Squaloderella
A tale of a peasant who turned into a princess
Once upon a time, there was a girl named Squaloderella who lived with her stepmother and stepsisters. She had very long silvery hair, sharp eyes, and... please don't ask about her behavior. Her stepmother was Lussuria, a flamboyant 40 year old woman who liked wearing unique accesories and bright-coloured clothes. And Squaloderella had 2 stepsisters; their names were Anna-Bel and Francesca. Anna-Bel was a very 'dangerous' girl, she liked throwing knives to her younger sibling Francesca. Francesca herself was really calm and she wouldn't complain whenever Anna-Bel teased her with those knives.
And in the one fine morning at their house, while the family was having a breakfast, Lussuria came and showed a letter which she held.
"Tonight, a party will be held at Prince Xanxus' manor," said Lussuria, looked at her daughters' faces one by one.
"And I'm invited. Who wants to come with me?"
"Me! Me!" Anna-Bel excitedly shouted. Francesca closed her left ear, feeling that her elder sister's voice was too loud to hear.
"I want to come, too," Francesca talked with a soft-rather-monotonous voice.
"No, you can't. You're just not that beautiful to come and dance with the Prince~" Anna-Bel pointed a knife in front of Francesca's eyes. "Me, the Princess, deserve it."
Francesca rolled her eyes and continued eating, as if she had forgotten her sister's words.
"Oh, of course you two can go with me! I won't let you stay home with Squaloderella," their mother's words cheered Francesca up.
From her room, Squaloderella heard their conversation. "Hmm.. a dance party, huh? How lucky they are, can meet a prince... Prince Xanxus must be very handsome," she talked to herself while eating a less half-bowl of cereal. "If only I could come too... But that's impossible, I know."
Squaloderella's days had always like this. Lussuria didn't allow her to eat together with the others, yet she locked Squaloderella in her room all the time, except if Squaloderella had something to do.
"Hey! Squaloderella! Come out!" Lussuria knocked her door.
"Yes, ma'am," she came with her face filled with anxiety.
"Wash our dishes up. We will off for shopping, I want to buy new gowns for my lovely Anna-Bel and Francesca. You, don't dare to leave this house. Also clean everything in this house, I don't want to see any dust," she turned and shouted, "Anna-Bel, Francesca, stop fighting! Okay, Squaloderella. See you in the afternoon."
"...yes, ma'am."
The three finally left. One of the happiest moments in Squaloderella's life.
"Now... What should I do first..." she walked to the dining room and found those disgustingly dirty dishes on the table. Squaloderella couldn't help it anymore, after she kept her anger for a long time, now she had a chance to spit it out.
"VOOOOIIIIIII! WHAT THE HELL WERE THEY DOING? CAN'T THEY JUST EAT IN AN APPROPRIATE WAY?" she shouted with all her breath.
"THOSE FUCKING CREATURES ARE THE UGLIEST OF ALL TIME!"
"DAAAMN! I WILL KILL THEM WHEN THEY COME HOME!"
After she finished all her tasks, she went to her room. "Maybe I should get some sleep," she yawned. Right when she was lying on her bed, Lussuria and her daughters came.
"Squaloderella! Where are you?" she called.
"WHAT THE F- Yes, Ma'am," Squaloderella opened her door and came out.
"Have you done your tasks?" Lussuria talked while taking some gardening tools.
"I have."
"Good. I'm going to plant new flowers for our garden. Francesca is taking a nap, so please take care of Anna-Bel."
"Yes, Ma'am," Squaloderella then looked at Anna-Bel with an 'I-don't-care' face.
"Hey Squaloderella~ play with me, please?" Anna-Bel said playfully, twisting her knife fast. "Francesca said she was so tired that she couldn't be my target, so would you be the target of the Princess' new knives?"
"What the hell did you just say..."
"HEY! DON'T YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE TALKING WITH?" Anna-Bel stood, ready to kill Squaloderella with her knives. "YOU'RE TALKING WITH A PRINCESS, YOU HELL OF A PEASANT!"
Anna-Bel jumped and threw the knives on Squaloderella, but she easily avoided Anna-Bel's attack. "CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, YOU HELL OF A PRINCESS!" Squaloderella ran wildly, and a war began in that house.
"DIE, PEASANT! DIE! DIIIEEEEE!" Anna-Bel kept throwing those knives.
"How many knives does she have?" Squaloderella looked curious. "Ah, I don't give a fuck. CAN YOU EVEN MAKE A KNIFE STAB ON MY SKIN, YOU DAMNED PRINCESS?" Squaloderella found an opened window and jumped into the garden. Her sudden appearance shocked Lussuria.
"YOU CAN'T RUN FROM THE PRINCESS!" Anna-Bel followed Squaloderella.
"Hey, what are you two playing? Please don't ruin my flowers, for God's sake... ANNA-BEL! SQUALODERELLA! STOP IT!" Lussuria ran into them. "Anna-Bel! Go to your bedroom and I'll lock your door until I call you for bath! You too, Squaloderella!"
"...yes, Mother."
"...yes, Ma'am."
The two then went to their rooms.
