Friday - The day before Maya and Khalid's ball
After school, the princess got onto Maya's carriage. Khalid approached them with his prince friends behind him.
"Okay, what," he started making wild gestures over the girls, "is this, because I don't see any space for me,"
"The girls are coming for a sleepover, Khalid, find your own ride." Maya responded, "Coachman, go,"
"Maya wait, that is my ride," he complained as the carriage made its way into the air. He tried to chase the carriage but realised that he would not be able to reach it anyway. He groaned as he watched the carriage fly further away and turned to his friends.
"Could one of you please give me a ride home," He begged going as far to get on his knees.
James and Zandar stepped back remembering the last time Khalid was in their carriage. Hugo pulled his best friend up.
"Don't worry, I will. I would have given you one anyway," Hugo said. Khalid dramatically hugged him.
"You're a lifesaver I could have been left here for longer than necessary." he wailed clutching onto Hugo. He then straightened up and said "Don't forget to ask your parents if you can sleep round tonight," He then skipped over to Hugo's carriage and sat down.
"That kid needs help," said Jin.
"Word" Desmond awkwardly. Everyone turned to him in disgust.
"Never say that again," Zandar deadpanned.
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On the carriage the girls were arranging what they'd be wearing as they made their way to Enchancia to pick up Lucinda and Ruby.
"So, since you guys are my special guests you all have to wear to lace,"
"What if someone else comes wearing lace?" Jun asked worriedly.
"It said only V. I. Ps get to wear lace on the invite," replied Maya. "Now Amber you will be wearing a yellow lace dress, Hildegard a green lace dress, Cleo yours will be a dusty rose kind of dress, Jun I found you the most beautiful lace kimono ever. Vivian you shall wear a lovely red lace dress I got and Sofia, you will wear a lovely mix of pink and purple lace kind of dress."
The girls gratefully thanked Maya for the dresses.
"What about Ruby and Lucinda's dresses," asked Cleo.
"Ruby is a dark red lace dress and Lucinda is wearing a dark purple one,"
The carriage then landed in Enchancia's main village. The princess leaped gracefully off their transport and made their way to Ruby's house. Before Hildegard could even knock on the door it swung open to reveal an eager Ruby being followed by calmer Lucinda.
"OMG guys I'm so excited," squealed Ruby. She then saw Hildegard. "I'm so sorry, Hildegard. About Zandar,"
Confusion clouded Hildegard's face. Suddenly they heard a voice behind them.
"Oh, you haven't heard?" Jade said with an evil smirk on her face. "Prince Zandar asked me to go to the ball with him,"
The sound of Hildegard's fan snapping in half was all that could be heard in the silence. Amber and Vivian grabbed each of Hildegard's hands as they started to tremble.
"Jade what do you want," Sofia said annoyed at seeing her former friend
"Nothing I'm just… informing you that I will be attending the ball tomorrow night," Jade stated.
"Okay, good luck being an outcast because there is no way you're hanging with us," Cleo said in disgust. She started leading her friends to the carriage "Come on let's go,"
The other girls followed except Sofia who waited behind. She looked Jade in the eye "Why are you being like this, Jade, we were all best friends once, and Hildegard and the other princesses have nothing to do with it,"
Jade looked back with anger in her eyes, "You would always leave me out!"
"When have we ever done that? You usually just exclude yourself,"
Jade turned around and walked off "Goodbye Sofia,"
Sofia stared at her retreating figure with sad eyes before joining her friends on the carriage. The girls were all trying comforting Hildegard as she stared off into space with a sad expression on her face. The girls shared worried glances.
Half an hour later the carriage landed in Maya's kingdom, Khaldoun. Hildegard was the first off the carriage and sprinted off with tears in her eyes. She flew past a confused Prince Khalid who had come out to greet the princesses.
"What was that about," he said in bemusement. Next thing he knew he was pushed up against the wall by Amber, with murder in her eyes.
"Did you know that Prince Zandar asked Jade to the ball," Amber angrily asked.
"Well, he told us but I didn't think he'd actually do it, please don't kill me," he rushed out with his eyes closed in fear. When he didn't hear anything in return he opened his eyes for a quick look and saw Ruby and smiled cheekily at her "Hey,"
Princess Jun and Cleo stepped closer to her as if they were protecting her from him, but that didn't stop her from shyly smiling back. He would have melted right there if it wasn't for the fact he was still being held against the wall by a fuming princess.
Princess Vivian made her way over to Amber and whispered something in her ear. Amber turned to him, sneered and then dropped him down. The girls then ran off to find Hildegard.
All except Ruby.
She watched as Khalid got up and dusted himself while muttering, "Seriously if those are the future queens the kingdoms are doomed," He looked up as he heard giggling and saw Ruby watching him. He quickly straightened up and bowed down to her.
"Oh, you don't have to do that Prince Khalid. I'm not a princess," Ruby said modestly.
"Just call me Khalid. And you're as much as a princess as the other ones, you even look like one too."
Ruby's mouth curved into a smile, "You know, if your friends weren't behaving like jerks, I would consider...maybe...going to the ba-" she was cut short when she heard the flapping of wings behind her. She turned to see carriages landing from the air
Khalid woke up from his dazed form and gave Ruby a half-smile. She faked a smile back and hurried into the castle before any of the other princes could talk to her.
Khalid's gaze followed her with longing and he swivelled round to his friends that were jumping off the carriages.
"Timing, guys. You have the worst timing in the world," he looked at them as they all strutted towards him, "Oh yeahhhh, you're probably wondering what we have done this time to poor Khalid, well I'll tell you idiots what"
The boys walked up smirking at Khalid's enraged face.
