CHAPTER 7
∞∞∞
Morgana stares back at me from the mirror. My alter-ego is a bad witch, named after the witch from the Arthur and Merlin stories. They were my favorite when I was in college. Something about a full table of knights spoke to my imagination. So when I got my first paycheck from my first book, I bought this ridiculously expensive dress that I’ve worn to every fair I’ve ever been to since.
I apply some of the glitter I ordered from a face painting webshop and with the touch of my finger, I’m transformed into someone I’m usually not. It’s fun to just be someone else every now and then, right?
I bite my lip as I stare at myself. The floor length black dress shows a decent amount of cleavage and while Morgan wouldn’t be comfortable showing this much skin, Morgana has no problem going out like this. Screw it, I’m Morgana today.
I grab my comfortable shoes, because fuck going out in heels.
I’ve agreed to meet the guys at O’s because we’re taking his jeep to go to the fair. They’ve let me know all four of them would come along, and they all want in on the whole deal. I’m kind of curious how that conversation has gone over and what had made them decide to all join me. Perhaps they’re just curious, even if I suspect they’re more curious to see me go to Dominium than they are to go to the fair. These boys were just as big a gossip as Miss Patterson and Miss Frieda, even if I have no proof whatsoever to stake that claim.
I give myself a final look in the mirror and decide I’m done. Going downstairs, I take my fair bag with me. It’s a little clutch I bought at another fair years ago. It looks like it belongs with my outfit, and it makes it easy to take my usual stuff with me. Keys, phone, half a bag of candy, everything a girl could need on a day out. The only thing that would make my gorgeous dress any more perfect would be if it had pockets. But alas, it’s pocketless.
Closing the door behind me, I head over to O’s and see that Gil’s truck is already parked in front of the house so that means all the guys are probably already there. Dean and Gil live close to each other in Kinseltown and come over to Charlington a lot. Dean always has to make the commute because he works at Roots and Gil just likes to hang out here. It makes sense for them to come over together. The boys have told me they’re using O and Jonah’s house as their man cave, as it has more space than Gil and Dean’s apartments.
I open the front door without knocking; it has taken me exactly three weeks to go back to acting like I was right at home at O’s. Maybe we could try to convince my parents to remove the fence again? I’d opt to use the extra room for a hot tub instead of a swing set though. The needs I have as an adult differ from those I had as a kid.
I find the guys standing in the kitchen, all dressed up and ready to go. They understood the assignment. Well, most of them did. Gil is wearing some kind of leather body armour and has painted a broad black stroke over his eyes, covering most of his face. He has some runes painted on his body and face, and he looks like an actual Viking. Or whatever shows about Vikings make them look like at least. I love it.
Dean has a replica of Mjölnir in his hands, and something that I suppose should resemble armor on his chest. His blonde top-knot gives him Thor vibes without him even trying. Chris Hemsworth has nothing on Dean.
Jonah is wearing a Slytherin robe and has a wand in his hand. It makes me want to squeal when I see it’s a good replica. I just knew he’s a secret Potterhead.
O is wearing jeans and a black t-shirt and is standing with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He’s not dressed up and I’m a little disappointed. When he sees me coming in, his eyes almost bulge out of his head as he sees my outfit. Opening his mouth because he wants to say something, I press a finger to his lips. He actually shuts up, which I did not expect to happen. I give him the stink eye and start rummaging through drawers in the kitchen. It’s freakishly organised, but I mess it up to help them with their organization problem. They can thank me later. No men under thirty should be this tidy. It’s a rule somewhere, I’m certain of it. I find what I’m looking for and make sure I keep my back to the guys. When I finish, I turn back to O, looking all smug.
I stick a sticker with the word ‘MUGGLE’ written over it on his chest. Now, that may be the fastest outfit I’ve ever created, but he really embodies his character. O gives me a dirty look and wants to pull it off, but I give him my best puppy eyes.
“It really means that much to you for me to go dressed up?”
“It’s just me looking out for you, Oliver.” I use his full name to empathize how important it is what I’m going to tell him. “If you don’t dress up, you’ll get picked on. The fantasy freaks are the kids that used to get bullied in high school. They know all the best ways to break your soul into pieces. Just be a muggle and keep your soul intact.”
I twirl and face the other guys, not waiting for O to answer. “You guys look awesome. You won’t embarrass me.”
Dean takes a bow as he grins widely. “Follow me to our chariot, my lady.”
I grin back as I stick my arm through his and I follow him to the car. This is going to be all kinds of fun.
It’s the most fun I’ve ever had in my life to see the guys reacting to the fair, I’m sure about it. They’re literally left speechless as they stare around at all the other attendees. We’re surrounded by dressed up people and all kinds of fun booths. They’re severely underdressed compared to all the other people, and I can’t help but chuckle.
“This is nuts,” O comments when he looks at a lady who is in a skin-tight bodysuit and has two horns glued to her head. Her outfit is completed by two huge black wings that drag over the ground. She notices that O is watching her, and she hisses at him before she gives him a wink. O turns to me and stares at me with wide eyes as I belly-laugh and stick my arm through his, pulling him to one of the booths that’s stocked with jewelry. The booth is manned by a woman dressed as a fairy and has bright pink hair, but I’m mainly staring at all the pretty sparkling stuff that’s laid out on the booth.
“These people might be more hardcore than the regulars at Dominium,” Jonah says with a raised eyebrow as he joins us at the jewelry booth. It makes me chuckle. Surely the regulars at a BDSM establishment are more hardcore than my fun-loving fair people. Half of the people here probably just want a good excuse to dress up every now and then. The other half is here for the connection. This is where their people are, and this is where they belong.
Gil is talking to some girl who’s also dressed as a Viking. She has all kinds of pretty braids in her hair, and she looks like a warrior, making her look absolutely stunning while she’s obviously flirting with Gil. Good for him. Dean is standing beside them, hands in his pockets and shoulders down, looking kind of uncomfortable. He notices me watching him and comes over.
“Thor, buddy, listen to me,” I say as I clasp him in the shoulder. “Start acting like the bad-ass Asgardian you are. You’ve got to give it a little something.”
“There’s just so much to look at, you know?” he says as he eyes a woman dressed up as Khaleesi running after her kid, who’s dressed up as a dragon. Nice.
“That’s half the fun. Just looking around. Seeing what people did with their outfits. Some of them put weeks, maybe months of work in it.” O, who’s standing right next to me, rolls his eyes. If he feels like that comment was a sneer at him, he’d be absolutely right.
“What’s the other half?”
My face lights up at that question.
“Food and booze.”