"So are you going to the prince's ball?" Belle asked. I was back at the bakery again a couple days later to get the three dresses. The princes ball was in two days, but my step-mother was eager to be the first customer for the steam stress. We had to wait for a good amount of days until the steam stress to got back from a business trip, and people were already lining up for their dresses.
"I don't know, my chores are keeping my up so busy, I barley have any time to finish my dress. My step-mother wouldn't allow for me to buy one, and I can't go in my plainclothes." I said biting into a cookie Belle handed me as a treat.
"Well, my mother always said that if you are determined to get something done, and you believe you can, then you will."
"My mother used to say that to me too." I said remembering her while holding my necklace.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."
"No, it's fine. I just don't know if my step-mother will tell me that." Belle giggled a little and went back to a customer that was first in line.
"Well unless you plan on getting the birds and mice to do your chores, I suggest you get back home quick as possible to finish them so you can work on your dress." I nodded and left the bakery, saying goodbye to my friend. I walked down the street until I reached the steam stress's store. Apparently my step-mother wasn't the only one who wanted to get her dresses today, the line seemed to go on forever.
But the sooner I got the dresses the sooner I get back home to work on my dress. And the sooner I finished my dress, the bigger possibility I could see Adam there. I knew I didn't have a chance with him though. He would be knee deep in prospecting princesses, I was just a friend. But no matter how much I tried, I couldn't stuff the feeling that I wanted to be more to him. After what seemed like an hour of waiting, I finally got to the front of the line, and told the steam stress what my step-mother and step-sisters wanted for their dresses and left the store after fulfilling my order. I would have to go back the next day to get the dresses.
I walked out the store, to see that it was already getting dark. I had to get home before sunset or I wouldn't be able to see a thing! I pushed my way through the dispersing crowd and made it too the end, in the direction of my house. I was walking out of town when I heard a familiar voice.
"Hello." I turned around to see Adam, dressed in his usual cloak and hood, but he had a lantern held up so we could see in the dark.
"Good evening Adam." I replied. We bother laughed at my pretend formality. After that day at the waterfall, we came back there a lot. And over time, became good friends. I never told Belle though. "Hey Prince Charming." He glared at me for calling him that nickname he hated. So I constantly called him that.
"I wanted to ask you something." He started scratching the back of his neck. "That if you were, possibly, going to the ball?" He the last sentence quickly as if trying to cover it.
"Perhaps, if I can get all my chores done."
"If you are going, then I'll look for you there." He smiled a bit and I tried to cover my blushing. I was about to leave when he grabbed my hand and gave me the lantern.
"Here, it's getting dark and I know my way in the night." I took the lantern and held it by the handle.
"Thank you." He nodded his head and turned around. I stood there smiling for a bit, before I saw the gleam of the sun fall just over the horizon. I turned around and speed walked back to my house, the light of the lantern guiding my way.
"Drizella, Anastasia dears. Come the carriage is here." My step-mother said ever so ridiculously sweetly. It was the day of the ball, and through some very hard work, and determination to make the dress for certain reasons, my chores were done and my dress was finished. I watched from upstairs out of their sight, as my step-mother praised her daughters about how they were going to wow the prince.
"It warms my heart to know that I have two prepossessing players in the game, and soon one of you could be the prepossessing bride of his majesty." My step-sisters flaunted their dresses and hair, showing off how much money my step-mother wasted on getting them ready. They were about to turn to the door when I carefully walked down the steps of the stairs holding the front in my hand, careful not to ruin the dress.
I faced them with a smile on my face, and they returned with shocked expressions. My step-mother held her usual grimace, but seemed a bit shocked as well. I reached the end of the steps and let my dress fall.
"And where did you get that dress?" My step-mother asked.
"Do you like it? It was my mother's. Don't worry it didn't cost you anything, I touched it up myself." I said with a broad smile on my face.
"Well of course it didn't cost anything, just look at it. The design is just simply so cheap." She motioned for her step-daughters to join her in front of me. In their giant poofy dresses, they waddled more than walked.
"You're right Mother, it seems to be just tearing apart." Anastasia held the tight lace sleeve of my dress, and ripped it down, tearing it away from the top.
"Hey!" I turned away from her holding my sleeve.
"Oh yea, the skirt is just so pitifully wrinkled." Drizella grabbed the bottom of my dress and tore it with a big gash.
"Drizella, Anastasia." My step-mother seemed to be coaching her daughters for their actions. But something told me that she didn't mean it. "Those little mistakes on her dress weren't worthy or your actions. But this sash however," She eyed the sash around my waist, it was one of the things I didn't change or touch up in the dress."It's just so strange, it doesn't go at all with these rags." She ripped the sash away from my dress and I moved away trying to get it out of her reach, but was too late. She held the light silk pink sash in her hands and held it up to Anastasia's dress, to see if it matched. But her dress was too dark a shade of pink, and my Step-mother threw the sash into the fireplace.
"NO!" I screamed. I sat in front of the fireplace with the burning sash, in my ruined dress. I placed my palms on the ground and let a single tear fall.
"There's just one thing missing though." One of my horrible family members said. I turned around and saw Anastasia and Drizella dump a bucket or cinders onto me. Most stuck to my face and top of the dress, but ashes were still spread everywhere. It was normal for me to be covered in this, but to see my mother's dress ruined like this was intolerable.
My Step-mother and Step-sisters walked out the door and I watched them climb into the carriage, and ride away. I walked forlorn to the well and let my tears fill the water in the well more. I wiped my tears with my cinder stained hands and just ended up spreading them across my eyes to make it look like a mask. In my reflection I saw what my step-family saw me as, a monster of ashes. They weren't going to treat me any different, no matter how kind, or gentle, or caring I was. My mother doesn't watch me from above, nor my father. If they did, why did they just sit and watch their only daughter suffer like this. No one was going to take care of me, besides me. I wasn't going to be ridiculed, tortured, and mistreated like this anymore. I'm not Cinderella, or Ella anymore. Today, I will be reborn from the ashes.
(P.S the picture at the top is what Cinderella's dress is supposed to look like before Anastasia, Drizella, and her Step-Mother ruined it.)
YOU ARE READING
Ever After
FantasyWhat would happen if Cinderella's fairygodmother never showed up. What if she decided she couldn't take the torture anymore and ran away. What if she became a wanted criminal called Ashes, and a year later became the suspect of the kidnapping of the...
