Celeste

Let me be clear: they didn't celebrate real holidays in the castle. I didn't grow up with trees covered in lights, singing on birthdays, and certainly not dressing up as something you're not. It was pointless, a waste of time, and my father, especially, had no need for it.

And now I understand why.

Sighing, I pull the black pointed hat further down on my head, but like the last ten tries, it either slides down over my eyes, a strand of hair escapes, or it falls off. With a deep sigh, I pull it off and try, one last time, to place it with utmost precision.

This time, unbelievably, it stays. Very carefully, I slowly remove my hands from the brim, staring at it through the mirror.

'You're not seriously going to wear that, are you?' I'm so focused on the hat that I startle at Alisha's sudden voice, move my hand, and knock the hat off my head. The black thing falls to the wooden floor.

Holding back my frustration with all my might, I let out a deep sigh.

'No, apparently not,' I reply, looking at Alisha through the mirror. The blonde woman laughs as she walks toward me in her light green, traditional elf dress. The silk fabric floats around her with every step she takes, embroidered with endless silver details that hold the form around her body. Even her hair, usually loose, is intricately braided and pinned with silver clips in elaborate twists. As if that weren't enough, she's barefoot.

'Just wear the dress I brought you. Wizard-related attire, whether traditional or from children's tales, is not particularly appreciated.'

Shadow's Night—I hadn't even heard of it until two weeks ago. Holidays were forbidden in my childhood, let alone one that celebrates the origin of shapeshifters and other underworld creatures. Apparently, during my father's reign, it stayed well below the radar, and people were too afraid to celebrate. Now it's making a comeback, and so Milly, Winston, Alvan, Noek, and Alisha thought it was essential to celebrate it in the orphanage this year.

That means the orphanage is not only decorated with traditional garlands of branches, dried flowers, and candles in dark red, dark blue, and dark green, accented with silver chains, but also that everyone must dress in a way traditional to their species.

'I'm not an elf,' I remind Alisha as she enters my office.

'True, but going as a wizard is a far worse idea. Better to not dress up at all.' I already knew that dressing up as the very creature that tried to exterminate the holiday's honorees was not the best idea, but the dress Alisha brought is pale yellow, and there's no way I'm wearing that.

'Yes, you must dress up.' Both Alisha and I turn to Noek, who's standing in the doorway. The little nymph has it easiest since she wears a white dress every day. Still, she insists that everyone dress up.

'As what?' I ask the nymph. She crosses her pale arms and stands in the doorway, observing me.

'What are you, a vampire?' Alisha clenches her jaw to hold back laughter as I stare at Noek as though she's joking.

'No. I'm a wizard,' I reply, as Noek looks at me, dead serious. Her blue eyes scan me briefly before she shrugs.

'Well, then, I don't know.' With those words, Noek turns and disappears down the hall. That's when Alisha finally bursts out laughing, shaking her head. Meanwhile, I look at my black dress in the mirror and can't see any way to make it look like anything else.

'What is Elien going as?' I ask.

'A vampire. He flew to Novak and got traditional vampire attire.' That doesn't help me much. At 21, Elien is already cleverer than I am.

'Just wear the dress,' sighs Alisha. I shake my head and turn toward the door when Elien suddenly appears in front of me. My brother stands before me, dressed as what he's supposed to be. The long black coat, dark red tunic reaching his knees, and broad dark red trousers are typical of old vampire attire.

In his hands, he holds another long black coat.

A black coat carrying Novak's scent.

Silently, he holds it out to me, and I take it.

Then he hands me a silver necklace with a tree pendant, which I accept and put around my neck.

'I also have a dark red dress, but I guess you won't want that,' Elien says softly. I shake my head, wrap myself in the coat, and nod at him.

'Thank you.' Elien smiles briefly before he heads back into the hallway.

I turn to Alisha, who rolls her eyes to the heavens before giving me a crooked smile.

Ignoring her opinion, I head to the dining hall, satisfied with my outfit.

What I find there is at once the most normal and the strangest thing I've seen in ages.

Winston is chasing Silver in light green clothes. His trousers and tunic are almost identical, while Silver is dressed in a very dark blue dress. Unlike Winston, who has no adornments, Silver's golden details signify her alpha status. Alvan's clothing also reflects this status, with a dark green long coat, trousers, and shirt covered in silver beads and embroidery—the most decorated of everyone.

Both Teriun, Vesper, Elien, and I wear traditional vampire clothing. And Milly is clearly wearing an outfit Alisha picked to reveal her true heritage. Atlas is fully in white, which matches his wings beautifully.

The most unusual are Florien and Eris, whose backgrounds are less defined. Judging by her pale blue dress, Florien must have asked Alisha to bring something for her, while Eris seems to have relied on Atlas, being dressed entirely in white.

Half the eyes in the room turn toward me as I arrive and everyone is seated.

'Better,' Noek concludes after looking me over. Ignoring the six-year-old nymph, I walk to the head of the table. The table is filled with wooden platters, dried flowers, and candles in dark shades. Arthur and Indy have prepared a feast, with plenty of meat for the werewolves, strange vegetables for the elves, and a jug of blood for the vampires.

Alisha sits beside me, while Milly and Winston stand from their chairs. Without a word and with all eyes on them, they walk to the fireplace and stand in front of it. The eleven-year-old werewolf and eight-year-old elf glance around nervously before facing the table.

'As tradition, we want to present a wreath to the oldest,' says Milly before Winston can open his mouth. She holds out a wreath of black, dried flowers.

'That person has to make a toast,' Winston adds, but neither of them moves to approach anyone.

'We're just not sure who the oldest is,' Milly admits, looking at me and Alisha.

'According to tradition, it should be someone from the underworld, so it would be Alisha, but she doesn't live here, and Celeste isn't from the underworld, and we don't know what Elien is, so we think it must be Teriun,' Milly continues, rattling on. Teriun nearly chokes on his glass of blood and looks up with wide eyes. Completely unprepared, he watches as the two children hang the wreath around his neck before sitting down, all eyes now on the shy, introverted vampire.

'You have to make a toast,' Winston repeats. Teriun, raised in a war camp where this certainly wasn't celebrated, stares wide-eyed at his mate, Alvan.

'You have to make a toast,' Alvan echoes. Elien, sitting next to Teriun, tries to hide his smile as much as possible as Teriun slowly rises from his chair. He lifts his glass of blood, doing his best to ignore all the eyes on him.

'A toast,' he says, trying to rush through it, but Milly and Winston won't let him off so easily.

'No, do it properly,' they say in unison.

'I don't know how,' says Teriun in mild panic. Alvan is ultimately the one to help his mate, standing up and raising his glass.

'May the spirits rest in their graves, fear be buried, and your true self come forth under the moon. A toast to authenticity, a toast to change, a toast to being true to yourself.' After these words, everyone claps, sits down, and begins to eat.