Once upon a time, long ago, in a far away land lived a little girl who belonged to a big and wealthy family. Well of course with a beginning like this, tragedy strikes. The little girl's mother had died when she was all but two and the father had decided to remarry. This woman's name was Kurenai. She had already two daughters of her own, Ino and Sakura. With two new sisters and a stepmother, things didn't changed much for the little girl. Although, the stepmother had high standards and spent money fervently. Now it came for the time the little girl's father had to go away and make a business trip, but on his way there, was murdered by bandits. Heart broken, the little girl looked to her stepmother for comfort, but she offered her none and shut her away. The little girl was alone. The next day the stepmother took over the entire household and even made the little girl a servant. Things went on like this for many years. The wicked stepmother spent the money till she was almost bankrupt and the little girl miserable with no one to love her.
"Oh Hinata!" cried the stepsister Sakura. "Oh no dear sister, Cinderella." Corrected the stepsister Ino. They both chuckled and continued to call up the stairs to the tiny room of our poor Cinderella, Hinata. "CINDERELLA!" with that final cry Hinata sat up quickly, "C-coming!" She got out of bed and put on her work shoes. She hurried down the stairs to her stepsisters, "Y-yes?" "Hinata, we need you to do our laundry and we need more bread." Said Sakura. "And don't forget you need to scrub the floor, it's looking atrocious, and beat out my covers, I think there's dust in it and while you're at it, dust my room." Ino chimed in. "Mine to!" commented Sakura. "Alright," said Hinata and the sisters left her to do the chores. Hinata sighed, and like clockwork, she began. Every day was like this, they'd tell her to do chore after chore after chore and she'd dutifully do it. It was amazing how she'd do everything without complaining, but she knew there'd be no use for it. So, everyday she worked. She scrubbed the laundry and beat out the bed sheets; she dusted all the rooms (all of them), went to the market and bought bread and other groceries, and scrubbed the floors (need I say more?). As she scrubbed the main floor a messenger arrived. He knocked on the large doors and shouted, "Hello! Greetings from His Majesty!" Hinata's eyes widened and she answered the door, "Y-yes?" "Hello madam! I am Rock Lee of His Majesty's Royal Guard! I am here to deliver an invitation to all ladies of the house hold!" At this time, Kurenai had heard the loud messenger and so had the stepsisters. "It is with great honor that you and the other ladies are invited to His Majesty's Royal Masquerade Ball!" Ino and Sakura got excited, "A Masquerade? How delightful!" Rock Lee continued, "Here is the invitation to the Royal Ball this evening at the tenth hour," and with a wink, "hope to see you there!" he left. Hinata held the invitation. She looked down at the fancy lettering and then looked up to Kurenai who was at the to of the stairs, "Ma'am, the invitation…It says all ladies can go…I was w-wondering…If I…" Kurenai smirked and said, "If you could go?" she chuckled. "Cinder soot! I don't even think they'd consider you a 'lady' let alone human!" said Ino. "But the messenger said…" Hinata looked down. 'What hope is there?' she thought to herself. "Alright." Said Kurenai with her hand on her hip, "You can go if you get all your work down on time and if you have an appropriate outfit." Ino and Sakura stared at their mother with disbelief. "Y-yes ma'am!" said Hinata. 'There is hope!' and her face brightened.
"MOTHER!" both Ino and Sakura yelled, "How can she go to the ball?" "Shut up! Were you not listening? How can she come up with a dress AND finish her chores before then?" Kurenai's eyes glinted with mischief. Sakura and Ino grinned at each other. "Now go and get ready! Who knows maybe you'll even charm that Prince Sasuke!" Now it was known throughout this kingdom, that Prince Sasuke was very handsome and very single, which made the girls of the kingdom want him. But to their dismay, the prince didn't want anything to do with girls. He wanted to rule alone or at least die in battle so he wouldn't have to marry, yet he was the only heir to the throne and the Masquerade was a perfect excuse for his father, Jiraiya, to have the Ball. The prince was not like his father. Although seen as lecherous now, Jiraiya was faithful to his wife. She had died shortly after Sasuke was born and Jiraiya swore he'd raise Sasuke to be a good king. Jiraiya still has no idea where he went wrong.
