He was responsible. He killed my mother and took my father away from me.

It all started two years ago. The young prince, being only fourteen at the time, had been roaming around the marketplace and had found a beautifully crafted wooden toy. It was carved into the shape of a duck and had a wonderful shine to it. The boy waited until the the man who was selling the fine carvings to turn around, then he quickly grabbed the duck hid it in his bag, and slowly walked away not to cause suspicion. As he was leaving the marketplace, the man yelled, he had noticed the missing toy. The boy realizing his mistake, panicked and decided to plant the duck on the nearest person, who just so happened to be my mother.

Everyone in the marketplace was then called to be searched, so of course my mother willingly obliged. When they searched her they found the toy. She was brought before the king and was hung for her “crimes”.This was the story I was told by the witnesses of the marketplace who dare not stand up for her because they knew the guards would not believe them.  After my mother passing, my father fell into a deep depression and was barely able to care for me. Six months later my father was forced to remarry to a wealthy woman with two daughters to help pay for my needs. Then a few months after that my father enlisted to fight in an upcoming war that was brought about because of a altercation the prince had with the king of a neighboring country,Karthwasten. That meant that I was left with my step mother, Vándr, and her two daughters, Lydia and Astrid. The girls kept to themselves in the beginning but eventually started to warm up to me, as for the mother, she never accepted me. That brings us to today (two years later):

“Ella!”, yelled Vándr, “ Get over here and clean this up!”

With that I ran down from my room to the living room to a see a wine glass on the floor that had been shattered and had stained the carpet with its contents. I look up at Vándr and her cold dead eyes stare back at me, her face dotted with warts and wrinkles, her long craning neck stretched out and her chin pointed to the sky. She had obviously been the one to drop it, and she knew it would be impossible to completely lift the stain.

“I’m off to the market this better be spotless by the time I get back”, She barked at me

As she left I got the broom and started to sweep up the glass. I was doing so when I spotted an envelope that was wrapped with an unraveled elegant blue ribbon with a wax stamp encrusted with the broken royal seal. It was addressed to “the residents of this home” so I reopened it…….

You are invited to the eighteenth birthday of  Prince Feigr Sigfusson the third. At this event the prince will find his princess, so dress in your best attire.  Arive overmorrow at eight forty five P.M . .

                                                                      KingFeigr  

This is my chance. I will go to that dance and I will kill the prince……

A few hours later Vándr came back with bags in hand.

“Lydia, Astrid”, She called out to my stepsisters, “Look at what I got for you!”

She pulled out two beautiful silk dresses one a yellowish orange and the other a light green.

“We have been invited to the prince's birthday!” she exclaimed, “He will marry one of you i’m sure of it!”

The girls were excited about their dresses but I knew they wanted to marry for love and not for wealth. They didn’t really like the prince either because the same thing that had happened to my father had happened to theirs but  their father had died because of it. Vándr ,whom had married only their father for money, and had not really cared about his death, in fact she was overjoyed to inherit his large fortune.

“They're wonderful!” said Lydia

“Marvelous!” exclaimed Astrid

“Where's mine?” I asked only to get a rise out of Vándr for I already knew the answer.

“Spoiled brat!” She screamed, “why would I ever get you anything”

“Well I was invited to the ball”

“Yes that is true, but why would prince would never want you.”

With that Vándr sent me to my room, so I decided to plan my...well...my plan.

 I can’t be recognized or i’ll have the same fate as my mother, and I have to be beautiful enough to dance or even get close to the prince. Of course he will guarded during the dance but there will be so many people dancing that it will be hard to get to the prince. I can’t too noticeable or people will recognize me, but I also have to be picked by the prince to dance with so I have to be noticeable enough. Maybe if I meet him before the dance i can leave an impression on him so he will remember me……There’s a pond that he likes to visit near my home, I see him all the time there but it is too close to my house to kill him so I never have attempted it. He usually gets there in the mourning at Seven thirty-five. I have to make breakfast for my step mother and my half sisters, so i'll have to sneak out early. I don’t usually go outside unless I have to get something from the marketplace so it will be nice to get some fresh air.

                                         ……………………………

It’s the next mornings. I find some more flattering clothes, I was wearing the rags and Vándr’s old worn shoes (we are the same size), being the only clothes I was given, and borrowed some from my half sisters.Then finished making breakfast and make my way out the window before Vándr saw me. I step outside and i'm greeted by the warm glow of the morning sun reminding me of picking flowers with my mother early in the morning before they closed up. That feeling made want to stay in this spot forever but I had to go. I walk around the house to get my steed, Frank, he is usually feed by Astrid as she likes to take rides around the forest. Frank prefered me to Astid because I grew up alongside him. I hop upon his porcelain white hair and take the ride over to the lake. When I got there, I realized why the prince had gone there so frequently. The water glistened like nothing i've ever seen before, roses swept the bright green grass that shimmered with the freshly fallen dew. I hop off Frank and walk around to find a beautiful waterfall flowing to the base of the lake. As I watch the fish dance in the water and I hear footsteps behind me.

