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audreyhardmeyerbloh · 2 months ago

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BLOG 1: Sexism, Gender Roles, and False Representation of Women in Disney (9/17)

1st, I will discuss the blatant forms of sexism and the perpetuation of gender roles in multiple Disney movies. The Disney corporation is excellent at erroneously representing women in a way that reinforces the male patriarchy. Many of the great classics, such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Cinderella (1950), Sleeping Beauty (1959), The Little Mermaid (1989), and Beauty and The Beast (1991), depict sexist and gendered storylines, that young children consume and normalize wrongfully so. In all of these films, we are given the storyline of young women princesses following their lives. When I was a kid, I idolized many of these very princesses. From the way they dressed, spoke, held themselves, and treated others. But as I grew older and self-reflected, I realized many mental battles I and other women faced have "come" from these princesses. Disney is a colossal company, and they have the power and control to distribute certain gendered narratives that young women internalize. There are many generalizations and biases woven into these fictional characters that unconsciously get woven into real life! I will only be touching on a few points, although there are many other instances of films that depict violence, sexism, and harm towards women and women viewers. In my next posts, I will talk about sexualization, objectification, women needing to be saved narrative, female stereotypes and tropes in movies, and so forth.

For example, sexism is embodied through the showcasing of stereotypical gender roles, nontraditional beauty standards, and false simplifications of women in many films. Gender roles are created to show how women and men should act in certain scenarios, How they should dress, speak, behave, and so forth. One thing that I noticed is that many of the early films, such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty, all depict women as homesteaders who had to clean and take care of the house. On the surface, it may not look like a big issue, but if you dive deep into gender roles and the domestication of women as the sole caretakers, it is very harmful. The gender roles displayed are that women are the ones who must take care of the house and clean it. This is harmful for young children and viewers to internalize because it can teach children that girls are the ones who need to clean, not guys. Or that women in relationships are the ones who are supposed to clean, take care of the house, and do chores, and men should never do that. That is a false representation of women and part of these harmful gender roles that women are placed into.

In Cinderella, she is shown having to stay home and clean up her entire house. While other people can do what they want and go to the ball, Cinderella, as a woman, must stay home and clean as a maid. What I find interesting, though, is how they depict her being happy about cleaning, making breakfast, taking care of the animals, doing laundry, and so forth. They show her singing, humming, and acting so joyful that she has to clean the entire house the moment she wakes up. I think this is intentional in generalizing that women are happy to always clean, fix up the house, or take care of others. They also make hints of women being the sole caretakers of the house and cleaning in 'The Working Song". This song is sung by the little mice who want to make Cinderella's dress, but "they keep her busy." In this short clip (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0vjDjhkHcU&t=35s ), the mice sing "Cinderella Cinderella Cinderella, night and day, Cinderella, make the fire, fix the breakfast, wash the dishes… yeah they keep her busy…work work work she'll never get her dress". This part of the movie reinforces that women are constantly in charge of cleaning and doing housework and cannot do anything else. It's also interesting to note how the little mice men don't know what to do about Cinderella's dress, but the little mice women have the idea to make Cinderella's dress. Not even just human women, but the mice depicted as women, are the ones who have to clean, create, and sew Cinderella dressed together. It's interesting that women are portrayed as cleaners or housemakers in a variety of different scenes throughout the entire film. Women are not chained to the kitchen, cleaning, and house! This type of storyline and stereotyping is sexist and places women at a lower "degree" than men.

Similarly, in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Snow White is shown happily cleaning the cottage after the seven untidy little men. Why can't the men be shown cleaning up after themselves? Disney intentionally decided to create multiple storylines and multiple films where the women, again, have to clean up after everyone and the house. In this short clip (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPJqLKXV7BU&t=97s ), Snow White goes through the dirty house and says, "Why they've never swept this room, you'd think their mother would – maybe they have no mother," insinuating that only if a woman lives in the house, that it would be clean. The house is dirty because there's no mother or woman to clean it, and the men would never do that. Why would the men, the seven dwarves, be shown cleaning the house when that's a "women's role"? Then, she is shown enthusiastically cleaning the house, as if women actually enjoy taking on the stereotypical role of a housewife. She does the laundry, does the dishes, and takes after the house of seven men, who could have done it themselves! Again, this is another example of harmful narratives about women, specifically gender roles, that Disney perpetuates through digital media. These gender roles are still perpetuated in the 21st century. Many people believe that women should be the caretakers, homesteaders, and housewives. It's not helping that these classic Disney movies that are streamed to millions of young children are also perpetuating those false and harmful stereotypes and gender roles.

Snow White and Cinderella inadvertently teach young girls that their role is to clean, cook, and take care of everyone and everything. I don't know if I've seen a movie that didn't place a woman in a caretaking role, consciously or unconsciously. And unfortunately, it's not just in Disney movies, but everyday perceptions of society. When we think of cleaning the house, a woman, girlfriend, wife, or mother is the person that comes to mind. Women are held to the standard that the house be clean, not men. Gender roles are so prominent in Western ideology that "even after accounting for economic resources, time, jobs, and childcare, women report greater housework shares, indicating that gender, in addition to time demands, structures housework" (Thebaud, 2021). Women are judged because society, with the help of digital media, has perpetuated these gender roles, including the Disney corporation. Not only do they perpetuate gender roles and stereotypes that women must take on the role/emotional baggage of housekeeper, but they also have to look physically perfect at the same time.

The Disney corporation is amazing at creating picture-perfect princesses who embody such unrealistic beauty standards! Although the Disney princesses are fictional characters, their body is representative of the unrealistic bodies that are praised today, Which fuels the male patriarchy. According to the male gaze and our society, women should be extremely thin, have perfect skin, teeth, hair, and makeup, and be beautiful according to Western and white ideology. And this is exactly what the Disney princesses embody. In reference to Sherina Cao and Emily Wu's analysis, almost all of the Disney princesses have extremely unbalanced body proportions, huge eyes, small hands and feet, and tiny waists. Aurora from Sleeping Beauty is stunningly perfect, small, and breathtakingly beautiful. Ariel from The Little Mermaid has the tiniest waste known to mankind and the most perfect fluffy hair, even underwater. Jasmine from Aladdin has stunning huge eyes and perfect makeup. Belle from Beauty and The Beast has breathtakingly feminine and small arms and legs. Real women don't look like this!

The Disney princesses are portrayed with cartoonish bodies that are extremely unrealistic, and many young girls idolize them. This creates body image issues since no one's going to look like Aurora, Rapunzel, Ariel, Snow White, etcetera. The way that these princesses are portrayed creates unrealistic beauty expectations set by the male creators of these princesses. It can be extremely harmful to consume media that shows women being extremely physically small, having big eyes, a tiny waist, flat stomach, perfect skin, perfect hair, perfect teeth, and so forth. Because in real life, women are perfect for who they are, not who they look like. There is a specific phenomenon called the eye-to-waist ratio in Disney princesses. Sherina Cao and Emily Wu explain how most of the Disney princesses have waists smaller than the gap connecting their eyes, which is obviously an expectation that no one can healthily live up to!! Disney is pushing the idea that conventionally attractive women are the ones who should be idolized, labeled as princesses, and so forth. They don't make any "ugly" princesses if you can even objectively define what ugly means. Young girls then feel bad if they don't look like the girls represented on screen because they have no one to relate to, which then hurts their body image and boosts their self-esteem.

Overall, Disney is pushing an agenda to tell women that they are only labeled as beautiful if they meet the unrealistic beauty standards set by the Disney princesses. And that if you don't look like these idolized Disney princesses, you don't look "normal" or likable -- REAL women's bodies are not represented in digital media. And because of this, many women develop body image issues, including body dysmorphia – because of media that perpetuates the Western beauty standards, steered by the male gaze and patriarchy. Only being exposed to models like princesses or conventionally attractive people in the media with thin bodies and big eyes can lead young girls to hate their natural beauty. This is a type of harm and violence that is perpetuated by the classic Disney movies. The male creators of these princesses knew exactly what they were doing when they created them. With Western beauty standards in mind and the control of a male in charge, harmful beauty standards were purposefully represented in these films Because they want women to look this way.

I recommend viewing the BuzzFeed article called "We Got Photoshopped To Look Like Disney Princesses, And This Is What Happened" because it depicts these fictional characters in real life. The authors of this article dressed up as Disney princesses and were photoshopped to fit the waste, body, and arm proportions of these fictional princesses. If real women were to actually have the proportions of these fictional princesses, they would look absolutely terrible, abnormal, and unrealistic. One woman, Candice, said, "It's really strange seeing these side by side because the longer I look at them, the fatter and worse the real me looks, and the more normal the one on the right looks (the fictional princess)" (Chirico et al, 2015). Once again, you can see how the classic Disney films create a negative illusion of how women should look, act, behave, and think through these gender roles and sexist adaptations.

