Cinderella: Ninja Warrior (28 page)

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Authors: Maureen McGowan

Tags: #Fairy Tales & Folklore, #Juvenile Fiction, #Adaptations, #Interactive Adventures

BOOK: Cinderella: Ninja Warrior
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“I feel sure we’ve met before,” Ty said as he bowed slightly toward her stepmother. “In any case, I’m delighted to meet Cinderella’s family.” He sent Cinderella the briefest of mischievous glances before turning back to her stepmother and continuing. “She’s quite enchanting, if hard to track down. I’ve been hoping for a dance with her all evening.”
“I didn’t realize you were acquainted,” her stepmother said through gritted teeth.
Cinderella felt sure that at any moment fire might fly from her stepmother’s eyes.
“Cinderella,” her stepmother said, her voice dripping with icicles,“you are a selfish girl. You really must introduce your sisters to the prince.”
“Yes, of course.” Cinderella looked at Ty, starting to think he really might be the prince.
Ty turned to her stepmother and said, “Madam, if your other daughters are half as charming as Cinderella, I should very much like to meet them. Might you locate them for me right now?”
“Oh, yes, of course.” Her stepmother bowed and curtsied as she backed away, but still managed to sneer at Cinderella.
It was no matter. The happiness surrounding Cinderella formed a shield. Whether Ty was a messenger or a hunter or a prince didn’t matter; she’d found him.
As soon as her stepmother had gone, she turned to Ty. “Are you
really
the prince?” She looked up at what had to be a genuine royal crown ringing his tied-back blond curls, then backed up a step. He was the prince—and he’d lied. “You tricked me.”
“Not on purpose. But I am sorry. Can you forgive me?” He reached for her hand.
She resisted the temptation to pull her hand away, and her fingers felt small and warm as he held them.
“I’m so sorry I deceived you,” he said. “I can’t see the kingdom, not really, unless I go out in disguise. It’s amazing how no one recognizes me when I’ve got my hair down and I’m not wearing all this finery.” He ran his hand down the front of his velvet jacket. “Dressed as a servant, or beggar, or hunter, most people dismiss me, and don’t bother to notice my resemblance to, well, myself.” He grinned. “Helps that I borrow clothes from different people all the time, too.”
Cinderella couldn’t imagine ever seeing Ty’s eyes, his kind smile, and the sharp, strong angle of his jaw without instantly recognizing him. She winced as she remembered how incredibly rude her stepmother had been to Ty over the past few days. She marveled at how polite he’d been to her now.
Speaking of her stepmother . . . “I understand what you mean about some people not seeing past clothing or circumstance or what job you hold. It just happened to me.”
“What do you mean?” He rubbed his thumb over her knuckles, sending a spark of joy through her that warmed her cheeks.
“My own stepmother has seen me every day since I was five years old, yet she didn’t recognize me tonight, dressed like this. Not until you said my name.”
A look of shock flashed over Ty’s face and he pulled her closer. Her skirt brushed against his clothing.
Ty looked into her eyes, and Cinderella felt as if more than their hands were touching. Her heart thumped, her breaths quickened, and her chest rose and fell. The air had suddenly turned thicker and sweeter this close to Ty.
“Your stepmother must be as blind as she is rude.” His voice was low and deep. “Your beauty shines through, no matter what clothes you are wearing.”
“My stepmother’s never seen me in anything but rags.”
“Really?”
Cinderella nodded and bit down on her tongue. If she slipped and told him about the entrapment spells, they’d both be turned to stone, and there was no assurance any wizard could break her stepmother’s black magic.
Taking her hand, Ty led her into another room, farther from the ballroom. “I don’t want us to be interrupted if your stepmother finds your stepsisters. You’re the only member of your family I want to talk to tonight.”
She couldn’t stop smiling. “Are you really the prince?” She mostly believed it, but wanted to be sure . . . and change the subject. There was no way she would let her family taint her thoughts.
