Not Just A Pretty Face

The sun shone marvelously above the luxurious Castle of Seoul as the jewel of the kingdom, Princess Tomoyo, made her way to the Great Hall, for her father, the King, had an urgent event to discuss with her. The fair and graceful princess with golden locks and a gorgeous dress walked down the hallways, with three maids behind her trail, trying to walk faster in this huge and puffy, yet beautiful dress, which caused her much trouble to walk even as a normal person would. Her footsteps stopped at the huge, wood engraved door and took a deep breath full of panic, as her father had never wanted to discuss urgent things with her. Around Tomoyo, King Hiragimoto was cheery and never serious; Tomoyo was born to be the favored princess in his kingdom. Slowly, and shakily, she threw open the doors and stepped into the elegant room which was so big, that even if you whispered, your voice would ring throughout every inch of the room.

"Father, why have you brought me to the Great Hall?" she asked him, relieved at the fact that he looked very cheerful, in fact, even more cheerful than normal. "Ah, my beloved Tomoyo, I have granted you the wish that every girl would wish for," he replied with a warm and sweet smile. "What might that be Father?" she questioned, scared that he had yet again, agreed to betrothed her to an ugly and old man. "Well, King Lee of Tokyo and I have considered it, and decided to betroth you to Prince Eriol!" he exclaimed excitedly. Tomoyo felt a surge of happiness running through each and every vein inside, she could not be anymore gleeful than now.

"Really Father? Am I really betrothed to the strong, handsome, kind, smart, brave, and caring Prince Eriol!" she quickly screamed with excitement and delight. The King laughed at his excited daughter, glad that she was content with his decision. He would wish for nothing more than for his favourite child to be happy. "Yes Tomoyo and the wedding is one month from now, so you should get ready!" her father said with a chuckle. "Yes Father!" she cried, jumping for joy. She happily walked back to her chamber, joyfully humming the tune of the Wedding March, eager to wed the young man of her dreams whom she fell in love with the second she laid eyes on him. With a heavy sigh, Tomoyo thought back to when she first met him, when his warm eyes met with hers.

It was Christmas and Soo Young was forced to go to the Christmas ball at the Palace of Sushi. She thought it would be boring and dull as she attended the previous parties which were boring because she didn't know anyone there. She was seated beside her father, who was cheerfully chatting away with King Lee. The banquet hall was filled with glamorous people who dressed in beautiful clothing. Everyone seemed to be happy except her. There she ate quietly, annoyed by the loud talking and chatting filling the room. Her father softly nudged Tomoyo and her head jerked up, looking around to see what caused her daydream to be ruined.

"Tomoyo, I would like you to meet King Lee's son, Prince Eriol," her father announced, showing a hand to the direction of Prince Eriol. Her head turned to face only the sweetest face she had ever seen before. He stood up and walked to Tomoyo, pleased that he had at last found someone to talk with. "May I have this dance Princess Tomoyo?" he asked with a friendly smile. "Why of course, Prince Eriol!" she answered with a striking smile. The two quickly became friends and chatted the night away.

Tomoyo sighed dreamily as she thought about that night, the night that turned her whole life around. She had never believed in love at first sight, but on that night, she realized there was such thing. Her life could not get any better. She longed to see him again throughout the past four months, but had no way to meet with him again as she was not allowed to travel without the permission of the king, and seeing as he was an overprotective father, he would most definitely refuse to allow that.

"Father was right," she decided to herself as she walked down to the garden for a stroll to admire the pretty flowers that grew upon the lands of the kingdom, "he has granted me the wish that every girl would wish for." The spring had come and the flowers were in bloom. "A day could not be more perfect than this," Tomoyo believed gleefully as she sniffed the sweet smell of the garden. The garden was very big, encircled with beautiful tulips and roses of all colours- pink, red, yellow, orange, and light purple. The grass was emerald green, healthy and damp from the morning dew, and the tall, shade-giving trees, covered with leaves of a light green colour. Like the little girl she was years ago, she plopped herself on the ground, lying down and gazing at the blue sky and white fluffy clouds. Some shaped like hearts, while others looked like Eriol.

"I am definitely started to hallucinate!" she shrieked, shaking her head at the cloud shaped like Eriol. "Princess Tomoyo, you'll get your dress filthy! Please stand up!" her maid, Sakura, ordered. Tomoyo's head maid, Sakura, treated Tomoyo as her own daughter as Tomoyo treated Sakura like her own mother. "Yes Sakura!" she squeaked cheerfully, pulling herself up from the damp grass. Sakura was very surprised at Tomoyo because she would usually whine a bit before listening to her, but today, today was different from all others.

