Sunday has finally arrived.
The girls had spent most of the morning resting and relaxing the best they could together in bed but when the time finally came to get up and sort out the promised house party, they did not dawdle. Getting straight to work they quickly gave every area, station, table and activity a good look over before finally heading in different directions to go make sure that the two pieces of the party that had been met with delays had finally been sorted.
Rubi stood on one end of the garden, her hands on her hip as she looked over the technicians putting the final repairs on the fireworks control stand. Nodding to herself in approval she pressed a button on the headset she wore and spoke.
“The fireworks have been sorted out, all good to go.” Rubi said.
“Excellent, one less thing to worry about.” Ruby replied.
Inside of their house Ruby stood with her hands on her hips as she looked over the giant ice sculpture sitting in the massive punchbowl. It was a detailed depiction of the Rubies standing back to back with arms outstretched as if speaking to a crowd. She nodded in approval and then pressed the button on her headset.
“The ice sculpture finally arrived and it is beautiful.” Ruby said.
“Wonderful, we will come have a look later.” Rubi replied.
Rubi headed back up the garden. She took a moment to peek into the sports courts that had been refitted into an outdoor dancing area, complete with stage, DJ and a smaller table of refreshments. Ruby meanwhile stepped through the comfortable living room that had been turned into a quiet lounge for those who needed some time away from the music and bustle of the outdoor sections. They met in the kitchen where a few cooks were finishing the appetisers.
After giving the food a quick look over the pair dropped off their headsets with one of the security guards. They gave him a nice smile and a wave for this trouble.
“Seems we are all good to start.” Rubi said as she held her sister’s hand.
“Quite, we just need to get changed and then the gates can be opened.” Ruby replied.
Leaving the kitchen the two moved around to the main staircase and found that their father was just on his way down. He bid them a good evening with a pleasant if cheeky smile. They gave him a likewise warm reply but as they met him in the middle he suddenly grabbed their heads and shook them around until their hair was a complete mess.
“Daddy!” The two girls whined as he trotted downstairs with a laugh.
“Make sure to look your best, I’ve left some products for you too.” He said with a wave.
The pair continued to their bedroom. After stripping down to their feathers the two entered the bathroom. Ruby went to the shower to heat it to their liking while Rubi looked at the items that had been left by the sink. A new form of beak wax for that guaranteed extra shine, a preening feather wash that claimed it could have even the dustiest feathers looking like new in a single use and lastly was some kind of eye shadow. Rubi took a closer look at the latter of these items as both of the sisters already had a natural eye shadow effect going on due to the beautifully blue coloration of their eyelids contrasting the black feathers.
“Interesting.” Rubi muttered to herself as she read its purpose.
“What is it?” Ruby replied as she approached.
“Eye shadow, but it does not have colour. It instead highlights your natural hues.”
“What a wonderful idea. Seems just right for us.” Ruby mused as she looked over the wax.
Ruby suddenly smiled as she read the beak wax’s ingredients.
She stood close to her sister, hip to hip and shoulder to shoulder.
“All natural, safe to consume in low amounts, nothing that could irritate sensitive areas.”
Ruby spoke to her sister with a knowing gaze. Rubi grinned in reply.
“Mmm, Daddy knows exactly what we need.” Rubi said with a giggle.
“Something for the party perhaps?” Ruby asked flirtatiously.
“Tempting but that sort of activity needs… Practise?” Rubi replied.
“Very true. We should make sure to do just that in the future.” Ruby mused.
They left the wax and eye shadow by the sink and took the feather wash to the shower. Their time spent under the hot water was short as the spa yesterday had cleaned them in ways that an ordinary luxury shower could never hope to compare to. After getting themselves all shiny and soft they took the time to dry each other thoroughly. Heading back to the sink they brushed their hair and shined their beaks before putting on a little bit of the eye shadow. It certainly did highlight the blues without being as heavy as the normal product.
Bodies clean, faces beautiful and hair as radiant as ever they took themselves over to the closet to get dressed. The two spent a good few minutes just looking over options. There was the pool and hot tubs if they desired which would mean swimwear and easy to remove top layers. The dance floor which called for something loose and colourful. Or the dimly lit lounge in the living room where comfort and teasingly short skirts would work perfectly.
After a bit of debate the two decided to blend styles.
Instead of underwear they went with a pair of small red bikini bottoms that contrasted their feathers delightfully and showed off their young curves wonderfully. Over top of this they wore a red waist shawl that gave the illusion of a short skirt while still being easy to remove for swimming. A lovely middle ground that helped blend aquatic and lounge life together. For the top half they wore a matching red swimsuit top, the larger amount of fabric blurred the line between normal top and bikini.
Outfits now done they put on a dash of perfume before calling themselves ready. The two skipped downstairs to find their mother sitting in the living room. She held a wide martini glass in one hand and wore a feathered dress that was just tight enough in all the right areas. Unlike them, her face was painted thickly in a variety of cosmetics.
