Once upon a time, there was a man, named Sinjin van Cleef, who found his life's big love, and married Fawn Lebalwitz. They lived in happiness, and they had a daughter, Caterina Valentine. No one knew why was her surname 'Valentine' instead of 'van Cleef', but no one cared about it.
One day Fawn got sick, and a few days later she died. Caterina was very sad, she cried a lots, especially when her dad got married again, to Melinda Murray. Melinda had two daughters, Victoria and Katrina, who were so mean.
Melinda and Sinjin lived in happiness, and their children got everything what they wanted, until one day Sinjin died, too. After his die, Caterina's life was very terrible, and she got a nickname, Caterella from her stepsisters. Melinda was very mean with her, and forced Caterina to live in the attic in horrible conditions. She had only two friends, and they were mice – Beck and Andre.
Her life was very bad, her stepsisters always told her what to do, and Melinda, too. She was the maid, despite that she didn't want that.
„Caterella! Where is my breakfast?" yelled Tori from her bed.
„And mine?" screamed Trina in her very annoying voice.
„Caterina! My breakfast!" shouted Melinda.
„I'm coming!" she yelled back with two trays in her hands and one on her head.
„They are so mean with her!" explained disgustedly Beck.
„We should do something!" proposed Andre.
„But what?"
„Maybe help her?" asked back Andre, and ran after Caterina.
Caterina walked as fast as she could with three trays, and when she finally stepped to Tori's room, she wasn't happy.
„Why were you? I asked for my breakfast at least five minutes ago!" she yelled to Caterina's face.
„Sorry, Miss, I tried to be fast but..." she tried to explain it, but Tori screamed at her, so she ran out of the room – if I can call it 'running'. Then Caterina went into Trina's room, who was in rage because her stomach was empty.
„You are late!" threw Trina to her while she took over the tray from Caterina.
„Sorry!" she said, then took off her stepmother's breakfast from her head and walked out from her stepsister's room.
„Ahh, Caterina! I waited for you." said coldly Melinda, and motioned to the redhead to come to her bed.
„Here it is, your breakfast, Miss!" whispered Caterina, and tried to walk away, but Melinda asked her back.
„I have some work for you!"
„Yes?" she asked shyly.
„Feed Rex, you know, my cat! He wants to sleep, but wake him up! Then, when you finished, give seed to the chickens and wash up our clothes! When you finished with this, too, make lunch!" she directed. Cat frightened because her cold and startling voice, so she gave her a fast curtsey and ran out from the room.
Caterina did her task thinking about her life. Why did her mom and dad died? Why did her dad get married twice? What did she do to deserve this horrible family? When will she get freedom and get free from her stepmother and stepsisters?
„Hey, Cat!" yelled Beck from behind her, when she fed the chickens.
„Yeah, Beck?" she asked while she placed him on one of her shoulders.
„Can we help you with anything?" asked Andre, who despairingly tried to climb up on her skirt. She smiled and helped him to her other shoulder, then continued feeding the chickens.
„No, not really. But that would be great if you two wouldn't fighting!" hissed Caterina to the poultry.
This was her usual life. She was always on work, and in her free time she made little things to her two mice. She didn't really loved it, but she could make a deal with it, until the day what changed everything. Prince Robbie gave a ball and he invited Melinda and her daughters, too.
„Can I go with you?" asked Caterina her stepmother, but she just laughed at her.
„Of course, no! You are a maid, maids don't go to balls!"
„But I really want!" she insisted, staring to Melinda with her cutest face.
„No! You haven't got a dress what you can wear, and if you come, who would take care of the house and feed the pets?" Melinda said, while walking beside Tori's room. She grumbled inside, and they could hear clink, so they knew that she's already dressing.
„Please, Miss, I really want to go to the ball!" Caterina pleaded.
„Okay, then, if you can get something what you can wear – I don't mind!" she nodded like she didn't care about it.
„Thanks! Thank you, really!" Caterina screamed, and ran to the attic to find something to make a ball dress.
„Can we help you?" asked suddenly Beck.
„Yay, that would be amazing! I don't know how to make a dress for the ball and I haven't got enough time!" she explained.
„Don't worry, we take care about it, right, Andre?" pushed him Beck on his ribs.
„Sure! Now, let's do your work before Melinda change her mind!" warned her Andre.
„Oh, really! I'm going to work!" she ran out from the attic and went to work.
„Now, we need some pearls, ribbons and materials!" clapped twice Andre. After a little conversation, he and Beck went to Trina's room, who combed her hair when they arrived.
„Just be quiet!" whispered Beck, and slowly went to her closet to find something to make a ball dress to Caterina.
They found a lots of materials and decorate things, so they brought them to the attic, and with their other friends they made a beautiful dress for Caterina.
„Girls, ball time!" yelled Melinda at the evening.
„So can I go with you?" asked Caterina quietly, but Melinda just laughed at her face.
„Sure, after you did your last work!"
„And what is my last work?" she blinked shyly.
„There's a sack of corn and pea, separate them to a bowl, then you can come!" she explained.
„But there's a lots of them! It will take a really long time!" she said fearing.
„I know!" Melinda smirked, and left the house with her two daughters, leaving Caterina alone with her big task.
„Aww, Andre, Beck, what can I do now? When I finish my work, it will be the end of the ball!" Caterina asked them almost crying.
„Don't worry, Caterina, we will take care of it! Now go to the attic, we left there your dress! Change into it and go to the ball!" commanded Beck. She nodded smilling, and ran to the attic, where she found her dress. She quickly changed into it and followed her family to the ball.
„Hey, Tori! Isn't she Caterina?" asked Trina her sister, when she saw Caterina in a beautiful pink ball dress.
