"We'll distract her, you say the spell," said Kae, and I flashed him a smile.
"Charge!" I said, then I retreated to a quiet corner, trying to ignore the hullabaloo that followed.
I spread out the ingredients, and began to say the spell, crushing or smelling the appropriate items at the appropriate times during the spell. It was a very long one, with all sorts of complex ideas and footnotes written that I had to watch out for or risk ruining the spell. I read until my throat got parched, and as I paused for a minute, I looked up at my friends. Things were going well. Holly was using her power to make Arachne slap herself, and Phillip had convinced all the rats in the room to nibble at Arachne's feet. Kae was lifting the most heavy objects possible and launching them at Arachne. This would have worked very well except for the fact that Kae had terrible aim. It was still effective, because it limited the space Arachne could hide. Stephanie was using her speed to whirl up a tornado, and she was making a big mess as she whirled about the room. Since Eli's and Mallory's powers were fairly useless at this point, they were helping Stephanie in making a huge mess by knocking jars off the walls and throwing things in Arachne's way. Eli was also checking in with me at times with his mind, (my magic powers allowed me to do mind communication with Eli.) and that helped the others. In fact, I was feeling hopeful that we might actually defeat Arachne when Arachne screamed, "Enough!"
I could feel Arachne gathering the magic inside her, and then she shot ice blue streaks of light at everybody. Suddenly Holly's and Phillip's voice stopped working. All the rats went back to their mouse holes and Arachne stopped slapping herself.
Stephanie became incredibly, incredibly slow, and she began strolling around the room, though I suspected she was trying her hardest to run. Kae instantly dropped the desk he was holding and could now barely lift a sack of flour. I could no longer communicate with Eli, and he and Mallory was frozen in place, unable to either throw things about and make a mess or tend to anybody. Arachne had stopped our powers.
I hurriedly went through the spell as Arachne looked around the room in satisfaction.
"You think you are to defeat me? Ha! Look, you are already imprisoned by just a simple bit of magic!" crowed Arachne. Sweating, I continued to quietly murmur the spell, praying that Arachne wouldn't notice that there were only six of us imprisoned. Arachne continued to boast and brag about her victory, she didn't seem to realize that they were all searching the walls with their eyes, searching for me.
Out of the corner of her eye, I saw Arachne frowning as she counted her prisoners.
Biting her lip, I rushed through the last couple sentences. Sighing in relief, I began saying the words that would channel out the magic, whena hand gripped my shoulder. Looking up, I saw Arachne grinning down at her.
Arachne hauled me up and dragged her to the center of the room. I had just ten more words to get through, words I'd already memorized. I managed to push out four without Arachne noticing. Two more, and Arachne still didn't notice. Finally, almost inaudibly she murmured three more words, but before she could say the last word, Arachne's face was upon her.
"What's that you're saying girl?" she asked, her face leering at her. I grimaced. Arachne had been beautiful before, but as the moon rose higher, her features changed, and she became more ugly and terrible by the minute.
I tried to back away, but Arachne kept a good hold on her.
"Just... just some.." I stammered.
"Some words from the spell of Akandi?" asked Arachne, her eyes angry. She got up, and for the first time, there was some fear in her eyes.
"No... no!" cried Arachne. She went to the window.
"Hurry.... hurry!" she said, staring at the moon with pleading eyes.
I sat up unsteadily and said the last word.
"Release."
Chapter 29
I could feel the magic building up inside me. It filled me up, making me feel suffocated. There was a burning sensation all inside of her, rising up and threatening to bubble out. I took a deep breath and channeled the magic. I let it stream out of me, emptying myself and my mind. I saw the beautiful streak of white light flow out of me and light the whole room bright. The room transformed into a beautiful ballroom with golden chandeliers decorated with crystal clear diamonds. And lastly, it hit Arachne, and in a spurt of golden light, she was encased in spinning golden rays of light. And then, the light faded, and she was no more.
I could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She couldn't believe that she had done it. She had defeated Arachne.
She looked at all her friends and smiled. They all seemed fine. The light had transformed us to our fullest selves and we all looked beautiful.
