To Tame a Servant

Slumped to the ground, with her head resting on the door and her right hand still clasped around the handle, Cinderella wept disconsolately. Her hands ached from knocking so long and hard with the hope of being heard by someone. Her room was too far from the hall where the royal messenger was fulfilling his duty, and in any case the shrill complaints of the two stepsisters drowned out any other noise.

The memories of the beautiful evening spent at the palace came back to her mind, the splendor of the rooms and the marvellous clothes of all the people in there, the kind face of that young man with whom she had long danced and that she never, not even for a moment, had thought could be the prince. She had just been so happy to be able to live an evening away from the mistreatment of her stepmother and stepsisters, almost as if it were a dream. But now, closed within these four walls, she felt her only opportunity to be free was being taken away. In no way could she have recovered the key taken by Lady Tremaine, perhaps only with the magic of the good fairy who had helped her to go to the ball. Unfortunately, however, she had no idea how to call her to her rescue.

While she was sitting not being able to see any way out, on the other side of the door she heard tired and thin voices coming. It would have been impossible for her to confuse them with others.

"We're here, Cinderella!" Jaq and Gus called her going up the last steps of the stairs, carrying the heavy key with them. Cinderella watched the scene from the keyhole, feeling hope reborn in herself and thanking Heaven for the splendid friends who were always close to her, even in the most difficult moments.

Pushed by an unshakable willpower, Gus and Jaq ran to the door, determined to free the girl by giving her the key to a new life. The tiredness after the long staircase and the joy of having succeeded in the mission clouded their senses and the two did not realize they were being kept under control by hungry green eyes. With a leap, the cat Lucifer was upon them and quickly imprisoned the fattest mouse and the key he kept with him under a bowl.

Cinderella did not need to see to understand what was happening on the other side of the door: she knew that only one animal in the whole house was so faithful to Lady Tremaine as to try to prevent her from escaping. The girl begged it to let the mouse go, hoping to awaken its dormant goodness, but the cat only seemed interested in its prey.

For the other mice it was like a declaration of war. With wide eyes and a sense of danger sharpened beyond all limits, the animals came out of their lairs armed with forks and lighted candles, trying in every way to force the big black cat to let go of the bowl. Even the birds tried to attack it from above, but nothing seemed able to move Lucifer from its position.

Cinderella thought for a moment, then turned to the birds in the corridor, urging them to go and call the faithful dog Bruno, the only one who could have pushed away the evil cat. Flying like rockets, the birds launched themselves into the courtyard in search of it, checking in all the places where it used to rest.

But it was all in vain: intending to avoid in any way that the men who had come on behalf of the prince were disturbed, Lady Tremaine had closed the dog in the kitchen, leaving it water, food and comfortable pillows which invited it to settle down in peace throughout necessary time. Unaware of what was happening upstairs, Tobias slept soundly, waiting for those guests never seen before to leave.

Meanwhile, tired of the constant attacks by mice and birds, Lucifer decided it was time to be respected. With a strong paw, it rolled the most annoying mouse under the door, throwing it into the room where Cinderella was, then threw the bowl at the other mice, messing their ranks. In the end, it fixed his gaze on the last mouse left, its fat prey, clinging to that key from which it did not seem to want to break away. With a hungry grin that was forming on its muzzle, Lucifer grabbed the mouse and began to move it violently, slamming it over and over again to the floor, numbing it to the point that it had to let go of the key, on which Lucifer placed his hind paw as soon as it had touched the ground.

Cinderella looked at the scene in terror, screaming in despair: "Stop, Lucifer! Please, stop!"

Having nothing to fear, the cat watched the mouse it held tight, now confused enough not to understand what was about to happen. It gave the other mice, gathered near the walls in order to get back on their feet, time to see Gus one last time, then Lucifer took it to his mouth and swallowed it alive.

Frost fell on Gus' friends. No one dared to move anymore, suddenly realizing how insane it had been to think they could overpower that black-cloaked beast. Only Jaq, who had witnessed the scene from inside the room, after a few moments of disbelief was seized by blind fury and tried to run against the cat, with the desire to avenge his friend. Before he could get out, however, he was grabbed by delicate hands, which held him high to prevent him from throwing himself into the arms of death.

