Once upon a time, Anastasia was happy. Truly happy. Those were the days before she, her sister, and her mother moved into the home of Cinderella. She was ten at the time, and her carefree life spiraled downward. Anastasia saw how much Cinderella was loved by her father and felt extremely jealous, for her mother, Lady Tremaine, favored her sister Drizella over her. Yes, her mother cared in her heart, but was always reluctant to show it. Cinderella's father, on the other hand, gave her whatever she wanted and spent copious amounts of time with her. He showed his new stepdaughters kindness, but it was more of a polite kindness.
Then that horrible accident happened and took the life of Anastasia's stepfather. Cinderella was inconsolable, crying all night and day for weeks. When Cinderella finally started interacting with her stepsisters, Lady Tremaine made her do everything. The girl had to learn to clean the expansive house, cook for them all, and obey every whim of her stepfamily. Anastasia started to feel a dark smugness arise in her to see Cinderella in an inferior position.
The feeling grew stronger as the three girls grew up. Cinderella's naturally kind nature and unsurpassable beauty made Anastasia doubt herself and her future. Even though she tried to develop a talent to make up for her flaws, she constantly thought, 'How can I compete with her? No one will glance at me with her in the room.' In retaliation for Cinderella's causing the jealousy, Anastasia berated her and treated her like a slave. However, no matter how hard she tried the hatred for both herself and her stepsister never went away.
Finally, in her mind, she had a break. The royal ball. Since her mother had married a nobleman, Lady Tremaine immediately got invitations to most royal events. Plus, everyone knew that the prince was single and the king was pushing him to find a bride. This was her chance to be seen and have a future. No one really knew about Cinderella; she was kept in the shadows since her father's death and didn't have many friends to begin with besides the animals she cared for. Lady Tremaine would never allow Cinderella to attend the party and jeopardize her image.
The night of the ball, Anastasia was ready to go and was waiting on her sister, who made a big show of walking down the marble staircase with all the grace she could muster, which wasn't much. Suddenly, right when Drizella reached the bottom of the stairs, Cinderella burst through the hallway at the top, beaming and crying, "Wait, Wait! I have a dress that I think I look okay in!"
'Oh, no,' thought Anastasia. She couldn't believe that Cinderella could get any more beautiful, but there she was. The girl was in a dress that looked homemade, but only if it was closely inspected. The dress was a delicate pink that highlighted the white lace collar, straps, and edge of the skirt. A string of beads that Drizella had thrown at Cinderella in anger hung from her pale neck. A sash of translucent peach was tied around her slim fragile waist and ended in a bow that both blossomed and trailed down the front. The high-heeled slippers she wore were sparkly. As Cinderella floated down the stairs, Anastasia couldn't help but think that the whole outfit made everything about Cinderella seem infinitely better.
A fit of rage and despair overcame Anastasia, and she led Drizella towards her stepsister when she reached the bottom of the stairs as her mother calmly looked on. Both sisters yelled about how Cinderella stole this and that from them and started ripping what they claimed was theirs from her body. No one noticed, but tears leaked from Anastasia's eyes as they ravaged the outfit. The exchange took only a minute or two, and when they were done, the difference was pitiful. Strips of cloth and beads were strewn across the floor, Cinderella's hair was disheveled, and she was crying, makeup dripping down her lovely face.
Anastasia and Drizella huffed over to their mother who was holding the door for them, dropping whatever fabric they still held. Anastasia felt rather proud of reducing Cinderella to the sniveling person huddled next to the banister. The three women piled into the carriage and went off to the ball, all feeling different levels of smugness.
Once they arrived, the two sisters were immediately put in a line to meet the prince and see if they could win his favor. They both tried to act as kind and majestic as possible, but his expression never changed. Anastasia and Drizella felt defeated and moped by the punchbowl. Suddenly, a wave of murmuring raced through the crowd. The prince had decided on someone to dance with! They both forced themselves through the crowd, and were shocked and appalled to see none other than Cinderella waltzing with the prince. She was just as beautiful as before, if not more.
