Midnight~

*I stand alone and watch the room progressively fill up with AEs with various looks of nervousness on their diverse faces, all of them afraid of making a fool of themselves in front of their dates. Will DJ Bowtie come? I ask myself worriedly. I try to calm myself by eating some of the buffet, but making sure to leave some for others.*

*Dewy arrives with Sage, bringing with them a burst of cold December air and a sensation of releif for me. That is, until Sage finds the pies. Dewy comes over to me, looking like she is waiting for someone.*

* "*So, did you get a date?* " I ask.*

Dewy~

"*So, did you get a date?*" He asks.

"I did, yeah. His name's Lock," I inform him. I take a small bite of my cupcake, letting the flavor sit in my mouth. Chocolate, with strawberry frosting. Amazing. I owe the baker a debt. 

"No sign of DJ Bowtie?" I ask through a mouthful of cupcake.

"*No,*" he replies with the tiniest of sighs, containing any impatience he may be feeling. I can see Lock coming and fall silent. Midnight follows my eyes and quiets too.

"Hi... I hope I'm not interrupting anything," he says nervously.

"Naw, you're fine. I'll see you later, Midnight," I say, then whiser to Midnight, "Good luck!"  A new, softer song starts up. I think I know it... I recognize the tune. It would play in Soren's head while she practiced it for voice. I know- it's A Thousand Years by Christina Perri.

