Match 16928 Snow White vs. Cinderella

[broadwaybeyonder]

Once upon a time, the wielders of magic looked across the expanse of time and space between their kingdoms.  They were Yen Sid, Merlin, the Genies, the Fairies, and the other great magicians, wizards, and witches.  By combing their powers, they set about establishing several smaller realms between the kingdoms.  They were a collection of castles and lands that would allow people from different kingdoms to gather and explore together.  One castle in particular became known as the retreat for the princesses, a place where could get away from the stress of ruling their kingdoms.  For many years, the princesses would come to relax and enjoy their fellowship, and all was well.  Until one day…

 

Snow White sat at her dressing table brushing her hair.  She hummed to herself as she gazed into her mirror until she heard a knock at the door.  “Come in,” her voice trilled.  The door to the bedroom opened and Ariel peeked inside.  “I thought I heard someone in here,” she said with a grin.  “Ariel!” Snow White shouted happily.  She quickly rose from her chair and rushed to give her a hug.  “I’m so glad you could make it for Jasmine’s party!”  Ariel returned the embrace then took a step back holding Snow White’s hands.  “I wouldn’t want to miss it.  And look at you, all dressed up!”  Snow White lifted her yellow skirt as she spun around and returned to the table.  “Why not?  It’s not every day I get a chance to wear it, let alone be able to see all of you girls at the castle.”  Snow White returned to brushing her hair as Ariel moved behind her, looking at their reflections in the mirror.  “I always loved that dress!  And you look wonderful as always, Snow.  No matter what they say!”  Snow White stopped in mid-brush, a confused look on her face.  “No matter what who say?” 

Ariel looked nervously around the room, and put her hands on the back of Snow White’s chair.  “Er, well, you know how girls are sometimes.  Talking, gossiping.  But I’m sure she didn’t mean it.  Oh!  Look at the time!  Lunch will be served at one, and I wanted to take a quick swim in the pool.  And you know I can’t do it after a meal.  See you down there, Snow!”  Ariel quickly headed for the door only to stopped by Snow White’s hand as she got up from the table.  She gave Ariel a concerned look.  “Ariel, we’ve been friends for a long time.  I know people might think I’m naïve after my trouble with the apple, but I can tell that you are hiding something.  Now, who is this ‘she’ you’re talking about?”  Ariel stammered for a moment before giving a deep sigh.  She walked to the door, checked behind it, then closed it before turning to face Snow White.  “Well, I didn’t want to spread any tales.  But when I was making my way to the pool, I almost walked in on Cinderella talking to some of the servants.  They didn’t see me, but I heard her telling them that she was going to make some changes to the castle.”  Snow White’s eyes widened.  “What kind of changes?”  Ariel looked over her shoulder, then looked at Snow White with sympathetic eyes.  “To start, to have you not be able to visit the castle anymore.” 

Snow White looked dumbfounded, then laughed.  “Oh, really, Ariel.  You must be joking!  Why would Cinderella ever say a thing like that?”  Ariel raised a finger to her lips to shush Snow White and guided her back to the dressing table.  “I didn’t want to believe it either.  But Cinderella was very serious.  She said that since she was clearly the best of all the princesses, that she should be the one who decides who counts as one.” 

“But this doesn’t make sense,” said Snow White.  “Cinderella and I were the first princesses to come to the castle.  Why would she want to drive me away?”  Ariel cleared her throat.  “Ahem.  Well, she did say some reasons why.  She said everyone knows she’s more of a real princess than you are.  She said her gowns are better than yours…” 

“Oh.  Well, her gowns are very nice, I suppose.” 

“That she’s a better singer than you are…”

“Oh, did she?” 

“And she said that when the Dreamers built the Park in honor of us, they did choose her castle to be the centerpiece of it instead of yours.” 

“Oh.” 

Ariel put her hands on Snow White’s shoulders to comfort her as she stared depressed into her mirror.  “I’m so sorry, Snow.  When I heard all that, I didn’t know what to do except let you know.” 

