Alix's POV:
The whole school had been buzzing about the Winter Ball for the past week, whereas Caddie and I had been dreading it. Since my parents were the leaders of the New York Coven, our family had been invited.
There were girls who were willing to kill for my spot next to my brother at this ball. Only the elite of our society were allowed to go.
The whole event was centered around the council members and their heirs. Those who didn't have families that lead covens or were related to the council members would be watching the ball from their couch.
I wished I could be like the others and sit on the couch watching the men and women dance under sparkling chandeliers.
My mom didn't seem to care about what I wanted. Once rumors sparked about the event, she sent me five dresses and told me to pick the one I liked the best. I tried to send them all back but that didn't work out. Finally, I decided on a black, form fitting dress. My mom liked that one the least, so naturally it became my favorite.
I felt a shock run through my fingers. I stared down at my hands and remembered the task at hand. The event was still hours away, and at that moment, I had to focus on keeping a small ball of electricity balanced between my fingers. For the next forty-five minutes I was stuck in Mr. Rimmel's Simple Spells Class.
So far, the class was anything but simple. I had been absently staring at a poor boy who accidentally zapped himself in the forehead. Drool had been seeping from his mouth, and I couldn't tell if he was knocked out or dead.
My brother was sitting next to me, but he was also incoherent. Not because he had accidentally short-circuited his brain, but because he and Mira's cousin, Bethany, were telepathically arguing. At least I hoped so; I couldn't actually know for sure, but they were staring at each other with stubborn expressions.
I was about to start counting the ceiling tiles when Caddie had appeared in the doorway. She walked over to Mr. Rimmel and handed him a note. He skimmed through the note before looking at me.
"You have an early dismissal, Miss Slade," he informed me and then returned to his paperwork.
I resisted the urge to do a victory dance and walked over to Caddie. I hooked my arm through hers and skipped out of the classroom.
"Care to tell me why you got me out of class?"
She averted her eyes and took a deep breath. "I'm scared," she told me, "What if I mess up?"
I had seen Caddie nervous before, and normally it was over something petty like a math exam or a pimple. But I've never seen her scared.
"I know you by now, and if it's something important, you'll push past you fears to do what's right."
She trembled slightly but nodded. We walked back to our room in silence. Both of us had things to think about.
I had to figure out a way to avoid my mom, and she had to try to win over hundreds of witches and warlocks. It was going to be a difficult night for both of us.
We walked into our rooms, my eyes traveling to the two dresses lying across our beds. The dresses were still tucked away in their garment bags. I hadn't seen Caddie's dress yet, but she looked afraid when her gaze landed on the bag.
"What's really bothering you?" I asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.
She turned around to face me; the rims of her eyes were red. She rubbed her face and started to pace.
"Before you met me, what did you think when you heard about the Dark Witch?"
I hesitated.
I had first heard about the Dark Witch when I was seven at a coven meeting. My parents were whispering about Heidi visiting the coven. They described her to be soulless and unnatural. They believed that the Dark Witch should be destroyed, and they weren't the only ones. But no one would actually say that in public. For longest time, I was used to whispering the Dark Witch's name. Now I could see that the rumors weren't true. Caddie wasn't evil at all.
"You need to understand that I no longer think the way that I used too," I told her, hoping that'd she understand.
Caddie held onto her bedpost, her face portraying no emotion. Her lips were white, and her legs wobbled. I went to her side, praying that she wouldn't faint.
"Caddie it doesn't matter what I had thought, you won me over the after our first conversation." I searched the future and waited ten seconds before she snapped back to reality.
"You didn't know who I was. All of these people know me as the Dark Witch's Heir, Heidi isn't a bad person neither am I. If I want people to stop regarding us as monsters then I have to seem like an angel tonight," She said and let go of the bedpost.
She walked over to the garment bag and picked it up. Her hands skimmed over gray fabric and hesitated at the zipper. She pulled the zipper down timidly, the white fabric of the dress escaping from the confinement of the bag. All I could see was the large white skirt and the glimmering bodice.
"Remember how you use to refer to me as Cinderella?" Caddie asked with wry amusement.
I shared her smile and grabbed my bag as well. I knew her ball wouldn't end the same way it did with Cinderella, but telling her what the future held for her would only add additional stress.
Caddie:
I sat by the window and waved goodbye to the sun as it slowly disappeared into the darkness. Alix's brother had picked her up earlier than she originally assumed. So I was alone, waiting for Heidi to come get me.
I played with the tulle bottom of my dress. The gown fit like a glove. It was weird how the older Witches and Warlocks knew everything. I didn't even have a fitting, but it still fit.
