The Magic of Aurelian

Eleanor

I flew home the Friday before the ball as expected. My mother had already ordered my dresses for each ball, and I was to meet the seamstress to try them on. We only had one seamstress in Fairmist, so she was quite busy with last-minute preparations for several of the women attending the masquerade. My mother said each ball had a specific theme, and tomorrow would be all about plants. My mother told the seamstress to surprise us with the dress, so I was a little worried about what she had made.

“Eleonor, you’re up next! Sorry for the wait. It’s been a little chaotic here with the ball being tomorrow but you’re my last customer for the day before I close up. I hope you like the dress, I heard a little rumor that Prince Kiran likes roses, so I wanted you to catch his attention.

She went to the back and returned with a bright red dress in the shape of a rose. It was a beautiful creation but did not seem to suit me at all. Red had never been my color, but it was too late to have anything else made. The dress, however, fit like a glove, so she wrapped it up for me, and I headed out of the shop.

The dress was bulky and hard to carry, so flying back home was out of the question. I ended up holding the dress bridal style so that it wouldn’t drag on the floor. As I turned the corner, I heard a loud shriek. I bumped into two girls, nearly knocking them over.

“I’m so–”

“Watch where yo–”

The first girl and I said at the same time before we both stopped mid-sentence as we realized who the other was.

“Eleanor! Even here I can’t escape you.”

“Aria, always a pleasure. You as well, Sylvie.” I responded sarcastically.

“What are you doing here?” She gritted her teeth as she readjusted her skirt.

“Well, not to mention the fact that I’m from Fairmist, I did tell you I would be attending the ball tomorrow.”

“Still on about the ball, are you?” She crossed her arms in front of her.

“Why else would I be carrying a ballgown?” I lifted my arms to indicate the dress I held.

Aria gasped as she saw the dress. “Red!? I’m wearing red. Find a new dress.”

“I can’t, it’s too late." I shrugged. "Even if I could, I wouldn’t change my dress just because you told me to.”

“I said you can’t wear this dress.” She tugged at my dress, and I held onto it firmly, lightly pulling it out of her possession.

“I’m not going to the ball anyway, remember? So what should it matter what color my dress is?”

“Sylvie, help, grab the other end.” Before I knew what was happening, Sylvie and Aria yanked the dress out of my hands and both pulled on it as hard as they could. I tried to get the dress back, but Aria shoved me to the ground as I reached for the dress.

From my place on the ground, I heard the sound of fabric rip and then saw pieces of material strewn about on the sidewalk.

Aria glared at me one last time as she and Sylvie walked away. “Have fun going to the ball in that dress.” She called out.

I looked at the pieces of red around me and gathered them up. I thought about going back to the seamstress, but there was no way she’d be able to fix this in time for the ball. Tears welled up in my eyes, which frustrated me to no end. I hated crying, more so right now that I was still out in public.

I threw everything into the bag and marched my way back home. When I arrived, I put all the pieces on my bed, hoping I could fix the dress myself. It looked like such a mess, and my sewing skills were subpar at best. I ended up just sitting on the bed crying, which is where Solara found me when she walked into my room.

“Oh, Eleanor. I thought I heard crying, but I didn’t expect to find you here like this.” I was certain I looked like a soggy, snotty mess, so I looked away from her embarrassed. “What happened?” She picked up a piece of the skirt.

“My dress for the ball got ruined.”

" I can see that, but how exactly did it happen?” She looked at me pointedly, waiting for an answer.

I huffed and walked over to the vanity to grab a handkerchief, taking my time before telling her the story. “After I got my dress, I ran into some of the girls from school. They decided they didn’t like my dress and did this.” I waved my hand over the ruined dress.

“They didn’t like the dress? Or they don’t like you? This seems a little more personal than not liking a dress.”

“Fine, they don’t like me. My roommates have had it out for me since Prince Kiran agreed to be my partner for a class project. They don’t like that my parents are just commoners.”

“Well, that sounds rather childish..but us commoners have as much right to that ball as they do, now let’s see about fixing this dress. Maybe I can whip up a mending potion, and it’ll stitch itself back together?” She got up and pulled me to the kitchen excitedly.

“A mending spell, like for cuts…on skin?”

“Well, yes, but it’s worth a try. It’s not like either one of us can sew satin.” She went about mixing ingredients while I continued to wipe my nose. I really did hate crying, but I was glad for Solara’s presence.

“So…Prince Kiran’s in your class?” She wiggled her eyebrows at me as she stirred.

“Of course, that would catch your attention.” I shook my head at her. “Yes, he is, and he’s been really nice to me this week. He even defended me against my roommates a few times. The length those two girls are willing to go to try to get his attention is ridiculous.”

“I see, so they treat you poorly because they're jealous of you. That makes sense, us Lightstorm women are quite beautiful.” She flipped her hair and giggled at her own words.

“Oh, come on now. Let’s not pretend fairies, in general, aren’t beautiful.”

“Yes, of course, but your personality alone puts you miles ahead of those snarky roommates of yours...and I don’t need to know what they look like to be certain of that.