“Maybe I should talk to Cinderella about this,” wondered Snow White.  “Oh no!” exclaimed Ariel.  “I mean, that wouldn’t do at all!  Cinderella is wanting to keep this a secret.  If you tried to talk to her about it, she’d just lie and say I was making it up.”  Snow White looked worried up at Ariel.  “But then what can we do?”  

“For now, don’t do anything.  After lunch we can try to talk to Jasmine and Belle.  Then we can all go to Cinderella to try to talk her out of this.  Don’t worry.  I won’t let you be banished.”  Snow White gulped.  “Oh.  Thank you, Ariel.”  Ariel gave Snow White’s shoulders a comforting squeeze than started for the door.  “I better get going if I want to get my swim in before lunch.  See you then?”  Snow White stared distractedly at her reflection.  “Hmm?  Oh yes.  See you then, Ariel.”  Ariel closed the door, and Snow White picked up her brush.  She gave a couple strokes to her hair before stopping and gazing at the mirror again.  “A mistake.  That’s what it is, just a silly mistake.  Cinderella would never say things like that about me, would she?  Would she?” 

At that moment, Cinderella was in the castle courtyard.  Standing under a shady tree, she sang to the birds as they perched eagerly on the branches to listen.  Some of the birds whistled in harmony with her song.  Belle watched as she leaned against the wall of the stone archway to the courtyard.  When Cinderella and the birds finished her song, the other birds all chirped in excitement, and Belle clapped.  “You really need to teach me how to do that,” smiled Belle.  Cinderella smiled back and curtsied to Belle.  “Oh, there’s really nothing to it.  And you sing beautifully, too, Belle.”  Belle stepped into the courtyard and nodded at the feathered audience.  “Not enough to sing birds out of trees, though.  Um, Cindy, I hate to interrupt your practice, but would you mind if we could talk for minute?  Alone, if you don’t mind?”  Cinderella shrugged and turned back to the birds.  “We’ll continue our practice tomorrow?”  The birds chirped their agreement and quickly took the skies.  The two princesses sat down on a stone bench.  “Now, Belle.  What did you want to talk about?” 

Belle took a deep breath to gather herself.  “Cindy, do you remember when I first came to the castle?  I tried not to show it, but part of me was so nervous.  All of the princesses seemed so perfect, so beautiful.  And I wasn’t even a princess by birth like some of the others were.”  Chuckling, Cinderella put her arm around Belle’s shoulders.  “Oh, Belle.  I knew you belonged here.  You are just as much a princess as anyone.  Besides, I wasn’t a princess by birth, either, and I turned out alright.”  Belle gave a look over her shoulder, then back to Cinderella.  “I know, and I appreciate how good of a friend you’ve been then and now.  But I’ve stumbled on something, and you were the only one I could think of who could help.” 

Cinderella’s face grew concerned.  “Belle, if something’s wrong you know you can talk to me.  What is it?”  Belle took another breath.  “it’s about Snow.  I think she’s planning on removing you from the castle.” 

“What?” exclaimed Cinderella.  “Belle!  What would make you think a thing like that about Snow?”  Belle looked to the entrance to the courtyard before continuing.  “I heard her talking to the servants.  She was saying that the castle needed to be for princesses.  Real princesses.  Not girls who just married a prince like us.”  Cinderella stood up from the bench and walked stunned back to the tree.  “Snow White said that?  That doesn’t sound like her at all!”  Belle rushed to Cinderella’s side.  “Cindy, I’m worried about Snow.  At first I thought she might be under a spell, but then I began to wonder if she really means to go through with this!”  Cinderella took her hand in hers.  “Calm down, Belle.  I’m just going to have a little talk with Snow and sort this out.” 

“Thank you, Cindy,” said Belle.  “But maybe wait until after lunch.  I don’t want to ruin Jasmine’s party.”  A servant suddenly appeared in the archway.  “Your highnesses?  Lunch is being served in the banquet hall.”  The two princesses walked after the servant as Cinderella whispered.  “Don’t worry, Belle.  I’ll make sure to get to the bottom of this!” 