Citations:

Wellman, Natalie S. (2020) "Disney's Portrayal of Women: An Analysis of Female Villains and Princesses," Concordia Journal of Communication Research: Vol. 7, Article 4. DOI: https://doi.org/10.54416/SEUY6814 Available at: https://digitalcommons.csp.edu/comjournal/vol7/iss1/4

Thébaud, S., Kornrich, S., & Ruppanner, L. (2021). Good Housekeeping, Great Expectations: Gender and Housework Norms. Sociological Methods & Research, 50(3), 1186-1214. https://doi.org/10.1177/0049124119852395

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0vjDjhkHcU&t=35s (Cinderella Clip)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPJqLKXV7BU&t=97s (Snow White Clip)

https://saratogafalcon.org/19674/features/disney-dysmorphia-how-a-beloved-childhood-franchise-instills-unrealistic-beauty-standards-and-genderbias/#:~:text=For%20many%2C%20not%20only%20do%20Disney%20princesses%20promote,era%20and%20the%20most%20recent%20%E2%80%9Cgirl%20boss%E2%80%9D%20era. (Sherina Cao and Emily Wu Article)

https://www.buzzfeed.com/kristinchirico/this-is-what-real-girls-would-look-like-as-disney-princesses?utm_term=.rdVd49DEN#.ybg7x8baM (Buzz Feed article)

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muses-of-the-memory · 1 year ago

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"Well they could... Some of their actors are still alive, but they sometimes make do when they... pass away. Some of their voices are archived." I said to Lucas as MacBadger, Ratty, and Mole from The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad walk by with Ryder, Honeymaren, Sven, and Kristoff from the Frozen series walk by the 99 Dalmatian puppies who watch Night on Bald Mountain. "C'mon pups. You're gonna have nightmares." Kristoff warned to the puppies as Chernabog pops out of the TV, scaring the puppies.

They run away to the lobby, while running over Scrooge McDuck, who drops his sacks of money, and Robin Hood and Little John grab them. "Oo-De-Lally." Robin Hood and Little John said heading down to the lobby. Meanwhile, Flash makes it to the elevator. "Thank you... for holding... the elevator." He said to Donald who groans. "I am also going to the lobby." Baymax from Big Hero 6 said as he squeezes into the elevator.

Ursula the sea witch also goes to the lobby, but a lovestruck Splat from Strange World follows her. "Oh, no no no no no..." She said towards the creature as Prince Charming and Cinderella walk downstairs, but the prince dropped his shoe, making a reverse of Cinderella losing her glass slipper. Before he could get it, Max, Eric's dog grabs it. "Hey, Max! Eric, get your dog!" Prince Charming shouted going after Max. "Go, Max, go!" Cinderella said rooting for the dog.

Mickey makes it to the floor where they are, and sees Kaa the Snake hypnotizing Clarabelle Cow singing "Trust in Me". "Kaa... Kaa! You stop that now, Kaa!" Mickey warned. "Don't worry, Mickey. I got this." Rapunzel said to Mickey as she knocks out Kaa with her frying pan. Mickey then approaches the photograph of studio co-founder Walt Disney and takes his hat off to fondly remember his legacy. "Hey Mick. We're all going to miss Walt. We must thank him for all this." I said sympathizing with Mickey. "Did you know that Yen Sid, Mickey's magic teacher from The Sorceror's Apprentice is Disney spelled backwards?" I spoke to Lucas about Disney trivia.

@the-world-hopper

Celebrating 100 Years of Disney

@the-world-hopper

PJ Mills was taking Lucas with him to see the Walt Disney Studios to celebrate 100 years of Walt Disney magic that his films have given. He lands the Sky Bison outside as he lands on the ground.

"Here we are, Lucas... The Walt Disney Studios." I said to Lucas showing him the Walt Disney Studios.

"Can you believe it's been 100 years that Walt Disney had made his dream here?"

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andypantsx3 · 4 years ago

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in cinders | 2 | preparations

pairing: Todoroki Shouto / Reader

length: 24,362 words / 9 chapters

summary: You’re just trying to fairy godmother your best friend into a happily ever after. If only the prince would stop hanging around and cooperate.

tags: cinderella AU, prince!Shouto, romance, misunderstandings, reader-insert

warnings: aged up characters, eventual smut

In the weeks that led up to the ball, you had your hands full.

Literally, some days, since your plans relied heavily on your long history of bribery via pastry.

Hagakure, Ashido, and Kaminari had not been easy to convince. You’d had to beg and plead and pilfer any sweet cake you could get your hands on, cashing in every favor and ounce of goodwill you’d stored up over the long years. Between your shifts, you’d spent almost every hour of the last weeks in their respective quarters, pleading with them sometimes into the wee hours of the morning. Kaminari had required the firmest touch, scared out of his mind at the thought of retribution from the notoriously foul-tempered Captain Bakugou for leaving his post.

But one week out from the ball, you had the makings of a plan and the raw materials needed for its implementation.

The one unexpected hurdle was Ochako herself.

“Go to the ball?” she gasped the evening when you revealed your plan. “Me?”

The two of you had been readying for bed in the small storage room that doubled as your shared sleeping quarters. She stood frozen over her bed where she’d been about to climb in.

You smiled coaxingly. “Just picture it, Ochako! The pink fluffy dress! Dancing with a handsome noble! I have it all arranged.”

She looked doubtful. “I don’t know about all this.”

You fixed her with a dead-eyed look. “Have I ever led you astray?”

She stared back. “Well, no, but--”

You waved her off. “Then just trust me.”

She stayed standing as you flopped onto your straw pallet. A stalk had escaped from its covering and poked you insistently in the back.

“Ochako, I want you to be happy,” you said, sighing.

She blinked. “Are you sure this has nothing to do with getting back at Kamiko for what she said the other week?”

You couldn’t help the guilty look that flashed across your face. “Only a little.”

Ochako huffed a small laugh, but quickly sobered. “Y/N, you’ll be whipped if they find you out. And me!”

You shot up in bed. “They won’t! And I wouldn’t let anything happen to you. I have a plan.”

Ochako finally sank into the straw of her own mattress. “I don’t even know how to dance.”

You grinned. “You will tomorrow morning. I roped the palace dance instructor into teaching you a few basic steps. Did you know honey cakes are her husband’s secret weakness?”

Ochako fidgeted. “Y/N, I have work tomorrow morning.”

You stretched. “No, I have work tomorrow morning. Your half day of rest has mysteriously been extended.”

You heard the straw of her mattress rustle. “You...you shouldn’t have done this for me.”

You smiled to yourself. “Maybe not, but at this point I’ve filched so many pastries that we might as well see it through.”

A soft chuckle issued from her side of the room. “You must really love cleaning those fireplaces. The housekeeper will be so furious if she finds out - she’ll have you up to your eyeballs in the kitchen hearths for the rest of your days.”

You laughed. “Lucky for me I look rather fetching in black.”

She laughed again before a friendly silence descended on the room, and you heard no more argument from her. You dropped off to sleep, satisfied.

In the morning, you were less satisfied having to be out of bed in the cold, pre-dawn hours on what was usually your one morning off. But it was worth it for Ochako. Almost more than that, it was worth it entirely for the purpose of wiping the smug smile off Kamiko’s infuriatingly cherubic face. Ochako was going to become a fucking princess, as far as you were concerned, and if all went well, she could have you trained to be her ladies’ maid.

As you let yourself into the kitchens to light the fires and put on water for the morning's tea, you let yourself imagine it, smugly watching Kamiko clean the chambers of the girl she had once made fun of. If you planned on calling for Ochako’s linens to be changed way more often than was necessary, well, that was nobody’s business but your own.

The chambermaid in question eyed you suspiciously when she came into the kitchens hours later for her breakfast. “Isn’t it Ochako’s morning to be on shift? Where is the little wench?”

You shrugged, stoking the fire with more interest than usual. “She’s not feeling well. I’m to cover her morning off. Got her schedule memorized, do you?”

Kamiko wore an expression like she’d bit into a tart to find it full of ants. “Don’t test me, cinders. I’d hate for Rikido to have to look into where all his missing sweets have gone.”

You froze, then forced yourself to relax. There was no way for her to know you’d been running a small but successful pastry ring out of the kitchen for years. If she had, you’d have already been reported into your next lifetime.

“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” You fixed her with your most innocent look.

She sneered, “I’m sure you don’t.”

You rolled your eyes but ignored her and set about the rest of your work with enthusiasm. Right at this very minute Ochako was learning the steps that would waltz her straight onto the throne. Petty revenge could come later.

The rest of the day dragged, but you attacked your chores with unusual vigor. At night, you returned to your room to find Ochako bouncing excitedly around the room, sweeping into elegant curtsies.

“Y/N!” she exclaimed as you entered, looking tired but pleased. “You’re back!”

You sank thankfully onto your pallet, glad to be off your feet. “How’d it go?”

“Wonderful!” she smiled. “Dance mistress says my steps are rather basic at this point, but they would go a long way in getting me through any fete.”

You chuckled. “Little does she know which fete.”

Ochako smiled. “Do you really think I’ll look like I belong?”

You sat up and rustled around underneath your pallet, digging out something blindly pink and thrusting it in front of her.

“With this, you will,” you gestured with it meaningfully. Ochako took in the sight of the dress, eyes widening.

Though unfinished, you thought you’d done a rather good job. With Mina’s help, you’d been able to procure enough of the bright fabric and tailor it to current trends. The bodice was close-fit to the torso, but swept out in a dramatic waterfall of fabric at the hips, meant to emphasize the wearer’s hourglass shape. Mina’s tiny, perfect stitches decorated the collar and sleeves, while your own fumbling attempts had been hidden closer to the waist and skirt hem, further from the eye. Once the dress was set with the lace Hagakure had ferreted out of the laundry rooms, Ochako would be indistinguishable from any noblewoman in that room.

Ochako gasped. “It’s perfect!”

