Chapter 6 - The invitation

Daphne will never forget that joy she felt when a servant of the royal castle knocked on the doors of her house in order to deliver an invitation. According to him, 'all the young ladies in the land' were invited to a ball in the castle, which would happen in a few days. Implicitly, he made clear that it wasn't exactly an invitation, but a call which no girl could disobey. The reason she would never forget was because now, when she recalled her past, she would always realize how silly she was. How happy she was for just one piece of paper which she couldn't even read!

Of course, her sister and she knew that 'all the young ladies in the land' being invited were a expression. Those 'all' who were invited were just the single ladies who had some degree of importance to receive such an invitation. It would be impossible to invite 'all the young ladies in the land', since they would not even fit in the royal ballrooms. Still, what an unpleasant feast would be to mix young ladies who spent their days embroidering and playing the lute, with the daughters of the ranchers and servants, whose very sophisticated ones would only be equated with those of the maids who obeyed them, their noblewomen! And it would probably be a tattered, pulling the plow all day on the plantations! Common girls!

Certainly not the sort of company desired by any of the other nobles Daphne knew.

If it would be a royal ball, it would be the sophistication of sophistication! Without girls with cattle's fur and smell on their clothes. At most, they would have girls with a lap dog fur on their clothes!

And apparently Daphne and Cordelia were good enough to be considered as one of the 'all the young ladies in the land'! They were the Viscount's daughters!

"Aaah!" Cordelia yelled as they closed the front door. It was a loud, shrill cry of happiness, so the servant sent by the castle probably heard outside.

"Cordelia! Contain yourself, girl!" Ursula reprimanded.

But Cordelia didn't look like she would be quiet anytime soon.

"Ah! Mom! Dafne! I don't believe! Is that really true?"

"Yes, Sister!" Answered Daphne, only a little more restrained than the other. But just a little... "We're going to a royal ball! Just imagine how many noble boys will be there!"

"The prince! The prince will surely be there! Aaah!" Again Cordelia gave another squeaky shriek.

"Be calm, girls!" Ursula said. "We don't have time to waste celebrating. The ball will be in just a few days. We need to start preparing ourselves. Now!"

Then a lovely, ragged figure appeared, carrying an armful of flowers. It was Cinderella with freshly picked flowers by herself to decorate the rooms of the mansion. Although they never received visitors, Ursula always wanted to leave her whole house spotless, and with a property of that extension, she could afford to have fresh flowers in the spring.

"Mrs. Ursula, sisters, what happened?" Despite not calling her stepmother 'mother', the other two girls didn't mind being referred to as sisters by Cinderella. It was a remnant of the enchantment they felt for her when they was younger.

And now that word was a terror, enchantment.

"We were invited to the royal ball!" Cordelia exclaimed, with the invitation in her hands. "Look, it is written that 'all the young ladies in the land' were invited! We were invited!

But of course a mismatch happened. 'all the young ladies in the land' can mean some girls for some, and all girls for other people. From the light on Cinderella's face, it's easy to see what she understood.

"Is that true?" She asked. "So... Could I go to the ball?"

When she said this, the three of them realized that Cordelia had done something foolish in saying that so unconcernedly.

It's been a few days since they were extremely worried about Cinderella. It was getting harder and harder to live with her. Not because of any difficulty they have with Cinderella, but rather because of an increasingly imminent danger. They have reached a simple conclusion: it was impossible that she didn't know she is a witch! Maybe not exactly with this word, witch, but at least she should realize that she could do things that others couldn't. She had an enormous easiness with the housework because of it, she talked to small animals! And even their cat began to behave strangely, so they wondered if Cinderella's ability was evolving.

And with a powerful witch at home, no one could sleep properly at night. At least she was still friendly and obedient. But to say that she could not go to the ball was risky.

Cinderella couldn't ever go to that ball. Despite being an educated girl, sometimes she had a worse control of her mouth than Cordelia, speaking what she shouldn't, and this way, she could reveal her identity. At best, she would reveal that she is the legitimate daughter of the late Viscount, and since everybody forgets the excuse that Ursula used to make her into a servant, they would be accused of mistreating her. At worst, they would find out she was a witch. And if that happens... All of they would be sinking together in the same boat.

But Ursula was smart.

"Of course, Cinderella!" She answered. "I just hope you can fulfill all your obligations before you join us."

"Then, can I go?" She asked again, not believing the miracle that happened right in front of her.

"Of course! But you also have a lot to prepare for the ball. We can't show up with any rags. And you, as our servant, will have a lot work to do. I don't know if you can finish everything and still make your own clothes, accessories, hair, makeup! You don't want to be the reason we're going to be embarrassed, do you?"

"No! No, of course not!" Cinderella answered, smiling and excited. "I can complete my duty, and my clothes, too! I'll be able to do all this in time, don't worry, Ms. Ursula!"

"Great! And don't worry about the material. You can use our fabrics. After all, you are the daughter of my late husband too!"

The girl's face was lit with happiness. And Daphne and Cordelia smirked at their mothers.

They knew that their mother would never allow them to go along with a witch like Cinderella to a place like the royal ball. And it wasn't just for being a witch.

Daphne made a good impression on society these days, showing that she was worthy to be the daughter of the Viscount. They already had the impression that one or two nobles in particular intended to propose to her. And soon it would be time for Cordelia to make her debut at court. That ball wasn't just a party to have fun, but a place to look for a husband for herself or for your daughter. So that Daphne could give an incredible impression to the other nobles, and secure the marriage proposals they imagined would soon come, to try to climb higher. Certainly the high nobility would be present there.

And, a girl can dream...

The prince would be there too!