Cinderella Stays Late

by Joan Holub

  At that, their faces lit up. “Finally!” Red exclaimed.

  “Where’ve you been?” asked Snow.

  “And why the mask?” asked Rapunzel. Unlike Foulsmell, her new friends were the curious types. Like she was!

  “Later,” Cinda said quickly. “What do you guys actually know about the Evil Society?”

  The three girls shrugged.

  “Nothing, really,” said Red.

  “Until you told us your stepsisters mentioned it, I’d never even heard of it,” said Rapunzel.

  Snow nodded. “Same here.”

  “I think it might be an acronym, as in E.V.I.L.,” Cinda explained. “You know, where each letter stands for something?”

  “You mean like Edible Vacations In Lollipopland?” joked Red. They all giggled.

  Then Rapunzel suggested, “Or how about Extra Vain Itchy Ladies?”

  Now they were all laughing really hard. Including Cinda. But then suddenly her three friends fell silent. They were looking at something behind her. Or someone.

  Cinda turned to see Prince Awesome. He was wearing black boots so polished she could see herself in them, as well as a fancy vest over a white shirt, trousers, and a jacket with tails. He definitely looked … well, awesome!

  “May I have this dance?” he asked Cinda politely. She could tell by his stiffness that he didn’t recognize her.

  She knew him, though, obviously. “No, thank you,” she blurted.

  The prince stared at Cinda as if stunned. His cheeks flushed just a little. Was he embarrassed? Like Foulsmell had been? Prince Awesome was rich, handsome, and good at sports. Probably no one had ever said no to him when he’d asked them to dance before. Was it possible that the one thing his tutors hadn’t prepared him for was rejection? In that moment, Cinda kind of felt sorry for him.

  Red elbowed her. It was impolite to refuse a dance with the host of the ball. Even Cinda knew that. But her dance with Foulsmell might have been a lucky fluke. She didn’t want to make a fool of herself with Awesome and embarrass him more than she already had. Or embarrass herself either. Although very few people knew who she was, others might somehow figure it out. Or guess later!

  “It’s not you —” she began. Then Cinda stopped. She’d just spotted her two Steps across the room, staring at the floor. What they were up to? Hmm.

  Prince Awesome cocked his head at her, waiting for her to finish. Dancing seemed to be the fastest way to get around in here. And she really wanted to know what the Steps were up to.

  Cinda turned her blue eyes up to meet the prince’s dazzling brown ones. “Actually, I’d love to dance with you.”

  She placed a white-gloved hand on the arm he offered. Come on, glass slippers. Don’t fail me now, she thought as Prince Awesome swept her out onto the dance floor.

  After a few seconds, she realized that nothing terrible had happened. She was actually dancing! Usually, she was awkward, clumsy, and stepping offbeat to the music. But now she was swaying and gliding and swooping just like all the other dancers. As if she knew what she was doing. Or more like the glass slippers did!

  Cinda looked toward the place where she’d seen the Steps. The spot where she’d hoped to head. They weren’t there anymore! As she whirled and twirled, she peered over the prince’s shoulder, trying to find them again.

  “Do I know you?” the prince asked her.

  “Doubt it,” she told him, not paying much attention as her eyes searched the Hall. Then she looked up at him and added, “Sorry. That was kind of rude.”

  But Awesome just laughed. “It’s okay if you want to stay incognito.”

  Cinda grinned, relaxing a bit at his casual attitude. And then — just when she’d stopped worrying about her dancing, her glass slippers began acting weird. They took her left. Then they marched her right. They jerked her this way and that.

  The slippers’ tag had said they liked to “lead.” Now it appeared they’d decided to do precisely that!

  Unable to help herself, Cinda pulled the prince along with her as the slippers wove them through the crowd willy-nilly. “Sorry! Excuse me!” she called as she bumped into people. When they suddenly came upon the Steps, Cinda accidentally bumped into them extra hard, sending the two girls falling over in heaps of satin and silk.

  Without giving her time to apologize, the slippers lurched off and danced Cinda and the prince in the opposite direction, toward a window. But before they could reach it, Cinda tripped over one of the stone floor tiles.

