001 [Until the Stroke of Midnight]

[onperfectlips.livejournal.com]

Characters: Cinderella [Guinevere] and Prince Charming [Arthur]
Location: The Prince's Palace
Time: Late Evening
Summary: Once upon a time, a prince and a servant girl fell in love. There are some things that never change.
Warnings: N/A



Although Cinderella was habitually dressed in rags, the woman - the princess - that stepped out of the glittering carriage was wearing a gown that seemed to shimmer in the moonlight. Her Fairy GodMuther had worked his magic well. She both looked and felt radiant.

Every head turned to watch her as she passed. They continued to stare long after she'd entered the building.

After a brief and barely perceptible pause at the top of the stairs, she gave the court herald a false name that felt more like her than 'Cinderella' ever had.

"The Lady Guinevere," he called out, and it was the Lady Guinevere - stately and graceful and a world away from the girl who slept in the ashes of the hearth for warmth - who descended the stairs at his command.

Midnight was a long way away. Her life with her stepmother and stepsisters was a long way away. She would have to wake up from this dream eventually but, for now, she would simply live every moment of it.

Comments

[destinedking.livejournal.com]

Although he was surrounded by countless ladies and princesses hoping to grab his attention, the prince found himself drawn to no one in particular. He knew he needed to marry, yet no one seemed the right fit. They were all beautiful and charming in their ways, but he found himself bored and restless and oddly compelled to be rude, although he bit his tongue and was charming to every girl who tried to catch his eye.

As he was about to retire and try to find a way to tell his father this was a lost cause, a lady was announced. He sighed, ready to greet the newcomer with a polite smile and perhaps some inane chatter if she was bold enough to approach him on her own. Instead he stopped short at the sight of her, all others in the room forgotten. He vaguely heard some ladies calling his name, but he did not hear them as he approached the Lady Guinevere. There was something that told him this was wrong, that she belonged to someone else, or maybe he belonged to someone else. It was ridiculous though, considering the point of this entire ball.

He walked over to the lady in question, and gave her a polite bow.

"My lady, I don't believe I've seen you before."

[onperfectlips.livejournal.com]

Her stepsisters had talked of nothing else but the prospect of meeting the prince at the ball, but it had been the prospect of freedom - the chance to be more than a servant, if only for a few hours - that had appealed to Gwen. It hadn't occurred to her that the prince would notice her, let alone pay attention to her. When he approached, she assumed that he was a minor noble of some sort. She curtsied with gracefully and politely and without the faintest trace of recognition on her shyly smiling face.

(Although there was something oddly familiar ... but no, no, that wasn't right. She had never had the opportunity to mix with nobles before. Her stepmother would never have allowed it.)

"I am newly arrived in the kingdom, my lord."