Author's Note: You reviewers make me want to jump for joy! :D Sorry for the long wait...not over the 2 week deadline but it certainly took long enough :p I spent like 75% of the past 2 weekends working outside and then the other 25% sleeping...but I'm back and hopefully on track!

starbright: Thank you!

light*hope: I can't imagine how you don't have a clue who she meets at the ball [face_clueless] LOL, anyway, it's whatever Em you want it to be...I like 'em both. They're both great actresses. If you watch Joan of Arcadia, ex-Emily is Joan. I'm so happy you can actually feel attraction between Journey...it's kind of pointless if the readers can't pick up anything between them :p Ooo, I'd love to have Courtney do a ballet solo...I think I'll do that...just not this chapter, too much going on. But it will happen! Can't wait for next in Golden Child. Take however long you need :) Those two sentences conflict, but I think you know what I'm saying...

ghjourneybaby: Thank you!

Rory4: And now you see...the story unfolds...thanks for reading :)

abc: This story is planned up to chapter 10, and you will be getting a Journey dance :D

SaMaRaKrYsTaL :p: Thanks a lot, glad you like how I'm forming the movie plot around the actual GH!

Dawndrina: Jason and Courtney will be dancing...several chapters down the road, and you'll be getting your wish. Thanks for the idea, you gave me quite a few and it should make this way more interesting.

tydavislover: *blush* "ever"? That's quite a compliment, and I'm thrilled you like it so much! Congrats on getting the movie! I have a computer that plays DVDs so I can watch it as I write, very convenient, lol.

AllHart: I thought Brazen was awesome, too, even though I adore Journey as well. I miss the show back then...it was funny and romantic and now it seems to be all angst...ah well, Guza and Pratt shall get their heads on straight eventually, or so I hope :p Thanks for reading!

theblondeone07: Well, you should like the next few chapters if those are the two things you can't wait to see :D Thanks!

Forgive me if Alcazar#1 is not in character but I have forgotten him and gotten him confused with his brother (which isn't all that hard, it being the same actor), he did die a year ago :p All I really remember was that he was obsessed with Brenda :p

Reflection

Chapter Five ~ Dancing with the Devil in Disguise

Courtney checked out her reflection in the mirror on her bureau and bit her lip. She wasn't sure if it was right. The only thing she owned that was a close to a costume was her tutu, which she now wore with light pink tights and calf-high black leather boots with heels—her only pair of shoes anywhere near "cool." She'd tried to curl her hair, but it wasn't easy with only the hairdryer that came with the room. She'd wrapped her locks around a finger than then blew the hot air on them until they were pretty much dry. The result? Soft waves that didn't look too bad. Makeup wasn't a problem because her old boss insisted that his waitresses look good. She'd applied a bit of eyeliner and mascara, trying to keep the cosmetics soft because she didn't want to look like a hooker. The result was two conflicting looks—hooker costume, classy makeup.

Oh well. It was the best she had.

She heard the bells chime as the door downstairs opened. She checked her clock. 7:03 P.M., almost exactly the time Emily had promised to show up with her magic bag of costumes. With one last backward glance at the strange girl in the mirror, she headed for the stairs.

When she was halfway down, she saw Emily catch sight of her and clamp her hands over her mouth.

Courtney stopped, clutching the edges of her frilled skirt. "Is it that bad?"

Emily immediately removed her hands from her mouth. "No, no. You look...wow, you look amazing."

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"Are you sure? I don't look like a..." Courtney trailed off, not wanting to offend Emily.

"A hooker?" Emily finished, alleviating her worries. "No. Do you feel like you do?"

Courtney smiled shyly. The only time she showed off her legs so much was when dancing, and this might be a dance, but not the right kind of dance. "Sort of."

Emily tucked her hands behind her ears and began searching through the large duffle bag at her feet. "Well, then let's see what we can do to fix that."

Courtney stood there, watching her. Emily looked absolutely stunning. Her light brown hair, elongated with hair extensions, cascaded down her back in loose waves, and her medieval-type dress was absolutely breathtaking. It was made of fine crimson silk and fit Emily perfectly.

"Here we go!" Emily exclaimed, much like a modern-day teenager, shattering the image of a princess from years past as she straightened with a frilly pink skirt in her hands. It was the same shade as Courtney's tutu. "You can put this under your other skirt and it will cover you up."

Courtney reached out, cautiously taking the skirt from Emily's not nearly so gentle hands. She couldn't believe how fine the material was. This sure wasn't made from any shower curtain. "I guess I'll just go upstairs and put this on..." Courtney began.

"Oh, don't be silly. Do you think I care? We're both girls."

Courtney laughed. Emily had a point. After all, the restaurant was empty except for the two of them. So she carefully slipped into the skirt, lifting it to her waist.

