The palace ball was announced and suddenly our home stopped being a home and turned into a battlefield. Mother became a commander. Drizella and I became soldiers. And our enemy? Our own faces.
"Three days! Three days until the prince!" Mother shouted like he was a ticking bomb instead of a boy.
At dawn she dragged us to the vanity and slammed down a tiny jar.
"Miracle treatment," she declared. "Slug slime."
I swear the jar glared at me. I screamed. Drizella screamed louder. We sounded like pigs being chased by wolves.
"We're not snails!" I protested.
"Even snails will find this disgusting!" Drizella added, which I wasn't sure was helpful much against her.
Mother left before we could argue more, thank heavens.
Drizella turned to me, eyes wild. "We require Cinderella."
I nodded like we were discussing advanced military strategy. "I know exactly what she needs to do."
A few minutes later Cinderella arrived, calm as the moon and smelling faintly of soap and kitchen spices. She carried a basket full of things that I asked him to bring.
"I made a facemask," she said. "Honey, yoghurt, rosewater. Gentle and soothing."
"Great! Perfect!"
She dabbed the mixture onto my cheeks with such delicacy I felt like royalty for once. Drizella kept sneezing every ten seconds, nearly flinging her mask across the room like a jellyfish. I tried to look serene, though I was secretly trying to cross my eyes to check if my nose was more elegant today.
After that, Cinderella braided our hair. Ribbons. Flowers. Loops. Mine actually looked soft. Pretty. It startled me.
We even applied some on her face and three of us lay down on the bed. It feels like we are on our spa date.
Then came Madame Pirouette for grace lessons. Drizella fell over a ribbon in the first minute. I curtsied like I was bowing to a chicken. Madame Pirouette sighed so aggressively I feared he might faint.
But after all the chaos, there came a quiet moment.
After the lesson, having lunch, we all went to my room to take a breath and discuss our plan.
I was looking in the mirror.
My freckles.
My crooked smile.
My big nose.
Mother always spoke like beauty was a club and we'd been denied membership. She said it casually, like stating the weather—ugly, ugly, almost pretty if you squinted.
Drizella stood beside me, biting her lip.
"She says beauty is everything," she said. "But I don't think I have any."
I hated how much I agreed.
"We're not like other girls," I whispered. And it wasn't bitter. Just… tired.
Cinderella paused with her needle mid-air. She looked at us without annoyance or pity—just kindness.
"You two are lovely," she said. "Different kinds of lovely. And that's allowed."
Something in my chest thumped. Hard.
"But the world only seems to like one kind," Drizella said.
"Then maybe the world hasn't seen all the kinds yet," Cinderella said, like it was the simplest thing she knew to be true.
For a moment, I wasn't the ugly stepsister. I was just a girl who wanted to be seen.
Mother barged back in, ruining the universe. "Less talking, more posture! Rest time is over. Hurry! Fast!"
Cinderella tried to slip away, but I grabbed her sleeve. Just gently. "Thank you," I whispered.
Because kindness, it turns out, is stronger than slug slime.
The house was finally quiet.
Mother had gone to bed after lecturing us for an hour about posture and how princes hate slouching women which is a news to me.
Only the faint sound of mice committing petty crimes echoed from the kitchen.
I grabbed the contraband candle I'd stolen from the hallway and tiptoed toward Drizella's room. Two knocks—pause—one knock. Our newly established secret code.
The door cracked open.
"You're late," Drizella whispered, already in her nightgown, hair braided like a scholar plotting academic treason.
"It's three past midnight," I said. "That's elegantly witching-hour-ish. Perfect for planning."
Cinderella slid inside right after me, tiptoeing like she expected Mother to drop from the ceiling.
"I'm not sure we're supposed to be doing this," she whispered.
"That's the spirit," I said. "Now sit, princess-in-progress."
We all huddled around Drizella's desk. She blew out the room's main candle and lit the tiny stolen one instead. Instant secret society atmosphere. Ten out of ten.
"So what's our main point of discussion?" Drizella asked.
I placed a parchment with everything written in a point:—
1. Dress
2. Shoe
3. Entering ball
4. Escaping ball
"That's our main problems and we need solutions." I stated.
"So where do we get a dress, that will fit her?" We both looked at Cinderella with a question mark.
"Umm... I have my mother's gowns, I just need to decorate a little."
"Nice!! I problem solved. Next." Drizella jumped with joy.
"Do you have any heels?" I asked.
"Well... I have one but it's already used and looks old."
"If its wearable then we can just decorate it to make it look like a new pair." Drizella said.
"How about we clean the shoe and use crystal we bought for our dresses to cover the shoe."
"Yes! Nice idea Anne. Shoe done."
We are having fun with our little strategy meeting but the main problem is here. How the heck is she going to leave the house for ball and return.
"She can ride the horse."
"No, we can't risk her dress to get dirty. Rejected."
"Umm... Walk or run."
"She is a human, not horse Drizzy."
Again we looked at Cinderella.
"I can ask Rupert to give me a ride." Cinderella said.
"Who is Rupert? Your boyfriend?" We are confused.
"No!! He used to work in our house as a caretaker for horses. And he is already married." Cinderella blushed.
"Are you disappointed him being married?"
"Was he handsome?"
We started teasing her and she started turning into a humanized tomato. After 2 full hours of planning and teasing we returned to our corner cause Cinderella has an early day like always.
I am on my bed trying to sleep but there are few unsolved problems stopping me to sleep.
First, wasn't all this fairy godmother's department. Why are we doing this? But still at this rate, I doubt any fairy will ever appear.
I mean just look at the plot now, Cinderella is nowhere near a damsel in distress who needs to be saved. Then why would a fairy come for?
Did I change the actual story?
Should I treat her badly to make her sad enough for a fairy service.
And what about the pumpkin carriage, mouse as a horse and world famous glass slipper.
With out the magical glass slipper, what will she left behind as her identity proof? Her birth certificate?
I don't know anymore.
"I can only do this much Cinderella. After that you are on your own with your luck."
While thinking all this I fell asleep hoping that everything will magically turn right somehow.
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SIDE NOTE: It's going to be THE BIG DAY for them. But before that we will have a look into how prince is doing his preparation 😉😄
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