.
.
.
Laughter
.
The bell jingled as one of Dora's handmaidens pinned it in Dani's hair. It was one of many, and they rang every time Dani turned her head.
"There you are, love," said the woman.
"Oh, you look so pretty, Danielle," said Dora, pressing her hands together. "I'm sure that the boys will be asking to dance with you all night long. You won't have a chance to rest."
Dani giggled. "You think so?" She twisted to see the handmaiden. "Thank you," she said, quickly.
"I know so," said Dora, tilting her head imperiously so she could look down her nose. Her facade cracked a moment later, and the princess hid her laugh behind the palm of her hand. "Let's see how your brother is doing, shall we?"
"Oh my gosh, yes," said Dani, standing in a swish of silver and charcoal silk. "Is he going to have bells, too?"
Dora's smile grew. "Of course. You two have to match, after all." Her eyes grew misty. "This is my first ball. It has to be perfect."
"I'm sure it will be," said Dani, bouncing down the hall alongside Dora. "But when you say match, how matching do you mean?"
Dora stopped, floating by a door. "He's going to be wearing a suit," she said, eyebrow raised in amusement.
"Aw. I wanted to see him in a dress."
"I could arrange that for later," said Dora, "I am in charge here."
"Really? Cool. Yes, I want to see that."
Dora smiled, and knocked on the door. "Can we come in?" she said. The door opened quickly, revealing a bowing manservant.
"Your highness," he intoned.
"Gerard," said Dora. "Thank you."
"Hi," said a very small voice from deeper in the room.
That was Danny, sitting very stiffly in a chair, half-surrounded by mirrors. He was wearing a neat suit in the same colors as Dani's dress. There were bells tied in his hair, too, little round ones.
Dani burst out laughing. Danny blushed green.
"Thanks a lot, Dani," he said, pouting.
"Sorry, it's just, you look so cute," she said, doubled over in the air, "and no shoes, oh my gosh, the bells. And the bow."
Danny blushed harder. "I just haven't put them on yet, and it isn't a bow, it's a bow tie. That's different."
"Is it, though? It looks more like a ribbon."
Danny was glowing green. "Okay, okay, it's a ribbon." He tugged at one end of the offending article. "It looks good on you, that dress."
"Thanks, you look good, too. Even if you do look really funny."
"Danielle," said Dora, faintly disapproving. "Really. There's nothing funny about what you're wearing, Sir Phantom. It's a classic look."
"Yeah," said Dani, now a touch embarrassed herself, "sorry. Honestly, it was your expression, more than anything."
"I know," said Danny, picking nervously at a bit of embroidery, "I'm just not used to wearing anything as fancy as this. There's a lot more, um, decoration, than I'm used to."
"Well, yes. Modern human styles are so plain." Dora sniffed. "Here, stand up, let us see you."
Danny complied, his bells jingling as he did so. He bounced, ringing them even more. "The bells are kind of fun, though," he said.
"Yes," said Dora. "You look nearly perfect."
"Only nearly?"
"Yes, you aren't Danielle, after all, Sir Phantom."
That got a surprised laugh from Danny. "Well, I'm not done yet," he said.
"I suppose," said Dora tilting her head. "We will leave you to it then. Gerard." She nodded at the manservant, and swept out of the room. Dani gave Danny a quick wave before following after.
.
"Dora looks really happy," said Danny to Dani.
"She does," said Dani to Danny. "I'm glad this worked out."
Danny and Dani were standing by the back wall of the ballroom, conversing over a pair of champagne flutes (filled with fruit juice, drugs had weird effects on halfa biology and they didn't want to risk it). There were probably two hundred ghosts in the room, not counting the little blobs that floated along the ceiling.
The styles of the day were 'formal' and 'anachronistic.' There were ballgowns and suits, but also flapper dresses and vest-cloaks. There were a couple of boys with leather jackets, and even a girl in a miniskirt. A good number of people were dressed in robes. Most of the costumes incorporated a number of different human time periods, or were simply fantastic. Regardless, everything had a certain air of elegance to it, no matter how odd the combination should have been.
Danny let his eyes roam over the party, lingering for a moment on the band, which was composed of elements as diverse as tubas, zithers, lyres, clarinets, and theremin.
"Hey," said Danny, realizing what was missing, "do you see Sydney anywhere?"
"Huh. No. That's weird," said Danielle, floating up a bit. "Oh. He's next to the stage. Why's he there?"
"I don't know."
The band stopped playing after a moment, and Sydney floated up onto the platform, fidgeting with his tie. "Hello," he said. "Hello," he said more loudly. "I'm Sydney Poindexter, and I'm not very good at telling time."
Silence.
"I've been standing down there, you see, you know, awkwardly, as you do. I was waiting to come up here, and do this comedy skit. But the band kept on playing, and I'm way too shy to say anything to anyone, of course. And finally, Greg looks over there, and says, 'Sydney, what are you doing here? Your bit doesn't start for another half an hour.' Of course, I've been standing there for two hours, so I say, 'Why didn't you say anything earlier? I've been standing here like a fool!' And Greg says, 'Well, Syd, I can't help how you stand.'"
This time, there was laughter.
"I didn't know Sydney was doing comedy," said Dani.
"Neither did I," said Danny.
"Greg should be the one doing this, honestly."
.
Dora surveyed the room, smiling. Yes, this ball had been a success. She located Dani and Danny. What better addition to the silver bells, than the bells of laughter?
Her eyes drifted back to Sydney. He was doing very well. Perhaps she should offer him a more long-term position? It would be good to have someone closer to her own age in the castle, and he could help modernize the kingdom.
And, alright, so she liked him, too. He was smart, he was funny, he was cute, and his sepia coloring was delightfully exotic.
She hid a laugh at his next joke.
Yes. She would invite him to stay.