Hinata spun around inside her room, "Oh this is wonderful! I'll get to be in a palace for a night! And see all the beautiful colors and the people!" She plopped down on her bed, rolled onto her back, and sighed. She had completed her daily back braking chores, now it was time to make an outfit! She had experience in making clothes, for no one would buy her any when the old ones didn't fit. So she'd take the old thrown out clothes of her stepsisters' and use those to make them. She crawled under her bed and found an old picture book from when she was young. It was the story of the Mouse Princess (an old French fairy tale), a princess who was cursed by an old witch who had to laugh to change her back and how she fell in love with a misfortunate, not as handsome as his brothers type, prince. "I'll look just like a fairy tale princess! And maybe even have a mouse mask!" Hinata studied the picture carefully and began to work. She didn't have all the right colors, but what she had was good enough. After an hour or more, Hinata's costume was finished. It had a lace lining, red ribbons, and the rest of it was purple. It was a simple dress, but the mask made for it matched perfectly.
"Are you two ready yet?" said Kurenai impatiently. "Almost," answered Sakura, adjusting a ribbon in her hair. "Mother, this mask hides my make up!" said Ino. "Oh don't worry about it. You'll be taking the mask off and on all night." Answered Kurenai. "U-um…" All three turned to look at the possessor of the small voice. "Oh wow…" exclaimed Sakura, still adjusted the bow. "Eww! Is your mask a rat?" asked Ino. "N-no, it's a mouse," said Hinata, adjusting the mask to the top of her head. "Hm…so you finished your chores and made a dress on time, good…Oh, but look, a loose thread! Here let me get that for you." Kurenai picked up some scissors from the dresser next her and sniped the thread. That one snip caused the whole sleeve to come undone, however. "Oh my! I'm sorry. You better fix that! We'll be leaving soon!" said Kurenai with sarcasm in her voice. Hinata hurried to her room in the attic, but she didn't know that Kurenai was following her. She closed the door behind her and removed the dress. "Now, let's see this sleeve…" Suddenly she heard a 'click'. She turned her attention to the door and slowly stood up. She leaned her ear against the door and heard soft footsteps walk away. Her eyes widened. She turned her doorknob, but the door wouldn't budge. Her stepmother, Kurenai, had locked her in. "H-hey! The door won't open! Hello?" Hinata hit the door and cried for help, but to no avail. "What's that sound?" asked Sakura. "Nothing, let's go." And off they went. Hinata gave the door one final hit and slide to the floor, her tiny frame shaking in her slip dress. Her tears began to flow hard and heavy out of her eyes. "W-why?" she stammered through her speech and her tears, "Why would she do that? Why did she lock me in?" and with that, she let her tears turn into loud sobs of pain and sorrow. She laid face first on the floor and let her crying take over.
"Ah ha ha!" laughed Jiraiya, with a cup in hand and leisurely seated in his throne, "Ah…isn't it great son? All our subjects enjoying themselves! The fine ladies of our kingdom, ne?" he looked over to his son, Sasuke. "Whatever," Sasuke replied. "Oh your majesty, cheer up! As my father, the Mighty Gai says, 'never give up on the springtime of your youth!'" said Rock Lee, standing left of Sasuke. They all looked out at the people of the kingdom dancing and having a good time. "Hmm…I don't see her." Said Rock Lee. "See who?" asked Jiraiya, "got a girl, Lee?" Lee looked toward his king and replied, "No, your majesty, but I do believe I met a girl who'd be perfect for lord Sasuke here." Jiraiya raised a brow, "Oh really? Well, let us know when you see her then." "Will do Sire!"
