Moonchild

Chapter Two - Lily

Nadia and I appear in a poof of mist, just outside the entrance to the party. There are people walking up the stairs and into the castle gracefully. But instead of following them, we stand on the pavement as carriages pass by in front of us. The air is cold and crisp and is filled with murmurs and conversations of the fancy people. There is the wafting sound of music coming from the castle that seems comforting.

"Okay, we're meeting the others here," Nadia says tensely, pulling me aside, away from the road.

I look at her and finally soak in how she looks. Her blue hair is curled and hangs around her face gracefully. She looks concerned and looking around a lot. But even then, her eyes glitter in the starlight. Her dress is a rich purple, that reminds me of plums or the flowers. She looks amazing, but she looks upset.

I put my hand on her arm, "Hey, it'll be alright. We'll stick together and it'll turn out fine."

She smiles, "Thanks, Lily."

"But one question..."

"Mhmm?"

"Is this a dance?"

We stand on the pavement and look into the street, equally nervous. Nadia giggles, and looks at me with a devilish look in her eye.

"Yes, it is."

I feel my chest drop, and my heart starts beating a little faster. Nadia can clearly see my heart beating quickly, and puts her arm around my shoulder.

"Hey," she said mimicking my voice, "It'll be alright!"

I shove her, and she stumbles a little bit but we both end up laughing, trying to ignore how tense we actually are.

We wait for a little longer, making conversation and talking about who we might see (potential boyfriends for Nadia), but the others arrive shortly and we all re-group.

Marcus has dressed in his father's clothes, with a long black coat with a shirt, vest and trousers underneath. His clothes look worn, in a flattering soft way. Either or, he looks like he's comfortable and overall confident. But like Nadia, he looks tense which won't work for this kind of task.

Levi looks around like a fly is buzzing around his head. He's wearing dark trousers and a white button-down shirt, which is tucked in effortlessly. Finished with another coat like Marcus. His shoes are a pitch-black, and look uncomfortable to wear but look quite nice on him.

And lastly, there is Avina, who looks graceful but deadly. Her dress is crimson, with little red sparkles dancing around parts. Her shoulders are covered with a soft-looking fabric that runs down her arm to her wrist. She also is wearing black heels and a small feathered headpiece. She looks... enchanting.

"We're all here." Levi smirked, "Only one thing left to do."

Marcus turned to the group, "Okay, so we know we are doing right?"

"Uhh..." Levi sighed.

"I swear to the stars what do you even think we do at our meetings?"

"...catch up?" he smiled smugly, which resulted in a hard slap to the back of the head, "Ouch!"

"Wow."

I run over the plan in my head as we walk up the stairs to the castle. Firstly, we have no intention of entering through the main entrance. We figured out a back door to the base of the maid's quarters that we could get through, and enter the ballroom without bringing any attention to us. So we quickly cut through the river of people and slide along the side of the castle's walls.

The girls have trouble lifting up their dresses, but we all end up leaning on the boys.

Secondly, we slide into the main castle and dodge the view of the guards which is easy, because the majority of them are in the main ballroom. Thirdly, we slide into the party using the door behind the eighth pillar lined up across the side of the ballroom, acting natural. And lastly, we become a part of the party, wait for the king to address the guests and then get out of there.