Cinderella was trembling in shock. She slumped back against the door bursting into tears, unable to forgive herself for being so weak and stupid. If it hadn't been for her, if she had been just a little more careful, Gus wouldn't have died. The only thing she could do now was to keep Jaq with her and prevent others from being eaten.

"Please, go back to your lairs" She said trying to keep her voice steady "I thank all of you from my heart for what you have done, but now hide. Don't let Lucifer take you too"

At first, the mice seemed undecided on what to do. Gus had sacrificed himself to save Cinderella. Without ever showing a trace of cowardice, he had tried to keep the key until the end. Yet, the young girl's heartfelt request ended up having an effect and the mice could not help but take refuge in their burrows, some retreating in sad silence, others stopping to cast hateful glances at the cruel cat.

Having made sure that the mice had done what she had required, Cinderella sat with her back to the door, as if to leave the outside world behind.

"I'm sorry, Jaq, you have to understand me" She whispered to the mouse, still helding it in her hands, sensing its anger and its growing malaise. Not having the strength to do anything else, she sat on the ground waiting for the royal messenger to leave and for her stepmother to come and open the door for her. After all, she had got what she wanted and certainly she could not have punished her more than that.

...

"I am truly sorry to have wasted your time" Lady Tremaine said with feigned courtesy as she accompanied the Grand Duke to the door "And I apologize for the behavior of my daughters, they know how to be chaotic"

"Don't worry, madam, girls at this age are a force of nature. Then, I greet you"

"It was a pleasure" The woman concluded, watching him walk away with a smile on her lips.

Once the door was closed, the woman immediately lost that expression, snorting irritably and rolling her eyes. She hated that visit from the first to the last minute and the idea that that ridiculous little shoe had decided the fate of her two daughters made her grow indescribable anger. What idiot needed foot size to recognize a girl he'd danced with the night before? What kind of method of recognition was it? Anyone could have smaller feet than those of Anastasia and Drizella, even...

Lady Tremaine, who was on her way into the hall where her daughters were still bickering, stopped. She thought back to Cinderella's strange behavior, how happy she had been at the news of the mysterious girl the prince was looking for, how she had gone to her room to make herself prettier, happily singing.

A strange sensation ran through her from head to toe. It was not possible that Cinderella had attended the ball, she would not have had the instruments to get to the castle, and anyway the dress she had carefully prepared had been destroyed.

Yet the girl's behavior had been strange. As much as Lady Tremaine hated her, she was forced to acknowledge her honesty and goodness of mind: Cinderella would have never tried to deceive the prince and the court like her two daughters, she would not have pretended to be another girl if the glass slipper had miraculously fit, indeed, perhaps he would not even have tried it. Was it therefore possible that...?

Lady Tremaine ran over to her two daughters and grabbed them by the ears, dividing them. "Enough now, shut up!" She scolded them furiously, as she was devoured by a thousand thoughts.

"But mom, she started it!" Anastasia tried to reply, while Drizella was trying to kick her away.

"I don't care who started it!" The woman screamed again, her face now red, and this time the two girls fell silent in fear.

When the situation had calmed down, Lady Tremaine addressed them in a softer voice, but unable to hide a certain caution. Without letting go of their ears, he pulled them closer to him and said, "Now you will go up to Cinderella's room with me and I want you to do exactly what I will tell. I will not admit replies. Was I clear? "

"V...very clear!" The two girls stammered, trying to free themselves from her grip.

Satisfied, Lady Tremaine released them and walked briskly towards the stairs, followed a short distance away by her two daughters. She tried to convince herself that she was letting her fantasy gallop too much, that in no way Cinderella could have gone to the ball, but her sixth sense would not leave her alone. She had to investigate.

Lady Tremaine was several steps ahead of her two daughters when she reached Cinderella's room. Lucifer was sleeping in front of the door, but he opened his eyes as he heard her coming. Although she had never seen him rest there, Lady Tremaine did not care and silently approached the door while looking for the key in her dress.