“Disappointed?” His brow wrinkled.
“Why would I be disappointed?”
“Well, I heard from a reliable source that the prince is stuck up, not to mention a jerk who expects any girl he meets to immediately fall at his feet.” He gave her a dimpled grin.
Her cheeks grew hotter and she averted her gaze for a moment. “I’m sorry. I was wrong to make assumptions. Can you forgive me?”
He cupped her cheek. “I might forgive you if you grant me a kiss.”
Her breath hitched and the world seemed to spin around her as if she were lost in space and time, floating, caught up in magic, although she felt sure no spell had been cast.
His lips brushed over hers, soft as a butterfly landing, and her body instantly arched to close the distance between them. His hand shifted to her lower back, rested there, and their lips pressed together more firmly. Being in Ty’s arms felt more wonderful than anything she’d felt in her life. Exciting yet safe, powerful yet gentle, foreign yet home.
“Excuse me, Your Highness,” a voice said, breaking though the heavenly haze. Ty’s lips lifted from hers.
Nerves suddenly overtaking her, she stepped back and ran her hands over the bodice of her gown, hoping to quiet her pounding heart, which surely everyone could hear. The man who’d interrupted was dressed in a uniform like the one Ty had been wearing when they first met.
“What is it, John?” Ty asked the intruder, while his intense gaze, so deep she felt it inside her, never left Cinderella.
“The king and queen have requested your presence in the ballroom,” the messenger said.
Ty stepped closer to Cinderella, and regret came through his smile to his eyes. “I must step away for a moment, but I expect a dance from you later—several, in fact. Alas, for now, duty calls. Will you please excuse me?” He kissed her hand.
“Of course.” If anyone understood obligations, Cinderella did.
“On second thought,” he said, “come with me. It took so long to find you, I’m not letting you out of my sight again.” He took her hand.
Suddenly, she glanced up to the grandfather clock at the side of the room and gasped. “I have to get home.”
Sadness crept into his eyes. “But we haven’t even danced.”
Although she couldn’t dance, although she hated the idea of all those eyes in the ballroom upon her at once, she couldn’t imagine anything sweeter than being back in Ty’s arms and twirling around the dance floor. But she had less than thirty minutes to get home.
“I really must leave,” she said.
“Don’t be silly. It’s not even midnight.” Ty grabbed her and spun her around so quickly she burst out laughing. “Besides, you need to be here when I announce my choice of bride.”
Her cheeks burned, the back of her throat caught, and her heart galloped wildly. Surely he didn’t mean he’d pick her, but if not, mentioning it like this would be cruel—and Ty was not cruel.
She looked into his eyes. “I’d stay if I could, but it’s crucial I arrive home by midnight.”
“More important than this?” He leaned forward, his face close to hers. She thought he might kiss her again, right in front of the messenger, but Ty only winked.
“Do you really have to leave now?” he asked.
“If I don’t get home by midnight . . . it’s a life-or-death situation.”
Life or mouse, anyway.
“But I can’t explain.”
“Does this have to do with your stepmother, perchance?”
Cinderella looked down and clutched the fabric of her dress.
He pulled her hands from the dress and held them. “I know you’d stay if you could.” He turned to the messenger. “ Tell my parents I’ll join them shortly.” He leaned in close to whisper into Cinderella’s ear. “But not until I arrange for someone to escort you safely home.” He signaled to a footman, who nodded and darted off.
“Thank you.” Her heart swelled. In one of his carriages, she’d arrive home in time to save Max.
“And with your permission”—he shot her a nervous grin as they walked hand in hand toward the front entrance—“I have something important I’d very much like to discuss with you. Something related to the announcement I’m supposed to make.”
As they stepped outside, her heart nearly burst with joy, but she tried not to raise her expectations too high. The idea flashing through her mind—that Ty might actually chose her to be his bride—seemed outrageous, given her standing in society, or rather, her lack thereof. But if she was right and became engaged to the prince, there was no way her stepmother could keep her enslaved. She’d be free.