Stephanie and Holly stared at her in wonder, their skin glowing and their eyes sparkling. Mallory's orange hair actually looked lovely on her, and her milky blue eyes had a new purpose and light in them. Eli's jittery nature had calmed down, and he looked, for the first time, like someone who knew what to do. Phillip had a new confidence, and he smiled at whoever looked at him. And Kae laughing, and he looked the best he had in a long time.
"You guys," I cried. "We did it!"
Even after such a feat of magic, I did not feel tired. I was, in fact, pulsing with energy, and I loved it.
"Yes, we did," said Holly, but she continued to look at me in wonder.
"What?" I asked, raising my hands to my face in self-consciousness.
"Evanna," breathed Stephanie,"You look beautiful."
I snapped her fingers, and a floor length mirror appeared in front of me. I was dressed in a simple, but beautiful gown of green, with golden spirals decorating the hem. Beautiful green diamonds studded her Disney Belle-style neckline. Her auburn curls had been swept up into an elegant updo, and her coppery-green eyes sparkled with dancing lights.
As she looked at her friends, their appearance also began to change.
Holly's messy blond hair became clean, bouncy curls. They shone in the light of the magnificent chandelier. Her gray eyes sharpened and became a sparkly silver. She wore a sleeveless silver dress that was mid-calf length, with a black belt at her waist. It was just like her, pretty with a no-nonsense attitude. She saw herself in the mirror and gasped.
Stephanie wore an ice-blue dress that matched the color of her eyes. It was a sophisticated sheath, and Stephanie looked beautiful. Her frizzy strawberry blonde hair became smooth and silky, and she looked gorgeous.
Mallory's hair no longer was a dull pumpkin orange. All the different hues in her hair were brought out and enhanced, and her hair was the color of rich spices. Her blue eyes danced with amusement, and I felt like the true Mallory was coming out. Mallory wore a lovely crimson velvet that reached just below her knees, and she looked stunning. The boys had been brushed up and were now wearing slacks and white button downs. They all looked amazed.
"What happened? Who made us look like that?" asked Kae.
A soft voice spoke from behind.
"Evanna did."
We turned and saw a lovely girl, about eight years old, in a soft pink dress. She had round cheeks and short bouncy golden curls. Her bright blue eyes sparkled with pleasure.
"Evanna's spell," she said. "It was a cleansing spell. It is meant to remove all bad and enhance all good, on the outside and the inside." She smiled at Mallory, who was still gaping at herself in the mirror.
"But since Arachne had no goodness left inside her," continued the girl, "She was completely destroyed."
"Destroyed?" asked Holly. "You mean, we'll never have to worry about her again?"
The girl smiled.
"Never again," she said. "You can all return to your normal lives." I looked at her friends. She wasn't sure she wanted that.
"Um, what's your name?" asked Kae. The girl gave an embarrassed laugh.
"Oh, sorry," she said. "My name is Rosalie. I'm a fairy."
"I came to congratulate you on defeating Arachne. My mother was afraid you were dangerous, but you're so beautiful after the cleansing s
pell it can't be true. Mother!" called Rosalie. "These people are our friends. You can come out now." And after that came out a thousand different creatures.
"This is my family," said Rosalie proudly. I gaped. An elderly elf came forward.
"I thank you," he said in a trembling voice. "On behalf of myself and my family, for ridding the Land of Au of the terrible villainess Arachne. Thank you." He backed into the crowd. I felt a tear form in my eye. One by one, they all formed a line and thanked her for defeating Arachne, and I felt the tear fall, and then another, and then I fully began to cry.
Chapter 30
"I'm exhausted," said Holly.
"So am I," said Stephanie, rubbing her back.
"Where are we going to sleep tonight?" asked I, yawning.
"More importantly, how are we gonna get back home?" asked Eli.
"Rosalie seems to know," I said. "Maybe we can ask her tomorrow."
"After the ball," said Kae, and smiled. The creatures of the Land of Au had insisted to their throwing us a ball.
