Okay, so maybe Skeppy spent a little too much time in the bath. He couldn't help it, though, the water just felt so nice on his skin, it made him want to melt into the tub and never come out. It wasn't until Spifey rudely walked in, scaring Skeppy half to death, that he finally climbed out of the warm water to finish getting ready.
He wore a simple white undershirt and plain pants as he searched through his closet, trying to find something nice that he could wear.
"Forget about the closet," Spifey said. "I can get you an outfit to wear."
"O...kay?" Skeppy said. He wasn't too sure if he trusted the fairy to get him nice clothes for the party, but he wasn't sure he had any other options, either.
"Trust me," Spifey said, smiling. He grabbed some fairy dust from its pouch. "Close your eyes."
Skeppy closed his eyes, trying not to sneeze as Spifey threw dust at him. He then found himself in a deep blue dress shirt under a black vest, with black dress pants and a nice pair of shoes. He ran his hands over the fabric, murmuring in approval at the nice quality.
"Alright, we need to leave. The party's probably already started, and you're not even at the village yet," Spifey said. He led Skeppy outside, where a horse-drawn carriage was waiting. It was simple and black, nothing fancy or over-the-top. It would blend in nicely at the village.
"Wh-when did this get here?!" Skeppy asked, pausing at the sight.
"When you needed it," Spifey replied, pushing him ahead and opening the door for him. After Skeppy stepped inside, the fairy climbed up onto the driver's seat at the front of the carriage.
Moments later, Skeppy felt the carriage move forward, and he gripped tightly onto the seat to avoid being shaken up from the bouncy movement. He looked out the window at the darkening sky, watching the scenery go by. It felt so strange to be leaving the mansion, especially now that he had normal human skin. It was as if his whole life was changing, too fast for him to keep up with. His mind drifted to Bad, and butterflies rose in his stomach from nervousness. What if Bad didn't actually care for him at all, and he wouldn't be able to break the curse? Or what if he wasn't even able to find Bad at the party? This could be Skeppy's last night alive, and he was terrified. He didn't have to dwell on his troubling thoughts for much longer, though, as they reached the town.
The carriage drove through the streets, and Skeppy admired all of the decorations with wide eyes. Streamers and lanterns were strung across the sides of buildings, and flowers were everywhere. The streets felt so colorful and alive, the polar opposite of his mansion. He could hear commotion in the distance, sounds of people talking and laughing, and music as well. The noise got louder as they approached the square of the town. Skeppy was excited, but also nervous. He hadn't been around this many people in years, and he wasn't sure how he felt about it.
The carriage came to a stop at the edge of the square, and a few moments later, Spifey opened the door to let Skeppy out.
"Have fun, but remember: you only have until midnight to break the curse." Spifey pointed to a large clock tower on one side of the town square. "Keep an eye on the time."
With that, Spifey pushed Skeppy into the crowd, where he got lost among dancing couples. Skeppy stumbled as he bumped into several people, apologizing as he tried to catch his balance. Meanwhile, he looked for Bad, trying to spot the brunet in the crowd. He nearly fell to the ground as someone ran into him from behind, and he realized, he needed to get out of the dance area before he could safely search for Bad. He made his way through the crowd towards the food tables, threading between dancing couples and trying not to get tripped up by the skirts that twirled by his legs. Finally, he made it past the dancers and to the food, catching his breath for a moment as he leaned against one of the tables.
"Oh, hello, handsome," a voice giggled from beside him. He turned to see a young lady standing there, smiling up at him. "Want to dance?"
"Uh, no thanks, I'm trying to find someone," he said, offering her an apologetic smile.
"Well, I'm right here!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him back towards the dance area, clearly not understanding that he did not want to dance with her.
She placed a hand on his shoulder and put her other hand in his, smiling up at him as she began to dance to the music along with everyone else. He did his best to follow, but it was a bit awkward, since he hadn't taken dance lessons in years.
"You have awfully nice eyes," the girl said, looking up at him with a sweet smile.
"Thanks," he said, accepting the compliment but also trying to politely show her that he wasn't interested.
"I'm so glad we had a dance tonight," she said, resting her head on his chest. "Otherwise I wouldn't have met you. Let's dance together until the sun comes up."
"Uh, sorry, but I can't stay for long," Skeppy said. "In fact, I should really get going. It was nice talking to you, though!"
He quickly pulled away, heading back to the food tables. This time, he didn't wait around. He kept walking, scanning the area for Bad. Finally, he managed to spot the brunet, at the western side of the square. Bad was sitting down in a chair at one of the little dining tables that was out, and he seemed to be talking to some people. There were two guys and a girl, and the two guys seemed to be doing most of the talking. As Skeppy watched, he saw Bad stand up and take the girl's hand. With a cry of distress, Skeppy watched them walk away from the tables to go dance.
"How am I gonna get to him now?" Skeppy whined, looking back towards the dancing crowd with despair. He would have to wait until the dance was over... Or... maybe he could find a way to get to Bad without waiting.
Skeppy looked around and headed to a nearby group of girls, smiling as he walked up to them.
"Hello, would one of you ladies care to dance with me," he asked, trying to come off as charming but probably failing miserably.
One of the girls laughed and walked forward, taking his hand. "Sure, I was waiting for my dance lessons to come in handy."
He led her over to the dance, quickly glancing at the crowd, trying to spot Bad. Before he knew it, they were being swept away in the crowd, and it became useless to try and make sense of any of the people as they twirled by.
"So," the girl began, "I'm Lilly. Who do I have the pleasure of dancing with tonight?"
"Uh... Skeppy," he smiled a bit, hoping he didn't seem too awkward.
"Skeppy? I feel like I've heard that name before somewhere... huh. Anyways, why are you here, Skeppy? To get a date?"
Skeppy turned his head slightly, looking over Lilly's shoulder as he scanned the area for any sign of Bad. Lilly must have noticed, because she put a hand on his cheek and gently pushed his face to look back at her.
"Um... I was supposed to meet up with a friend, but I haven't been able to find them, so I figured I'd dance," he answered.
"Oh, so I'm just a waste of time to you?" She laughed. "Well, at least I get to dance." She suddenly became serious. "For real, though, you better be good. If you embarrass me tonight, I'm not gonna be happy."
He nodded, and they fell silent as the music carried them away. As they twirled around with the rest of the crowd, Skeppy tried to keep an eye out for Bad, but Lilly would notice and pull his attention back to her, whispering a frustrated, "I'm right here, not over there! Stop getting distracted!"
Then, the music sped up, and Skeppy found himself struggling to keep up as the dance quickened its pace. He could tell Lilly was getting tired of him, whisper-shouting the counts of the music and attempting to pull him along. Eventually, he lost his footing, accidentally stepping on her feet.
Lilly yelped before letting out an angry growl. "That's it! I've had enough of you! Go find someone else to waste your time!" She gave him one final shove, sending him tumbling into the crowd before she stormed away.
Skeppy, having lost his balance from the shove, fell into one of the dancing couples, trying desperately to steady himself as his feet got tangled up beneath him. He tripped and would have fallen to the ground until someone caught him, steadying him in their arms. He looked up, his eyes widening as he saw his savior.
"Are you okay?" Bad asked, concern in his eyes.
[Cinderella arc continues...]
------
[A/N]
Hello! :)
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I don't really have much to say today, but I did want to let you all know that I might, might be taking a little bit of a break soon, so if chapters slow down or get put on hold for a week or two, that's why.
Anyways, thank you all for reading! I appreciate you so much <3
I hope you have a fantastic day!