smallestopener | The Princess Birthday Ball

The huge, white tent sprawls on the lawn beside the lake. It has been transfigured there for a very special occasion. A stone walkway leads from the bar to the tent - the pavements are wide enough that ladies' dresses won't trail on the ground as they make their way to the entrance. Over the draped curtains of the entrance way is a large banner which reads "Happy 7th Birthday, Ingress".

Once inside, the honored guests will be in the midst of an enchanted ballroom. There are balloons drifting in bunches from the circular tables lining the sides of the large dance floor. Floating candlabras glow with gentle light from above. There are trees in large ornamental pots interspersed throughout sparkling with fairy lights from real fairies.

One long banquet table is positioned on along the side of the ballroom - there are treats of all description. Little finger sandwiches, chopped up fruit, cookies, cheese and crackers, and other child-friendly h'ors douerves are presented to make sure the dancers are sustained throughout the the party. There are large bowls of ice cream (kept cold with magic)and sundae fixings. Punch bowls of sherbet-flavored drinks await ladling into crystal goblets. But most impressive is the large birthday cake with blue, purple, and pink icing roses festooning it.

Ingress is busy greeting her guests in her gown - a birthday gift from Amy and Susan - but soon she'll be dancing to the music provided by the overlarge Gramophone in the corner, which is playing a wide array of dancing music from waltz standards to court music to pop hits of the 20th century.

Tom, who's pretty tired from the magical effort required to pull this off, is in the background making sure his little girl is having a perfect party, and Princess Amy is helping Ingress in her hostess duties.

Come in and enjoy the party!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

She doesn't really mind the twirling. Dances are always more fun when you're allowed to twirl.

"Thank you. It's not my own doing, I assure you. My dance instructors always thought I was a terror."

Mendanbar grins, and twirls her again for good measure.

"And were they right?"

Twirl.

She grins, "Oh, of course they were. I don't think they'd ever met a stubborn princess before."

It's looking less and less like a waltz, twirl, but as there are no royal dance instructors here, twirl, it probably isn't bothering, twirl, anyone at all, twirl.

"It's been my experience," says Mendanbar, with a wry sort of grin, "that all princesses are stubborn. Most of them are just stubborn about less sensible things than you are stubborn about."

I certainly isn't bothering Cimorene, who laughs as he twirls her around.

"Perhaps," she agrees, "being stubborn about the color of your gown is a bit different than being stubborn about helping govern a kingdom. Although the former is inevitably called 'having exquisite taste' which is a phrase that has never been applied to me."

"Well, that's because most courtiers are excessively silly sorts who spend far too much time fretting about the colors of their own clothes."

Twirl.

"It's why I've gotten rid of most of mine."

"Most of your courtiers? Or most of your colorful clothes?" she asks, grinning. And twirling.

Mendanbar considers, twirling her while he thinks. "Both," he says, finally.

She laughs, "Courtiers are well gotten rid of. Kazul hasn't got any either, and it's so much nicer that way. But there's nothing wrong with colorful clothes. They're not nearly as annoying as courtiers."

"It all depends, my dear Cimorene," he says, "on how colorful the clothing is. I don't mind it, within limits. But there are some alarmingly bright things hanging neglected in the back of my wardrobe."

He likes blues and greens and browns, mostly.

"Oh, really?" she says teasingly, trying to imagine him in, say, bright orange.

"That's a shame," she says, attempting to keep a straight face, "I'm sure they're very dashing."

Aaannnd...the straight face fails.

Mendanbar arches an eyebrow, and twirls her again, maintaining a dignified and kingly silence on the matter of dashing orange clothing.

For a moment or two.

Really.

She giggles, and then she laughs with him. He always looks fairly kingly, and he even sometimes looks diginified, just not when he tries to.

And so they dance.

And they laugh.

And they twirl.

The Princess Birthday Ball

Re: Head out to the Dance Floor

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