You smirked, then turned to your mattress, pulling out a matching mask, embroidered with small roses done in a light pink thread. It was much better than your stitching on her dress. This, you thought, was your masterwork. A perfect example that you would be well-suited to being Ochako’s ladies’ maid, once given the proper training.

“Y/N, I can’t believe this!” she said, taking the mask and dress in hand. She ran her fingers over it lovingly, the way you’d been setting a proprietary hand to the prince’s birthday books. You could tell she liked it.

“You may repay me in a tidal wave of fine foods once you’re a noblewoman,” you laughed. "You can teach me how to read and let me spend Sundays lounging."

She blushed. “You don’t actually think I’d catch anyone’s eye.”

You certainly did. Ochako was shy, but there was no arguing her good looks. Even without her sweet-tempered charm, she could have reeled Prince Shouto in by her cute face and ample bosom alone.

“Of course you will,” you said. “If you don’t have at least three proposals by the end of the night, I will eat Kamiko’s apron.”

She chuckled. “Why Kamiko’s?”

“Well if you don't, I'll still need mine, won’t I?”

She laughed again, and you took the garments from her, stowing them safely away under your mattress again.

The two of you settled down to bed, feeling giddy. Only three more days, you thought, until your weeks of work paid off.

The three days passed quickly in a flurry of chores and midnight sewing. Your fingers were raw from the stitching and you spent every shift bleary-eyed from the nights spent hunched over Ochako’s dress, but this was the evening it would all become worth it.

Or it would be, if Ochako hadn’t suddenly come down with a case of cold feet.

“I don’t think I can do it,” she fretted that morning, spooning over her thick porridge. “I feel sick.”

You gaped at her. “Ochako, you will climb into that fluffy monstrosity or so help me I will feed you to Captain Bakugou.”

This didn’t even make her laugh and your heart thumped in your chest. Was she really going to back out? Did she really feel so self-consciously? You hadn’t accounted for this in your plan.

“You have to go,” you said, feeling a little brittle yourself. “Ochako, you’ve wanted to so badly.”

She scratched a pale fingertip against the rough wood of the servant’s dining table. “I don’t know if I can. I’m so nervous.”

You ducked down to look into her face. “You’re going to look so beautiful and you know the dances,” you said. “You’re going to be incredible. What more would make you less nervous?”

She was silent a moment, the scritch of her nail the only sound in the drafty dark of the pre-dawn kitchens.

“Would you go with me?”

You raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“To the ball!” she said, turning to you. “You could come with me!”

You scowled. You had in no way intended to go to the ball yourself, looking forward to spending the evening most servants had off tucked up in your bed with the scraps from the dinner preparations. You’d been eyeing the buckwheat noodles the prince so loved and had fully intended to see what all the fuss had been about.

Besides that, you’d only accounted for Ochako going. You’d produced one dress and one mask, and even those had taken weeks of multiple people pinching fabrics and sewing late into the night. It wasn't like you could magic more garments out of the air.

“Ochako, I don’t have any clothes,” you said. “I can’t go.”

“Please!” she cried, latching on to one of your threadbare sleeves. “I don’t think I can do it without you.”

You were saved from responding by the first trickle of servants pouring into the kitchens for breakfast. You closed your mouth, thinking hard as you got up to fetch hot water for those stations above you, serving them tea and fetching them plates.

An idea had dawned on you by the time the crush of servants cleared out after their hasty breakfasts. The thought of pulling it off made you stiff with fear - as there were so many factors that could go wrong -- but it was worth the risk.

You thought about it long into the day, Ochako shooting you nervous looks. You would have to be careful, but you thought you could make it work.

As the day faded, the lanterns were lit. The ball would begin soon, and servants made their way to an early bed. You left Ochako to prepare in your bedroom, stealing into the dark and empty laundry rooms.

If Ochako wanted you to be there, then you would make it happen. You were going to fairy godmother this self-conscious girl into a happily ever after.

#bnha x reader #bnha #todoroki shouto #todoroki x reader #fanfic #todoroki shouto x reader #boku no hero academia

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aliteraryprincess · 4 years ago

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All the Ever Afters by Danielle Teller

Warning: Contains spoilers

Welcome back to Fairy Tale Friday! It’s been a very long time. My semester is over, so I’m hoping to post a few of these during my summer break. But considering I’ve been trying to get this finished for a month and a half, I’m not sure how that will go. I’ve also decided to continue using the special banner I made for Fairy Tale February because it’s prettier than the original one.

Today we’re taking a look at the fourth “Cinderella” retelling of this feature. You can read the previous ones here, here, and here. Let’s jump into All the Ever Afters!

As a Retelling:

Teller mainly draws from the well-known Perrault version of the story. There are glass slippers and a godmother (though not a fairy godmother, as we will discuss later). However, there are a few things taken from other versions. In reference to the Grimm tale, there is a rumor going around the royal court that Ella’s stepsisters cut off parts of feet in order for the slipper to fit. It also draws from the Italian “Cat Cinderella” for the stepmother’s backstory. In this version, the stepmother starts out as a governess to Zezolla, the Cinderella character. It’s the only variation I’ve read so far that gives any detail on the stepmother prior to her marrying Cinderella’s father. Agnes, the main character in All the Ever Afters, is Cinderella’s stepmother and we follow her story from childhood until after Ella’s marriage to Prince Henry. It is not a particularly happy life story. She is born into serfdom and goes to work as a laundry girl at Aviceford Manor. She slowly works her way up in the world, moving through roles of maid at Ellis Abbey, owner of an alehouse, nursemaid to Ella (which is where we see the influence of “Cat Cinderella”), and finally lady of Aviceford Manor and wife of Lord Emont. In the end it is her rather than Ella who has the more traditional Cinderella arch. We even see her covered in ashes when she is working in the laundry and Fernan, who becomes her first husband, teasingly calls her “Cinder Girl” several times.

Elfilda, called Ella, is our Cinderella character. I really enjoyed Teller’s take on her. Ella is coded as on the autism spectrum. Since the book takes place in medieval England, the word is never actually used, but it becomes quite clear as we get to know Ella. An early hint is when her stepsisters describe her as quick with lessons and music but oblivious to social cues. It is confirmed as we watch her grow up; she doesn’t start speaking until she’s four, she has meltdowns, she doesn’t have a filter when talking to people, and she takes an extreme special interest in clothing and fashion. She is extraordinarily beautiful and from a wealthy family, which causes most everyone to dote on her. Her father in particular gives her everything she wants. Agnes is the only one to treat her the way she would any other child and try to discipline her. Though she once declares that Agnes treats her as a servant and dresses her in rags and apparently tells similar things to people at court, Ella is never truly mistreated by her stepfamily. These statements are the result of her misunderstanding situations in which she doesn’t get her way or is punished for her bad behavior. The misunderstandings seem to be partly because she is so spoiled and partly because she is on the spectrum. The rags she refers to are the mourning clothes she has to wear after the death of her father. Her stepsisters are able to get new gowns but she is not until she is out of mourning, which causes her to throw a tantrum. She is forced to do the work of a servant once in her life as a punishment. She leaves an unused dress in a heap on the floor, making more work for the laundress. Agnes, infuriated since that was once her job, sends her to work in the laundry for the day. Ella returns crying and covered in ashes, resulting in the nickname Cinderella.

Agnes’s daughters from her first marriage to Fernan are Charlotte and Matilda. Most people consider them ugly, as are the stepsisters in most modern interpretations of the fairy tale. I’ve yet to find an actual variation of the tale that includes this. Either their physical appearances aren’t mentioned at all or they are simply described as less beautiful than the Cinderella character. I’ve wondered if perhaps the Disney movie originated the idea of the ugly stepsisters, but I haven’t been able to find anything about it. Charlotte and Matilda’s situation is far more complex than simply being unattractive. Fernan is black, so the girls are mixed race. Charlotte has dark skin like her father’s, which causes people to consider her ‘ugly’. Agnes remarks that she is actually pretty despite society’s views. Matilda is lighter skinned and considered beautiful as a child. Unfortunately, she catches smallpox, which results in extreme scarring that renders her ‘ugly’. Their relationship with Ella is also much more complicated than in the fairy tale. They mostly get on well. She wants them with her once she becomes a princess and moves to court, and they often play together as children. However, they fight as well, often because Ella calls them ugly. It seems to be more due to her lack of filter than actual maliciousness, but Charlotte and Matilda are understandably hurt. It results in them fighting and Ella claiming that they are being mean to her. They do hold a bit of resentment about her behavior and how much she is doted on, and they do sometimes make fun of her, such as nicknaming her Cinderella after the laundry incident.

As mentioned earlier, Teller uses the godmother from Perrault’s tale. This version is the only one to feature a fairy godmother, though all variations have some kind of magical helper. It is more often an animal, such as the fish in “Yeh-hsien,” or a plant, such as the tree planted at the mother’s grave in the Grimm tale. Teller’s godmother is Mother Elfilda, the abbess of Ellis Abbey. She is both Ella’s godmother and maternal aunt. This book is historical fiction, so she does not use magic, though there are rumors among the court servants that she is a fairy who conjured Ella’s finery for the ball. It is understandable why a rumor like this starts; Agnes describes Mother Elfilda having a very powerful charisma when speaking that could easily be taken for supernatural power. And she does grant Ella permission to attend the ball and provide her with the dress, shoes, and carriage. She does this with the authority and wealth she has a the abbess. Aviceford Manor is one of the abbey’s several holdings, so Mother Elfilda has a large amount of power over it. She is able to afford all these luxuries for Ella and give her permission to come out of mourning early for the ball. After Emont’s death, Agnes and her daughters could be turned out of the manor at any time, so she must comply with what the abbess wants.