“Amazing isn't it” Said Feigr

I turn to see the the young prince and my face felt hot. I had to restrain myself from strangling him on the spot but I hid it well.

“Are you feeling okay?” He asked

“Oh I just wasn't expecting you.” I lied

“Hey aren’t you Ella?” He asked

“Um..Yeah…” I said, ”How do you know me?”

“ Well I wanted to apologise, for your mother” He said hesitently, ”I didn’t even know her, my father told me to steal a toy and plant it on her. I wanted to seek you out but I was not allowed.”

“But...but why?” I asked in shock

“Your mother was going to be elected into parliament and she wanted to lower the taxes for the people so that they would be able to afford to live. He didn’t like that because ment less money for him.”

“Couldn’t he just do it himself?” I asked

“He didn’t want to get caught and have to deal with the consequences.”

“But what about you?”

“What about me” He asked running his hands through his short strawberry blonde hair.

“Wouldn’t you get in trouble?”

“My father never cared about me” he said, “If I were

to get in trouble my brother would just take my place

and my father says he’s the “well behaved one”. I think he is wrong about how he rules the kingdom but my brother agrees with him.”

“What about the war with Karthwasten” I asked

“That was all him” he said, “he wanted me to provoke them in order to start a war, but not have the blood on his hands. He wanted more resources but the King of Karthwasten didn't want to trade.”

I felt kind of bad. I had been blaming him for everything, but it was his father all along. We talked and got to know each other a little more, turns out were the same age. After this I started coming by the lake every morning up until the day before the “ball”.

“So I was thinking” He said in an unsure voice , “that I should…...um..well we..should...kill the king.

“Sorry?” I asked, “I didn’t catch that last part.”

“No its stupid.”

“No really what did you say?”

          My father tried to poison me this morning in an attempt to kill me.”

          “What!” I exclaimed

         “I know right, my own flesh and blood” I had trained myself to know what poison looks like in liquid. So I think we should kill him.”

        “ Okay” I said “Im in”

        “Really?”

        “Definitely”

  We spent the rest of the day planning and came up with this:

When the clock strikes twelve Fegir will distract the guests while move over to the king and strike, after that I get out as soon as possible as though a hidden staircase that leads to the lake.Fegir will stay, as to not cause suspicion. Apparently that's how Fegir usually gets to the lake without any guards following him. Then I'll ride on Frank to back to my house and pretend like I never went to the ball.

                                            ~The day of the ball~

I decided to wear my mother’s old dress and an old masquerade mask to keep my identity hidden. I went to grab the old, beautiful, dress to find a few small black and white speckled mice mywas the wardrobe.

      “Well what are you doing here?”, I asked the mice

They made little squeaks and shifted their heads to face towards the window.

   “You want out?”

The mice squeaked excitedly

     “I’ll take that as a yes,” I said as I scooped them up and slowly crept                              downstairs to let them out of the closest window to the ground.

As I was walked back up into my room I looked around to see my dress missing. I hear a loud rip and immediately knew what was going on, I run to the noise to see Vándr ripping up my dress with a smirk on her face.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”, I screeched

“ You will NOT go to that ball”, She said sternly

I scooped up what was left of my mother’s  old dress as my step mother walked away coldly. I spent the next hour weeping and sweeping up what was left of the only thing I have of my mothers. Now it was time to go. I brought a sword that I found in my father's

things and the mask, then rode Frank all the way to the entrance to the hidden tunnel near the lake. As I was walking towards it wearing my usual dingy clothes I heard a *POOF* and turned around to see a blinding blue light. The light slowly formed into a figure of a woman.

   “Good evening” Said the women.  

She had a beautiful poofy dress that shimmered as though it were made of crystals, and it probably was).

    “What? How? Where did you come from? I asked, looking around for any possible explanation.

“Don’t worry about that right now dear” she said in caring tone similar to my mother’s.

  “Who are you?” I asked

  “Why your fairy godmother of course!”

  “Wha-ah-why are you here?”

  “I know your plan” She whispered to me

My heart sank. Nobody was supposed to know.

   “I-there must be a mista-“

   “There is no mistake”she said cutting me off, “but don’t worry, I’m here to help.”

“Help?” I asked, “Why?”

                                ………...To be continued……….