It was a fine spring morning when Lucy woke up feeling as blessed as always. She was the second daughter to the kind and noble King, James Sweetapple, as well as the gentle and serene Queen, Barbara Sweetapple. Her sister, older by seven years, was Olivia Sweetapple, and today was the day when the news was going to be announced to the public... There was a knock on her door. “It is Sonoma,” called an angelic voice.

Lucy jumped out of bed and ran to her door. “Sonoma! Today’s the day! I can‘t believe it!” she cried as she jumped on her maid. Sonoma caught Lucy and carried her to her bed before going back and closing the door.

“My lady,” Sonoma started, “calm yourself. His Majesty has not yet affirmed your going to the evening ball after the celebration and annoucement.”

“I am sure father will let me attend! After all, I am now of age! I want to fall in love and marry a dazzling prince just like Olivia and Jeanne! I want to waltz a flowery waltz in a grandly adorned ballroom in front of my family and friends; just like Olivia!”

Sonoma frowned. “My lady, I am not sure if you will end up exactly like Lady Olivia.”

“Why do you say that?” Sonoma looked down at Lucy bleakly, closing her eyes and shaking her head.

“I will tell you another day. Now stand up, my lady, I will dress you.” Lucy stood solemnly and sighed, daydreaming of her future with her handsome prince.

Later that morning the family was having breakfast when Lucy was told of her position for the evening ball after the celebration and announcement. It angered her:

“Father! How can you write me off like that? Am I truly supposed to stand by the painting of old Madame Grace and watch idlely as my Olivia dances with her prince? Rubbish! I will mingle as I will always!”

“Enough!” His Majesty, the King of Cartwright, left his utensils on the table and slammed his fists onto the table, startling everyone else at the meal. “You will do as you are told!”

“I will not stand by while my Olivia dances with her prince! I will find my own tonight!”

“She is not your Olivia! Lucille Estrande Chamomile Sweetapple, you will stand by old Madame Grace for the whole night!”

“Why can’t I find a true love like Olivia?” Lucy shouts before she excuses herself from the table and runs to her chambers high above the castle in a tower. Sonoma follows her leisurely.

The fair and lithe Olivia sets down her fork and knife. “Father, I dissapprove of my beloved little sister being treated this way. No amount of kindness or nobleness you have towards others will ever make up for your cruel posessiveness of Lucy.” She pushes herself from the table. “Excuse me; I must prepare for tonight,” she says coldly and leaves for her chambers.

Sonoma knocks gently on Lucy’s chamber door, only to find it unlocked. “My lady?” She walks in cautiously and hears sobbing coming from the bed. She makes her way to the sullen Lucy and bends down to rub her back. Lucy grips tightly onto the hem of Sonoma‘s sleeve. “Shh, shh… it’s alright, Lucy. Would you like me to be with you tonight? Next to old Madame Grace?” Lucy shakes her head. “What, then?”

“I want to look for my prince tonight,” she says between sobs. “I want to get married like Olivia!” There’s a knock at the door and Sonoma moves her head to see it’s Olivia.

Sonoma bends down to Lucy’s ear and whispers, “Lady Olivia is here to see you, my lady. I recommend wiping the wetness away quickly.” Lucy jolts up and wipes her puffy eyes dry before straightening herself up and taking long strides to her sister, taking Oliva’s hands in her own.

“It is good to see you, sister! I am glad of your engagement with Prince Jeanne Lauraceae,” she says, sounding as happy and surprised as when she first found out about it a few weeks earlier. Olivia grips Lucy’s hands tight and she winces. “Olivia--”

“This is as far as I’ll let it go on, Lucy. You have to let me go and stop fantasizing about me and my life. You are my beloved little sister; I don’t want to see you get hurt because of me.” Sonoma stands and looks at Olivia then Lucy carefully. How will Lucy react to Olivia--of all people!--telling her to stop her little fantasies? Not very well, Sonoma concludes.

