Happily Never After

by Sonya M Black

  Jarret laughed. “Yes, and she is also my godmother.”

  Rose patted his cheek affectionately. “Oh Jarret, my dear, it’s just like you not to explain any of this to poor Ella ahead of time.” She sighed. “You see, Jarret’s mother and I were very dear friends before she passed. Jarret is like a son to me.”

  “But you’re a fairy godmother,” Ella repeated, trying to make sense of the scene in front of her.

  Rose smiled gently. “Yes dear, and because of me Jarrett and Alastair are in the business of fixing misgranted wishes.” She shook her head sadly. “Alastair came to me in a panic after your father made his wish.”

  Ella felt her breath whoosh out of her in shock. “What do you mean?” she whispered hoarsely.

  “I mean the fairy godmother who decided to grant his wish made a horrible mistake. The wish and the spell went wrong. It led to your stepmother’s taking advantage of you and your father.” She glided over to Ella and touched her cheek gently. “Alastair begged me to undo her magic, but I could not. You see, once the spell was cast it had to find its natural conclusion.”

  “Natural conclusion?” Ella shook her head, unable to comprehend what this woman was telling her.

  Rose shook her head sadly, “Your father died of a broken heart because his wish could not be granted.”

  Ella felt her knees start to buckle. Jarret moved to her side and swept his arms around her, holding her up before she collapsed. “What about me? What is my natural conclusion?”

  “Oh that’s easy. You simply have to find true love.” Rose smiled at her.

  “I don’t understand,” Ella gasped, leaning in to Jarret, fearful of what Rose’s answer would be. “What happens if I don’t find true love?”

  “Nothing,” Rose sighed. “Your father wished for your mother to return. It couldn’t happen. Violet should never have granted his wish. Instead of getting your mother back, he got a cheap imitation who ruined his remaining happiness. If you don’t find your true love, you won’t die of a broken heart. That is the whole point of Jarret showing you the world and Evangeline teaching you to be a Lady.” She started pacing in front of Ella, “You don’t need to marry Prince Charmaine to find your happily ever after. You do need to know how to act like a Lady to manage your estates once we remove Lady Ravenna back to her proper place. Seeing the world helps you to find what makes you happy.” She stopped and took one of Ella’s hands in her own. “I will make this right,” she promised.

  “Why don’t I have to marry Prince Charmaine?” Ella asked.

  Rose lifted an eyebrow. “Do you want to marry Prince Charmaine? Are you in love with him?”

  Ella thought for a moment before shaking her head no. “I don’t even know him. It’s just that Jarret and Evangeline and even Alastair all seemed to think I needed to marry him.”

  Jarret cleared his throat. Ella had forgotten he was still holding her up. “That was really just a distraction to get you to go along with learning what you needed to know,” he muttered.

  Ella turned to look at him. He released his hold on her reluctantly. “What do you mean?” She raised an eyebrow in question.

  “My father was afraid you wouldn’t want to learn how to be a Lady if you thought there wasn’t a reason for it.” Jarret smiled at her.

  Ella nodded once, realizing that Alastair was probably right. He had dangled Prince Charmaine in front of her like a carrot. She had followed along because up until now she hadn’t really had any reason not to go along with his plans.

  “As fascinating as this all is, it does not explain why my son is caught up in all of.…” The Queen motioned at Evangeline, who still stood impatiently nearby with Prince Ellander’s arm wrapped around her. “This.” Distaste was evident in her voice.

  Rose sighed again. “Unfortunately it is all part of Ella’s wish gone wrong. Her fairy godmother was determined to get Prince Charmaine to marry Ella.” Rose turned back to Ella, holding up a finger for emphasis. “Which is not a part of Ella’s happily ever after. She cast a poorly worded spell, which hit Evangeline. Your son happened to be the first Prince that Evangeline encountered after the spell was cast.”

  “You still haven’t told me how to break the spell,” Evangeline growled, pulling as far away from Prince Ellander as she could.

  “Why would you want to break the spell my love?” he smiled down at her. “You are so beautiful when you are angry.” He stroked her cheek with a finger.