In the banquet hall, the princesses sat around an ornately carved, oak table.  They chatted as servants brought out salad and soup, although Jasmine noted the awkward looks from Snow White and Cinderella.  “It’s too bad Tiana wasn’t able to make it,” Jasmine said.  “I wanted to hear what she thought of food from Agrabah.”  Snow White daintily sipped her soup.  “Oh yes, she really is a dear.”  Cinderella raised her teacup to her lips.  “So, you like having Tiana visit the castle, Snow?”  Snow White looked across the table confused at Cinderella.  “Of course I do.  Why shouldn’t I?” 

“You mean, it doesn’t bother you?  That she isn’t a ‘real’ princess?”  Everyone in the banquet hall froze.  Snow White stared at Cinderella in shock, Cinderella stared back unblinking, and Ariel and Belle shared a look with each other.  Jasmine cleared her throat and gestured to the servants.  “Thank you, everyone.  We’ll wait a moment before the main course is served.”  The servants all bowed and left the hall as Snow White put her spoon back on the table.  “I’m not sure if it’s anyone’s place to say who’s a ‘real’ princess or not.  But if anyone shouldn’t be allowed in the castle, it maybe someone who says mean things about her friends behind their back!”  Cinderella’s eyes narrowed as she lowered her teacup.  “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!” 

“Oh, is that so?” 

“It is so!” 

Jasmine gently rapped on the table.  “Ladies!  Is there a problem here?”  Snow White and Cinderella looked at Jasmine, then to each other, then returned to their soup and tea as they laughed and attempted to sound sincere.  “Problem?  Oh there’s no problem at all, is there, Princess Cinderella?” 

“Not at all, Princess Snow White.” 

“Uh huh,” said Jasmine.  “Well, I was  thinking after lunch maybe we could go somewhere and have some fun.  The change of pace might do us all some good.”  She rose from the table and crossed to a velvet curtain.  Pulling on a gold cord, she revealed a golden, floor length mirror.  Jasmine paused a moment in thought, then placed her hand on the frame.  “Excito!”  Suddenly the image the mirror began to blur, until the reflection of the five princesses in the banquet hall was gone.  In it’s place was another castle, with white walls and roofs tipped in blue and gold.  Strangely dressed people hurried to and from the castle as the sun shined in the clear sky.  “The Park?” Cinderella gasped.  “Oh no!” said Snow White.  “We can’t go there!” 

“Why not?” asked Jasmine, arms crossed.  “I’ve gone there lots of times.” 

“Me too!” said Ariel. 

“And me.” said Belle. 

Snow White looked amazed at them.  “But…the Dreamers!  What if they saw you?”  Ariel wiped her mouth with a napkin then walked over to Jasmine.  “So what?  The Dreamers all go to the Park expecting to see princesses.  So if they see you, they just think your someone pretending to be you!  Ha ha!  One time I went to the place they built to look like my grotto for a swim?  And one little girl actually told me she liked how real my fins looked!”  Jasmine grinned mischievously.  “And it’s also fun to see who they have playing our princes.  Oh, if Aladdin saw some of the boys they have pretending to be him, he’d probably faint!” 

“But we shouldn’t be hard on them,” said Belle as she made her way to the mirror.  “They all work very hard, especially the girls they have playing us.”  Ariel nodded in agreement.  “Oh, yes.  Always having to behave like a princess every minute of the day.  Always smiling, always kind, always understanding.” 

“Never losing their temper,” Bell chimed in.  “Never breaking character in spite of the weather, the noise, the crowds.”  Jasmine looked at the castle in the mirror.  “True, true.  They may just be pretending, but anyone who can go through all of that and still have a smile on their face at the end of the day must have the heart of a real princess.” 

