Once the door clicked softly shut, blocking out Glen and his mother from my view, I heard Queen Titania's heated whisperings.

"How dare that pitiful creature," she seethed. "Thinking that she has the right to kiss my son."

I pressed my ears against the wood, straining to hear their conversation.

"When did you ever begin to care about me, mother?" Glen chuckled. "Did you finally decide to notice my existence the moment a marriage contract found its way into your grubby little fingers?"

"Do not speak to me that way," Titania warned him as her heels paced across the floor outside. "You know nothing of what I've done for you. What I've sacrificed for everyone."

"Sacrifice? I don't think you know what that word means, mother. Ever since father died, all you've done for this kingdom is become its party planner. Don't you understand? Summer Court is threatened by a powerful enemy, and you refuse to treat the sprites as if they're even worth your time!"

"They are not! Those rotten criminals cannot dethrone our realm, not even with an Object of Power. And spending your time with that knight makes you not much better, my son."

Queen Titania's words were venomous, like drops of poison being spilt into my blood. I bit down on my lip until it bled to contain my rage.

"You have no right to control me." Glen snapped. "And the truth is, being a fugitive with Marissa is something I would take far over following in your corrupted footsteps, mother."

There was a long silence in which tension sizzled in the air outside. The shadows beneath the door were still as I held my breath, waiting.

"Well then," Titania finally said, her voice dropping dangerously low. "You're going to have to start taking your title seriously very soon. It's a good thing your knight will be dead by tomorrow."

My jaw dropped in utter outrage, and what followed from my lips was an impressive string of quiet curses. Glen's footsteps echoed loudly as I listened to him storm off, but what he whispered next was unmistakable.

"I'm ashamed to call you my mother."

Then, the sound of his retreating boots faded down the corridors. For a moment, all I could do was strain my ears for any sound coming from the summer queen. All that buzzed in my ears was static silence as her shadow slithered away from the door.

"You must be Marissa!" A voice chirped, causing me to leap away from the door in surprise.

My ear jerked from the wood as if it had suddenly caught fire. I turned around to find a freakishly chipper maid, her plump body hobbling across the carpet towards me.

"Uh, hello." I greeted her with a slightly guilty smile.

The maid had a flushed, round face and kind sparkling eyes that twinkled merrily as her meaty hands grasped mine.

"You're even more breathtaking in person!" She gushed, locking me in a frantic handshake. Clearly she hadn't noticed me eavesdropping. Or she simply didn't care. "I'm Rosalyn, my dear."

I smiled, amused at how her fluttering wings were much to small for her body.

"Thank you, Rosalyn." I replied politely. "It's nice to meet you."

The maid straightened her prim bun atop her head and adjusted her uniform as she studied me. Unlike the crowds outside the palace, Rosalyn's gaze was thoughtful and caring as she took in my ragged appearance.

"So beautiful," she noted, rubbing a spot of dirt from my nose. "But definitely in need of a bath."

I snorted. "You have no idea."

Rosalyn ushered me into a gleaming washroom, and it took all of my muscle strength to resist her shoving me head first into the steaming bath water.

"I think I can handle this part of my own, thank you." I told the maid, trying not to blush with embarrassment.

"Then hurry and get cleaned up!" She urged me excitedly, tossing an assorted collection of soaps into my arms. "I've got the perfect gown in mind for you tonight!"

I thanked Rosalyn as she shut the washroom door behind her, grateful for a few moments of privacy. It felt wonderful to shed my torn layers of clothing and sink into the bubbling bath water. I let it soothe my cuts and bruises, soak into my tangled hair, and cleanse my skin.

I leaned back into the scented foam, rubbing the soap up and down my arms and legs. It faintly reminded me of so long ago at Winter Academy, when I had stumbled towards the basin after Nicholas' death. I could still feel the hot tears streaming down my face as my panicked hands washed his blood down the drain, rubbing my skin raw.

I could still feel the sensation of the cold bathroom floor against my cheeks, and the hoarse promise whispered among the running water.

I felt a wave of solace wash over me. I had kept that promise. I had saved those children. But I couldn't save myself.

