Shut Up, Cinderella

Too Early for Goodbyes

So...this is it, huh.

The journey was ending. There were no more shoemakers left to ask, no more trips to be made, no more clues to be found. After all this time, the three of them were back on the way to Cinder's hometown, there to part ways and say goodbye at last.

Cinder wished he could make better use of the time they had left: find something to talk to Gem about, anything to make the most of this final day before they parted for nobody knew how long. Embarrassing as it was to admit, he would miss him. He would miss this stupid prince when he was back in his workshop, returning to business as usual.

And becoming his normal self again, he reminded himself. Gem had been having too much of an influence on him. It was about time they parted ways; he couldn't go around getting attached and then missing people. Any more of this, and maybe he wouldn't be able to reverse the damage.

He understood all of that. And yet here he was, unable to shake that feeling of melancholy off his shoulders all day.

It was late in the evening when his hometown finally came back into view, and even later when, around a corner behind a group of pine trees, he caught sight of his house again. The lights were still on inside. Maybe Hestia was still up, or maybe his stepsisters had decided tonight was a good night to practice their needlework again.

Cinder suppressed a sigh. None of these three were even remotely a comparison for Sir Olive Steelsheen and Gemstone Crystalline.

"Alright," he said as they stopped before his house, hoping to make the cut quick and painless. "I guess I'll be off then. Thank you for—"

He cut himself off as his eyes landed on his clothes. Oh, right. He was still wearing Olive's knight uniform.

"We should...probably switch back first," he admitted.

Olive grinned. "True," she said. "And we can't do that outdoors. Can your family be trusted?"

Cinder glanced at the brightly-lit windows of the house, unsure how to answer. "I guess," he said. "But we don't have to walk in through the house. We can do the exchange in my workshop."

He swung himself off his horse, searching through his pack for the keys. But before he could get to the door, there was a sound of a window opening, and two heads poked out of the drawing-room.

"What's going on here?"

Cinder flinched. He didn't know what to hope for: that they had recognized him, or that they hadn't.

Thankfully neither Izetta nor Marietta did anything to betray their disguises. Instead they only turned to shout back into the house. "Mom, open the door!"

Cinder still tried to protest, but too late. The door swung open, and Hestia stood in the doorframe, regarding the band of travelers with growing confusion.

"Good evening, Mistress Hestia," Olive took over the talking. "We brought your son back. Don't say anything—we'll explain inside."

Hestia looked from one to the other, her eyes finally resting on Cinder in his princely getup. He squirmed. It was obvious that she recognized him, but he didn't want to know what she thought of it. The whole situation would require a lot and a lot of explaining.

And this is why I wanted to do it in the workshop, he thought in frustration as Hestia stepped aside and ushered the three of them in. Only once she had closed the door behind them did she burst out, "What on earth is the meaning of this?"

"Long story," Cinder said, trying to push past her. "We need to—"

"Cinder's home!"

There was a patter of footsteps, then Izetta and Marietta came dashing around the corner, and the room officially became overcrowded. "Where have you been for so long?" Izetta greeted him. "We thought something had happened to y—" She trailed off, taking in his costume. "Huh?"