The sun had set and the day turned into night. Lussuria was preparing her daughters' gowns. "This black one really suits Francesca and this red one suits Anna-Bel well~ Can't wait to see them wearing these~"
"Mommy, where is my gown?" Francesca came with a bathrobe covering her body.
"Oh, here it is, honey! The black one with a lace on it, right? You will look beautiful tonight~! Mommy will help you dress~"
After a minute, Anna-Bel also came and asked her mother to help her with the dress. "Wow~ you two are so beautiful!" said their mother. Francesca blushed and said, "I hope Prince Xanxus will dance with me."
"No, Francesca, no. I've told you over and over that you can't dance with him. The Princess is the one who will dance with the Prince," Anna-Bel grinned impishly.
"It doesn't matter whoever will dance with the Prince. There's a lot of handsome men there, honey," Lussuria patted her daughters' shoulders.
"Okay, be sure there is nothing left. Squaloderella, get out of your room now!"
With a lazy face, Squaloderella came to her master. "Are you heading out now?" she said awkwardly.
"Yes. I'll leave the key to you."
"I-I want to go with you—"
"What?" Lussuria seemed schocked.
"I want to go to the party, too."
Anna-Bel and Francesca laughed. "Oh, you keep dreaming. You won't have any chance for it," said Anna-Bel. Squaloderella shot her a glare.
"Just stay home, Squaloderella. Let's go, Anna-Bel, Francesca!" Lussuria opened the door and looked at Squaloderella's face for the last time.
"Maybe we'll come home at midnight. See you."
"Yes, Ma'am," Squaloderella closed and locked the door.
"What the heck—" she threw off the key. "VOOOOOIIII! WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?" Squaloderella spit her anger again. She kicked the couch and the table and punch the wall and the cupboard.
"I... I want to meet Prince Xanxus, too..." her eyes grew teary.
Knock! Knock! A loud, harsh knock on the door got her back to the reality. Squaloderella took the key, and then she ran to the door and opened it.
In front of her, stood a tall woman—or man? Squaloderella couldn't tell if the person was a man or a woman because that person wore a cloak and its hood covered half of the person's face.
"Good night," that person greeted. "You must be... Squaloderella, right?"
"Yes, I am," Squaloderella looked anxious, her eyebrows curved. "Who are you?"
"I'm Mammon."
"What the hell are you doing here?"
"Just like everyone said. You're harsh to people you don't know," Mammon smiled. "Looks like you need my help."
"I don't need your help, thanks," she closed the door.
"Hey! You want to go to the party and dance with Prince Xanxus, right?"
"VOI! WHAT?" Squaloderella opened the door again. "What did you say?—"
"I said if you wanted to go to the party and dance with Prince Xanxus."
"OF COURSE I WANT!" Squaloderella smiled widely, her eyes full of happiness. "But... how can I?"
"You can't go there with that peasant look," Mammon took something that looked like a wand. "So with my magic, I will turn you into a princess."
Mammon swung the wand, and suddenly a golden light came and shone upon Squaloderella. She turned into a real princess, with a beautiful blue gown and glass shoes.
"Wow..." she impressed. "But how can I go there? By foot?"
"Oh, girl. Of course you will go with a chariot! But you have to bring me $5000 first," Mammon calmly replied.
"Why should I give you so much money?" Squaloderella glared.
"In this world, nothing is priceless. Everything needs money."
Squaloderella kept silent for a while.
"Okay, I can't give you $5000, but I'll give all the money I have. I'd rather lose all my money than not meeting the Prince for once in my lifetime."
"Good. Give me the money and I'll give a chariot with 6 horses for you."
Squaloderella went to her bedroom and took all of her money. Then she ran into Mammon and gave it.
"Thank you," said Mammon. Mammon swung the magic wand again, and a beautiful chariot with 6 horses came. Squaloderella couldn't help but amazed.
"But one thing you should remember is, you must come home at 12 a.m. Don't ask me what's going to happen, just remember my words."
"OK! I'll remember. Thank you, Mammon. Thank you very much..." she got into the chariot, and waved her hand gladly. A big smile was drawn on her face.
"Have fun with Prince Xanxus," Mammon said as the chariot went by.
At Prince Xanxus' manor, which called Varia Palace, the dance party hadn't started yet. All of the visitors were nobles. Lussuria and her daughters were there, searching for the Prince because he hadn't showed up. Everyone was busy talking and laughing, but they suddenly shut their mouth up when the Prince's subordinate came.
"Good night, everybody. Welcome to Varia Palace. Thanks for coming to this dance party. Prince Xanxus is still preparing, so please wait until he comes," the strange-haired subordinate said.
In front of the manor's door, a chariot came. The chariot was so luxurious and pulled by 6 white horses. A beautiful woman went down from that chariot.
"Good night and welcome, Miss. Invitation card?" a man—maybe that palace's guardian—asked.
"Invitation card?" Squaloderella felt confused. "Ah, I'm sorry... I don't bring it with me. I thought invitation card was unnecessary so-"
"Come with me, Miss," that man pulled Squaloderella's wrist.