I lathered the soap carefully onto my wings, letting the suds run down their silky, gossamer surface and into the bath. They were restored to their shining glory now, glowing like the lights of the luxurious washroom.

"Thank you." I whispered to my wings. "For the places you have carried me to."

They hummed to me in response.

What followed next was a blur of fabrics as Rosalyn wrapped a robe around my body and led me into a grand closet. My jaw dropped as I took in the dozens of garments rustling on hangers that seemed to travel endlessly in rows of extravagant color.

"Don't worry," the maid giggled as I swayed, overwhelmed. "I've already selected your gown."

"Thank the dragons, I was afraid I would have to try them all on." I laughed with relief.

Rosalyn grasped my hand and led me to the back of the closet. The fine clothes trickled like waterfalls as I ran my hand along the soft fabrics, my fingers transfixed at their smooth texture.

"Now hold still for a moment." the maid requested, and I froze in midstep.

With a flick of her wrist, my robe transformed into flames of white. I gasped in alarm, but the fire was cold against my bare skin. It ticked against my arms pleasantly, and I could only gape as it flowed blindingly brighter around my body. The flames ignited and wrapped around my legs, crafting the trim of a blooming, enormous ball gown. It was the color of a frozen lake, covered in glittering snowflakes that seemed to drift down to the hem.

My mouth fell open as the flames coated my arms, crafting trailing sleeves as shimmering as my gossamer wings. Necklaces and pendants of silver rested on the hollow of my throat. The blazing fire traveled higher, twisting my long, pale hair into an intricate braid that cascaded down my back. Between the woven strands were blood-red holly berries and shimmering hairpieces that twinkled like stars.

My breath came out in an awed gasp as I fingered the fine material. My gown was winter's sky, filled with dancing snow. It stole my words away.

I slowly twirled around to face a tall mirror beside me, my gown floating and swishing at my feet. I blinked at my reflection, captivated by the faerie that stared back at me. She was stunning. Her blues eyes sparkled brighter, her lips were rosy and red, her face and wings glowing with youthful radiance I had never seen.

She didn't look like a knight born in the depths of a forest. She looked something like royalty.

Then, I realized that beneath my gorgeous dress, my feet were snugly fit inside my training boots. I smiled at the familiar sensation of their leather comfort. Suddenly, my hand dropped to my hip to discover an object. Beneath the intricate folds of the skirt, I could feel my ice sword strapped to my side.

Rosalyn clapped giddily beside me. "How do you like the gown?"

I turned to the maid, beaming with gratitude. "It's perfect," I told her. "I can't thank you enough."

Rosalyn grinned, her dimples deepening in her full face. "Well, my dear," she said with a bow of her head. "It's all yours for tonight."

Emotions stirred inside me, swelling inside my chest until I was afraid they would burst at the seams.

"Now what are you standing around here for?" The maid exclaimed so abruptly that I nearly jumped. "Go out there! The celebration isn't going to wait for you, you know." She winked, her wings buzzing.

I thanked her once again in a rush, stumbling out of the closet and into the corridors. My dress whispered against my legs as I found myself alone alone in the halls. The only people around were stoic guards that stood stiffly near every entrance. All the other people must be gathered in the ballroom.

I took a left around a corner, weaving once again past the portrait of the royal family. I could hear faerie music, wafting through the grand walls of the palace. It was beckoning me forward, closer and closer. I found my feet being driven towards the source of the transfixing melody.

I followed my ears as they directed me in front of two oak doors. All at once, my quick pace faltered as I came to a stop outside the ballroom.

"I'm here." I whispered. After all this time, I had finally arrived at the ball. This was it. My sword pulsed against my leg, but I couldn't tell if it was reflecting my anxiety or if it was giving me a warning.

It was too late to turn back now.

Two guards posted before me gave me a polite nod.

"Welcome to the ballroom, miss." They said, swiftly tugging open the doors.

I stood there for a moment, my boots frozen in place as a stared at a golden staircase before me. The curse circulated through my blood, pounding against my dying heart.

This was the last time that I would hear music. Make it count.

I guided myself through the entrance, my boots softly echoing as they stepped onto the grand staircase. Down below was the most spectacular room in the world. The ballroom was made of white walls and golden moldings that seemed to expand massively forever. Chandeliers crafted from pure gold dangled from the towering ceilings, illuminating the celebration as I gingerly peered over the staircase railing.