"Yeah," I said, stretching. "But we really should find a place to sleep tonight. And we have lots to deal with after. We need to converse with the Spinners and make sure they're on our side and won't, you know, kill us, and we need to find our family and-" But I was interrupted by Mallory finding a room filled with hay. We all lay down on the hay we had fluffed into mattresses and went right to sleep.
The next morning, I awoke the same time as Holly. Sharing a secret smile, I crept over to her.
"You still look gorgeous," whispered Holly as not to wake anyone.
"So do you," I whispered back.
"Do you want to go find Rosalie?" whispered Stephanie, who seemed to have super hearing in addition to super speed.
"Sure," I whispered. We hadn't changed from the night before, and were still wearing our gowns, so we quietly tiptoed out of the room to the ballroom.
"Hi!" exclaimed Rosalie when she saw us. "I bet you want to know how to get back to your family and back home."
"Um, yeah," I said. Rosalie winked at us and said, "Your families will be joining us for the ball tonight, and the enchantment over your planet will be lifted after the ball."
"Oh, okay," I said. "Is there anything-"
"-you can do to help the ball?" finished Rosalie. "Oh, no, this is a ball for you! We'll do all the work, you go and enjoy yourselves today."
"Thank you," I said. "But we need to do something first. Can you give us the directions to where the Spinners are being held?"
"Oh, yes, they are in the dungeons below the castle. No one wants to go down there, so they've been left alone for awhile," said Rosalie.
"Oh, all right, thank you," said I, and Rosalie gave us a wink and left to help with the decorations.
"Well, I guess we're visiting the castle dungeons tonight," I said.
"And after that, we'll finally be free of this madness," said Holly.
"Let's get it over with as soon as possible," said Stephanie. "I'll wake our friends."
"We'll come with you," I said, eyeing her mischievous smile.
We went to our room to find our friends panicking at our absence.
"Where did you go?" asked Kae.
Stephanie told them what had happened.
"Thank god," said Phillip, falling back against some hay. "We thought you were dead."
"Why would you think that?" said Stephanie, taking a seat next to him. Without waiting for an answer, she went on,"So what are we waiting for? Let's go to the dungeons!"
"What?" groaned Eli, rubbing his eyes. He had always been a late riser. Stephanie rolled her eyes and told him about the Spinners.
"Let's go," said Phillip, heaving himself up. "I want to get this over with as soon as possible." He walked out and the others followed him.
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
We stood in the dungeons. It actually looked a lot like a prison. A Spinner was imprisoned in each cell. Phillip spoke in a inaudible tone. He listened and said something else. After about half an hour of listening to nothing, Stephanie became impatient. Luckily Phillip was just about done. Opening his mouth, he said one last thing, and then he made a 'let's go' motion.
Exiting the dungeons, Stephanie demanded answers.
"What happened in there?" she asked. Phillip sighed.
"I spoke with Arachne. The senior one, I mean. She said that Amaryllis was right, that the Spinners were threatened into this by Arachne Jr., but most of them are corrupted with evil and greed. The rest of them are lifeless with fear. She thinks it's best to leave them there, and so do I," said Phillip.
"But-" began Stephanie, but Phillip cut her off.
"No, Stephanie. If you had heard them, which I did, then you'd agree with me. They can't leave there. If they do, they'll tear apart the world. We have to leave them there and hope that time brings some sense into their heads," said Phillip. It was silent for a while after this.
"Are you excited for the ball?" asked Holly, after a while. Her flushed cheeks made it obvious she was.
"Yep," said Mallory. "I can't wait."
"All that dancing?" said Stephanie. "Please. I'd rather eat dirt."
"Well, we'll get to meet our family tonight too," I reminded her.
"Very true," said Stephanie, nimbly hopping over Pipsqueak, who had been forced onto the decorating team.
"And we'll get back home," said Kae. This made me feel a bit sad. I had made such good friends here. I didn't want to go back to Trinity Di's Academy.
"Oddly enough," said Holly, wearing a wobbly smile. "That's not so happy for me. I don't really like home. Especially my school. I go to Trinity Di's Academy, you ever heard of it?" I froze.
