Cinderella - Poem

Gazes gathered to a single figure
A collective gasp pierces stilled air
In the subsequent silence one could hear a pin drop
Maybe even the quiet whooshing as it fell

Chatters, whispers, murmurings
'Who is that girl?'
'What is her name?'
Ahh, but many here have seen her
What about her now captivates them?

Her dress ashone; such elegance
Quite the contrast to faded rags
Her tresses styled to perfection
No longer a mass just loosely tied

The steps she takes embody grace
With poise she glides about the room
She has always had that lovely face
Her complexion now glows; the dirt removed

Her appearance has changed; but not her heart
Yes, inside she's still the same...
Save perhaps her wonder at this night;
A sequence of events quite astonishing...

A servant one moment; dressed as a princess the next
What on Earth will happen now?
A handsome stranger approaches
And although she doesn't know it
This man is actually a prince who has singled her out

He bows to her cheerfully and in the most pleasant manner;
He requests, she accepts, and they dance
The melody plays merrily
Order entwined with entropy
While a fluttering spreads within two shy hearts

The song comes to an end
But something else is just beginning
No point in trying to pretend
That she's not the reason he's grinning

He leads her out onto the terrace, so they can be alone
He's lived his whole life in a palace
But could she make it a home?

Gentle voices speak softly in polite conversation
Their owners mutually enchanted; dually charmed
What a fine thing she'd come at the king's invitation!
Else this assemblage surely would've been so frightfully dull!

She is elegant; she is beautiful...
And yet to him that's not what matters
He is wiser than that, and old enough to know
That's not what makes a happily ever after

It is the sweetness of her soul
The kindness felt in words soft spoken
She laughs without a trace of scorn
And deep within her eyes; compassion

Her presence alone was comforting
For she even heard him in the silence
Call it affinity, fated, destined to be...
But it was as though life without her'd mean nothing

To say the prince was taken...
Would've been an understatement...

But before he could prevent her
The clock struck twelve and she was gone...

A glass shoe all he had left of her

And a heartfelt confession... still in his heart