Hinata sat by her window and looked out to the palace, which looked so close, yet it was very far away. The trails left by the tears where hot on Hinata's face and her eyes stung. "I wish I could have gone…But I guess I'll never get to see something so wonderful…It was foolish of me to think that I could…" "Foolish? I don't think so." Hinata jumped from her seat at the window and saw a man with white hair and clothe covering his eye. "W-who are y-you?" Hinata asked in terror. The man smiled and said, "I'm your fairy godfather!" (He's gonna make you an offer ya can't refuse!) Hinata's heartbeat slowed down, "F-fairy godfather? W-what's th-that?" "Well my dear, I was called by the sound of your sorrow and now I'm here to make it better! Or worse, more or less…" said the fairy with a smile behind his mask. "How will you do that?" asked Hinata who planted herself in the corner. "Why with ninju- I mean magic of course!" and with that he snapped his fingers and a large book appeared, "Hmm…Let's see here…potions, frogs, la dee dah, here we go! Royal Shindigs!" He looked her over, "well you certainly can't go in that, or are you? That would get you a lot of attention." Hinata blushed and waved her arms violently, "N-no way!" He chuckled, "Of course not, I'm just joking with you. Now let's see…which style suits you better…sixteenth century…Victorian Era…Ah ha! Gothic and Lolita! Perfect!" "What's that?" Hinata asked. "Never mind that. Okay!" the book disappeared with a puff of smoke and the fairy began to do hand symbols. "Let's turn this cutie into an EGL!" then a cloud of smoke filled the room. Hinata coughed a little and the smoke cleared away. Hinata gasped and looked down at the beautiful dress she was wearing. The collar had black lace and black ribbon; the dress was a silky white that went down to the knees, and lace and more ribbon here and there. There were also red flowers in her hair and her mask was a black and white mouse, with sterling silver detail. It looked as though the shoes were made of glass. "Here's a mirror!" said the fairy. She looked at herself in the ovular mirror. She couldn't believe her eyes. She looked like the Mouse Princess and even more! Tears ran down her face. "Hey now, don't cry," said the fairy. "N-no…I'm…. I…thank you!" with that she ran up hugged him, "I've never seen such a beautiful dress and I'm in it too! Thank you! Thank you fairy godfather…uh…" He smiled and said, "Kakashi." She smiled, "Thank you, Kakashi." "Now's the matter of getting you to that Ball," he put a hand to his chin, "Ah! I've got it! Good luck kiddo!" he did a few hand symbols and in another cloud of smoke, Hinata stood in front of the palace gates.
"I can't believe that you get to be a peacock and I have to be a cat!" said Sakura. "But dear sister you're purr-fect for the cat," commented Ino. They nudged each other till Kurenai hissed at them to stop. "I cannot stand this, father do I really have to be here?" asked Sasuke, bored out of his mind. "Oh come now, Sasuke, just wait it out a little longer. For me, okay?" Said Jiraiya with a smirk. "Ah!" exclaimed Rock Lee. "Hmm? Is that girl you were telling us about here?" asked Jiraiya. "No, but there is a lovely young lady in a cat mask over there!" Rock Lee pointed towards Sakura, "May I, Your Highness?" Jiraiya closed his eyes and grinned, "Sure!" Lee ran off to meet the girl. "Forgive me for interrupting, but may I have this dance?" he held out his hand to her (good guy pose time!). Ino whispered to her sister, "Way to go! You already got one hooked!" "Shut up, Ino," she replied, "Um…I'm sorry, but you're…not my type…and your eyebrows are scaring me." Rock Lee's heart and pride took a plunge there.