The ballroom floor itself was polished to glossy perfection as gowns and shoes swept across it. Hundreds of faeries, elves, and every creature imaginable waltzed in a splash of bright splendor. Dresses of every hue rippled across my vision as laughter mixed with the sound of clinking glasses of faerie nectar. A large band of faeries played a flowing song as their violins crooned and their flutes giggled across the notes.

There were so many people. The sight was dizzying and overwhelming as I began to slowly descend, my ballgown trailing behind me like a river of blue and white. My wings gently opened, catching the light and casting trickling colors against the walls surrounding me.

I kept my back straight, carrying my head high. But my gaze still wandered across the ocean of faces, searching.

Like an invisible force, my eyes were tugged towards him. They rested on his robes of red, the color of our kiss in the home of a witch. Almost as if he had felt my presence, Diandre turned. His head tilted upwards as I made my way down the staircase, and I watched his face brighten lighter than any of the candles in the room. His gray eyes swam among the thousands of other colors. To me, they were more vivid than anything else.

His lips parted in shock as my boots reached the ballroom floor. On the last step, my heel caught on the hem of my dress, and my body jerked forward. Desperately, I steadied myself by flinging my arms around the staircase railing. My entire face heated as a stream of curses flooded my mind.

Leave it to my clumsiness to ruin an entrance.

Diandre crossed the room, his face shining with laughter. I had never seen him look so alive since we were children. His dark hair was swept across his face, and he was wearing a crisp white shirt beneath his flowing robes. I blinked as I found my balance again, my thoughts stirring confusedly.

I had never found Diandre so...handsome.

In two more strides, he crossed the distance between us.

"That was too close," he remarked. "If you hadn't caught yourself, I would have had to save you from falling through the floor."

I smirked up at him as he offered his arm to me.

"Don't talk to me about falling, Diandre." I retorted with a chuckle. "You've done that enough on this little journey."

"I've done it long before this journey." He said softly, gently lacing his arm around my waist and guiding me across the floor.

My heart thundered in my chest.

Long before this journey.

"You look beautiful." Diandre whispered, smiling down at me. His face reddened bashfully. "If you don't mind me saying so." 

He led me through the blurred crowds, and I shook my head.

"Not at all," I told him, blinking up at his hair as it fell into his eyes like it always does. "To tell you the truth, you look the best I have ever seen you." I grinned fondly. "Then again, I'm used to seeing you in a brown jacket my whole life."

Diandre chuckled as dancers swayed around us. "To the surprise of everyone, I clean up decent. For a devil faerie, at least."

I lightly hit him in the arm. "Stop that," I told him. "It doesn't matter who the hell these people think you are. What matters is that I know who you are." I gazed up at Diandre, hoping that he could see the sincerity behind my eyes. "My friend," I stated. "The best I've ever had."

"Marissa-" Diandre began, his face softening, but I had already taken his hand. We began to sway back and forth to the rhythm of the music. There was something about the melody that tugged at something deep inside me as I listened to the slow weeping of the violin. It was a song of mourning, of hurt, of stinging anguish.

Diandre and I danced slowly among the sweeping gowns, letting the music direct our feet. I could feel the rhythm pulsing inside of me, releasing its turmoil into my thoughts until all I could do was hold on to Diandre and hope that he wouldn't let me go.

I didn't want him to.

He leaned in close to me now, brushing his fingers against my cheek. I could hear our childish, youthful laughter ringing in our ears as Diandre pulled me closer as he spun me gracefully around.

I rested my head on his shoulder, knowing this was the last night that I would ever see him again. It was firm against my cheek, stronger than it once was when we had tripped over each other's feet trying to waltz when we were both just lanky kids.

"There's something I need to tell you-" Diandre began to murmur, but the song cut off all at once.

The crowd went still, their attention sweeping towards the source of the silence. Queen Titania stood proudly atop the staircase, plastering a dazzling smile onto her full lips. At her side was Glen, whose appearance nearly took my breath away.

