Cinder. A Warped Fairy Tale

Cinder. A Warped Fairy Tale

Draco is forced to live as a house-elf in his own family manor, but there is still hope: The Chosen One might rescue him with true love's first kiss.

There was once a rich gentleman who made the Dark Lord his enemy. When he felt his end drawing near one autumn evening, he called to his only son to come near his bed, and said, "Dear child, be cunning and use any means, and you will always achieve your ends." And then he closed his eyes and expired, to join his lady in the grave and in the undiscovered country. The son went every day to his parents' grave and mourned, but was determined to always stay cunning and use any means to achieve his ends. When the winter came the snow covered the grave with a white covering, and when the sun came in the early spring and melted it away, the Dark Lord lived in the manor and ruled over the countryside.

The Dark Lord brought his Death Eaters home with him, and they were evil and powerful in appearance, and at heart were black and ugly. And then began very evil times for the poor boy. "Is the stupid creature to sit in the same room with us?" said they; "those who eat food must earn it. Out upon him for a house-elf!" They snapped his wand, took away his pretty robes, and put on him an old grey cloth.

"Just look now at the proud Malfoy heir, how he is decked out!" cried they laughing, and then they sent him into the kitchen. There he was obliged to do heavy work from morning to night, get up early in the morning, draw water, make the fires, cook, and wash. Besides that, the Death Eaters did their utmost to torment him, mocking him, and strewing peas and lentils among the ashes, and setting him to pick them up. In the evenings, when he was quite tired out with his hard day's work, he had no bed to lie on, but was transfigured into a ferret and obliged to rest on the hearth among the cinders. And as he always looked dusty and dirty, they named him Cinder and soon he forgot his real name.

It happened one day that the Dark Lord went out, and he asked his Death Eaters what he should bring back for them. "Gold!" said one. "Silver, and gemstones!" said another. "But what will you have, Cinder?" said he.

"The first twig is what I should like you to bring me", the boy said, cunningly thinking it might make a new wand one day.

So the Dark Lord brought treasures for his Death Eaters, gold, silver and gemstones, and he broke off a hazel-twig, and carried it home with him. And when he reached the manor, he gave to the Death Eaters what they had wished for, and to Cinder he gave the hazel-twig. He thanked him, and went to his parents' grave, and planted this twig there, sobbing so bitterly that the tears fell upon it and watered it, and it flourished and became a fine tree. Cinder went to see it three times a day, and cried to water the tree, and each time a house-elf sat hidden in the branches of the tree and if he uttered any wish the house-elf brought him whatever he had wished for.

Now it came to pass that the Minister of Magic ordained a festival that should last for three days, and to which all the beautiful young witches of that country were bidden, so that the pure-blood wizards might choose a bride from among them. When the Death Eaters heard about it, they felt very pleased, and they called Cinder, and said, "Wash our robes, brush our shoes, and make our buckles fast, we are going to the ball at the ministry."

Cinder, when he heard this, thought this might be a chance for escape, and he begged the Dark Lord to allow him to go to the ball. "What, you Cinder!" said he, "in all your dust and dirt, you want to go to the festival! You that have no dress-code robe and no shoes! You want to dance!" But as he persisted in asking, at last the Dark Lord said, "I have strewed a dish-full of beetle eyes in the ashes, and if you can pick them all up again in two hours you may go with us." Then Cinder went to the backdoor that led into the garden, and called out, "O all gentle house-elves that be, the beetle eyes in ashes lie, come and pick up for me! The good must be put in the dish, the bad you may eat if you wish."

Then there came to the kitchen-door all the house-elves of the manor. They alighted among the ashes; and the elves nodded with their heads, and began to pick, peck, pick, peck, and put all the good eyes into the dish. Before an hour was over, all was done, and they ran away. Then Cinder brought the dish to the Dark Lord, feeling joyful, and thinking that now he should go to the feast and escape the manor; but the Dark Lord said, "No, Cinder, you have no proper robes, and you do not know how to dance, and you would be laughed at!" And when Cinder cried for disappointment, the Dark Lord added, "If you can pick two dishes full of beetle eyes out of the ashes, nice and clean, you shall go with us," thinking to himself, "for that is not possible." When he had strewed two dishes full of beetle eyes among the ashes, Cinder went through the backdoor into the garden, and cried,

"O all gentle house-elves that be,
the beetle eyes in ashes lie,
come and pick up for me!
The good must be put in the dish,
the bad you may eat if you wish."

