Charmaine waited three days. Three days of endless lines of hopelessly deluded young men - and a few women - who thought all they had to do was appear at the castle, put a shoe on their foot, and they'd be made royalty.

But the shoe's behaviour was as curious as its appearance; it seemed to shrink or expand depending on the size of the foot being presented, so that it was too big for a seven foot courtier who looked as though he could bench press the palace, while being too small for the tiny street urchin who came to try his luck behind him.

It was as if the shoe was mocking her for wasting its time. But Charmaine refused to give up. She continued to wait. And wait. And wait.

Eventually, the line of hopefuls outside the palace gates dwindled. Soon, there was no one left to see at all.

"But that can't be everyone in the kingdom," Charmaine protested to the footman who told her there were no more visitors to send in.

She hadn't really expected Elliot to come. But she had expected Helios and had planned to detain him in the palace long enough to get to the bottom of what was going on. His absence was far more frustrating.

With a sigh, Charmaine raised herself up out of her chair and picked up the shoe from the velvet cushion it had been resting on. If the Lebroskis weren't going to come to her, she would have to go to them.

"See that my horse is saddled and ready for me in ten minutes," she told the footman.

She hadn't been riding since her attempt to catch up with Elliot after the second ball. This time she travelled at a more dignified pace - determined not to arrive at the Lebroski residence in a state of complete disarray. When she confronted Elliot and his step-family, she would do so looking like a princess, not a wild woman.

She couldn't help but speed up as the tarnished gates of the family manor came into view. It had been years since she had last been here. When had it fallen into such disrepair? The gardens that had once bloomed beautifully with iridescent flowers in a rainbow pallet were overgrown and choked with thorns. Weeds grew with abandon; inky bulbous buds blooming from thick stems snaking through the undergrowth.

What had happened to Tolban, the gardener who had chased Charmaine and Elliot out of his vegetable patch more times than she could count? He'd once spent a full hour chastising her after he caught her climbing his prize apple tree.

The path, at least, was swept clear for frequent use. The house itself, when it came into view, was tired but not derelict. Paint curled from the edges of the window frames. Mortar cracked between the brickwork. But the glass in the windows shone bright and clean, and smoke puffed merrily from the chimney.

She left her horse in the care of her footman beside a wizened pear tree and approached the door, feeling a twinge of nerves for the first time. The front door was still a deep, scarlet red, though it was a little more faded than the last time she had been here.

Before knocking, she glanced back at the small group of hangers on who had insisted on accompanying her to the Lebroski household. Most were here to satisfy their own curiosity rather than out of concern for her safety. Six of them in total: two guards, both trying - and failing - to appear disinterested in what she was about to say; three of the women who were accustomed to following her mother around, probably sent along with her on her mother's orders; and her footman, who was looking disappointed that he would have to stay outside with the horses. Charmaine took a deep breath in, smoothed down her plaited hair, and knocked.

Seconds dragged by, stretching out into minutes which felt like hours as Charmaine's anxiety began to simmer into frustration. She could hear the restless rustling of the crowd waiting behind her. Had the entire family left? Had they taken Elliot and moved away to avoid facing her? Did they really think they could get away-

The door swung open.

Charmaine recoiled slightly at the sight of him: the days old bruise colouring his face; his eye swollen and purple.

"Your highness!" Lebroski said with a tone of surprise that wasn't mirrored on the calm planes of his face. "What an unexpected honour. How can I be of service?"

Charmaine took a deep breath, forcing herself to bite back her anger, swallowing it down into the depths of her stomach where it lay, simmering, while she glared at Lebroski. "A royal decree was issued declaring that every young man in the kingdom should present themselves at the palace. There are two eligible candidates in your household, yet you have not come to court. I am here to find out why."

"But surely your highness has more pressing matters to attend to? Don't you have servants for this?" He gave her retinue a dismissive once over.

Despite the fire flooding through her core, Charmaine smiled sweetly. "This is my most pressing matter of the moment; the three balls you so graciously decided to attend were not merely for public amusement. They served an important purpose. And would you believe, you are the only household in the kingdom that saw fit to interpret my decree as a request? So I felt that I ought to come here personally to make it clear that compliance had not been optional."

Lebroski let out a long sigh. "It had not been my intention to ignore your highness' request; I had an unfortunate accident on my return from the final ball and was in no hurry to return to the public eye for the time being. And my only daughter, Selene, has unfortunately been very unwell. The entire household is currently under quarantine." Charmaine felt some of the women behind her take a step back, but she held her nerve. If Lebroski was so determined to keep her out of the house, that could only mean it was exactly where she should be going.

"This won't take but a moment, and it really is too important to postpone. Besides, we need not trouble Selene at all: it's Helios and Elliot I am here to see."

Before Lebroski could reply, she pushed past him into the entrance-way. It may have been years since she had last been here - the wear and decor significantly altered - but she could still remember the way to the family's large drawing room. She strode straight towards it, pulled the largest chair closer to the fire, and sat down, fingers drumming on the arms.

Her retinue, she was pleased to notice, filled in behind her. While their presence could be annoying, it also seemed sensible to have a large group of witnesses with her if she was going to force Lebroski to comply with her wishes.

"Helios I can summon, your highness," Lebroski said from the doorway. She was pleased to notice that he was looking increasingly disgruntled. "However, my step-son has not been a member of my household for some time, as we have now informed you on a number of occasions."

"Do you tend to your own fires, Lord Lebroski? Mop your own floors? Clean your own windows? You must have servants, surely?" Charmaine said, ignoring his mention of Elliot entirely.

"We do have one serving boy, yes..." Lebroski said, looking rattled.