  Evangeline batted his hand away. “I can’t stand this. The other fairy said her spell would help. It did for a little while, but it’s getting bad again.”

  Rose smiled. “That’s because you have to find your true love. However, there is one more requirement. He must be a Prince.”

  Evangeline rolled her eyes. “So what do I do about him?” She jerked her head in Prince Ellander’s direction. “I obviously don’t think he is my true love.”

  “No?” Rose grinned mischievously. “Then I will have to arrange for more Princes to meet you. One of them will have to be your true love.”

  “I don’t want you to meet any other Princes. I am your one true love.” Prince Ellander lifted Evangeline’s hand to his mouth and kissed it.

  Evangeline pulled her hand away and wiped it on her dress. “Fine, but are all of them going to act like this?”

  Rose chuckled. “All of them but your one true love.” Evangeline groaned.

  The Queen rose from her throne. “You mentioned that Prince Charmaine is on his way here.”

  Rose nodded. “Yes, as are several other Princes from other Kingdoms. They are coming to win the hand of our fair maiden.” She gestured to Evangeline.

  “What should I do?” Ella asked quietly.

  Rose turned, looking her up and down. “You and Jarret will set out for the Pixie Falls. You just might make it by the full moon if you leave tomorrow.”

  “My daughter and her husband will escort you,” the Queen spoke up. “You cannot go un-chaperoned. It would be improper. Besides, Amaliea can teach you more about how to be a Lady.”

  “Thank you, Your Majesty,” Ella mumbled, unsure of what else to say.

  The Queen nodded. “Good.” She turned back to Rose. “I trust you will have this whole mess sorted out before my son’s fiancé returns from her visit to her Kingdom.”

  “Of course, Your Majesty.” Rose bowed her head. “I plan to have this settled before the end of the month.”

  ***

  Ella stared into the fire, watching the flames dance over the logs. Red and orange light flickered around the room, leaving behind odd shadows. Her mind wandered over all that Rose had told her, everything Jarret and Alastair had said, and all of the events that had led up to her sitting in front of this fire. She traced her hand over the fine leather of her father’s journal, feeling the smooth texture. She pictured him, his dark curls and merry blue eyes. He had been a large man, full of life. She could smell the earthy scent of the vineyard that had clung to him, the rich smell of dirt and grapes mixing with his musky aftershave. Her heart ached. In the years after his death, she had mourned his loss privately, shedding tears as she huddled in the dark next to the kitchen hearth. Her stepmother had simply moved on with her life, going from married to widowed as if nothing had changed.

  She stared at her hands, noting the changes that had occurred in the last few weeks. They were no longer cracked and dry from long hours of scrubbing pots. The thick calluses on her fingertips and palms from scouring floors had disappeared. Evangeline had given her a cream to rub into her hands every night. When they fenced she insisted that Ella wear thick gloves. Ella’s nails were long and clean. Gone were the grime-encrusted, chipped nails that had never seemed to be clean no matter how much Ella had soaked them. A knock at her door startled her.

  “Come in,” she called, sitting up and laying the journal on the table next to her.

  Jarret stepped in carrying a covered tray. “I thought you might be hungry. You missed dinner.”

  Ella
nodded, then shrugged. “I didn’t really feel like eating with everyone else.”

  “I don’t blame you.” Jarret set the tray in front of her and whipped off the top, revealing a bowl of strawberries and cream as well as bread, cheese, and tea. “I know this used to be your favorite.”

  She smiled up at him, narrowing her eyes in thought. “How do you remember that?”

  He cleared his throat and looked away. “I remember everything about the time we used to spend together.”

  Ella blushed at the implications. “Why? Why do you remember?” she whispered. “I thought you were just hanging around me because your father wanted you to.”

  Jarret sat down next to her, staring into the fire. “At first I was. You were younger than I was, and it annoyed me to have to look out for you. Then I started to enjoy having you around.”

  Ella reached over and touched his hand gently, uncertain how she felt. “I loved following you around. You were like a big brother.”

  Jarret covered her hand with his. “Am I still a big brother?”

  Ella felt her entire body go still. “I don’t know,” she whispered.