So there came to the kitchen-door a crowd of all the house-elves of the manor, whispering and chattering, and they alighted among the ashes, and the elves nodded with their heads and began to pick, peck, pick, peck, and put all the good eyes into the dish. And before half-an-hour was over it was all done, and they ran away. Then Cinder took the dishes to the Dark Lord, feeling joyful, and thinking that now he should go with them to the feast and escape; but the Dark Lord said "All this is of no good to you; you cannot come with us, for you have no proper robes, and cannot dance; you would put us to shame." Then he turned his back on poor Cinder, and made haste to set out with his proud Death Eaters.

And as there was no one left in the house, Cinder went to his parents' grave, under the hazel bush, and cried,

"Little tree, little tree, shake over me,
That silver and gold and glass may come down and cover me."

Then the hidden house-elf threw down a robe of green inlaid with white gold and silver, and a pair of silk slippers embroidered with glass and silver. And in all haste the young man put on the robes and went to the festival. But the Dark Lord and the Death Eaters did not know him, and thought he must be a foreign warlock, he looked so handsome in his golden robes. Of Cinder they never thought at all, and supposed that he was sitting at home, arid picking the beetle eyes out of the ashes.

A young wizard with dark hair and spectacles came to meet him, and took him by the hand and danced with him, and he refused to stand up with anyone else, so that he might not be obliged to let go his hand; and when any one came to claim it, the young wizard answered, "He is my partner."

But under his breath, the young wizard revealed that he was the Chosen One, looking for a way to defeat the Dark Lord, for he had recognized the young man by his pale grey eyes.

And when the evening came, the young man did not want to go home, but the Chosen One said he needed him to, for he wanted a spy in the Dark Lord’s manor.

So when the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters entered the house, there sat Cinder in his dirty cloth among the cinders, and a little oil-lamp burnt dimly in the chimney; for Cinder had been very quick, and had run to the hazel bush; and there he had taken off his beautiful robes and slippers and had laid them on the grave, and the house-elf had carried it away again, and then Cinder had put on his little gray kirtle cloth, and had sat down in the kitchen among the cinders waiting to be transfigured.

The next day, when the festival began anew, and the Dark Lord and Death Eaters had gone to it, Cinder went to the hazel bush and cried,

"Little tree, little tree, shake over me,
That silver and gold and glass may come down and cover me."

Then the house-elf cast down a still more splendid dress-code robe and slippers than on the day before. And when the young man appeared in it among the guests, everyone was astonished at his beauty. The Chosen One had been waiting until he came, and he took Cinder’s hand and danced with him alone. And when anyone else came to invite the young man, the Chosen One said, "He is my partner." And under disguise of their dance, they plotted the Dark Lord’s demise.

But when a Death Eater came too close to them, Cinder broke away from the Chosen One, and ran into the garden at the back of the house. There stood a fine large tree, and he leapt as lightly as a squirrel among the branches, and he hid there until the Death Eater was gone.

And when the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters returned to the manor and went into the kitchen to transfigure him for the night, there sat Cinder among the cinders, as usual, for he had gotten down the other side of the tree, and had taken back his beautiful robes to the elf on the hazel bush, and had put on his old grey cloth again.

On the third day, when the Dark Lord and the Death Eaters had set off, Cinder went again to his parents' grave, and said to the tree,

"Little tree, little tree, shake over me,
That silver and gold and glass may come down and cover me."

Then the house-elf cast down an emerald silk robe, the like of which had never been seen for splendour and brilliancy, and slippers that were inlaid in glass and white gold. And when he appeared in this robe at the feast nobody knew what to say for wonderment. The Chosen One danced with him alone, and if anyone else asked Cinder he answered, "He is my partner." And under disguise of their dance, they plotted the Dark Lord’s demise.

And when it was evening, Cinder needed to go home, and the Chosen One wanted to go with him and kill the Dark Lord on the spot, but Cinder ran past him so quickly that the Chosen One could not follow him. But the Chosen One was tired of waiting and plotting for he was a Gryffindor and the bravery of a lion blazed in his heart. So the next morning he went to the manor and he killed the Dark Lord with a mighty spell.

The Death Eaters were thunderstruck and grew pale with anger for their master was dead; but the Chosen One put Cinder before him on his broom and flew off.

And when Cinder’s wedding with the Chosen One was appointed to be held, the Death Eaters came, hoping to revenge their master. So as the grooms shared true love’s first kiss, the Death Eaters ran towards them, but the house-elves attacked and killed them all because of their wickedness and falsehood. And the Chosen One, Cinder, and their house-elves lived happily ever after and never touched beetle eyes ever again.

Notes:

I hope you enjoyed this!