A shiver ran through her when she realized it wasn't there. She was sure she hadn't placed it anywhere, but she couldn't find it.

A moment before checking that the door was still closed, she noticed that Lucifer had got up trying to get her attention. On the ground, next to him, there was the key.

The woman bent down to pick it up, while Drizella and Anastasia joined her. She didn't understand how it could have fallen there, but she had the feeling that something had happened and that somehow she had managed to avoid a tragedy. She walked back to the door and, after a last deep breath, put the key in the lock and turned it.

Cinderella was standing in the center of the room trying to arrange her dress as best as she could. Although she tried to hide it, it was evident that she must have been crying until then. Trying not to attract too much attention, Lady Tremaine looked around the room to make sure everything was in order. She saw no misplaced objects, nor any other objects not belonging to the girl.

"Oh, Cinderella!" She exclaimed approaching her. "I'm so sorry to have locked you in here. You know how it is, with guests of that caliber I couldn't risk bothering them, don't you think? "

Cinderella didn't answer. On other occasions she would have been accommodating, perhaps she would have pretended to understand, but this time she looked destroyed. Her eyes were fixed on the floor, she wasn't even going to look at her stepmother.

Without making the slightest sound, Lady Tremaine slipped behind her, continuing to speak in a mellifluous tone. "You didn't miss anything, anyway, it was just a check to find a girl who went to the ball yesterday. You wouldn't have had any purpose down there, am I right?" She asked running a finger on her shoulder.

Cinderella moved to chase her away. Intent on teasing her again, Lady Tremaine continued: "But maybe I was rude. I guess you would have liked to see a noble, for once in your life"

This time she stroked her hair, grabbing a lock between index and middle finger and playing with them, rolling and unrolling them. To her surprise, Cinderella slapped her hand to make her walk away. It wasn't a violent blow, but it was the first time Cinderella had responded to her mistreatment.

"I'm going to clean the salon!" The girl exclaimed, walking towards the door.

"Oh, I don't think so" Lady Tremaine replied with a gesture to her two daughters, who promptly blocked her stepsister's way. Cinderella made her gaze run first towards one, then towards the other. The two seemed to have no intention of moving and this frightened her.

"You know, you seem worried, dear" The stepmother said "Why don't you stay with us for a while and talk?"

"I have nothing to tell you"

"But I do. Anastasia, hold her!"

With a jerk, Cinderella tried to run between the two, but the red-haired stepsister quickly grabbed her hair and pulled her violently. Cinderella screamed in pain and her stepsister managed to pull her close, holding her arm.

"Leave me, Anastasia! Leave me!" Cinderella screamed in vain, trying to free herself.

"Drizella, look in every corner of the room!" Meanwhile, the stepmother ordered her other daughter.

"What do I have to search, mom?" Asked the girl, who in the meantime looked at her sister with amusement, wanting to join her.

"I'm not sure, but I think you'll be surprised when you find out"

Intrigued by her mother's words, Drizella began to rummage in every corner of the room, in the drawers, under the bed, wherever Cinderella could hide this mysterious object. Meanwhile, Lady Tremaine approached her other daughter to help her keep her prisoner, who was now trying even more eagerly to free herself. "What's going on, my dear?" She asked grabbing her face and forcing her to look into her eyes "Are you keeping something hidden from us?"

Cinderella focused for a moment on the eyes of her stepmother, who looked at her with a fake sweetness behind which hid severity and sadistic amusement. She began to sweat, unable to see a way out. She was alone at the mercy of the three witches, she had also convinced Jaq to join the other mice. She felt overwhelmed and unable to react.

"Mom, there's something here!" Drizella said. She had found a small box inside the wardrobe, buried under blankets. Cinderella rolled her eyes at her, this time more frightened than ever. "No, please, no!" She begged, but her stepmother's grasp only allowed her to grumble.

"I opened it. There's…there's…"

Drizella didn't finish the sentence. Trembling, she turned with the box in her hands to show her mother and sister its content: lying on a red pillow, there was a beautiful pure glass slipper, exactly identical to the one she and Anastasia had tried to wear shortly before.

