Sofia the First: Stepmomster

The Ball

Ever since the incident at Juneberry Park, Miranda seemed to ignore Amber and James's existence, only talking to them indirectly or when absolutely necessary. The twins noticed her strange behavior but never suspected her of being angry. Besides, she had to recognize her mistake of not letting two miserable children attend parties.

One particular afternoon, Amber ordered Violet to fetch her the mail. Amber shoved aside envelopes that had to do with taxes and other tedious royal tasks until she came upon an envelope with an unfamiliar seal. It was golden and a figure of a maple leaf was imprinted on the wax. Out of curiosity, Amber opened it and grabbed the parchment within it. The words read:

Dear fellow royal(s),

It is I, the new prince. I will be attending Royal Prep, so I look forward to working with you soon. But for now, I would like to celebrate my rise to power by inviting all princes and princesses to a ball.

-the prince of Kanada

"Please, please, pleeeeeeease, Mother?" Amber insisted.

Miranda's face was stern and she looked formidable.

Amber's face lit up.

"I know! We can go together as a family! All of us can go together! You, me, Sofia, and James!"

Miranda's lips curled up into a smile.

"All right, Amber. Get dressed for the party and tell your siblings."

Amber's face was bright with excitement as she dashed--dashed past the marble pillars in the hallway, past the servants, and to the royal family's dining room where Sofia and James were eating their golden berry pancakes.

"You guys! We're going to a ball tonight so remember to get dressed! Mother said we could go!" Amber happily announced.

That night, the royal family dressed for the ball. Everyone wore their usual clothes, except for Amber who wore her special gown, which was a dark blue very much like the night sky decorated with floral patterns and trimmed with white frilly laces along with her white silk gloves.

"Amber, it's just a ball. It's not like your coronation, which of course will never happen because I will be king and you will live in a small estate as a duchess," James teased.

"Just watch. Someday, I'll marry the prince at the ball and I will be a queen. I heard that he was rich and let's hope he'll be handsome," Amber retaliated.

"You'll never be a queen, just a plain duchess living in the poor suburbs," added James. He immediately felt guilty when his eyes met Sofia's.

Miranda overheard.

"Children, the coach is ready to take off. Let's go," said Miranda gathering her children.

The castle doors creaked joyfully, unlike they did the day King Roland left. They sounded happy and fresh. A gush of cool night breeze entered the halls. The opened doors revealed a golden coach parked outside with its pair of white winged stallions waiting patiently in the starry night sky. The chauffeur was seated in the front with the reins in his hands.

Before they could step into the coach, Miranda called for Baileywick to send Amber and James to their rooms.

So Miranda does strike back.

"You can't do this!" exclaimed Amber. "I've been waiting for this event ever since yesterday!"

"I want to come, too!" James shouted.