Lucy smiles up at Olivia; it is a sweet and loving smile. “My dearest Olivia, I will let you go if that is what you wish. I only want to see you happy.” It was a complete lie and Sonoma and Olivia knew it. Sonoma knew Lucy did not only want to see her sister happy, but also live her sister’s life: Lucy was hopelessly jealous of Olivia, but her love and passion towards her sister stopped her from having any evil thoughts towards Olivia.

Sighing, Olivia lets go of Lucy and heads for the door. “I only hope those words are of the most sincere,” she says before leaving. There was a long silence as Lucy watched her sister leave and then continue to stare out her open door.

“Well, then, my lady.” Sonoma rushed to close the door. “You have to get ready for this evening. Would you like me to help you pick an outfit?”

Lucy stood then flopped on her bed with dread. “Why does it matter?” she asked, staring up at the ceiling, “it’s not like I’m going to be seeing anyone special.” Sonoma glided across the floor to Lucy with so much more grace than Lucy she eyed her own feet. Sonoma sat next to her.

“You may not reach princes, and you may stand by the menacing old Madame Grace, but that does not stop other princes from reaching you. Dress pretty and look refined. I’m sure a few right suitors will be there to watch you. In fact, I’ll make sure you are so radiant that if you don’t get any princes talking with you it is because they are too shy to.”

“But, Sonoma, the right prince I want is not too shy to come up to me and talk to me. He will strut his stuff to show me he wants me--”

“Then that is a faulty dream prince, because not even Prince Jeanne did that to Lady Olivia.” Lucy huffs and crosses her arms, still staring at the ceiling.

“Maybe those words I said to Olivia are indeed sincere?”

“Absolutely not. You still desire to be so much like Lady Olivia you’ll burst.”

Finally, Lucy sat up. “Not true! Well, not completely true. I will try my hardest to be my own self from now on, but if you find myself being more like Olivia, stop me.”

“How do you suppose I to do that?” Lucy shrugged.

“I don’t know. Tell me or something.” Sonoma sighed.

“Alright.” There was a slight pause. “Now get up, my lady, I will help you pick a dress.”

The dancing hall was dressed in golden and white colored flowers, the room smelt like vanilla and lavender, and laurels were set upon statues that were sculpted of the most famous people of Cartwright in history. Many beautiful people were guests tonight, all of them dressed lavishly in dresses and robes and suits of royalty and nobility, dressed their hair with hats and crowns and tiaras with jewels and many intricate little loops in the gold that rested on their heads. There were many tables along the sides full of fine food, wine, and baked sweets, of healthy salads and low-in-fat meat and dairy products (hard to believe people at this time and age were worrying about what they looked like! Ha!). The children were elsewhere, playing with the hired maids of the night to look after them (and children as in those under fifteen years old).

In the end, Lucy did as she was told by her father and stood under the painting of old Madame Grace, but after standing for a few hours Sonoma came and gave her a chair to sit on. She chewed on salad and fine roast beef with cherry tomatoes as she watched her sister dance with Jeanne, watching with both a twisted content and envy. She wanted her own prince, and she wanted him bad. This stupid painting is frightening off all my suitors! Lucy thought, and then continued to chew, nervously awaiting her prince to come. Lucy was positive her father had invited all the surrounding countries’ royal families, as well as Cartwright and all other’s noble families. This included the sons and daughters, where everyone mingles.

Earlier that night, before the ball and before the celebration yet after the announcement, Lucy dragged Sonoma to her chambers and set her plump bum on Lucy’s bed. “My lady? What are you planning on doing?”

“Tonight, you will not be my ‘hand in hiding,’ as my father says. You will be shown to the public royalty and nobility tonight.” Lucy closed her heavy wooden door shut and scrambled to a trunk in her closet, pulling it out and then opening it in front of Sonoma. She looked through it, scrutinizing every single dress she pulled out.

Sonoma stared at Lucy, astonished, before shaking her head and arms. “No, no, no way, my lady! I certainly cannot wear any of my lady’s attire! It is against my own rules and morals!”