“Hmm,” said Cinderella.  “Hmm,” said Snow White.   Ariel, Belle, and Jasmine shared a look.  Cinderella then abruptly rose from the table.  “I’ve got it!  How about we play a little game?  Let’s have me and, oh I don’t know, Snow maybe?  Let us go to the Park, and we’ll pretend we are just acting.”  She gave a smug look to Snow White.  “I bet I can act like a real princess around the Dreamers longer than you can!”  Snow White stood up and locked eyes with Cinderella.  “I think this is silly, Cinderella.  Besides, I know I can act like a real princess because I am a real princess!” 

“Are you sure you both want to do this?” asked Jasmine.  “Yes!” Snow White and Cinderella chorused.  Jasmine shrugged and sighed.  “Very well.  We will stay here and watch you with the mirror.  And remember, no matter what happens, you must behave like real princesses.  If you lose your temper or act in an un-princess like manner, the game is over.” 

“And let’s keep this fair,” said Ariel.  “No trying to get animals to help you or trying to distract each other.  Promise?”  Snow White and Cinderella nodded.  “Promise!” they said, but they didn’t really mean it.  Jasmine turned back to the mirror.  “Now, what was that spell that Fairy Godmother taught us?  Oh yes!  Aperi Ianuam!”  With touch of Jasmine’s hand on the frame, the reflection in the mirror began to ripple like a pond after a stone had been thrown in it.  “You can go through now,” said Jasmine.  Cinderella gave a small bow and gestured to Snow White.  “Age before beauty, princess.”  Snow White smiled through gritted teeth.  “Thank you very much, princess.”  Snow White walked to the mirror, and lifting her skirts, stepped over the frame into the mirror, and was gone.  Cinderella turned and winked at Belle.  “Now I’ll show her what a ‘real’ princess can do!”  Belle clasped her hands.  “Good luck, Cindy!”  Cinderella nodded confidently, walked through the mirror, and disappeared. 

There was a moment of silence in the banquet hall.  Then Ariel, Belle, and Jasmine all burst into gales of laughter.  Jasmine fell on a chair clutching her sides.  “It worked!  I can’t believe it!  It actually worked!”  Belle hugged Ariel and spun with her in a circle.  “Ariel, you are a genius!”  Ariel squirmed out of Belle’s embrace and gave a melodramatic curtsey.  “Please, please, I couldn’t have possibly done it without you, Princess Belle.  Or you, Princess Jasmine.”  Jasmine giggled as she jumped up and curtsied back to Ariel, with Belle following suit.  “Oh, you are too kind, Princess Ariel!” 

Ariel ran over to a couch by the wall and started to pull it.  “Quick!  One of you help me move this!  We don’t want to miss the fun!”  Belle went to help Ariel as Jasmine placed her hand on the mirror frame.  “Duplex Vision!”  The mirror’s reflection instantly split in two, with the top half following Snow White and the bottom half following Cinderella.  The two princesses were met by park attendants who began to escort them as Ariel and Belle moved the couch in front of the mirror.  “Now are you sure they’ll be safe there?” asked Belle.  “Oh, Belle, don’t be a guppy!” said Ariel.  “The people who work in the Park would never let anything happen to ‘their’ princesses.  And if anything goes wrong, we can always use the mirror to bring them back.” 

“Hopefully not too soon,” snickered Jasmine.  “I’ve never seen those two like that before!” 

“Me neither,” said Belle.  “But do you think we might have pushed a little too far?”  Ariel playfully shoved Belle.  “It’s just a joke!  They’ll play ‘their’ game, we’ll have our fun, and maybe those two will mellow out a little.”  Belle looked in the mirror as Snow White and Cinderella were positioned at the place with the song about the world being small.  “It does feel strange lying to them, though.” 

“You’re right,” said Jasmine containing herself.  “We should tell them the truth when they get back.”  Ariel nodded solemnly.  “Yes.  After all, it would be the real princess thing to do.”  All three princesses shared a look.  “Nah!” 

Giggling, the three princesses took their seats on the couch to watch their fun, as the guests of the Magic Kingdom walked into what was certain to be a particularly ‘magical’ day. 