The red sister opened her mouth wide in an expression of pure surprise and Lady Tremaine had to call her back to remind her not to let go of Cinderella.

"Where...where did you get it?" Drizella asked removing the shoe from the small box "How did you get it?"

Lady Tremaine, unable to believe she was right, left Cinderella and joined Drizella. "Haven't you figured it out yet?" She told her without taking her eyes off the treasure "That damned girl deceived you. She fooled us all. Who knows, maybe she had another dress. The fact is that she took it, somehow reached the castle and presented herself to the prince pretending to be a noble, dancing with him all night and preventing you from conquering him"

"No! That's not true, it didn't happen that way!" Cinderella tried desperately to reply, feeling herself really in danger.

"Be quiet!" The stepmother screamed, giving her a fiery look. In the meantime Drizella, who until then had done nothing but make the gaze run between Cinderella and the shoe, began to stammer and whisper: "You? Did you go to the ball?"

Lady Tremaine turned back to her daughter: "Yes, and now she wanted to take advantage of the Grand Duke to marry the prince, taking away what should have been rightfully yours"

Drizella's face was now red, the girl seemed about to explode.

"You, you bloody lousy!" She shouted with all her strength, approaching Cinderella with enthusiasm and giving her a loud slap on the cheek "Who do you think you are, eh? After all we have done for you, you choose to repay us with this affront, with this...this..."

Suddenly, she realized she still had the slipper in her hands. Growling like a ferocious beast, she raised it upwards and made as if to smash it to the ground, but her arm was promptly blocked by her mother.

"Stop, you fool!" She yelled at her with all the strength "Don't you realize what you're about to destroy?"

"Of course I realize it: it's the symbol of this traitor's deception!"

"No, idiot, it's the twin of the shoe the prince is making all the girls in the kingdom try on! Do you have any idea how much it might be worth?"

Drizella and Anastasia opened their eyes wide, realizing for the first time the importance of that object.

"Maybe your feet will be too big to wear it" Lady Tremaine explained "but I'm sure other girls could fit perfectly. And they would pay any amount to get it"

"You mean...you mean..." Anastasia stammered, looking at her with growing joy.

"I mean that there are other ways to enter the nobility, my dears. You know…" She said, bringing a hand to Cinderella's face and stroking it lovingly, "I think we should thank our Cinderella. And I have a couple of ideas on how to do it".

...

Leaning against the living room wall, Anastasia and Drizella laughed heartily at the sight of Cinderella trying in vain to fight. The girl lay bent over the piano, with her legs apart tied at the height of the ankle to those of the instrument, while her arms were stretched out in front of her, with her wrists locked by another long rope that connected to the other two legs of the piano. The knots were tight and the maximum movement she could make was to slightly lift his head and torso from the support surface. Her skirt and underwear had been ripped off, showing her buttocks and private areas.

"Look at her, Anastasia! I didn't think Cinderella would ever show herself capable of rebelling"

"Yeah, I wonder why she hasn't tried all these years. Maybe she really liked working for us"

"Well, I hope so" said Lady Tremaine entering the hall "Drizella, take this".

While the daughters began to laugh again, Lady Tremaine sat down at the piano, looking intently at Cinderella's face a short distance from her. The girl was begging her with her eyes to let her go, but she didn't care.

"So, Cinderella..." She began "your behavior was unspeakable, I hope you understand it"

"Yes, of course..."

"Be quiet! This is what I can't stand, this utter disrespect of yours. So, I think it is important for us to re-educate you, so that you never again think of doing something like yesterday. Because I want you to know that only you are responsible for my decision"

Cinderella lowered her head. She didn't want to see her, she hoped to be able to convince her that after all an escapade could not count more than many years of service.

"So, Cinderella, I want you to sing"

The girl thought she heard wrong. "Do what?" She asked in a low voice.

"Sing. That song you like so much, the one of the nightingale. I will accompany you. And you, Anastasia..." She called her back with a nod "You count"

The girl nodded vigorously, ready to obey.