  “Whoa!” said the prince. He grabbed at her arm to keep her from falling.

  “I’m so sorry!” she told him breathlessly. “Maybe that’s enough dancing for now.”

  But her slippers had other ideas, and swept them both off into the crowd again. They were out of control! As Cinda and the prince whirled around the dance floor, unable to stop, the slippers kept “leading” them back to the same stone tile she had tripped over.

  The third time she stepped on it, she noticed that the tile was loose. Hey! Were the glass slippers trying to tell her something? she wondered. What if the pumpkin was hidden under the tile!

  Just then, the grandfather clock woke up.

  “Hickory Dickory Dock,

  The mouse ran up the clock.

  It’s twelve midnight.

  This ball’s over, quite.

  Hickory Dickory Dock.”

  As the mechanical mouse began to squeak, the little sparkles on Cinda’s dress began to pop off. Ping! Ping! Ping! What was happening? she wondered in alarm.

  Then Cinda remembered. Everyone else’s gowns had special permission to be out past midnight. But she hadn’t properly checked out the gown she was wearing. Even if LaWanda had conjured it up instead of the magic mirror, it must be due back in the library at midnight.

  Or else.

  Cinda had a sneaky feeling she was about to find out what the phrase “dire consequences” meant. She glanced past the prince toward the exit. She had a choice. She could flee so no one would see whatever dire thing was going to happen.

  Or she could stay, regardless of the consequences to herself, and lift that loose floor tile to check and see if the pumpkin was hidden there. She wouldn’t put it past the Steps to have cast a spell on it to explode on the last stroke of midnight and bewitch the prince into liking them, or worse … make him want to join their Evil Society!

  Coming to a decision, Cinda excused herself to the prince, ducked through the dancers, dashed to the tile, and moved it aside. As she’d suspected, there was something under it. But to her surprise, it was not a pumpkin.

  Instead, as the Hickory Dickory mouse finished squeaking and the clock began to bong, Cinda pulled a two-foot long cylindrical object wrapped in several layers of vellum paper from underneath the tile. When she pulled back a corner of the vellum she saw that the object was actually some kind of rolled-up rug or tapestry.

  Was this what the slippers wanted her to find? What about the “big pumpkin rollout”? Hadn’t the Steps said that was supposed to happen tonight? Cinda tried to remember their exact words, but with those bongs sounding in her ears, she was panicking, unable to think clearly.

  Bong! As the clock struck its final bong she leaped to her feet. It was now officially midnight. Suddenly, the dress she was wearing began shooting sparkles in every direction. Ping! Pingety-ping! Whrrrr! Phewww! It was giving off fireworks!

  Horribly embarrassed, Cinda clutched the paper-wrapped tapestry tight and raced for the Great Hall door that led to Pink Castle. About halfway across the Hall, however, she glimpsed the Steps in the act of plucking a pumpkin coach from a bouquet centerpiece.

  “Aha!” she called. “Caught you!”

  She veered their way, yanking the little pumpkin coach from Malorette’s hands. She had only the merest glimpse of her Steps’ shocked expressions, because the glass slippers chose that moment to lead Cinda into a fancy spin. Tripping, she accidentally lobbed the tiny pumpkin coach in a high arc. As if she’d shot for a goal in a masketball g
ame, it sailed overhead. And … right … out … of … the … window into the black night.

  Splash! At the very instant the pumpkin hit the Once Upon River down below, Cinda’s gown turned back into her pj’s.

  All around her, there was now dead silence. Even the musicians had stopped playing. She peeked over her shoulder and saw that everyone — including the prince and the Steps — had been watching. They’d seen every embarrassing thing that had just happened!

  Mortified, Cinda dashed off again, still holding the wrapped rug-thing. As she flew through the door, she remembered that she still had her mask on. Hurrah! With the exception of her Grimm girl friends and Foulsmell, no one else would know who she was.

  Giving up on trying to retrieve the pumpkin — it was too dark outside to find it now — Cinda left the Hall. She ran for the grand winding staircase in Pink Castle, and started up it. She didn’t want to risk being unmasked by the Steps or Prince Awesome right now!

