A stunning young lady arrived at the palace, wearing a dazzling blue ball gown. She walked up the stairs to the inside hall and stopped. The entranceway was magnificent. She looked around, took a deep breath, and proceeded down the long hallway. Palace guards flanked the entrance. They stood at attention, but they all followed her with their eyes. They simply couldn’t help watching the girl.

The young lady slowly walked up another grand staircase carpeted in red velvet. She finally made her way up to the grand ballroom.

Meanwhile, the court announcer continued his introductions.

“The Mademoiselles Drizella and Anastasia Tremaine,” he proclaimed. The sisters fluffed their dresses and hair, preparing for their big moment. Anastasia turned and kneeled down to adjust her dress. She stepped on Drizella’s dress at the same time and caused Drizella to get mad and stumble slightly. Drizella then pulled her dress from under Anastasia’s feet and almost made her sister fall flat on her face. Drizella started up the carpet without Anastasia, who eventually collected herself and went running after her sister. The girls finally made their way up to the Prince and curtsied.

The Prince couldn’t help noticing how awkward and gawky the two girls were. He immediately knew that the Tremaine sisters were not his type. He sighed and looked up at the ceiling, wishing the evening were over.

The King shuddered at the sight of the sisters. “I give up!” he said, shaking his head as he watched Anastasia and Drizella greet the Prince. “Even I couldn’t expect the boy to—”

But the King was interrupted by the smirking Grand Duke.

“Well, if I may say so, Your Majesty, I did try to warn you, but you, sire, are incurably romantic,” began the Duke pompously. The King covered his ears with his hands and leaned on the balcony ledge. He tried to muffle the sound of his companion’s irritating voice, but the Duke continued to rant about the impossibility of finding love in such a forced setting.

Meanwhile, the Prince was bowing to the Tremaine sisters, who were still clumsily curtsying and grinning, trying their best to spend as much time in front of the Prince as possible. When he lifted his head, he caught a glimpse of something magnificent. He perked up and walked between the two sisters, who thought he was showing interest in them. He briskly made his way to the balcony, where a striking young lady looked over the railing. The Prince went to her and took her hand. She turned around and their eyes locked. He bowed to her and she gracefully curtsied in return. The Prince took her other hand.

The Prince had fallen in love with none other than Cinderella!

It was love at first sight for both of them! And the King had been watching the whole encounter. He rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. He rubbed his hands together with excitement. The whole time, the Grand Duke continued to blabber about love and fairy tales in the face of reality.

“… a pretty plot for fairy tales, sire,” chuckled the Duke. “But in real life, it was doomed to failure.” He proudly grinned and cocked his head. He was quite pleased with himself.

But the King quickly returned the Grand Duke to reality.

“Failure, eh?” shouted the King. He grabbed the Duke’s monocle and pulled it toward the Prince and Cinderella. He then shoved the Duke’s head right into the monocle so he could see the excitement below them. “Ha!” laughed the King. “Take a look at that, you pompous windbag!”

Through the monocle they watched the Prince kiss Cinderella’s hand. The Grand Duke was in awe.

The King continued to laugh with joy and anticipation. He summoned the orchestra to play a waltz, then whistled for the lights to be dimmed. He wanted the scene to be set just as he had imagined it. He was finally content.

“Well, now for a good night’s sleep,” said the King, yawning and stretching his arms. The Duke agreed. When the King headed for the exit, the Duke followed, but he was quickly halted.

“You will stay right here,” the King said, pushing the Duke back into his chair. “See that they are not disturbed. And when the boy proposes, notify me immediately.” The King left through the curtains. The Duke was annoyed and frustrated. He had been made to look like a fool. He slumped disgustedly in the chair and mocked the King’s request. But he was quickly startled by the King’s voice. The King had stuck his head back through the curtains. If anything went wrong, he warned, the Duke would be held accountable.

With those words, the King glanced down at the lovely couple one last time. Then he officially made his exit from the balcony and danced down the hallway. He hummed and kicked up his heels. He even took a butler’s hands and waltzed with him.

The King was very pleased. He disappeared into his room, shutting the huge doors behind him. His dreams that night would be sweet and satisfying.