Yes. This is one of THE MOST overdone plotlines in all the history of fanfiction. But then, most of my plotlines lately seem to be the overdone, and yet somehow unsatisfying ones. And still, I cannot help but wish to improve upon them, to write something that not only will I enjoy writing, but I will learn from. Hopefully, it will also be something that you, my darling reader, will enjoy. That's the point, isn't it? But I digress. Anyway, if this one does well, I might very well write a few more with a similar theme.

Now, on to the fic!

P.S. It uses part of the Disney movie version opening, but there are some drastic changes after that.

x x x

Sakura: A Cinderella Story

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Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there was a tiny kingdom. It was peaceful, prosperous, and rich in romance and tradition. Here, in a stately chateau, there lived a widowed gentleman, and his little daughter Sakura.

Although he was a kind and devoted father, and gave his beloved child every comfort, still he felt she needed a mother's care. And so he married again, choosing for his wife this time a woman of good family and breeding, with two daughters just Sakura's age. Their names were Ino and Kin.

It was upon the untimely death of the man that the stepmother's true nature was revealed. Jealous of Sakura's charm and beauty, she was grimly determined to forward the interests of her own two daughters and herself. And so the chateau fell into ruin, the family fortune squandered on the selfish wishes of the stepmother and her daughters. Sakura was mistreated and abused, and eventually forced to become a servant in her own home.

And yet, through it all, Sakura remained ever gentle and ki-

"FREAKING BIRDS! GET OUT! GETOUTGETOUTGETOUT!"

Or… not.

"GRAH!" There was a thump that shook the whole tower, and the shuttered windows flew open and hit the walls with a crash as a storm of terrified birds took flight and flew out. A pink haired young woman reached the window just moments after them and hung out of it, shaking her fist at the hastily departing creatures and screaming something about chicken soup.

The neighbors would have been a little more distressed if this didn't happen every day.

x x x

"SAKURA!"

"SAKURA!"

Sakura, carefully balancing a serving platter on her head and holding one in either hand, headed up the stairs with an expression of one whose patience has been stretched to the limit.

"SAKURA!"

"I'M COMING, I'M COMING!" Sakura screamed back, adding to herself, "Jeez…. Would it kill them to get off their fat behinds and do something for themselves? Pfft." As she got within hearing distance, she grew quiet, coaxing her face into a calm expression. It wasn't easy. So distracted was she by this endeavor that she managed to lose one of her shoes. "Oh, perfect." Carefully stepping back down a few stairs, she struggled to wiggle her foot back into the shoe while maintaining her balance.

"SAKURA!"

"I'M COMING!"

x x x

Now laden with two baskets of laundry and with one serving platter still remaining, Sakura edged her way into her stepmother's room. "Breakfast, stepmother."

"It's about time." hissed a voice laced with contempt. Narrowed golden eyes peered at the pink haired young lady from a face whiter than death as the girl put the food on the bedside table and picked up the laundry. "…Sakura."

The girl looked up. "Yes Oroch-… stepmother?"

"...This tea is cold."

"What? But I-"

"No excuses. As punishment…"

x x x

Not too far away, someone else happened to be having a bad day.

"No."

"But your maje-"

"No."

"But sire – "

"Jiraiya." Sasuke glared straight ahead, fingers laced in front of him as he wished terrible things on his royal advisor. "I said no."

"But sire, you have to do it sooner or later."

"I'd rather it be later." The young man murmured, feeling a migraine coming on.

"You've been putting this off forever! It has to happen sometime. The people are getting restless. They want you to take a wi-"

"No."

Jiraiya sighed. Honestly, Sasuke could be so stubborn sometimes. How to get him to agree…? It was that or go through with it without his consent. Suddenly the man's face split into a wide grin that could have made many a young lady's flesh crawl in disgust. And had. "But my lord, you'll ge-"

"I know what you're going to say, Jiraiya. Don't."

The older man deflated somewhat. "But-"

"No. And that's that."

"I didn't want to have to pull this…" Sasuke looked up sharply, dark eyes hardening into an even colder glare. "…but you leave me no choice. It was your father's wish that you carry on the Uchiha name, and I plan on honoring it. We're going to hold a ball." Seeing Sasuke opening his mouth to protest, Jiraiya raised a hand. "No. No more excuses. You're going to go to the ball, and you're going to pick a wife. Nothing you can say will get you out of it."

x x x

Hm…. S' kinda horrid. Anyway, I'll try to get some more up soon. Please, tell me if you like it, hate it, whatever. I love feedback.