  Jarret nodded without looking at her. He patted her hand gently. “Well then, I suppose it’s a good thing we will have chaperones.” He glanced over at her, catching her eye.

  Ella’s blush deepened as she nodded, gently retrieving her hand and reaching for the treat he had brought her. “Do you think Evangeline will be all right without us?”

  Jarret chuckled. “Yes, but I wish I could be here to see what happens.”

  Ella furrowed her brow as she brought a berry up to her mouth. “Why?”

  “Evangeline has been running from love for as long as I have. It’s about time it caught up to her.” He shook his head, laughing.

  “Are you still running?” Ella asked quietly, watching him carefully.

  He froze for a second, then ran his hand through his hair. “It depends.”

  “On what?” Ella took another bite as he avoided her gaze.

  “On.…” He paused, debating how to continue. “Well, let’s just say I wouldn’t run if the right person were in love with me.”

  Ella nodded. “Why didn’t you tell me your godmother is a fairy godmother?”

  “Because I wasn’t sure you would understand.” Jarret smiled. “Rose is a wonderful woman, kind and gentle. She really has tried to help ever since she found out what happened to your father.”

  Ella stared down into her lap. “That first day, when you told me about fairy godmothers, it sounded like you really hated them. And then when that fairy godmother appeared after Prince Ellander kissed Evangeline – ”

  “I did. I mean not hate really and not all of them.” He swept a hand through his hair again, leaning back on the sofa and staring into the fire. “Some of them are really nice. Yhey actually are careful about how they grant wishes.”

  “Why do they need to be careful?” Ella finished the last strawberry, grabbed a chunk of cheese, and nibbled on it. She pulled her knees up onto the couch and turned to face Jarret, waiting for his answer.

  “Wish granting is very powerful magic.” He sighed. “If a fairy godmother grants a wish and there is no possible way for it actually to come true, there can be very disastrous side effects.”

  “Like with my father.” Ella nodded. “But I still don’t understand why my wish won’t end the same way.”

  “What did you wish for, Ella?” Jarret’s voice was quiet.

  Ella thought back to that fateful night. Her stepmother and stepsisters had just left in the carriage, laughing at leaving her behind. She had gone out to the garden, weeping because she had worked so hard to go to the ball. Her stepmother had broken her promise to let Ella attend if she finished her chores and found a suitable dress to wear. Ella had found one of her mother’s lovely ball gowns and altered it to fit, and dressed it up with bits of ribbon. Her stepsisters had shredded it as soon as they’d seen it, tearing the beautiful fabric in their haste to teach her a lesson. She had stared up at the sky, tears streaming down her face. She had closed her eyes and wished with all of her might.

  Remembering the exact words she stared into the fire now and whispered, “Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight. I wish with all my might that I may go to the ball and meet my true love, who will take me away to see the world, and we will live happily ever after.” She opened her eyes and met Jarret’s gaze.

  He smiled at her, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face. “See? Nothing to worry about. Your wish is easily granted.”

  “Why do you say that?” Ella looked away quickly, confused by Jarret’s attention and her own feelings.

  “Part one of your wish was already granted.” He held up one finger. “You did go to the ball. Maybe it didn’t end the way you thought it would, but you did go. Second – ” He held up a second finger – “you met a number of eligible gentlemen that night not just the Prince, and any one of them could potentially be your true love.” He held up a third finger. “Evangeline and I have taken you away to see the world, so that part of your wish is coming true.” He grinned at her.

  “What about living happily ever after?” she asked quietly.

  He chuckled. “What did I tell about happily ever afters?”

  Ella thought for minute and smiled when the answer came to her. “I write my own ending.”

  Jarret nodded in confirmation. He stood up, smiling at her. “Get some sleep. I have a feeling we will be leaving tomorrow.”

  Ella nodded as she followed him to the door and bid him goodnight.

  15 – LIONS AND TIGERS AND OGRES, OH MY!

