After the Fairytale is a Cinderella fanfic by Emmie0928. It deconstructs Happily Ever After by depicting events after Ella's marriage to Prince Edmund. Bored with the repetitiveness and constraints of her royal life, Ella takes a job in a bookshop run by the aloof and reserved Henry Toulson, who arouses strong passions in Ella from the moment they meet again after almost ten years apart.
It can be read here
.
After the Fairytale contains examples of:
- Aerith and Bob: With all the OCs having thoroughly English names like Edmund, Anna, Sarah and James, the names of Ella's stepsisters (Anastasia and Drizella) start to stand out.
- Awesome Moment of Crowning: Averted, as Ella's morning sickness causes her and Edmund's coronation to descend into farce.
- Dances and Balls: It is at a ball to celebrate her birthday that Ella discovers that Edmund is cheating on her. Ouch.
- Distant Finale: The epilogue takes place several years after the rest of the story, judging by the age of Ella's daughter.
- The Ghost: Henry's fiancee, Mary, is talked of but never seen.
- Mama's Baby, Papa's Maybe: Averted when Henry's fiancee Mary becomes pregnant; Henry knows full well it isn't his baby because he insisted on pre-marital celibacy.
- Prince Charmless:
- Prince Edmund is revealed as this pretty early on, but eventually develops into a Jerk with a Heart of Gold.
- An even more egregious example would be Prince Alexander, who is not only physically repulsive but is also a racist, wife-beating douchebag who tries to molest Ella.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something:
- Averted with Ella, whose boredom with her royal life is the reason she gets a job in a bookshop.
- Edmund seems to be an example of this trope, as he takes the kingdom into war.
- Talk to the Fist: A chance encounter between Anna, James and Peter, Anna's Jerkass Ex, ends with James decking Peter to the ground.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Ella delivers one to Jane after she catches her sleeping with Edmund
