then one day, it finally came to the point that the Vargas family is going bankrupt. Feliciano had to find a job to support his daughter and his new wife and stepdaughters. He had to go to America to put his hands in good use. He bade goodbye a week later to his family. And after that, he would never know that the years when he was gone.. would also be the darkest years Riella will be going through. As soon as Feliciano left the house, Ludwig (yes, she is a woman. i feel greatly damned for not changing her name for i forgot what her name should be. Please forgive me) singed off the poor girl's fine blonde braids. She made her do the dirtiest of chores like doing the laundry, scraping off the rat's wastes, and sleeping near the fireplace. Yes, i know it would be warm if i were there. But think about the cinders and the dusts coming from the ashes and the chimney. In my opinion, the chimney dusts were the worst. Riella wept every night as her stepsisters would make fun of her and poke her with sharp and dirtied sticks. Her mother's last letters (piled in medium brown envelopes) were her comfort every night. She hid them under the tile of the kitchen table, and read them every night and smiled to herself. But day by day, she was going all hopeless. She missed her father, and if only her uncle Alfred were there to comfort her and tell her stories, at least she won't feel lonely.

But her stepmother won't let her uncle in the house. Even at a few inches, she would yell and curse at him. Swearing off burgers and fries, two of her uncle's favourite food. But at least Riella had her own telegram, hidden in her room. And her uncle Alfred would secretly talk to her through telegrams. Finally she was happy. But not for long. You see, Franchette, her other stepsister was a very nosy girl. She would sneak up on Riella's room and poke around things. One afternoon, while Riella was doing the laundry, Franchette took all of the yellow telegrams and gave them to her mother Ludwig. The mother was enraged, of course. Her stepdaughter Riella must be shut-in at all times, or fear the wrath of Feliciano Vargas. Ludwig smashed the telegram with full force, using an old sturdy broom. Riella was forced to watch, devasted that she could never speak to her uncle Alfred in any way. Franchette and Maria Gilberta snickered and sneered, and so did their mother. But Riella wished that she'll never give up. That night, while all of the others were already sleeping, Riella was so distraught and troubled with her problems. She was sick with worry for her father and uncle, her stepmother and stepsister's abuse. She cried that night. Quietly so no one can hear her. As she clasped her hands in prayer, she heard a soft tinkling sound in the room. Riella opened her eyes. Before her was a woman with gossamer wings and a want shaped like the constellations of Gemini. Riella stared in bewilderment as she blinked three times and opened her mouth.

"greetings my child. I am your fairy godmother..." the woman gently told her.

She looked so familiar... she was.. she was...

" aunt alice? You're the wife of uncle Alfred!" riella exclaimed.

Aunt alice chuckled as she pets the girl's head. Riella embraced her while she cried.

"my dear, they will be punished for what they did... i understand. Be a good girl at all times. Your uncle misses you. And your father is fine. He's doing good in America. He will be coming home soon, by the end of winter.." aunt alice told her as she kissed her forehead. Riella smiled.