Chapter Text
Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there was a tiny kingdom...
Peaceful, prosperous and rich in romance and tradition.
Here, in a stately chateau, there lived a widowed gentleman and his little daughters, Anastasia and Drizella.
Although he was a kind and devoted father, and gives his beloved childs every luxury and comfort, still, he felt she needed a mother's care.
And so he married again, choosing for his second wife a gorgeous woman of good family, with one daughters just Anastasia and Drizella's age:
By name, Ella.
It was upon the untimely death of this good man, however, that the stepmother's true nature was revealed.
Cold, cruel and narcissist, who boasted of the beauty of his only daughter, and made a point of mistreating and belittling Anastasia and Drizella.
Because she considered them inferior to the beauty and grace of his daughter Ella.
She was grimly determined to forward the interests of her own one beloved daughter.
Thus, as time went by, the chateau fell into disrepair.
For the family fortunes were squandered upon the vain and selfish stepsister, while Anastasia and Drizella was abused, humiliated and finally forced to become a servant in them own house.
And yet, thought it all, Anastasia and Drizella held onto the hope of marrying a rich and reputable man who would free them from their life of servitude.
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Anastasia and Drizella woke up to the sound of the great clock striking six in the morning, From the attic in the highest tower of the castle, the clock's ticking sounded almost deafening to the two sisters.
"Hmm! We get it! We get it! It's time to get up," Anastasia said in her nasal, annoyed voice as she covered her ears.
"Time to get up and start working," says Drizella. "Ah! How I wish I could marry a rich man and escape this life," the bitter girl said, getting out of bed and throwing her old pillow back into place.
"Yes." Anastasia agrees. "A prince, a handsome prince who would shower us with beautiful dresses, gold, and jewels."
"And with several servants to serve us and do all the work for us," says Drizella.
"Yes, but until that day comes..." Anastasia says sadly. "We have to work and work..."
"Come on, sister," says Drizella. "Let's get started before stepmother wakes up and punishes us."
The two sisters bathe with cold water and dress in their old maid's dresses. Anastasia and Drizella, despite their limited resources, try to get ready as best they can every morning, If they had more time, they would curl their hair just like their mother used to do when they were little.
But instead, they simply tied their hair back and went down the long staircase that led to the basement. Once down there, they began their arduous work routine, which included feeding the chickens and the horse, and preparing breakfast for their mistresses.
While Anastasia feeds the chickens and the horse, Drizella prepares breakfast for her stepmother and Ella.
"I'm going upstairs to get the flea-ridden thing to eat," Drizella says from the doorway, almost shouting. "You keep an eye on the tea that's heating up."
"That's right," Anastasia replied, having just collected eggs from the henhouse and carrying them in her folded apron. "I don't understand why that dog has to be the first to eat," Anastasia said, entering the house with the eggs while her sister held the small bottom door open for her to pass through.
"Na verdade os primeiros a comer são as galinhas e o cavalo." Diz Drizella.
"That's true," says Anastasia with a light laugh.
"I'll go get the flea-ridden thing," says Drizella.
"Good luck, sis, I'll prepare the eggs." Anastasia said, laughing. It was always a relief for her when it wasn't her turn to wake the dog to eat; she could say the same about her sister.
Drizella goes to the main hall and climbs the imposing staircase that leads to the upper floor where the bedrooms were located. Drizella walked lightly through the dark hallways to avoid making unnecessary noise; her stepmother and Ella hated waking up early.
Drizella opens the large curtains, allowing sunlight to illuminate the hallway, and opens the door to Ella's room. Her sister slept peacefully in her comfortable queen-size bed, wearing her blue silk nightgown and two braids in her honey-blonde hair held together by a pair of satin ribbons at the ends.
And in a small bed next to Ella's, Bruno slept peacefully.
Drizella watches her half-sister from afar through the crack in the door. Both Drizella and her sister hated Ella, and everything she represented in their lives. She was beautiful, graceful, refined, delicate, intelligent; even while sleeping, she looked perfect, like a porcelain doll. While Drizella and her sister always woke up with messy hair and drool running down the corner of their mouths, Ella, even without makeup, looked perfect.
"I wanted to be like her..."
"Bruno." Drizella calls softly so as not to wake Ella. "Bruno, come here!"
The dog grunts lazily, ignoring Drizella's call.
"Same thing every day." Drizella thinks, rolling her eyes. She enters the room and tries to pull Bruno out of bed by his leash, but the dog wakes up and barks angrily at her.
"SHHH! Hurry up, you flea-ridden thing!" Drizella whispers impatiently, praying he doesn't wake Ella. "Go outside, hurry up! Go eat!" Drizella whispers, pointing to the door, doing her best not to lose control of her voice and speak loudly.
The stepmother and Ella insisted that the dog eat first, but just like his owners, Bruno also hated being woken up in the morning, and the dog was just as detestable as Ella and her mother. Because he often deliberately made his sisters lose their patience with him and wake Ella, and he was happy to see Drizella or Anastasia get in trouble for waking the princess of the house before her time.
All this because the two sisters saw no need to maintain their kind and obedient facade with the family dog, and Bruno hated how his two sisters insulted him outside of Ella and his mother's presence while they were bathing or feeding him. That's why he also made a point of cooperating with the madam and her daughter to make life more difficult for the two sisters.
"Hurry up, you creature! I have better things to do!" Drizella says, already impatient, but Bruno just stares at her disdainfully.
"Come on!!" Drizella said impatiently, raising her voice and waking Ella.
"Mmm... What's that noise?!" Ella asks, annoyed. "Drizella!!"
"She and I..."
"I can't believe it!" Ella says angrily. "You and your dumb sister can't do something as simple as taking the dog out to eat without making a huge fuss, huh?!"
"We tried, miss, but..."
"Forget it! I'm already awake!" Ella complains, sitting up in her bed. Happy, Bruno jumps onto his owner's bed and starts licking her face, wagging his tail.
"Ah, good morning to you, my darling. That ugly girl keeps talking loudly to you, doesn't she?" She asks, laughing, while petting Bruno's cheeks as the dog smiles and nods in agreement. "She's a stupid, ugly, and ill-mannered maid, isn't she?"
Bruno seems to be laughing along with Ella.
Drizella lowers her gaze and bites her lip, suppressing her irritation. She and Anastasia hated Ella because, besides representing everything that she and her sister lacked and could never be, her and her mother's favorite pastime was to belittle them.
Ella kisses Bruno on the head. "Come on, sweetheart, go eat!" Ella says, patting the dog on the back as he runs happily towards the door.
"And you," Ella says to her half-sister, her tone changing from affectionate and sweet a second ago to a cold and stern one. "Iron my clothes and tell that other idiot to bring me my breakfast, hurry up, hurry up! Get your insignificant figure out of my sight!" Ella says, making a hand gesture to shoo Drizella away.
"Yes, miss." Drizella replies with sadness and suppressed anger.
Bruno grunts and walks out of the room, Drizella rolls her eyes and sighs in relief.