fakes in shining armor // k.s.

chapter eight

After her first practice, "Blair" was too tired to make the trek home, so she grabbed "Ciara"'s hand suddenly when they were walking back to Astoria Castle, and said, "Ut ad nos, et locus princeps."

Suddenly, right the middle of the empty plaza of Astoria, "Blair" and "Ciara" were transported to the Princess's bedroom in an anything-but-inconspicuous cloud of pink fairy dust.

"Blair" took off her wings, not expecting "Ciara" to say anything, but she was surprised when "Ciara" yelled, "Are you insane?!"

This caused Faye to jump. "What?" she asked as she slipped off her wing covers.

"You could have exposed us!" "Ciara" scolded. She was still in her Knight Squad uniform. "You could have exposed me as the Princess to everyone!"

"But there wasn't anyone in the plaza," Faye argued, trying to calm her down. "No one would have known."

"Someone could have been watching!" "Ciara" fired back, somewhat loudly.

"Princess? You up there!" the King cried down from below. "Ciara" and Faye just stared at each other. "Ciara" quickly pressed on her ring, and through a cloud of sparkles, she transformed back into her Princess form -- gown and all -- just as her father opened the door.

"Ah, there you are!" the King said. "It's time for our daily walk around the kingdom."

Faye watched the Princess slump. Faye knew how tired the Princess was; she was probably more tired than herself.

Apparently, "Ciara" was a star student at Knight School, and showed off everyone, much to Sage's chagrin. She could do cool tricks with her sword and backflips and could throw off everyone in her path with a single stab.

Basically, if "Ciara" could do it, Faye probably couldn't.

"Ciara" loved to demonstrate things, and she was basically running their training today, so she must've been pooped. But the Princess didn't even falter. "Okay, Daddy!" she obliged.

"Oh, Faye!" the King acknowledged. "How was your first day of Knight School?"

"It was tiring, but great!" Faye lied.

It was anything but great. Faye was sore all over, and she had no idea what the heck to do with a sword. Sage made sure to point that to everyone, though, remarking every single mistake she made. Faye had never been more embarrassed.

"I can imagine," the King sighed. He turned to the Princess. "Be grateful you don't have to put up with that."

The Princess just smiled tightly.

"Well, shall we?" The King offered his arm to his daughter, who looped her own around his. "We'd love to invite you along, Faye, but for your safety, we should keep you here."

Faye nodded understandingly. "Good choice, Your Majesty," she said. "But have fun on your stroll!" She smiled genuinely, which made the Princess smile. The father and daughter waved goodbye before following guards out of the castle.

Faye sighed and sat down on the Princess's bed. She looked around, bored, then decided to go through some of the Princess's stuff, discreetly. She played around with her pillows and looked in her vanity, playing around with different hair colors and various lengths. Then, Faye had the greatest idea: the Princess's bling closet.

Faye opened the little drawers, all filled with various tiaras. She put one on her head and struck a pose in the Princess's vanity mirror across the room. Then she smirked, and whispered, "Crescere faciam illud."

Her hair grew back to its original length, then she chanted, "Color mutatio."

The blonde streaks in her hair disappeared, and her solid black hair shone. She smiled, then looked down at her sweaty outfit. The smile faded but resurfaced when she used her magic to change out of her grubby clothes into an elaborate ballgown. It was pink, with a lacy top and a skirt of tulle, the tiers all different lengths.