Cinderella: There's No Happy Ending

Summers End

Ella stood just inside the garden, saying her goodbyes to the staff. They had been dismissed just after breakfast; their blackboard had stated that they were to eat breakfast before starting their work. Lady Tremaine then told them of the Master's death and that economies had to be taken. She was dismissing the entire household, must to everyone's displeasure. Giving one final hug to the cook, Ella turned around and frowns when she sees Alice standing there without any bags by her side.

"Someone has to stay here and take care of this place. Heaven knows you can't do it on your own." Ella squeaked with joy and threw herself at Alice, hugging her tightly. She wouldn't be as alone as she had previously thought. Things couldn't be so bad if Alice was going to stay.

The weeks passed by quickly for both women. Alice had moved into the attic with Ella, which Lady Tremaine had no problem with. They would both be out of the way up there and the work would still be done. Ella split the chores with Alice as best she could but she still knew in the back of her mind that Alice did a lot more than she was letting on. There was so much work to be done and Ella was dragging with exhaustion at the end of each night, barely able to scrape her food into her mouth. Alice had to continuously smack Ella's hand to wake her up at the table and make her finish her food.

Alice gave Ella as much of her food as possible without the other girl noticing. Ella was getting much too thin and Alice wouldn't allow that, no matter how hard she had to work. Ella was too tired most nights to notice but when she did; Alice lied and told her friend that she was simply eating faster.

Some nights, Ella would be awake enough to turn a teacup upside down and make a table for her other friends: four little mice that seemed to follow Ella everywhere. The young woman had even given them all names and Alice watched with an indulgent smile as she shared her food with them. Alice made sure to put scraps of food in her pockets to leave at the spots she knew the mice frequented.

When summer came toward its end and the breezes became cooler, Ella chose to sleep down by the hearth in the kitchen to keep warm. Alice however, used to the drafts and the chill, chose to sleep up in the attic on a bed. She wrote the next day's chores on the blackboard before she went in case Ella woke up before her. She had given Ella the indoor chores tomorrow as the horses needed cleaned and brushing, something which Ella did not enjoy. Alice stretched out and groaned as her aching muscles protested. However, even the pain couldn't keep her awake and she quickly fell asleep.

When she awoke the next morning, it was to the smell of the breakfast being cooked. That means Ella's awake and here I am sleeping the day away like a lazy urchin. Jumping out of bed, Alice groaned as she realized that all her work dresses were dirty. She pulled on the green dress that she had received from Ella and told herself she wasn't going to get it dirty, even if it meant not working as hard today. Pulling her shoes on, Alice quickly made her way down the stairs and outside to take care of all the animals. Feeding the chickens, collecting the eggs, cleaning their house, feeding the ducks, milking the cow, washing her down, and the many other chores that needed to be done quickly took up the morning hours. Having worked extra hard the day before, once the animals were taken care of there wasn't anything else to be done.

Ella had mentioned wanting to visit a friend in town who used to work for the household. Groceries also needed to be picked up so Alice did most of the housework yesterday to give Ella a lighter load. When they were done Alice was going to take her into town with her to get groceries. Having finished the other chores, Alice went into the horse stalls and walked them both around the yard for a bit to warm up their muscles. They would need to be warmed up before Alice would consider taking them to town and they needed to be brushed down anyway. Picking up a brush Alice began with the larger horse, leaving Ella's smaller horse for last.

Inside the house, Ella had called the women for breakfast then began mending the fire. When Lady Tremaine began complaining, Ella quickly stood and began serving them. Her stepsisters made fun of her for having ash on her face and began giving her names. They finally settled on Cinderella when her stepmother asked who the fourth plate was for. When Ella answered that it was her place, Lady Tremaine's eyes darkened with cruelty.

"Oh, it seems too much to expect to prepare breakfast, serve it and still sit with us. Wouldn't you prefer to eat with Alice when all the work is done, Ella? Or should I say, Cinderella?" She cackled cruelly and her daughters joined in seconds later as Ella picked up the plate and walked away.