I rolled my eyes and huffed at my cousin. “How much longer for the potion?”

“It’s finished, let me just bottle it up, and we’ll put it on the dress.”

I watched as she put it in a glass vial, and we walked back to my room. She arranged all the pieces of the dress back together and poured a drop of the potion on each tear. After a few seconds, the dress started to knit itself back together with glittering red threads.

“It’s working,” Solara clapped, and we stepped back as the dress lifted off the bed as it continued to mend itself. It twisted and turned in a radiance of threads, and for a moment, my fears about my ruined dress were assuaged.

Almost as soon as the magic started, it ended, and the dress settled back down on the bed. Solara and I held our breath and looked at each other before walking over to the dress.

Solara gasped, and then I gasped, and then she burst into laughter. “It’s hideous!” She covered her mouth still laughing, “I really thought it would work.”

A part of me wanted to cry but I laughed along with her instead. “It mended the dress, but why are the seams so lumpy...and look here," I flipped over the dress, “It sewed the bottom together. It can’t even be worn anymore." I threw the dress down and threw up my hands.

Solara continued laughing, “I’m sorry, I’m not laughing at you, but you have to admit, this is pretty funny.” She picked up the dress to examine it further. “What if we cut the bottom open?”

“This is hopeless,” I groaned but cracked a smile as I could see the humor in the situation.

“I think we may need to tell your mother, maybe she has an extra dress?”

“She’ll be so disappointed…and then I’ll have to tell her about my roommates.” I sat on the bed feeling dejected. “It’s alright, I just won’t go to the ball.”

“You can’t not go, Prince Kiran will be expecting you. Now, how about we go have dinner and think about it again tomorrow?

I nodded and we headed out of the room, leaving the ruined dress out of our thoughts.

I spent the better part of the next day at the shops, hoping to find a suitable alternative for the ball, but I found nothing. When I got home, I found Aunt Jacinta in our kitchen with Solara.

“Aunt Jacinta, what are you doing here?”

Solara gave me a sheepish look, “I asked her to come. I thought she might be able to help…with the dress situation.”

“Solara told me everything, how about you show me the dress, and I’ll see what can be done?” We brought out the monstrosity, and she turned it over in her hands. "This is terrible, you used a mending potion?” Solara nodded.

“Alright, let’s see, what if we cut here and try to smooth this part out here.” She turned and pulled at the dress with her magic, smoothing out the lumps, but it was no use. As soon as she released the dress, it went right back to its lumpy form.

“This won’t do,” She paced the room as she thought. “I need to get my magic book from home. I’ll be back. I’ll have a dress for you, one way or another. Don’t you worry, this godmother of yours will have things in order for the ball. In the meantime, get everything else ready, your hair and makeup.”

With that, she rushed out of the door and Solara went to work curling my hair.

About two hours later, Aunt Jacinta returned with her magic book in hand. “I found the perfect spell. It makes a new dress by combining the material from dresses you already have. We just need to find the right dresses in your closet.”

“But I don’t have anything in red.”

“That’s alright, we all know red’s not your color anyway.” She went into my room and rummaged through my closet before coming back out with a yellow dress and a green dress. “How about a yellow tulip, instead?” She smiled broadly at her suggestion.

I shrugged my shoulders and nodded. “Sounds great, now what?”

“Now, you stand there and watch the magic happen.”

Aunt Jacinta flitted about the room and waved her hands at the two dresses. I watched enraptured as the two dresses started to unravel and meld together. The glittering tendrils of magic wrapped around my body as if taking measurements, and the cloth began to wrap itself around me.

A mixture of yellow and green swirled around me before fluffing out into a smooth skirt and cinching in at my waist. Ties formed at my back and a bodice built up before my eyes. When the magic settled, Solara and Aunt Jacinta stood before me in complete awe.

“It’s gorgeous! How have you never used this spell before?” She turned to her mother in complete amazement. “Come look, Eleonor.” She waved me back to the room and led me to the mirror.

Aunt Jacinta had created the most perfect blend of yellow and green. The skirt flowed around me in soft layers like the petals of a tulip, and as the bodice went up, the dress changed from yellow to green in an ombre pattern. The look was topped off with cap sleeves, gold trim along the edges, and a crown of tulips in my hair. It was delicate and ethereal and elegant all at once.

“It’s beautiful...” I was speechless, and I couldn’t stop looking at myself in the mirror.

“Now, for the mask,” Aunt Jacinta pulled out a golden lace mask that perfectly matched the dress and tied it on. “And how about a matching necklace?” She formed a delicate gold necklace in the shape of a single tulip and set it on my neck.

“You’re perfect, but there is one downfall…the spell is not permanent and will only last a few hours. I’d guess you have until midnight, so leave the party no later than midnight to ensure you aren’t left standing naked in front of a crowd.” She pointed her forefinger at me to emphasize her point.

“Don’t worry, Mama, I’ll make sure our princess here gets out in time.”

I waited for Aunt Jacinta and Solara to get dressed and the three of us set off to meet the rest of our family at the ball.