  Unfortunately, she was in such a hurry that partway up, she caught her heel and stumbled. Cinda grabbed at the railing to keep herself from falling and watched helplessly as one of her slippers tumbled back down the stairs. Hearing footsteps behind her, she began to race upward again, leaving the slipper behind.

  The next morning, Cinda woke just in time to see Mermily tiptoeing into their room. Where did that girl sleep? Not in her bed, that was for sure. It was still neatly made. Maybe in the fountain?

  Cinda pretended to still be asleep but watched from barely open eyes as Mermily grabbed a dress from her armoire, then tiptoed back out. Probably to the washroom.

  When she was gone again, Cinda pulled the single glass slipper out from under her pillow. She’d tucked it under there last night to keep it near. Because, in spite of the disastrous way the night had ended, the slippers had made her feel magical. For a while, she’d felt the complete opposite of a Loserella. She’d felt beautiful. She’d even been able to dance! Too bad she had to return the slippers today. Both of them.

  Cinda wasn’t looking forward to asking Prince Awesome for the other one. Her Grimm girl friends — Red and Snow, anyway — had followed her upstairs soon after she’d fled last night. (Rapunzel had stayed behind due to her fear of heights, but also to check the river for any sign of the pumpkin.) Red had retrieved her cloak and sneakers, but had told her that the prince had picked up the other slipper after Cinda had fled.

  Would Cinda’s library borrowing privileges be taken away for losing the white gown, and for having returned the yellow gown and slippers in tatters? And for not checking out the glass slippers? She wasn’t looking forward to explaining to Ms. Goose about all that, either.

  Sticking a hand under her mattress, Cinda felt around for the tapestry she’d found in the Hall the night before. It was there, safely tucked where she’d hidden it. She, Red, and Snow had tried to unroll it after the ball. That had proven impossible. Tired, they’d given up and agreed to try again with Rapunzel this morning. But first, all four girls had to return their borrowed stuff to the library.

  “Cinda?” It was Red’s voice outside the curtain.

  “I’m up,” said Cinda. “Be ready in a jiff.”

  “’Kay,” said Red.

  A few minutes later, Cinda, Red, and Snow met up with Rapunzel on the first floor, and headed for the Grimmstone Library. Some other girls in Pearl Tower who’d already returned their gowns had told them its door was located near Mr. Hump-Dumpty’s class today.

  “I checked the river again this morning for that pumpkin,” Rapunzel informed them as they walked. “Nothing.”

  “Maybe it sank,” said Snow.

  Rapunzel shook her head. “Pumpkins are full of air. They float. Maybe it was swept downriver.”

  “I guess there’s no way we’ll ever know for certain if it was Peter Peter’s missing pumpkin,” said Red.

  Cinda was quiet the whole way down the hall, worrying about that. She went over in her mind what she’d overheard the Steps say the day before in their dorm alcove. They must have hidden the pumpkin in one of the centerpieces before the ball. But why? What had they been planning to do with it? And by accidentally tossing the pumpkin out the window, had Cinda spoiled their plan … or helped them? It was all so confusing.

  The four girls met lots of other students on their way to the library. Girls carrying ball gowns and slippers. Boys toting classy tuxedos and shiny shoes. The only thing Cinda had with her was a single glass slipper tucked in the bag she’d brought.

  “I’ll meet you there,” Cinda told her friends. Then she split off, going to look for the prince so she could ask for her other slipper back.

  Out in the herb garden, some students were sitting on benches and stone walls. Foulsmell was playing a game of quoits on the lawn. He waved when he saw her and she waved back.

  The Steps were there, too. They must’ve already turned in their ball stuff, because they were hanging out with some girls from Ruby Tower, doing a complicated game of magic jump rope. As Cinda passed, the Steps murmured a new rhyme just loud enough for her to hear:

  “Cinderella, hair all yella,

  You should do what your sisters tell ya.

  Too bad you couldn’t go to the ball,

  Because your gown was torn and all.”

  The two girls high-fived mid-jump, then started laughing.

  Ooh! They made Cinda so-o mad! She’d have the last laugh, though, because she had gone to the ball. They just didn’t know it — yet.

