Victoria Stitch at the Palace (part 3 of 3)

Victoria Stitch is pleased with the amount of attention she seems to attract as she walks into the Palace Ballroom.  The music stops.  Ladies in pink and silver wigs stare and whisper.

Then a dark, handsome man steps forward.

'You are the most beautiful girl I have ever seen.' he says in a slightly forced manner.

'Oh I know,' says Victoria Stitch waving her hand airily.  'I am so very beautiful.  I am Cinderella!'

 'I thought so,' says the handsome man, looking pleased.  He holds out his hand for Victoria Stitch to take but she brushes it aside and walks over to the buffet table.  She takes five chocolate covered strawberries and picks the shrimps off seven little biscuits.

The Prince still persists in hovering round Victoria Stitch.

'May I have the pleasure of a dance with you?' he asks uneasily.

'If you must,' says Victoria Stitch, putting all the shrimps in her mouth at once.  'But you can't kiss me.  I'll have fish breath.'

The Prince looks confused.

'You are... Cinderella?' he whispers.

'Oh yes!' answers Victoria Stitch.  'Most definitely!'

The Prince breathes in relief.

'Well then, we must dance!' he says taking Victoria Stitch by the hand.  'Come this way, do you know how to foxtrot?'

'Foxwhat?'

Victoria Stitch does not know how to foxtrot.  She steps on the Prince's toes several times.  He begins to look annoyed.

'How about you take off your glass slippers?' he suggests in a whisper.  'In fact may as well give me one of them now.  Save me the trouble of running after you later.'

Then in a most ungentlemanly manner, he lifts up the corner of Victoria Stitch's orange satin skirt and holds out his hand for her foot.

 The Prince sees her black lace up boots and gasps.

'You're no Cinderella!' he cries, leaping up in fury.  'I knew it!'

'I am!' shrieks Victoria Stitch.  But then she sees the crowd and Royal family advancing towards her and she turns and bolts out of the room, grabbing a handful of chocolate covered strawberries as she goes.

'Catch her!' shouts the Prince.  'She's an impostor!  Put her in prison!'

'Oh sugarplum fairies,' mutters Victoria Stitch as she runs out of the Palace doors and across the courtyard.  'Why didn't I just wear the silly glass shoes?'

She starts to bat her little black wings and they lift her shakily into the air.  Then she closes her eyes tight and flies right off the page and out of the book, landing with a thud, back in the dark book shop in her underwear.

Pink Rabbit is so pleased to see her that he leaps into her arms, sniffling.

'Come on Pink Rabbit,' says Victoria Stitch.  'I think we've had enough excitement for one night.  'Let's go home.'