She tried not to let herself get carried away. Better to enjoy the fantasy while it lasted.
They paused at the top of the stairs heading down from the castle to the drive.
“The carriage will be here in a moment.” He brought her hands to his lips and gently kissed them, spreading warmth inside her.
“This has been the most marvelous day,” she said. “I had no idea. I never imagined . . .”
“I take it the prince wasn’t as bad as you expected?”
“Hardly.” She squeezed his hand. “I’m so glad I managed to suffer through meeting him.”
He leaned down toward her, and she closed her eyes in anticipation of another kiss.
When his lips failed to land, she opened her eyes to find him frozen in place, inches from her, lips puckered.
“You ungrateful brat!” her stepmother shrieked, and Cinderella spun around to see the evil woman striding toward them, her wand raised and ready to strike again.
Her stepmother had used black magic at the ball after all. At any moment, one of the guards or the carriage could arrive. Her stepmother was taking huge risks considering that she could be easily detected, but at this point, it seemed she’d do anything to kill Cinderella’s happiness and punish her.
She glanced down the drive, and her heart sank. The carriage, about ten feet away from the base of the steps, had stopped, too. She looked up to see one of the guards looking down from a balustrade, a grin on his face, clearly hoping to get a peek at the kiss. Her stepmother had frozen them all. Had she frozen time, too?
“Unfreeze him,” Cinderella said, bracing her shoulders. “He’s the prince! What are you doing?”
“Yes, he’s the prince, and you’re unworthy of him, not to mention a conniving, disobedient liar who broke my spell and sneaked out of my house!” Her stepmother circled Cinderella and the frozen prince, eyeing him as if he were one of her glass statues that she might break with the flick of a wrist. “I wonder which you care about more—your life, or his.” She poked Ty’s frozen arm and he wobbled.
“Stop that!” Cinderella’s chest tightened with anger, defiance, and fear. “What have you done?” She strode toward her stepmother and grabbed her arm. She needed to leave to save Max, but couldn’t bear to leave Ty frozen this way.
Cinderella looked up at the clock tower. “Unfreeze him. Now, please. I’ll do anything you ask of me.”
Her stepmother grinned and tapped her wand against her palm. “Anything, hmm? I’m feeling generous. Perhaps we can strike some sort of a bargain.”
Cinderella gritted her teeth.
“If you promise never to disobey me again, never to leave the house, and, most importantly, to forget today ever happened . . .” Her grin widened, but her eyes narrowed before she continued, “. . . then I promise not to turn your prince into dust.”
Cinderella cringed as she was smacked by the full impact of her stepmother’s boundless cruelty. Her thirst for power over others seemed insatiable, and if it were left unchecked, she wouldn’t stop until she ruled the kingdom. No matter what happened here tonight, Cinderella vowed to spend the rest of her days finding a way to expose her stepmother’s evil ambitions.
Cinderella looked at Ty, such a strong young man, yet rendered helpless by her stepmother’s spell. A breeze blew her skirt to the side and Cinderella shivered—not from the cold, but from terror. Even if she never saw him again, even if she remained trapped by her stepmother for the rest of her life, even if she never knew another day of freedom, she couldn’t live knowing Ty had been turned to dust.
And there was Max to think about, too.
She looked at the clock tower. The minute hand ticked forward. Apparently time hadn’t frozen, just the people in it, and in twenty minutes Max would be transformed into a mouse.
“Yes, fine. You have a deal,” Cinderella said, her heart twisting.
Her stepmother grinned, flicked her wand, and Ty staggered forward where Cinderella had been standing before the spell. The carriage pulled to a stop in front of the steps. Ty turned to Cinderella, confusion covering his face, and her stepmother flicked her wand at him again.
He staggered back a few steps, then took off his crown and ran his hand over his hair. “What happened? Where am I?” He turned to Cinderella with a confused expression.
Cinderella ran forward. “Are you all right, Ty?”

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