30

"Alice, hold still."

"I am!"

"Tarrant, distract her, will you?"

"On it."

It's been eight months since the trial, the day of prom. Tarrant, Bayard, Mally, and Alice are all sat around Tarrant and Bayard's dorm, the boys lounging on Bayard's bed, Bayard messing about with his guitar, while Mally touches up Alice's eye makeup. Everyone else is scouting out good locations to take photos before they drive off to the venue in Tarrant and Nivens' cars, Baxton driving himself.

Tarrant gets off of Bayard's bed and goes to sit beside Alice, Mally dabbing a bit more colour in the corners of her eyes.

"Nervous?" he asks with a cheeky grin.

"Oh, stuff it." Alice grumbles. "It's just my eyes, I always flinch when my eyes are getting done."

"Right." Tarrant says. "I'm just surprised is all. After all we've been through together, something like this can still get you nervous."

"You ought to get a girlfriend." Bayard says, picking at the strings. He clamps on a capo. "Or a boyfriend." he says when Tarrant wrinkles his nose. Tarrant snorts, falling back onto the bed and jolting Mally, earning him a slap on the arm. "Point being, your partner is always going to get you going crazy. I haven't seen Bielle in ages, but I know the anticipation is going to get to me when she meets us there tonight."

"All done!" Mally says triumphantly. "Thank you, Tarrant, for nearly ruining it." She pats Alice on the back. "Go take a look at yourself, love."

Alice gets up, straightening her jacket and going over to the mirror. She and Mirana had decided on canary yellow for their central colour. It would certainly stand out amongst the traditional blue, purple, and red that most couples chose. Alice had never put on the full ensemble until now, and she nearly stumbles back when she gets a good look at herself.

For the most part, it is a conventional black suit, but the interior is where it deviates. She wears a canary yellow vest and matching tie, her silver caterpillar pin sitting comfortably on her lapel. Her eyes are dusted over with golden eyeshadow fading into a dusky brown, lined with a thin black wing. Her dress shoes are fitted with thick insoles, since, judging from both Christmas balls, she and Mirana would be dancing a lot.

Tarrant appears beside her in a suit he made himself, an all white set coloured with vibrant splashes of swirling colours, not unlike the pattern that had been on his shirt the day they first met. Alice can't help but smile. That day seems so long ago, and here they are, now best friends, practically brother and sister.

"Shall we?" he asks. "I've got a message saying we've got locations sorted."

Alice nods, and the four of them head out the door, coming out of the dorms to meet in front of the founder's statue. Everyone looks fantastic, but there's one person missing from the group.

Alice frowns. "Where's Mirana?"

Nivens approaches her. "She'll be out in a minute. She says she's got a surprise for you, and she's a little worried about it."

"THERE SHE IS!" Thackery bellows, coming to put an arm around Nivens.

Alice turns around with the rest of the group, and it's all she can do to keep her jaw from hitting the floor.

She comes out on Mason's arm, — who is wearing a pink tuxedo with black lapels and bowtie, his hair grown out considerably, no longer buried beneath a baseball cap — the canary yellow dress blooming about her like a lily, but she's seen the dress before.

No, what's different is her hair.

Alice nearly doesn't recognise her. Gone are the snowy white locks. Instead, warm, honey brown hair cascades around her face, her lips tinged pale pink rather than their usual dark cherry. She appears softer, brighter, absolutely radiant, despite the anxious expression on her face. Their eyes meet, and Alice barely registers Mally pushing her mouth closed. She smiles shyly at Alice, helping Alice remember how exactly her legs work long enough to reach her in a few strides.

"Well?" she asks breathlessly. "What do you think?"

"I— you— wow." Is what Alice manages to get out. She tries again. "Is this what you really want?" she asks tentatively. True, the clothes were a sign of progress, but changing such a huge part of her that had stayed the same for the longest time, all she can hope is that Mirana's really ready for this.

Mirana nods. "Yes. It's been a long time coming, and I think I've come far enough to really accept myself for who I am. No more hiding. This was just the last step."

Alice smiles, finding her words again. "I'm glad." She reaches out, runs her fingers through her girlfriend's hair. "I really do like this."

Mirana leans into her hand, taking it into her own. Seeing her like this, so blissfully happy, makes Alice feel as if there's nothing more important in the world right now. She leans in to kiss her, only to be interrupted by —

"Oi, if you two are finished, we've got to start taking photos now if we're going to make it on time!" Bayard yells, having gathered everyone else into suitable positions.

Oh, right. Prom is still a thing.

Mirana pulls her in close and leans down to whisper, "I promise we'll have plenty of time alone later."

Alice follows her considerably faster after that.

The venue is absolutely stunning. After somehow managing to find parking on the first level of the structure, they go inside The Manor Lodge.