 

OK:

Snow White and Cinderella are being positioned at the entrance and exit (respectively) of “It’s a Small World”.  They will need to maintain their princess demeanor while dealing with Walt Disney World guests (taking pictures, asking questions).  Whichever princess is made to break first by behaving in an un-princess like manner, loses. 

Game On! 

[Callisto]

Learn More About
Snow White
Read more about Snow White at Wikipedia
Official Site: Disney Links: Wikipedia Official Site Disney Wiki

Cinderella
Read more about Cinderella at Wikipedia
Official Site: Disney Links: Cinderella Wikipedia page Cinderella imdb page Cinderella official site

[RakaiThwei]

This one is DEFINITELY an interesting match up and premise here.

Both princesses are very patient when dealing with people. So whoever breaks first is very hard to determine.

Gonna have to think about this one. 

[DSkillz]

Very good set-up and match-up, broadway. Interesting to see Ariel, Jasmine, and Belle to be a bit mischievous here. 

I had to think about this for a bit. Both Snow White and Cinderella are naturally very graceful and elegant, but while I think Cinderella's a bit older, Snow White (as the set-up mentions) was literally born and raised a princess, and therefore may have had more grooming in grace and elegance. 

Snow White just might hang a bit longer with the guests, but unless at least some of the guests are particularly unruly toward one or both of the ladies, this will definitely take awhile. 

[JohnnyChany]

Great concept and execution. I was a little confused by the characterizations at first until I picked up on what was going on. I am going with Snow White for the simple fact that she has experience dealing with a wider variety of grating personalities while keeping her sunny disposition i.e. the seven dwarves and their annoying tics. Whereas Cinderella really just had her rude step family and possibly mice that were infatuated with her.

 

[Pizzaguy2995]

Damn Ariel, Jasmine, and Belle are stirring the pot and starting shit between Cindy and Snow. What a bunch of conniving little gossip girls.

My money is on Cinderella though. The fact that’s she had to deal with her Stepmother and Stepsisters all her life and had to basically internalize it and keep up her dutiful daughter role to them all that time would give her much more patience and willpower then Snow White ever had to muster. So I don’t see Cindy losing her cool at all during this competition.

[Callisto]

Match Final Results

Member Ratings:
4.70 - DSkillz
4.20 - Pizzaguy2995
5.00 - JohnnyChany
5.00 - Culwych1
5.00 - leroypowell3

FPA Calculation:
5 Total Votes cast
23.90 Total Combined Score
23.90 / 5 = 4.78 Final Rating on the match

MATCH SCORE
Snow White: 4
Cinderella: 2

[broadwaybeyonder]

THE BOTTOM LINE

“WAAAAAAAAAAAH!!”  Snow White flinched slightly as the baby she held screamed into her ear.  She maintained her smile as the child’s mother held up her phone to take their picture.   “And that’s it!  Oh wait.  Sorry, I had the wrong filter.  Could we do that again?”  The park attendant at Snow’s side nodded with a bland expression on his face.  “I’m sure Snow White wouldn’t mind, would you, princess?”  Snow White’s jaw tightened as the baby continue to wail, but she still tried to sound pleasant.  “Oh, that would be fine.  Please, little one, look at mother and her magic box.” 

Twenty feet away, Cinderella listened to the baby’s cries with amusement.  Snow White and her had been outside of “It’s a Small World” for almost two hours now.  The sun was unbearably hot and the crowds were constantly moving, shouting, and arguing.  There’s no way that Snow would be able to outlast her.  She’d crumble and behave un-princess-like soon.   

Suddenly she felt someone tugging on her dress.  Cinderella looked down and saw a five year old girl in a Goofy hat looking up at her.  “Hello, little princess,” Cinderella said pleasantly.  “How are you today?”  The girl continued to look stone-faced at her.  “Are you supposed to be Elsa?”  Cinderella cleared her throat and glanced at her attendant.  The man just shrugged and looked bored at the sky.  “Well, no.  My name is Cinderella.   What’s your name?” 

