"Ow! Mother, that hurts!"

"Pain is beauty, Finley. Take it like a man."

"I am a man! It doesn't make it hurt any less!"

Penelope grinned at the mirror as Finley sat stiffly on a high stool. Penelope stood behind him, working his long hair into intricate french braids. She took the upper half and tied it back in a large bun, lightly curling the rest against his shoulders. She moved his bangs, so they sit delicately on his forehead, pinning the rest back.

"Calm down, I’m almost finished."

Finley grumbled as his mother pushed more curled bronze and silver pendants through the braids. She hooked small hoops in as well, which made Finley feel incredibly heavy.

“I'm determined to make you the prettiest human down in the gardens tonight.”

Finley rolled his gray eyes that were dusted with blue, green, and white eyeshadow. "Yeah, sure. It’s not a competition, mom. And I look like a girl."

Penelope stepped back, sighed, and turned the stool around to face Finley's slouched body. The nanny took a couple of jewels, white ones that shined pink and green in the light, and began to stick them across Finley's cheekbones. She added some above and in between his eyebrows as well.

"You look perfect," she told her son sternly, and he frowned.

"Don't you think you're overdoing it?"

"Nope. Just wait until you get out there tonight, if anything, you'll feel overdressed."

"Well, I feel pretty underdressed."

Penelope rolled her eyes again as she straightened out Finley's face sharply, fixing the crystals that had come out crooked. "Your outfit is fine, stop whining."

Finley grumbled again as he picked at the dark aqua satin flared pants that he imagined the genies in his books would wear. The belt was white and sparkling, and the shirt he wore was the same color as the pants, tucked in with no sleeves.

He felt like a deranged and sparkling peacock.

"Stop picking at it, I sewed it myself!" Penelope whined. She stepped back, slapping his hands away.

Finley groaned loudly. "I don't want to wear these!"

"Are you at least comfortable?"

"With how the clothes feel? Yes. On my body? No."

Penelope could not have rolled her eyes even more this night, pouring the unused jewels back in her woven basket. She slapped her hands together to get the remaining glitter off her hands. Finley watched with sorrow as they landed on the carpet. The blonde was not excited for his feet to be forever covered in the little demons.

"Now, the best part. Come on, let's put on your wings."

Finley sighed loudly, head dropping to look at the ceiling dramatically as Penelope took his wrist and led him back to his room. The young boy sat on the floor, sliding his sandals on as his mother stood behind him. She straightened out the white fairy wings, giggling excitedly. "I'm so glad you're finally going to The Aura tonight. It'll be a good experience for you."

"If by 'good' you mean 'stressful', then I agree."

Penelope hesitated, her hands that were messing with the big appendages on his back hesitating as well. Finley turned to look up at her as she pursed her lips. "Just try to have fun, alright? Don’t over-think. Try not to tap into other people’s emotions, just like we have been training for, yeah?" Finley grinned shakily, nodding, and the dorm door knocked. Penelope put another smile on her face as she raced out of the room. "Someone's here! Look presentable!"

Finley rolled his eyes yet again, trying his hardest not to flop on the ground and ruin his plastic and irritating self-made wings. He stood shakily, taking a deep breath, before he turned and walked back into the living room. Once he took in the sight, his eyes widened.

Ella and Julian sat on the couches with Cailin, and little Sarah, standing behind them. Ella seemed to take on the role of a flamingo. A short frilly pink skirt flared out beautifully with pink and yellow feathers creeping up her waist. The feathers connected with a cropped beaded shirt, brown frizzy hair straightened, and pulled up into a high braided ponytail that had pink and yellow beads, hoops, and feathers twirled through. She was beautiful with the added pink and yellow eyeshadow with golden dust sprinkled on her cheeks.

Julian's theme was what looked to be a Phoenix. His entire attire was red and orange. His face was dusted with red and orange hues, enhancing his brown eyes that were outlined in black liner. His black hair was slicked to one side, his tan skin open for he – no surprise – was not wearing a shirt. The black pants he wore were painted with flames going up from the ankles, while his arms and chest were dusted with orange and red hues as well. 

Sarah was dressed as a simple princess. Her reddish-brown hair was elegantly curled with a sparkling crown on her head. Her makeup was light, but mostly held the colors pink and white. She wore jewelry across her neck, wrists, and up her arms. Her pink dress was extravagant and long, the petticoat underneath making it flare out. 

Finley thought all three of his friends were beautiful, but Cailin seemed to have caught his eye more than the others. He did not go as extravagant as Julian or Ella, and that made things weirdly enchanting in Finley's eyes.

Cailin was dressed as a simple warrior. His tanned look matched the costume well. He had a necklace made of bones, chest open without a shirt, and khaki shorts. His chest was dusted with golden powder, his cheeks also accented with the bold color, which made his jawline seem sharper. His eyes were the brightest blue they had ever been.

Finley did not realize his stare had gotten hot, trailing over Cailin's costume and the brunette found himself doing the same thing. Once Finley realized what his eyes were doing, his cheeks turned red. He turned his gaze away, Cailin doing the same.

Luckily, nobody seemed to notice. Ella was busy squealing when she got her eyes on Finley. She jumped up, running over to him, and grabbed his arms which made Finley flinch. "You look amazing, Finny!"

Finley cringed at the nickname he soon came to despise, but let it pass as he gave Ella a grateful smile. "Thank you. You look beautiful."

Ella grinned bashfully, letting Finley go to curtesy. The blonde bows back, earning a giggle.

"And what about me?! Aren't I beautiful?!" Julian yelled, earning a slap on the arm from nanny Christine.

Sarah jumped over, tugging on Finley's shirt. "And me, and me! I'm a princess, Fin!"

Finley just grinned. "You look very handsome, Julian.” He glanced down at Sarah. “And a princess you say? But I thought you always were one?"

Sarah nodded quickly, stepping back and twirling. "Of course, I always am. But I look like one today!"

Finley smiled. "You're beautiful always, Sarah." He turned to Cailin, but Penelope set an arm around his shoulders, momentarily distracting him.

"It took hours to finish the wings. Even more hours to sow the clothing."

Finley turned his attention to his mother. With a smile, he kissed her cheek. "Thank you, mommy."

"Mhm. Now go on! The Aura started thirty minutes ago!" Penelope walked over to the door to open it. Finley and the others quickly followed to exit the dorm as Christine crossed her arms. "I expect all of you to be on your best behaviors. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do and look after your sister. Cailin."

Cailin stopped at the door and sighed loudly, rolling his eyes. "Best behavior. Nothing you wouldn’t do. Look out for Sarah."

Christine nodded once, grinning. "Now go and have fun."

Cailin grinned back at his mother, nodded respectfully to Penelope, before he shut the door behind him. He quickly ran after his friends, who were already on their way to the elevator.