Page 51 of Uncharmed

Tables were adorned with velvet tablecloths to match the drapes that veiled the windows, framing the silhouette of the park, which could just be seen through the thunderstorm that had finally broken.

The only brightness came from the moon, a silver coin in the sky, perfectly circular in its pearlescence.

It caught on fragile, ghostly cobweb decorations spun like silver thread and strung across the high ceilings.

In a corner of the ballroom, an orchestra of spectral musicians played in front of a towering mirrored wall, giving the feeling that the space was infinite, like Annie might never leave, like it might hold her for ever.

Romily, Vivienne and Harmony were in the very centre of the hustle and bustle, enjoying their drinks but more so the pack of warlocks who seemed to have been pulled towards them like they had their own orbit.

Annie politely excused herself through the crowd, leaving a trail of air kisses on various spellborn cheeks.

‘So sorry I’m late,’ she said breathily, flattening her skirts as she took her place beside them. All three of them took the time to examine her silently from head to toe, before shooting loaded looks at each other.

Romily’s eyes trailed across Annie’s dress. ‘What is this?’ Her normally serene face looked unusually pinched, as though she were straining to keep her features in place and under control. ‘You were supposed to wear pink.’

‘It is pink!’ Annie gave them a self-conscious twirl, checking that the colour had remained how she’d intended. ‘Of course it’s pink. A little bit different but...’ She faltered. ‘Don’t you like it?’

‘I suppose it’s fine,’ Romily said tightly. ‘If you like that sort of thing.’

‘Maybe it is a bit much,’ Annie said, suddenly wishing that she’d opted for something less eye-catching. Another wrong decision to chalk up with the rest. She folded her arms across her body, wishing that the gesture could make her shrink backwards, fade out to somewhere else.

‘Since when do we not approve each other’s dresses before a ball?’ Harmony said to Vivienne, possibly intending it to be a private comment without actually lowering her volume in the slightest.

‘Evidently, Miss Andromeda is feeling a little more confident in her own choices these days,’ Vivienne said, eyes flashing in the candlelight. ‘My, my. Things did change an awful lot while you were away, didn’t they?’

Annie wasn’t sure how to respond to that. She tucked her hair behind her ears, with an apologetic smile. ‘I don’t know what I was thinking. Sorry. It’s all been a bit of a whirlwind since I got back. I’m not quite myself.’

‘So we noticed,’ Romily said, twirling the stem of her glass between her fingers.

‘You all look sensational,’ Annie said, practically tripping over herself to turn the focus away. It was amazing how quickly she’d fallen back into place next to the three of them. Her role had returned to her like a manuscript memorized.

‘Quelle shock,’ Vivienne said, as she turned her attention away to survey the room. ‘Vintage Vespertine,’ she added as an off-hand comment without even looking back.

Annie gasped, knowing the value of such a piece.

In awe, she had to stop herself from reaching out to touch the buttery smooth silk that clung to Vivienne’s frame and dripped around her like melted chocolate.

Small capped sleeves fluttered at her shoulders, a string of black diamonds holding them together on an impossibly fine thread.

She had paired it with a bangle in the form of a snake that slid its way around her right arm, its adder tongue flickering with a sparkling ruby before it descended back to her wrist. ‘Exquisite,’ Annie said, the admiration evidently audible, and Vivienne seemed momentarily placated by the compliment.

‘What about mine?’ Harmony chimed in as she shouldered forwards.

Vivienne and Romily gave each other a look, Vivienne shooting across the circle to her side so that they could whisper.

It was the one time that Annie always felt a genuine affinity to Harmony, when it was clear that there were tiers even within the Fortune Four.

‘A little classier than yours, Annie, isn’t it? Much more elegant,’ Harmony preened, before realizing that she had perhaps gone too far. ‘Not that yours isn’t lovely, too.’

The affinity burst like a bubble.

Annie took a moment to admire Harmony’s dress, an extremely dramatic affair that had all of the grandeur of Vivienne’s, but not quite the effortlessness.

Undoubtedly also expensive, the combination of orange silk, cascading in a floor-length bustled skirt, and the layer of glittering black lace beneath it was a little.