  The next morning Amaliea and her husband, Corlain, gathered Ella and Jarret up along with some supplies and led them down the road before the sun had risen over the Golden City. The morning started out crisp and clear, but after an hour or so clouds began to move in, darkening the forest. A fine mist started to fall, slowly drenching them as it hung in the air. Ella huddled miserably in her cloak, hunched over her horse’s shoulders, trying to minimize the amount of her body exposed to the rain. It was not effective, but the simple illusion helped to dispel some of the discomfort of being soaked to the skin. Soon the mist turned to a downpour making them regret the decision to leave the castle.

  “We don’t usually get very much rain this time of year,” Corlain called to them as he led them down the muddy road. The rain created deep puddles in the mossy path that splattered up to the horses’ knees as their hooves squelched forward.

  “Is there someplace we can stop?” Jarret called back. “The ladies are soaked, and I’m freezing.” His jaw clenched to prevent his teeth from chattering, a slight blue-tinge covering his lips.

  Corlain shook his head, drops of water cascading down his face, plastering his hair to his head. “Not for a while, at least not on this road. There’s a crossroads a mile or so ahead that leads to another part of the forest. About a mile or two down that road is an inn.” He stopped his horse, waiting for the others to catch up. “I wouldn’t suggest going that way though.”

  “Why is that?” Jarret queried, rubbing his hands and blowing on them.

  “Ogres,” Corlain stated before turning his horse back toward the road and continuing on.

  Ella shivered. Ogres were not something she ever wanted to encounter. Her grandfather had told stories of hunting them when she was little. She remembered his tales of large, ugly creatures with thick tusks and small, beady eyes. The stories spoke of cruel, cunning creatures that saw humans as meals.

  “How long until we reach shelter if we stay on this road?” Jarret asked.

  “Not until nightfall if we keep going at this speed.” Corlain sighed.

  Ella rubbed her arms with her hands, trying to get warm. It was not very cold, but the rain mixed with the cooler temperature made it miserable and caused a chill to seep into her bones. Corlain motioned them forward, pushing the horses a little faster than their previously plodding pace.

  El
la hung on, dreaming of sitting with a book in front of a cozy fire, her feet up. She had spent many days cold and uncomfortable while she had served her stepmother. However, she had never spent all day on horseback in the rain with no hope of a warm fire until after nightfall. She shivered again, feeling her teeth chatter. Her braid lying limp down her back left a trail of cold water down her spine. Her clothes clung to her, her fingers pruning and turning gray in the heavy moisture.

  It was not long before they reached the crossroads. Corlain looked at his wife and Ella trembling with the cold. He shook his head and turned his horse down the overgrown path that led off the main road.

  “If we are quiet and hurry, we should be able to make it to the inn without any trouble. We can wait out the rain and then come back this way once it has passed.” He paused for a moment. “I don’t want to attract any attention, so move as quickly as possible, and try not to make any noise.”

  The path he led them down was narrow, winding, and thick with mud. The farther they traveled the more it became obvious how infrequently the road was used. Thick underbrush crowded the path, making it difficult to determine which way to go. Trees pushed into the road, their gnarled roots twisting and crawling across it to create trip hazards for the unwary traveler. The horses shied nervously, huffing and stamping as they hurried along. They balked at strange calls echoing out of the densely packed woods, spooking and trying to turn back. In spite of the miserable conditions, it took a firm hand to keep them moving in the direction they needed to go.

  Ella felt a wave of relief wash over her when the inn came into view. Another loud cry echoed through the woods, causing the hairs on the back of her neck to stand on end. The feeling of being watched grew in intensity until she was sure that any minute a monster would jump out of the trees. Jarret and Corlain dismounted before they helped her and Amaliea down. A groom hurried out from the cover of the stable and hustled the horses into warm, dry stalls.

  The four travelers hurried inside, stopping by the door as a wave of heat rushed over them. Ella sighed in contentment as she soaked in the warmth, glad to be out of the dripping rain. Jarret motioned to the innkeeper and requested rooms and hot food. As soon as Ella closed the door to her room, she peeled off her wet clothing and dug into her bags for something dry. A small bath contained hot water piped in from a nearby hot spring. Ella slid into it, groaning with pleasure as the heat sank into her chilled body.