Once upon a time, in a quiet country not far from the edge of the forest, there lived a widowed nobleman with a kind and gentle daughter named Cinderella. Her mother had passed away when she was very young, and though her father remarried in hopes of giving her a family once more, his new wife cared little for kindness. The lady brought with her two daughters of her own: Drizella and Anastasia, both fair in appearance, yet proud and cold in manner. 

    They lived as a family for a while, but unfortunately, the nobleman also passed away, and Cinderella was left to the stepmother's will. Poor Cinderella was reduced to little more than a servant. While her now sisters get to live in silver and silk, Cinderella faces a different fate. The stepmother immediately takes away Cinderella’s room, fancy dresses, jewelry, and passes them to her two daughters. Cinderella was forced to live in the attic, scrubbing floors and taking care of her stepfamily day by day. 

The elder sister, Drizella, delighted in tormenting Cinderella with cruel words and petty jests. But the younger, whose name is Anastasia, though still stays silent, would often linger longer in the doorway when Cinderella sang or offer a glance of regret when she spilled soup on the girl’s freshly scrubbed gown. Anastasia also doesn’t often make her stepsister do extra chores or spit cruel words like her mother and Drizella. Anastasia found Cinderella like a sister figure to her, somebody who would truly care for her. Something in her heart did not rest easy.

In the King’s castle, not so far away, the King was talking with the Prince about marriage and giving him a grandchild, as he had been desiring for one. But no matter how hard the King tried, the Prince wouldn’t listen and said that he was not interested in that at the moment. Couldn’t convince the Prince, the King decided that he would host a ball where every maiden in the kingdom was invited, “Since you chose not to do that, I have an offer. I will host a grand ball and invite everyone to the ball. Whoever catches your eye and dances with you, she will be your bride.” To make the King happy, the Prince eventually agreed to his plan. As he proceeded, the King sent out his people to deliver the message and started to prepare for this grand day in the hope of finding his son a wife.

One morning, as the spring birds sang outside the windows and the sun poured golden light across the floor, a royal messenger arrived with a trumpet and a scroll sealed in gold. He proclaimed that the King’s oldest son, the Prince, would host a grand ball to find a bride. All maidens of noble birth were invited. Cinderella was so happy listening to the invitation in a little corner. After the messenger left, the household burst into a frenzy. Drizella screamed with excitement, demanding new gowns and jewels, while the stepmother ordered the finest fabrics from the market. 

    Cinderella after finishing all her tasks, came to her stepmother in a handmade dress to ask if she, too, might go, “Mother, may I please come to the ball with you all?” Her stepmother takes a good look at Cinderella and laughs, “You? In rags? No, no, dear. Someone must stay to tidy the house while we attend the ball.” Cinderella replied, “But, mother, the invitation said that I was also included.” The stepmother walks away but stops and turns around, “Well, know your places, the Prince wouldn’t want someone who looks like this to the ball, would he?” The stepmother came to where Cinderella was standing and started ripping off her dress into pieces. In desperation, Cinderella cries out, wondering if she is unworthy to attend the ball. 

   That evening, as the family dined on roast fowl and custard, she wept softly into her apron. And it was then that Anastasia slipped quietly into the room. “Cinderella,” she whispered, her voice tremulous. “I… I want to help you go to the ball.” Cinderella blinked through her tears and looked up at Anastasia, “You do?” Anastasia nodded. “Mother is wrong. You deserve to go as much as we do. But if she sees you dressed, she’ll find a way to stop you. We must be clever.”

    Hope kindled in Cinderella’s chest. Together, they crept into the attic where old trunks were kept. There, under dust and cobwebs, they found her mother’s gown, still glowing in blue and fine in its stitching. Cinderella was emotional seeing her mother’s gown, missing her mother, so she hugged the gown tightly one last time. “I’ll mend it,” said Anastasia/ “And you’ll help me too, I have no grace, no elegance. But you… You walk like music notes.”