Chapter One: What's in a Name?
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"You know," said Isabelle of the Lightwood family, "this dress might very well look fantastic on you, Clarissa."
Clary of the Garroways blushed at the dark-blue, revealing dress her best friend now held up to her chest. The make and body were beautifully sculpted, and she was quite sure it would show off her own small curves and tight waist, but Clarissa was a modest girl. Although Isabelle was one of the most beautiful girls in all of Alicante Kingdom--and most certainly had the most fashion-sense--Clary knew she couldn't pull off anything her friend deemed 'fantastic'.
"I don't know," Clary replied thoughtfully, searching through her extensive closet for a more suitable dress. She pulled out a floor-length light green ball gown with laced cuffs. "What about this one, Izzy?"
Isabelle glanced over from her own persusal, almost aghast at what her friend had found. She snorted, very delicately in her opinion. "I don't think so."
Both girls had found themselves deep in the very bowels of Clary's dressing closet when there was a knock upon the bedroom door.
"Come in!" Clary called automatically, still frantically searching through her clothes. Neither girls saw that the guest who had entered the room was a boy with dark hair and horn-rimmed glasses.
The moment Simon of the Lewis family stepped into his friend Clary's room, he thought that a wind-storm had hit. Dresses and shoes and accessories were strewn about, covering almost the entire wooden floor. Even the bed sheets had somehow been removed from the matress, and a pillowcase hung from the knob of the nearest closet door.
He chuckled at the humor of it all, and called out for his friends.
"Clarissa? Isabelle? Are you girls in here?"
Clary froze in her shower robe. Neither she nor Izzy had found the gowns they'd wanted, so they were both unfit to be seen, especially by anyone of the male persuasion. She ran between two racks of summer dresses, searching for her friend--.
Suddenly, she ran straight into something tall and slim. She flew back, her head hitting the wall of the large room.
"Ow! Iz, that was my head!"
"Well, Clary, it was my shoulder!"
Simon chuckled, "Well, I'll just come collect you girls in an hour or so. I just wanted to ask: Izzy, would you like to accompany me to the ball tonight?"
Isabelle froze. She never imagined Simon would ask her to attend the ball with him. Goodness knows, she'd harbored a crush on him since their very first meeting.
She looked to Clary, still sitting on the floor and wearing an expression very similar to what Isabelle was certain she currently looked like.
Clary, seeing her friend's discomfort and astonishment, called out, "She would love to go with you, Si. Just allow us to finish getting ready, and we will meet you in the foyer in an hour."
"G-great! See you girls in an hour," Simon stammered, surprised and happy.
After exiting the bed chamber, Simon grinned widely. Even though it was Clary that had answered instead of his own fair maiden, he was positively delighted that Isabelle had agreed to allow his escort. Confusion arose as he contemplated why it had been his best friend who had answered, but he shrugged it off. He wasn't going to permit anything to ruin this happiest of nights.
Back in Clary's bedroom, the girls were having a small struggle.
"WHAT ON EARTH PERSUADED YOU TO SAY YES TO HIM?!" Izzy yelled, flailing her arms far and wide in hopes of illustrating her current level of frustration.
Clary, meanwhile, was completely confused. She was under the impression that Isabelle was interested in Simon. She told her friend this, and Izzy reacted thus:
"I've already accepted Meliorn's offer!" she cried, falling to sit on a nearby chair, placing her head in her hands.
"Meliorn? Of Thistlewreath?" Clary asked.
Izzy nodded affirmative.
"Well, that is..." Clary trailed off. She was unsure how to console her friend when Isabelle was obviously so distraught. Kneeling on a rug beside her, she began rubbing tentative circles into her back.
"I will go inform Si of my misunderstanding," said Clary. She moved to stand just as Izzy's hand shot out and grasped her forearm in a tight vice-like grip. Unnerved by her friend's distress and surprising strength, she froze.
"No! He must not know!" said Izzy as she pulled her friend back to the ground.