"VOOOIII! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? YOU DON'T HAVE ANY RIGHT TO TOUCH ME!" Squaloderella's true nature came. Again. She kicked that man with full power, and then some men tried to catch Squaloderella but they were being KO-ed by her.
"No one can restrain my will to meet the Prince!" she ran through the door, and entered the main hall where everyone had gathered in.
Everyone in the main hall looked shocked and curious when they saw Squaloderella. Especially Lussuria, Anna-Bel, and Francesca.
"Squaloderella?" Lussuria couldn't believe who she had just seen.
"Oh, that dirty peasant Squaloderella," Anna-Bel took out her knives.
Francesca didn't say anything. Her eyes pointed at a spiral stair. A tall man stood; he had spiky hair and he wore a black suit with some things like raccoon and feathers on his neck.
"Prince Xanxus..." Francesca's eyes didn't blink at all when she saw that admirable figure. Maybe if looks could kill, Prince Xanxus would be a serial killer. Or so Francesca thought.
The prince walked down and joined with everyone in the main hall. Then he talked with a loud voice,
"I'm sorry, I'm late. And I don't want to waste any time left so, I'm announcing that I'll choose one among all girls here to dance with me."
The girls were excited to hear that. Squaloderella felt a little confidence in her heart.
"Okay, now, please gather and make a line," said the Prince's subordinate. The girls then did what he ordered. Squaloderella did too.
The Prince looked the girls from top to toe, but it seemed like he couldn't find what he wanted—until he saw the last girl standing. Prince Xanxus chose Squaloderella!
"Would you like to dance with me tonight, Milady?" the Prince took Squaloderella's hand.
Squaloderella's face blushed. "O-of course, Prince Xanxus."
All the people gave them applause. Prince Xanxus walked with Squaloderella to the center of the main hall. Squaloderella whispered to Prince Xanxus' ear, "actually... I can't dance. At all."
"It's fine. I'll guide you," the Prince smiled. Then the music started, a waltz with slow-tempo. They danced along, didn't mind everyone's jealousy look. Squaloderella's eyes only looked at Prince Xanxus' smiling face. One time while they were dancing, she saw her stepmother and stepsisters looking at her with a hateful face. Squaloderella just threw them a victory smile.
Time flied so fast that the clock clanged 12 times—it's 12 a.m. now! Squaloderella stopped the dance and said, "I'm sorry, Prince. But I have to go."
"Why? Don't go, the party hasn't ended."
"I must go. I'm really sorry," she cried. She turned and ran home.
"Hey! Squaloderella! Where are you going?" the Prince followed her.
Squaloderella ran very fast, so the Prince wouldn't find her. But then her left shoe detached from her foot because of her rushing movements. "What the-? Ah, I don't have any time to care about my shoe!" Squaloderella continued running.
When Squaloderella was running, she felt like something weird was going on her. She then realized that she had changed into her normal self. Her peasant look. Her luxurious gown had gone, except her right shoe.
"So this is what Mammon said.. Why he told me to come home at 12 was because I would turn into a peasant again.." her eyes were wet with tears.
"My fate as a peasant can't be changed, I know that. Even with magic or money or everything, it cannot be changed. I was born to be a peasant, to be a slave. I don't deserve the Prince or anyone else."
She then arrived in front of her stepmother's house crying. She hurried to enter the house, and she spent all night crying in her bedroom.
...the next morning...
Squaloderella was having her breakfast in her room, like usual. Then, she heard someone knock on the door. She didn't care, but minutes later, Lussuria came to her room.
"Squaloderella, someone's searching for you."
"?" Squaloderella shocked. She came to the person in front of the door. It was, miraculously, the Prince Xanxus himself!
"..." she ran out of words. After she finished controlling her heartbeat, she spoke. "Ah, umm, what do you want?"
Ahh! I said a very wrong thing! I should have not said something impolite !
"I want to show you this," Xanxus showed a glass shoe. "Is this yours? The size didn't fit those two girls' foot."
Squaloderella felt confused. I don't know what to say, Prince Xanxus already knew I'm a peasant!
"Or do you want to try fitting this shoe, Miss?"
Squaloderella nodded. She entered her left foot. The shoe fitted hers!
The Prince smiled. "This shoe must be yours. I saw you wearing this, if I'm not mistaken. And if this shoe really yours, you must have the other shoe, right?"
"Ng.. wait, I'm gonna—ng—bring it. Wait," she hurried to her bedroom, taking the other right shoe. Anna-bel's eyes watched her in rage.
Squaloderella showed the shoe to Prince Xanxus. "Yes, this is.. mine."
"So, do you want to know what my true reason of coming here is?" said Prince Xanxus.
"Um.. What's that?"
The Prince kneeled. "I fell in love with the girl who danced with me and wore these glass shoes. So would you like to live with me, in my palace?"
"Eh-?" said Anna-bel and Lussuria.
A big smile was drawn on Squaloderella's face. "Of course! Of course I would!"
"Then, let's go! My chariot's waiting for us," The Prince took Squaloderella's hand, and they went to the Prince's palace. Of course, they lived happily ever after.
a/n: too long? I'm sorry! also sorry if Squalo's a bit OOC, but I tried to keep his usual attitude :D Hope you like it, and please review! :D