Lucy ignored Sonoma’s words, looking over a crimson red fine silk dress with pearl sequins along the low neckline. Then she smiled and said, “I think this will do! Undress, Sonoma! Put this on.” Lucy laid the dress on Sonoma’s lap. “Wear this or else I shall never forgive you.” Lucy turned around.

Sonoma, grumbling, undressed from her maid’s clothing and slipped on the silk dress, amazed at how smoothly it slid on and how good it felt on her skin. “Done,” she mumbled.

“Great!” Lucy turned around and was amazed at how good Sonoma looked! “You look fabulous, Sonoma! I daresay even better than I!” The red silk complimented Sonoma’s red eyes, her dark brown skin radiated in the small candlelight, and the dress fit her form perfectly. Lucy lent Sonoma a pair of her black formal slippers which completed her look. “Now your hair…”

“What’s wrong with my hair?” Sonoma snapped. Lucy laughed and patted her maid’s head.

“Nothing, nothing… I just think… Yes!” Lucy turned and walked to her jewelery chest on her desk, bringing out and to Sonoma a red ribbon with three rubies on either end of the ribbon, looking like a flower’s petals. Lucy also brought out a few pins to hold the ribbon in place, just in case. Lucy tied up Sonoma’s hair at the back, letting the ruby flowers hang beautifully. A few pins gave the ribbon a secure feel while two others held back Sonoma’s few stray hairs.

“I’m not some doll, my lady,” Sonoma spoke up while Lucy was looking at Sonoma up and down. “You know this.”

“Yes, yes… but you look so lovely! I think I shall give you these items. What do you think?”

“No way, my lady! All the other maids will get jealous and rip it or even steal it from me!”

“Then calmly tell them it will be like stealing from the second princess of Cartwright.” And Lucy’s words sounded serious, not at all like how she usually sounded. Despite Lucy being childish and just turning fifteen, her word had just as much law and authority to them as her sister’s and other highly ranked nobles’.

Lucy handed Sonoma her empty bowl of salad and roast beef. Sonoma walked away to put it in the kitchen and when she returned Lucy began speaking:

“I can’t believe father actually did this.” Sonoma looked at Lucy questionably, raising her eyebrows. “I mean… does it look like he invited any countries or families with males in my age range?”

“And how large or small is your age range, my lady?” Sonoma’s voice was challenging.

“Twenty years above and five below!” Sonoma raised her eyebrows, surprised.

“I didn’t know you’d go for anyone younger than you, my lady.”

“You’d be surprised by a lot of things these days, Sonoma,” Lucy muttered and crossed her arms.

“I am at fault… Uncross your arms, Princess; it is unladylike for a princess of such a powerful kingdom cross her arms at a banquet-ball.”

“Tough.”

“Don’t give me any of your attitude, I already have one.”

“My, my, Princess Lucille. I didn’t know you had an Issiah for a handmaid,” said an old fat man as he casually walked from a nearby buffet table to Lucy. He wore a red and black knight suit full of metals on a sash across his large, round body. “Let alone being old enough to attend such parties as this. May I ask how old are you, Princess?”

Lucy stood and curtsied. “I am fifteen as of recent, Sir…” she trailed off, not knowing what to call this man.

“Warren. Sir Charles Warren of Barrosy. It is a pleasure to finally meet the young Princess of Cartwright,” he said and took Lucy’s hand and kissed the back of it. Lucy felt disgusted. Warren let go of Lucy’s hand and he glanced at Sonoma. “What is your handmaid’s name, Princess?”

Lucy faked a smile and turned to Sonoma. “This is my most trusted handmaiden, Sonoma.” Sonoma curtsied and smiled at Warren.

“That is an Issiah name, Princess. You did not name her something else when you bought her?”

Lucy shook her head. “I did not buy her, Sir Warren. I found her in the Miracle Woods five years ago.”

Warren stared at Lucy incredulously. “In the Miracle Woods? How peculiar. That is no where close to Issiah Island or any shipyard that travels there. Where in the woods did you find her? And what was a young princess like you doing in such a dangerous place like Miracle Woods?” Lucy refrained from a shrug.

