Chapter 67

Claudia's POV
"Come on Claudia!" Benson yelled outside the door.
"Coming!" I let my hair hang loose and opened the door.
"Finally!" He exclaimed running a hand through his hair. I glared but kept my mouth shut. I'm not in the mood to get into an argument with Benson right now.
Yes, today was the day; the ball. Oh gosh, just thinking about it made me freak out.
I don't wanna go!
Okay, okay; I know I sounded like a whining brat but I couldn't help it. What if they don't like me? What if they don't accept me as their princess? Or worst, what if they decided that I'm not worthy? What if-
"Stop worrying yourself Claudia. Everything's going to be alright." My eyes went to Benson who seemed excited.
"But what if-"
"No if's. You're going to the ball, be presented as the princess of the witch world and everyone will love you. End of story."
I grumbled but didn't respond. Easy for him to say, he had been a prince his whole life and is used to those kind of things. While I on the other hand, wasn't! No one understood that I didn't want to be the 'outcast' anymore.
But who said I will be?
Technically, no one did but I was afraid that they wouldn't like me. We finally exited the school where five body guards accompanied us to the black limo parked ahead. Maxwell, Kenneth, Westley and Clara were probably in there. The driver opened the door and I slipped inside first.
Just as I thought. The guys were here. None of them was dressed in a tux but in casual clothes; like Clara and I. My Uncle explained to us that both Clara and I must go to the castle and dress there. He also said that there are going to be be make-up and hair artists waiting for us there and that there was no room for mistakes, everything had to be perfect.
The boys didn't have to come of course, but they insisted saying that they had nothing else to do. Of course my uncle disagreed but the guys finally convinced him.
"Nervous?" I looked at Clara and nodded. She gave me a small smile and patted me on the arm.
"Don't be, everything's going to be fine."
I inwardly sighed. And here it was again, 'everything will be fine'. Clara, as I, was wearing a mid-thigh length summer dress but the only difference was the color, hers was yellow and mine was a beautiful shade of sky blue.
"So Kenneth, who's the lucky girl that's going to be your escort?" Benson asked and I hid a smile. Benson was such a douche, why couldn't he leave poor Kenneth alone? I know why Benson asked Kenneth that , he wanted to open up the conversation of the girl Kenneth had met at Starbucks.
"Shut up."
"Oh come on, I was just asking!" Benson cried out. All of us chuckled, except for Kenneth of course.
"Kenneth and I visited Starbucks yesterday too. He was lucky because the chick was there." This time, Maxwell spoke.
"And what happened?" Benson raised an eyebrow.
"Turns out, her name is Michelle and to his luck, she's a vampire too." Maxwell pointed at Kenneth who shook his head.
Wait, she was a vampire and she had insulted her prince? Before I could say anything, Clara butted in.
"I wanna meet her!" Excitement laced her voice. Both Benson and I burst into fits of laughter when we saw Kenneth's face. It was priceless! He looked like he just got slapped.
"No you won't!"
"And why wouldn't I?"
"Are you insane? You will scare her away!" He said.
"I will not!" Clara argued.
"Yeah right." Kenneth rolled his eyes and made himself comfortable. I bit my lip and looked at Benson. I frowned when I saw him deep in thought, really deep in thought. He must have noticed me staring since he turned his head and looked at me straight in the eyes.
"Okay." He sighed and leaned backwards in his seat. I raised my eyebrow waiting for him to continue.
"I just wanted to tell you not to be too surprised if we talk so formal with you." He started.
"We're not going to call you only Claudia, but princess Claudia." I cringed at that. It still sounded so weird.
"And don't bring up anything about what happens with us, starting from that chick that bitch slapped Kenneth." All of us laughed.
"You, you stop bringing that up?!" Kenneth looked like he was about to murder someone. Benson grinned but shook his head. I bet he was having a fun time annoying Kenneth. Poor guy. All of us settled into silence. I asked Clara about Yul since I hadn't seen him, she said that he had some errands to run but that he would arrive at the castle soon. Apart from that, she told me that the ball was going to start the minute the clock ticks eight, meaning that it was going to start in four hours.
When the limo stopped, I knew that we had reached the castle. I was literally jumping in my seat from excitement. Yeah, since Clara didn't bring me here when we took a tour, this was the first time I would see the castle. The driver opened the door and I was the second one to go out after Clara.
And as you guessed, my jaw dropped. The castle was huge! Good going Claudia, that's why they are called castles. I rolled my eyes inwardly at myself and focused on the beautiful scenery in front of me.
The castle was three stories high, the third floor being the attic. It had big, high windows that resembled the ones from the middle ages. The two double doors at the entrance being made out of gold gave the castle a little taste of modern. A person came and bowed to us, asking us to follow him inside. If I had thought the outside of the castle was gorgeous, then the inner was glamorous. I took in everything as the man who introduced himself as Stanley, gave me and Clara a tour while the guys were led to their rooms.
Awesome way to run away. I thought dryly.
First, Stanley showed us the large foyer which opens to the Grand Reception Hall.
The Grand Reception Rotunda was ringed by double columns and a single grand sweeping stairway. On the right, there was the Ballroom where the ball is obviously going to take place. I wanted to see it but the boys disagreed and told me that it was a surprise. There was also the main dining room connected with the sitting room. This dining room was opened in the back leading to a covered terrace with stairs that led outside. There was a guest lounge too with a small bar. As for the bedrooms, there were 6 of those, with walk in closets and ensuite bathrooms, located at the right side of the Rotonda. One suite had a parlor attached to it and a covered balcony. By the end of the tour I was exhausted and my feet hurt fiercely, but that wasn't all. I was ready to kill myself when Stanley informed me that what he had just shown us was just a small part of the castle.
"A p-part of the castle?" I stuttered in shock.
"Yes, princess. Now, you only have three hours to get ready. Would you mind if I escort you ladies to your room princess?" Stanley asked and I smiled.
"Please do." I nodded and both Clara and I followed him.
Well that's weird, Clara's been quiet the whole ride...
"Are you alright?" I asked concerned. Clara turned and looked at me with a smile, though it looked fake.
"Yes." That was her only answer. I raised an eyebrow but didn't question her further. She looked really bothered so I'll ask her later.
"Here are your chambers princess." Stanley opened a big wooden door to our right and stepped aside letting us enter. There were more than ten people waiting for us there. I looked at Clara with wide eyes but she only smiled sympathetically and said not to worry. Two women in their late thirties held me by both hands and walked me to the steam room. I caught Clara trailing behind them with a small smile on her face. I sat on a small cushioned sofa trying to comprehend what was happening.
"Claudia, I want you to take of the dress." Clara whispered. I stared at her in confusion.
"What, why?!"
And then I saw it, the torture weapon, the wax machine.
"Here is the dress princess." She held up the dress and I stared at it in amazement. It was beautiful. The violet silk ran along the floor in a mesmerizing trail. The bodice was garnished with diamonds and rubies in the pattern of roses; the same rose pattern was imprinted on the silk in a strip down the middle of the dress. I was speechless. Never in my entire life have I seen a dress as beautiful as this.
"This is amazing!" I took the dress from her hand and touched the very soft silk on it.
"Very glad you like it princess." The dressmaker smiled genuinely, both of her dimples showing. I returned her smile with one of my own and thanked her.
"Okay then, let's get our makeup and hair done. There's only," Clara looked at the clock and gasped
"Oh my gosh, there's only one hour left!" The make-up artist started doing her thing while my hairdresser who introduced himself as Micheal started curling my hair.
Less than an hour.