Cinderella (3)

Once upon a time there was a young girl named Cinderella who lived with her stepmother and stepsisters.
Cinderella’s stepmother and stepsisters were very mean and bad tempered. They treated Cinderella very badly. Her stepmother made Cinderella do the hardest work in the house, such as scrubbing the floor and cleaning the pots and pans. She gave Cinderella an old ragged dress to wear. The two stepsisters, on the other hand, did no work about the house. And their mother gave them many nice dresses to wear.
One day the two stepsisters received an invitation to a ball that the king’s son was going to give at the palace. They were excited about this and spent so much time choosing the dresses they would wear. At the last day of the ball came, and away went the sisters to it. Cinderella could not help crying after they had left.
“Why are you crying, Cinderella? a voice asked. She looked up and saw her fairy godmother standing beside her. “Because I want so much to go to the ball,” said Cinderella. “Well,” said her godmother, “you’ve been such a cheerful, uncomplaining, hardworking girl that I’m going to see that you do go to the ball.”
Magically, the fairy godmother changed a pumpkin into a fine coach and mice into a coachman and two footmen. Her godmother tapped Cinderella’s ragged dress with her wand, and it became a beautiful ball gown. Then she gave her a pair of pretty glass slippers. “Now, Cinderella,” she said, “you must leave before midnight.” Then, away she drove in her beautiful coach.
Cinderella was having a wonderfully good time. She danced again and again with the king’s son. Suddenly, the clock began to strike twelve. She ran towards the door as quickly as she could. In her hurry, one of her glass slippers came off and was left behind.
A few days later the king’s son proclaimed he would marry the girl whose foot fitted the glass slipper. The king’s page came to Cinderella’s house. Her stepsisters tried on the slipper but it was too small for them now matter how hard they squeezed their toes into it. The king’s page let Cinderella try on the slipper. She stuck out her foot, and the page slipped the slipper on. It fitted perfectly.
Finally, she was driven to the palace. The king’s son was overjoyed to see her again. They were married and lived happily ever after.