after dinner for the announcement of your betrothal."

Announcement? Were things really moving that quickly? She was to be presented as the future queen later the same day? Well, she supposed it could be worse. She could be marrying Kit that very day, she supposed, though it seemed a ridiculous notion. Then again, what was ridiculous at this point? Her entire world was changing, far too fast for her to control.

"Go on," Kit urged her. "You're in good hands."

Ella took a deep breath, looked once more at the king, and then turned to follow the housekeeper out of the room, wondering just what on earth she had gotten herself into.