"I'm here! I'm really here! Oh, I hope I can do this…" Hinata walked up to the doors and the guards opened them for her. It was spectacular, just like in her imagination. The palace glittered with its chandeliers and the guests had so many pretty colored outfits and costumes, that it took Hinata's breath away. She slowly approached the dance floor. A forlorn looking Rock Lee looked up and he straightened himself and put on an authority possessing face. He approached her, "Hello madam." Hinata recognized the messenger, "Oh, hello. You're Rock Lee aren't you?" He smiled, "Yes, so glad that you remembered me! Come! I must show you to His Highness!" He took her hand and walked her across the floor. She had not realized that when she entered that everyone had stopped dancing and were staring at her. "Hey!" said Ino as Sakura pushed her out of the way. "Who is she? She looks familiar." Exclaimed Sakura. "Your Majesties! The lady I spoke of, is here." Announced Rock Lee. Hinata blushed and this caught Sasuke's attention. "Yes! Welcome to our royal ball! And what is your name my dear?" asked Jiraiya, jovially. "Hi…" she had to stop herself from saying her real name, otherwise, she'd be caught, "It's Souris, your majesty." Jiraiya rubbed his chin, bent his arm, and put his other hand on his thigh, "That's a peculiar name. Oh well, welcome! And what's with this silence? Let the festivities continue!" The music began to play once again, the guests danced and visited. "You're name is Souris? Like the Mouse Princess?" asked Sasuke. "Y-yes. How'd you know that?" said Hinata, astonished. "Its one of my favorite fairy tales," replied Sasuke, "Would…You like to dance?" Hinata blushed and curtsied, "I'd be honored, Your Highness."
They danced and talked about the story they both enjoyed. Unbeknownst to the both of them, the stepsisters were watching. "Who is she? How can she dance with the prince and no one else? I'm so much prettier than she is!" exclaimed Ino. "Oh calm down. It's not like the prince knows you like that girl, Suri or whatever her name is." Said Sakura. Ino gave a harrumph and decided to find a dance partner. Prince Sasuke had asked Hinata to come outside with him on the veranda. "I can't stand it when father throws these parties. It sickens me," he said. "Why not? Everything looks so beautiful and you don't have to work on it all. You can forget about everything and have a good time." Said Hinata. Sasuke looked out to the courtyard and sighed, "Yes, but it doesn't erase reality." Hinata's eyes widened. She had never thought about it like that before. All her life she had been a servant and thought the life of someone rich was easy, at least for her irresponsible stepmother anyway. But then again, she knew that even if your life looked easy, it wasn't. "You know what Hinata?" asked Sasuke, as he turned to face her, "I wish I could run away." This grabbed Hinata's attention, "But, your highness, what about your people? They'll need you when your father resigns as king." Sasuke looked towards the ground, "I was hoping you'd run away with me…" Hinata gasped. The prince had fallen that much in love with her? And just in one night? Hinata didn't know what to say. She liked the prince, but she didn't think she'd fall in love with someone like him. She wanted someone sweet like the Mouse Princess' prince. Prince Sasuke, well, he was one of the prince's brothers. Sasuke walked toward her, his hand held out to her. Inside, Hinata felt like running away herself. Looking at her situation, she did just that. She turned and ran. She ran across the dance floor and met with the closed doors. "Open these doors! Please!" she yelled. "What's going on?" asked Rock Lee, who had managed to get a dance with Sakura. Sasuke ran in after her. The guards opened the doors and she ran out. "Souris!" Sasuke called out. Hinata ran into the dark forest outside of the castle.
Now far away, the fairy godfather, Kakashi, was watching the whole event. "Hmm…I thought just as much. Well, better help her find her way." He did a few hand symbols and a ball of light appeared. The light floated down and found Hinata. She was catching her breath beside a tree when she noticed the light, "A-a lamp post?" she looked down the path that was partially lit. She took a deep breath and started running down the path, the ball of light getting ahead of her each way. She finally made it out of the forest and the ball of light vanished. She stopped and looked out. The moon was only a sliver and the night had made everything really dark, but she could see a barn down a small hillside. She ran to the barn and tripped coming down the hill. She got up and slowed down when she saw that the doors were opened. She slowly walked in and saw a small patch of straw to the side. She heard some animals make small noises while sleeping and she sat upon the pile of hey straw. She could feel the hot tears well up into her eyes. She didn't want the Prince to find her, all she wanted was her freedom and maybe even her true prince. She felt very tired and fell asleep on the pile of straw.
