2 AURORA BOREALIS

Maureen and Red went straight to the cafeteria after their tiring class of Physical Education. That day, the sport they studied was softball. After a boring lecture, Mr. Rhyne had them cover a horrifying ten lapses around the three-kilometer oval for warm-up before they even started playing the sport.

They were barely walking and almost crawling out of exhaustion when their class ended. Good thing, it was followed by a free period.

The two girls munched on their favorite snacks of soft, fluffy chiffon cakes while they chatted on pleasant things, mostly about fashion and pop culture.

"I bought tickets to their concert next week! Will you come with me? Hmm, hmmm?" Maureen was saying to Red. She had been delusional over a boy group's major concert of the year and had been trying to drag Red with her to it for the past few days. "Come on. It'll be fun!"

She flicked her slick, shoulder-length jet-black hair across her slender shoulders. She's one hell of a sassy girl who asserted her interests proactively. Currently, she's into a boy group called SKS. Sometimes, she gave attending school a pass for a stakeout where SKS allegedly would show up. It could end within the day and could extend indefinitely for a couple of days.

She never dragged her friend, Red, into the stakeouts, but she's trying all she could to invite her to attend the concert in East Sechoia County.

"I'm not sure… Nana might not approve…"

They were busy eating and chatting leisurely when the bright blue sky outside dimmed as cumulonimbus clouds imposingly covered the atmosphere above, blocking the sun's warm light.

"Hey… What's happening?" Both of them gazed into the distance, as were the other students all around them.

"I don't know. It's weird." Red retorted, not once tearing her eyes on the dimming skies.

Right before their eyes, drops of ice – hail – fell from the skies.

"It's a hailstorm!" A male student around their age commented in the background. No one paid him any attention, though, since he's stating the obvious.

"Good thing we are sheltered from the hailstorm! Imagine if it broke out while we were still playing outdoors!" Maureen remarked animatedly.

The same thing was what occupied Red's head. "Yeah…"

It was not common for their location at the East Sechoia County to experience hailstorms. Thus, the occurrence that afternoon was such a spectacle.

The hailstorm only lasted for a few minutes, maybe around half an hour at the maximum. When it passed, the skies brightened up again.

Maureen stood up, "Let's go home?"

She fetched her leather backpack from the empty seat beside her and slung her across her back. She waited for her friend to do the same.

But Red neither stood nor fetched her bag. Instead, she absent-mindedly stared at the horizon again. "Hey, Maureen, can you see that?" She pointed at the skies above, beyond the glass window of the cafeteria.

"See what?"

"That!" She pointed again, her right arm already outstretched, directly pointing to other absurdities she's seeing.

"What is it?"

Red's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. It's impossible for anyone to miss what she's seeing!

"That!" She repeated.

But Maureen still could not see what she's pointing at.

She sighed, and decided against pushing for it. "You go home first, Maureen. I think I'll check something in the school grounds first. I'll be fine." She gave her friend a warm reassuring smile.

"You sure?" A worried look laced on Maureen's face.

"Yeah. Bye! See you tomorrow."

"Okie!"

When Maureen had gone home, Red finally fetched her shoulder bags - one was a bulky sky blue tote and another was a sturdy rectangular brown bag with longer straps and metal buckles - and headed out of the cafeteria and onto the grounds. The grass and the soft mud were still damp from the hailstorm earlier. Some particles adhered onto the backside of their shoes. Each step felt sticky.

'Maureen couldn't see it?'

Red studied the remaining students around her. It was almost around five in the afternoon. The school grounds will be closing at half-past six.

It was still bright, though.

The students around her did not seem fascinated by what she's seeing – curtains of green and purple and red on the sky above like the aurora borealis in the north.

'I must be seeing things.' She closed her eyes and rubbed her hands on it.

When she opened her eyes, however, the overwhelmingly beautiful sight was still there.

As if it was still not enough, the curtain of lights was swept sideways and a rich, elegant white carriage led by four majestic white horses appeared behind the clouds and descended from the heavens. It landed gracefully in front of her.

The coach and horseman slid down the carriage and bowed in front of her – a gesture that both fascinated and scared her.

'Am I losing my mind?'

She took a few steps back and took a protective stance.

"Greetings, Your Ladyship." They said in an unsynchronized cacophony.

The coachman wore a tall black hat over his shabby greyish brown hair and seemed around forty of age and plump around the belly while the horseman was slender and taller, and looked much younger and nimble than the coachman. He seemed around thirty years of age. He wore a white cape that shimmered and reflected some of the purplish-pinkish-greenish hue from the curtain of lights backdrop. His short tresses of auburn spilled into the air and danced with the spring breeze.

"W-What are you?! Where did you come from?! What did you call me?!" She had spoken the words in autopilot as she still could not recover from the initial shock of what had transpired in front of her.

"Fear not, Your Ladyship! We apologize for our insolence! We came here by His Highness's orders!" The strange man wearing a tall hat, which he had taken off earlier when he greeted, handed her respectfully with both hands an envelope that had been sealed so luxuriously with a gold stamp at its front across the flaps.

"For me? Are you sure? I think you're mistaking me for someone else…" She could barely blink her eyes, could barely breathe. Because of that, she's starting to feel giddy.

'Breathe. Inhale. Exhale. Then repeat.' She chanted inside her head.

The coachman insisted that she should take the envelope. "We're here to invite you for your coming-of-age ceremony, Your Ladyship. It's time for you to return to Your Ladyship's realm."

"Pfft." She almost laughed out loud. 'More absurdities.'

"You're joking, right?" Her hand already nestled her tummy, getting ready for a good laugh.

But the coachman did not even smile. His face was as taut and solemn as a person in deep prayer inside a church.

"I guess not." She muttered nervously.

The coachman was like a statue with his arms outstretched, still handing her the envelope. 'Isn't he getting stiff? Maybe I should get the envelope first… Even if maybe they're mistaking me for someone else.'

She turned her head around. The other students did not seem to find anything out of the ordinary. No one paid her any attention.

"Why do you address me that way? I really think you get the wrong person." She remarked but even so, she received the small envelope that the coachman was handing her.

"Please open it, Your Ladyship." The coachman urged with due respect. "His Majesty, Your Ladyship's father's message should be there."

"HUH??!!"

"I don't have a father…"

If it was a prank, she's not at all liking it.

Even if it did not make sense, the slight mention of her father was enough to tug at her heartstrings. She wetted her lips first, expectantly, while her eyes explored the intricate design on the cream envelope.