A/N: Hey! Sorry it took so long to update, but I have my slow season going. Thank you for all of the reviews (this story has gotten more reviews than my other stories combined!) and thank you for pointing out that little slip CocoRocks and thank you for the name suggestion FlutePower, I'm going to think about it although it most likely going to be the princes name :) My head is strangely completely empty when I think about him. Okay, on to the story. Hope you like it even though much doesn't happen in this chapter.

1.

Cinderella followed her savior through the heavy wooden door to a beautiful entrance hall. Sand colored walls and warm shades of orange made the room very friendly. This was a wealthy home she could see. She turned her gaze towards the man, who was hollering something in his own language. He was middle-aged and quite tall, one of the tallest men Cinderella had ever seen. He had a brown skin, black hair and beard and a face that seemed to smile often. His dark brown eyes appeared to twinkle cheerfully like he knew some grand joke that no one else had ever heard of.

The man turned to look her. "This way, my dear", he said in a deep, heavily accented voice."Let's get you some better clothes."

Cinderella nodded carefully and followed him upstairs. He led her into a comfortable looking room where a young maid was waiting with neatly folded clothes in her arms. The man left Cinderella in the room and the young woman put the new clothes into a nearby table and motioned Cinderella to come closer.

Cinderella smiled uncertainly and was relieved when the smile was returned. The maid helped her undress and then dress the new clothes on. After she was done, the maid motioned Cinderella to follow and lead her to another room, this one bigger than the previous. It seemed some sort of office. The man who had brought her here was sitting behind the large wooden desk and raised his head hearing them enter.

He smiled warmly and said something to the maid who left the room.

"Please, sit", he said and pointed to a chair in front of the table across from him. "Are you hungry?" he asked as Cinderella sat now pointing a tray filled with fruits, biscuits and other small snacks. Cinderella nodded and moved to take a few fruits and biscuits nibbling them slowly.

"Now, my name is Yari Behren and I am a merchant and mostly dealing with the elethians in case you were wondering how I know your language", Mr. Behren started crossing his hands on the table in front of him. "As I said before, I have no intention to hurt you. You are safe here."

Cinderella nodded. "Thank you."

Mr. Behren smiled her warmly. "Then would you mind telling why you are here? With nothing, but your clothes on?"

Mr. Behren looked concerned. Cinderella bit her lip and looked at her hands in her lap. Why was he concerned? He didn't even know her. And probably wouldn't even want to if she would tell him how she had gotten in here in the first place. Magic wands, fairy godmothers and evil stepmothers didn't exactly sound very believable. But on the other hand, what did she had to lose? Making up another story wouldn't work very well, she had never been a very good liar.

Cinderella sighed and started on her story. She told him everything from the beginning, of her family; her stepmother and two stepsisters; of the ball where she had gone with the Godmothers help, how she had fallen for the prince but had to leave at midnight. And how she had lost her glass shoe and how the prince had tried to find her by making every woman in the kingdom to try the shoe. At this point Mr. Behren looked at her amused and commented about the weird customs of her people. Cinderella had smiled and agreed. It was a little unusual.

She however sobered up quickly when she continued her story to the part where everything had gone wrong. When Stepmoter had gotten the Godmothers wand and made the shoe fit for Anastasia. And when she had tried to fix what had happened she had ended up deported. And that was how she had ended up in the alley where Mr. Behren had found her in trouble.

Cinderella stared at her hands again finishing the story. shifted in his chair while pondering about the young woman's story. She hadn't had the easiest life. Mr. Behren wanted to help her, he knew what it was like, when life treated you unfairly.

He nodded to himself and looked at the girl. "Let's see what I can do to help you. I'm sure I can think of something."

Cinderella raised her head surprised and stared at Mr. Behren with wide eyes.

He smiled amused at her surprise. "Now, what is your name? You haven't yet told it."

"I'm –", Cinderella stopped. She didn't want to be Cinderella anymore. That name reminded her of so many bad times. In here she wanted to start over, become something else than a miserable little girl treated like a slave. She straightened her shoulders and looked Mr. Behren straight to the eyes. "I am Rella."

…

Rella was standing at the door of their cabin wringing her dress sleeves slowly. She was nervous. They were just docking to the pier in the harbor of Elethia's capital city. This was the same place she had left six years ago. No, not left, sent away. She wasn't sure how well she would take it, seeing all the familiar streets and buildings. She might even recognize some of the city's people. She had run many errands for her stepsisters and stepmother and had gotten to know many people. Rella doubted however that any of them would recognize her anymore. She would look very foreign to them she supposed.

The door opened and Rella found herself face to face with Falad. He raised his eyebrow and Rella smiled reassuringly to him. "I'm alright, just a little nervous."

Falad nodded. "Good. Come, our ride has arrived."

Falad offered his arm to Rella and she took it. "Our ride? I didn't know we would have one."

"The ambassador of Derr'eshaan has arranged it. Our quarters are in his house", Falad explained.

Rella looked at her husband surprised. She didn't remember hearing any of this. "Oh dear, I haven't been paying much attention, have I?"

Falad chuckled. "Well you've had lot in your mind."

Rella nodded in agreement and looked around her more closely. They were walking down to the pier and Rella wanted to see how much the harbor had changed since her departure. It had been ironically a cloudy and gloomy day then, like there would be starting a storm any minute. Today, however, was a very sunny day, the harbor was full of busy people and fishermen selling their days catch. There were merchants dealing with the captains, ships whose cargo was being unloaded and ships were coming and going in a quick pace.

Rella's eyes stopped to see a carriage which bore the seal of Derr'eshaan in its doors. That appeared to be their lift. Falad noticed the carriage at the same time and they headed to it. Their luggage was already loaded at the roof.

A lackey opened the door and Falad held out his hand to help Rella to the carriage. Rella seated herself comfortably next to the window and looked outside waiting for them to leave. Falad sat next to her and knocked the wall in front of them to signal the driver that they were ready to leave. The carriage jerked forward and started gradually moving in the cobblestone street to the center of the city.

Rella peeked out of the window and studied her old home. It hadn't changed much, people she had known were older and some new buildings had been built or old ones repaired. While they were moving Rella pointed various places she had visited to Falad who listened carefully. He had never been in Elethia before and he was most interested.

The journey wasn't awfully long and they reached their destination in no time. The area where all the ambassadorial houses were was unfamiliar to Rella as well and she stared at her surroundings observantly. The few dozen houses were all different architecture depending from which country the ambassador came, so when Rella and Falad stepped out of the carriage at the Embassy of Derr'eshaan they felt like had suddenly teleported themselves back to their homeland.

At the main doors they were met by the ambassador Garma himself. He was a mid-height, round man with enormous mustache and a very loud voice. He welcomed them to the embassy with open arms and made a servant show them their quarters before inviting them to dinner.

They ate and talked long into the night, the ambassador wanting to hear from his home and Falad and Rella needing to hear about Elethia. What they heard made Rella somewhat confused, she wasn't quite sure how she should feel. Apparently lady Tremaine still possessed the Godmothers wand and Anastasia had been married to the prince without any more complications once she was out of the pictures. What Drizella was up to, she didn't find out but she had a distinct feeling that she would. And now that she thought about it, she had never found out what had happened to the Godmother either.

Maybe, now that she was here again, she should find out.