Cursed Beauty (A Fairy Retelling #1) by Dorian Tsukioka

smiling at her. “Good morning, Adelaide. Ready to learn proper cutting techniques?”
    Adelaide sighed, disappointed it was not Prince Julian on her doorstep, after all. She was, however, very grateful to see her new friend. “You have impeccable timing. I’ve just started making breakfast. I’m going to be in trouble, though, if anyone wants something more to eat than boiled eggs.”
    When Celeste and Thalia finally awoke, breakfast was ready, thanks to Merelyn’s help. Adelaide took her breakfast in the kitchen, and continued talking with her friend.
    “So did you honor the prince’s request and meet him at the ball last night?” Merelyn finally asked.
    Adelaide nodded. “I did.”
    “How was it?” her friend asked.
    Adelaide desperately wanted to tell Merelyn all about the ball, the glass slippers and the fairy godmother. She had never had a girlfriend to share her secrets with before, and she longed to talk about the strange night with her friend. She wasn’t sure, though, what Merelyn’s reaction might be to the story of the fairy godmother, and the use of magic. She still wasn’t sure what she thought of the whole thing herself. She trusted Merelyn, though, who had already proved herself to be a good friend.
    “If I show you something, will you promise to keep an open mind?” she asked. Merelyn nodded. Adelaide walked to her room. When she returned, the glass slippers were in her hands.
    Merelyn stared at the shoes while Adelaide finally told her the entire story of the fairy godmother, the glass slippers and the ball.
    “Are they really magic?” Merelyn asked in a voice just above a whisper.
    “Yes, quite.”
    Merelyn’s fingers hovered above the glass slippers. “May I?” she asked.
    “Yes.”
    “Wondrous,” Merelyn said, her fingers lingering on the glass shoes.
    “The fairy godmother said I should go to the ball again tonight. Then, I can apologize to Prince Julian, and she thinks, fall in love. The problem though, is how to talk to him. When I put the shoes on, he didn’t recognize me at all.”
    “Does it really change you so much?”
    Adelaide stood, and slipped her feet inside smooth glass shoes. The change was instant. Her hair loosened into soft curls about her shoulders. Callouses from two days of household labor disappeared and left hands that were soft and white. She knew her birthmark had disappeared as well.
    “Amazing,” Merelyn whispered. She couldn’t stop gazing at Adelaide’s face. “May I?” she asked, her hand hovering just above Adelaide’s cheek. Adelaide nodded. Gently, Merelyn touched Adelaide’s face where her birthmark had been.
    “Now you see why I can’t exactly show up looking like this, and then tell Prince Julian who I am. He will think I’m mad.” Adelaide removed the slippers, and felt her body return to normal. “What a shame I can’t stay like this forever.” 
    “What do you mean? I don’t think it’s a shame at all. The change is stunning, but it’s not real. You told me yourself that Prince Julian called you beautiful, and spent the night tending you at your bedside. That was for you, not some glamorized copy of you.”
    Adelaide stared hard at the glass slippers, sitting in her hands. Merelyn was right. The shoes were amazing, but they were a lie. And what would she do once the night of the third ball ended? She couldn’t very well keep wearing the glass slippers all the time. Though she might like the change, it wasn’t really her, and it certainly wasn’t something she could continue indefinitely.
    Adelaide had an idea. “Would you like to wear them tonight and go to the ball in my stead?” she asked her friend.
    Merelyn’s eyes widened. “What you said is right,” Adelaide continued, “I want to speak to the prince as myself, not someone he won’t recognize. But, I can’t exactly enter the ball myself. Even my finest gown would have me sticking out like a sore thumb. Celeste made it clear that she doesn’t want me