“Darlings!” Margaret called out as she spotted them.
“Mommy, we did not think you were coming.” Ruby said as she approached.
“Perish the thought. I would simply die if I missed my little darling’s first party.”
Margaret said as she stirred her drink with its umbrella.
“Is there a VIProom in the back? Oh and there must be so many boys coming, right?”
She asked.
“VIP room?” Ruby asked her sister.
“All of our friends are boys now we think about it.” Rubi also muttered.
“Mmm, excellent. I would love to meet them…"Margaret purred.
“It’s not that kind of party.” Gerald cut in.
“And you should not drink around here either.”
“What’s the harm? We’re all adults, more or less.” Margaret shrugged.
“The girls are ten. And so are most of their friends.”
“What? Nah can’t be. I know when I laid them and that was…”
Margaret paused to count her fingers.
“Hm, what comes after 7 again?”
She said before giggling.
“You’re already drunk.” Gerald said with a sigh and a smile as he rubbed his beak.
“Just a few warm up drinks before the good stuff arrives but if you insist.”
Margaret waved before tipping half of the glass into her mouth.
“All gone~”
“Could you let in the guests while I get your mother somewhere… Safe?”
Gerald asked the twins.
“Alright Daddy.” Ruby said.
“Goodbye Mommy.” Rubi added.
As Gerald pulled Margaret to her feet the two headed across the living room to where a tall horse with an earpiece stood. He was a wide man with shapely arms and a clipboard in his stubby fingers. They waved to him and he nodded back in acknowledgment.
“We are ready to start.” Ruby said excitedly.
“You can open the gates now.” Rubi added.
The man gave them another nod and took out the walkie talkie hanging from his belt.
He spoke into it, listened to the garbled talk, and then paused.
“Are you sure?” He asked them.
The girls looked at each other and then nodded.
“Yeah, it’s a party.” Rubi told him.
The man spoke into his walkie talkie again and then clipped it back onto his belt.
The girls were confused on what he meant, until they saw the people walking up the driveway. There were hundreds. The entire school, and half of the local suburbs must have shown up. They backed away from the door and went to the living room to try and act casual.
Slowly they began to stream in and the girls were glad that they had people to tell the guests where they could go and what was on offer. If not, they would have been here all night just welcoming everybody. Soon enough both Chip and Tommy appeared. Waving them over the two boys sat besides the girls on the sofa.
“Welcome.” Rubi said casually.
“Bit busier here than we expected.” Ruby added.
“I might have made a few posts on the school’s website about this whole thing.” Chip admitted.
“I kind of told everybody at school as well…” Tommy added.
“I put up flyers everywhere.” Mascara suddenly chimed in from behind the sofa.
The girls and boys on the sofa flinched from the sudden surprise.
Before they could reply, June also entered the room.
“Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned the party on my recipe site. Sorry…” June said shyly.
“Don’t be. We are happy to see that so many turned up.” Rubi spoke.
“Better to have a full house than an empty one.” Ruby added.
“Now, shall we show you to the main attraction?” Rubi asked.
Disembarking from the living room lounge they made their way out to the main garden past the pool. There was a large and smokey tented stall here that was already surrounded by many guests. After cutting a path through the crowd the friends found that this entire stall was a giant barbeque. Locally sauced premium cuts of meat served hot and fresh after a day of marinating. Burgers, lamb lollipops, sausages on bread baked just that morning. Seasonal roasted vegetables with two layers of seasoning. There were even thick cuts of exotic cheese that did not melt when seared under flame.
“There is energising food near the DJ to keep you going.” Ruby mentioned.
“And mellow options near the lounge for when you want to take it slow.” Rubi added.
“What do you think?” The two asked together.
“It seems like a lot just to say hello.” Tommy spoke up.
“It’s important to make a good first impression and I would say this is about as good as you are going to get.” Chip said while staring longingly at the cheese grill.
The evening continued pleasantly from then on.
After loading up on some food the group split off to enjoy different sides of the party. The Rubies as well as Tommy went to dance while Chip, Mascara and June took to hiding away in the lounge where the music was chill and the sweets were plentiful. The many guests that continued to flood in filled out the large manor house, with many finding their own fun and secluded places to hang out.
After growing tired of dancing the Rubies and Tommy went to get a drink and along the way found Chip surrounded by people at the upstairs arcade machines. He seemed focused and having a lot of fun beating nearly everybody who dared challenge his score. Tommy decided to stay behind and give him a real challenge.
Noticing that people were going in and out of a lot of the rooms they turned their eyes to the corridor near the arcade landing which had its door open. Curious, they headed down and took a look into their pillow vault where they found dozens of people half asleep and taking it easy after eating way too much. They could not help but grin ear to ear at how cute it all looked. A lewd thought or two did cross their minds but with the many security guards keeping an eye on the place, such things would be too risky.