“I found her not too deep in the woods from the side that is next to the castle. I was in the woods because I had heard there was a small pond not too far inside the forest that was home to magical fairies. And indeed, that was where I found Sonoma! She was sitting on the ground looking out across the water of the pond, watching the fireflies flutter.”

“I see. Was it hard for her to learn our language?”

“Not at all. I’m afraid she already knew how to speak our language, which left His Majesty the King in a stupor for a minute or two.”

“I see,” he said then turned to Sonoma, smiling. “Speak, Sonoma,” he ordered. Lucy could feel how uncomfortable she was to obey Warren’s order. “Good girl! Five years have done you well, Issiah child. Keep living under this comfortable Cartwrightian roof while you can.” His words ended with malice and then he walked away. Lucy fell back on her chair and exhaled. Sonoma sighed.

“He sounded rude to you, Sonoma. Think it’s because you’re Issiah?”

“Of course, my lady. I am no idiot, I knew exactly what he was implying, as well as what you were.” Sonoma crossed her arms and Lucy smiled up at her.

“What was I implying?”

“That I was a fairy.”

“No joke? Do you want to hear the truth or what you want to hear?”

“My lady, Princess Lucille?” Lucy almost jumps at her name and looks towards the voice.

“Yes?” she says and stands when she realizes it was an old friend of hers. “Oh, hello, Arthur. Good evening,” she continues when the man comes closer and curtsies, he bows.

“Good evening, Princess.”

“I didn’t know father invited your family. I thought he didn’t want any families with males in my--”

“My lady,” Sonoma interrupts, “please excuse my interruption, but you were rambling and sounding like Lady Olivia.” Lucy blushes.

“I’m sorry.” Arthur laughes.

“Princess, you are a lovely person when you are not Princess Olivia,” he says and raises her hand to gently kiss it. Lucy smiles, then realizes there’s now a brass pocket watch in her hands; she always had a weak spot for trinkets such as this.

“Thank you, Arthur.”

“Such informal speech coming from the Princess to a man who is not her betrothed?” King James said as he came towards the three, but Sonoma backed away towards the wall as the king came closer. Lucy huffed.

“I do not care, father. Arther and I have been friends for a long time. His father is a royal adviser to you, yet he is still unworthy to merely speak with me?” The King’s face softens.

“That is not what I am implying, Lucille. In fact, I imply nothing! I mean exactly what I say. I do not want you to speak to men so informally unless you are betrothed to the man. Your sister understood this clearly; do you not want to be like her?” Lucy crossed her arms on purpose to furiate her father.

“I do understand, but I consider Arthur and I close enough to call him something simple.”

“If you think so, I would at least suggest his last name.”

“Then how unfortunate, father, for you.” Lucy stomped her foot once before leaving through the back door of the hall, her face red like a tomato and her fists clenched tight, her nails borning into her palms. No one dared call her back. She walked to a side gate to the outside and wandered into Miracle Forest.

When the trees began to thicken she turns diagonally to her left and after five minutes she comes to the small pond she talked about with Sir Warren. Since Lucy found Sonoma here, Lucy had her father get her a bench. But because Lucy did not want anyone else to come here but her and Sonoma, it was only the two women who carried the wooden and brass bench to the very spot it now sat.

Lucy opened one of her hands to look over the brass pocket watch Arthur had given her as she walked slowly to the bench. Except she tripped on her dress and fell in the mud, the pocket watch flying through the air and making a low sounding plop into the unusually deep pond. Lucy felt like crying, then. The pocket watch was the first gift Arthur had given her in such a long time, as it had been a very long time since they last saw each other (around a year, Lucy guessed). Arthur often gave Lucy commen items such as hardwood jewelery cases, cherry wood trunks, and once a new bed. He gave Lucy a few brass clocks, which, to this day, still hang in her room, and even a few handmade brass rings with exquisite coils that looked difficult to make. Brass royalty, as she called it.