Lady Tremaine placed her hands on the keys and began to play the established song, inviting Cinderella to follow her.

"Sing, sweet nightingale...Sing, sweet nightingale..." The girl began in a low voice, not at all eager to do so.

"Louder, I can't hear you!"

Cinderella obeyed and tried to sing as she usually did. She had always loved that song her father had taught her, but now she couldn't feel the warmth it always gave her.

"One!" She heard Anastasia say, and then she felt a sudden pain in her right buttock. She immediately stopped singing, letting out a scream.

The music stopped. "I didn't tell you you can stop singing, Cinderella. Go on!" Lady Tremaine said loudly, looking at her sternly "Two!"

"Two!" Anastasia repeated, and a second lash hit her on the other side.

Cinderella bit her lip in pain and humiliation. Drizella was hitting her with a flexible wooden cane that they used to punish the dog when it did something wrong. But now she was their pet.

"Please, please, stop!" The girl pleaded.

"We don't have all day, Cinderella, come on!"

"Three!"

Another blow, stronger than the others. This time Cinderella screamed without holding back, realizing that the torture had just begun. She began to tremble as the first tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Sing sw... sweet nightingale..." She resumed singing following the melody on the piano, hoping that this was enough to satisfy the sadism of the three.

But their fun went on for a long time. Arrived at fifteen strikes, Drizella exchanged with her sister, who was tired of counting only and was willing to experience the same cruel pleasure. Cinderella's butt, furrowed with bloody cuts, got a purplish-red color that the two stepsisters really liked. The upper legs were also targeted several times, to the point that Cinderella thought she could only stand up because she was tied to the piano.

Cinderella sang as much as she could, trying to resist the incessant pain. When she interrupted the song to scream for a blow stronger than usual, she was immediately punished again. In the long run, however, she was forced to surrender. Without energy, Cinderella lowered her head to the wood of the piano, unable to sing or scream anymore, abandoning herself to tears as the areas targeted by her sisters slowly became less and less sensitive.

The lack of reaction from Cinderella interrupted the pleasure of Anastasia and Drizella, who stopped hitting her annoyed.

"Well, girls, untie her" Lady Tremaine said with a sigh "I think she's had enough"

The girls did as they were told and Cinderella slid to the ground, breathing softly. She tried to bring a hand to her buttocks, but even just touching the scars caused tremendous pain. She chose to stay where she was, waiting for the three women to leave.

Lady Tremaine stood up and, taking a silk handkerchief, gently wiped her forehead, as if she needed to freshen up after hard work. "I think I'll go to rest" She said to her daughters, "then I'll go find some girl interested in buying the slipper. I don't think it will be difficult"

"And what do we do, mom?" Drizella asked in an indecisive tone.

Lady Tremaine looked at the two girls for a moment, then turned her attention to Cinderella, sweaty and bent to the ground in an unnatural pose. She looked at her ass greedily, satisfied with the excellent work of her daughters.

"You have been really good, my girls," She told them with a tone of praise "You deserve an award. Take some time to play with her. Maybe avoid tormenting her buttocks again, the show is already quite revolting"

Cinderella, who could not see herself, felt even more hurt by these words and tried to curl up even more, bending over herself as if to disappear. Even knowing that she was not guilty, she had never been so ashamed in her life.

Anastasia and Drizella devotedly thanked their mother and watched her leaving the hall and closing the door behind her. Then they turned to their stepsister, who was lying in pain on the ground. Crawling, she had come right under the piano, looking for useless shelter.

"Look at her, Anastasia. She's trying to hide!"

"It would be almost pretty, if it weren't for those awful cuts!"

Drizella bent down and grabbed Cinderella by the hair, forcing her to get on her knees and come out from under her shelter. Pulling hard, she forced her to look up into her eyes.

"Did you really think you were getting away with it? You are truly naive!" She said, charging every word with contempt and cruel sarcasm "Did you think you could run away and rebuild your life, perhaps alongside the prince?"

"If it weren't for you, we would have definitely been noticed. Indeed, he would even have asked one of us to marry him!" Anastasia affirmed. In her words there was a deep hatred.