"So... would you like to dance?" I ask. 

~~~

Boo's been weird lately- a few days ago he mentioned Cu, and now he says icyp. Icy?? 

Harper~

I walk into the ballroom hurriedly. We're late, of course. I smooth down my skirt, then look around awkwardly. I don't see Lights Out anywhere, so I feel a little  better. At least I didn't keep him waiting. Ace and Caribbean are behind me, and neither of them look nervous. That doesn't suprise me, though. They don't have any trouble with social things. I make a beeline for the dessert table and grab a mini cupcake. I'm not really planning on eating it, since I'm not that hungry, but I need to feel like I'm doing something. I play with my earrings and wait.

Ace~

Harper looks super nervous as we enter the ballroom. I can't blame her. There are a lot of AEs here, and I know she has trouble talking to people. She glances around the room, looking for Lights Out, I assume. Then, she hurries over to the dessert table. Not seeing anyone I really know, I follow her. Not really hungry, I look around for anyone who isn't already talking to someone or dancing. I spy a girl in a yellow dress standing alone, watching the dancers. I shrug, and walk up to her. I tap her on the shoulder. She turns around, looking very surprised, and says,

"Hi."

"Hi!" I reply. "I'm Ace. What's your name?"

Caribbean~

Walking behind my siblings, I have to admit that I'm excited. This will be my first ball, and I'm looking forward to getting to know some other AEs. I walk forward, my skirt swishing around my ankles. After watching to make sure Harper would be alright, I look around for somewhere to put my guitar down. Quill had tried to get me to leave it home, but I persisted. As my gaze sweps around the room, I spy a very pretty girl with caramel colored hair, who looks familiar, and another girl with ears and a tail in a short blue dress. I place my guitar down on a conveniently placed table nearby (I'll find it later) and start towards them. They look like they're about to head out onto the dance floor, and my confidence falters for a moment. Then, I steel myself and keep walking.

"Hello!" I say as brightly as I can. "My name's Caribbean. I don't know if we've met." 

Izzy~

"Hi." I say, looking at the smiling AE before me

"Hi! I'm Ace, what's your name?"

"I'm Isabella, please call me Izzy." I hold out my hand and smile politely "Nice to meet you."

"Same here." He takes my hand and shakes it, then he lets go and leans against the wall "you don't have anyone to go with, right?"

"Right, I've never actually gone to a dance before so I don't really know how this works." I state, my cheeks flushing a bit with embarassment. 

~Lock~

"So, would you like to dance...?" Dewy asks turning away from the AE who I believe is Midnight. 

"Sure." I say, nervously, thinking about how terrible I am at dancing. A song starts to play that I don't recognize. I offer Dewy my hand, feeling awkward. She takes it silently and I lead her onto the ball room floor. I take her right hand in my right, then place my left on her shoulder. 

The music is nice, a slow beat that the two of us sway to. I close my eyes, focusing on not stepping on Dewy's feet and trying extremely hard not to be stiff. I recall all the times Key has yelled at me to relax when I'm dancing. 'But dancing isn't relaxing!' I always snap back. 'Dancing is stressful!' Key would only just roll her eyes. 'Boys. You're all the same.' she'd reply, then continue to spin around my bedroom, somehow managing not to knock anything over. It's weird. She's the kind of girl who causes havoc and yet she's so graceful when she wants to be. But most of the time she's just a pain in the butt and an annoying sister. As much as I do love her.

I open my eyes and glance over to where she's standing with Devin by the buffet, watching Storm and Wren talk. I wonder how the two awkward lovers are doing. I turn my head slightly so I can watch Dewy out of the corner of my eye. She's looking at me with an expression I can't quite name. Amusement? Enjoyment? Something completely different? Hard to tell. 

I clear my throat, feeling uncomfortable. Dancing is so awkward. "So..." I say, trying to make conversation as the singer's voice serenades something about stepping closer and loving for thousands of years. "Are you familiar with this song?"  

~Storm~ 

I practically burst at her compliment. It's all I can do not to grin like the complete weirdo I am. 

"Um, how've you been?" She asks, brushing at her dress. She looks so pretty. I pull my mind away from her looks and try to make sense of her question. 

"Oh, um...I've been really well. I've been pretty busy for the past year...I went for a road trip, and I joined a band and I taught my little sister to play baseball-" I catch myself, realizing I'm rambling. I duck my head, feeling the back of my neck and my ears heat in a blush. "I'm sorry." I say feeling embarrassed. "I'm talking too much..." I glance back toward her, rubbing my thumbs over my palms. I hesitate, then ask before I can change my mind. "Do you want to dance?" 

~Key~

I frown at his reply. I could have sworn that he and Nymph were a thing, but then Max was going out with Nymph...which I wish I had known before I asked him to the ball. Apparently I've missed a lot of stuff since the last time I came by one of these AE get togethers. I sigh, both at the thought of missing so much and at the answer to his question. "No...I don't." I shake my head. "I asked Max out but-" I blush. "Well he has a date. I guess I was kind of terrified to ask anyone out after that." I glance over to where he and Nymph are standing, then quickly look away. I'm not exactly sure why I told Devin, but now that I have told him, I feel way better. Maybe there still is a chance to have a little bit of fun at this ball. I think, almost afraid to hope.

Mariel:

All the way to the ball I was feeling both nervous and excited - but as I stand before the crowd of chattering AEs and awkwardly terrible dancing, I feel numb. I'm about as internally conflicted as you can get, but right now everything about Far is right. Not in a romantic way but, it's hard to explain. I just feel like I can really be myself around him. 