My golden hair was curled and pinned tightly to the top of my head. Alix had done my makeup with magic. Unfortunately, I was not given any glass slippers. A knock sounded on the door, and I expected it to be Heidi, but when I pulled back the door I was surprised to see Cam.
He was in a pair of jeans and t-shirt. It was a simple ensemble, but it still stole my breath. The last time he appeared at my door he filled the day with bitter-sweet memories.
I still didn't know if I loved that day or hated it.
His golden eyes traveled from the poof of the dress to my face. I suppressed the intense emotions that stirred inside of me as he looked at me with such adoration.
"Wow," He breathed.
I blushed. "I know the dress is really big, right?"
He took a step closer to me. His mouth was still slightly open as if he had found heaven.
"I'm trying to find a word that describes how beautiful you are, but I can't think of one that covers it all," He raised his hand, tucked a golden curl behind my ear, and traced the curve of my jaw with a feathery touch. My jaw burned where he had touched it.
"Would you like to come inside?" I asked, refusing to answer to his compliment.
His lips curled into a smile and nodded. I closed the door behind him and watched as he looked around my room with mild curiosity.
"So, why are you here?" I asked, trying not to seem rude.
He snapped back to reality and pulled a silver chain out of his pocket. There was a small diamond encrusted locket hanging off of the simple chain. The diamonds sparkled in the light and I was enchanted by that little heart.
"This was my mother's. My dad had given it to her on their first date. She told me to give this to somebody that I cared for," He explained, looking down at the locket with affection.
His voice was thick with raw emotions. I could feel the sorrow that was crashing into him like a tidal wave. He cleared his throat and looked back at me.
"You're the only person that I've cared about . . . in a long time. I couldn't think of a better time to give it to you," He said and paused waiting for my response.
I had no idea what to say. I was so overcome with joy and sorrow for him that I couldn't speak. He deserved somebody that could love him and be with him without sneaking around. Avoiding Cam was one of the most painful things that I had to do.
He was the kind of boy that I had hoped that I would end up. When I was young, most girls dreamed of growing up to marry a prince. I just wanted to find someone that would love me for who I was.
"It's beautiful." I commended myself for not choking on my words.
"I'm glad that you said that because it's yoursâif you want it?"
I swore that I saw a ghost of a genuine smile on his face. I could feel how much this meant to him, and I refused to be like everyone else in his life. I didn't want to abandon him.
"I would love to wear it tonight." I smiled when his eyes sparkled with happiness. "Can you put it on me?"
He nodded and walked towards me. I felt the contrast of the cold metal against his warm hands as he brushed away a few loose strands of hair and slipped the necklace around my neck.
My fingers grazed the top of the locket. Tears burned in the back of my eyes. I painfully swallowed and offered him a weak smile. His hands fell from my neck to my waist, and he turned me around so I was eye level to his shoulder.
I put my hands on his hard chest and he held me tight. My heart rate sped. This was exactly how I imagined my first kiss, but I didn't get kissed.
The door opened and Aleksander stood in the doorway, wearing a pristine suit and a disapproving frown.
I took a step away from Cam and cleared my throat. "What are you doing here?"
His eyes were hooded and there was a bored look on his face. I couldn't tell if he was mad or if he simply didn't care anymore.
"If you must know," He said grabbing my hand, "Heidi put me in charge of you tonight, so you can consider me your date."
His frown changed into a devilish grin as he saw the look of disdain on my face. I glanced back at Cam, whose head was hanging low in shame. He shoved his hands in his pockets and made his way to the door.
"I'll see you around, Miss Jones, " he muttered and then disappeared.
I glared at Aleksander. He purposely chose to ignore my stare and lugged me out of the door.
The dorms were deserted, and it made my skin crawl being alone with Aleksander in the dark hallway. I peeked at him; he didn't want to hurt me. That made me relax, but I immediately felt guilty when I realized how badly I had hurt him.
We walked down the stairs, hand in hand. As we descended, I saw the other heirs waiting for us, among them Mira, who didn't bother hiding her rage.
I couldn't tell if she was mad at me for going to the ball with Aleksander, or because I broke her body. Either way it didn't matter, I was still on her hit list. I ignored her pointed looks and joined the others as they walked to the car.
My palms were shaking in anticipation, and I could only hope to survive the night.
**Hey guys, this is unedited so please don't judge to harshly. The ball will be coming up and something will happen at the ball which reveals another secret about Dmitri and Aleksander. So please list your theories of what this other secret is, and tell me what you think about Caddie and Cam's almost kiss.**