Four more years had passed, It was finally Aella's twentieth birthday. This was the year Greta announced the girls would take their vows. Aella impatiently counted each day that passed, if it weren't for the fact Greta was allowing the girls to officially begin their social season, she would have gone mad from waiting. Today they were to attend a tea party with some noble girls in celebration of Aella's birthday. This was not Aella's idea, she did not get along with the host of the tea, but Greta was insistent on making the girls get along. Penelope's engagement to an Earl had been announced, so she would be a key player in future politics.
"Of all the people to host a birthday party for you, it just had to be Penelope," Celest said rolling her eyes. She was trying to tame her curly hair, but it was not cooperating with her today. "I wish we could at least learn some simple spells, and turn her into a frog for an hour."
"No magic needed, she's already a toad," Aella added. Celest laughed unapologetically.
"At least there is one silver lining. I hear Lucus Whitelock might make an appearance," Celest added.
"Lucus is back from Daimos?!" Aella tried to not sound too excited, but she could not help it. Lucus was the most eligible bachelor and was set to inherit the Dukedom once his grandfather passed away. Aella also secretly wondered if he would give any information about Daimos. This would be the first year they would attend the Mating ball. It was the law they had to meet the wolves before they took their vows, and it was the only thing about the ceremony that worried her.
"I wonder what he is like, they say he is very charming but we never get to go to any parties with him there. He is a very busy person," Calixta mused. Aella knew she still longed to find her prince charming to whisk her off her feet, she wondered if there was a small chance Lucus could be that prince after all.
"Calli you should wear the orange dress you have yet to touch. No one else will be wearing that color so you'll stick out," Aella suggested. Of course, Calixta would stick out anyways. One thing Penelope could not compete with was an Enchantress as powerful as Calixta. Even though Penelope was jealous of all the attention Calixta got, she still wanted to be her friend.
"I don't want to stick out though. I admit the thought of getting to know the famous Lucus Whitelock did cross my mind, but I think I'll just wear the pink dress instead. What you should be worried about is what you're going to wear. All your dresses are green Aella."
Aella twisted her nose in disgust, "Don't remind me. Every time Greta takes me to get a dress she always forces me to get a green one. I'm so tired of it, I wish she would let me wear something else now that we are adults."
"Hmm, well it's a good thing you have such great friends then," Celest said with a wink. Aella looked at her perplexed but said nothing as she watched Celest and Calixta go to Celest's bed. Underneath she pulled out a dress box. "We pulled our allowance together and got you this." Aella bounced to her feet, not even attempting to hide her excitement. She didn't need to hide such things with these two. She placed the box on the bed and carefully untied the blue ribbon, and took off the lid. The dress that lay inside was far more beautiful than any of the ugly ones she owned. It was a pastel violet that flowed loosely to her ankle. It had a square cut with light ruffles on the bodice and the soft sleeves were only slightly poofy. It had a cinched waist with a little bow on the front. It was nothing too extravagant but it was perfect for her.
Aella covered her mouth and fought back tears. She would finally feel like a real lady in this. She pulled in her friends and wrapped them in a tight embrace. "Thank you! I love it!" They returned the hug but then pulled away, "Ok let's finish getting ready we don't have much longer, and Aella you need to work on your makeup." Celest ordered, taking charge once again.
"Oh thank you for reminding me!" Aella went back to the mirror and finished her makeup with a light pink balm on her lips, and then used some foundation to hide the hideous mark on her neck. Once done she dressed in her new garment and put her hair in a side braid. Her friends also looked stunning in their dresses as well. Celest chose a simple blue dress with flower stitching, and a little white ribbon wrapped around the waist for the final effects. She also had her curly hair falling freely down her back, with a ribbon tying it out of her eyes. Calixta wore a simple pastel pink dress with a very little ruffle and flare. Even so, she still shined the best out of all of them.
Celest gave each of them one more look over to make sure everything was perfect. Something about Aella made her pause. Aella looked herself over a little afraid something was off with her dress. "That necklace doesn't really go with that dress I'm afraid," Celest commented. Aella clutched the emerald gem that never left her neck.
"You know I can't take it off..."