The redhead sister ran her eyes to Cinderella, circling her. She paused on her beautiful face where she could see the marks of the tears, on the scars she had caused and finally on her pretty feet, so small they could put on that damned shoe.

"I guess you're proud of them, aren't you?" She asked her, touching them with hers, then getting back in front of the girl and starting to take off a shoe "You know what I think? Maybe mine will be too big for that shoe, but they'll be just fine for you. Drizella, do you allow me? "

The sister needed no clarification and pushed Cinderella back to the ground, knocking her over in front of Anastasia's bare foot.

"I want you to lick it, Cinderella. Above, below, between the fingers" The girl said, sitting down and leaning her back on the piano.

Cinderella looked at her in shock as she tried to get up. She started to say something, but Drizella knelt beside her and, grabbing her again by the hair, began to put pressure on the back of her head. "Didn't you hear my sister?" She asked angrily, bringing her face close to Anastasia's foot.

"You...please..." Cinderella stammered, with the only result of being yanked violently once more by Drizella, while Anastasia enjoyed the scene posing as a noble lady.

Not being able to free herself in any way, Cinderella brought her lips to Anastasia's foot and began to kiss it gently, first in silence, then, at the request of her stepsister, making more noise.

"She asked you to use your tongue, I think" Drizella pointed out. Cinderella obeyed and began to lick it under the plant, causing a certain tickle that made Anastasia smile. Disgusted, she moved her tongue between the fingers, moistening them before starting to suck them in an attempt to make the sensation less stinging.

Anastasia soon began to make noises of pleasure. With her eyes closed, she lifted her skirt holding it with one hand, while the other reached her vagina to stimulate it. Cinderella, who would have never believed such a thing to be possible, decided not to look up and to concentrate solely on the foot, sucking it with greater intensity.

"Oh yes, Cinderella, yes!" Anastasia urged her "If I had known you were so good, I would have let you do it a long time ago"

Drizella laughed heartily at the sight of her sister and, letting go of Cinderella's head, bring her hands down the neck and arms, and then slipped them into the dress in search of her breast. Cinderella had decided that resisting would be useless, so she let her do as she liked. Drizella's hands immediately pointed to her nipples and began to pinch them with her long fingernails, while giving her breasts a circular motion.

For a few minutes the situation remained the same, then Anastasia took her foot from Cinderella's mouth and brought it together with the other one behind her head, encircling it on two sides and pushing it forward. When she could reach her with his hands, she forced her even more to sink her face between her spread legs and dropped her skirt on top of her, covering her head entirely, inviting her to lick her already wet cunt.

A sweetish smell had already permeated the covered area and Cinderella had to hold back a sound of disgust because she didn't want to offend her stepsister. She pulled out her tongue and began to lick Anastasia's cunt, moving it quickly and frequently changing the direction.

"Oooh! Oooh! Cinderella, you are phenomenal!" Anastasia moaned, prey to an unstoppable pleasure.

Meanwhile, Drizella had let her go and went away to get the shoe. She carefully looked at Cinderella's wounded buttocks, sadistically aroused in front of the scars and humiliation her stepstister was undergoing. Drizella ran through the cuts with her fingers until she reached Cinderella's anus. She spat on it and began to insert an index finger to widen it.

Taken by surprise, Cinderella stopped licking and, screaming in fear, tried to bring her hands to the affected spot.

"Anastasia, hold your bitch!" Drizella urged, who in the meantime had already inserted a second finger and had began to move them in and out with increasing impetus. Anastasia did as she was told, holding back with all her might Cinderella who looked like a runaway filly. The girl was left with nothing but screaming and begging for mercy one last time before being forced to resume licking and stimulating her stepsister.

When Drizella felt she had done enough, she took the glass slipper she had placed near her and put the heel into Cinderella's anus, sinking slowly, but inexorably.

"Don't get upset, honey. You don't want to break it" She whispered to Cinderella, who was contracting from contact with the cold material. Anastasia merely alternated a hysterical laugh with other sounds of pleasure.