Inside, it's massive. Flowing white silks hang from the ceiling paired with translucent balloons dusted inside with silver confetti, the place lit with a mixture of blue and purple lighting. Plenty of tables are scattered about, covered with cream coloured tablecloths and set with gold plateware and rim frosted glasses. A raised platform towards the back of the room serves as a stage where a live band plays. Against another wall is a massive buffet table filled with food, which is what most students are gathered around if they're not tearing up the dance floor. Thackery is already tugging Nivens towards the music, Nivens flushing furiously. Bayard quickly finds a pretty young woman in an elaborate violet gown that Alice can only assume is Bielle and becomes fairly occupied with that reunion. Mason finds Professor Flora and immediately dashes over to embrace her. Baxton follows Mally towards the dance floor with some gentle coaxing on her end. They are adorably sweet together, going as friends, and Mally has been a rather good help with getting him to adjust to being a part of a group again, but a group that actually values him as a person. Tarrant leads the rest of their group to a table to wait out the line at the buffet before they grab their own food.

Chess, who looks rather charming in a grey and powder blue suit, wearing the bowler hat Tarrant had made him, fidgets a bit in his seat considerably when they go to sit down. He keeps glancing over to the floor, then sneaking glances over to Tarrant when he thinks no one can see him doing that.

Alice grins. She knows that look. "Something on your mind, Chess?"

Everyone turns to look at him, and suddenly Chess becomes immensely interested in his napkin then, before finally pulling out his phone to speak.

"I want to dance." the robotic voice says. "With someone."

Alice nods. After everyone else has been playing matchmaker with her and Mirana, it's her turn to have a little fun, and if those looks have said anything, she knows exactly who to pair him with. "Tarrant, you should dance with him."

Chess's eyes grow large, and he sneaks another glance over at Tarrant, who pretends to ponder it for a moment, clearly enjoying toying with him a bit. "I don't know, Alice." He shifts in his seat to face Chess more fully. "How much of my dancing do you know?"

Chess excitedly taps out. "All of it!" The voice doesn't do the best job at conveying his excitement, but his face says it all. "If you dance with me, I'll never steal your hat again!"

Tarrant laughs. "Now that's an offer I can't refuse."

Chess eagerly jumps up, then, in a blink of an eye, swaps their hats and bounds off, Tarrant's hat now bouncing on top of his head while his own hat sits comically askew atop Tarrant's head. Instead of getting angry, Tarrant just snorts and races after him, adjusting the hat that can barely contain his wild hair.

Mirana giggles at the display. "Very nicely done." she says. "So subtle too."

Alice grins and slips her fingers through hers, intertwining them. "They just need a little push. Like us."

Mirana smiles warmly at her, and Alice finds herself melting once again. "I'm just happy that at the end of it all, I have you."

She leans over and presses a kiss to Alice's forehead. Alice reaches up and cups her cheek. "Lower." she insists.

"If the lady demands."

"She does."

Mirana leans down, putting her hand on the back of Alice's neck to pull her in, and kisses her. Soft lips, vanilla bean, no matter how many times they've kissed, Alice still gets that dizzying feeling, and she smiles into it, shifting herself closer. They break apart, resting their foreheads together, happy, content.

The song changes then, subtly at first, a low note, before some drums kick up.

Trippin' out

Spinnin' around

I'm underground, I fell down

Yeah, I fell down

Mirana's face lights up. "Oh, I love this song, we've got to dance to this!"

Alice glances over to the buffet table, where the line has gone down considerably. A lot of people like this song, apparently. "But the line just went down." she points out. Dancing is fun and all, but… food.

Mirana pouts. "Please? I promise we'll eat after."

Alice looks over at the dance floor, where everyone seems to be falling into a line dance that everyone seems to know. They look easy enough to follow. Will she still look silly? Yes.

"Promise?"

Mirana beams. "Yes! Come on!"

Alice smiles, shakes her head, letting herself be led out to the dance floor. They find a decent break in the line to join and start to follow along. Well, Alice flails vaguely, but Mirana looks so happy, like she's having so much fun, that she obliges her anyway. As she starts letting herself go, not really thinking about doing every move perfectly, she finds herself having fun too. She lets herself look around, taking everything in.

Prom. This night once felt a million years away, and now, by some miracle, they've all made it here, alive and happy in the moment. It doesn't seem so long ago that she was feeling hopeless, not knowing if she would be able to save Mirana, to finally put an end to all the suffering she'd only been a part of for a small bit of time in the grand scheme of things. It doesn't seem so long ago that she was watching Mirana from afar, wondering if she could ever love her, wondering if what she was feeling was love at all and not just infatuation. It doesn't seem so long ago that she was entering her dorm here at Underland Academy for the first time, unpacking, only to be interrupted by Chess running around her room, and then Tarrant barrelling through the door. It doesn't seem so long ago that she felt so alone, not knowing that there were people out there that would like her just as she is.

Now, she's part of a rather large friend group. She's got a best friend that is insanely talented with a needle, who would be there for her no matter what. She's got a girlfriend who loves her and makes her happier than anything else. Everything feels stable, everything feels so wonderfully right.

She's finally in her own wonderland.

At that thought, she lets go completely to the music, letting herself be free as the final verse plays out.

I, I'll get by

I, I'll survive

When the world's crashing down

When I fall and hit the ground

I will turn myself around

Don't you try to stop me

I, I won't cry