“Where’s Elsa?” the child snapped back.  Cinderella could feel the frustration, but gritted her teeth into a smile.  “I really don’t know where Elsa is.  I’m sure she might be here later and…” 

“I WANT TO SEE ELSA!”  the child howled at the top of her lungs.  Cinderella stepped back in surprise as the child’s parents collected her.  “There, there, dear,” the mother said.  “We’ll find Elsa somewhere else.”  She turned towards Cinderella and glared at her.  “Thanks a lot.  You didn’t to make her cry, you know.”  Cinderella was about to try to explain, before stopping herself and just giving a deep sigh.  “Look, princess,” said her attendant.  “Maybe you’d like to go back to your room and rest for a while.”  Cinderella snapped herself back to attention and plastered another smile on her face.  “Oh it’s fine.  I’m perfectly alright.” 

“I’m just sayin’,” a male guest said to Snow White.  “What exactly were you doing with those dwarves in that house?”  Snow White looked confused.  “Well, we danced, and we sang.  And I helped them keep things clean.”  The guest turned to the rest of his group who were snickering and urging him on.  “Yeah, yeah.  But what did you do after that?  One girl, seven dudes?   What did you all get up to after you cleaned up?  Did you do some more ‘dancing’?”  Snow White detected the trace of lewdness in the young man’s voice.  “Excuse me?” 

“You should be ashamed of yourself!” the woman in the blue mask yelled at Cinderella.  “I don’t understand,” said Cinderella.  “What did I do?”  The woman’s eyes flashed over her mask.  “How dare you walk around this park without wearing a mask!  Think of the children!” 

“Ah lay off it!” shouted a man holding an ice cream cone.  “Everyone knows that’s all a hoax!”  The woman whirled at the man in fury.  “A hoax?!  You anti-science creep!” 

“Government stooge!” 

“Please, people, please!” Cinderella shouted, desperately trying to hold on to her temper.  The two guests were nose to nose, screaming incoherently, until the woman in the mask gave the man a shove.  He flung his arms in the air, losing his grip on his ice cream cone.  The cone arced through the air before landing squarely on Cinderella’s head. 

The crowd around Cinderella fell silent.  Her attendant looked in shock.  Cinderella stood frozen for a moment, feeling the melting pistachio ice cream dripping down her face and onto her blue dress.  She looked up with a furious look on her face.  “Very well!” she declared.  “That!  Is! It!”  She lifted her face to the sky and sang an extremely high note.  Birds began swarming and flying around the crowd, sending everyone screaming and ducking for cover.  “I’ve had it!  All of you acting so selfish!  So self centered!  Not thinking about anyone but yourselves!  Not trying to understand anybody but yourselves!  I tried to nice, but all of you wouldn’t know nice if it bit you!”    

Snow White hurried over to Cinderella, holding her hands up pleading.  “Cindy!  Cindy, please, stop!  Please, calm down!”  Cinderella spun to face Snow White, her face taut in rage.  Then, her expression softened.  She placed a hand to her face in shock as the birds flew back to the trees.  Cinderella’s attendant looked at her in disbelief.  “What the heck was that all about?  We need to get you out of here now!”  Snow White’s attendant ran up to the crowd, holding his radio.  “Brady!  We’ve got dispatch on the line!  They got reports about…whatever that was!” 

“Well, tell them it’s over, Carl,” said Brady.  “I’m escorting Cinderella to the back to get her cleaned up.” 

“That’s the thing, Brady!” Carl said.  “I was talking to dispatch!  You and me were supposed to be shadowing Winnie the Pooh and Tigger today!  Cinderella and Snow White aren’t even on the street yet!”  Brady’s jaw dropped.  “But if they aren’t on the street yet, then who the heck are…” He turned to see Snow White and Cinderella dashing into the crowd as fast as their dresses would allow.  Brady could only stare as Carl got on the radio.  “Dispatch, this is Attendant 4.  We’ve got two suspicious guests heading for Liberty Square!  They are dressed up like Snow White and Cinderella!  Better let security know!”  Carl started to run after the princesses and yelled back to Brady.  “Come on, man!  We need to stop those two, or our jobs are toast!” 

