Cinderella by Brothers Grimm
Once upon a time...
there lived an unhappy young girl. Unhappy she was, for her mother was
dead, and her father had married another woman, a widow with two
daughters. And her stepmother didn't like her one little bit.
All the nice things, kind thoughts and loving touches were for her own
daughters. And not just the kind thoughts and love, but also dresses,
shoes, shawls, delicious food, comfy beds, as well as every home
comfort. All this was laid on for her daughters. But, for the poor
unhappy girl, there was nothing at all. No dresses, only her
stepsisters' hand- me- downs. No lovely dishes, nothing but scraps. No
nice rests and comfort. For she had to work hard all day, and only when
evening came was she allowed to sit for a while by the fire, near the
cinders. That is how she got her nickname, for everybody called her
Cinderella. Cinderella used to spend long hours all alone talking to the
cat. The cat said,
"Meow", which really meant, "Cheer up! You have something neither of your stepsisters have and that is beauty."
It was quite true. Cinderella, even dressed in rags with a dusty gray
face from the cinders, was a lovely girl. While her stepsisters, no
matter how splendid and elegant their clothes, were still clumsy, lumpy
and ugly and always would be.
One day, beautiful new dresses arrived
at the house. A ball was to be held at Court and the stepsisters were
getting ready to go to it. Cinderella, didn't even dare ask, "What about
me?"
for she knew very well what the answer to that would be:
"You? My dear girl, you're staying at home to wash the dishes, scrub the
floors and turn down the beds for your stepsisters. They will come home
tired and very sleepy." Cinderella sighed at the cat.
"oh dear, I'm so unhappy!" and the cat murmured "Meow".
Suddenly something amazing happened. In the kitchen, where Cinderella
was sitting all by herself, there was a burst of light and a fairy
appeared."Don't be alarmed, Cinderella," said the fairy. "The wind blew
me your sighs. I know you would love to go to the ball. And so you
shall!"
"how can I, dressed in rags?" Cinderella replied.
"Theservants will turn me away!" The fairy smiled. With a flick of her
magic wand... Cinderella found herself wearing the most beautiful dress,
the loveliest ever seen in the realm.
"Now that we have settled the
matter of the dress," said the fairy, "we'll need to get you a coach. A
real lady would never go to a ball on foot!" "Quick! Get me a pumpkin!"
she ordered.
"Oh of course," said Cinderella, rushing away. Then the fairy turned to the cat.
"You, bring me seven mice!"
"Seven mice!" said the cat. "I didn't know fairies ate mice too!"
"They're not for eating, silly! Do as you are told!... and, remember they must be alive!"
Cinderella soon returned with a fine pumpkin and the cat with seven mice he had caught in the cellar.
"Good!" exclaimed the fairy. With a flick of her magic wand... wonder
of wonders! The pumpkin turned into a sparkling coach and the mice
became six white horses, while the seventh mouse turned into a coachman,
in a smart uniform and carrying a whip. Cinderella could hardly believe
her eyes.
"I shall present you at Court. You will soon see that the
Prince, in whose honor the ball is being held, will be enchanted by
your loveliness. But remember! You must leave the ball at midnight and
come home. For that is when the spell ends. Your coach will turn back
into a pumpkin, the horses will become mice again and the coachman will
turn back into a mouse... and you will be dressed again in rags and
wearing clogs instead of these dainty little slippers! Do you
understand?" Cinderella smiled and said,
"Yes, I understand!"
When Cinderella entered the ballroom at the palace, a hush fell.
Everyone stopped in mid- sentence to admire her elegance, her beauty and
grace.
"Who can that be?" people asked each other. The two
stepsisters also wondered who the newcomer was, for never in a month of
Sundays, would they ever have guessed that the beautiful girl was really
poor Cinderella who talked to the cat!
When the prince set eyes on
Cinderella, he was struck by her beauty. Walking over to her, he bowed
deeply and asked her to dance. And to the great disappointment of all
the young ladies, he danced with Cinderella all evening.
"Who are you, fair maiden?" the Prince kept asking her. But Cinderella only replied:
"What does it matter who I am! You will never see me again anyway."
"Oh, but I shall, I'm quite certain!" he replied.
Cinderella had a wonderful time at the ball... But, all of a sudden,
she heard the sound of a clock: the first stroke of midnight! She
remembered what the fairy had said, and without a word of goodbye she
slipped from the Prince's arms and ran down the steps. As she ran she
lost one of her slippers, but not for a moment did she dream of stopping
to pick it up! If the last stroke of midnight were to sound... oh...
what a disaster that would be! Out she fled and vanished into the night.
The Prince, who was now madly in love with her, picked up her slipper and said to his ministers,
"Go and search everywhere for the girl whose foot this slipper fits. I
will never be content until I find her!" So the ministers tried the
slipper on the foot of all the girls... and on Cinderella's foot as
well... Surprise! The slipper fitted perfectly.
"That awful untidy
girl simply cannot have been at the ball," snapped the stepmother. "Tell
the Prince he ought to marry one of my twodaughters! Can't you see how
ugly Cinderella is! Can't you see?"
Suddenly she broke off, for the fairy had appeared.
"That's enough!" she exclaimed, raising her magic wand. In a flash,
Cinderella appeared in a splendid dress,shining with youth and beauty.
Her stepmother and stepsisters gaped at her in amazement, and the
ministers said,
"Come with us, fair maiden! The Prince awaits to
present you with his engagement ring!" So Cinderella joyfully went with
them, and lived happily ever after with her Prince. And as for the cat,
he just said "Meow"!