He wore a royal blue uniform similar to the one I had seen his father wear, with a golden collar and sashes strung across his chest. Even the tunic's buttons glistened to perfection like his boots. White gloves and white trousers, a sword sheathed at his side, and even crests of The Faerie Realm stood out to the entire crowd as they gazed admiringly upon their prince.

Glen looked polished to perfection as he stood beside his mother, with his auburn hair wavy and sweeping away from his electrifying green eyes that seemed to captivate every girl in the room. His wings were large and radiant, shedding dancing colors onto the faces of his people.

He looked like he belonged in a palace. He looked like he could have been raised in that blue uniform. He looked like he existed in a world completely set apart from mine, a world of politics and glamor that I couldn't even fathom or know.

For the first time in my life, Glen seemed like a prince to me. It wasn't just because of the clothes her wore; it was how he graciously bowed his head at every guest in attendance and gave them a stunning, genuine smile that made each person feel as if he was personally grateful to see them.

Unlike his mother, who sashayed down the stairs while ogling some Winter Court dukes, Glen greeted even the most poor servants who came to the celebration wearing nothing more than rags. He descended down the stairs, shaking hands with anyone who offered him a smile. There was a collective intake of breath as Glen reached the dance floor.

Every faerie, elf, gypsy, nymph, and even dwarf sank to their knees before the prince. Girls fanned themselves frantically as they adjusted their gowns and hair, gossiping and giggling amongst themselves.

With identical snorts, Diandre and I bowed as well when Glen neared us in the dense crowd. Despite every faerie curtesy I was taught, I couldn't help but sneak a glance upwards at his face as he crossed through the masses.

He wore that regal, charming smile that I had only seen a few rare times in my life. But Glen's eyes were searching. They scanned all the creatures gathered in the ballroom, and I could tell by the way his face seemed to be filled with hope and determination that he was trying to find me.

I wanted to scream his name across the oceans of people. I wanted to leap off my knees and rush towards him. I wanted to knock him over on the dance floor so that we could fight and hurl retorts at each other until we both just decided to kiss and forget about it.

But I knew that I was just a knight. It wasn't acceptable in the fae society for knights to treat princes like equals. The royals were above everyone, and all I could do was stay silent and quietly pray for Glen to see me.

Just as his gaze wandered in my direction, Queen Titania rested her hands on his decorated shoulders and spun him away towards the band. My head dropped as the summer queen sent me a scathing look, but my hands balled the fabric of my gown into fists.

"Now," she announced. "You all may rise."

All of the guests rose to their feet and listened to Titania attentively as she spoke.

"Tonight is a night in which we celebrate the unity of the realm's peoples," the summer queen began, her voice sweet as it bounced off the bright walls. "On Midsummer's Night, long ago, the faeries learned the power of what love truly was. My husband and I deserved a lesson as well." At this joking remark, chuckles quietly surfaced from the masses. "What Oberon and I discovered as we were cast into a quarrel was that loving the person that means the most to you is never easy." Titania continued. "We all want to wage war." Her gaze drifted into the scowling figure of Queen Mab. "But on that fateful night, we discovered that love is what unites us all. It's blind, and there's no reason behind it. But love is what created the fae in the first place. It's what created every beast and creature in the first place.

"So when you are celebrating tonight, I hope you know the meaning behind this holiday. I hope you know that it is the night when the fae realized the true magical power of passion." Queen Titania gestured to Glen. "And what better night than tonight for my son to find that very love?"

High pitched chatter rose from the girls and women scattered throughout the ballroom as Glen's eyes continued to desperately search. A muscle in his jaw twitched as he smiled and composed himself.

"And now," Queen Titania announced, her voice rising as her crown of birds chirped excitedly. "In the honorary tradition of the fae, I will select the girl that will have the privilege of becoming engaged to Prince Glen until he inherits the crown."

"It's me!" A chorus of girls gushed. "Pick me!"

Some began to trip over each other as they comically scrambled to get the summer queen's attention.

"And," Titania added. "She will receive the high honor of having the night's dance with my son in front of the entire realm."

Diandre glanced over at me, but I didn't return his look. All I could do was stand in silent suspense as the girls around me called out in a wave of squeals.

All I could do was silently beg Glen to see me as Titania spoke the name.

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