"It's only for one afternoon, and besides it was nothing more than a placebo anyways. You were a little kid with a strong imagination. We are ladies now, about to take our vows. I think you're ready to move on."
Aella took a long look at her reflection, she was right. It clashed terribly with her new dress. "Maybe one afternoon won't hurt. Then It goes back on," She decided. She took the piece off and closed her eyes. When she was satisfied that there was no one there she smiled in relief. Perhaps she had been worried about nothing all these years after all. Maybe when she fought against the shift, it made the voice lose its power. She placed the necklace on the vanity, and stood up and gave a twirl, "Ok, how do I look now?"
"Perfect!" Calixta and Celest said in unison. Just then the door cracked open, and three little girls snuck a look at the trio. "Are you going to the party soon?" Asked one with a blue ribbon in her hair.
"Yes, and you three are not allowed in our room while we are gone!"
All three girls groaned, they loved to sneak into the room and try on the older clothes, but Celest would have none of it. After shooing the girls off, the older girls took their leave to face the den of socialites.
Penelope Hawthorn's estate was very grand and lavish. Aella's nose twitched from all the magic she could feel pulsing through the building. The Viscount had money and he was going to let the whole world know. Their carriage stopped in front of a large fountain that had a stone carving of an almost naked woman spitting water out of her mouth. Aella found it to be a rather tacky sight. The footman helped each of the girls out of their seats, taking extra care of Calixta. She smiled sweetly at him but left it at that, the poor fool watched her walk off without another glance his way.
"Oh, Ally! You finally arrived!" Penelope's high-pitched voice assaulted Aella's ears. She quickly wrapt her arm through Aella's. Penelope was acting far more chummy than usual with Aella, in fact she wondered why she agreed to host her birthday party in the first place. Was this some kind of trap? She looked to her friends as if they would have the answer to her unspoken question but they only shrugged, just as confused as she was.
A cluster of girls stood near a gazebo, they were all fawning over a blond-headed young man. He had to be Lucus Whitelock, and Aella had to admit he did live up to his reputation. He had a clean-shaven face, and his blond hair was neatly combed to the side. He wore a simple white undershirt and a blue overcoat, that complimented his pale blue eyes. He was in fact very handsome, but Aella was not sure if he was worth all the fawning. 'I'm being too judgmental," she thought to herself.
The boy in question broke away from the group and walked up to Aella and Penelope. "Lady Hawthorn, your home is beautiful, but not as beautiful as you," he said kissing the back of Penelope's hand. Aella was afraid she might lose her breakfast from the display. Lucus directed his attention to Aella and gave her a lavish bow. "And the guest of honor! Aella the Tempest. I have heard a lot about you. It is an honor indeed," He kissed her hand as well. She wondered what he had heard of her but Penelope was fast to take over the conversation.
"OH! Our Alley is so much fun! Maybe she will treat us to some spring showers for our flowers later, that would be a site." Penelope knew Aella had no intention of doing anything for her gardens. She hated when the Nobels tried to use her and her friends as magical pets. She did her best to keep the annoyance hidden on her face.
Just then another carriage arrived, it was dark ebony, being pulled by two white horses. Aella did not recognize the crest on the door. "Who is that?" She asked Penelope.
"OH, did I not tell you about our last-minute guest?" Penelope asked in false confusion. "As you know my father does some trade deals with the Daimo's pack, and when he mentioned I was thinking of hosting a birthday party for one of the Sorceresses to take their vows this year, they offered to send a gift. The Alpha seemed rather enthusiastic to attend his first Ceremony." She spoke with haughty authority. Aella felt Celest's breathing still, she did not know about this change of plans, and Aella hoped Celest did not blame herself.
The carriage doors opened and out came a tall red-headed man with a short cut beard, that looked to be Aella's age. Her breathing relaxed, she was not sure how she knew but she was sure this was not the Alpha. He wore a white undershirt with no frills and ruffles, and in contrast to all the pastels the nobels wore, he wore a dark black vest with silver buckles.
He bowed politely to Penelope, "Lady Hawthorn you are looking well this evening."
