Happily Ever After

The Summer Ball

Clarissa flattened her hair for what seemed the millionth time. This time, even calm Beatrice's patience thinned.

"Will you stop?!" She hissed.

Beatrice immediately regretted her words when she saw that Clarissa looked like she was about to burst into tears.

She immediately rushed over.

"Lissa, stop stressing you look fine. And please don't cry. You'll ruin your makeup." She whispered while rubbing soothing circles onto Clarissa's back.

"But Bea, I may know a lot about magic and-and... general knowledge, but I haven't a clue about makeup and beauty! I'm probably going to look awful, and then Chaddick will be embarrassed and hate me. And then my first ever ball will be ruined!" She wailed, trying not to cry.

"Oh come on, stop lying to yourself Lissa, Chaddick would still dance with you if you were dressed in a potato sack with nits running through your hair. " Bea said, smiling at her last words.

It was true, and this seemed to reassure Clarissa.

In truth Clarissa was very pretty. Her raven hair smelled of roses, and was twisted in a half-up-half-down with braids tied around fresh pink roses. Her cheeks were sparkling and lightly dusted pink. Bea had even convinced her to put on some mascara, lengthening her black eyelashes. Her slender arms were appearing from puffed golden sleeves with small blue flowers tucked here and there. Her golden bodice had swirls and flowers embroidered on it. Her elegant, flowing skirt was to the ankle and had a shimmery golden chiffon layer, puffing up her skirt, blue leaves attached. She had gold flats on, but nobody really noticed over the beauty of her dress. 

Clarissa took a look in the mirror at herself and smiled a truly euphoric smile that Bea had never seen before. She'd seen Clarissa smile happily, like when she got good marks on her exams, when they were laughing at a joke, or when something exciting happened, but she'd never seen her smile a one like that before. Bea gasped and beamed.

"With a smile like that you'll win any prince." She whispered in her ear, beaming.

Clarissa beamed at her. Then she hugged Bea and buried her face in Bea's shoulder.

"Hey. What did we say about the makeup?" Bea questioned teasingly, untangling herself from the embrace.

Clarissa grinned.

Bea looked nice too, she thought while admiring her. Her wavy, long, flaxen hair was held in a loose bun that was plaited to resemble a rose. She wore a dusty-pink silk dress with roses embroidered on it and a tight, long skirt with a silk sash. She had on every single bit of makeup there was in the world, but had made it light and fresh, somehow.

**********

"Do we seriously have to go?" Dot whined.

"Yes. Remember there'll be Ravan and Arachne's son there and plenty of cakes and chocolates and canapes and finger foods and sweets and all of the other things you love." Leona persuaded.

At this Dottie shut up and lay on her bed staring at the ceiling and thinking of all the types of delicious food they would have at the ball, and the mouth-watering taste. Mmmmm.

Leona was ready for the ball after twenty minutes of preparing. She had briefly brushed her dark hair, put on a layer of rotted apple lip gloss and some au de festering wound parfum. She wore a black V-neck bodice with a skull sash, and a black and blood-red sequined skirt. She had also decided to fashion her mother's bone bracelet and a death-black rose necklace.

Ani was ready after about fifty minutes. She hadn't been trying to prepare, she was just most of that time attempting to put her light brown hair in a tight braid. She wasn't a princess, and had not a clue to braid. She wore a dark, dark purple dress with spikes embroidered on her skirt in black thread. She had borrowed some vibrant red lip gloss and pulled of a smoky eye with some mascara, black eyeliner and black eye shadow. An ominously glittering black beaded necklace that sparked with a poisonous green flame when it was warm, curled around her neck.

Dottie meanwhile, was wearing a plain dress that was the blue of a bruise. She had no make up on but had bothered to put a hairbrush through her untamed albino hair, its effect making it frizzier. The only accessory she would be sporting would be a blood-red toffee apple she would eat when she got there. Hey, it did match perfectly with her eyes.

********

The Summer Ball was a lovely occasion. 

Songs Clarissa had always known were put on and she and Chaddick waltzed to them, slowly. They smiled at each other and talked quietly, but mainly stared into each others eyes. Chaddick stared into Clarissa's deep brown almost black eyes that sparkled with curiosity and happiness. Clarissa looked into Chaddick's crystal blue eyes and seemed to swim with calming coolness.

Suddenly, the last song came to an end and just like in her Wish Fish vision, snowy mistletoe sprouted from the roof. 

Smiling shyly, Chaddick and Clarissa leaned in. Their lips touched briefly. The kiss was soft, short and sweet. Later, Chaddick spent the rest of the night licking his lips because of their sweet berry taste. Clarissa had the lingering taste of beetroot and fetta salad on her lips, which was Chaddick's favourite food.

This proved to Clarissa, that some dreams can come true, making her very happy for the rest of the night,

Leona and Arthur went much the same way, except they talked twice as much. 

Well rather, Arthur talked. Leona just blushed and regretted and cringed at everything he said, but secretly smiled. When the song ended however and mistletoe began to sprout above their heads, their kiss was not short and sweet but mirroring a royal wedding kiss, full of love and passion. Their lips simply touched, but before long they melted into each other and it became passionate.

Ani at the start of the kissing had to put her fist in her mouth to stop herself from laughing, while looking at her sisters "tonsil hockey". At the end, she kept her fist in there to stop herself from vomiting, when she looked around at everyone else. Her's and Kaveen's had only been a quick peck that lightened both of their hearts, and made them blush. It wasn't special.

Dot spent the evening eating and talking flirtishly to Ravan and Arachne's son whose name was Brone, everyone thought. At the end of the night they were head over heels for each other, promising to write each other when they went to school. They had the same love of food and villainy as each other, too.

Sophie spent much of the time with Robert laughing at his sweetness and eagerness for food. Both terribly clumsy, they had decided that they wouldn't dance and just converse, laugh and eat instead. To their surprise, when the last song ended a sprout of mistletoe appeared above their heads. Glancing shyly at each other, they bumped their heads together clumsily like moths. Sophie's siblings would've laughed until they cried at this, but their mouths were busy doing other things at this moment.

The other Evers spent the rest of the time at the tables being flirty or eating things while showing their large, pink lips and mouths as a weird persuasion tactic, or lifting drinks while flexing their muscles. Some even huddled under the stars in the rose garden stargazing and kissing. 

In the bliss of this moment none of the older siblings of the families realised one very pressing matter.

That their siblings were about to start at the School for Good and Evil, very, very soon.