I MADE A HARRY POTTER REFERENCE LAST CHAPTER. IF YOU'VE READ THE BOOKS (i don't know about the movies) THEN THE SCHOOL'S STANDARD COPY IS ALWAYS SOMETHING LIKE "THE STANDARD BOOK OF SPELLS: GRADE 4" AND THE AUTHOR IS MIRANDA GOSLING.

THE AFOREMENTIONED CHARACTERS BELONG TO J.K ROWLING.

ALL CHARACTERS IN THIS STORY BELONG TO CRAIG GERBERT (i didn't who that was either until I looked it up). EXCEPT HOLLY.

HOLLY IS MINE.

ENJOY,

MISS MALFOY

Holly wondered what made Amber write out that other spell, and what that spell did.

More importantly, she wondered why Amber had talked to her, then..thanked her. Well, when your best friend's the princess, anything can happen.

"It's much easier walking down than up", Amber said, looking to Holly.

"Won't the guests wonder what happened. I mean, we could always blame it on the sorcerer, but..." Holly joked. Amber smiled

"As much as I'd love to, I need to take responsibility. I'll have to tell Sofia"

"Fine, but we're going to lie to the adults. If we tell them the truth, it's going to be so many questions."

Amber didn't smile, she looked like she was about to say something serious.

"You know, do you actually think people like Sofia better than me" She asked uncertainly.

"I think everyone's been caught up in preparations for the new princess. My mum says everyone fussed over you and your brother. I didn't expect it to be any different for Sofia."

"Speaking of Sofia, I need to apologize to her. I've been awful."

"She's going to forgive you.I don't know why, but she will."

"She better" mumbled Amber, eliciting a smile from Holly.

What a princess, Holly thought.

"Are you ready to say the counter, Holly?" Amber knew Holly was a bit nervous, having never done even the slightest bit of magic before, but Amber knew Holly could. The girl stormed up to a princess and scolded her without a second thought. She could definitely handle muttering a few words.

Holly took a deep breath and said, "Poppili Kala Ecsitate". And it was like magic. Then again, it was magic.

Gold and silver strands wove in and out of guests, lighting up the great hall, while rousing the guests from their slumber.

The girls shared a look that Amber knew was a promise. To never tell anyone else the beauty they were seeing.

It was magic, and it was for Holly and her alone.

Not that it was significant or anything.

When the guests came to, with everything as they left it, it seemed they remembered nothing. Sofia was still a bundle of nerves, looking like she was going to throw up. However, when Holly threw an exasperated look (unlike the encouraging one Amber was giving), Sofia steeled herself and began to dance.

It took only a split second for Amber to see that this wasn't going to go so well. Its not that Sofia was a bad dancer, just not good enough. The guests expected royal perfection. She took the paper from Holly and spoke the incantation.

The effect was instant. Sofia stopped stumbling and started gliding, the guests were unable to look away. The King, Miranda, and James smiled. James whispered 'brilliant!'

And it was brilliant. Watching her step-sister, [no, her sister] glide across the room, with a big smile on her face, made Amber herself feel happy. And knowing how much she had gone through to make Sofia smile almost made her smile

Holly watched as a smile bloomed on Amber's face. Whatever the incantation was that Amber had spoken, it had certainly helped Sofia. Although, she'd have to pull Sofia aside later and tell her about everything, she was content to live in the now.

"So princess, aren't you supposed to be with the royals?", she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I guess." Amber turned back and smiled, mouthing a thank you at Holly, before weaving through the crowd to congratulate Sofia. Holly spied Ruby and Jade at the edge of the ballroom, admiring the decor, and made her way over to them.

"Hey Holly, this party is amazing!" Ruby saw her first and started waving her arm up and down, like she was flagging down a taxi in a particularly violent way. Amber would be appalled, thought Holly as she greeted her friends.

"Hey Jade, Ruby. Enjoying the castle."

"Not yet. There's still plenty of time, isn't there"

"Not as much as you'd think. It's almost midnight. Sofia sure took a lot of time getting ready. I can't imagine how much goes into getting ready for a ball as a princess"

Ruby and Jade swung their heads around to look at the clock. Sure enough, it was very close to midnight. Baileywick seemed to notice this, and he stood shocked until he recovered and went to talk to the King.

"Come on, maybe Sofia can show us around before we have to go"

"We can even see Prince James!"

"Sofia was really brilliant at dancing. I didn't think she knew how!"

Holly didn't even stutter when she said, "Must be a princess thing"

She met Amber's eye across the Hall,, and both girls turned away. Holly smiled to herself, replaying the memories of the night.

"AH!" then, "Holly!"

Holly chuckled before saying, "All I did was stick out my arm. You scare too easy"

Sofia huffed, before lifting her head as Holly started talking.

"Follow me. I have something to tell you"

Sofia followed Holly up the stairs, following the path to her bedroom. However, when she stopped at her room door, Holly beckoned her forward.

"But that's Amber's room. She'll be so mad if we go in there."

"Just come on. You might want to hear this"

Sofia hesitantly stepped into the room, wondering what suprise Holly had in store for her. She panicked when she saw Amber, perched on her bed and flipping through a book.

"Oh! Amber, hello"

Amber looked at the person behind Sofia, and sighed.

"Must I?"

"Don't try to pawn it off on me", Holly replied.

Sofia was surprised at the easy way they talked to each other. Just an a few hours ago, they were at each other's throats.

"I'm sorry Sofia."

Sofia blinked. She hadn't expected Princess Amber to be apologizing to her anytime soon. Then again, she hadn't expected to become a princess anytime soon.

"I thought everyone liked you more than me, even my own twin. So I was unnecessarily mean to you. Holly helped me realize that you're not just my step-sister. You're my sister."

The only thing Sofia could say was, "Holly helped you?"

Then Amber and Holly launched into a long story about sorcerers and freezing time, and ravens, and spell books. It was like they had rehearsed it; they never stumbled or mixed words. They never even talked at the same time, content to finish each other's sentences if necessary.

Truth be told, she was happy that Amber was getting along with at least one of her friends. It was pretty obvious that she disapproved of the remaining.

"The dancing thing was kind of a fraud. Amber had the idea to grab a spell that could help you dance better. That's why you danced better"

"It was the least I could after spoiling your chance to properly learn how to dance" Amber said with a small smile. "And the spell must have affected Daddy too. He's never that good at dancing"

Sofia laughed at that, and she felt warm inside at the thought of being accepted into this new family