"You must be happy about your marriage with Prince Eriol aren't you?" Sakura asked. "Yes, I cannot believe that I am marrying the man I love!" Tomoyo responded, still not over the excitement. Little did the Tomoyo and Sakura know that Tomoyo's ugly, evil stepsister, Kaho, was in the background of the bushes, listening with jealousy and envy.

"Why? Why must I be the ugly princess and her the beautiful one? Why must I be deserted and alone, while she favoured and happy? Why must she be dressed in a beautiful gown while I in rags? Why must she be able to marry the most handsome prince in all the world and I left with nothing? Am I not good enough to compete with her? I'll make sure that Tomoyo won't be happy for long!" Kaho declared after Tomoyo left. She angrily stood up and marched herself into the deep woods of the forest, hoping that the pretty smile on Tomoyo's face would wipe off in no time. A piece of parchment flew to her feet and she bent down to pick it up, curious to as why a piece of parchment would be flying in the woods. The parchment read:
Do you feel angry and sad?
Do you feel lonely and need help?
If so, come visit the Witch of Evil and have your problems fixed in the snap of your fingers!
Below read the address, 444 Deep Forest Avenue.

Kaho thought for a while and realized that this is just what she needed! A witch to solve her problem with Tomoyo! She smirked evilly and with the parchment in hand, headed towards Deep Forest Avenue. "Ah! Here it is!" Kaho exclaimed, glad that she had finally found the house, or rather hut, after twists and turns and getting lost. Slowly, she knocked the door, nervous about meeting a witch. She observed the doorknob slowly turn, and the door opened with a big screech which gave Kaho a fright. In front of Kaho stood a small, old lady a covered in black with a hunch back, staring at Kaho with her big, black, and cold eyes, in a face of wrinkles and scars. The sight of the witch made Kaho jump a bit, as the witch looked truly evil.

"How may I help you young lady?" the old witch cackled with delight, happy that she had received yet another customer. "What should I do if I want to look like another person, and I want that person to be what I am now?" Kaho enquired, trying to avoid the cold stare of the witch. "I see, I have just the thing!" the Witch of Evil exclaimed, leading Kaho into her hut.

Inside the hut was dark and gloomy, with nothing but a small candle to keep the slightest amount of light in the small room. In the middle of the room stood a big cauldron, big enough to fit a person in, and a black crow in a cage, hanging from the ceiling towards the left side of the hut. Kaho gulped at the sight of the cauldron, scared that the witch would boil her for dinner. The old witch explained the potion as she threw things into the boiling cauldron.

"Now, this potion is a specialty of mine, just drink one teaspoon of it and in the same hour, give a teaspoon of it to your enemy. In the next morning, your soul will be in her body and hers in your body," the witch croaked. Kaho nodded in understanding as the witch poured the potion into a bottle. "Just remember, after a month, you must give her and you each a teaspoon of the remaining potion or else you will turn to what you are now," she reminded. Kaho nodded again and left to the castle with the potion in hand.

Kaho hurried to the castle and got into her room to drink the potion. She carefully poured a teaspoon of the potion and gulped it down. Of course, the problem was getting Tomoyo to drink the potion. "How should I get the potion to Tomoyo?" Kaho muttered quietly to herself. She decided to go to the kitchen and add the potion to her drink before they serve the dinner. Walking to the kitchen, Kaho caught a glimpse of Tomoyo happily chatting with her father and her stepmother, Queen Yuna, in the King's chamber. Her fists clenched and she made her way quickly to the kitchen.

"Hmm, I need a diversion to get in without those chefs noticing!" she thought. Quickly thinking of a plan, she decided to act like a maid serving the food. "I'm here to serve the food!" she bellowed, hoping not to be recognized even though hardly anyone knew her as a princess. The chefs nodded and placed the food on the tray she held. Smiling with relief, she walked to the Great Hall where it was empty and set the food on the table. Acting very swift and silently, the potion was now in the drink of Tomoyo. Kaho smirked and walked away, knowing that for once, she would be the happy one.

Kaho stayed behind the curtain, watching as the royal family took their places around the table. A tear dropped down Kaho's rough cheek, fuming and jealous that she, the forgotten princess, was never invited to eat with the family. Angrily, she wiped away the tear and remained strong, keeping close watch at Tomoyo's drink. Towards the end of the satisfying dinner, the glass of Tomoyo was empty. Making her way up the Victorian staircase, Kaho grinned as her mind ran through what would happen just the next morning. Kaho got ready to sleep and slipped into the thin and old, blanket, on her small and hard bed. She tossed and turned throughout the night, too excited to fall asleep. Soon enough, both Kaho and Tomoyo were fallen unto a deep slumber with sweet dreams.