"Why not?" asked Clary, confusion crossing her pale, freckled face once more.
"He might never ask again! I must take this opportunity, as it might never come again," she explained.
"Well, we should tell Meliorn," said Clary reasonably.
"Oh, but I couldn't bear to see the disappointment on his face!" cried Isabelle. Her long, raven-colored hair fell forward to hide her face from the rest of the world, as if it were an impenatrable curtain of safety. Clary's eyebrows furrowed and she pulled her friend's hands into her own.
"Pray-tell, Izzy. How exactly are you going to attend tonight's ball with not one, but two escorts?" the redhead asked.
Lifting her face to look into Clarissa's eyes, Isabelle of the Lightwood family sniffed, dried her eyes, then stood ram-rod straight to stroll over to the vanity mirror in the corner of the bedroom.
"I will just have to, as they say, 'wing it'," she said with a seductive smile.
Far off, in another land altogether, Jace of the Morgensterns was having a similar discussion with his half-brother, Johnathan.
"How you expect to get through this ball with more than one companion is beyond me," Jace said with a smirk.
Johnathan simply smiled at his brother's jab, "Yes, but you and I are both aware that most of what happens in this world is far above your level of comprehension. Really, it isn't that much of a surprise," he said in jest.
Jace saw through his antics immediately, and retorted, "Maybe so, brother, but I will not be the one caught between two or three angry women by the end of the night."
"Well, ignorance is bliss," said Johnathan, referring to his previous comment of Jace's naiveté. He paused in his current act of retying his bowtie, and turned to face the younger blonde boy, "who are you taking, by the way?"
"I am attending the ball alone," said Jace with feigned nonchalance.
"You know, you could always go with Aline," said Johnathan, once again attending to his already-perfect suit.
"Of the Penhallows?" Jace snorted. "Unlikely."
"I'm sure she'd be perfectly happy to be escorted by the second son of Valentine of the Morgensterns."
"I'm certain she wouldn't object at all," Jace replied, standing to address to his cuff links, "As it stands, I object."
Johnathan raised an eyebrow and turned to face his brother, "Might I ask why? Aline is attractive enough. She is lady-like. She is rich. Why would you oppose to escort such an agreeable lady?"
"Her voice pains my ears."
"Ah. Understandable."
"Also, she has a history of jealousy. Especially with me," said Jace with a grimace.
Johnathan clapped a hand on Jace's shoulder, "You could always escort the family dog, Narla."
"Or we could dress you as a woman, and I could escort you."
"I don't like you enough to do that particular favor."
"What is so wrong with attending alone, anyway?" Jace asked with mild interest.
"Father won't like it," his elder brother said shortly.
"Father can--"
"Father can what, Jace?" Valentine of Morgenstern strode into Johnathan's bedroom, looking stern.
"I meant to say, Father can--" Jace paused, thinking quickly, "help me find a suitable date?" Sweat formed at the back of his neck, and he was frightened that he couldn't talk his way out of being caught speaking so blatantly ill of his father. Granted, he hadn't finished his thought, but he was fairly certain it was obvious what was implied with the sentence.
Apparently, not obvious enough.
"Of course I can," Valentine agreed. "In fact, Miss Aline of the Penhallows has inquired as to the state of your health and I believe she mentioned she would be attending tonight's celebration alone."
"Great," said Jace with a tone that positively screamed 'sarcasm'. The effect was lost on his father, however, as he nodded once before leaving the room to inform Aline of the arrangement.
"Well, at least you are no longer going stag," Johnathan said before clapping his brother's shoulder once more and exiting after Valentine.
Jace rolled his eyes and followed suit, internally preparing himself for the possible loss of his hearing and/or mind.
Did it live up to Shakespeare? Probably not... Ok don't answer that.
I won't guilt/threaten you to review, but the button is down there... you know, if you get the feeling you want to push it... to tell me how great or terrible it was. :] Either/or is fine with me. I don't really get my feelings hurt too much.
Thank you for reading!
