Author's notes: Here's chapter 6, and it's kind of about the party. I say kind of because I decided to split it into two parts cause it's too long. Part two is a surprise ;) it's so much a surprise I don't even know when it will come either.
Also! I hope you noticed the! new! cover! because yes there is a new cover! I drew it! I originally didn't plan this but I ended up sketching Stiles and before I knew it I drew the characters. Personally, I like how Leon and Rhys turned out, the others I think are meh. So can you tell which character is which? Do you like it? I mean, I'm not the best artist out there but I consider it decent at best, I hope you do too.
Enough talking, on to the story!
-Before-
It was in the middle of the night, the great kingdom of Eraklyon was dark and quiet as many of its citizens, whether it'd be the nobility or the peasantry, slumbered on peacefully. And this included the royal family as well.
The beloved king snored against the wooden surface of his desk, holding a folder containing missing persons' reports that threatened to fall off from his grasp as a concerned Duchess carefully put a blanket on his resting form. The young heir apparent of the throne sucked on his thumb, dried tears on his chubby little cheeks as he held his beloved story book closely to him, the only thing keeping him from throwing another fit. The very young princess, however...
The infant was babbling amongst herself in her fancy little crib, her bright blue eyes soon threatening to close when a window slowly creaked open, and suddenly, someone was standing in front of the crib. The young princess blinked at the figure, being the shy baby she was, one would usually expect for her to suddenly cry, but instead, the girl started giggling as she held her pudgy arms out, as if expecting for the figure to hold her like...like who?
A strained smile came on to the otherwise stoic looking figure as she clenched the object she was holding in her hand. She...didn't have time left, she was growing unstable day by day...it won't be a matter of time until...no, she thought with a frown, she shouldn't think about that. She looked down at the infant, her hardened expression softening. She needed to do this before it's too late. Before she's too far gone. "I'm sorry," She started, choosing her words carefully despite the fact that she was talking to an infant.
"I...I'm so sorry, for everything that had and will happen. I'm so sorry for leaving. I'm so sorry for... putting such a heavy weight on your shoulders, it hasn't been easy for me, how much more for a little one like you?" The infant continued babbling happily, waving her arms around.
The woman held out the object in her hands, revealing a small and simple-looking locket. The little princess tried reaching out for it, being the curious little thing she is. "I may not accompany you on your great journey, but...maybe this will aid you, and make things much easier. It may look simple, but it's powerful and has a lot of potential...just like you." She smiled as she carefully put the necklace around the infant. "So, take care of it, okay, darling?" Making promises with a baby...how silly, she thought fondly as she took a deep breath and turned, knowing that walking away will be hard, just like the first time, and it will be harder as she realized she won't come back.
Several nannies arrived as soon as the baby princess suddenly started wailing loudly, squirming and screeching violently. The baffled women looked at one another, feeling completely and utterly helpless as the infant continued with her crying. The infant's big, tearful blue eyes lay at the open windows, curtains still swaying around from the wind, as if someone had gone through it.
Who was that someone?
-After-
The day of the party. Liz woke up with a heaving chest and damp cheeks as she sat up on her bed. She furrowed her brows as she wiped her confused tears off of her face. There it is again, another strange and unfamiliar dream that has some stranger saying confusing things. She thought she was over that by the time she was twelve, apparently not.
"Had a sad dream?" A cheery voice piped up, and Liz turned her head to see Emma on the other side of the room, sitting on her bed as she set some potential outfits on the mattress for the back to school party. Emma had been excited for the party ever since her brother and Brittany told her all about it the past week, Liz didn't mind her giddiness at first but it got annoying after Emma kept asking her for fashion advice and even went as far as to try to decide on her outfit in the middle of the night. It's not like Liz can do anything about it, anyway, Emma was a photographer at heart, so she had always been big on being aesthetically pleasing, whether it be people around her, the scenery, or even herself.
"I guess," Liz shrugged as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed, not really wanting to talk about it. The last time she told someone, a duchess' son told her she was being crazy.
Emma seemed to notice it, "Oh, Liz, don't be embarrassed that you cried in your dreams!" She said, giving a comforting smile. "It's okay to dream about sad stuff. I sometimes dream about my pet dog, his name was Bacon Bits- don't ask why- and, you know, he died so young and-and- oh god, here comes the tears-" She placed a hand over her hand as she began to tear up.
Liz was taken aback by her. "Emma, are you okay-?"
"Yeah," Emma managed to choke up as she turned, "I'm-I'm okay, Liz, just-please excuse me," she ran to their shared bathroom and shut the door, probably to have some privacy after thinking about her deceased dog. Liz was about to reach out, but she eventually pursed her lips as she held herself back. The redhead sighed as she glanced at Emma's bed. No matter how many times she told her that the pink outfit was the best, she still wouldn't listen.