The next day was cold and rainy, with the sun hidden behind heaps of dark, grey clouds. Tomoyo woke up with a yawn and sat up on the bed, with a face of depression as she looked out at the gloomy sky. "Sakura, can you please get me my dress?" she called out, wondering why her voice sounded different. No reply was heard. "Hello? Why am I in the wrong room?" she yelled again, hoping that her voice was heard. Her mouth was frowning at what she saw before her eyes. The room was small with grey painted walls; the blanket was thin and worn out making Tomoyo shiver. The bed was small and uncomfortable and no one was in sight. Slowly and frightened, Tomoyo got out of bed and walked to the black drawer with a mirror. What was shown in the mirror was beyond impossible.

"Help! What happened to me?" she exclaimed desperately with hot tears running like a river down her now, immense and bumpy cheek. The tears continued flowing as she was astonished that her face was now big, round, and wrinkly with petite, grey coloured eyes and an oversized nose. Her lips were thick and chapped with scars sliding across her face. Together, the features made up what seemed to be very familiar to Tomoyo. After a moment of realization, she noticed who this person looked like; her stepsister Kaho. If she hadn't noticed today, she would have completely forgotten she had a sister. She remembered that when she was only six, her sister was always cruel to her, making her cry every chance she could get. A few years later, at the age of nine, was the last time she recalled seeing her sister. Never had she wondered where she went, for she never really enjoyed Mina's presence. All Tomoyo could do was weep, weep until she had the energy to face the facts.

"What happened to me? Why do I look like Kaho? Where am I?" she mumbled to herself, repeating the questions continuously, confused. "How could something so dramatic happen in just one night? How could the happiest day of my life be just yesterday, and today the worst you could possibly imagine?" she thought in her very bewildered mind. After what seemed like eternity of crying, she hopped off her bed and dragged herself over to the closet to get dressed. Subsequent to flipping through a few dresses, she knew that her sister lived in agony- she didn't have any maids, no one arrives to call her down for breakfast, her clothes were all old and rags, her things were all tattered, and her appearance was beyond daunting.

"No wonder I never noticed Kaho around the palace, she looks like a maid!" Tomoyo exclaimed, shocked. Because Kaho's mother was beheaded for adultery, Kaho had no relatives other than her father, who treated her like trash. Tomoyo slipped on a dress and walked down the halls of the castle to find out what had happened to her body and the real "Kaho". As she walked down the halls, no one greeted her; all they did was tell her what to do. "Kaho, get those clothes washed!" or "Kaho, remember to sweep the floors!" Although she was not a maid, they sure treated Tomoyo like one! Tomoyo, beginning to be fed up with the work piled upon her, simply nodded at the desires.

Following many turns, she found her rightful chamber. Tomoyo stepped within the room as the door was opened. She hid behind the corner, staring vulnerably at " Tomoyo " order her own maids around. She saw the maids running around the room, frantic about the princesses missing comb. Tomoyo stared at her body being controlled by someone else. Gathering all her courage, she stepped up to herself, thinking this to be rather ironic.

"Why, hello my dear sister Kaho!" she said to Tomoyo, with a fake smile. "Yes, I suppose I haven't seen you in a while!" Tomoyo replied, going on with the act. "Maids, would you please step out for a moment, I must have a word with my sister," the person demanded. The maids nodded and slowly filed out of the room. "Who are you, and what have you done to me?" Tomoyo demanded furiously. "Well of course, it's me, Kaho. I must say, you have quite the room!" Kaho announced. Tomoyo was shocked that a sister would be cruel enough to do such act. "Why did you have to do this to me?" Tomoyo said shakily, trying as best to hold back her tears. "Simple enough isn't it? I mean, you had everything I wanted," Kaho said with a smirk. "I'll tell everyone about what you did!" Tomoyo cried, trying to sound threatening.

"Oh right, like anyone is going to believe you! I am Princess Tomoyo now!" Kaho retorted with a laugh at Tomoyo's silly threat. Tomoyo's heart sank deeply as she noticed that what Kaho said was true. Who would believe her now? Her life was ruined; she was no longer the happy princess she's been living for the past sixteen years. The wetness of tears was covering her ugly face as Kaho snorted; amused that Tomoyo was no longer happy. Tomoyo took one last glance at Tomoyo's rude behavior and left the room, knowing that she would never get the chance to sleep in her comfortable bed ever again.

Walking down the halls, a thought suddenly stuck Tomoyo. "How will I marry Eriol?" she was traumatized at the thought of being separated from her true love. "Today could NOT get any worse," Tomoyo declared with a sigh. She trudged to sweep the floors in the Great Hall. Her stomach was growling as loud as a bear would growl, but she didn't care anymore, all she wanted was her life back. She grabbed the broom and softly brushed the marble floor as she listened to her father, her mother, and Kaho laugh away about their discussion. She couldn't help but start crying again, her ears could not bear to listen to anymore of their laughter. She thought about how happy she used to be, how happy she was when she spent time with her parents. Her head turned to face her parents and Kaho and glanced at them.

