Dedicated to Doelie247 replying to a tag AAAAAGGGGEEEESSSSS ago bc bless.

***

Cinda slept late the next day, exhausted from constant fits throughout the night. She'd had dreams, too. Terrible little dreams that flickered past one after the other, imprinting themselves in her memory like stamps. When she bathed that morning, she tried her very hardest to scrub them from her, to rip them from her flesh. But no matter how many times she dunked her head under the cool water, no matter how hard she rubbed her skin, still they danced in the back of her mind, taunting her. After, she made breakfast for her family, arms moving slower than those on the grandfather clock her father had built.

After her hours in the kitchen were spent, along with what little energy she possessed, she sleepily set the table and rung the bell for breakfast. When no one responded, she practically dragged herself up the stairs to her sisters' rooms to purge them from the comfort of darkness. If she'd gotten up, they would too.

Knocking on Dolcie's door first and receiving no answer, she ventured across the hall to Ana's room. Opening the door a crack and poking her head in, she discovered that a small sleepover had taken place the night before, a few plates and cups scattered with crumbs and small splashes of milk. She would have to clean it up once she woke her sisters for breakfast.
She walked slowly to Dolcie and Ana's sleeping forms, dodging the vibrant clothes and shoes tossed in colourful patterns on the dark floorboards. Only the smallest corner of the large rug that covered a good third of her floor could be seen, peeking desperately out from under the mess.

Shaking her sisters awake, Cinda also shook her head, already thinking about all the time it would take to clean Ana's room. She just had decided it would be much too long when Ana groaned and rolled over, swinging her arm out and hitting Dolcie in the stomach so hard she sat straight up in a matter of seconds, gasping for air.

"Ow, Ana." The whine escaped her lips a second later, and Ana cracked open one eye to stare drowsily at her sister.

"What did I do this time?" Her voice was thick with sleep and a yawn followed immediately after her question.

Hunching over her stomach slightly, Dolcie lifted Ana's arm off her lap and dropped it on her sister's own stomach. "Take a guess."

Looking down at her arm, then up at her sister, realisation dawned in her foggy eyes. "Oops. Sorry." Noticing Cinda for the first time, Ana's expression became suddenly alert. "Cinda!"

She leapt out of her bed and threw her arms around her stepsister, Cinda's arms trapped to her waist, squeezing her tight enough to be a substitute for a corset. She looked up at Cinda, eyes large and pleading. "Why have you been ignoring us?"

"And why didn't you tell us about the ball?" Dolcie's hurt voice sounded from the large bed.

"Dolcie." Ana scolded. "We were going to wait a bit before jumping right in."

"Yeah, well. I want answers." She sat up and swung her legs out the left side of the bed before rising unsteadily to her feet. "Woah. Who knew dancing at midnight was so much exercise. How are you walking, Ana? You can't even walk down the stairs without panting."

Ana glared at her sister. "Can too! And besides, I have something, well, someone, to lean on." She smiled at Cinda before removing her hands from her waist and instead taking hold of her arm.

Cinda stood still, allowing Ana's weight to rest on her right arm. She could feel the conflicted expression on her face as she glanced between her stepsisters.

Grabbing onto Cinda's left arm, Dolcie perched her other arm on her hip. "So... Are you gonna tell us?
 
A deep sigh made its way out of Cinda's lips, her head hurting and stomach cramping from eating little and sleeping less the past few days. She shut her eyes, taking a deep breath before opening them to explain.

"I used my fabric thing-"

"Magical powers." Ana interjected, looking up at her sisters with a matter-of-fact expression, as though stating the obvious.

Cinda returned her look with a tired stare. "As I started saying, I used my gift to create a carriage to get to the ball. Quite frankly, I was surprised it actually worked, and for so long, but I guess the ball turned out a little different than I expected."

"A little different? You had, like, two princes fawning over you? Or was it three?…" Dolcie raised a single brow, daring Cinda to answer.

"Only two." Cinda sighed, exasperation lacing the emitted air. "And one of them was a major jerk. So he doesn't count."

"And the other one?"

This time, Cinda's sigh was dreamy, caught up in memories of shy smiles and soft-spoken words. "Perfect. The other one was perfect."