http://splatonthefloor.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] splatonthefloor.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] kh_drabble2007-06-25 12:48 am
Entry tags:

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Title: Unfit
Challenge: 110 Royalty
Word Count: 384
Spoilers: Very minor for KH1 and the Disney Princess movies (BatB, SWatSD, etc.)




The pair sat on the shadowed balcony, legs threaded through the railing and staring into the night sky. It is eerily quiet, and when they speak, it's in hushed whispers and dulcet tones.

“Was it your mother, or your father?”

“Stepmother,” comes the meek reply.

“Mine too.”

A pause. Cinderella slips off a satin glove, displaying her calloused and blistered hands. “It’s so odd, wearing these fine clothes. It was only supposed last until midnight. But they attacked before then, so I suppose…” She doesn’t finish her thoughts.

“I – I feel silly, talking to the others.” Snow White confesses. “Belle seems to go on about adventure and freedom all the time, and when Jasmine talks about how she ran away and fell in love…well…I wonder why I didn’t. They make me feel -” She almost says dopey, and feels all the worse for it. “Stupid.”

Cinderella plays uncomfortably with her skirts. “I know. They’re very sweet. But they’ve never – well, I guess that fighting for your life is easier than fighting for yourself.”

“She used to make me feel that way,” Snow White murmurs. “She’d watch me when I was working. She’d never say anything, but the way she looked at me was so terrifying. I got so frightened. I’d drop things and spill buckets, and she would smile when I tripped.”

Cinderella nods. “When I was young, I used to argue. Stepmother would use words I didn’t understand. My stepsisters would laugh – they knew what she was saying, they were still getting schooling. Eventually, I would end up crying. She’d hit my legs with her cane, telling me I was ungrateful and to get back to work.” She swallows a lump in her throat. “I still don’t know what she said to me.”

Snow White wrings her hands uneasily. “I don’t feel like royalty.”

An arm settles around her shoulders, drawing her close. “You’re one of the nicest, most unselfish people I’ve ever met. I think that’s far more noble than wearing a silly crown.”

It’s the sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to her, but she still bursts out sobbing and clings desperately to the silver dress, weeping like the poor wretch she knows she is. A cheek rests on her head, and she can feel cold tears sinking into her hair.

[identity profile] silvestris.livejournal.com 2007-06-25 12:52 pm (UTC)(link)
Different, and delightfully bittersweet. I like it. :)