"Maybe, just maybe, Kaho deserves to be happy," Tomoyo supposed as she finished up sweeping and left the room, "She has had an appalling life, maybe it's my turn to suffer, maybe she deserves my life more." Days passed, then weeks, and before she knew it, there was only a month left until the wedding. Prince Eriol was spending the next month at Tokyo to acquaint with Tomoyo before the marriage. Throughout the kingdom, everyone was excited about the arrival of the Prince. Tomoyo was beginning to accept reality and worked hard everyday with her new maid friends. Everyone was beginning to get suspicious about Kaho; her attitude was far more disrespectful than Tomoyo's. There were many rumors about " Tomoyo" and her preposterous new change, in fact, the King was beginning to dislike her more and more with each new day. Today, the whole kingdom would be at the Great Hall to greet the Prince.

Tomoyo searched through her clothing to find something pretty to wear today for Prince Eriol. Though most of her clothes are rags, she found one dress towards the back of the closet that looked better than the others. Even if the dress wasn't as attractive as those she had before, it was good enough. The royal blue gown was simple and had a few holes and was damaged. Rapidly, she put on the dress and ran out to the Great Hall in time for the arrival. Today, her face had a bright smile that could cheer anyone up any day. Taking her spot in the Great Hall, her eyes met Kaho's and she gasped at Kaho's remarkably stunning pink gown. Tomoyo looked away hurriedly, nervous that tears would come any second. The doors swung open and there he was, the handsome Prince Eriol. The people applauded and greeted the coming of the Prince. Tomoyo watched with melancholy at Eriol who had kissed Tomoyo 's hand; that should be her he kissed! Unnoticeably, tears slid down her cheek. "Stopping crying Tomoyo! You should be happy he's here!" Tomoyo told herself bravely. It would be difficult for Tomoyo to see him again within the next month because of her work so she treasured every moment of that day.

In fact, Tomoyo was very well correct, she had a very hard time even catching a glimpse of Prince Eriol for the next three weeks, and with the wedding approaching, the maids had much work to complete. Eriol was beginning to dislike Tomoyo too, as she was spectacularly stubborn, bossy, mean, rude, and inconsiderate. The maids had told Tomoyo that if she wished at the Sugar Fairy fountain in the garden, a sugar fairy would come and grant her wish. Tomoyo, hardly ever superstitious, decided to try it out anyway as the wedding was a mere week away. After finishing scrubbing the floors, a very tired Tomoyo walked towards the fountain.

"Sugar fairy, please, please, would you give me my life back? Can I please be Princess Tomoyo again? I really like Eriol and cannot bare to see him taken away from me!" she proposed to the elegant antique fountain with sobs. Her tears dripped into the fountain, as Tomoyo wished. "Is something wrong Miss?" a familiar voice spoke behind Tomoyo. "That voice," Tomoyo thought, "that warm hearting voice." She faced to see who it was, and saw that it was the voice of Eriol. Tomoyo jumped with joy, immediately wiping her tears. "Nothing," she simply responded. "What's all this about you being Tomoyo?" Eriol questioned curiously. "Nothing," Tomoyo stuttered, pondering on if she should tell him her true identity. "Its okay Miss, don't cry! Now tell me, what were you talking about?" he requested again, becoming frustrated. Before Tomoyo could answer, a flash of light appeared before them. A sugar fairy had appeared in front of their eyes, too stunned to say a word.

"I will now grant your wish!" the gorgeous sugar fairy announced as she sprinkled dust upon Tomoyo. Tomoyo, surprised that there was such thing as a sugar fairy, slowly transformed into her true self. Eriol was too surprised to ask about what was going on as his jaw was literally touching the ground. "Who are you?" he asked stuttering. "I'm the real Tomoyo," she replied with a pause before continuing, and flashed lovely smile, glad that everything had returned to normal, "the REAL Tomoyo." They both smiled at each other as Eriol realized that the one that he had fallen in love with was standing right in front of him, the one who was nice and caring, not the other one. Together, they walked back hand in hand, in the direction of the castle.

As the witch said, if Kaho did not have her and Tomoyo drink the potion, she would turn back to normal, which was exactly what happened to her. Tomoyo truthfully explained to the king how Kaho had lived in poverty for the past few years, and he noticed that she deserved more than that. Kaho is now married to Eriol's brother, Prince Clamp who was very much in love with her. Tomoyo and Eriol lived happily ever after.