I wonder aimlessly through the music and flashing lights slowly, fiddling with the hem of my blue dress. Every AE I pass has a nervous grin like they're having the times of their lives. I don't know why, but that makes me sort of jealous because I can never be that open about my emotions, about anything. I'm never sure of what to do and I wish I could just let lose and be happy for once. I don't know, maybe I can when I'm with Far. 

I spot him at the side of the ball room staring absently into the mass of AEs. I can see his mind whirring as he picks people out of the crowd and watches them for a while before moving on to someone else. I wonder what he's doing. Rather than offput, I'm intruiged. I summon all my courage and make my way over to him. 

Riley walks over to me, smie wide but eyes uncertain. I like that. I keep my wings open.

"H-hey, Cap, um, you're looking beautiful tonight - I - I mean, um, sorry..." He stutters. Somewhere, deep deep inside my stone, emotionless heart, a spark of pity lights, but only for a second.

"Hey Riley. You're looking well. I was about to go hide out in the chandelier, possibly with some more food and cream soda. Wanna come?" Riley's eyes, already light with happiness, shine brighter than before. Aw. Isn't that cute. If Rogue was here then the only reaction I would get would probably be one of the unreadable faces that indicate an internal screech, but only because I have that exact face, being Rogue's AE, can I read that. Riley nods. "Hang on I'm gonna grab some pizza and soda." And I do. Folding my wings, I drift on light feet back to the dining table, grab an entire pizza box and a small case of cream soda, and return to Riley. He reaches for the pizza box.

"I can take this, if you want." He lifts the flap a bit. "Whoa, an entire pizza?" Riley laughs. I smile automatically. "I like your style, Cap!" I nudge his elbow.

"Good. Let's go." Simultaneously spreading our wings, we lift into the air. As we get closer, I see that the chandelier is actually bigger than I thought. It could easily fit all of the winged AEs here in its main chamber alone. The arms branch off and intertwine to make ledges like balconies and seats on the outer parts. I push past the heavy, incredibly thick curtain of crystal-glass pendants, folding my wings and alighting on the huge glass pane that makes the "floor". Riley looks at it nervously.

"Won't it break under our weight?" He asks. I stomp my foot a couple times.

"Nope; it's fortified glass. We and twenty other AEs would be perfectly safe. And that's an understatement." I look at the ballroom dresses and suits swirling below us. A perfect viewing chamber. With a relaxed sigh, I sit and lean back against a thick arm, setting the cream soda down next to me. Riley does the same with the pizza. "You wanna see something cool?" Riley nods. Snaking my hand through the crystal curtain, I prepare to use my new powers for the first time. Soon, little lights begin floating from my palm, drifting gently downwards as they disperse themselves all over the ballroom. They pulse with a gentle white light, and suddenly the other lights turn off. We peer through the glass bottom. We can still see, fairly well if you asked me. It almost looks like glowing snow at midnight. "My new powers. Rogue gave me the ability to create, control, and destroy." The little white lights reflect in Riley's chocolate eyes.

"That's so cool..." He whispers. With a wave of my hand, white lights adorn his wings. He kinda looks like an angel. I chuckle. He takes a few lights from his feathers and places them on my wings. "Now we match!" Riley beams. 

Wren~

“Do you wanna dance?”

A flurry of fear runs through me. I haven’t really done this type of dancing before, maybe only once or twice. What if I’m awful at it? What if step all over his feet or trip or something? A part of me wants to, but mostly the idea scares me. I think I’d rather not. But...he looks so hopeful, and I can tell it took a lot of courage for him to ask. So, for him, I say,

“Sure.” I force a smile.

He grins, and I follow him to the center of the room, where others are whirling and dipping, so graceful, so light, like snowflakes. It does look fun...if you know what you’re doing. Which, I don’t really.

The lights dim, and suddenly I notice small white lights drifting down slowly from above. The orbs glow softly, illuminating the the room just enough to be able to see clearly.

“Whoa...” I hear Storm breathe.

My eyes grow wide as I watch them. “They’re beautiful...” I whisper.

We stop in the center of the room as the song that’s playing comes to an end. Storm holds out his right hand, and I take it. It’s so warm, and suddenly I don’t want to let go. A giddy chill runs up my spine as he slips his other hand around my waist, and then I remember to place my own hand on his shoulder. I’m excited and nervous at the same time as I sense the song about to start. 

I look up at Storm nervously and force a laugh. “I will warn you, I haven’t done this much, so, uh, I’m sorry if I’m completely horrible at it.”

Devin~

Key keeps glancing at Nymph, and then back at me. She’s probably wondering what happened with us, but I don’t feel like talking about it at all, so I let her wonder.

She looks kinda sad after she explains why she doesn’t have a date, and I do feel a little bad for her.

“Oh,” I reply. “Well, uh, y’know, sometimes you don’t need a date to have a good time at a ball. I mean, I didn’t even try to get one, I just came by myself because I wanted to.” I shrug. That probably didn’t help. Oh well, encouragement’s never my strong suit. I tried.

Without thinking, I say, “I guess we could dance or something, if you want? As friends, obviously.” I don’t really know why I asked her. I don’t even like dancing. But neither of us have anything better to do anyway, so I roll with it.

Far~

I watch Wren and Far as they make their way to the dance floor. I feel a small smile quirk at the corners of my mouth as they awkwardly prepare to dance. They are completely submerged in their own limerance, and they don’t even realize it. I find it amusing to watch.