Agnes does not deny Ella’s request to attend the ball out of spite as the stepmother does in the original fairy tale. Rather it is because she and Ella are still in mourning for Emont. Charlotte and Matilda can attend because as stepdaughters their mourning period is shorter. Agnes believes it will also be good for Ella to not get something she wants and that it might help her learn patience. Most European variations of the tale feature three major events, whether they are balls, festivals, or church services, but Teller only uses one. This isn’t unprecedented in folklore; “Yeh-hsien” features only one festival. It has become common in modern interpretations such as the Disney film. As previously mentioned, Teller includes the famous glass slippers. The extravagantly beaded gown Mother Elfilda sends comes with a pair of equally extravagant shoes with so much beading that they look like they are made of glass. The shoes are left behind at the ball not because Ella is fleeing to meet her midnight deadline but because she throws a tantrum when she doesn’t want to leave. Agnes sets the midnight deadline because young ladies staying later would be improper, but when the time comes, Ella wants to stay to continue dancing with Prince Henry, who she has been with all night. Agnes accidentally tears Ella’s gown while forcing her out to the carriage, and Ella throws one of the shoes at her in a fit of rage. The shoe misses Agnes and breaks a window, after which Ella runs to the carriage, leaving the other shoe behind on the stairs. There is no shoe fitting, though rumors of it do go through the royal court. Prince Henry is able to find out who she is by asking the hosts of the ball, which is far more realistic than the prince simply finding Cinderella through her lost slipper. Agnes, Charlotte, and Matilda are eventually invited to live with them at court for a dual purpose: to give them a place to live since they must leave Aviceford Manor and for Ella to be more comfortable at court by having people she knows and cares for around. This seems to be a slight twist on Perrault’s ending in which Cinderella forgives her stepsisters and sets them up with marriages to noblemen.

My Thoughts:

I adored this book, and the characters are one of it’s best features. Agnes and Ella are the two that particularly standout, but all of them are well-developed and feel real. I loved Agnes’s voice and following her life story. I saw another reviewer compare the book to Jane Eyre, and I agree with that wholeheartedly. Both are stories of women growing up in a society that oppresses women and the lower classes. Agnes is similar to Jane in her resourcefulness and practical life outlook. I also liked that Teller develops her as morally grey. While she certainly isn’t a bad person, she’s not quite a good one either. She loves her daughters and will do anything for them, but she also has a slight conniving side and admits that she has a hard time loving Ella.

I’ve mentioned time and time again that fairy tale retellings are not a particularly diverse genre, so I was delighted by the representation in this book. There are black and mixed race major characters and an interracial relationship, which I feel I see very rarely in literature, much less fairy tale retellings. This is also one of the very few books I’ve read featuring a major character on the autism spectrum. It’s certainly the first I’ve seen in this genre. It also felt well-handled, though I can’t say for sure since I’m not on the spectrum nor do I have any significant experience with it. Interestingly, I haven’t seen any reviewers really talking about this aspect. I mostly just see people calling Ella spoiled and bratty, which I think does a major disservice to the character, the book, and the author. The situation is far more complex than that, and it seemed to me that Teller does not intend for Ella to be read as simply bratty.

Though this is a fairy tale retelling, it is not fantasy. It is straight historical fiction. At first I did have a bit of a hard time identifying the place and time period. It’s clearly a medieval setting, but I didn’t know it’s England until Teller clearly states it. A more knowledgeable reviewer placed it in the 14th century. I love seeing how authors translate the magical aspects of fairy tales into a non-magical setting, so that was a lot of fun. There are a few aspects that reminded me of Gregory Maguire’s Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, but really only because it is also a historical fiction retelling of “Cinderella.” All the Ever Afters is quite original in it’s take on the fairy tale and a truly beautiful story.

My Rating: 5 stars

Other Reading Recommendations:

The starred titles are ones I have read myself. The others are ones I want to read and may end up being future Fairy Tale Friday books. To keep the list from getting too long, I’m limiting it to four that I’ve read and four that I haven’t. This was Teller’s first novel, so she doesn’t have more to recommend. Hopefully she will soon! I’d especially love to see what she does with another fairy tale.

Other Retellings of “Cinderella”:

Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire*

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine*

Ash by Malinda Lo*

Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly*

A Dream Not Imagined by Shantelle Mary Hannu

The Stepsister’s Tale by Tracy Barrett

Bella at Midnight by Diane Stanley

Five Glass Slippers edited by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

About the Fairy Tale:

Cinderella: A Casebook by Alan Dundes

Cinderella Tales from Around the World by Heidi Ann Heiner

#aliteraryprincess fairy tale friday #all the ever afters #danielle teller #booklr #book photography #fairy tale retellings #cinderella #books

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hollandroos · 7 years ago

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Rags And Royals | Tom Holland Royalty AU

I’ve had the worst writers block for the last week and I really feel like this could be better but for now, it’s the best I can whip up so enjoy and stick around for the next part :)

Summary:

As a Prince and soon to be King, Tom had his whole life set out for him when he was merely an infant. No where on his parents plan did it state for him to fall head over heels for a castle maid, but somehow he found himself wanting you, a girl who was in his parents books, not fit for the throne.

Keeping his affections secret is easier said than done though and with large consequences if anyone were to find out, is it really worth the risks?

Words: 1060

Ever since Tom was an infant he’d had his life planned out bit by bit, seeing as he was the first born and future heir to the throne.

Tom didn’t go to school with the other kids, no he was home schooled. Instead of leaning poetry, he learnt the ins and outs of respect and responsibility and instead of memorising his times tables, he memorised every one of the castle rules.

But you- oh god you turned Toms world upside down and inside out. No where on his parents plan did it state for Tom to fall head over heels for one of the maids, in fact that was against the rules and if his parents found out he’d be largely frowned upon.

He’d treasured you, even if he couldn’t show you off just yet. In fact, though the castle was beautiful, it held all different types of aniquets, sculptures, art and family photos but ask Tom what his most favoured treasure was in the Holland Castle and he’d say you.

All Tom had ever worried about was becoming the king his parents wanted him to be, a figure that his people could look up to but now he worried about whether or not you were having a good day or if you were being treated right by other staff.

He adored the way you looked absolutely breathtaking even in the worn rags you wore daily and the messy ponytail you threw your hair in. Every so often a strand of hair would escape and Tom would wait for the right moment, when no one else was around to brush it behind your ear gracefully.

It was a real life Romeo and Juliet story if you were being honest, but who was to say weather or not this one would end up the same, bitter way.

“Sleeping with me and visiting on the same day? To what do I owe this pleasant surprise?” You smile, finishing folding a set of sheets and setting it in the laundry basket besides you.

Tom only slept besides you once a week, twice if he was feeling risky. He’d sneak into your room after dark, easily sliding under the covers and pulling you into his arms before pressing a kiss to your forehead. The prince would be gone by the time you woke up, though the scent of his cologne would remain in your sheets making it that little bit harder for you to get ready.

You’d never seen his room but you could only imagine the priceless furniture, exquisite wall designs and possibly the fluffiest rug adorning the wooden floors. Much unlike yours that only consisted of a creaky, single bed and a single set of draws. Tom had not once complained about the poor design.

“A prince can’t resist his princess, my love” Tom speaks. He places a gentle hand on your check using his thumb to caress your cheek, drawing your attention away from the clean sheets and to him instead.

“When i’m crowned king, you will stand by my side. A beautiful tiara will sit upon your head with as many jewels and as much gold as you request.”

The scene was one that seemed almost right out of one of the old fairy tales that your mother use to read you, like Cinderella or Rapunzel.

Two secret lovers, hidden behind the walls of a washing room that smelt overwhelmingly like the lemon and honey detergent you used daily. Outside was a whole array of people that had no idea and if they did- who knows what could happen to you. Tom would be fine, you on the other hand could lose your life for such a crime. How romantic.

“You could be the poorest man in the kingdom and I would still love you Tom, for I love not your title as a prince but your heart”

The room wasn’t the brightest, only being lit up by a single hanging light but Tom could still make out all of his favourite features. Your eyes, he loved your eyes and the way that they always shone, even in such troubled times. And your hair, god he loved your hair and the way that he could so easily run his fingers through it. In Tom's eyes you were a gem.

Tom gives you a small smile, the hand that was on your cheek now made its way up and down your arm. “Sam’s starting to catch onto something, I mean he wouldn’t tell anyone if he found out but I’m going to have to keep my distance for a couple days”

You look down, your eyes meeting the multiple stains and crumbs that had made their way onto your uniform over the day. “What? How’d he catch on? We’re so careful. What if your parents know?”

“They don’t know and they won’t find out Y/N” Tom grabs your hand, lacing his fingers with yours and pressing a kiss to your knuckles. “He’s observant, probably just noticed a couple things and put them together. Like I said, don’t worry”

Tom places his lips on yours in a gentle, but desperate kiss. You feel his hand go around your waist, pulling your body closer to his closing the gap between you two but still it doesn’t feel like enough.

You place one hand on his chest, gently grasping the coat. The material bunches up under your fingertips allowing you to pull his chest closer. There's no dominance or superiority, despite the obvious difference in your ranks. You feel equal.

