Five years passed after Lady Tremaine’s death and Driz and Peter had now assumed the throne. A new mailman was appointed to share the news, and the royal colors had been changed from purple and gold to navy blue and white, same as Driz's dress at the ball.
King Archibald remained on the throne for an extra year to prepare Peter and Driz for their ascension, stepping down when he felt they were ready. He now lived in the West Village with Malcolm and Alma, helping to repair the village after Lucinda's attack there.
Peter had worked things out with his parents and used his new power as King to bring new plants overseas to learn their medicinal properties - the plants were left in his parent's garden to grow and the experiments were handed to Driz to conduct and discover their benefits.
They built a hospital in the center of the kingdom, equal distance from each village, and put former coachman Davis in charge as the
My name is Drizella, but you can call me Driz. A few years ago, my mother re-married for the sake of myself and my sister, Anastasia.Shortly after moving into my new step-fathers' home, he fell ill and we were left living with his daughter, Ella. Mother did not like having a third daughter to raise, so she moved Ella into the shed outside; "out of sight, out of mind," she would say. I pitied Ella, she seemed harmless to me.* * *I dreamt that Anastasia and I were moving things from our old house to the new one. She and I were put in charge of all the heavy lifting, seeing as she and I were of equal size and strength, being only one year apart. Sadly, part of the heavy lifting included the piano. For some reason, Ana told me to push it through the window, which was now suddenly the size of the entire wall. She start
I woke up groggy with crust in the corner of my eyes after a harsh night's sleep, I splashed water from the well on my face and made my way to the henhouse to get eggs for breakfast. Usually, I sleep quite well; I am typically tired after a day's work with my chores, so I fall fast asleep. Ever since getting the invitation to the ball, though, my mind has been elsewhere.What will it be like? What kind of music will be playing? Will I have to dance? I haven't danced in years since my father passed. How many people will be there? The invitation invited everyone, especially the females of the court since the purpose of the ball was to find a wife for the prince. Gosh, what is he like?I tried to put all these questions to the back of my mind while making my way to the main house. 'No, Ella, you still have chores to do before getting ready for
After sitting down on my cot to work on the dress, I looked up to see out of my little window to find both of my step sisters looking my way. Hesitantly, I stood up and started to pace. 'If I go out there and talk to them it could turn out awful and they will give me too many chores to finish before the ball' I worried, but then anxiety kicked in and I thought 'if they saw me glance at them and they think I'm ignoring them, then they will just get madder and I could be making things even worse now.I pressed myself against the dusty wall and peeked back out through the window with one eye in hopes that they were gone and I could avoid any altercation. They were still standing there, still as statues. Their hair flowing in the wind, both brunette, practically identical despite being a year apart. They stood in their cloaks to shield them from the wind. I knew I couldn't avoid them anymore if I wanted to keep t
Anastasia and I finished getting ready for the ball and descended the staircase to the foyer where mother was already waiting.Mother looked beautiful; she was wearing a red mermaid gown, made with silk that hugged her whole body, accentuating her curves. While slimming and gaze drawing, it was modest for a mother presenting her daughters to a prince. Her neckline wasn't too low, her shoulders were covered, and she had a matching hairpiece with a piece of lace covering part of her face.Mother turned on her heel to turn to us and let out a breath of relief as she closed her fan. "My, my daughters. You both look so lovely. I cannot wait for the royal family to see you.""Thank you, Mother," Ana responded. Ana had chosen an off-the-shoulder green gown to bring out her green eyes. It bill
* * *DrizellaThe carriage ride to the castle was a bumpy one, the closer we got the more nervous I became. I tried to recall the sound of my dress before we left home, twirling around with my sister made me giddy and excited.I closed my eyes and tried to bring that giddy feeling back. I kicked my legs a little to hear the rustling of the fabric but the carriage was too small. I put my hand on my stomach and inhaled deeply. It smelled of fresh rain and newly cut grass, we were no doubt nearing the castle.I opened my eyes to see and we were coming just around the corner to the castle. I was right; it had rained and the lawn outside the castle was freshly trimmed and gardened with roses of all colors.I got thinking
"Lady Tremaine and her daughters, a Miss Drizella and a Miss Anastasia"My heart skipped a beat and my whole body went cold when I heard my name. Ana and I looked at each other and I placed my hands together just as she had. We smiled at each other and walked forward into the grand ballroom.If I thought the hallway was mesmerizing leading to the ballroom then the actual ballroom was exquisite.The white marble continued to the dance floor where it finally broke into a pattern of rings, drawing an eye to the center of the dance floor where the prince would dance with his future wife.The ceiling was covered in white Alexander tiles and held up by marble pillars so wide in size that my arms couldn't reach around even half of
I kept a tight hold on the back of the carriage as we made our way to the castle. The roads were bumpy after the rain and my hands were starting to lose their grip, but I waited until I could see the castle to jump off the back of the carriage and walk the rest of the way.My hair was blowing in the wind and my face was losing feeling from the chill. I buried my face down into my chest trying to keep warm when I saw the lights from the castle in the corner of my eye.I looked up and saw a long line of carriages moving slowly in a trail towards the front steps. The air has an amazing feeling after it rains where the air seems fresher, cleaner, and overall I felt healthier inhaling it.Hopping down from the carriage, I took a deep breath and felt all my worries wash away with the fresh a
I continued repeating to myself 'I am brave, I am courageous, I am strong' and as soon as I got to the steps of the castle I looked up, took a big breath, smiled, and said "I am grateful."When I reached the top of the steps, I noticed people stopped outside the entrance to the ballroom as their names were being announced as they walked in. 'Oh no, I can't have my presence announced if I want to stay hidden from my stepmother and stepsisters. I have to find another way in.'I looked around frantically for another entrance to the ballroom and found a staircase that led down. Without hesitation I started down them watching my feet to be sure not to trip, my shoes were still wet from the walk, and I didn't want to fall.I reached the lower level safely and turned a corner that led t