Once upon a time there
was a beautiful girl called Cinderella. She had two ugly
stepsisters who were very unkind. They made her do all the hard
work. She had to sweep the floors and do all the dishes while they
dressed up in fine clothes and went to lots of parties.
One day a special invitation
arrived at Cinderella's house. It was from the royal palace. The
king's only son, a truly handsome prince, was going to have a
grand ball. Cinderella's two stepsisters were invited. Cinderella
knew she wouldn't be allowed to go to the ball, but the ugly
stepsisters were excited. They couldn't talk about anything
else.
When the day of the ball came,
they made such a fuss. Poor Cinderella had to rush about upstairs
and downstairs. She fixed their hair in fancy waves and curls. She
helped them put on their expensive new dresses, and she arranged
their jewels just so. As soon as they had gone, Cinderella sat
down by the fire and she said, "Oh, I do wish I could go to the
ball.
The next moment, standing beside her was a
lovely old lady with a silver wand in her hand. "Cinderella," she
said, " I am your fairy godmother and you shall go to the ball.
But first you must go into the garden and pick a golden pumpkin.
Then bring me six mice from the mousetraps, a whiskered rat from
the rat trap, and six lizards. You'll find the lizards behind the
watering can."
So Cinderella fetched a golden
pumpkin, six gray mice, a whiskered rat, and six lizards. The
fairy godmother touched them with her wand and the pumpkin became
a golden coach, the mice became six gray horses, the rat became a
coachman with the most enormous moustache, and the lizards became
six footmen dressed in green and yellow. Then the fairy godmother
touched Cinderella with the wand. Her old dress turned into a
golden one, sparkling with jewels. On her feet was the prettiest
pair of glass slippers imaginable. "Remember," said the fairy
godmother, "you must leave the ball before the clock strikes
twelve because at midnight the magic ends."
"Thank you, fairy godmother,"
said Cinderella as she climbed into the coach.
When Cinderella arrived at the
ball she looked so beautiful that everyone wondered who she was!
Even the ugly stepsisters. The prince, of course, asked her to
dance with him and they danced all evening. He would not dance
with anyone else. Now Cinderella was enjoying the ball so much
that she forgot her fairy godmother's warning until it was almost
midnight and the clock began to strike. One. Two. Three. She
hurried out of the ballroom. Four. Five. Six. As she ran down the
palace steps, one of her glass slippers fell off. Seven. Eight.
Nine. She ran on toward the golden coach. Ten. Eleven. Twelve. And
poof! There was Cinderella in her old dress! The golden pumpkin
lay at her feet. Scampering down the road were six gray mice, a
whiskered rat, and six green lizards. So Cinderella had to walk
home.
By the time ugly stepsisters returned home,
Cinderella was sitting quietly by the fire.
Now when Cinderella ran from
the palace, the prince tried to follow her and stumbled upon the
glass slipper. He said, "I shall marry the beautiful girl whose
foot fits this slipper."
In the morning the prince went
from house to house with the glass slipper and every young lady
tried to squeeze her foot into it. But it didn't fit any of
them.
At last the prince came to
Cinderella's house. First one ugly stepsister tried to squash her
foot into the slipper. Her foot was too wide and too fat. Then the
other ugly stepsister tried but her foot was too long and too
thin.
"Please," said Cinderella, "let
me try."
"The slipper won't fit you,"
said the ugly sisters. "You didn't go to the ball!"
Cinderella slipped her foot
into the glass slipper and it fit perfectly. The next moment,
standing beside her, was the fairy godmother. She touched
Cinderella with the wand and there she was in a golden dress
sparkling with jewels and on her feet was the prettiest pair of
glass slippers ever seen. The ugly stepsisters were so surprised
that for once they couldn't think of anything to say. But the
prince knew what to say. He asked Cinderella to marry
him.
There was a happy wedding.
Everyone who had gone to the ball was invited, even the ugly
stepsisters. There was wonderful food, lots of music, and dancing.
And the prince, of course, danced every dance with Cinderella. He
would not dance with anyone else.
'Z' End