"Rowan," Penelope said his name so casually, so they knew each other. Aella wondered if they had met at the mating balls in the past, but their exchange was very stiff. Penelope must have hoped someone else would come in his place. "This is the birthday girl, Aella."
Rowan stood straight and directed his attention to Aella, both of them froze as they studied each other. Rowan's eyes were a rich blue, just like hers. His hair was a lighter shade of red, but he had similar facial features. Aella was astonished to see they favored each other heavily, even though there was a significant height difference. There was also something familiar about the boy, she could not place.
"Have we met?" He was the first to ask.
Aella shook her head, but still studied him. Even his scent seemed familiar, and Aella's sense of smell was terrible. "There is no possibility of that. This is the first time ever even speaking to .. a wolf."
Rowan arched an eyebrow in doubt, "OH? Really?" He challenged.
A small breeze hit Rowan, Aella had momentarily lost her temper. She did not like being challenged like this. But the young wolf seemed unbothered as a jovial smile lit his face, almost as if he expected as much would happen.
"I am honored to be the first. Alpha Jarek has prepared a gift for you," he said as he revealed a small black leather box. He opened the lid and revealed the beautiful purple garnet bracelet.
"Oh, how lucky. It matches your dress!" Penelope gushed.
"If I may?" Rowan offered. Aella felt powerless to refuse, but she had to admit, it was beautiful. She held out her wrist as the young wolf clasped the bracelet. She marveled over how perfect the gift was. "Please give my thanks to Ja, Alpha Jarek," She quickly corrected herself. Rowan's arrogant laugh was very soft, but Aella could hear it, she could not help summoning another breeze that messed up his nicely combed hair. He ignored it and turned to face Calixta and Celest.
He offered another deep bow, "Celest and Calixta I take it?" When his eyes fixed on Calixta, his breathing stopped. Another poor soul trapt under her charms. Aella almost felt sorry for him, for there was no way Calixta would ever fall for a wolf.
But to Aella's surprise, Calixta blushed and offered her hand freely to be kissed. Aella stared at her friend in disbelief, she had never seen her smile so enthusiastically at any of the men Greta put before her when she was looking for a husband. "It's a pleasure to meet you," her voice was so soft and girlish.
"Oh no... the pleasure is all mine..." He said slowly, already getting lost in her dark sparkling orbs. Celest cleared her throat and Rowan quickly fixed himself and kissed her hand as well. "Forgive me! Celest, it is an honor to meet you as well. We are excited about the upcoming ceremony. You will be attending the dance beforehand?" He prodded.
"Seeing as it is the law, yes," Celest said shortly.
"Rowan, why don't you join us? It's the first time my friends get to meet a wolf, well one from Daimos that is," Penelope gave a sly glance at Aella. Aella had tried to hide her lineage in the past, but Penelope's family had strong connections and her secret was out before her first social outing. "This will give them a chance to ask questions, I'm sure it would be a lot of fun."
"I will answer what I can," which meant there were topics that were off-limits. He was about to offer his arm to Aella to escort her to their seats, but Lucus beat him to it, allowing Calixta to take her spot. Neither the Wolf nor Enchantress argued.
Everyone took their seats at the long table that had been filled with all kinds of sweets. Penelope took her spot at the head of the table and Aella was placed next to her. Across from Aella was Lucus, and next to him was Rowan who sat across from Calixta. Celest took her spot next to Calixta and the other socialites took whatever seat was available. Aella reach for the Chocolat covered strawberries, they were her favorites. Her plate was full of them, she almost forgot there were other options.
"Wait before we start, Aella you have gifts you still need to open," Penelope ordered. She then presented a small box that had her family crest printed on it. Aella opened to reveal a green silk scarf with a red rose stitched on the edge. "You are usually wearing green, so I thought this would go well with your wardrobe." Aella hated that she was not wrong and it was a thoughtful gift. She thanked her host and placed the gift to the side. She opened other gifts from the rest of the guests. They were small trinkets, a pair of gloves, a broach, and some rings. She thanked each of the girls.
