TLC the Musical

Sing Sweet Nightingale

The stage went black after the Fairy Godmother and Cinderella left. Sunto heard wood creaking and metal screeching. It made him flinch in his seat. Of course, when the lights came back on, the stage was set with a completely different scenery.

The stage was now covered in decorations that made it look like the ballroom from the Cinderella movie. There were white pillars between large windows. The walls were covered in banners with family crests. One was a knight's helmet and a blue feather. Another, a lion's head and a raven.

The ballroom was flooded with people. All of them wearing huge ball gowns or weird suits that looked like the grandfathers to tuxedos. More than that, everyone had a mask on. Some were made after animals, others with card symbols on them, a few with just glitter and jewels.

There was a man with a crown and a mask on, sitting on a throne that was higher than the rest of the stage. Sunto figured that the man was the king. Next to him, a younger man with a simpler mask watched the people moving around.

Girls with crazy looking dresses went up to the king and the other man and bowed to both of them. This gave Sunto the idea that the young man was the prince. AKA, the man Cinderella met in the marketplace earlier.

While the girls giggled and blushed when they looked at the prince, he was not as happy to see them. He was feeling something sunto knew well. Boredom and discomfort.

It's like when your parent makes you meet people you don't know because they want you to make friends. The other kid may like you and enjoy hanging out. While you just want to go home and play with your toys.

That was the face the prince was making. He certainly looked weirded out by all of the girls watching him. He rocked back and forth on his feet, as if waiting for something to happen. Then again, if you were bored and sick of greeting people who annoyed you, you'd wish for anything to distract you.

Thankfully, the prince got his wish, and a spotlight followed one girl as she entered the stage. The girl was in a blue ball gown and had a mask with the same color. That was it. The mask was simple and plain, like the dress. But both were still beautiful and better than the clothes other people had on.

Seriously. A woman in the crowd had a dress and mask that were made entirely out of feathers. It was both insane and frightening.

Cinderella searched the crowd for a reason Sunto remembered well. She'd gone to the ball to meet the guy she met in the marketplace. He'd said he would be there after all. Now, she was scanning the area for him.

The prince saw her and his frown turned upside down. He turned to his father and said, "Excuse me, father."

The king smiled at him. "Spot someone you wish to dance with, Henry?"

"Let's hope," the prince answered as the left his post and moved past all the girls who were fawning over him. Three girls asked him if he would dance with them, to all of which he nicely said "no thank you".

It took a few minutes, but the prince got to Cinderella, who was standing at a table covered with more food than Sunto had ever seen at once.

To get her attention, he tapped her on the shoulder and smiled at her. Cinderella spun on her heels and took a step back when she saw the prince behind her.

For a moment, she squinted at him. Her eyes lit up as she said, "It's you. From the marketplace."

He grinned back at her. "I'm surprised you recognize me in this mask."

"I'm surprised you found me. This place is fill to the brim with people." Cinderella kept away from most of the other ball quests as best she could. Probably hoping no one would recognize her or that her step family would not see her.