Snow White and Cinderella ran past confused guests towards the Haunted Mansion.  They ducked behind a fence and continued to run to an old maintenance shed.  “Quick!  In here!” Snow White cried.  They ran inside, and slammed the door shut.  Lit by a single, swinging bulb, Snow White and Cinderella moved a cart in front of the door and leaned against the wall in exhaustion.  “Do you think we lost them?” asked Snow White.  “How should I know?” snapped Cinderella.  “This is all your fault!”  Snow White huffed and looked away.  “Well, I wasn’t the one who lost my temper in front of all those people!” 

“And I wouldn’t have even been out there if it wasn’t for all your ‘real princess’ nonsense!”  Snow White turned back towards Cinderella.  Then she lifted up her hand to stifle a giggle.  Cinderella glared at her.  “And just what is so funny?”  Snow White slid down the wall to sit and floor, futilely attempting to keep from laughing.  “Oh!  I’m so sorry, Cindy!  But you just look so silly with that cone on your head!”  Cinderella raised her hand to her hair to find that the cone was still stuck in her bun.  She wiped some of the pistachio ice cream off her face, licked some off her fingers and shrugged.  “Not even my favorite flavor.”  Snow White went into another fit of giggles, as Cinderella started to grin.  “I don’t know what’s to laugh about,” she said, trying to hold back her own laughter.  “I don’t look as silly as you did with that baby!  She was crying loud enough to wake up Aurora!”  The two princesses both burst out laughing as they sat on the floor of the shed.  After a few seconds, Snow White leaned her head against the wall and sighed.  “Oh, what a mess!  We could have both had a nice lunch with our friends.  I wish Ariel hadn’t told me what you said about me.”   

“Snow, I’m telling you I don’t know what you’re…” Cinderella stopped herself.  “Wait a moment.  What did Ariel say I said about you?” 

“That you were wanting to have me banished from the castle.  That you thought you were more of a princess than I was.”  Cinderella got up off the floor as Snow White moved to sitting on her knees.  “Cindy?  What’s the matter?”  Cinderella started to pace around the shed.  “Snow, Belle came to me, and told me the same thing.  She said you were planning on banishing me from the castle for not being a real princess.”  Snow White rose up from the floor incensed.  “That’s a lie!  I wouldn’t want anyone to be banished!  They are all our friends!  Why would Belle say that?”  Cinderella walked back to Snow White and took her hands.  “Think about it, Snow.  Who was it that put the idea in our heads to settle our argument this way?”  Snow White’s eyes widened.  “We were listening to people talking about the Park.  Jasmine, Belle…” 

“And Ariel,” finished Cinderella.  The two princesses looked up at the ceiling of the shed. 

 

“Uh oh,” said Ariel, as she, Belle, and Jasmine saw the mirror show Snow White and Cinderella seemingly glaring back at them.  “Any more ‘genius’ ideas?” asked Jasmine balefully.  Ariel turned to Belle.  “We should have brought them back as soon as Cinderella lost her temper.  Why did you tell us to wait?” 

“We couldn’t just bring them back when they were surrounded by all those people. Two princesses disappearing into thin air?   They’d know it was real magic.”  Jasmine pulled her feet onto the couch as she continued to look at the mirror.  “Well, they’re alone now.  Should I use the spell?”  Ariel fidgeted nervously.  “Maybe we could wait until they calmed down a little?” 

“Alright, ladies,” Cinderella called through the mirror.  “You’ve had your little joke, but the game is over.” 

“Yes,” said Snow White.  “Use the mirror and bring us home right now!”  There was suddenly a commotion at the door of the shed.  The sound of running feet and someone tugging at the doorhandle.  “Okay!  We know you’re in there!  Open this door right now!”  Snow White grabbed a hold of Cinderella’s hand.  “They found us!  Oh, Jasmine, please hurry!”  Ariel turned to Jasmine.  “Do it!  Use the spell!”  Jasmine walked to the mirror, but stopped short of putting her hand on the frame.  “What are you waiting for?” asked Belle urgently.  Jasmine looked back sheepishly.  “Well, I’m having a little trouble remembering what the spell was.” 