"I have something as well," Lucus said as he presented a long box, that had some weight to it when Aella grabbed it. She looked inside and gasped, it was a beautiful glass rose. The petals were a beautiful red and the stem was green. She could feel it was laced with magic. "Tap the top," Lucus instructed. She did as she was told and the rose lit up with a soft glow. "Oh it's wonderful!" she said as she placed it delicately back into its box.
"I was not sure what jewelry you liked, so I thought something to decorate your room would be nice."
"It's perfect," She assured him. Aella still did not care for the dark, so she liked that it lit up.
Everyone then began to eat cakes and other sweets. Aella stuck mostly to her strawberries. Once they had all gotten their fill, Celest dabbed her lip with her napkin before addressing Rowan. "So Rowan, I have heard Alpha Jarek has attended every Mating ball since becoming Alpha, why has he not found a wife or mate?"
Rowan was a bit taken aback by Celest's blunt question, but he recovered quickly. "It is not really my place to pry into who Alpha Jarek mates with. But he publically announced that he plans to find his mate this year."
"What makes him so sure of that?" Penelope asked. "I know Jarek, I mean Alpha Jarek, is always so certain in all he does, but how can he possibly know this will be his year?" Aella felt her temper flare a little at Penelope speaking of Jarek as if she knew him so well.
Rowan snuck a glance at Aella before addressing Penelope, "I am not sure, but he has a way of knowing these things. I have stopped doubting Jarek about these matters when we were kids."
"So you are close to the Alpha?" Calixta asked, fixing her gaze on Rowan. He smiled when he found he had her attention. "Yes, we have known each other since we were pups." Some of the guests gave each other a sideways glance at the word pup. "My mother passed away when I was born and my father was unable to take care of me. So Jarek and I grew up like brothers." He said forgetting to use Jarek's title.
"So you never met your mother? Was she a wolf too?" Calli asked with a sympathetic voice.
"No, she was a Sorceress. I am what they call a hybrid."
"I thought they collared their hybrids," one of the girls next to Celest asked. Her name was Ann and she had a large chocolate stain on her dress. One of the girls offered her a napkin to try and fix herself.
"It's called a seal, it's only for those with magic. I am a man, so I have none," he answered.
"It sounds terrible," Aella admitted.
Penelope gave a wicked smile and patted Aella with false sympathy, "Arnt you grateful Greta took you in? Or else you would have to wear one of those!" A gust of wind blew through the table, knocking against some of the food. Aella was losing patience with Penelope always reminding her of her bloodline.
Calixta squeezed Aella's hand to calm her down. "Aella wouldn't need one of those, she's nothing like a wolf," She stated matter of factly. This calmed Aella and the wind went away.
"Could have fooled me with that temper of hers," one girl whispered to another just loud enough to be heard.
"Do you know what kind of magic your mother had?" Celest asked, ignoring the gossip.
Rowan graciously took the bate, "I was told she was a Tempest."
All eyes were directed back to Aella once again as she tried to avoid all eye contact by staring at her food.
"Really? What a coincidence! You two could be siblings! I mean you do look a lot alike," Penelope stated with a clap, the vicious intent to spread gossip was heavy in her tone.
" My mother's name was Vetra, not Priscella," Aella had spoken so fast she could not stop herself. She was not sure how she knew this, but there was a distant memory she had of someone telling her this. She feared she knew who, but she did not want to admit it.
"How do you know that?" Penelope demanded.
"I...I don't know... I think Greta might have said something about knowing another Tempest from the pack. She used to have dealings there before she took me in," the lie came so smoothly that it seemed to satisfy everyone except for Rowan, but he did not pry any further.
The rest of the day was filled with talking about Penelope's father and future husband. It was Aella's birthday but Penelope would not give up the center of attention for anyone. The hours droned on till it was finally time to leave. Lucus politely pulled Aella's chair out for her, "may I be so bold to ask for a little more of your time?" he asked. Aella blinked, surprised. What would Lucus want with her?
"Sure, would you like to walk the grounds?" She asked. He smiled and offered his arm to escort her away from the party. Aella caught a disapproving glance from Rowan. She looked away not knowing why this made her feel guilty. She knew she was doing nothing wrong but she had a sinking feeling she would have to answer for this later.