Sometimes a Damsel in Distress doesn't need to be rescued!
Synderella.. Glass Kicker
"Where once stood a defeated girl in tattered clothing, stood a one woman force for good, a force to be reckoned with."
Time was on her side.
Waiting. Waiting... always a step behind. Waiting on a dream, waiting on a family, waiting on love, waiting on a miracle. She prayed for deliverance from the heartless home to which she was abandoned and had suffered ridicule and abuse for so long. Her fairy godmother had promised her all she had wished for in that night, the escape to a better life, at least for one night, but her reverie of swirling around the ballroom with the man of her "dreams" was suddenly jarred into a state of disbelief when he spoke of his life. Charming? More like dullard! On and on he droned insipidly. Where she spent her sorrowful life in joyful service, he spoke with disdain for the servants, his parents, and found a vapid meaning of life in nothing but material possessions and grandeur. He knew nothing of grace or strength of character. First impressions were enough for her, and finally as the music was overshadowed by the peals of the midnight hour, she made her way, not out of the castle, but up the clock tower stairs.
She could see out over the entire kingdom through the immense, faceted glass timepiece. Through tear filled eyes she wondered if there would ever be a place she would fit in this male dominated world. A world full of vacuous girls trying to curry favor from inflated men who would determine their destiny of fortune or famine. She could feel the combined emotions of anger and hopelessness seething, bubbling up until she could take no more. She flung her crystal slipper at the clock with all the might, frustration, anger, despair and hope she could muster. A deafening, splintering crack like thunder, a piercing light... then blackness befell her.
She awoke dazed, filled with the confusion that comes with waking in a strange place. When she shook the mental cobwebs away, the night's memories all rushed in and she hung her head in sorrow and shame. She heard a shuffling sound somewhere in the darkness and peered into the black corners of the clock tower trying to catch a glimpse of the intruder. Gliding out of the shadows was Beatrice, Bringer of Joy, her fairy godmother. "My child, my child. I wondered when you would come to your senses. You are not only fair of face you know. You have a strength of spirit which has served you well through your trials. This was your final test. This world is not meant for strong willed young women, and most will push their creativity and intelligence and compassion and loving nature down just to be taken care of by heartless men who hold the reins of power. Not you my child. You held the Prince mesmerized, but rather than succumb to a need for release and security, you said "ENOUGH!" and sought escape. I couldn't be prouder of you."
"Test? A Test? Are you as cruel as all the other people in my life? So where does this leave me and how do I explain this complete mess I've created?" she pleaded. "It's all well and good that I made you proud, but I have to go back now to a home where I am neither loved nor wanted, or more likely, live out the rest of my wretched life in a prison for the damage I've caused!"
"No my child. Your past was your prison. You are now, finally, set free. Free to steer your own destiny, and those of women just like you! By the graces of the gods, from whence my blessed powers come, you are now bestowed with the strength of 10, and the resources to fulfill the righting of the myriad wrongs of this realm. No more subjugation and cinders for you my child. No more waiting. Now Time is on your side! You will have the help of all the other creatures who walk the earth in your quest, so go forth and change this despised world and recreate it in your likeness!"
Hence on that day, a warrior was forged from the embers. A new transformation took place. Where once stood a defeated girl in tattered clothing, stood a one woman force for good, a force to be reckoned with. Strength, courage, and compassion were her weapons as she battled for the weak and abused in the whole of the kingdom. She remained in legend for centuries as a beacon for those who truly believe that there is a better way, and for those who sought to change it. She had been mocked in her former life with a name which described her as nothing more than soot and refuse. She now bore a new name derived from her unique synergy of strength, love, hope, compassion and connection to the natural world... Synderella.
Now she wears the essences of old friends long gone who imbue her with their loyalty and purpose.