The door suddenly opens and Toms away from you before you can even say ‘Spider’ (not before letting out a groan of frustration first). He straightens his coat and you pick up the washing basket which seemed heavier than you remember, just in time for one of the other maids to come into view. To a blind eye It would look like nothing was happening.

Tom flicks you a look and you nod.

“Thank you once again, your highness, I’ll get that done straight away” You smile warmly, trying to ignore the fact that your arms were seconds away from giving out. Tom gives you a smile and mouths an ‘I’m sorry’ before heading away.

The two of you were partner in crime, unbeknown to everyone else.

Part two?

Tags: @casualprincess77 @draqcnheartstrinq @cerealwaterandfishsticks @ravismorgue @caitlyn-blackwell @ajestic @katie-eaton @jewel-tone-lamp @blewfirecracker @imfbomendes @midnightrose44 @hazeofeleven Line through means I couldn't tag you

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crisischild92 · 7 years ago

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Exo Cinderella (Chapter 1)

MATURE CONTENT 18+ ONLY

Genre: romance, smut, humour

Characters: OC and Exo (pairings to be developed in later chapters)

Description: Lee SooYoung is the spoiled only daughter of SM Entertainment boss Lee SooMan. Determined to teach his daughter the value of hard work and money he gives her a job as Exo’.s house mother. She’s never cleaned, cooked or done laundry in her life but after some disasters SooYoung realises that her new life has some unexpected plus points. Ten of them, in fact.

A/N This is the first Exo fic I’.m written in my life and I really REALLY hope that people like it!

Lee SooYoung found herself under the stern regard of her father and squirmed.

”But Father...”

She was fully aware that her voice was unpleasantly whiny but together with the pronounced pout and dewy basset hound eyes of unspeakable suffering it was a demeanour that made her seem many years younger than her actual twenty and was usually a potent weapon against her beleaguered parent. And she needed that weapon right now. Lee SooMan held up his hand and she stopped, taken aback by the authoritative gesture.

“No, SooYoung-ah. Have I not been indulgent to my only daughter? Have you not always had the best education, the best clothes, the best of everything that my business could provide for you?”

Oh shit, he really was pissed off this time, wasn’t he? SooYoung snuck a glance towards her older brother but SooHyun could only grimace at her sympathetically. He was dressed up in his bespoke suit, utterly immaculate just as their father was and every inch the young heir to SM Entertainment. Although he was only twenty five he had the composure of someone twice his age. Lee SooMan had lucked out with his son. SooHyun was perfect and there had never been a seconds doubt that he would follow his father into the business and eventually take over the board of directors. Their father’s favourite photograph of him was when he was about six years old, sitting behind his father’s monstrous desk with a tie that came down practically to his bony knees, holding a telephone like he was already terribly busy and important. SooYoung had never had that direction. The only real interest she had in her father’s mega company was that it generated billions of won to buy all the things she needed and she got concert tickets, CDs, merchandise and DVDs to whichever SM Entertainment groups whenever she wanted. Not to mention instantaneous access to said groups, of course. Her face brightened with a reminiscent smirk about her access to one particular member of Super Junior when she was just seventeen before falling again as she remember how that fiasco had played out. Lee SooMan did not want the talent putting hands on his precious princess. Who knew?!

“You have, Father.” She agreed. “But...!”

“And was I not more than reasonable about this trip to Switzerland?”

“Of course you were, Father. But...!”

Lee SooMan suddenly fixed her with the bespectacled Look of Death. It was a look that his employees were familiar with. His precious baby girl, not quite so much. She wilted.

“45,326,514 won!” He suddenly roared. “That is the credit card bill that landed on my desk this morning! For less than a month in Switzerland!”

Ahhhhhh, shit. SooYoung had known the amount would be extravagant but this... She had outdone herself, this time. SooHyun had turned rather pale.

“SooYoung-ah!” He whispered, clearly appalled.

She winced. OK, the excuses were not going to play this time. Short of paying her own ransom if she’d been held hostage by kidnappers the sheer amount of money was inexcusable. Plan B. Grovel. Abjectly.

”Appa, I’m sorry!” She whimpered, tears oozing from her big, brown eyes. “It won’t happen again. I’ll pay you back.”

“From the allowance that I give you?” SooMan replied icily. “You’ll generously pay me back with more of my own hard-earned money?”

SooYoung’s shoulders hunched defensively. SooHyun had been working in the company since he was sixteen; just casual work because he had to focus on his studies. But once he’d earned his MBA from Harvard he’d started work full time. SooYoung had never felt the need to work in the company during her holidays. She had stuff to do! And other than moments of regretful disappointment her father had never really given her grief about it.

“Well I’m still studying, appa.” She replied somewhat resentfully. “Even SooHyun didn’t work when he was studying!”

“But you’re not, are you?”

Her father growled, beginning to turn rather red in the face. “Because you dropped out for a gap year to “find yourself”!”

”Appa!” She wailed. “I don’t know what I want to do yet and I thought I was being a good daughter, not wasting any more of your money while I figure it out!”

“You spend my money!” SooMan exploded, almost yanking out his hair. “You are frivolous and entitled and act like you have no idea at all about the value of money! You think my background; how I started this company from nothing and built it up to the biggest music company in Asia is just a charming little fairy tale!”

“Father.” SooHyun said very gently. It was enough to make his father take a breath; his colouring easing from an unhealthy purple to a rather more heart-friendly pink.

“And can I truly blame you?” Sooan asked heavily. “When I have indulged you so? When I have never placed any expectations or obligations on your shoulders? From this, how can you be expected to truly understand the value of money unless I teach you, just as I did your brother?”

Uh, what? SooYoung was not liking the sound of this. Pale and clammy for her father’s utterly unprecedented eruption she chewed worriedly on her lower lip.

“T...teach?” She asked hesitantly. SooMan’s eyes narrowed and she could see that brilliant, analytical brain begin to whirr.

“Teach you.” He agreed slowly. “My daughter, as you have taken a year away from your studies to figure out what you want to do, your father will help you. For this year you will come to work for SM Entertainment. I will give you the standard wage for the job you do and you can pay me back, as you so generously offered. By the time the year ends I believe you will be truly grateful for the good education I pay for and a little more appreciative of the life of privilege that was given to you by God.”

“But I don’t want...!” SooYoung may be foolish but she was not a fool. And the look she saw on her father’s face had her firmly snapping her jaw closed on that particular sentence. Feeling like she was swallowing a golf ball and beginning to sweat a little she bowed low and respectfully to her father. “Whatever you say, Father.” She croaked.

“No!” SooYoung wailed. “It’s a cruel and unusual punishment, slave labour and I won’t do it!”

“SooYoung-ah.” Her mother EunJin was lovely. She was a graceful, refined and elegant lady and an absolute asset to her business mogul husband. Sitting beside her only daughter as she sprawled across her bed and howled like a tortured soul, one would be forgiven not to see the family resemblance. Stroking her daughter’s hair gently she smoothed it back from her face. “Your father will pay you the same wage to do the job as any other employee.”

“All my wage will go right back to him to pay off the debt!” Her child howled. “I’ll be working for nothing. Cleaning for nothing!”

Such was her horror and disgust EunJin wondered if her precious darling had misunderstood the word “cleaning” and thought her father had suggested working in a brothel instead.

“It’s a valuable skill, my love.” She suggested mildly. “Just because we are lucky enough not to have to clean, does not mean we should not be able to.”

“We have an army of maids. An army!” SooYoung rolled over far enough to be able to glare at her mother. “I’ll marry well, amma, you know I will. I’ll never need skills like this!”

At this even EunJin’s beautiful face shadowed with disappointment.

“SooYoung.” The gentle, loving reproach in her voice was even worse than her father’s rage. Tears rolling down her cheeks now SooYoung buried her face in her mother’s lap and sobbed. Her mother soothed her with soft noises and caresses. “Is your pride more important than your relationship with your father?” She asked gently. “If it is then I shall see what I can do to intervene.”

SooYoung went rather still.

“Our... our relationship?”

“This is important to him, my dear. So very important. It would make him so very proud of you, SooYoung-ah.”

A wet, unladylike sniff emerged from the depths of her lap.

“P...proud?”

“His only daughter working so hard, so keen to honour all of her father’s hard work. Oh yes, my light, he will be so very proud of you.”

There was a long pause.

“SooHyun didn’t clean.” SooYoung said miserably. EunJin scooped back the almost hip-length waterfall of glossy, jet hair and secured it with a stunning mother of pearl clip. Leaning down, she softly kissed her daughter’s hot, wet cheek and murmured into her ear.

“Indeed yes, my dove. Even SooHyun never cleaned.”

SooYoung was quite aware that her mother loved and adored SooHyun just as much as she did SooYoung, just as she was a wily and cunning woman should the occasion demand it - and a potential massive rift forming between her husband and daughter would demand it - but as the sibling rivalry button was well and truly pushed SooYoung was utterly helpless but to respond. Doing somewhat that the perfect SooHyun had never done, her mind whispered enticingly, because even SooHyun had always worked at business level. Finally coming out on top and being the good, dutiful daughter! Rolling over she looked suspiciously up at her mother but EunJin’s beautiful face was as serene and tranquil as a summer meadow.

“But... what if... what if they hate me?” She asked in a small voice as she admitted the thing that had been truly terrifying her. “Amma... What if they’re mean to me?”

EunJin’s face softened; her dark eyes brimming with overwhelming love.

”You are the sun in the sky and the birdsong on a summer’s day.” She replied softly. “My precious girl. who could help but love you?”