Emily reached out and began to tie the ribbons in the back. "Here, let me help you with this." As soon as she was done, she said, "There," and stepped back to examine her project. "Mmmhmm," she said, and went back into the bag. Courtney released the skirt and watched her. Emily soon straightened with a bottle and tiara in hand. She secured the tiara to Courtney's head and then held out the bottle.

"What's this?"

"Body glitter," Emily replied. "Just rub it on your shoulders and arms. It looks real pretty."

Courtney obeyed, and Emily rubbed it where she couldn't reach. When they were done, Emily stepped back to take in the whole picture. She nodded.

"What do you think?" Courtney asked nervously.

"You look amazing. Straight out of a fairytale, like Cinderella."

Courtney let out a laugh of relief. She caught a glimpse of herself in the windows, and couldn't believe it was her. Her lifelong dream was coming to life. She actually felt...well, pretty. And she didn't feel uncomfortable about it at all. "Thank you," she said. Emily had the magic touch. She didn't realize that it was her who made the outfit so becoming.

Before Emily could say anything else, someone came down the stairs, saying, "Oh, good, you're here, Em. Are you ready to go? We don't want to be late."

Courtney caught sight of Elizabeth coming down the stairs, clutching the skirt of her pale green dress.

"Wow, you look great," Courtney said, meaning it.

Elizabeth's head jerked upward at the sound of her voice, her eyes giving Courtney a quick visual sweep. Instead of returning the compliment, she asked, "What is she doing here?"

The confidence and goodwill that had filled Courtney a moment before drained away, along with her smile.

Emily looked from Courtney to Elizabeth, not missing the tone in Elizabeth's voice. "Um...I invited Courtney to come to the ball with us."

"Oh..." Elizabeth said, flashing Courtney an insincere smile that was closer to a snarl before turning a more pleasant one on Emily. "Where's Zander?"

"Oh, he's going to meet us there," Emily said with a nod, picking the duffle bag up.

"Who's Zander?" Courtney asked, trying to break the ice.

"My boyfriend." Emily positively beamed as she said it, and Courtney's heart swelled with her happiness.

"Yes, they've known each other for a very long time, kind of like me and Jason," Elizabeth said, sending another fake smile Courtney's way.

Oh really? Didn't look that way to me, Courtney thought, but didn't say it. Still, she felt like something had been crushed inside her when Elizabeth said that, and she couldn't figure out what it was.

"Right..." Emily said slowly, and then picked up speed as she changed the subject. "We should get going. We don't want to be late, especially if I'm supposed to be handing out costumes."

"Well, then what are we waiting for?" Courtney asked cheerfully. Even if Elizabeth was bringing her down on the inside, she wasn't going to let it show.

The three girls headed out the door, Courtney and Emily laughing as Courtney picked up the back of Emily's dress so it wouldn't drag, Emily's hands being occupied with the duffle bag.

~*~

Set up just inside the front door of Club 101, Courtney and Emily went about the business of handing out costumes, which definitely wasn't as easy as Courtney had originally thought it would be. There were tons of kids, mostly teenage boys, who shot them and the costumes disdainful looks and refused to put them on. But door duty was still fun, as they got to see all the amazing costumes.

Ten minutes after the club had opened for the charity ball, a dangerously handsome yet cute guy dressed as a Confederate soldier stepped through the door, tipping his hat to Emily. "Hey, beautiful."

Emily giggled and introduced him. "This is my Prince Charming. Courtney, Zander. Zander, this is Courtney."

Courtney smiled. "Hey. Nice to meet you."

"You, too."

The music changed to a waltz, and Zander bowed, taking Emily's hand and kissing it softly. "May I have this dance?"

Emily groaned. "Oh, don't tempt me."

There was no way Courtney was going to keep anyone from dancing with her prince at this ball. "No, go ahead. I can handle things here."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. You go ahead."

Emily took Zander's hand and they moved out onto the dance floor, disappearing among the many hoop skirts and feathered hats. For a long time, she watching the movement on the floor, getting lost in memories of what had been. Sadness flooded her heart as she thought of her lost dream, and the people she'd lost along the way of pursuing it. Her mom, her dad, increasingly larger pieces of herself. Ballet was what she loved, but it had cost her so much. What if she started again? She didn't have the money, but if she did, would this childish dream of hers continue to take away the people she loved most in her life?

She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she almost let someone get by her. Luckily, she shook free of her grievous thoughts in time to reach out and catching just a centimeter of his suit jacket between her thumb and forefinger. "Hey, hey, hey." It was just enough to get him and the woman he was with to turn around. It took a moment for her to recognize the woman, dressed up as a strangely lovely witch, as Bobbie's daughter—Carly, wasn't it? "Don't you want a costume?" Courtney asked with what she hoped was her most dazzling smile.