..Halloween. Granted, the corseted bodice was striking, as were the opera gloves and the enormous jewelled earrings.

Annie could see that, in some ways, Harmony was trying just as hard as she was to compete for her place.

‘Beautiful, Harm.’

Harmony looked pleased with Annie’s assessment and promptly gathered herself around Annie’s forearm in approval, leaning on her shoulder as though they were soulmates.

‘Where’s Ruby?’ Annie asked, surveying the room for her.

‘I thought she was coming tonight?’ While she had only really felt determination to impress the Fortune girls and cement their favour, she had actually been looking forward to seeing Ruby with uncomplicated anticipation.

Vivienne snorted and Annie frowned. ‘Did I miss something?’

‘With any luck, we shan’t be seeing her again around here. The witch wears clogs, for stars’ sake. I can’t be seen near clogs,’ Vivienne said before downing her drink, her tone so poisonous that it would have burned through the floor beneath them if it were to drip.

‘Wait, what do you...’ Before Annie could finish her train of thought, wondering what exactly Vivienne meant by that, Romily interrupted.

‘Too right you’re missing something, babe. What do you think of my dress?’ Romily asked with an unflappable smile, picking up the train of her cape to ensure that it caught the light at just the right moment.

Romily was always the best dressed among them, but she had truly outdone herself tonight.

The pale, champagne-coloured gown was finely glittered, a twirling design of leaves and tendrils that travelled their way around her body, with a precarious and plunging neckline.

It was daringly form-fitting and had a sheer cream cape that cascaded from her shoulders to the floor.

It was almost bridal, as though she were to marry magic itself.

‘Rom, it’s incredible. Belle of the ball.’

‘I know,’ Romily giggled, firing a wink back at Annie that felt so precious and earned that Annie wanted to grab at it and pocket it for herself.

This really was where she belonged, alongside these girls who had swept her up so long ago and shown her the way. This was the world that she was destined for. The sooner she accepted that and embraced it as best she could for everyone around her, the better.

There was one thing that would make all of this easier to slip back into, to quiet the tugging longing behind her ribs for something else.

Harmony beckoned to her and lifted Annie’s hair, then leaned in closer. ‘I have a secret,’ she whispered excitedly, hiccoughing after finishing another glass of punch.

‘Harm, we agreed that we weren’t going to tell her. We were trying not to make her go all peculiar,’ Vivienne said, tutting at their friend who was a sieve to secrets.

‘Tell me what?’

‘Mummy had a very important question for you. I’ll let her know that you’re here,’ Romily said with a wink as she slipped away.

‘You’re the talk of the Sorciety, Annie,’ Vivienne said knowingly, her voice plummy with information.

She gestured with her black-tinted glass towards a tightly knit circle of witches and warlocks, the gilded snake sliding towards her hand as she moved.

Annie recognized it as a gathering of the Heralds, the most important members of the Sorciety, including Glory Whitlock.

Each of them were taking it in turns to peer at her. She was being discussed.

Annie swallowed hard. It was what she had been waiting for.

It sparked something in her, though not necessarily joy or happiness.

More of a gut-punch than a gentle squeeze.

The reminder of the pressure to cement the fact that she truly belonged there, that she had earned her place, was a monstrous thing.

It clung to her, made her gown feel ten times heavier, as though she needed to lift her hair from the back of her neck.

She had to be perfect tonight. For them to accept her once and for all, for this all to be worth it.

The pull towards Splendidus Infernum grew larger every moment, wrapping cold fingers around her arms. Perhaps it was impossible to exist within this world without the spell.

But this was finally it. She must have finally done enough. This was what she was supposed to have achieved.

Moments later, Romily reappeared with Glory on her arm, their mouths pursed in self-important pouts that hollowed their cheekbones. The Whitlocks all shared the same proud facial expression, a family who garnered admiration simply with their presence.

‘Annie, darling.’ Glory Whitlock made her way into the circle, a hypnotic and alluring forcefield seeming to waver around her.

She held Annie at arm’s length, before pulling her into a tight embrace.

Annie exhaled, the bewitching feeling of something like a mother figure holding her in just the way that she needed.

‘Glory,’ Annie said in soft greeting.