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Chapter 5: The Party

Days rolled through. Ella and her mother practiced using their magic, while George and his family remained far away from bearing their faces in the house; until one fateful morning. Waking up that morning, the sound of loud booming startled Ella awake. Thrusting her body out of her bed, she ran over to the window and saw an unfamiliar sight. Men dressed in fine clothing, held out skinny black wands and formed magical tents in Ella's backyard. Her attention, fixated on the presence of magic being used with such care in her own backyard. Suddenly, the sound of loud, chattering yelling caught Ella's attention. She looked over and saw George with his family, alongside her mother, preparing for the festivities. Thorn, barking orders at the men like she were a goddess in reign, held out her wand in a threatening manner to the men. Ella winced at the thought of being in the same area as Thorn. Within a moment, Thorn stopped yelling and turned her attention over to Ella, high above the courtyard, who still stood there, watching. She paused as the feeling of Thorn watching her made her feel uneasy. She turned away from the window and went to sit on her vanity. She stood there, staring at her reflection. She sighed and fixed her hair, stared at her nose, and then paused as she heard nothing coming from the outside courtyard. The sound of silence was uneasy in her head. Suddenly, hearing a particular clanking on her wooden floors, Ella heard a commotion coming to her.

"Why haven't you gotten ready yet!" Thorn yelled at Ella from the doorway. Ella didn't answer. Her eyes flitted to the side. She stood there and saw her wand sitting on the nightstand. She thought for a moment but released her devilish thoughts like a balloon and allowed them to float away. Thorn sauntered into the room and touched Ella's clothes in her armor. Neatly, they were all organized and pressed with care. Strumming her fingers through the various types of clothes, she smirked and pulled down on a red satin dress. The dress snapped off the hanger, and Thorn held it tightly in her hand. She then raised her other hand and magically formed fire from the tip of the wooden rod. "Hey!" Ella yelled. Within moments, the article of clothing burst into flames and dissipated into the air like a vanishing ghost.

"Trust me, darling, you won't be needing peasant clothes anymore," Thorn said as she dusted off the ashes off her fingers. She wiped her hand on Ella's bed ruffle, leaving behind a streak of black ash behind. "You can't wear clothes like this anymore; this is not the outer circle," she assured. Ella looked at her in a defeated way. Thorn shrugged her shoulders, giggled, and ventured out into the room.

"Psycho," murmured Ella. She grabbed a dustpan and began to sweep up the excess dust on her hardwood floor. Izz walked into the room within those moments, fully dressed in a beautiful blue and silver ball gown. She held the sides together and watched as it sparkled in the light. Noticing Ella, undressed cleaning her room. Her nose wandered around the room, smelling the scent of burned cloth. Izz sighed. "You got burned...didn't you?" she asked nervously. Ella, without saying anything, shook her head yes. Izz turned to the armor quietly and looked through the clothes in the fancy cabinet. She broke through the middle of the cabinet and opened it.

Holding out a shiny burgundy cloth and hulled it towards her. She held up the dress. The dress, having cobwebs embedded in the seams, needed some love. Ella looked over and noticed the dress but continued to dust off her room and opened the windows to rid the smell of ash. Izz dropped the dress to the ground and watched it sink into the wooden floor. Carefully, she took out her wand and sprinkled her delicate magic over the clothing. Suddenly, the dress began to sparkle, the dust dissipated, and the gown floated gracefully to the window. "That's nice," commented Izz as she stood back, slightly proud of herself. Ella walked over to the dress; she brushed her fingers against the edges of the silk and tool on the sides. She smiled. Looking over at Izz, she smirked and slipped off her nightwear, and tunneled her body into her gown. The lace sleeves slipped around her arms like a second skin. She padded down the sides and flushed the front of the dress, feeling the air rush under her legs; she pressed down the sides and stared at Izz through the tall mirror in her room."You look lovely," Izz announced. Izz smiled and thanked her for her kind words. She then rolled her eyes as she heard Thorn outside on the courtyard twirling her magic-made dress.