SooYoung tried not to twitch. The job that her father wanted her to do for a whole year was to act as “house mother” to one of the SM Entertainment groups. She would cook, clean, do the shopping and laundry and whatever else it took to make sure the group was happy and comfortable at home.

“You won’t be introduced as my daughter and you must not tell them.” SooMan told her sternly. “Out of respect for me and intimidation they’ll try to do everything themselves and they’re already hard-working boys.”

“Boys?” SooYoung was alarmed. “I have to be house mother to a group of stinky boys? Why not Girls’ Generation or Red Velvet? Appa...!”

“Because within the week the house would be a mess and I’d find you sharing clothes and makeup with the girls like you’re a group member but without actually doing any of the work.” SooMan replied with a glimmer of amusement. “No, you’ll look after the boys. They’ve just moved into the old Super Junior dorm so there’s a room you can have.”

As usual, at the dreaded words “Super Junior” father and daughter’s eyes slid away from each other and they developed a sudden fascination in the floor and out of the window. Gazing with apparent fascination at the Seoul skyline, SooMan said very quietly, “I do not need to mention that we discourage romance for our boys quite vigorously. Very vigorously when that romance shows signs of happening with my daughter.”

Yeah. She remembered. Forcing the discomfort aside SooYoung focused on her father’s words and her forehead furrowed.

“A room I can have?” She faltered. “But I have my room.”

“The position is live-in, SooYoung-ah. The boys work a busy schedule and long hours. You need to be there.”

“I have to look after them all the time?” SooYoung could not have been more appalled had he told her she was adopted and her old family wanted her back. “But appa, I have a life!”

“Your life is this job now.” He told her flatly. His dark eyes were watchful behind his glasses as he watched his daughter have a nervous breakdown. “You’re a smart girl, SooYoung, and tougher than you’ve ever given yourself credit for because you’ve never had to be. But this year will truly test you. And maybe at the end of it you’ll want to slide straight back into this easy life. If you do I will respect your decision and I will provide for you just as I always have. But maybe you will realise that you deserve so very much more than that.”

She felt a lump in her throat. Her father thought she was smart and tough. Her father thought she would truly be able to do this. For the first time in her life she had the chance to truly impress him. SooYoung took a shuddering breath and thought longingly of their penthouse, double-floored apartment in Gangnam. Squaring her shoulders, she bowed respectfully to her father.

“I won’t let you down, Father.”

She was going to let him down. Oh man, was she ever going to let him down! Probably never in his wildest dreams of disappointment would her father expect her to run away within the first five minutes and turn up back at home fully prepared to risk him never speaking to her again.

“We just moved in last week.” The senior manager of super group Exo told her with visible pleasure. “The old dorm was a lot smaller and more crowded. Poor Baekhyun had to sleep in the living room.”

Poor Baekhyun? Poor SooYoung! There were ten of them! Ten young men and five managers that would almost always be around. Ten pets that she would also have to look after and so many room. SM Entertainment was a powerhouse, and wealthy. Exo were one of the most popular groups in SM and therefore got one of the nicest dorms. Whatever poor conditions some groups had to live in, that did not apply to these boys. They got space!

“This is your room. It’s not much.” Not much?! She had a sudden sympathy for Harry Potter because this was pretty much the cupboard under the stairs. There was just enough room for a captain-style bed that she’d reach with a ladder and the space beneath had been fitted with a rail for her clothes and some drawers. She had a sliver of window that ended abruptly at the wall and presumably, whatever room lay on the other side of that wall got the rest of it. The walls were white, the floor was plain and... well, that was it. It felt like a damned prison cell! “But come and see the rest of the dorm. The boys have six bedrooms between them.”

SooYoung trotted after him as he walked along the corridor, pushing doors open around him. Four of them had twin beds but two of the members seemed to have their own room. There were three bathrooms over the two floors, a crowded kitchen with two giant fridge freezers, a spacious lounge area with humongous couches and an honest-to-god games room. And all of it was now under her command.

“It’s messy in here. We haven’t had a cleaner since we moved in. But the cleaning closet is in here.” He pulled open a door to reveal a closet dedicated to all the cleaning supplies she would need to keep this place clean and tidy. “The laundry room is down on the first floor and the boys won’t be back until around eleven o clock tonight. For dinner you can just make something in the big pot that can be easily re-heated. Thanks for your hard work!”

And with that he flashed her a cheerful grin and left. SooYoung looked around wide-eyed at the dusty shelves, messy floor and piles of stuff. Oh dear Lord, this was actually real, wasn’t it?

Her clothes were unpacked and crammed into the drawers and the single clothes rail. Her new bedding for a single bed was in place and a couple of art prints from home brightened the sterile white walls. Pulling her hair into a twist she changed from her pretty skirt and blouse into a pair of black yoga pants and T-shirt and covered the lot with a pink, frilly apron that SooHyun had bought her as a joke before she left. Grabbing an armful of supplies she trekked into the lounge and glared around her, ready to attack.

“Fighting!” She barked. And still stood there. She looked down at the cleaning supplies doubtfully. The shelves should not be dusty and there definitely should not be crunchy shit all over the floor but exactly what she had to do to make that go away remained a mystery. She chewed on her lower lip and finally pulled out a bottle of livid blue liquid that declared itself to be floor cleaner. Floor cleaner! Well, she wanted to clean the floor, did she not? This was a great place to start!

It was not a great place to start. Sloshing blue liquid over the crunchy shit on the floor turned it into mushy wet shit that stuck to the floor like papier mache. Dusting the shelves then added a layer of fuzzy grey dust to that mush and within half an hour she’d made such a mess that she could hardly believe her eyes.

“MinDae, Unni!” Her voice was a restrained shriek as she dialled a number on her phone. “Help me!”

“Miss SooYoung, whatever is the matter?” MinDae, the Lee family’s chief housekeeper sounded alarmed.

“You have to teach me how to clean. I don’t know what to do! I tried, I really tried but I made such a mess and they’ll be home any time now! And I have to make dinner, something in a big pot and I don’t know what that means, or what to cook, or how to cook and...!”

All credit to MinDae, there was a reason she had lasted so long with the family. “Miss SooYoung.” She gently but firmly interrupted SooYoung’s hysterical babbling. “Do you have a pen and paper? OK, take notes now. I’ll explain to you what you need to do to clean each room. And dinner? Hmmm... OK, for today I’ll send something over to you but then we’ll talk about the sort of recipes that you need to cook for ten young men. Are you ready?”

Gripping the note pad and pen like the woman was about the tell her the meaning of life SooYoung nodded furiously.

”Ready!”

“Good. This is what you need to do.”

It was late. The door to the dorm was flung open and a wall of noise as ten young men flooded through the door and headed up to the lounge and kitchen. Shoes were kicked off in the entryway, coats were flung in a heap and it was a barefoot, weary, slightly stinky group of young men that appeared. One of them looked in amazement at the young woman that was crumpled on their sofa, fast asleep despite the noise.

“Hyung.” He called in accented Korean. JunMyeon hyung! Why is there a strange woman asleep on our sofa?” He crouched down beside her; inky black hair falling forward into his ludicrously handsome face. Tilting his head to the side he looked momentarily excited. “Is she for me? She’s very dirty but then I also have been practising very hard today and have not yet had a shower.”

The hyung he’d called to came over; his stunning face alive with curiosity but at his dongsaeng’s words his eyes rolled so hard they almost fell out.

“We do not gift each other with people, YiXing-ah. Modern slavery. It’s a thing.” Taking in the small and fragile figure he noticed that her flawless, pale skin was indeed smudged with dirt. Her cheek was pressed to her hand and the hand in question had a beautiful pink manicure decorated with moulded white roses. Well, some of the fingers did at least; the young man winced at the sight of a couple of ragged nails. “This must be our new house mother. Manager hyung said that she’d be arriving today.”

“Ah! She cleaned! Good, it smells much better in here now.” YiXing commented and then his brow furrowed. “Does she sleep on our sofa, though? That could get inconvenient. What if I want to stretch out my legs? Maybe she wouldn’t want my feet on her.”

“No one in their right mind wants your feet on them!” Sehun called from nearby. The conversation had attracted his interest and he wandered over, his eyebrows winging briefly. “House mother? JunMyeon hyung, she’s younger than I am!” He studied her sleeping face and murmured, almost to himself. “She’s really pretty.”

The Exo leader straightened up, suddenly decisive.

“Young indeed but I’m sure management knows best. And no, she won’t be sleeping on our sofa. She has the small room next to the downstairs bathroom.”

“That’s much better.” YiXing agreed approvingly. “Come on, sleeping princess, your bed will be more comfortable.” And so saying he scooped her up into his arms and headed towards the small bedroom that belonged to their unexpected guest.

SooYoung opened her eyes, blinking in confusion at the sight of the stupendously handsome face so close to hers but too exhausted to freak out.

“If you’re carrying me away to murder me, please let it be in a place with a bathroom that’s less revolting than yours.” She mumbled and his lips twitched.

“We have only lived here for one week. Our old bathroom was much worse.”

She was fairly confident that he wasn’t about to murder her. For a start the arms cradling her to his broad chest were innately protective. He carried her like she was something fragile.

“You’re so handsome.” She murmured sleepily. He looked down at her and his silken black hair tangled with his thick eyelashes. His smile was like sunshine.“You’re very pretty.” He replied solemnly. His brow furrowed and he ducked his head, sniffing at her hair. “Even if you do smell like sweaty socks.”

