Inside, the ballroom was enormous.
Crystal chandeliers hung like frozen waterfalls.
Marble floors reflected the light so perfectly it looked like walking on water.
Laughter and perfume and too many voices all at once crashed over her.
Her excitement flickered into nervousness.
'There are so many people… and they're all so tall and shiny.'
She tightened her grip on her mother's hand.
"It's alright," her mother whispered, squeezing back. "Just stay close."
They approached the host.
Her father bowed properly. Her mother curtsied.
Serene followed, repeating the etiquette drilled into her.
"I am honored to attend," she recited softly, her voice trembling just a little.
The host smiled—a polished, practiced smile. But his eyes lingered on her hair.
Too long.
She felt it.
A prickling heat under her skin. The fire didn't like being stared at.
'Calm down… calm down… think of boring things. Math. History.'
Her flames stirred restlessly.
She forced them down, imagining a heavy lid clamping over a pot.
'Mom said no magic. And no cookies for a month is a fate worse than death.'
The host finally looked away to greet the next guest.
She exhaled slowly, her shoulders dropping.
While her parents were engaged in conversation with a boring-looking man about crop yields, Serene carefully stepped back.
One step.
Two.
No one stopped her. Her parents were distracted.
She slipped into the crowd.
The hall was overwhelming. Nobles towered above her. Dresses swished around her face like colorful waves.
She turned in circles, trying to navigate the sea of silk.
'Where are the cookies…? Priorities, Serene. Focus.'
Finally, she spotted a waiter who looked kind, or at least not scary.
She approached politely, tugging on his jacket.
"Excuse me, sir," she said, her hands clasped pleadingly. "Where are the cookies?"
The waiter blinked in surprise, looking down at the small redhead.
Then he smiled.
"Follow the right wall, young lady. Third table. You can't miss it."
She beamed. "Thank you! You're my hero!"
The cookie table was glorious.
Plates stacked high.
Golden edges.
Powdered sugar dusted delicately on top like snow.
Her eyes sparkled.
She filled a small plate—just three cookies, she was being restrained—and sat at a nearby empty table, her legs dangling.
She took her first bite.
Heaven.
Butter and sugar melted on her tongue.
She hummed happily, swinging her feet.
'Worth it. Totally worth it. Being a noble isn't so bad if there are snacks.'
That's when she felt someone stop nearby.
A shadow fell over her plate.
She looked up.
A girl stood there.
About her age, maybe a year older.
Silver hair styled in elaborate curls that looked crunchy.
Violet eyes that were sharp and unkind.
Makeup layered thick on her childish face—but it couldn't hide the pimples beneath.
The girl stared at her.
Serene blinked, swallowing her cookie.
'Do I know her? Is she waiting for the table?'
The girl stepped closer, her nose wrinkled as if she smelled something bad.
"Hey," she said sharply. "You didn't greet me."
Serene tilted her head, wiping crumbs from her mouth.
"Who are you?"
The girl's expression twisted into shock and anger.
"You don't know me?"
Serene shook her head honestly. "No. Should I?"
The girl puffed up her chest.
"I am the Second Princess of the Empire."
Serene frowned slightly.
'Princess?'
She remembered overhearing the servants reading stories once.
Princesses were supposed to be the most beautiful girls in the empire. They were supposed to be kind and glowing.
She looked at the girl again.
Crunchy hair. Mean eyes. Too much powder.
Then spoke innocently, with the brutal honesty of a ten-year-old.
"You can't be the princess. I heard princesses are very pretty."
Silence.
It stretched for half a second.
Then—
The girl's hand moved.
She snatched a glass of juice from a passing tray and splashed it across Serene's dress.
Cold. Sticky. Purple.
It ruined the cream roses instantly.
Before Serene could react—
A sharp pain exploded across her cheek.
Slap.
The sound echoed loudly over the music.
Her body toppled backward off the chair.
The plate shattered.
Cookies scattered across the marble floor.
For a moment, everything felt distant.
Her cheek burned.
Her ears rang.
Tears welled instantly in her eyes.
The "princess" grabbed her hair violently, forcing her face upward.
"Repeat that," she hissed, her face ugly with rage. "Say it again, you little peasant."
The entire hall had gone quiet. The music stopped.
Serene's vision blurred.
'It hurts… it hurts… why is she doing this?'
"I—I'm sorry," she whispered, trembling.
The princess tightened her grip on Serene's red hair.
"Louder. Beg."
Serene's chest trembled.
"I'm sorry…"
Her parents rushed forward from the crowd, their faces pale.
Her father bowed deeply, practically bending in half.
"Your Highness! Please forgive her. She is young and ignorant. She meant no disrespect!"
Her mother knelt beside Serene, trying to free her hair gently from the girl's grip.
"Please, Your Highness. She's just a child."
The princess sneered, looking down at Serene's parents.
"Control your child. Or perhaps your trash family should learn its place. You smell like dirt."
Her tone dripped with disgust.
Serene's tears fell faster.
Not from pain.
But from the way the princess looked at her parents.
Like insects. Like they were nothing.
Her father, who spun her around. Her mother, who sang songs.
Something hot surged inside her.
Hotter than anger.
Her flames.
They flared instinctively, bypassing her control.
She reached up—
Not to attack.
Just to push the princess's hand away. Just to make her stop hurting them.
But her skin was burning.
Uncontrolled.
Raw.
Her magic slipped out.
The princess screamed.
Her hand recoiled violently, the skin reddened and blistering from sudden, intense heat.
Gasps filled the ballroom.
Whispers erupted like a swarm of bees.
"Did you see that?"
"Fire magic?"
"She burned the princess!"
Chaos.
Her parents froze.
Serene stared at her own hands in horror. Smoke was curling from her fingertips.
'I didn't mean to… I promised… no magic…'
Across the room—
The Empress watched calmly from a raised dais.
Wine glass raised to her lips.
Eyes calculating. Cold.
Locked on Serene.
Her father quickly scooped her up, wrapping his coat around her ruined dress.
Her mother shielded her from the stares.
They hurried out amid shouting and accusations, heads bowed in shame.
The carriage ride home was silent.
Heavy.
Suffocating.
Serene buried her face into her mother's dress, sobbing.
"I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm sorry…"
Her mother stroked her hair, her hand shaking slightly.
"It's okay. Shhh. It's okay."
Her father stared out the window, his jaw tight enough to snap. His hands were clenched into fists.
When they reached home, they took her to her room.
Her mother knelt again, just like always.
"You didn't do anything wrong, Serene. You hear me?"
"But I used magic… I broke the promise…"
Her father knelt too, taking her small hands in his large ones.
"You protected yourself. You protected us."
Serene sniffed, wiping her nose.
"But I ruined everything. The dress… the ball…"
Her mother cupped her face gently, wiping away a tear.
"Nothing is ruined. We're together."
Her father kissed her forehead.
"We love you. That's all that matters. We'll figure this out."
They stayed until her breathing steadied.
Until she smiled faintly at a silly face her father made.
She fell asleep holding her mother's hand.
Peaceful.
Unaware.
That outside—
Political wheels had already begun turning.
That the Empress had already made inquiries about the "girl with the fire."
That by dawn—
Assassins would be dispatched.
Her family's fate would be sealed.
She slept deeply.
Curled under soft blankets.
Dreaming of cookies and her mother's songs.
Not knowing—
That this was the last night she would ever see her parents alive.