To say preparations for the party were not going well would have been an understatement.
They had been at the duke's house for almost eleven days now, and the party was in two days.
They had even all learned the Ballroom Dancing skill, which helped greatly.
Liora was aware of what Kaelen had done. She agreed with their decision.
But as Selene danced with Aiden, and Jax danced with Thalia, Liora found herself paired with their instructor.
Instructor Lily was nice about the situation, but it still made practice difficult. She constantly tried to take control of the dance and show Liora every minute movement needed to make her form perfect.
To make matters worse, Kaelen was still allowed to roam the halls.
He was confined to the house and always had staff with him in case he tried anything, but every time they passed in the hallways, he gave Liora a look of betrayal.
A few times, it almost made her apologize.
Then she remembered what he had done.
Today, however, was a day where things could change.
Because today was dress shopping day.
Aiden and Jax had been dragged off early from dance practice.
As Instructor Lily had put it, "Boys are often resistant to aspects of dressing up, so I find dealing with them earlier in the day is better for getting it done sooner."
Thalia, Selene, and Liora all looked around the room in silence.
Then Thalia asked, "Does that mean we go through the motions without our dance partners, or…?"
Instructor Lily shook her head.
She sat down on the dance floor and invited them all to sit with her.
As they did, she reached into the small bag she had carried all day and pulled out a few small sandwiches on plates.
"To dance on one's own is such a fickle thing," Instructor Lily said, taking one of the sandwiches. "Instead, let us rest and recover."
She bit into her sandwich and leaned back.
The three of them looked around awkwardly before each grabbing a sandwich and slowly starting to eat.
It could have been boring if not for the occasional tortured screams emanating from the dressing room.
Jax almost escaped once.
They even managed to put him in a set of pants before Thalia used her strings to bind his paws and he was tackled and dragged away by an oddly enthusiastic looking chef.
"TRAITORS!"
Jax's cry echoed in a rather pathetic way as he was pulled back into the dressing room again.
As they sat there, Liora noticed Selene looking toward the dressing room with a worried expression.
Then again, Liora could not really blame her.
Aiden had apparently gone to someone who had given him a recipe for a way to potentially cure Selene's condition.
So it was no wonder Selene occasionally snuck glances at him when he was not looking.
Hell, Aiden would probably have been brewing already if he had the tools.
Liora did not know all the details, but there had been something about expensive apparatus.
However, glancing at Thalia, Liora realized the two of them seemed to be in the same boat.
Thalia had been paired with Jax, who was never going to do something like that for her.
And Liora had been paired with Kaelen.
Everyone knew how that went.
"You all have been distracted since the scene in the garden with your old friend," Instructor Lily said. "Can you tell me what happened?"
They all turned to her as she looked down at them over her bill.
The three exchanged glances before Thalia let out a long sigh, like she had been holding her breath for far too long.
"There is only so much to say," Thalia said. "He never told us what he did. When we confronted him, he refused to take responsibility and blamed everyone except himself."
Instructor Lily nodded along, lifting one wing to her bill as if holding her chin.
Then she turned to Liora.
"It seems rather cut and dry," she said. "And yet you still seem conflicted."
Liora turned to her with a startled look, holding up her hands as if waiting for something to be thrown at her.
"Hey, I don't agree with what he did," Liora said. "I sure as hell blasted him yesterday."
She looked to the others.
Thalia and Selene both nodded.
"I did not say you looked guilty," Instructor Lily said. "I said you looked conflicted. Like you are unsure of something about what happened."
At that, Liora found herself looking down at the floor.
An uncomfortable feeling swirled in the pit of her stomach.
"Well," Liora said slowly, "I think what we did was right. He did something bad and wouldn't even apologize. But every time I've seen him since, he gives me this look like I betrayed him."
She grimaced.
"And I know it's stupid, but it just makes me feel like there was something we missed."
Selene gave her a worried look.
Thalia gave a small nod.
Instructor Lily took a moment to think before looking back at Liora.
"How long were you traveling with him before you all arrived here?"
"Uh, around a month or so."
"Have you considered that you are thinking about the Kaelen of the past?" Instructor Lily asked. "The one from when you all could laugh, get along, and trust each other to keep one another safe?"
Liora went still.
"Your guilt does not come from anything you did incorrectly. It stems from feeling like you could have done something to save that version of Kaelen. Now, you feel as if you may have caused such a sudden change."
The three of them stared at her for a moment.
Their jaws hung open.
Instructor Lily chuckled.
"It's my soul skill, Psychoanalysis. By learning about people, I can glimpse into their mental state."
Before any of them could say anything else, the dressing room door opened.
Jax stepped out first.
His legs shook like he had been running all day, and his face somehow looked older.
He wore a simple formal suit with a small white shirt and a long coat. A pair of tails ran down the back of the coat, trailing almost to the end of his tail.
Beside him, Aiden stumbled out.
He had been given a new set of glasses after his current pair broke, and his outfit was much more ornate.
It was the kind of suit nobles wore, blue in color and covered in several patterns.
Liora noticed that Aiden's waist looked oddly slim.
"Since—huff—when does—gasp—guys' formal wear—huff—have corsets built in?"
His voice sounded light from lack of breath as the two stumbled back toward the dance floor.
Liora would have been lying if she said they did not look good.
And when she glanced at Thalia and Selene, she could tell they agreed.
Instructor Lily clapped her wings.
"Ladies, I believe it is your turn."
They nodded and stood, making their way toward the dressing room.
Liora found herself still deep in thought.
Was it because she felt like she could have saved the old Kaelen?
It made sense logically, but it still felt off.
Maybe it was because Kaelen did not actually understand.
Maybe he truly believed they had attacked him for no reason.
"Hope you're ready," came a voice from behind her.
Liora only then realized she was in a corseeEEEEEEAAAAATTTT!