Here in Heaven

Chapter 6

The sitting room had been almost completely transformed into a full-on salon. Racks and racks of fancy dresses lined one wall. Mirrors were hanging all around. The large area felt smaller just from the amount of people that were bustling around in it. Julianna never felt close to any of the girls her age that her father approved of as acceptable companions. They were all daughters of the higher-ranking warlocks in her pack. None of the girls were ever rude to Julianna. On the contrary, they were always friendly to her. And overly polite. But Julianna always got the vibe that they mainly wanted to be friends with her because of her status. She never felt a genuine connection with any of them.

Julianna was nervous when she found out her father had arranged this pre-party party for her. He was the one that invited all these girls. And hired an entire team of stylists. So that they could all get ready together. He didn’t ask her first. But Julianna couldn’t really be mad at him. It was obvious that he was only trying to make sure she enjoyed herself.

At first Julianna was hesitant to even enter the room. She stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the other warlock girls. All of them were dainty and petite. Even the tallest of them was at least half a foot shorter than Julianna. Having all these tiny girls around only served to make her appear bigger and more awkward than she already was.

But after a glass of bubbly juice and a warm greeting from the other girls, Julianna finally felt herself start to relax. She was dressed in a big fluffy white robe. Her feet were soaking in a bath of warm sweetly scented water. Her hands had already been manicured. Being pampered while she watched the other girls try on dresses and chat about which hairstyle would go best with which mask was more fun than she thought it would be.

“I wish every day could be your birthday,” Nix sighed.

Julianna smiled at the other young woman. Nix was the only girl in the room that Julianna felt truly comfortable with. Her family wasn’t high-ranking like those of the other girls in the room. On the contrary, Nix’s family were underlings. Underlings were still technically warlocks. But most of them did not possess much magic ability. They worked in the coven’s kitchens. They cleaned the mansion. They took care of the gardens and the pool. Being a woman, Julianna wasn’t privy to the details of this arrangement. But she knew the underlings were offered room and board and a small salary in exchange for their services. But more importantly, they were privy to the protection that living in a coven run by more powerful warlocks provided them. Out in the human world, they were open to attacks from rogue warlocks. Warlocks that might seek to make themselves more powerful by capturing them and absorbing their powers.

Nix wasn’t someone that Julianna’s father chose as a friend for her. But since Nix’s mother was Julianna’s nanny, the two girls grew up together. They were always close. Julianna’s father didn't think it proper for Nix to attend her party. Not as a guest. But after some begging and pleading from Julianna, he eventually acquiesced. He even arranged for a few dresses in the girl’s much smaller size to be brought in and hung on the rack with Julianna’s gowns.

Nix giggled when Julianna picked her nail color. Her toes were being painted to match her fingernails. For both, she picked a plain matte black. Nix had chosen the brightest purple she could find for herself. With sparkles. Julianna secretly loved her friend’s more daring fashion choices. But she would never choose something so garish for herself. She stood out more than she wanted to already. She didn’t need to wear anything that would draw even more attention to her.

A loud knock on the door caught the girls’ attention. Julianna began to laugh when the doors were pushed open. Her cousin Trevor entered, his hand over his eyes like he was afraid of what he might see. A chorus of squeals and giggles erupted throughout the room.

“That must be for you,” Nix whispered, pointing to the giant velvet box Trevor was carrying.

Having been assured that everyone was decent, Trevor uncovered his eyes. Julianna noticed that instead of moving to tighten their robes, several of the girls adjusted their garments to give the opposite effect. One girl pulled hers slightly more open at the neckline, revealing her cleavage and the lace edging of her bra. Another crossed her legs, allowing her robe to fall open and reveal her slim shapely thighs.

It was no secret that Julianna’s cousin was heir to Midnight Shadow Coven. That alone would have made him a desirable match. But aside from his lineage, Trevor was also tall and darkly handsome in his own right. The combination of his good looks and family name made him one of the most eligible bachelors in the warlock realm. As a man, he had the privilege of choosing his own bride and then negotiating the marriage with the woman’s father. But Trevor made it well known that he was not planning on getting married any time soon. But this did not stop the girls from trying their best to catch his eye.

Trevor headed straight for Julianna, ignoring the silly behavior of the women around her. He wrapped her up in a tight embrace and wished her a happy birthday for at least the tenth time since the day before. Then he opened the large box, setting it upright on the table closest to her. The contents of the box made even Julianna’s jaw drop.

“Are those from the vault?,” she asked, though the nod of his head only confirmed what she already knew.

The large velvet case was lined with exquisite and priceless jewelry. Julianna moved in closer to get a better look. There were diamond encrusted necklaces. Rings that held giant stones that looked too big to be real but were. There were earrings of different shapes and sizes. There was even a tiara covered in diamonds and purple sapphires. The girls all crowded in behind Julianna to ooh and ahh at all the sparkly wonderfulness.

“Everything in this case is enchanted,” Trevor explained, “... at the end of the party it will all vanish and return itself to the vault. So you ladies are free to borrow whatever you would like to wear for the evening.”

Trevor winced at the chorus of high pitched squeals that erupted around him. The young women that were so eager to catch his eye moments before, had now completely forgotten he was even present. They were so focused on the contents of the case he brought. Only Julianna’s little blonde underling friend still had her shy eyes on him. He smiled at the girl. She smiled back, the blush rising in her cheeks as she quickly turned her attention back to the jewelry case.