„Yes, she is! Mom, Caterina is here!" yelled Tori to Melinda.
„Don't care about her! If she did her task, then it's okay that she's here. Leave her alone and enjoy the ball, it isn't a usual event." she ordered, and continued drinking champagne.
„Trina, we should make this evening the worse she ever had!" whispered Tori to her sister's ear.
„Oh, okay, let's do it! But how?" she asked.
„Just do the same what I do!" she winked and went to Caterina. „Oh, Caterella, are you here?"
„Yeah!" she replied smilling.
„Oh, what a pity that you can't be here!" she grumbled, and she began to pluck her dress. Trina did the same, so a few minutes later Caterina's dress were in pieces, and she was about to cry.
„What's the matter, Caterella?" asked Trina mockingly. She couldn't say anything, just ran out from the room and didn't stop until she arrived to the cemetery, where her mom and dad were buried. She collapsed on the ground while tears rolled down on her face and talked quietly to her mother.
„Mom, why did you leave me? And you, dad? You can't imagine how bad is my life right now! Please, help me! I don't know how, just please... please, help me..." she whispered, but after she didn't get an answer, she stood up and sat down on a bench. She didn't cry more, she was only still sad, when a sparkle appeared in front of her eyes, then a gothic lady stepped out of it.
„Who... who are you?" asked Caterina fearing.
„Don't fear, little Caterina! I'm your fairy godmother, and I came to help you!" she explained waving her magic wand.
„What's your name?"
„I'm Jadelyn, but don't care about it! I'm here for help you, so don't cry, I have a surprise for you!" she smiled and brought a bibble, then waved to it with her magic wand, and the bibble turned into a bibble-landau. Then she brought Beck and Andre, and she made them to drivers, turned birds into horses, and at last but not least she conjured up a beautiful blue ball dress for Caterina.
„Yay, Jadelyn, I can't tell how happy I am! Thanks, thank you so much, how can I thank you this?" she asked happily, watching her new dress.
„Don't care about it, just sit down in your bibble-landau and go to the ball!" she ordered. „But you can't tell anyone that you are Caterina Valentine! And don't forget, my magic keeps until midnight! You must come back before midnight, or your secret would reveal!"
„I won't forget! And thank you, really, really thank you!" she waved from the landau, then they went to the ball.
Caterina was really happy because she could went to the event, and her stepsisters didn't know who was her, just whispered to eachother about the „mysterious red haired girl". About a half an hour before midnight, Prince Robbie asked her to a dance – she thought that this night can't be more awesome.
„What's your name?" asked Prince Robbie. Caterina froze for a second, then shook her head.
„I-I can't tell you." she whispered staring to the wall behind Robbie.
„Please!" he pleaded.
„No! I can't!'" she was about to cry, but she didn't want in front of the prince's eyes, so she tried stay strong. After a few minutes, the clock struck midnight. „Oh my god, is it midnight already? I got to go!"
„No! Please, don't leave!" Prince Robbie yelled after her.
„But I've must!" she yelled back running out from the hall.
„At least tell me your name!"
„No! No, I can't! Now, I must leave!" she cried from the doorway, still running.
„Close the gates!" he ordered to the caretaker. „She can't leave!"
Caterina ran as fast as she could, and she barely could get out from the castle's garden. She didn't notice, but on the stairs there was tar, and she left one of her shoes, what the prince found after she left.
At the next day, Prince Robbie announced that he's looking for a girl, who left her shoe at his castle. Whose foot fits for it, she would be his wife.
„Girls, this is the big chance for you to be a member of the royal family! You can't mess it up!" Melinda said walking towards to Trina and Tori.
„What's about Caterella?" asked Tori.
„She won't be here! We can't allow her to try the shoe to her foot, what would happen if she is the girl he's looking for?" said Melinda, almost yelling.
When Prince Robbie came, Melinda locked Caterina to the attic, so she couldn't get out of there to try the shoe. Beck and Andre were scared, they thought that they could help, so they figured out a plan.
„Andre, listen! I will steal the key from Melinda's pocket, but you need to distrain her! Okay?" explained Beck.
„Yeah! Let's do it!" nodded Andre, then they ran to the hall, where were Melinda, Tori, Trina and Prince Robbie.
„I can't let my foot to be in the shoe!" screamed Tori.
„Your foot is too big, let me try!" yelled Trina, and snatched the shoe from her sister's hand.
„Your foot is too small!" hissed Tori, then they began to fight for the foot gear.
„Are you sure that there isn't any other girl?" asked Prince Robbie sadly.
„Sorry, I'm sure." Melinda said with fake sadness.
„Now!" ordered Beck, while jumping into Melinda's pocket. Andre ran to and fro on the table, and when they found out that there's a mouse, there was an upheaval. Beck took an advantage of the situation and stole the key, then ran back to the attic.
„Caterina! Here's the key!" he yelled, and handed over the key to Caterina under the door. She unlocked the lock and ran down to the hall.
„Wait! I'm here, too!" she yelled to the prince, who was about to leave. When he heard that, he turned back and gave the shoe to Caterina, who tried that to her foot.
„So?" asked Melinda.
„It's perfect on her!" gasped Prince Robbie, but Caterina just smiled. Tori and Trina couldn't imagine that they weren't be members of the royal family, but Caterina was.
„No, no, it can't be true!" screamed Trina.
„But this is true! Now, what's your name, beautiful?" asked Prince Robbie.
„I'm Caterina. My name is Caterina." she smiled.
At the same day, Caterina moved to the castle, and they lived in happiness, don't caring about her stepsisters, who were always in rage, they still couldn't imagine what happened. Then the crown prince and princess were Caterina Valentine and Robbie Shapiro.