“Shut up, you.” She groaned. “It’s probably your sweaty socks that I smell of. Horrible men. Why did I ever work so hard to look pretty for you grubby creatures?”

“I apologise for the entire male sex.” He drawled, his lips quirking into a grin. Nudging the bedroom door open with his butt he placed her gently onto her bed and pulled the cover over her. “Princess, my name is YiXing. What’s yours?”

“Cinderella.” She groaned, and closing her eyes she snuggled into her blankets and fell asleep again within seconds to the sound of his soft laughter.

#exo #exo fic #exo fanfiction #suho #sehun #lay #yixing #junmyeon #exocinderella #crisischild92

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rgmonzon-folio · 6 years ago

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Cinderella from Mahaplag, Leyte

As I watched my friend ringing up her siblings with her smartphone, promising them about her gifts for her nieces that would help them with school, I was astonished upon remembering her story from years back, and I realized how much had changed. I recalled when she was the one who needed help, but hardly anyone heard her plights, so much so that she would hardly voice them. They were so much as breathy whispers that dissipated into the harsh atmosphere.

Now, she would beam with life as she showed me what she had accomplished in her hometown of Mahaplag, Leyte - simple achievements from the slightest renovations of their simple home, the added household furnishings, the new piggery, and even the billiard house she had made for her father’s enjoyment and extra income.

I always thought if written down, her story would ready like a fairytale - and my friend would be Cinderella, from her humble beginnings, to her falling into the clutches of an evil stepmother figure, to eventually her ongoing happily ever after. But this story has a modern day twist - she didn’t rely on a Prince Charming to sweep her off her feet. And despite having a fairy godmother who kickstarted her journey, she was still in charge and did the hard work. She was the one who ultimately turned her life around.

So I did decided to fulfill my once floating idea to write the real-life story that had always inspired me and I hope would inspire many others: the story of a princess and her journey.

Humble Beginnings

The little princess in this story was born and raised in a small, provincial town; a quiet, rural village lush with greens at every corner called Mahaplag, Leyte. Their humble house stood at the slope of a mountain, something that was by heaps and bounds far from a royal palace, lit by oil lamps instead of electricity. It was more of a symbol of poverty, small for a family of eight children and a frail, single father. The little princess was the youngest, and despite the family’s lack of riches she was showered with love and care. Her name is Mary Jane Cozo, known affectionately as Mayie by her friends and family.

Mayie had two older sisters who helped her bathe at the nearby stream every morning, usually exasperated with her antics of wading too long and playing with the clear and cool water, as they still had to rush home to put on their school uniforms and go to school. She had a father who would find ways to alleviate her suffering caused by the unnamed skin disease she acquired, despite of his inability to pay for expensive dermatological treatment. He would bathe her several times a day to ease the heat caused by the watery boils that erupted all over her body, and found herbs and juices from around them to try to diminish the symptoms. The poor girl even had to have her thick, wavy hair shaved as the boils spread to her scalp.

Those struggles hardly dampened her days, however, as she had plenty of time to play and have fun. Mayie loved trudging through the surrounding farmland for adventure, picking all the fruits she could want, playing all the games she could play with her friends. One of the things she truly loved was eating - all the chicken, crustaceans and rice cakes made her the happiest kid. Even though the seafood partly aggravated her skin condition, she didn’t care. Eat on, she would say when she’d recall to me her childhood. She was happy even as she sprouted into a plump, chubby kid who would get picked on not only for her skin and bald head but also for her size.

She would merely laugh as she described her younger self, eyes shimmering with genuine amusement. She recalled how in the end of the day, after a fun filled day of play, she’d have to take another bath, then her father would have her take a nap. Eventually when her hair grew back, she’d wake up with them braided by her older sister, who would complain about Mayie’s hyperactivity otherwise, if she were awake.

Despite the chance to wish for more - for more money, more food, even electricity - Mayie was happy with her simple provincial life. That is until her third year in high school, when she had realized there were things her family and her hometown couldn’t provide her. Despite her promising academic career, she had to drop out. The road to her dream of getting her diploma and donning her white toga turned into a big question mark.

She still looked at life with a positive lens. Her skin disease ebbed as she was touched by the first signs of womanhood. She had a handful of friends she shared precious moments with, marked by her sharp-witted jokes. The first boy of her dreams, her first Prince Charming, even reciprocated her affection, which blossomed into her first romance. She knew she would find a way to go to school eventually.

A distant family member from Laguna made the call one day, that he would help her finish her studies. Her Kuya Jerome was a seaman who made a significantly substantial income. Mayie grabbed at the chance and was plucked from Mahaplag, Leyte and placed in the photocopied row houses and eskinitas of Calamba, Laguna, my hometown.

Her Kuya Jerome’s house was bigger than she was used to, up and down with two bedrooms, a proper sala set and kitchen. They also had electricity and appliances Mayie’s father could not afford himself - a television, a stereo, speakers, a washing machine.

When Kuya Jerome ws aboard the ship he worked for, sailing to every end of the world, his three daughters and obese wife nicknamed Ling stayed at home, practically rolling in the dough a seaman could make. It wasn’t hard for Mayie to see why Ling had grown so large - she hardly lifted her behind from the sofas, chairs, and beds of the house. She would wake up, make a hearty, fattening meal and sit down singing karaoke for the rest of the day. When her husband’s money would come in, she’d spend it on alcohol, gambling, affairs, and her daughter’s whims.

For staying in their house as she studied, Ling decided Mayie should cough up some rent. Ling took this opportunity to have someone do the housework she’d neglected for karaoke, vices, and her incredible laziness. And so began Mayie’s toil as the household’s unpaid maid, who woke up as early as five in the morning to do the laundry, and then make breakfast for her four female masters. As the masters ate, Mayie would have to pour them juice or water whenever they asked, and had to be prepared, sitting at the edge of her seat, to go to the fridge or kitchen counter to grant the extra food requests.

Then she’d clean up the house from top to bottom, wiping every counter surface and table top then sweep the floor. At around ten in the morning she was allowed to turn on the T.V. and watch the morning slate of Tagalized anime, her only reprieve for the entire day.

After, she’d make lunch and dinner, where’d she’d have to wait around for her masters again, ready to respond to their every desire. Soon, Mayie’s plump body slowly shrunk into a thin, bony frame. The arduous labor stunted her growth at four feet and eight inches. Her skin, while free from her childhood boils, was dry and lifeless. Her hands were calloused from toil. Her beacon of hope still shone, however, and loomed as the new school year approached.

However, the opening of classes came and went, and Mayie was not sent to school. She carried on her life as an unpaid maid, whose labor was too much in exchange for food and a bed to sleep in - things she had enough of back in her Leyte home.

She was only fifteen when she landed in Laguna as a chubby, healthy teen who was promised a chance to study. She turned nineteen, frail and small, still unable to go to school.

A Failing Promise

Four years had gone by, and Mayie was never as much as taken to a high school to be enrolled. At this point, she would be much older than her classmates, at nineteen years old. She got tired of toil but never complained, her smile and humor still earning her friends to joke with and share music with around the neighborhood, whenever she would have sparse spare time. With her optimism, she was a joy to be with and a bell of any ball.

She had made friends with the woman directly behind their house, named Thelma. Houses in this subdivision were cramped and separated by eskinitas, some only by a sparse piece of land barely enough to be made into a room. Upstairs, where Mayie’s slave masters had their covered balcony turned laundry area, she could see Thelma right across, who was usually occupied with her laundry in the balcony-turned-laundry-area of her own. Their initial chit-chats eventually turned to friendship.

Thelma saw opportunity knock on Mayie’s door late 2006. Thelma, had found out about a friend who had recently underwent surgery named Emie, who is my mother. This is when our paths first intertwined.

During Emie’s recovery, she was not allowed to go about her usual household tasks such as laundry and heavy-duty general cleaning. Thelma was quick to recommend the hardworking and the toil-sharpened Mayie.

Emie was only looking for a part timer, someone who’d occasionally come in and do the laundry and most of the major cleaning. She’d pay per visit until she could do the chores once again. Thelma, saddened by Mayie’s unpaid state, decided that this would be good for her. Sure, added labor is involved, as Mayie would have to work for another household on top of working for the one she lived in, but she accepted anyways.

She first went to our house when I was a ten-year-old. Off the bat I was already taller than her, my built already bigger. She was a quiet stranger who was not frugal with her smiles and warm greetings. As she sat on our sofa, my mother nearby fished small details from Ate Mayie’s life, which soon became a vast collection with which to paint the persona of the girl.

With every visit she diligently and expertly went about her tasks, my mother supervising her as she did the laundry. As she often came on Saturdays, I’d join my mother in watching over, sometimes awkwardly attempting to help out. Chats were very much welcome, and they often turned to long conversations about Mayie’s life, and more. We’d bellow in laughter at the stories of her childhood antics in Mahaplag. Sometimes I’d hunch over in fear as she told me about her experiences with engkantos. She’d teach me how to properly scrub my clothes, explaining with utmost patience as I tried and failed to make the squishy sound she made as her hands rubbed the foamy cloth together. After work, my mother would let her share a meal with us, and we’d talk more as we’d eat dessert. Then I’d turn the T.V. on introduce her to my favorite Disney sitcoms, like Hannah Montana.