Liz walked out of her room and to the common room, the first thing she heard was some guy yelling random stuff with punches and kicks in the background. She looked up and saw one of her suite mates, Max, plopped up in one of the sofas, a can of soda in one hand and a phone on another as some wrestling show played on the television. Nothing was odd in the slightest except for one thing. "Where are the others?" Liz asked. Usually, Max, Cel, and Brittany would fight for the remote while Lana tried to calm things down every time she walked in the common room, profanities and junk food getting thrown around. But only Max was there, and the other three were nowhere to be seen or found.
It took a while for Max to respond, seeing as she was talking to someone else on the phone, something about juice and dirt. "Oh, Liz," She said half-heartedly, plopping herself up after the call ended. "Morning." She said, apparently she didn't hear what Liz said.
"Um, morning," Liz said, looking around. "Where are the others?"
"Ah, excellent question," Max said, rubbing her chin as she recounted what her suite mates told her. "Hmm, let's see, Lana is helping out with the party preparations, Brittany is out doing some last minute shopping, Cel is helping Cal out for something..." She recalled, "And from what I hear right now, Emma's in the bathroom crying, something about bacon bits. Can you please explain that?"
"Oh, it's just about her dead pet. I know it's weird. Don't ask me why, I don't know either." Liz told her. Max furrowed her brows but shrugged it off, letting it go. That's what Liz liked about Max, she just didn't care enough to try and pry things open, someone who's completely content with life and has no intention of learning more. At least, that's what she thought, not knowing that the fairy in front of her was responsible for ruining so many people's reputation in a span of two years.
The atmosphere was silent between them until Max spoke up. "Oh, by the way, the party's starting a few hours from now. Excited?" She asked, turning to the redhead. Liz shrugged, feeling neutral, though she was the introverted type, she didn't mind social gatherings. "Well, you should be. The climax is going to be so awesome."
"How can you say that?" Liz asked. The way Max said it was...malicious in a way as if she was planning something.
"Wait and see, Elizabeth Blaire, wait and see."
...
"Hold still!"
"I will if you stop brushing my hair with a sharp com-ow!"
"I wouldn't if your hair didn't break all of my combs and brushes!"
Lana continued whining as Brittany continued brushing her hair in a slightly aggressive manner, gritting her teeth as she held many pins and ties between her lips, it was almost like taming a lion's mane, maybe worse. The rest of the girls watched the two seniors' exchange in amusement.
It was now at least twenty minutes before the party is said to start, and most of the girls were already dressed nicely in their carefully chosen outfits or dresses (depends on their preference. Alfea really has gotten progressive over the years) and some were just making final adjustments like putting on extra makeup or putting on jewelry. Emma checked herself in the mirror every so often just in case something was out of place, Liz read a book until the party actually started, Cel was watching some zombie show on television, Max was texting someone on her phone, while Brittany and Lana were still bickering about Lana's wild hair.
"My goodness, just leave my hair alone! I like it wild and free!" Lana finally snapped, squirming around childishly.
Brittany stomped her foot on the ground like a stubborn child and gripped her brush, almost snapping it into two as she stomped to a nearby vacant sofa and sat down with a huff. "Fine," She muttered. Eventually, she lowered her tense shoulders and turned to the person next to her: Max. She smiled as she opened her mouth, "Hey, do you want some-?"
"No," Max told her flatly, not even looking up from her phone as she kept doing whatever on her phone. Brittany raised a brow as she peered over Max's shoulder.
"Who are you talking to? Ooh, is it a boy?"
"I guess?"
"What are you guys talking about?" Max rolled her eyes at the question. This conversation was going nowhere.
"That's none of your business, princess. Now, shimmy along." She told her, waving her hand as she scooted away from the brunette. She had to make her plan a secret, and with the exception of a few close friends and herself, absolutely no one should find out about it until it actually came to fruition, otherwise, it will be anticlimactic and boring. Brittany pouted as she crossed her arms and turned away.
The girls continued on with their own thing until they hear several loud footsteps thundering outside their dorm as if the person/s were in a hurry. They looked at one another with uneasiness as they can hear many doors slam open and slam shut, followed by either squeals or groans. "What's going on?" Emma squeaked. Cel shut the television slowly, the show she had been watching made her fear the worst. Everyone else shared looks, and before they can even answer the freshman's question, their own door suddenly slammed open.
Some fairy- a senior, Madison, Liz recalled- had her head poked in through their door, her face sweating beads and she was panting as if she had been running in a marathon. "You!"
