Slippers of Glass
Slippers of glass weren't intended for dancing;
They're all I had to wear.
I did not come for the chance of romancing,
I would not dream to dare.
They tell me that the story's spread
For leagues beyond my door,
And now I share a prince's bed --
I'd once have swept his floor.
Glassmaker's daughter whom nobody wanted,
I only came to dance.
I had been beaten and I had been taunted;
I never had a chance.
They tell me that the story's grown
To something strange and wild.
I never could have guessed or known
I'd bear a prince's child.
The story will change every time that it's told,
For that is how fairy tales last.
I'll still be the girl who came out of the cold
By dancing in slippers of glass.
I knew no gentleness, I knew no kindness;
Just cinders and commands.
I was the tool of my stepmother's blindness,
The slave to her demands.
They tell me that the story's gone
To lands I've never seen;
And still my story carries on,
And someday, I'll be queen.
Mother, oh mother, oh, you should have seen me
When I danced at the ball.
Glassmaker's daughter by masquerade set free,
The fairest of them all...
They tell me that the story's more
Than just what's come to pass...
But I won all I'd wish, and more,
With slippers made of glass.
The story will change every time that it's told,
For that is how fairy tales last.
I'll still be the girl who came out of the cold
By dancing in slippers of glass.
And I am the girl who came out of the cold
By dancing in slippers of glass.Written on: 2008-11-10. Seanan McGuire