CHAPTER 3: GIVE A LITTLE WHISTLE
For the remainder of the day, Jill took her classes quietly, trying not to listen to the murmurings around her. Several students were lamenting the Starsending, talking about finding ways to get rid of their Wishing Stars, and some even wanting to get out of the ceremony altogether. Jill had never heard so many complaints about a school event before… but then again, she had never been to a school as large as Night Raven.
Grim was disappointed that Jill couldn't collect his wish yet, and Ace promised to give the Stargazers an easy wish to collect. Deuce was excited at the challenge, explaining his newfound duties while Jill sat beside him, lost in thought.
If this was an old Night Raven tradition… did Daniel Bones also participate? Jill imagined her grandfather wearing elegant starry robes, dancing in front of a tree lined with Wishing Stars. The idea was ludicrous with the Daniel that Jill knew—the old man who needed a cane to walk in his last days. But she had seen one or two pictures of him as a young boy. He too had pale skin, dark hair, and grayish eyes—he could have been Jill's twin brother in the right time period. What would he think about all this?
Jill carried that thought through the afternoon, through her part-time shift at the Mystery Shop, and even all the way back to Hallowgrim dorm. She voiced that thought to the ghostly trio, who had been at this dorm for ages, and they popped her fantasy like a balloon.
"No," said Ezekiel, "Your grandfather was never a Stargazer. In fact, no Ramshackle student was ever a Stargazer. We were seen as far too lowly for such a high tradition." He harrumphed. "You'll be the first Stargazer from this dorm, Jill. Carry that role with honor and dignity. We're counting on you, you know."
"Oh, don't overwhelm her," Philip chided, floating up to Jill's side. "Poor thing looks paler than usual."
"You'll do a great job, Jill!" Gregg assured her. "The Starsending Ceremony is lots of fun!"
"Is it? Because everyone's been complaining about it," Grim pointed out.
"Kids these days complain about everything," Ezekiel said. "Pay them no mind. We've had the Starsending Ceremony every year since Night Raven's founding. It certainly won't be cancelled now, no matter how many ruffians try to sabotage it."
"Yeah." Jill's voice felt far away. It's only a week, she told herself. No matter what, it won't be too long…
She and Grim quickly completed their homework, had their dinner, and went to bed early for a change. Jill had a hard time falling asleep, but by midnight, she managed to reach unconsciousness. Vague nightmares plagued her mind—being booed at the ceremony, trying to catch stars from the sky, facing a starless night—and it made her wince.
Then Grim woke Jill up by jumping on her stomach.
"They're here!" Grim shouted. "Your robes came in! That means you can collect my wish!"
"OW!" Jill turned over, trying to go back to sleep, but Grim pulled the sheets off the bed with his mouth.
"C'mon, Jill! Get all dressed up so I can finally make my wish!" Grim demanded. He was like a little kid on Christmas morning. Jill would almost find it cute if it wasn't so aggravating. Jill silenced the alarm on her phone, rolled her eyes, and finally stepped downstairs to find what she was dealing with.
In the foyer, there was a cardboard box with Jill's name printed on it; the tape was already undone by Grim himself. Jill bent down and opened the cardboard flaps, then nearly gasped at what was inside. She took the outfit up by the shoulders, lifting it gingerly for the group to see. "These… are Starsending Robes?" she asked faintly.
To call these 'robes' felt like an understatement. The outfit came in several pieces; the main ensemble was a beautiful navy-blue robe with a golden hem and silver stars woven throughout. It also had two long tassels almost like coattails, as well as black pants and shoes that seemed plain by comparison. There were two inner layers as well—a black armor shirt, and an off-white robe with blue pendants around the waist and golden triangular symbols at the bottom hem. The inner robe was armless, and its front and back were connected by large diamond-shaped pieces, with blue straps and a black back. Jill had never seen an outfit as intricate as this before.
But that wasn't all. She was also given a large burlap sack to hold Wishing Stars in; the bag had moons and stars stitched into the rough surface. There was a tiny blue makeup kit and bottle of nail polish in case Jill wanted to further match the colors of her robes. She also found a wand with a blue star on top, and a blue flag attached to it. There were golden bracelets with stars carved into them, a necklace designed after the phases of the moon, and a belt that had a grayish new moon with two large stars flanking it. There were even hair ties with little plastic stars on them, and a silver headband with a golden moon and two smaller stars on it.
"Dang!" Grim gave a low whistle. "Those are some fancy threads! Now I wish I had somethin' like that!"
"Yes, that's the Stargazer wear," Philip said. "Looks just like how I remember."
"I remember them being black instead of blue," Ezekiel noted. "Of course, it was hard to see the Stargazers dancing because they blended in too well. That's why they were changed around the end of my time."
"Well, don't just stare at it! Put it on!" Gregg encouraged. "Let's see Stargazer Jill!"
"Yeah, hurry up so you can grant my wish!" Grim said.
"A-Alright!" Jill agreed hastily. She put everything in the box then went into the downstairs bathroom to get ready.