Eventually the heel went completely in and Drizella could get up and look satisfied at her work. "You probably won't wear that shoe again, but I'm sure you will never forget it" she said in an evil tone, licking her lips with pleasure.

With the slipper stuck in her asshole, Cinderella continued for a few more minutes to do what Anastasia had ordered her. She was allowed to come out from under her skirt only after Anastasia had reached orgasm. Her face was filthy, furrowed with tear marks, and her messy hair was stuck to her cheeks by her sweat and the liquids expelled by her sister who was now catching her breath. Leaned on the piano, she had an expression of pure enjoyment printed on her face. Collapsed to the ground, Cinderella tried unsuccessfully to take off her shoe and was forced to wait for Drizella to do so, but not before she had insulted and mocked her further.

"I think I'll have to wash it. We certainly cannot resell it like this" Drizella observed as she was leaving the living room with her sister. Half-naked on the ground, Cinderella tried to clean herself a little with the skirt the two evil stepsisters had returned to her.

"Go wash up, Cinderella!" Anastasia ordered her, seeing her in that shameful state "And don't think you're done: tomorrow we're going to do it again. Did you understand me? "

"Yes...yes..." Cinderella whispered without looking up.

"Yes...what?"

"Yes...mistress" She concluded, feeling one last humiliation as the two girls went away laughing coarsely.

Sitting on the floor, Cinderella had the impression that the torture she had suffered was not over yet. She could still feel the sweet taste of Anastasia's liquids and the shame for what Drizella had done to her. Also, her scars burned, but she was too tired to try to get up. What troubled her most was Anastasia's final threat. The punishment would have continued, who knew for how long.

Slowly she shuffled to the wall and, bending her legs, rested the head on her knees. She fell asleep immediately.

...

8 months later

Among the many villas that could be found crossing the countryside, none was as large and beautiful as Villa Tremaine. The decor was rich and elegant, the building imposing. What made the difference, however, were the gardens, divided into sectors that followed the tradition of distant countries and were full of local and exotic plants.

Lady Dubois put her teacup on the tray placed on the table between her and Lady Tremaine and was fascinated by the grace with which the servant lifted it and carried it away.

"I am always amazed by the professionalism of this servant of yours. I assure you, I have been attending noble families for many years, but never from any of them have I witnessed such impeccable service"

"Very kind of you, I sincerely appreciate it" replied Lady Tremaine, throwing a satisfied look at the girl who was walking away.

"Can you tell me what's her name? I forget it every time"

"Cinderella. She is an orphan. We welcomed her with us and she repays us with her magnificent work"

"Magnificent indeed. She is also a beautiful girl, too bad for that sad air of hers"

"You think? I noticed it from the beginning and I was very impressed. I think it makes iher even more fascinating"

Lady Dubois thought about it for a moment, then she decided that perhaps her friend was right.

Shortly after, the girl returned to the kiosk where the two noblewomen were resting and said: "Lady Tremaine, I have been advised by the butler that Madame Delacour is coming to visit her with her consort"

"Oh, what a great news! Go tell my daughters and help them get ready. Run!" She joyfully ordered Lady Tremaine sending her away, and then explained to Lady Dubois: "That girl is a real treasure, she remembered Anastasia's birthday"

"How I envy you, Lady Tremaine: to be a friend of the prince and his royal consort!" Lady Dubois said, unable to restrain herself.

Lady Tremaine was delighted, but managed not to show it. "I met Madame Delacour in special circumstances, let's say I helped her when she was in trouble" She explained in a vague tone "She has never forgotten that and today she treats me almost like a second mother. If you want to stay, I could introduce them to you"

"Would you really do that?" Lady Dubois asked, completely amazed.

"With great pleasure. Come on, let's go back to the house "

 "This land is lucky to have a woman like you!" Lady Dubois exclaimed, almost jumping from her chair and walking towards the villa.

Lady Tremaine stood behind for a moment, smiling smugly. She looked around, focusing on the cloister and the plants. In the end, she watched the table. She ran a finger over it, then looked at it carefully.

There was not a speck of dust.