Chapter 16 A Momentous Occasion
When I got back to our room, there was a surprise waiting. A garment bag made from fancy, tissue-like paper had been placed neatly on my bed. There was a card with my name on the front in frilly, gold handwriting.
"Ah, brilliant! And just in time too!" I looked over at Amber, who had a similar bag in her hands. We were sporting identical, goofy grins.
The carefully wrapped package could only be one thing. At the exact same moment, Amber and I tore the paper away excitedly.
Now, as I stood with a dress in my hands that was more beautiful than anything I had ever owned in my life, I realized that Cleopatra's flattery hadn't been mere flattery after all. In a very short time, Lady Lovilla had created the perfect ballgown for me.
It was made of a soft fabric in forest green and black. The bodice was decorated with dustings of green and silver sequins. It looked like stars scattered across a midnight black sky, or raindrops on leaves of evergreen.
Amber's own dress was a creation of burnt orange and crimson, something dramatic with feathers that sparkled like dark fire.
Amber was usually so down-to-earth and practical that I would have expected her to be uncomfortable with a dress with so much flair, and yet, it really captured her unique essence.
We helped each other to get dressed and to do our hair.
All around us, other women were doing the same until our room was filled with the scent of creams and exotic oils, and the sounds of laughter, bantering, and beauty tips being thrown around like confetti.
When we were finally ready for the ball, Amber and I stood side by side at the full-length mirror, and I was blown away by how different we looked from our everyday selves.
My hair was piled high on my head in twists and curls.
The bodice hugged my figure flatteringly, and my mother's pendant was on display and rested between my breasts and the cleavage I had never realized I had.
I swayed from side to side and felt the feather-light fabric whisper against my legs.
The dress included matching slippers that sat gently on my feet, making them feel as if they were being hugged by clouds.
I was amazed and very grateful to Lady Lovilla and to Cleopatra for making the introduction.
We made our way downstairs in a throng of women dressed in exotic finery.
Butterflies danced in my belly as we stepped through the large doors leading to the dining hall.
We weren't the first. Students were already enjoying themselves inside when we arrived.
It was a celebration, so there were no formal speeches we had to listen to before the event kicked off.
I couldn't believe how different the dining hall looked.
It had been decorated for the ball. The walls and ceiling were draped with midnight blue fabrics in chiffon and silk.
Candles hanging in the air created an effect like a star-spangled evening sky.
Either the fabric was fire-retardant, or the candles were shimmering with magical flame that wouldn't make the draperies catch fire.
I didn't know which, but I didn't much care.
All I knew was that it was gorgeous and special.
It felt like walking around inside some sort of magnificent dream.
The tables and chairs were bedecked in pure white.
Against one of the walls were tables groaning under dishes piled high with food.
Pork roast, chicken, duck, and lamb; thick stews in simmering pots; a tower of fresh bread rolls on trays; fruits, puddings, sugar-spun confections in all the colors of the rainbow; jellies and ice sculptures; jugs of exotic juices and wines.
There was more food than I had ever seen in my life.
Some of the students were already picking over the feast, dishing it onto plates.
Others had taken their food to the tables and were dining with ravenous gusto.
With white roses and soft candlelight, the smaller tables made it seem as if the students were dining in heaven among the clouds.
The partygoers themselves seemed more adult than I had ever seen them looking before.
Here and there, I spotted an instructor or a member of staff, but most of the beautiful people flitting between the tables were students like myself, only in their fancy dress were they elevated to something extraordinary.
The room adjacent to the dining hall was the grandest ballroom in the castle and had been similarly decorated.
We had never been in there before, since the doors to that room were normally kept shut.
Now, because it was a special occasion, the doors were thrown open so students could move freely between the dining hall, the ballroom, and the gardens beyond as they wished.
A band was playing lively music in the ballroom, and the sound spilled into the dining hall. Glancing through the open doorway, I could see a number of people twirling around in a complicated, upbeat dance.
We were still gawking at everything when Oliver appeared, looking like a dashing prince in his own formal attire.
He bowed deeply in front of us and held out his hands.
"Milady Cole and Milady Wood. May I escort you to your table?
" The wicked grin on his face spoiled the effect a bit, and we had to laugh, but we took his arms and let him lead us through the dining hall to an open table.
Oliver brought us our first drinks. A few sips down, I realized that whatever was in this delicious, innocent-looking concoction was going straight to my head because I hadn't eaten anything since that afternoon.
The three of us went to fill plates at the food table.
We sat down with our meals, and when every last morsel had disappeared from our plates, it was time to join in the dancing.
The band consisted of a lute player, three fiddlers, a violinist, and two singers. They were a good mix of men and women, of different ages. I thought they were fantastic and wondered where the Academy had found such skillful musicians, if they had gone to school here as well.
Vivian Salvina, whose parents owned the local tavern in her hometown, actually knew the steps of the dance, and she obliged us by giving a demonstration.
We joined in, and soon we were making up steps of our own.
It resulted in so much laughter and back-and-forth banter that other men and women joined us until we were all taking turns dancing with each other.
I didn't know the names of even half the people, as they were in different classes, some of them second or third years too, but none of us minded.
It was joyful. I couldn't remember the last time I'd had so much carefree, unburdened fun.
The hours slipped by, and by the time the fifth or sixth song rolled around, I excused myself to get another drink.
I opted for a simple sparkling water to quench my thirst. Standing against the wall and watching the others still twirling around and around, I finished my drink quickly so I could rejoin the fun.
After a few more songs, the music finally faded, and the leader of the band called for our attention.
"Ladies and gentlemen, there will be a short intermission of about half an hour, as some of you need to catch your breath before the commencement of this final part of the evening.
" Good-natured laughter followed this because we knew what was coming.
"Then you will have the opportunity to summon your mates, to have the last few dances with them. "
Amber and Vivian turned to me. "Want to come with us to refresh our makeup?"
I shook my head. I needed a few moments to myself.
I made my excuses to Amber and the rest of them as they left for the dormitory.
Here and there, other students were already performing their summonings, and mates from the Pacted Realms were popping into existence all around us.
It was getting noisy and chaotic on the dancefloor.
I headed for the double doors that would lead to the gardens. Others were headed outside as well, and I hoped to slip unnoticed into my favorite spot, the one under the elm tree where I had spent so many evenings alone with my mates.
I was in luck. My section of the garden, that special spot, looked deserted. I sat down for a few moments on the empty bench.
I closed my eyes and gathered my will. I hoped my message would reach all three of them. "If you'd like, there's a ball tonight. At the Academy. I really want all three of you to dance with me. But I can only take one of you back for the official dance..."
The rest of my plea died on my lips as a bright light shone on the back of my eyelids. I opened my eyes and saw a cold orb of white light hovering above the ground. "What in the world?" This was different. None of my mates had appeared in that form before. Had I even finished the summoning?
As I watched, the orb pulsed and seemed to sway slowly from side to side.
It seemed aware of me. Aware and playful.
I felt a moment of unease. There were creatures in the Pacted Realms that could be dangerous for mortals.
Things that sometimes found their way into our world and would lead travelers astray for their own amusement.
The Fae Realm often had creatures like that, but how would one have ended up here, at the exact moment I was trying to summon my mates?