One of the other girls voiced her opinion. She thought Julianna ought to choose what she wanted first, since she was the birthday girl. And then the rest of them could sort out their choices. Julianna put up a half hearted fight but her objections were quickly drowned out by the other girls as they urged her to make the first choice.

Julianna nervously reached into the case. All the other girls were staring at her and she felt pressured to make a choice they would approve of. It would be expected that she would choose the largest and most opulent piece. But none of the larger gems appealed to her. They were too flashy and large. She bypassed those and plucked out a pair of black diamond stud earrings that were half hidden behind a large emerald pendant. Though they may not have agreed with her choice, the other girls were quick to compliment her on it. Julianna kept the earrings in her hand as she reached into the case for one more item.

She pulled the tiara out, watching the way the stones lit up when the light hit them. The girls around her murmured their approval. The small intricately designed crown was truly fit for a princess. But Julianna didn’t place it on her own head. She turned and shifted through the small crowd until Nix was standing in front of her. The small girl’s dark eyes were wide with excitement. It wasn’t until Julianna placed the crown on top of her wild blonde curls that Nix started to object.

“I can’t Jules,” she quietly declared, “...It’s too much. I can’t. You should wear it. You’re the princess. Not me.”

“It suits you,” Trevor told her.

Nix tilted her chin up, her eyes wide as Trevor moved closer to her. He adjusted the crown so that it was centered on her head. Then he smoothed down Nix’s wild blonde curls, tucking her hair behind her ears. For a moment, Trevor and Nix stood silently, gazing into each other’s eyes. Then the young man smiled at her and took a step back.

“Save a dance for me?,” he asked.

Nix was having trouble forming words. So she just nodded her head. Trevor had one more smile. This one was for his cousin, the birthday girl. And then he turned and headed out of the room, closing the large double doors behind him. After a few more minutes of giggling and swooning, the girls returned to their party preparations.

Julianna originally chose a black lace gown with a high neck and long sleeves. But at the insistence of the other girls, she changed her mind at the last minute. Her hair was pulled back away from her face. It fell down her back to her waist in long shiny raven waves. Her arms and shoulders were bare. The dress was strapless and fitted through the bodice. It lifted and shaped her already ample bosom, displaying more of her cleavage than she was really comfortable with. But as she turned her body and looked in the full-length mirror, Julianna was happy with her appearance. The other girls were right. She looked sexy and felt that way as well, especially when she imagined that this dress might be the first impression her future husband had of her.

Her mask matched her dress. It was in the shape of a peacock and covered the top half of her face. Small sparkling gems were woven in along the bottom edge. The bodice of her daring dress was covered in embroidered peacock feathers. They trailed down over her hip on one side, leading into the softer and looser material of the black skirting. The dress had clearly been made to fit her, as unlike dresses she tried on off the rack, it was actually long enough. The tips of her toes only peeked out when she walked.

“You look amazing!,” Nix gushed.

The two girls hugged each other awkwardly, both careful not to mess up their hair and carefully applied makeup.

“You look even better,” Julianna told her friend.

Nix objected with a giggle, but Julianna still believed what she said. Nix’s wild hair had been only partially tamed. Small curly tendrils hung loose around her face. The rest was piled on top of her head, held back from her face by the jeweled tiara. Her dress was a dip dyed ombre. The bodice was a deep purple that faded into white sparkles halfway down the skirt. The front had two rows of ruffles and a plunging neckline. Her masquerade mask was slimmer and more sheer than Julianna’s and had small pointed ears on the edges, giving her a catlike appearance.

Just as the last girl was slipping her heels on, the doors opened. Julianna’s mother entered the room, beaming from ear to ear. She complimented all the girls’ on their dresses. Behind her, a silver cart was rolled in by one of the underlings that worked in the kitchen. The cart was filled with flute glasses and two bottles of expensive champagne that were chilling on ice. Bottles were popped. Glasses were filled and handed out until each woman had one in her hands. Julianna had never been allowed to drink. She looked at the glass of bubbly liquid in her hands with excitement.

“To my beautiful daughter,” Julianna’s mother announced as she held her glass in the air. “Happy birthday Julianna!”

The other woman chimed in with a chorus of birthday wishes and clinking glasses. Julianna gently clinked her glass against Nix’s and lifted it to her lips. The liquid was much more bitter and harsh than she expected.

SPIT IT OUT!

The voice in her head sounded panicked. Quickly Julianna did as it told her and spat the sparkling wine back into her glass. She looked around hoping no one noticed her bad manners as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. There was a garbage can to her left, filled to the brim with all the tissues and boxes that the new clothes and shoes had been packaged in when they arrived. Julianna quickly dumped the contents of her glass into the can. She lifted the glass again, this time poking her nose into it and taking a deep breath in.

The glass smelled like the alcohol that had been poured into it. But like her birthday cupcake the day before, there was an odd undercurrent of something more unpleasant. It smelled like gasoline or maybe like milk that had gone sour. The smell gave her a shiver. She looked up. All the other girls seemed fine. Most were moving in, holding their empty glasses out to be refilled. None of them seemed to be having any ill effects from the smelly beverage. Julianna had never had a real drink before. She decided that alcohol must just be an acquired taste. One she was sure she would get used to eventually.