  Right at that moment, Prince Awesome entered the garden. He was cradling the other glass slipper in both hands! Going up to the first girl he saw, he presented the shoe to her. Cinda couldn’t hear what he said, but the girl immediately kicked off one of her shoes and tried on the slipper.

  When it didn’t fit her, Cinda watched as the prince moved on to several more girls. Some of them refused to try on the slipper, but many more were willing. Excitement began to grow as everyone wondered why the prince was searching for a girl who could wear the slipper.

  As more and more girls tried on the glittery glass shoe, Cinda wondered what the problem was. The slippers weren’t all that small. Were they magically resizing themselves so no one could wear them?

  She was too embarrassed to go ask the prince to give her the slipper with everyone watching. That would be the same as admitting that she’d been the one making a fool of herself on the dance floor last night. That concern didn’t stop the Steps, though.

  They eagerly ran over and took a turn. Malorette sat on the edge of the garden fountain and batted her eyelashes at the prince as she tried to ram her foot into the slipper. No go. Not one to give up easily, Malorette huffed and puffed and pushed, her face turning red. It didn’t do her any good, though. The slipper still wouldn’t fit.

  “Let me try,” said Odette, shoving her aside.

  Splash! In her excitement, Odette toppled Malorette into the fountain. Or had the slipper caused it to happen? Either way, when she came out, the girl was drenched. And angry.

  “It was an accident!” Odette wailed. But Malorette didn’t seem to think so. The sopping-wet girl flew after her sister, hurling insults. Forgetting about trying on the slipper, Odette took off across the garden. Cinda couldn’t help grinning. She wanted to leave before the prince got around to her. Still, she hesitated. She needed to return both slippers to the library.

  Before she could decide what to do, the mischievous glass slipper suddenly sprang from the prince’s hands and started clomping across a bed of clover toward her. Cinda’s eyes widened. Without stopping to think, she raced from the garden. But the slipper followed. Tap! Tap!

  “Wait up!” called the prince. He caught up to her in the hall at the exact same time that her lost slipper did. The matching slipper leaped from her bag down to the floor to join its twin. Both slippers began twirling on their toes and doing dance steps, as if begging her to try them on again.

  Although she was more than a little embarrassed, Cinda couldn’t help chuckling at the
ir antics. Relenting at last, she kicked off her sneakers. “Sorry I left you behind last night,” she told the lost glass slipper. Then she slid both slippers on. They fit perfectly, of course.

  She glanced up at the prince. “I don’t suppose you could forget that you saw me in my pj’s at the ball last night,” she said.

  He cocked his head, pretending to be confused. “Pj’s? What pj’s?” he teased. “All I remember is a lovely girl in a beautiful white dress who danced like a dream.”

  Cinda heard some girls nearby sigh happily. Because that was a really sweet thing for a guy to say. She opened her mouth, unsure what she was going to reply. The words that came out surprised her.

  “Be careful,” she told the prince in an undertone too soft for anyone else to hear. “I think something’s afoot in this academy.”

  He grinned at her, then gestured toward her slippered foot. “That was a joke, right?”

  “No. I mean it,” she said, keeping her voice low. “Something’s afoot, as in something’s not quite right. You’re new at the school, too, so I know you can’t be involved. I only wanted to warn you to not join any evil societies or anything. And to just … be careful.”

  Prince Awesome tucked his hands in his pockets and stared at her in a puzzled way. Did he think she was twaddle-brained for saying all that? It had sounded kind of strange.

  “Well, thanks for giving me back my slipper,” Cinda said at last. She tried to kick the slippers off again. When they refused to budge, she simply put her sneakers in her bag and turned away, intending to follow a group of students carrying fancy gowns and tunics.

  “Cinda?” Prince Awesome called to her.

  She looked back at him.

  “There’s a pickup masketball game on Monday after school in the Grimm Gym. We’re starting teams. Practices will be sixth period, so if we make the team, we’ll automatically get permission to switch from Balls to Gym,” he said. “You in?”

  Cinda’s face broke into a huge smile. “Double, triple definitely!” This was the best news she’d had all morning. All week, maybe!