Sinderella

Chapter Eight: Exposed!

Returning to the ballroom, Cinderella stopped by the refreshments station for a drink. She grabs a glass of fine sparkling cider, which she took to the side of dance floor to drink. As she drank her cider, she watched some of the guests dance on their own on the dance floor. The cider was the sweetest tasting drink Cinderella had ever tasted, so she was quite disappointed when she reached the bottom of her glass.

She made her way back to the refreshments station for another glass of sparkling cider and maybe a sweet roll or two. As she approached the station, she saw the back of a young woman wearing a very familiar ballgown standing in front of her. It was Sabelina, wearing Cinderella's original ballgown. Seeing Sabelina in the ballgown that she designed made Cinderella extremely angry.

Trying to avoid confrontation, Cinderella swiftly made her way to the refreshments station. As she was selecting a sweet roll, Sabelina noticed her but of course did not recognize her.

"Hey," Sabelina began, unaware that she was speaking to her sister, Cinderella "I saw you dancing with the prince."

"Oh?" Cinderella replied, not knowing how to respond to her sister's comment. "Yes, that was quite a dance. That prince is certainly an excellent mover. Where is that prince anyway?"

Sabelina told her that the prince had begun to meet with the other maidens, which Cinderella still assumed was just a formality. In Cinderella's mind, Jonathan had already selected her as his future bride. Sabelina and Emmelina did not care about meeting the prince, so they did not reserve their spot.

"I got to meet with him before he started." Cinderella bragged. "I think there might be a good chance that I could become queen."

"That is what all the maidens are saying." Sabelina replied. "I have spoken with a few of the girls who have met with the prince. Each girl seems to feed too much into their meeting. It is like they assume that their one meeting with the prince means that they are a match made in heaven."

Cinderella and Sabelina continued to talk about the prince and the ball. Of course, Sabelina never entertained the idea that she was talking to her sister who was in disguise. Cinderella was still bothered that Sabelina was wearing her dress, so she finally asked her about her outfit.

"Where did you get that dress?" Cinderella asked, pretending not to know the dress.

"Oh, this dress?" Sabelina aked. "It is kind of a long story. My sister Cinderella designed it for herself to wear. She was supposed to come with me tonight, but she could not make it."

When Cinderella, in her guise as Priscilla, asked Sabelina about what had happened, Sabelina told her what had happened as though she were talking to a stranger. Not wanting to blow her cover, Cinderella agreed that she had deserved the discipline she had gotten.

The two girls parted ways and Cinderella began to explore the ballroom. Cinderella was astounded by the elaborate architecture of the ballroom. The ballroom had a very high vaulted ceiling and the walls were decorated with hand-carved and painted murals. The room had excellent acoustics, so the orchestra's music carried across the entire room. The orchestra began to play again, so Cinderella stepped up to watch them play their music.

The orchestra was made up of a string quintet, an organist, a percussionist, and a harpist. The orchestra was made up of both men and women who worked in the palace serving the royal family in various areas. The instruments were the most beautiful items that Cinderella had ever seen. Adding to their physical beauty, the music that emanated from the instruments was the sweetest tune she had ever heard.