Everyone looked blank except for Stephanie, who said,"I've heard of it, but it's pretty far away from where I live, in Manhattan. So you live in New York?"
But before Holly could respond, I said joyfully,"I go to Trinity Di!"
Holly turned to her, an astonished look on her face.
"You do?" she asked.
"Uh-huh," said I. "What building are you in?"
"C," said Holly.
"A," said I.
"That's why we haven't ever seen each other," said Holly. "Do you think Mrs. Di will let one of us switch buildings?"
"Pretty sure she will," I said with a grin. "My mom's Evelyn, the supermodel."
"No way," said Holly. "The Evelyn?"
"The one and only," I said.
"I live in New York, too, a couple blocks away from Stephanie," said Kae.
"That's right, you two are cousins," said Mallory. "Evanna told me."
We exchanged addresses, and we all lived in New York. Mallory lived in Greenwich Village, where I used to live, and Eli lived in Binghamton, where his dad was a professor at the university. Phillip lived in a place called Watkins Glen.
"This is great," I said. "Tonight we should introduce our families to each other so we can meet up when we're back."
"That's a great idea," said Mallory. "I was thinking-" But she never got to finish, because an elf ushered us all away to get ready for the ball.
Chapter 31
I looked at herself in the floor-length mirror. I looked even more beautiful than the night she defeated Arachne. Tarsi, the elf who had got her ready had done her job well.
I was wearing a replica of the dress she was wearing when she had defeated Arachne, except the color was forest green, which, according to Tarsi, looked 'infinitely more beautiful with your eyes'. Truth be told, it did make my eyes look stunning. Tarsi had lined her eyes with a amber-colored stub, bringing out the swirls of copper in her eyes. With powdered jade and a brush Tarsi had dusted her eyelids, and painted her lips with coral paint. Tarsi had then given her golden earrings with coral stones set in them, and a matching necklace that brought out the red hues in her auburn hair. A pair of Holly's ballet flats had been painted gold, and I had put them on. Lastly, her hair had been sprinkled on
with a bit of fairy magic, and instantly it flowed like water against her bare shoulders. A simple golden circlet was placed on her head, and I looked gorgeous. After thanking Tarsi many, many, times, I headed out the door. I was supposed to go down last, so she sat back and watched her friends go down.
Holly was dressed in all silver- she was wearing silver eye shadow, liner, and shoes. Her dress from the defeat of Arachne had been ironed out and cleaned, and now she was wearing it. Even her eyes glittered silver tonight. Even in her hair, which had been let down from it's ponytail and curled, had a silver butterfly-shaped clip in it.
Stephanie, like Holly, was decked out in one color, also the color of her eyes. She wore the ice-blue sheath that my spell had given her, and ice blue heels, which I thought Stephanie wouldn't be caught dead wearing. In her hair was a simple blue headband, and it had been left in her natural style. Mallory followed her, wearing a reddish-orange wool knit dress. She wore brown ankle leather boots and coral jewelry. Her hair had been curled and she wore a red-beaded ornament in her hair. Then the boys went, each wearing a suit and a corsage the color of their eyes in their pocket. For Eli, who had brown eyes, a yellow carnation was given. They had even found one for Phillip, who had strange hazel eyes, ones you could never decide what color they were. With a little bit of magic, a flower had been enchanted to match the flowing colors. After them came me, and oohs and aaas came from the creatures of Au. I slowly entered the ballroom, and a cheer came from the crowd.
"Go Evanna!"
In my sleep, I would know who that voice belonged to. It was her mother. I tried to smile as the crowd started whooping and hollering for her, but inside I was sweating about my mother. What would she say? Would she be cold and distant like she was that day five years ago, the last memory I had of her home? I won't be able to bear it if she will be, I thought nervously.
The minute one of the rowdy dwarves shouted,"Let the dancing begin!", and the music started playing, I rushed on into the dancing to find her mother.
"Hey, Evanna!" called Kae. "Wait!" But she didn't hear him. I pushed through swarms of people, trying to locate the voice that had been the first one cheering for her, always.
"Ow!" came a voice who's foot I had stepped on. And I recognized the voice. She turned around.