It was a hassle to put everything on. There were so many layers, and then everything was all tasseled and embroidered and fancy, and it made Jill feel even more nervous. Piece by piece… first the black skintight shirt, then the off-white robe that nearly slipped off her shoulders, then the star-studded robes. Then finally, the pants, shoes, and jewelry. Her clothes felt lighter than air, and didn't offer much insulation; she shivered in the drafty room. She stared at herself in the mirror, and everything seemed perfect except for the terrified look on her face.
Calm down, Jill, she told herself. You're the Hallowgrim housewarden, you represent the Pumpkin King, you can't be scared of anything! Even if this was completely out of her element—picking fights with stubborn boys and singing and dancing, all while dolled up in sparkly star-spangled robes.
"Jill! Are ya done yet?" Grim asked.
"Calm down, calm down…" Jill muttered. She quickly brushed through her dark hair, attaching the starry hair ties so her locks fell into a little cosmic column down her shoulder. With trembling hands, she reached for the makeup to buy some more time. She repainted her nails blue, not stopping until her usual black polish was completely covered up. Then she put on the periwinkle eyeshadow and added diamond-like shapes around her eyes, and she even drew a little star on her cheek. Now she seemed a little more Jill-like. Finally, she emerged from the bathroom with her wand and bag in hand.
"You look so cute!" Gregg said happily. Ezekiel and Philip beamed with pride.
"Thank you…" Jill admitted, turning a bit pink.
Grim was bouncing in place, holding his blank Wishing Star. "Alright, it's grantin' time! I wish to be a great mage!"
As soon as he spoke his wish, the spiky jewel lit up, and a tiny carving of his desire appeared on the surface next to his name. It was as if a tiny light was ignited inside, turning the blue to an almost-yellow. Jill smiled and carefully placed the Wishing Star inside her sack. "One wish down!"
"Make sure you hang it at the very top!" Grim commanded. "That way, my wish will come true first!"
"You know that you also have to work to become a great mage, yes?" Philip asked.
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Grim said dismissively. "But this takes care of a lot of work for me!"
There was a knock at the door, and Gregg opened it up. It was Ace and Deuce—Deuce was also in his Starsending Robes. His outfit looked similar to Jill's, but with more of a crescent moon theme. There were golden rings on the hems of his robes, a crescent moon necklace, and even a large moon on the crown. The Heartslabyul boys both gave a good morning and stepped inside.
"Jill, you got your robes on," Deuce said. "Nice!"
"Same to you, Deuce. You look… cute," Jill admitted. She undersold it, she had to admit—Deuce looked positively adorable.
"Uh, thanks," Deuce said, blushing a bit. "I was hoping I would look more cool than cute."
"No, no, I mean… cute is cool," Jill said hastily. "It suits you very well, better than me, anyway…"
"You two look like wind chimes," Ace chuckled, nudging one of Deuce's robe tassels. Deuce gave Ace a light shove and stepped away.
"Hey, this is an honor. I'm proud to be part of this!" the spade-eyed student insisted.
"Deuce, look! I got my first wish!" Jill announced, holding up Grim's Wishing Star.
"So did I." Deuce smirked and showed me a similar glowing Wishing Star. "Ace made his wish earlier."
"What did you wish for, kid?" Ezekiel asked Ace.
"For Grim not to cause any more trouble," Ace said with a sneer.
"What a lovely wish. I hope it comes true," Philip sighed.
"Oh, sure! One little magestone crystal breaks, and you all think I'm some kinda delinquent!" Grim fumed. "When I'm a great mage, I'll make ya eat those words!"
Jill suppressed the urge to chuckle. She then found her own Wishing Star, which was still blank aside from bearing her name.
"It would be kind of silly to collect my own wish," Jill said. "Deuce, have you made yours yet?"
"Not yet," Deuce said, and he took his own Wishing Star out of his bag. "Why don't we collect each other's wish?"
"Sounds good. You go first," Jill said nervously.
"I wish to be an honor student," Deuce declared, and the Wishing Star lit up with his words. Jill took it and put it in her sack alongside Grim's wish.
There were so many things that Jill Bones wanted… but only one thing came to her right now.
"I wish for Deuce to teach me self-defense!" Jill announced. Her Wishing Star lit up on the inside, and she smugly pressed it into Deuce's stunned palm.
"Man, your wishes are kinda boring," Ace mentioned.
"Me? Teach you self-defense?!" Deuce gawped.
"I need to learn how to fight in order to get through this event," Jill said. "Please grant my wish?"
"…Alright, fine," Deuce said, and put her Wishing Star in his bag. "But it'll have to wait until after classes and the dance we're learning today."
"Got it!" Jill said with a cocky grin. With Deuce as her trainer, she would be nobody's fool!
"Wait a sec, Jill… didn't ya say that you came from another world?" Grim asked. "Why didn't ya use the wish to go back to where ya came from?"
"H-Huh?!" The goth girl looked around to see everyone giving her obvious expressions.
"D'OH!" she screamed up into the ceiling.
Everyone around her winced at her shrill voice. It was going to be a very long event indeed…