"She's pretty, but she looks dead." Said one voice. "No, I think she's sleeping." Said another. "Well, whichever, I think this is hers." Hinata opened her eyes slowly and saw two boys, one with red hair and the other with yellow. "Oh! She's waking up!" said the red haired one. "Good morning ma'am!" said the yellow haired one. "W-who are you?" Hinata asked. "My name's Naruto!" said the yellow haired one, "And this is my brother Gaara!" Hinata sat up and realized that she was still wearing the Ball gown that Kakashi had given her, but the white had changed to a dark purple. "What's your name?" asked Naruto. "My name's Hinata," she replied, "Where am I?" "This is our farm," said Gaara, "We found you here this morning." Naruto then picked up something by his leg, "Is this yours?" He held a glass shoe in his hand, the one that was not on her foot. "I found it outside by the bottom of the hill earlier." Said Naruto. 'I must have come off when I tripped last night,' she thought. Then an older man walked in, "Hey you two! Quit slacking off. We have work to do!" then he saw Hinata, "Oh! Who are you?" Naruto stood up and said, "Iruka! We found her here this morning!" Gaara stood up as well, "Yeah, big brother! She was here all night! I guess…" Hinata decided to stand up, "I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to disturb you, I'll just go now…" Iruka held up his hand, "No no, I'm not trying to throw you out! Especially in those clothes! It's cold outside!" Hinata looked down at what used to be her dress, but her old work clothes.
They walked her to the house nearby and a woman was hanging up laundry. She turned around and put her hands on her hips, "Naruto! Did you steal something again?" Hinata looked at the blonde boy. "Ah c'mon mom! Give me a little more trust than that!" he yelled. "Whatever. So anyway," she looked at Hinata, "What's your name dear?" Hinata looked at the lady, "M-my name's Hinata." "Hinata? That name sounds familiar…but anyway, my name's Tsunade. Welcome to our farm." She turned her head to the house, "Mizune! Neji!" A woman and a boy came out of the house. "Yes ma'am?" answered the woman, "Oh, Iruka darling, you're back!" She and Iruka hugged each other. The boy, however, stood there in disbelief. "Granny, who is that?" he asked. "Huh?" Tsunade looked them both over, "Of course! I thought your name sounded familiar!" she said to Hinata. "What do you mean ma'am?" Hinata looked at Tsunade and then back at the boy who had eyes like hers. "Mizune is from the Hyuuga family and she brought her little brother here when she married my son, Iruka." It turned out that when her father died, the other members of her family left the household, thinking that Hinata would be all right with her stepmother. Hinata was invited into their home, with new cousins and friends. She got her own room in the house and she was treated with kindness. She still did chores, but chores that were for her and some for the new family. She would play with her new friends and found that she fell in love with Naruto. He felt the same way for her and she knew that he was her prince. As for the Prince Sasuke, he felt terrible on the inside when he couldn't find Souris. He became depressed and his father grew worried about him. His friend, Rock Lee, returned to the house to look for Souris, but the stepsisters and the stepmother didn't know what he was talking about. As for their servant, 'Cinderella', Kakashi cleverly made a doppelganger that looked like a dying and starving Hinata, which scared Kurenai so bad her hair turned white. Prince Sasuke was told about the death of the servant girl, and decided to become the king and wedded the princess from the neighboring kingdom, Ten Ten. Rock Lee married Sakura and Ino married the man she had danced with, a baker, Shikamaru.
Kakashi still works as fairy godfather for others and let Hinata keep the glass shoes. As for our Hinata, she, her new prince and her new family, lived happily ever after.