Her dress was white and sparkling all over. The skirt puffed out, but not too much, and hair golden locked were up in an intricate bun held in place by a shimmering headband. Anastasia could hear the glass slippers quietly clicking with every graceful step. She couldn't understand how Cinderella could be here wearing such clothes, but she didn't really care. She walked away from her sister and the crowd, tears starting to silently flow down her cheeks. Anastasia hunched over the railing on the balcony and began to weep; she wept for her misfortune and for her inferiority to Cinderella and her lack of a good, loving future.
A tap landed on her shoulder. She looked up and saw a girl through blurred eyes.
"Are you alright?" asked the girl. Anastasia wiped away tears and saw a vision of beauty. This mystery person was a brunette, letting her hair fall in curls to her elbows. The dress she sported was a dark navy blue that was laced with sparkles the resembled stars. The dress was sleeveless and hugged her figure. The girl had a look of genuine concern and still had a hand on Anastasia's shoulder. She sniffed and said,
"I'll be okay. I just wish things were different-that I was different." The girl gave a kind smile and replied,
"Is it because of the prince dancing with that other girl? If he didn't like you, he probably wasn't right for you. I'm sure we'll all find someone who is meant for us."
"No, you don't understand; she is my stepsister. I knew she was better than me right from the start." The girl looked at her with an expression of sad understanding. She took Anastasia's hands in her own and said,
"You are unique and therefore can't compare yourself to her, - I'm sorry, I never got your name."
"Anastasia. What is your name?"
"My name is Fauna. It is very nice to meet you." Fauna smiled again gave a slight bow. Anastasia returned the smile and wiped her eyes once more.
"You know, there is a beautiful garden in the middle of the palace," said Fauna. "Would you like to go see it? We can talk and get to know each other." It was all Anastasia could do to not burst out in joyous laughter.
"I'd love to!" she exclaimed. The two girls then walked hand in hand down the ivory staircase towards the garden, and began to talk. They talked about their home lives, their family, their hopes and dreams. Fauna, Anastasia learned, was part of a noble family and her parents pressured her to come to the ball to try to win over the prince and get to a higher status. She also had a brother that was traveling and was almost always alone in her home.
The more the girls learned about each other, the more they liked each other. They talked all through the night and slowly, but surely, fell in love. When Lady Tremaine called for Anastasia to leave, the pair walked hand in hand to a stone archway right next to the stairs, but where the Lady couldn't see them.
"I'm coming, Mother!" replied Anastasia. She turned to face Fauna, tears in both of their eyes. The brunette said gently,
"Don't worry. We shall find each other again. This is love, and we were meant for each other." The only thing Anastasia did to reply was to lean forward and give Fauna a light kiss, which the young girl quickly returned. They parted and waved good bye.
The next few weeks, Anastasia kept reliving that night, wishing to see Fauna again. Little did she know, Cinderella was hoping for the exact same thing.
The fateful day arrived when the prince's search party arrived at their door. Drizella tried desperately to get the found glass slipper on her foot, but it couldn't fit. Her mother made Anastasia put on the shoe, but she only tried halfheartedly to get it on. Cinderella put on the slipper, and it fit perfectly. Apparently, Lady Tremaine and Drizella didn't realize that Cinderella was the girl at the ball, and were astonished. Although she would never say so, Anastasia was happy for Cinderella to find love and hoped Drizella would find the same.
On the day of the wedding between the prince and Cinderella, Anastasia attended despite her mother's wishes. To her great delight, Fauna was there, too. The two girls embraced for what seemed like forever and held each other's hands tightly as they sent off Cinderella to her happy life.
The very next night, and each night for weeks after, Fauna and Anastasia met in secret, enjoying the company of the other for as long as possible. Then, when they had thoroughly thought it through, the girls ran off in the dead of night and got married in a few kingdoms over.
Anastasia lived with Fauna for many years, taking in a little boy and girl from the streets. Their home was a beautiful cottage in the woods, away from judgment and ridicule. Despite Anastasia's initial beliefs, she found love and they all lived happily ever after.