The sky was beginning to darken and in the candlelight of your room, the pink fabric of your mother's dress glimmered and sparkled, creating the illusion it was more than just an old dress. Your hands skimmed the fabric, looking in the mirror and smiling before sliding your feet into a pair of simple shoes and pulling your hair out of its usual ponytail, you left the safety of your room.
It was as if you were in a trance, walking down the wooden stairs and being greeted by the shouts of young girls as they tried to get help tying corsets and curling hair from the maids who lived in the cottage. A hush fell when Jin ran up to you and wrapped you in a hug, "you look so beautiful, I'm so proud!"
All eyes were on you as Jin continued to make a huge fuss, holding your hand and pulling you through the crowd of girls to seat you on a small stool, and place a coil of white pearls against your neck, before nodding and smiling, pressing a kiss to your forehead and whispering, "perfect."
But the rest of the girls going to the party seemed less than pleased that you had dressed up with the obvious intention to go to the ball. They sent glares towards you and eventually you the prickling feeling against your skin became so intense that you stood up and walked out of the cottage, hoping the fresh night air would soothe your heart.
Sitting in the garden was your pumpkin and the sight of it made your heart soar, its orange colour was so vibrant and as you crouched down to stroke a hand over the skin. You had pulled up the skirt of your dress to prevent it from getting dirty, remembering times when you had been a young teenager and the staff had teased you relentlessly for always having dirty hems. That was why you only wore trousers now, and just as you went to stand, a hand landed on your shoulder and with a slight shove, you lost your balance.
With a thud you fell into the dirt, your eyes squeezed shut before the sound of laughter made you slowly open them, looking up to see elegant and intricately detailed patterns of full silken skirts. It was the usual group of girls from the courts and slowly, you stood up, brushing off your skirt and grimacing at the dirt that was smeared across the pale pink fabric.
"Why did you push me?" you asked, trying to hide the wobble in your voice as you stared at your dirt covered hands before looking up and straightening your back, hoping you could pretend to be someone not to mess with.
However, the main girl only laughed, before poking a finger into your shoulder, "why are you acting like you're going to be attending the ball tonight? Do you really think the Prince would want someone like you there?" She laughed and nudged her friends as if to encourage them, causing one to approach you and touch a scuff on your dress.
"You can't go to a royal ball in such a state, you're covered and dirt," her fingers dug into the fabric and she yanked at it, causing you to jump back even though it was too late. "Your dress is coming apart! How embarrassing," the girls giggled and then they walked past you, purposefully walking into you and you felt them further rip your dress.
A hand landed on your chin, turning you to look into the cerulean blue of the girl's eyes, before she laughed and pushed you away, "looks like you won't be going to the ball."
And it was too late, with your dress destroyed and your emotions a wreck, you took in a deep breath and turned on your heel, deciding that today, just this once, instead of running away, you would at least try and fix the problem.
That was why you were currently sitting on your bed, still wearing the dress, needle in hand as you tried to fix the rips, "why am I doing this?" you whispered, fingers stopping suddenly as tears began to roll down your face and blur your vision, making it hard to properly sew.
With a heavy sigh, you placed the needle into your lap and rubbed at your eyes before a familiar voice behind you made you jump so hard you fell off the bed, "you shall go to the ball Y/N."
You picked up the sewing scissors laying on the floor, turning to brandish them at the figure, who you instantly recognised to be the man who had sold you the pumpkin. But even then, his being in your room was not explained, "why are you here? Get out or I'll scream and my Knight will kill you."
The vendor laughed and rubbed the back of his head, as if he'd expected his appearance to be received in a different way. "I'm the fae carer that comes with the pumpkin I gave you." His dimples appeared as he smiled again and you continued to point your scissors, waiting for a further explanation, "my name is Kim Namjoon, I'm a fae. The pumpkin you purchased has magical qualities that mean if the owner becomes distressed I am summoned to come and provide help."
You raised an eyebrow at the weird explanation but slowly lowered your scissors as Namjoon gestured to you to follow him, both of you made your way outside where he signalled to the pumpkin that was no longer the beautiful bright orange. Now, it looked almost sickly, having turned to a white colour.
"It only looks like that because you are upset," Namjoon sat down and leant against the pumpkin, "why would a beautiful young maiden be crying on her bed wearing an old dirty dress?" You frowned and raised an eyebrow because you'd read in one of your favourite cookbooks about the 'pumpkin protectors' and yet the idea seemed far-fetched to you.
And yet, as Namjoon leapt to his feet and his clothes melted from a simple navy jacket and trousers to a sparkling white suit with elegant threaded applique across his chest. He gestured to his new outfit, "Now do you believe me?"
You nodded quickly and watched as he rubbed his hands together, "you have a ball to get to young Pumpkin princess and for that you need a fixed dress," Namjoon smirked, and you balled your fists in anticipation as with a wave of his fingers, the pale pink of your dress faded to a pale blue, the waist became cinched as the skirt flared out to be even bigger than the girls who had ruined your previous one.
"That looks much better," he smiled and you twirled around in the new huge dress, fingers grazing the soft fabric of the skirt. Your hair rested against your shoulders and the more you gazed at your dress, it became even more beautiful. He smiled and winked, "You might want to look at your new shoes."
With that you stuck out your foot, eyes widening in surprise when you saw a glass slipper on your foot, reflecting the blue of your dress and it felt like you were living a dream. They were beautiful, and you clinked them together to find they were both sturdy and also intensely comfortable.
The clocktower rang nine times, echoing through the courtyard you were standing in reminding you that the ball had just started and you needed to hurry to get to the ball before the doors were shut and all the food was eaten. So quickly turning to Namjoon, you bowed, "thank you so much Mr Namjoon for giving me this chance. I'm not very rich but if you come to the kitchen I can make you something?"
The boy laughed and shooed you away before suddenly yelling to get your attention, "The dress and glass shoes are magic and will disappear if you begin to doubt yourself! So believe in yourself young pumpkin princess!"
