𝐂𝐇𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐒 𝐈𝐒 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 | ᶜᵒᵐᵖˡᵉᵗᵉᵈ

𝐜𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲 ▸𝒔𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆

"Come on, Sprite, you're not going to let me go alone!" pleaded Cora for the fiftieth time today, looking at herself in the mirror from all sides. She was wearing a new black cocktail dress she'd bought especially for the evening. Today, their school was having a Christmas party, and Cora, who loved social events, certainly couldn't miss it.

Sprite, who was lying on her friend's bed, her legs flicking in the air, grinned. "You know I'm not into that. You're more likely to enjoy it without me than with me," she replied, not even looking up from her phone. I told you you'd become addicted to it, like she heard Sersi's voice. Sprite sighed inwardly. She and Sersi had been through a lot, and while Sprite often envied her and sometimes resented her for being able to live a normal life as an adult and not as a child, she still liked her. And she missed her.

Cora stopped looking down in the mirror and turned to the red-haired girl. She put her hands on her hips and watched her for a moment before breaking to the bed, kneeling in front of her and snatching the Sprite phone from her hand. The girl frowned at her.

"You've spent enough time on it. Now it's time to have fun! Come on, our holiday starts tomorrow! Are you really going to sit with your phone all the time and scroll Instagram?"

"Of course not," Sprite said indignantly. “I´ll watch Grinch, too.“

The dark-haired girl chuckled. "Sprite, come on. You're my best friend. Come with me, please. I promise it'll be great! And I wouldn't really enjoy it without you. I'd miss you," Cora told her, putting on her pleading face. Sprite groaned. Cora knew full well that if she put on that expression, Sprite wouldn't be able to say no to her.

'I hate you, Coraline,' she snarled at her, but when the dark-haired woman squealed enthusiastically and clasped her in a hug, Sprite had to smile. But as soon as Cora let go of her, she remembered to look grumpy again. The evening with Cora didn't sound so bad after all, though it meant she'd have to spend it in the big gym of their school along with a lot of other people. Ugh, who'd have thought that if she became human, she'd have to socialize this much...

Cora had been her best friend since the first day Sprite started school. Of course, she didn't know anyone here, which is why she was quite frightened, even if she didn't show it. After all, even as Eternal, she didn't show much of her emotions, preferring to keep them bottled up inside her. Such as her love for Ikaris... Sprite was sure she would spend the whole of high school alone, but luckily she got a place next to the friendly Coraline, who immediately made contact with her and took her under her wing. She found a wonderful listener in Sprite and a loyal and lovely friend who was always there for her. And everything was easier for Sprite, thanks to Cora; she became more involved, overcoming her fears and feeling like she belong somewhere. She knew that if she didn't have Cora, being human would be unbearable for her. She and Cora had known true friendship, and she wouldn't trade that feeling for anything in the world. In the end, she did not regret her decision to ask Sersi to turn her into a mortal who could live life as it was, all the way.

"You should grow your hair longer," Cora frowned, her fingers going into her short red hair, which was perpetually tousled in all directions, and she studied its length. Sprite looked into her intent face and had to smile.

"I like having them like this. It's not that much work," she said slowly.

Cora wrinkled her nose in amusement. “Yeah, that´s right. All right, don't listen to me. I guess short hair suits you better. You're such a rebel," she laughed, standing up. Sprite began to miss her touch immediately and raised her eyes to her, watching Coraline rummage in the closet. "I'll lend you some of my clothes. You may be shorter than me, but we'll find something here. And don't you dare resist," she added quickly, recognizing Sprite's intake of breath to say something disapprovingly. "No offense, but your clothes are not fit for a party. Trust me, you'll be charming today. Not that you wouldn't normally be, but . . . you know."

Sprite laughed. "You're getting a little tangled up."

"Yeah, chaotic babble, that's what I'm good at." Then Cora straightened up, holding a long turquoise dress triumphantly in her hand. Sprite, who preferred comfortable sweatpants and wide sweatshirts, gazed at them in fascination. And she felt a slight stab in the heart. That color was hers. "I knew you'd like them."

•••

"Cor, you don't have to spend the whole evening with me," she assured her friend Sprite as they stood nearby, looking at the crowded floor, each holding a juice cup. “I think I saw Dustin there. We both know you're crazy about him. You should go find him and go dance with him. And I'm going to sit somewhere and watch you guys look cute together."

"Am I hearing you right? No sarcastic remark?" Cora asked, her lips twitching into a smile.

She winked. "I'm saving that for later."

"I don't know, Sprite . . ."

Sprite grabbed her arm. "Well, we'll find him together, and I'll start telling him about how amazing you are-"

"No, Sprite, no!" laughed Cora. “Your storytelling is incredible. And you'd be over-egging me, and he'd fall in love with that Cora you portrayed to him... Or he'd fall in love with you because you'd bewitch him with your storytelling talent."

The redhead wrinkled her nose. “Bad for him. Not my type."

Cora gave her a look. "Sprite, is anyone your type?"

Sprite pretended to think. "Um, actually, I have no idea..."

Both of them laughed. Then Cora squeezed her hand tighter and looked at her. "I want to spend the evening with my best friend. I'd blame myself if you were wandering around by yourself and bored. Plus, I promised you'd have fun, so... let's dance!" she exclaimed enthusiastically, already dragging her to the dance floor before Sprite could protest.

"But Cor, I don´t know how to dance!"

"Don't worry, I'll show you how!"