Getting up, Lucy swatted away as much mud as she could and walked over to the pond, careful not to trip. As Lucy peered into the pond she could not see a bottom, it seemed so endless. There isn’t much light, Lucy thought, perhaps it is just the darkness that makes it seem endless. But even as she thought this she doubted herself, fireflies flying around crazily, looking like the marketplace at noon.

No longer caring about how she looked, Lucy sat on her bottom, soon feeling the wet of the cold mud seeping through the skirt of her dress. She frowned and rested her head in her muddy hands, staring longingly at the dark blue water. Then she heard another low plop and wondered if something else fell into the water. She saw ripples grow from where the reeds were and began to be curious. What had just gone into the water? Lucy leaned forward to gaze as deep into the water as the fireflies’ light would allow yet saw nothing. Dissapointment now bubbling into her, Lucy leaned back into her previous position, not knowing what to do.

Suddenly a frog hopped out from the pond with the brass pocket watch Arthur had given Lucy. The frog seemed to smile at Lucy before hopping closer to her. Lucy sat up on her knees to look at the frog as it left the brass pocket watch in front of her. It continued to smile at her. Lucy, not knowing anything about the situation (but then, who would?) picked up the soaked watch.

“Thank you…” Lucy mumbled. Then the frog seemed to bow at her. What was with this frog? Lucy thought. Why was he doing all these human things? The frog hopped towards the bench, and then it nodded towards it, as if ushering the princess to sit down first. “Um…” She did. So the frog hopped up next to her. It croaked once, and Lucy giggled. The frog looked at Lucy for a few seconds before seemingly laughing along with her. “You are a very strange frog, you know. You are much like a prince…” Then it came to her. “From now on, you’re my frog prince.” The frog croaked twice. She giggled. “I’m sorry, I can’t understand. So I can’t learn your name… I’ll call you Prince, since it’s just a fair a title, isn’t it?” The frog nodded. Lucy giggled again, louder and more uncontrolled this time. “My, you are a strange one, Prince. I have a feeling this is going to be something very strange in the end.”

In two hours, Lucy went back to the castle because she couldn’t stand the cold any longer. The first to see her was Sonoma. “My lady, what happened to you?” Sonoma shouted as she took a firm grasp on Lucy’s shoulders and took her to the bath hall.

“I met someone,” Lucy whispered and then grinned slyly. Sonoma looked at Lucy accusingly.

“What happened?”

“Oh, nothing bad, if that’s what you’re thinking. I slipped in the mud at the pond.” Lucy sounded smug.

“You went to the forest?” Sonoma whispered loudly, “why did you go there at night? It’s so dangerous!”

Lucy swatted her hand. “It was fine. I found someone there and you won’t guess who.” Sonoma stopped for a moment to look at Lucy from head to toe. “You’re not going to find any traces of a hint on my dress, Sonoma.” Lucy walked on her own accord. “I’ll bathe myself and meet you in my chambers. I’ll tell you there.” Then Lucy slipped into one of the bathrooms and locked the door. Sonoma sighed before going to retrieve Lucy’s nightgown.

“You saw what?” Sonoma shouted and stared incredulously at Lucy. “A frog prince? Impossible!”

Lucy shook her head. “No, no, indeed possible!” There was a short pause. “Well, maybe not, but it was a princely frog. He seemed to bow and laugh and smile for me! And he even retrieved me the pocket watch Arthur gave me.”

“Then it was a very smart frog. This does not necessarily mean he’s a prince, now does it?”

Hesetently, Lucy answers, “No, it doesn’t… but it is enough reason to visit him everyday.”

“No, it isn’t, my lady. You have duties as the maid of honor to oversee the wedding production of Lady Olivia and Prince Jeanne.”

Lucy took Sonoma’s hands in her own and gazed softly in Sonoma’s eyes. “Sonoma, I have finally found my own prince, and however much frog he is, he is my prince. I will visit him everyday; a secret courting, as you will.” Sonoma squeezed Lucy’s fingers gently.

“I truly hope you are right. Otherwise, your life may turn to ashes right before my eyes.”

Lucy raised Sonoma’s hands and kissed them gratefully. “Thank you, Sonoma.”