When Jacquelyn found Ella, she was crying on the floor in the middle of a mess of lentils.

"Ella, what on earth are you doing?" Jacquelyn asked.

 Ella looked at her through her fingers and said "I can't go to the (sniff) ball!"

"What!?" Jacquelyn gasped. "Why not?"

"I- (sniff) for-(sniff) forgot one (wail) of my chores!" Ella cried.

"Which one?" Jacquelyn said kneeling next to the weeping girl. Jacquelyn put her hand on Ella's back and rubbed in a circular motion to calm her down.

"The lentils- stepmother said I had to clean up the lentils!" 

"Ah shit." Jacquelyn said as she examined the mess on the floor. "I'll see what I can do, but I don't know any cleaning spells." She was a bit embarrassed about the fact that she couldn't clean the floor but she had never really had to work before. There were a lot of maids in her grandmother's castle and Jacquelyn had never even had to make her own bed. "Do you know anyone who would help?"

Ella blushed. "The only people I know are those I've hooked up with." She said. "No one really talks to me haha" her face looked sad despite her joking words.

Jacquelyn pulled her friend into a hug. "I may have a solution." She said after considering it for a moment.

"Really?" Ella asked.

"Maybe."

.

Ella worked as much as she could while Jacquelyn tried to form a full plan. She couldn't hire anyone because she had forgotten to bring money and commoners hated witches, Ella was an unexpected phenomenon. Though Jacquelyn had sought Ella out, she had expected to need to change the story from the shadows rather then beside the protagonist and she had been surprised when Ella had been so accepting and enthusiastic about her magic.

Jacquelyn knelt on the ground and muttered some words over her palm in order to make a thin silver ring appear. Using her pointer finger (or index finger) she carefully scribed small runes onto the inside of the ring. As she wrote the runes lit up and the rings faded to a metallic purple rather the the original silver. Jacquelyn handed the ring to Ella who stared at it.

"Why are you giving me a ring?" She asked.

"It's enchanted." Jacquelyn answered simply.

Ella nodded as show that she understood but her face was red and she slipped it onto her finger. "What now?" She asked.

"Sing."

"...sing?"

"Sing."

"Why in the world would I sing?" Ella asked.

Jacquelyn sighed. "The enchantment goes into effect when it hears a melody."

"Why don't you sing then?"

"I am really terrible."

"I doubt it." Ella smirked. "Sing for me!" She said playfully.

"Fine. You!re goin to regret this though." Jacquelyn grumbled. "OoOoOh~ wE'rE hAlF wAy ThErE~ OOOOOOOOOOH~ LiVin' On A prRaYeR~" the tempo was good and the dynamics were good but the notes were completely jumbled and flat.

"Holy shit, that was terrible." Ella laughed.

"I told you!" Jacquelyn said. "So now you gotta sing."

Ella laughed for a moment longer before she sang a line. "Baby shark, do, do dodododo, baby shark do, do, dodododo" her voice rang out strong and clear. It wasn't as good as some but with vocal training it had potential. Ella continued the different verses:

Mama shark.

Daddy shark.

Grandma shark.

Grandpa shark.

Out for a stroll.

Highwaymen attack.

Lost a vital organ.

Lost another.

CPR.

It's not working.

Seeing light.

Went to heaven.

It's not heaven...

Jacquelyn stared in horror at Ella when she had finished. "That was so dark!"

"Sorry~" Ella said without the tiniest bit of remorse. "It's the only one I know!"

"Luckily, magic doesn't care what the song is about." Jacquelyn said. "It should work now." The two joined hands and Jacquelyn muttered some words under her breath, "bonus." 

Suddenly, at least fifty birds swept in through the open window and stood at attention in front of the two girls. "What's happening?" Ella asked.

"Shh!" Jacquelyn said while putting a finger to her lips. She turned to the birds (many different kinds, robins, jays, chickens, any you could think of.) and instructed them to "pick up the lentils and put them in this jar." The birds immediately set to work and the mess started showing signs of differences.

"Cinderella!" Someone yelled.

"I'm coming!" Ella called back. She shot Jacquelyn an apologetic look before she darted off to assist her guardian.

Jacquelyn continued to direct the birds but she soon heard footsteps getting close to the room. She quickly scrambled under the desk to hide and told the birds to leave.

 No sooner had the last little finch left then the door was flung open and Jacquelyn heard a smooth voice say "...and anyway, I'm sure mother won't mind that much."

A second voice said, "she'll definitely mind! You can't just take her things without permission!"

"Sure I can! Watch!" The first said.

Jacquelyn heard sounds of someone sifting through jewelry (you know, that sound of little metal objects repeatedly making contact with one another?) "Stella! Stop that!" The second voice said.

From out in the hall the stepmother called out, "girls! It's time to leave!"

"Shit!" The first voice said.

"Just let it be!" Said the second. "You don't need it!"

A question was posed by the stepmother who soon was walking into the room, she asked; "what is taking you two so long? We need to leave!"

"Mother!" The two girls said in unison. 

"Come on! Get ready! Grab your coats and hats!" The stepmother ordered. Two pairs of footsteps quickly exited the room. "Cinderella, have you finished the last of your chores?"

Jacquelyn heard Ella's voice though she hadn't heard her come in. "Nearly!"

The stepmother clicked her tongue, "nearly isn't complete. I'm afraid you cannot go tonight."

"But it's so close!" Ella begged.

"If I relent this time then you'll get spoiled and start expecting special treatment. The world doesn't settle for almost, Cinderella." Her stepmother said.

Under the desk, Jacquelyn almost said "no!" But stopped herself at the last second and instead only bumped her wrist on the wood.

"What was that?" The women asked.

"It was nothing, stepmother." Ella said quickly.

"Hm."

Jacquelyn heard the footsteps leave the room. Ella appeared in front of her, once again with teary eyes. "I can't go!" She cried.