PRISTINE
"Now, I request you to repeat the dance scheduled I taught you last week." Professor Anastasia, a soft-spoken fairy with long green hair and sparkly green eyes was our teacher for the extra-curricular activity, Starlight Ballroom.
This is one of the numerous extra-curricular activities that the students may opt for every Saturday.
One can opt for minimum of one activity to maximum of five.
One of those activities was Starlight Ballroom that I chose along with Mythical Music Assemble and Enchanted Gardening.
It does not require the brain of an inventor to figure out that indeed Starlight Ballroom was about the ball dance.
Students from different classes and years take up these activities together.
Though we nobilities are taught the ball dance right after we master locomotion, it doesn't hurt anyone to enhance their skills.
Not an optimal number of Princes chose this activity and hence some of us have ended up being paired with the same gender.
Exemplarily, me.
I ended up with Princess Pauline and Professor Anastasia says it will sustain till the end of the school year.
One might expect that it is underwhelming. However, deep down, I fancy this arrangement over being coupled with a prince.
Do not get me wrong.
I am just uneasy being in close proximity to the opposite gender. Given to the number of balls I am obliged to attend as a princess, this uneasiness is humorous.
Also, Pauline is a great partner if I overlook the warnings of Aprialla warning me against stealing her best friend. It is always a playful banter though.
Sometimes I play the part of the prince and sometimes she does so.
Once Professor Anastasia played the music with a flick of her wand, all the students began to slowly follow the routine. Today, I was the one playing the part of the prince.
I liked this activity the most.
It was because of both my love for the ball dance and also due to my admiration for Professor Anastasia. She was originally a resident of Dynstown before she moved here to teach.
My kingdom has always been revered for the presence of fairies.
Though fairies do not possess magic as potent as that of the sorcerers', yet, their harmless magic and picturesque appearance is admired by people all over Elowyn.
Professor Anastasia floated through the room, scanning for mistakes and correcting them gracefully.
She nodded at Princess Aprialla who held the position of the La Estrella. The La Estrella is the couple that holds the centre position in the routine. They are recognized by the crowd and also acquire the stage solely for themselves towards the end of the performance.
Since we will be performing this during the Wisteria Fest.
It is everyone's innermost wish to hold the position of the La Estrella. Even mine.
Though in reality I am positioned at farthest row.
I sighed out. Maybe Aprialla does it better. She is not an awful dancer and the school I literally sited within the boundary of her kingdom. She is coupled with Prince Spencer of Brynwich under Brindlemark.
He is just a dance companion that people think she looks good with according to her.
However, Spencer fancies her. He even had involved himself in a fight with Prince Benjamin over Aprialla during the final year of Crestwood.
I am rather perplexed why Professor Anastasia didn't partner Aprialla up with Benjamin.
They are engaged after all.
He, on the other hand is mated with a senior from the second year.
Overlooking the inconvenient pairings, everyone swayed their bodies to the slow music in sync while Professor Anastasia beamed at everyone.
But suddenly, silence fell. The music stopped with a thud.
Professor Anastasia had collapsed on the floor.
Shrieks and gasps filled the room as all the students retreated away from the professor. The news that we had received from Prince Greander the other day, followed by the blacking out of Benjamin just boosted the fear within us.
While the rest were scurrying away, Benjamin stepped ahead and knelt beside her body.
I could tell that everyone present in the room was holding their breaths as Benjamin checked the pulse and the breathing.
His frown relaxed a little as he turned to us.
"She has just passed out." Benjamin announced. With the dreadful events happening around, her slumping was actually a relief.
Eventually the senators called for the medical help and she was taken to the Healing Ward and the rest of the class ended there due to the emergency.
That night, after dinner, the princesses had gathered in the dorm room shared by Pauline, Aprialla and Shanon.
We were conversing about the homework to be handed in next Monday.
Just then, the door opened soundly and hasty footsteps hurried in.
Heads turned abruptly towards the door as an anxious Pauline scurried in. She jitterily closed the door behind her and paced back and forth.
After Professor Anastasia collapsed, the senators had to take the responsibility and explain the situation to others. Hence, Pauline was away for the entire day and now she was back with a fretful face.
This cannot mean any good news.
"What happened?" Aprialla walked up to her.
"How could this have happened. This is impossible. No outsider can perform such an act. What will happen now…" Pauline continued to pace back and forth while muttering to herself.
"Pauline." Aprialla attempted to grab her attention.
But it wasn't successful. Pauline paid no heed to her.
Left with no choice, Aprialla grabbed Pauline by her shoulders to stop her steps. "Calm down. Breathe in. Breathe out." She directed. Pauline followed.
Ultimately, Aprialla eased Pauline down a little and made her change out of the uniform that she wasn't able to change out of as she was stuck.
We brought some food for her as she must've been starving. I don't think she had the time to eat anything and made her sit on the bed while we gathered around her after she had calmed down.
"Now, tell us what happened." Aprialla said in a soothing voice.
"Yeah, Pauline you appear as if you encountered a ghost." Princess Samirah attempted to make a joke that fell flat. She just earned a disdainful look from Aprialla.
I wouldn't consider this as an appropriate time to fool around.
"I wish I had just encountered a ghost instead." Pauline sighed out. Ghosts were not an unusual encounter. "Quit beating around the bush. Just disclose what is happening." Irene scowled.
"Professor Anastasia is fine. However…" Pauline inhaled a sharp breath. "She has lost her magic."
"What?!" Several shrieks echoed around in distinct voices. Mine included. A fairy losing her magic? It did not make any sense.
"Yes…" Pauline stared at her lap.
"After she swooned during Starlight Ballroom, she was taken to the Healing Ward where Madame examined her but could not conclude any reason behind her fainting out of the blue. The Director, Headmaster and several professors had crowded the Healing Ward. We were allowed to retreat but Benjamin refused to depart and hence I was stuck there as the senator. Eventually Professor Anastasia regained consciousness and she was absolutely fine. Nothing was wrong with her. She physically wasn't feeling any different either until she used her wand to bring the glass of water to herself from the table and the magic didn't work. She tried several other spells but nothing worked. Her magic disappeared."
I have received boundless astonishing reports but this has topped the list undeniably.
"That…. doesn't make sense!" Shanon explained. I am on the same page. Though many peculiar incidents happen daily in Elowyn, I have never heard of any fairy losing her magic.
"You are aware that Pauline would rather walk on hot coals than lie, Shanon." Aprialla contradicted. "I am aware, April, I did not mean tha-" Shanon attempted to defend herself but Pauline interrupted.
"It is fine, Shanon, I find this bizarre as well..."