On Sundays she would drop by again, this time to iron the clothes she’d washed the day before. I’d come with her on the hot spare room upstairs, where she’d bring out the heavy ironing table and start working on the newly-dried, wrinkly pile of clothes. Eventually she started telling me about her high school life, her many friends, and her first love. I smiled and teased as she’d tell me about the letters exchanged, the jealousy fraught interactions with her Prince Charming, all the while she pushed the iron to and fro to straighten the creases out from my uniform.

I learned that she loved to read pocket books, so I went downstairs to my bookshelf, picked two or three of my absolute favorites and shared them with her. When she finished reading, we’d have more stories to share and jokes to laugh about.

In her first few days, she had brightened up the house usually occupied by just me and my mother, since my father was always at work. She’d make our bellies ache with laughter at her jokes. She’d foster a connection with my mother with their provincial upbringings, occasionally comparing my more urban one. Easily, Ate Mayie had become one of my closest friends.

One day, my mother had decided to ask if Ate Mayie still planned to go back to school. Ate Mayie was quick to answer yes. But she was still waiting on the promise of Ling and Jerome, which at that point was still in the mist. My mom was alarmed that the promise was pending for four years. Even more alarming was that Ate Mayie was unpaid.

We eventually learned about Ling’s unimpressive pursuits in life, her laziness, her squandering of her husband’s hard earned money aboard a ship. I would watch as my mother’s brows would crease together in frustration as our new friend confessed about her life in Calamba.

Taken to Ate Mayie, my mother bought her a gift of a simple apparel to ease her burden. Ate Mayie accepted with glee, only to have it taken by her obese slave-driver. It was clear at that point how exploited this girl was, and how unfair the course of her life had been. My mother and I were deeply dismayed.

Then, Ate Mayie had seemed like a real-life Cinderella, living with a wicked stepmother and stepsister, yet still riddled with Disney-princess-brand optimism, with the will to still wish upon the star. We were moved at how positive she was despite her extraordinary hurdles.

I was sad when she had finished her duties with my mother. I missed the laughter that filled the room. I went back to keeping to myself, my books and shows, and Ate Mayie went back to the Visayas. She was sent to Ling’s sister, Vanessa, under vague promises of freedom, only to be entrapped once more into another round of slavery in Cebu.

“The sisters seem delighted with the free labor,” my mother would hiss under her breath when talking about Ate Mayie’s masters, “they want to live like queens even though they can’t afford it.” In the hands of her evil stepmothers, the promise of a brighter future went dimmer and dimmer.

Three years later she came back to Calamba, only to be a maid at my neighbor’s house, where at least she was free from the clutches of Ling and could keep her money for her own. It was still too measly however, to fund her education.

A New Hope

After her stint at my neighbor’s, my mother and her siblings decided to hire Ate Mayie to tend to my ailing grandmother in Marinduque. It was like she was sent back to her small town roots, living at my aunt’s where the house was surrounded by farmland, trees, chickens, streams, and even an ocean a few walks by. There, her only real job was to tend to my grandmother, who was resigned to her foldable bed.

With glee, Ate Mayie would change Nanay’s clothes and brush her hair, and she would tell the same funny jokes and stories. She’d even sing to Nanay and make her laugh and smile. Ate Mayie’s part time job was enjoying the warmth of my aunt’s friends and neighbors, who gave her food by the plenty. Without the arduous labor she got to stroll the scenic views of the town and meet the friendliest people.

My aunt, who was a high school teacher, was touched by Ate Mayie’s show of kindness and positivity, and decided to send her to school when the new academic year would have started. She’d provide Ate Mayie with her uniform and other necessities. Hope sparked again into a raging fire, into a certainty. After years, she was finally going to school.

After only a month, my grandmother passed away. Ate Mayie was without a purpose in Marinduque, all the while grieving the loss of Nanay with us. She moved back with us to Calamba for the meantime, all the while recalling her time spent in Marinduque to be her happiest.

Meanwhile my mother was growing impatient at the thought that Ate Mayie would have to wait until the school year started to actually go back to school. My mother had stumbled upon the Alternative Learning System or ALS, a project spearheaded by the Department of Education for people like Ate Mayie who have been out of school for a while. Despite it being the middle of the regular school year, Ate Mayie was enrolled there and started going to classes right away.

There, she was not out of place with her classmates, who were around her age and sometimes even much older. They were not required to wear uniforms, and classes were accommodating to their knowledge level, rather then sticking to the year-level curriculum. She met friends with amazing stories at par with hers - she met a girl who dropped out due to poverty, a mother who still wanted to finish high school, a formerly rebellious teen who wanted to straighten out his life. ALS was a beacon of hope not just for Ate Mayie herself, but for others like her who had seemingly lost hope. ALS was her glass slipper.

We were school girls together at the time. She lived twenty-four seven in our house, with complete access to our T.V. and my books. We had extended bonding sessions over them, and eventually even over homework. Together we read the Percy Jackson series and watched the latest flicks in the cinemas. She and my mother bonded over chores, but Ate Mayie was not required to wash anyone’s clothes but her own. She was a friend, not an employee.

We were there, my mother and I when Mary Jane Cozo finally donned her white toga.

Happily Ever After

After her high school graduation, she enrolled in a vocational course and applied as an operator in a company. She got her first taste of a wage, a wage that was finally more than a few hundred pesos and involved perks like a Social Security System I.D. After years of struggle and exploitation, she had made a life for herself - with the help of some fairy godmothers from Calamba and Marinduque.

Now, in 2017, she’s been working for several years. She’d helped her father start a piggery and a billiards house. She helped her niece go to school. She has money saved up in a bank and more so that she can go on occasional trips to Tagaytay with her officemates. Sure, there are the occasional workplace hang-ups, and occasional worries that the company she worked in would close down. But she could always go to another one. She could always find a way.

Armed with a diploma, she could never slink back to her life as Cinderella who’d wash off the cinders.

#nonfiction

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friendlyheartless · 10 months ago

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"Actually, everyone in Arendelle has their own Christmas traditions." Elsa spoke. "But we have our with us right here." Anna said. "That would be me." Olaf smiled. "We made Olaf when we were kids, but when Elsa accidentally froze the kingdom, she brough him to life." Anna explained. "Me and Sven have our own tradition with the Rock trolls who raised us, but it's complicated." Kristoff said as Sven smiled when his neck was hugged.

"Okay, admit it. Hearing all about Santa had to help you put in the Christmas spirit, right, Donald?" Mickey asked to Donald who was still frowning. "Nothing seems to be working." Daisy stated until Pluto came onstage. "Aw, even my trusted pup Pluto wants to help out." Mickey spoke. "Well, then, what do you say we show a story about Pluto?" Minnie asked. "How about the one where Pluto and I pick out our Christmas tree together?" Mickey suggested as he pet Pluto and he licks him. "Gosh. Ha ha!" He chuckled as they played Pluto's Christmas Tree, a Mickey Mouse short from 1959 where the two got their Christmas tree, except Chip n' Dale were in it.

"Gee, that was swell. Isn't it nice seeing everybody get along?" Mickey asked as the short was over. Pluto then saw Chip n' Dale come out of the small Christmas tree. He shouted barking at them until Chip covered his mouth with a "Do not open until X-Mas" Sticker. "Come on!" Chip shouted grabbing Dale as they run off from Pluto. "Oh, Donald, I wish you'd have the Christmas spirit. You have so much to be thankful for." Daisy said to Donald. "Uh-huh. Like I'm thankful for Mickey." Minnie stated. "And I'm thankful for my new hat." Goofy said pointing at his hat. "Say, what's everybody else thankful for?" Mickey asked to the group.

"I'm thankful for friendly mice who make nice evening wear." Cinderella said mentioning her mice friends, Jaq and Gus who give their thumbs up. "I'm thankful for making this wish upon a star, which caused Star to come to me." Asha said bringing up Star on her adventure in Rosas. "I'm thankful for making so many friends across the universe." I spoke onstage. "I'm thankful for my friends. My friends are my power, and I am theirs." Sora said about his friends, whether they were Donald and Goofy or Riku and Kairi. Especially the Heartless Rebels "I'm thankful for laughter, joy, and the high-spirited glee that fills my heart to overflowing." Eeyore sighed as his friends, Winnie the Pooh, Christopher Robin, Piglet and Tigger watch. Next was Mushu's turn as he rang a gong onstage. "All right, people, listen up. Mushu's on stage now, so pay attention."

"Hello Asha." I spoke towards the Fairy Godmother of the Kingdom of Rosas. She and I even shake hands together. "Also, I remember seeing her at the 100th Disney Group Photo before her movie, Wish came out this year." I said aside to Lucas.

"Come on, Donald. This'll get you into the spirit. It's a story about you." Mickey said to his best friend as everyone started to watch Donald on Ice, a Mickey Mouse Works cartoon where Huey, Dewey and Louie participate in a snowman building contest. but while Donald tries to ice-skate, he crashes into their first snowman.

So, in retaliation, they create a prank in having a crack in the ice follow their Uncle Donald. However, he also got chased around by the Abominable Snowman that won the competition with the prize: ice skates. After that, Donald's nephews throw snowballs at Donald. After that cartoon, everyone applauded. "Did seeing that help you get in the Christmas spirit?" Goofy asked to Donald who continued to frown and cross his arms. "Oh, humbug." Donald replied.

"Well, I have an idea that might help." Minnie chuckled. "Hearing some yuletide wishes." She spoke. "Good idea, Minnie. Because earlier today, I went out on the street to see what everybody wanted." Mickey said showing his interviews with everybody.

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