Photos flashed by of all the Protectorate guards. I knew their faces as well as I knew the inside of the museum now.
“I will be attending the ball as a chaperone, while the four of you go in as regular students,” Takeda continued. “Your job is to mix and mingle and keep an eye out for Lance, Drake, or anyone you think might be Sisyphus. The second you spot one of them, you will let me know on comms, and the Protectorate guards will move in. The four of you can observe the Reapers, but you are not to engage them unless absolutely necessary. Let the guards do their jobs. Okay?”
“Okay,” we all murmured back to him, although Ian’s response was a little slow and surly.
I looked at Ian, who was staring at the monitor. His face was calm, but a muscle ticked in his jaw, and his hand slowly curled into a fist on top of the table. We hadn’t talked much since that night at the Eir Ruins, but it was obvious that Ian wanted to confront Drake at the museum. I would have felt the same way if my parents were going to be there. I wondered if the Viking would be able to stop himself from charging after his brother.
I’d find out tonight.
We reviewed a few final details, then split up and went our separate ways to get ready. Like it or not, this was a costume ball, and we would be far too obvious if we didn’t dress up. Ian, Mateo, and Takeda had gotten their costumes from a shop in Snowline Ridge, but Zoe was creating her own. The Valkyrie liked making clothes as much as she liked inventing gadgets, and she’d spent the last few days designing and sewing.
I had been planning to wear an old green party dress, along with a cheap plastic tiara, for a quick and easy princess costume, but Zoe was horrified by my lack of imagination, and she insisted on giving my costume a serious upgrade. I told her I was fine being a generic princess and that she shouldn’t go to so much trouble, but she was determined to work her creative magic on me. I’d tried to sneak into her dorm room to see what she was doing, but Zoe wouldn’t let me in, saying she wanted our costumes to be a surprise.
An hour later, a knock sounded on my bedroom door, and Aunt Rachel stepped inside. She was attending the ball tonight as a chaperone, although she was really going to help Takeda and keep an eye out for the Reapers.
Aunt Rachel was wearing a long dark blue dress with a poofy tulle skirt and silver heels. Tiny silver sequins sparkled all over her dress, and she was carrying a long silver wand with a large star on the end. Her black hair was pulled back into an elegant bun, and a small silver tiara perched on her head.
I got up from the bed, went over, and hugged her. “You look like the perfect fairy godmother.”
“Thanks, Rory.” Aunt Rachel hugged me back. “Now it’s your turn to get ready. Zoe’s here.”
She stepped aside, and the Valkyrie sashayed into my bedroom.
Zoe had gone all out, transforming herself into a beautiful mermaid. Her strapless dress had a tight-fitted bodice made of bright teal-blue sequined leather panels that had been draped over each other and stitched together to look like fish scales. More of those scalelike panels dotted the long, flowing skirt, which curled up and tapered to two points, just like a mermaid’s tail.
The teal-blue scales brought out the Valkyrie’s lovely mocha skin, along with her wavy black hair. Teal shadow and liner emphasized her hazel eyes, and she’d painted her lips a deep, dark fuchsia. A pearl choker ringed her throat, while stacks of pearl bracelets shimmered on her wrists. Her electrodagger was holstered to her thin silver belt, which was also studded with pearls.
“You look amazing,” I said.
Zoe grinned, glanced at herself in the mirror in the corner, and fluffed out her hair. “Yeah, I totally do. Now, Cinderella, it’s your turn.”
“That almost sounds frightening, when you say it like that,” I joked.
Her grin widened. “You have no idea, Spartan. No idea at all. Now, sit down, and let’s get started.”
*
Thirty minutes later, I was wishing I’d gone with my original princess costume, but there was no denying the will of Zoe Wayland. I fidgeted in my chair, but Zoe put her hand on my shoulder and yanked me back into place, dabbing a little more gloss on my lips. She was a bit of a perfectionist.
“Are you done yet?” I groused. “If you keep messing with my makeup, we’re going to miss the entire ball.”
Zoe rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. I know you’re all eager to get to the museum so you can capture the bad guys, but there’s nothing that says you can’t look fabulous while you’re kicking ass. Now, is there?”
I opened my mouth to snark back at her, but Zoe used the opportunity to dab even more gloss on my lips.
Two minutes and tons of lip gloss later, Zoe finally nodded with satisfaction, capped the tube, and tossed it on top of my vanity table. Then she grabbed my hands and pulled me to my feet.
“I’m finished, and I have once again outdone myself. Voilà!”
She grabbed my shoulders and spun me around so I could look at myself in the full-length mirror. I gasped. Zoe had kept her promise to completely transform me. I wasn’t plain old Rory Forseti anymore. I was something more than that—Cinderella and then some.
Zoe had taken my light green satin party dress, cut it into pieces, and braided it together with a beautiful emerald-green leather, creating a tight-fitted bodice with cute cap sleeves and a sweetheart neckline. Zoe rapped her knuckles on the tough but flexible leather covering my chest and stomach, then on her own mermaid scales. The solid thwacks rang out through my bedroom.
“My version of armor.” She grinned. “Just what every warrior girl needs for a night out hunting Reapers.”
I grinned back at her. “Absolutely.”
Zoe had also stitched long strips of the leather together with more pieces of my satin dress, then draped everything over a layer of black crinoline to create the gown’s poofy ballerina skirt, which fluttered down to my knees. A wide black leather belt studded with dark green heart-shaped stones circled my waist, so I could carry Babs with me to the ball, while a pair of sparkly black sandals covered my feet.
“The flowing skirt gives you great range of motion, you’ve got your sword on your belt, and you can actually run and fight in those shoes,” Zoe continued.
I smoothed down the skirt. “And my hair and makeup? Anything special about that?”
She grinned again. “Fun and functional like everything else.”
Zoe had pulled my black hair up into a high ponytail and fastened it with a clip that featured the same heart-shaped stones as my belt. She’d painted my green eyes with a dark, smoky shadow and added a scarlet gloss to my lips. My only jewelry was my silver charm bracelet and heart locket, which dangled from my right wrist like usual.
“All put together, I call this look Spartan Princess,” Zoe said, a smug tone in her voice.