"What on Earth got into me?" I asked.

I stood in front of a large mirror, arms out to my sides, watching as a lady made the finishing touches to my ball gown. It had been several uneventful days since Lisa decided I should host a ball, and I'd been informed earlier that it was to happen tonight. Sarah was standing off to the side, since I was still nervous to be around anyone I didn't know. Lisa informed me the lady was fine, but I still couldn't bring myself to do this alone.

"It's for the best," Sarah said. "Everyone wants to meet you and see that you're alright. Is that so bad?"

"It is when half the demons in this world want to kill you," I muttered.

I saw her sigh through the mirror. "Much less than half, Chrys. Most of those who are not already loyal to you are just skeptical."

"As they should be. I've never done anything like this before."

"I wouldn't say that." Sarah took a couple steps closer. "You know how to take care of people. You understand that your servants are people. You are strong and dependable. I believe that when the time comes, you'll be a natural."

I smiled at her. "Thank you, Sarah."

She returned my smile and nodded.

"There!" the seamstress exclaimed. "Finished. How does it feel?"

I lowered my arms and looked into the mirror at the dress. It was black with three-quarter length sleeves. The entire top was covered in mesh lace, while the large skirt was shiny black silk. It felt heavy, but I was happy with it.

"It feels wonderful. And it's beautiful. Thank you."

I saw her smile in the mirror. "I'm so glad you like it, My Lady. I will leave you to finish getting ready. I've left a headpiece and shoes in a box on the chair by the door. Please don't hesitate to have someone come find me should you need anything." She bowed as I nodded, then left the room.

A moment of silence passed over the room as I returned my gaze to my reflection. I'd never really worn a fancy ball gown before, and I couldn't say I didn't like the experience.

Sarah broke the silence between us. "Would you like to try them? The shoes and accessories?"

I turned to face her and nodded. She quickly made her way across the room and picked up the bag and removed from it a small wrapped package and two boxes. The first thing she handed me was a larger box, which I opened to see it contained a pair of beautiful black high heels. I placed the shoes and the floor, then slipped them on.

I was immediately surprised with how comfortable they were. I'd never been a fan of heels; I'd only ever worn them when I wanted to really dress up. Any other time I would wear flats because they didn't hurt. Maybe the lack of pain had something to do with being a demon, or maybe demons just knew how to make comfortable heels.

Sarah cleared her throat, and I quickly glanced up from my feet to see what else she was holding. She'd opened the small package and was offering me a black pearl necklace and a pair of gloves.

I took the necklace first, turned to the mirror, and clasped it around my neck. It went perfectly with the dress. When I turned to take the gloves, I remembered something that made me stop short.

Sarah watched with confusion. "What's the matter?"

I looked from the gloves she was holding to my left wrist. The mark of the contract I'd made with Sebastian was there, just as it had been for the past five years. It had been the reason I'd worn gloves all the time. I'd wanted to hide it from everyone so they wouldn't worry about me. I'd wanted to live my life as close to normal as I could.

Sarah spoke again, this time sounding slightly worried. "Chrys?"

I shook my head, clearing it of intrusive thoughts. "Sorry. I was just realizing that I don't need the gloves." I turned my gaze from my wrist to her and smiled. "I have nothing to hide anymore."

Sarah's gaze moved from mine to my wrist and back again. She gave a small smile, then sighed. "You know, I never told you because I didn't want to upset you, but I guess it doesn't matter now."

I cocked my head in confusion. "Told me what?"

She continued to smile as she sat in the chair that had been previously occupied by the bag she was holding. "Had things not turned out the way they had, Maia and Thomas were both going to try to find a way to adopt you."

I froze. "Really?"

Sarah nodded. "None of us told you because we didn't want to end up giving you false hope, but we were all going to help them fight to get you back. We wouldn't have let you stay in the system long."

After a moment of processing what she said, I beamed at her. "Thank you."

Her smile grew. "It doesn't matter now, of course. You made your own choices and never ended up in the system at all. And looking back," her smile faltered, "had you not made your contract, you might have been dead by now."

I lowered my head and nodded. Had I not made that deal with Sebastian several years ago, it wouldn't have changed the fact that I was destined to become the queen of demons. I still would have been hunted down, and if they somehow hadn't been able to find me, my powers surely would've been my end.

"Well," I said, lifting my head and breaking the silence, "I'm alive and we have a ball to get ready for. I don't want to wear the gloves. I want everyone to see my mark. What else was in the bag?"

Sarah smiled again, seeming happy to change topics. She placed the gloves to the side and slowly opened the last box. Her expression shifted to one I couldn't read, and I grew nervous.

"What is it?" I asked. It was a headpiece, right? What could make Sarah appear so conflicted?

I walked over to her as she glanced up at me, then gave another small smile as she removed the accessory from the box. My own mood shifted at the sight of it, and I was immediately conflicted.

It was a small, black tiara.