Gemstone Academy

Chapter 1

        I stood in the vast hallway of my castle watching party guests arrive. My brother, Prince James Wesley Huntress, was having his 17th birthday party tonight. And only the best of the best nobles and our closest friends were allowed to attend. I was on the lookout for my best friend, but there was no sign of her yet.

         I fidgeted with the sequences on my purple ballgown that my mother said I should wear because it went nicely with my bright brown eyes. That may be true, but I thought it looked awful with my long red hair, which was currently tied up in a tight bun. Also, I wasn't very tall only standing at 5'3 and a half, so I always thought ballgowns were too much for me, especially since I was also really thin.  But there was no point in arguing about dresses with my mother, so I wore the dress anyway.

       "Miss?" A voice said from behind me. I turned and found my butler, Grey, standing behind me.

      Grey was in his late 30s and always had his black hair slicked back. He wore the standard black suit and tie that all butlers here in the castle were required to wear. Grey was my personal butler, and he has been ever since I was little.

      "Hey, Grey, what's up?" I asked.

      "You do know your brother's party is going on now, right?" Grey asked.

     "Yes, Grey, I'm well aware of what's happening right now."

      "Your parents were starting to wonder where you are, so they sent me to find you. It looks bad that you aren't downstairs yet," Grey said.

      I sighed. Yes, I'm sure it looked pretty bad that one of the princesses wasn't at her brother's birthday party.  I suppose it made me look like a brat, and that wasn't good for my image.

       "I'll be down in a minute," I said. 
Grey raised an eyebrow at me.

     "I promise."

       This seemed to have satisfied Grey, because he nodded and then headed away from me down the hallway. I turned my attention back to the window where I saw a girl with blonde hair with pink stripes in it. Ugh. Finally.

      I headed towards the nearest staircase and went down to the main floor. Victoria, my best friend, was already at the bottom waiting for me.

     "You're late," I said when my feet stepped off the last step.

     "Sorry," Victoria said. "I don't have a closet full of fancy dresses like you, so it took me a lot longer to get ready."

     "Victoria didn't live in the castle. She lived in the village where her mother owned a bakery. I met her years ago and we had been friends ever since. I got into a fight with my parents, I don't remember about what now, but anyway, I was pretty pissed at them, so I ran away. I ran to the edge of the village to where a large apple tree bloomed, and underneath it sat Victoria. She didn't recognize me as the princess and didn't believe me when I first told her I was. We clicked right away while both complaining about our parents, and now she came to visit me at least once a week as my guest. I've actually asked her to work here several times, that way she could live here, but she always turns me down. She would feel bad leaving her mom at the bakery by herself.

      "I think you look fantastic," I said. Victoria's bright pink ballgown looked really good against her pale skin. And it matched her pretty green eyes.

     "Mmm, thanks, but I'll never be as pretty as you," Victoria said.

     "Oh, please," I scoffed.

     Victoria and I both headed into the large ballroom together. We were instantly blinded by sparkling chandeliers and the glitter on some girl's dresses. As always, everything in here was extravagant, from the gold tablecloths to the overly decorated deserts that all probably took hours to make.