"But it's not just the makeup," she continued. "There's been somethingdifferent about you since we were little...girls."We giggled at that comment for...a moment before I pulled out my mascara."I never knew what it was," she said with a smile that I could see in themirror. "But I understand it now. I can't believe that we didn't see itsooner. Megan has always been right there in front of me."I guess I could have felt saddened by that knowledge, but I didn?t. Shewas right. Megan had always been. Even they, however, did not have the feet tofit the shoe, although it seemed closer than it had for some of theother ladies that the prince had visited.Breathing a sigh of relief, the prince took the shoe from the sisters,who struggled to give it up, and decided to set off for the next houseon his itinerary. As he descended the steps of Cinders' home, however,the prince tripped, dropping the shoe and sending it tumbling down thestairs. There, on the bottom step, was Cinders, who quickly caught. 'Dour Dennis' is what my friends used to call me."Sandy cocked her head. "Really? You seem pretty cheerful." It's English humor. Since I look cheerful, they call me 'dour'." Dennis flicked his ashes before taking another drag on his cigarette. "If I was fat, they'd call me 'skinny'; if I was gentle, they'd call me 'killer'." You realize those will kill you?" Monique teased."Hey, if it's a choice between this and the Death, I'll take a slow demise, thank you very much."Sandy stood up, offering. My bare legs were covered in goose pimples. My fake leather jerkin was dripping with water from the damp mist and running down to soak my skimpy tunic. It would be the final straw if my Viking sword got rusty. I’d been walking for more than an hour. I had decided to spend the night at home and return in the morning. I should have accepted the offer of a piece of floor after the Halloween party. At least I’d be warm and dry. Now I was cold and wet and lost. My chances of finding a petrol station.