At first she thought it was working, because he sort of laughed along with her. Then he spoke. "I don't think so."

"Oh, come on," she coaxed.

He shook his head. "I don't do costumes."

"Do you happen to have any fascist leader costumes?" Carly cut in. "Napoleon, Hitler, something?"

Courtney raised her hands, tucking her hair behind her ears, unsure of how to respond. She really didn't think it was a good idea to offend anyone. "Um..."

Carly wrinkled up her nose in a wry kind of smile. "Didn't think so. He's a lost cause, anyway. Come on, let's go." She grabbed onto her man, who was giving her a perfectly bland expression, and pulled him into the crowd.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Courtney burst out laughing.

Jason paused in the doorway, feeling the faintest of smiles tugging at his lips. There was that girl, Courtney, laughing at seemingly nothing, and looking beautiful as she did it. Her cheeks were rosy, and all of her seemed to glow with the laugh. Her joy reached even his supposedly frozen heart, melting it just enough to allow the smile.

And then she caught sight of him and her gorgeous smile went away, and in turn so did Jason's.

"What, are you everywhere?" she snapped.

Jason frowned, a look of confusion crossing his face. "No..." he said slowly. "I'm just here."

"Riiiight..." Courtney dragged out the word, disbelieving. She wanted to buy that it was just a coincidence that they kept running into each other, but her mom had taught her not to believe in such a thing. This guy must want something from her, and she wasn't willing to give it. She turned and walked away, tapping Emily on the shoulder and asking if she wouldn't mind taking over door duty for awhile.

"Oh, sure," Emily replied, a little startled by the request.

"Who was that?" Carly asked Jason on the other side of the dance floor.

Jason shrugged, didn't answer. Some things Carly didn't need to know. She didn't need to know about Courtney. Not yet. Still, his eyes followed Courtney across the dance floor with that grace and confidence that made it so hard for him to tear his eyes from her. Something about her drew him to her, tugged at something deep down inside of him.

Across the dance floor, yet another person had observed the interaction. Luis Alcazar. A smile of his own formed. Perhaps Brenda could be his after all...

~*~

"Oh, good, you came! I'm so happy you came! Aren't you happy you came?"

No one should use that many exclamation marks in a single breath. Jason could already feel the headache coming on. "Brenda..."

The owner of that name was clad in a vibrant display of blue, red, yellow, and green that could really hurt your eyes if you looked at her too long. Little bells dangled from her jester hat, and Jason thought her face should crack from the width of her grin. "You came for me, right? You came because you didn't want me to dance alone. Come on, dance with me."

Jason rolled his eyes toward the ceiling, asking God why he was here.

~*~

Courtney didn't know what had come over, snapping at Jason like that. Maybe she was being overly cautious or something. Was there such a thing as being overly cautious? He might seem like a nice guy, but he was involved in the mob, and you couldn't be too cautious around a person connected like that.

But she didn't feel cautious around Jason. She felt...she didn't know how to describe it. But there was something about him that made her want to tell him everything on her mind.

Well, at least there had been until tonight. And suddenly it occurred to her what was wrong. It was Elizabeth Webber. What she'd said about her and Jason being together for a very long time. It made her angry at Jason for no reason. What right did she have to be angry? She didn't even know him!

Damn it, Courtney! She needed to get herself together. She was supposed to be having fun, not thinking about her mom, her dad, or some stranger that seemed to be taking over her mind. She'd just step into the lady's room until she'd pulled herself together enough to put on a happy front.

That's when someone grabbed her arm, pulling her into his grasp and clamping a hand over her mouth. She let out a shriek that didn't make it past his fingers.

"Associating with Morgan, are you?"

~*~

"Come on. What, is it going to kill you to dance with me? Dance with me."

Brenda kept on trying to convince him, tugging on his arm, but Jason's attention was focused somewhere else. Anger exploded inside him as he honed in on the secluded corner. He pulled away from Brenda, not hearing her call out, asking what was wrong with him. He saw him, a man in a mask, holding Courtney tight, a hand over her mouth, whispering something in her ear, probably a threat. Her eyes were wide with surprise, fright. It didn't matter who it was, he had to protect her.

And then he was there, his hands gripping the man's arm, pulling him away from Courtney, punching him, kicking him, anything to get the message across. People were screaming, people he knew, but he ignored them. It didn't matter.

Courtney felt someone tear the man off her before he could complete his threat. She whirled around. All eyes were on the two man having it out in the middle of the club. "Jason, stop!" Courtney screamed, horrified that he'd be hurt, that he'd get in trouble, all for defending her.

~*~

P.S. Who knows if Brenda would ever go as a jester? Not I, that's for sure :p