"Ruby. Beautiful, lovely, stunning Ruby was about to suggest that we, as in me and her, go to the ball together then you guys all just flew in an- and… oh my god," Khalid faltered as his eyes fell upon three figures conversing by the carriages.
He turned to gape at James, Zandar, and Hugo, "You didn't?"
The three boys grinned at each other "We did!"
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Sofia hugged Hildegard as she sobbed into her dress. The other girls were sitting in the various seats in Maya's room.
Amber tried to comfort Hildegard "Don't worry Hildy, you don't need him. There's plenty of other princes in all the kingdoms and empires,"
Hildegard stood up with a gloomy face. She made her way to the window and said "But Amber, I do need him. I've liked him for so long," she turned back to girls, "I would give up diamonds for him," The girls gasped as they knew how much Hildegard loved her diamonds.
Hildegard slumped down on the nearest seat with her hand on her face just as they heard a knock on the bedroom door.
"Come in," shouted Maya. The door opened revealing a trembling Khalid.
"Um, so the princes are sleeping over today as you know and they may have bought to extra guests to stay with you,"
"Who?" Maya demanded.
The prince gulped "Jade, Princess Bella, and Princess Mia"
All muttering in the room ceased as Jade, Princess Mia and Princess Bella entered with the other princes. Sofia cast her eyes down when she saw Hugo flirting with Mia.
Silence. That was all that could be heard.
Vivian decided to be the reasoning voice, "I don't think it's a good idea for those three to stay with us, we all really have bad history with them and it would just result in-,"
"Shut up, you misfit. No one asked for your explanations," snarled Jade.
"You did not just call my girl, Vivian, Princess of Zumaria, a misfit," snapped Hildegard rising from her seat sending a vicious glare at Jade.
"Yes, she did," Princess Mia spoke up, "Can you not hear?"
Hugo tried to defuse the situation, "Girls, come on just share a room just for tonight,"
His mouth snapped shut when he saw Sofia give him a hard glare.
"You know what, I don't even know why we tried," Zandar grumbled, "These girls obviously think that they're too good, to hang with them,"
"Um, no. We don't like them for a reason," Jun argued.
Hildegard rolled her eyes "Don't bother Jun, Zandar is obviously head over heels in love with this basic harlot and will defend her no matter what wrong she does,"
"Well, it's better than loving you. Who would want you anyway, nasty bitch!"
Everyone gasped as rage-filled Hildegard. She balled her fists and shouted, "Take that back!"
"No!" He yelled back
Hildegard began to lay punches on him.
"Ow, Hildegard, stop that," He complained as he tried dodging her blows Cleo ran to Hildegard and held her back.
"You know what, I'm okay, I'm okay." she breathed out. Cleo slowly let her grasp go. Hildegard then roared and leapt onto Jade and screamed, "I'm going to kill you,"
Jade didn't stand a chance against the crazy princess. All the other girls except Princess Mia, Bella and Sofia were trying to get Hildegard to calm down. The princes had a grip on Zandar so he wouldn't go intervene but he got out and ran towards the two fighting girls.
What happened next was too much to even process. Zandar got to the two princesses and pulled them apart. Hildegard turned to him and screamed at him to get off her. She then slapped Jade round the face. Zandar then turned her back around and slapped her around the face with such force her head whipped to the other side. The Princes were in shock, Jade was smirking, the girls were screaming with anger, Princess Bella and Mia were smiling behind their fans, Sofia was just in a daze and Zandar. Poor Zandar was stood in place as he saw his handprint turning red on his face.
"Get out,"
Everyone turned to Ruby in shock. Everyone turned to her. She pointed at the group of princes and the 3 intruding girls, "Get out, NOW!"
The group sprinted off after seeing Ruby's murderous eyes and her equally angry friends. Cleo ran over to Hildegard who was crying her eyes out.
Sofia was thinking to herself.
Why are the boys acting so weird? she wondered.
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Khalid came back into the boys' room after showing the girl where they'd be sleeping. When he closed the door, he leaned his head on it.
"Well, that was… eventful" he stated. Zandar was pacing up and down.
"Why did I do that? No, she deserved it. Wait. No, she didn't. No. Yes She…" He stopped pacing and turned to the guys, "Why did I do that?"
"I think what you did was right," James declared. "Hildegard's a bitch and she deserved it, in my opinion,"
"I also agree with Zandar's actions. She started it," Hugo agreed. All the boys started nodding and cheering about how Hildegard deserved it except Khalid.
What the hell is going on, he thought as he looked at his friends with his eyes wide, not noticing
that rest of the boys' eyes flashed red.
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In the guest room Khalid had provided, three girls sat in a triangle with their eyes shut. The room was dark and threatening. A red mist seeped through the gap underneath the door and into the girls' necklaces. The first girl grinned.
"The spell worked, I see"
"Not on the Khaldoun prince," the second girl protested.
"He's probably too smitten with my former best friend," the third girl griped.
"Sister Jade, these past friendships will not interfere with our plans will it?" the first girl questioned.
"No. Sister Mia and Sister Bella, you are my new best friends, my sisters in arms. My loyalty is to you," Jade responded.
Satisfied with the answer she received, Mia let her eyes open. The others followed her example.
"The Khaldoun joker is nothing but a minuscule obstacle, Sister Bella" Mia assured "We have more than enough pawns for our plans,"
She looked at her sisters and let out a cruel laugh, "We will be the rulers of a new age, and no one will stand in our way!"