"Then send him in with Helios," she replied, waving her hand to dismiss him. Once he left the room, Charmaine took the remaining slipper from her saddle bag and placed it carefully on the arm of the chair.

What would he say when he walked in? Would he still pretend that he was someone else? Would he refuse to even enter the room? Would he-

Her thoughts were cut off when he appeared in the doorway.

Elliot. Her Elliot. Not a stranger who spoke and acted like Elliot while looking entirely different, but her childhood best friend. The boy she had left six years ago when she went to school. He was older, sure, with the face of a young man instead of a boy. He was thinner too, his cheeks gaunt, his eyes dull. But he was irrefutably Elliot.

Charmaine started to rise to her feet, but Elliot didn't meet her gaze, didn't acknowledge her at all as Lebroski reentered the room behind him. Helios strode in next, his features stormy. He threw himself into the chair opposite Charmaine and declared "let's get this over with, then."

Charmaine handed him the shoe, only realising her mistake a second too late. Instead of closing his hand around the glass object, Helios let it slip straight through his fingers and onto the hard flagstones below, where it cracked into several jagged pieces. The group behind Charmaine gasped.

"Oops," Helios said, refusing to meet her furious glare and not looking remotely sorry. He stood back up and left the room before Charmaine could even choke out a response.

"Ah, well... that was unfortunate," Lebroski said, his eyes shining gleefully. "But I think we both knew that Helios was not the suitor you are looking for and I'm sure that everyone in this room can attest that they never saw my ragged servant boy at the palace over the course of the balls - it would have been impossible to miss him in this state - so I feel this charade would not have helped you anyway. Your missing suitor must come from further afield than our kingdom, your highness. Or perhaps," he added, his mouth curling up into a cold smile. "He simply does not wish to be found." He turned to leave, intending to sweep Elliot from the room with him, until Charmaine stopped them both by raising her hand.

Steel glistened in her eyes as she beheld them both coolly. "You may leave, Lord Lebroski. But I require a moment of your servant's time. The rest of you can wait outside as well."

Her retinue filled out reluctantly, but Lebroski remained for a moment longer, glaring at her, before one of her guards cleared his throat loudly from the doorway. Lebroski fixed Elliot with a stare that could melt ice, then swept furiously from the room.

"Elliot, what's going on? I don't understand," Charmaine asked as soon as they were alone.

"I'm sorry, your highness," the boy replied. "You must have me confused with someone else. My name's not Elliot."

"But of course it is!" Charmaine almost wailed. Tears were glistening in her eyes - whether from anger or distress, even she didn't know. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry for everything I said when I went away to school - I didn't mean any of it. And I'm sorry that I haven't come to tell you this sooner. I'm sorry I didn't check on you after your mother passed - I thought it would only make things worse. I'm sorry I-"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Elliot said firmly, his eyes fixed on the broken shards of glass on the floor. "I think it would be best if you left."

The tears had now spilt out of her eyes, making train tracks down her cheeks. "Elliot, I don't understand."

"Then maybe I can help to explain," said a voice from the window seat.

They both wheeled to face to newcomer, who had definitely not been in the room a few seconds before.

Charmaine's eyes widened at the sight of him, taking in his bold cobalt quiff, grape coloured suit and sparkling glass dress shoes.

Elliot groaned, earning him a sharp look from the newcomer.

"Who are you?" Charmaine asked, still too amazed by his appearance to process much else.

"I, darling princess, am Elliot's fairy godfather," he said with a flourish, coming forwards to bow before Charmaine. When he lifted his head back up, he winked at her gleefully before summoning himself a chair from the opposite side of the room with an intricate wave of his hand.

"So you are Elliot?" Charmaine asked, looking from the fairy to her friend. Elliot was glaring at the fairy.

"Oh don't look at me like that, Elliot. I'm here to save the day!" the fairy was practically bouncing off his seat with excitement.

"I still don't really understand what's going on," Charmaine told them with a shake of her head.

"Allow me," the fairy said, and with another wave of his hand, the broken shards of glass lifted themselves from the floor and came back together to form a flawless shoe once more. He handed the shoe to Elliot, who looked like he was contemplating throwing it back onto the floor for a moment before the furious glares of the pair beside him made him think better of it. The shoe fitted him perfectly.

"It really is you!" Charmaine said, her eyes sparkling. "Why are you pretending that it isn't?"

"Because it's not safe!" Elliot whispered back, glancing towards the door before leaning in towards her, his voice low. "Because he'll hurt you if I leave and I couldn't bear for anything to happen to you. I'd rather lose you forever than be the cause of your suffering."

Charmaine made a chocking noise somewhere between a laugh and a sob. "But losing you forever would cause me the most suffering of all!"

"I don't know what to do," Elliot said sadly.

"If you would allow me to interrupt?" the fairy asked, leaning between them. "Lebroski is an overly ambitious idiot full of threats he has no way of carrying out - and if he ever did decide to act on them, he'd have to get through me first. My advice is that you take each other by the hand and walk straight out of this house without looking back."

Charmaine looked across to Elliot. "That sounds good to me."

Elliot smiled at her for the first time. "Think you can make it past Lebroski without skewering him?" he asked playfully.

Charmaine sighed. "If you insist, then I guess I can try," she said, standing up.

Elliot laughed and followed suit. "Is this the bit where we ride off into the sunset and live happily ever after?"

Charmaine took his hand in hers and squeezed. "I think we both know that I can't promise to be happy all of the time... But with you by my side, I'll give it my very best shot."

The end. 

{Thank you all so much for reading, voting for and commenting on Princess Charming! I've had so much fun writing it and I really hope you like this final chapter too. If you enjoyed Princess Charming, please check out my other fairytale retellings on my profile!}