Beautiful white lights have begun to drift down all around, floating ethereal, luminous; stars hanging in a twilit sky. From my viewpoint I can see Captain Xanara across the room, sitting in a large chandelier, creating them. 

I sense a presence nearing me, and my eyes flick away from the lights to see Mariel a few paces away, coming toward me. She is clothed in a deep blue dress that falls to her knees and matches her eyes perfectly, with her hair down and slightly curled, framing her face. Her face projects a calm numbness, but I can see that it is a mask, much like my own. There is so much more churning beneath the surface, not all of which I can see. But there is a certain acute pain that I can sense, and I feel an aching sadness for her. I understand why she hides so much of what she feels, for I do the same. But I do hope that in time, perhaps she will trust me enough to put down the walls.

As she reaches me, I smile softly. “Hello, Mariel. You look lovely.” 

Saki-

I smile and relax, taking Eden's hand as we walk to the dancefloor. The music is an upbeat, happy tune, the kind Maki hates. Soon we're twirliing around. I giggle, hair swishing around me. 

"This is fun!"  

I know CBers aren't supposed to be on here but wow, Leeli. Wow. I just need to tell you how beautiful Far's piece was. Okay I'm scooting now.

~Storm~

I grin at her as I rest my palm against her back. "I'm sure you'll do fine." I say as a song starts up around us. It's a bit more upbeat than the last one, but not so much that it changes the mood. I recognize the singer's voice as Leah although I don't understand the language she is singing in. It's beautiful music and as the majestic glowing flakes of light tumble down they catch in her hair and make her wings shimmer.

I grin, suddenly filled with pure elation. I've missed Wren so much. I've missed talking to her, and being around her and just looking at her. With her big angel wings and the miniature globes of glowing light in her hair, she looks like some celestial being, sent from heaven for my pure joy. 

As the music forms a vortex around us, I begin to spin, gently pulling Wren with me. She's wrong. She's a superb dancer and she must be having fun too, because she's smiling. I look into her eyes and a huge wave of pure joy seems to knock me down. Except I don't hit the ground. I just keep flying in a sea of pure happiness. 

~Key~

"Well, uh, y’know, sometimes you don’t need a date to have a
good time at a ball. I mean, I didn’t even try to get one, I just came
by myself because I wanted to." He says. I look away, not at all sure how to reply to that. He saves me the trouble.

"I guess we could dance or something, if you want? As friends, obviously."

I glance back at him in surprise. I smile. Maybe I will get to dance after all. "I'd love to. As friends, of course." I agree, offering my hand.

Riley- 

I have the dorkiest smile on as I beam. “I am such a great boyfriend.” , I think to myself. I focus on Cap, her strong face and large wings. She’s so beautiful, how did I end up with her? Well, I don’t care how, I’m glad I asked her. I snap out of it. I’m not her boyfriend.I can’t belive I convinced myself of that. Well maybe, I can make this a reality. I break the silence. 

“Cap?” 

“Yeeeah?” 

“Did you know, that you’re beautiful? Did you know that I love you?” 

Eden- 

As Saki takes my hand I feel myself ease up and become happier. Saki’s hair blows around us, kinda like Rapunzel. I make a silly kissy face at one of the couples as we dance. Her giggle is the cutest thing. Nonono Eden, you’re going to get caught up in love again. Remember FRIENDS. I blush and tense up again, I hope she doesn’t notice...Of course, I can tell by her face, she does notice.

Riley beams. He shakes his head lightly, turns towards me, and looks straight into my eyes. Behind his smile and glowing eyes is a hint of uncertainty.

"Cap?" He asks. I stare down into the couples, unaware of his unfailing gaze.

"Yeeeah?" I reply, smiling gently at the multitude of faces in awe of their partners, now adorned with small pieces of light.

"Did you know that you're beautiful?" I snap to attention, finally seeing his true feelings behind his every move. I'm shocked. After an awkward moment or two, Riley begins to shift uneasily. He stands and steps towards the droplet curtain. "I - I'm sorry... I'll be going now-" Without thinking, my hand shoots out to stop him. I stand as well. My hand falls to my side.

"Stop." Riley turns slightly. I take him by the upper arm and turn him fully. "We may be shipped, but I don't have as many feelings for you as you seem to have for me. However, I think we should stick together.

"I want to take that chance too, Cap." I can telepathically hear Rogue internally squealing ('cause all AEs have some sort of a mental link with their AEs).

Mariel-

I feel my muscles relaxing in his calming presense. There is something about the way he looks at me that draws me closer. Something familiar. 

Far smiles. "Hello, Mariel. You look lovely." He says.

I smile back and stop fiddling with my dress. "You too." I say, and I mean it. His silver leather boots compliment his icy eyes which gaze into mine softly. Although we haven't really figured out our relationship as friends, or something more, I'm glad that atleast we can look each other in the eye unlike some AE couples. 

"Would you like to dance?" I ask. I bite my lip. I wonder if that was what Far meant when he invited me to the ball with him. "Or maybe get drinks?" I add quickly.  

Coquelicot -

I slip into the ballroom silently and scan the room for Mariel or Beryl. Mariel is talking to Far on one side of the room and I smile softly, happy that she has a friend already. Beryl seems to have not arrived yet. Between us three, I've always been the socially awkward one, but I really do need someone to talk to right now, even if I don't want to. I can't let this turn into a repeat of the last ball. 

Swiftly, I make my way over to the snack table, taking great care not to stumble or bump into anyone. Everyone has sort of seperated into groups, and I feel self concious on my own. I decide to wait by the punch bowl. Drown your sorrows in punch, right?