Demon and the Upcoming Ball

Chatter became white noise in the background while Lilac pondered her experience at the theatre the previous week. There hadn’t been another chance to meet with Alan alone since then, though the bright side of that was she didn’t have to watch out for Ella.

The day after they went to see the play, Ella pulled her aside after class to reemphasize her warning about being near Alan. It was clear that she was upset, which made her calm expression she wore when delivering the lecture scarier.

Now, Lilac sat in her designated spot in her classroom, awaiting the instructor to begin the class once he arrived.

“Um, Lilac…” Scarlett whispered to get her attention, though her thoughts were too loud to notice. “Lilac…?”

After a few attempts, Scarlett’s voice finally made it through the thick gates that connected her ears to her mind. “Were you saying something, Scarlett?”

Scarlett nodded. “I want your advice on something…”

“Oh?” Lilac shifted toward her friend and leaned on the table with an arm. “What is it?”

Her face was red as a strawberry from embarrassment. “I-it’s about Prince Glenn…”

Immediately, Lilac bounced toward Scarlett, eager to hear about Scarlett’s concern. “Ohoho, Prince Glenn? Does this mean you’re making progress with him?”

“I, um… maybe…? H-he asked if I would like to be his partner at the Plumrose Ball…”

“That’s amazing, Scarlett!” She clapped with a smile. After a small pause, she tilted her head. “What’s the Plumrose Ball?”

Scarlett’s eyes widened ever so slightly. “You haven’t heard of the Plumrose Ball before…?”

“I know what a ball is, but I haven’t heard about this specific one,” Lilac answered. “What’s special about it?”

“W-well, it’s–”

“An annual ball the academy holds in remembrance of Analie, the Goddess of Love,” the voice that cut Scarlett off sounded from behind Lilac.

She nearly jumped out of her seat at the sudden interruption. Behind her stood Prince Glenn with a slight smile on his lips. The sparkle in his deep blue eyes was enough to make most girls blush. However, Lilac wasn’t most girls. Scarlett, on the other hand, was. Though her face was turned the opposite direction, it was easy to tell that her skin went from strawberry to beet red.

“Prince Glenn! What brings you here…?” Lilac asked, giving herself a moment to breathe to calm down from the startle she was given.

“I’m in this class too, remember?” He chuckled.

“Sorry, I meant here as in our desks,” she clarified.

“I heard my name, so I took the liberty to come over,” Prince Glenn explained. “Am I intruding?”

“Um… I suppose not,” she shrugged. “Why would there be a ball held for the Goddess of Love every year?”

“There’s a legend about her that has significant importance to this country,” he said. “Long ago, the first Demon King had the world on its knees. He invaded and destroyed any land that didn’t belong to him. No one could stand up to him. That is, until one knight received the blessing of the gods, becoming the first hero. With the gods’ power, he was able to defeat the tyrant and establish peace in the land. That hero was our first king.”

“Okay. So… where does the Goddess of Love come in?”

The Prince smiled. “I’m getting there… As a reward for his heroic efforts, Analie created a human avatar to become his wife and the first queen. It was because of her that the new kingdom was able to thrive. So, to honor the goddess, we dedicate a ball to her honor.”

“Ohhhh… Interesting,” Lilac commented. “So when is this ball?”

“In three weeks,” Prince Glenn said. “You know, if Scarlett here turns me down… maybe you could be my date to the ball.”

“Yeah, no thanks. You go ahead and dance with Scarlett,” she rejected him, then turned to Scarlett. “I think you should go with him.”

Scarlett was nearly shaking from nervous energy. “I-if you say so, L-lilac… I a-accept the invit-tation…” She directed the last phrase to the prince, but she was turned completely away from him.

“Thank you for accepting, Scarlett. I’ll be sure to make this a happy memory for you,” he bowed with an added flair and departed to his seat. Around them, girls whispered among themselves about what they had just witnessed

“A ball, huh?” Lilac drummed her fingers against the desk, imagining what it would be like to attend a human ball. “That sounds fun. Maybe I should ask Alan to be my partner,” she wondered aloud.

“A-ask Alan?!” Scarlett stared at her in shock.

Lilac returned her gaze, confused. “Is something wrong with that?”

“W-well…” Scarlett twiddled her fingers. “It’s just that… the men are supposed to ask the women, not the other way around…”

“Really…?” Lilac thought back to her crash course on human culture, but couldn’t remember ever discussing that.

Three bangs sounded from the front of the room. Professor Oria stood behind the podium with a stack of papers. “Order! Order in the classroom!” He waited with a smile for the few seconds it took the room to be quiet before continuing. “As many of you are aware, the Plumrose Ball is coming upon us soon. This is an important cultural activity that will be presided over by the first princess, so I expect each of you to attend.”

Lilac’s eyes drifted toward the hero. He was quietly sitting with his attention fixed on the teacher. Next to him, Ella leaned over to whisper something in his ear. Lilac pouted, jealous that the priestess was the one that sat beside him in class. It was as if the gods were shipping the two together.

“Before we get to that, however, we will be having your first official test. To help you prepare, I have in my hands a study guide for each of you.” He raised the stack of papers to show the class. “The test will be going over everything you have learned in the classroom so far and nothing else, so please do not worry if you’re still struggling with magic.”

Scarlett relaxed with a deep breath out. “That’s a relief,” she muttered to herself.

“Are you still having difficulty manifesting your magic?” Lilac whispered her question.

“Yes… It’s a lot harder than I thought it would be…”

“I can help you if you’d like,” Lilac offered.

“Lilac, Scarlett. Please stop talking during instruction,” the instructor warned.

Scarlett shrunk into her chair in embarrassment for being called out in class like that.

“Yes, sir!” Lilac saluted.

“Good. I appreciate the cooperation. Anyway, as I was saying…” He continued with his lecture.

Lilac’s mind fast forwarded to the upcoming ball. This could be an opportunity to see how the hero behaves in a more formal setting. If she could be his partner… She was giddy just thinking about it. But first, she would have to secure her victory over Ella.