“Jasmine!” Ariel and Belle shouted.  “Alright, alright!  I know it!  Let’s see.  No, that was for the picture.  Maybe…no that was for the sound.  Wait!  That’s it!”  Jasmine placed her hand on the frame.  The door to the shed started to push open.  Cinderella put her arm around Snow White.  “Now would be a good time, Jasmine!” 

“Reverteteur in terram suam!”  The door to shed knocked the cart aside as Brady, Carl and a security guard ran in.  But the shed was empty, and the two princesses were gone.  “I don’t get it!” said Brady.  “Everyone said they were heading this way!  Where’d they go?”  The security guard crossed his arms and glared at the two attendants.  “I don’t know about that.  But I do know we are going to have a little talk with your supervisor.  Honestly, some strange women walk up to you pretending to be princesses, and you just accept that they are employees without even checking in?  Let’s go.”  Brady and Carl slowly trudged out of the shed, and the guard closed the door behind them. 

At that same moment, Snow White and Cinderella fell out of the mirror back into the banquet hall of the castle.  Ariel stood behind the couch as Jasmine pulled the curtain back in front of the mirror.  Belle ran to help up Cinderella.  “I’m so glad you two are home safe.  Oh, Cindy, let me get that thing out of your hair.”  Cinderella held up a hand to stop Belle, then pulled the cone out with a final yank.  Ariel and Jasmine joined Belle in front of the two beleaguered princesses, and shuffled their feet.  Ariel cleared her throat.  “I just want to say I’m sorry to you both.  This was all my idea.  The two of you always seemed so poised and so calm.  It made me wonder what it would take to make you lose your tempers.” 

“Ariel told us that maybe we could get you to argue if you thought the other one was saying mean things about you,” Jasmine chimed in.  “But none of it was real.  It was just a game.  For fun.”  Belle chuckled nervously.  “And you have to admit, it was kind of funny when that ice cream landed in your…”  Belle fell silent when she saw Snow White and Cinderella’s stony gaze.  “The point is,” said Ariel.  “It was a dumb joke, and I’m sorry.” 

“We’re all sorry,” said Jasmine.  “Yes, very sorry,” said Belle.  Snow White and Cinderella’s expressions had not changed.  They stood in front of the three princesses in silence.  “Well?” asked Ariel.  “Please don’t just stand there.  Yell at us.  Tell us how foolish we were.  Say something!”  Cinderella turned to look at Snow White.  “I really don’t feel like saying anything.  Do you?”  Snow White shook her head.  “No.  In fact, I actually feel like…singing.” 

With that, Snow White started to sing a deceptively cheerful melody, with Cinderella harmonizing with her.  The other three princesses looked on in confusion, until they saw the flocks of birds gathering at the open windows, and mice, squirrels, skunks, and other woodland creatures gathering at the doors of the banquet hall.  Ariel started to back away slowly toward the exit.  “You know?  It’s moments like this where I’m glad I have legs.”  Jasmine and Belle backed up alongside her.  “Why?” asked Belle.  “Oh, you know.  Now I know how to walk, and to dance, and to…RUN!” 

The princesses turned and bolted out of the banquet hall, followed by the stampede of wildlife.  Snow White and Cinderella walked hand in hand back to the table, as the sound of screaming, screeching, and running feet echoed through the castle.  Cinderella pulled a chair next to Snow White as she freshened up her tea.  “How long do you think we should keep this up?”  Snow White poured some tea for Cinderella as well.  “Oh, for an hour or two.  Two hours of exercise seems fair after what we’ve been through today.”  Cinderella listened to the cacophony of noises clattering through the halls of the castle, then gave a wry smile to Snow White.  “You know, this doesn’t feel very princess-like, does it?”  Snow White took a sip of her tea with a mischievous look in her eyes.  “No.  But it certainly does feel…fun.” 

[broadwaybeyonder]

Thanks for helping this Match break 1K views!