Both Brittany and Lana stood up, recognizing their friend and fellow classmate. "Mad, what's going on?" Lana asked. 'Mad' was her and several others' nickname for her friend due to Madison's tendency to be quite a control freak, she was also called 'Madison the Mad' by Brittany but other seniors deemed it too long. But then again, the senior was the school council president, so where was the surprise.
"What," Madison panted, throwing her thumb over her shoulder. "What are you guys still doing here?! The party's already started so you all better get your butts in the courtyard right now-"
"Wait, what?" Cel demanded, standing up from where she was sitting. "Don't we still have at least fifteen minutes? Miss Griselda specifically stated that the party starts at seven thirty in the evening, not earlier or later. What the hell?"
Madison muttered something about profanity before shaking her head. "Apparently some guy from Red Fountain misread the invitation and so the Specialists are already here." She explained. "Look, if you don't want this back to school dance to turn into some college fraternity party then kindly go down there already. I still have at least twenty more dorms to inform so ciao!" With that, the door slammed close and off 'Madison the Mad' went.
...
"Why am I with a bunch of lower levels again?"
"Oh trust me, we don't want you anywhere near us either." Callum quietly retorted, quiet enough for the arrogant prince to not hear, but loud enough for the others to hear. Rhys and Kai snorted while Leon shot his friend a warning look. Stiles didn't seem to notice, or maybe he did and just didn't bother to react.
An awkward silence was in the air in the Owl as six Specialists maneuvered the ship in silence, each tried to engage in polite small talk but found it difficult without leaving at least someone out of the conversation. The only sounds in the ship were the beeping at the control panel and one of the guys shifting their seat or sneezing every once in a while. Was it mentioned that the atmosphere was really awkward?
Leon was about to open his mouth but eventually closed it again as he pursed his lips, gripping the steering wheel. Why were he and Callum assigned on the same ship as total strangers? They had already their own squad, so what was the point? He barely knew these guys other than they were his father's friends' sons and brief glances around the school. Sure, there were rumors that he and Hansel or Stiles are best friends or something, but that wasn't true. Hansel wouldn't even spare him a glance during lunch and Stiles just wasn't the type that he could be very close with.
Today was Alfea's 'Back to School' dance, party, whatever it was called, and Red Fountain was invited as always, so the majority of the Specialist students, whether it'd be seniors to freshmen, were off to Alfea with their latest fashion senses and crazed hormones to attempt to woo and dance with probably (not) interested fairies. Leon sighed, it wasn't like he didn't enjoy parties or anything, he just wasn't in the mood right now. He didn't know why, but he felt it, deep inside, that something was going to go wrong.
"Asshole!" Hans suddenly screeched as another ship passed by them recklessly, almost touching their own ship. If the two Owls collided somehow, then they'll be dead for sure.
"Ironic," Cal muttered. Prince Hansel's head quickly snapped to the sophomore.
"What did you just say?"
Callum's brain just short circuited, knowing that pissing off the great and majestic Prince Hansel of Eraklyon was almost like a death sentence. "Iconic?"
Hansel pursed his lips, before turning away with his eyes on the road, or the sky. Leon sighed yet again, for a smart guy, Cal sure does love opening his mouth more than his mind, making him sound quite insensitive and apathetic. But Leon decided that Hansel probably deserved it.
"So!" Rhys suddenly spoke up, looking around the inside of the ship. "Since like four of you are- like what Headmaster Helia says- our 'big brothers', can you tell us about the party we're going to?"
"Oh, yeah," Kai said as he adjusted himself in his seat. "It'd better be worth it since I didn't just waste a night of potentially playing video games for just a boring old tea party full of girls."
"It's really fun!" Stiles was the first to pipe up, grinning at the two freshmen. "At first it's just us chit-chattering with fairies with snacks and chill music, but as the night progresses, it gets crazier. Like, really crazy!"
Rhys and Kai seemed interested. "Really? How crazy?"
"You just have to find out for yourself," Leon told them, turning to them. "Trust me, it's worth it."
"Especially if Max has something up her sleeve..." Cal muttered.
"Trust us," Stiles smiled, "The party's going to be fun."
"If you say so..."
Author's notes: So that's...that I guess. Who was the woman in the flashback? What was that all about? What's Max's plan? What would happen in the party? Why did it take six chapters for the next gen Specialists to have a proper scene together? Why would Emma name her pet 'Bacon Bits'? So many questions...probably won't answer all of them.
Trivia: Weirdly enough, Max and Rhys were both named after video game characters. Maxine from 'Life is Strange' and Rhys from 'The Tales from the Borderlands'. What's even weirder is that they don't share any resemblance to their namesakes. Like instead of Max, Emma is *almost* like LiS!Maxine while instead of Rhys, Kai is *almost* like TfTB!Rhys. I don't know why either.
Not more to say. Till next time.