Leaving the pillow room, they headed downstairs to the lounge again and promptly collapsed onto the nearest soft surface. In this instance, two bean bag chairs. Rubi rubbed her forehead while Ruby sat catching her breath. The two sighing in annoyance.
“Biggest party of the month and we feel out of it.” Rubi said.
“Mmm, we wonder if it’s because we are not used to crowds?” Ruby asked.
“Could be the noise or perhaps we are getting sick.” Rubi replied.
“We are getting sick of the headaches.” Ruby sighed.
“Why not try the pool?” Mascara suddenly spoke up from nearby.
“That sounds quite nice actually.” Ruby nodded.
“Care to join us?” Rubi asked.
Mascara sank back down behind the sofa.
“I’m not a swimmer…” They spoke up quietly.
“Perhaps next time.” Rubi said as she stood up.
As the two left Mascara stayed close behind. She moved quietly to the back door and kept a close watch on them as they walked over to the pool together. As the twins took off their waist shawls her eyes rolled from the sight of them in bikinis. Mascara adored how their silky tail feathers blocked the best parts of them from view and yet teased her by giving tiny glimpses. It was well worth the time spent at a noisy party just to get that view alone.
The Rubies waded waist deep through the shallows. They smiled and waved and bid a good evening to all the party going guests also enjoying the pool but none of that helped them feel any better. The cool water was refreshing but did not help the pain in their heads much.
“We’re… I’m going to get ice from the kitchen.” Rubi said suddenly.
“Good idea.” Ruby replied before throwing water over her face.
Rubi pulled herself out of the pool and took a second to steady herself before putting her shawl back on. Heading to the living room she took a turn into the warm kitchen to find yet more guests hanging out and talking between each other. Ignoring them, she went straight to the fridge freezer for something cold.
“Are you alright?” Chip asked from the counter.
Looking over she found him sitting next to the fridge. Rubi had been so distracted that she had not even noticed he was there. Letting out a sigh she shook her head at him.
“Headache, it's been getting worse and worse.” Rubi told him.
“Looks bad. You should call it early, go lay down for a bit?” Chip suggested.
“Ah, we wanted to at least persevere until the fireworks.” Rubi replied.
Rubi pulled open the fridge and then stumbled as she felt a numbing cold creep up her legs to her waist. She could smell the chlorine of the pool’s water and the coldness of the evening air on her wet feathers. Her head throbbed but as she swayed Chip quickly took hold of her before she could fall over.
“Rubi?” Chip asked her but she could not make out his voice.
Ruby felt the heat of the kitchen and the glow of caring hands holding her shoulders. She climbed out of the pool and stumbled forward confused. Within her head she could hear the distant whispers and mutterings of so many people. Her body felt hot and cold at the same time, she could smell too much, hear too much. It was overwhelming.
The Rubies made their way to the living room with shaking steps. They saw each other between the colourful lights and deafening voices of all those who were not talking. Drawn to each other, both Rubi and Ruby could see themselves approach from the other’s perspective. They reached out and a crackle of energy shot between them. All the electricity in the house flickered and sputtered before failing. Plunged into darkness and lit by the rising moon the two girls became one as all their senses and perspectives overlapped and became harmony. They grew closer as the energy around them swirled and cracked like red lighting but just before they made contact everything went black and the two collapsed.
Time passed by. A peaceful, painless rest that led to Ruby waking feeling warm but comfortable. She found herself laying in her bed. Across the room her dad and the family doctor, a short Sable with round glasses, were talking. Something felt strange within her head, as if something was missing.
Sitting up slightly she noticed that her friends were sitting around their desk on the other side of the room. Chip and Tommy were talking while Mascara was drawing something on a sketchpad. Suddenly June poked his head up from the bedside and scrambled to his feet a moment later.
“Are you alright, can you hear us?” He asked worriedly.
“Yeah.” Ruby replied sleepily.
Gerald and the doctor came over to talk.
“Does your head hurt anymore?” Gerald asked.
Ruby realised the pain was gone. Reaching up to her head though she found some kind of metal headband. She ran her fingers across it as her sister also woke. Rubi rolled over next to her and looked at what was going on with just as much confusion.
“What happened?” Rubi asked.
“Something strange, what about the party?” Ruby spoke up.
“It’s mostly over now but everybody had a lovely time. I told them that you were feeling unwell and had to retire early.” Gerald reassured them. “I’ll let Koronov explain more about your condition.”
“Not a condition, a gift.” Dr Koronov cut in as he adjusted his glasses and came closer.
“Your outburst earlier today is what we call an unveiling. It is caused by psychoactive energies building up over the developing years in your childhood, once those energies reach their limit they suddenly are released. I know that it feels quite scary and intense but you do not need to fret, unveilings come once in a lifetime. With rest you will be back to normal.”
“What do you mean? We’re psychic?” Ruby asked.
“Yes but that is an older term. We call those with such talents Espers now due to our new understanding that they stem from sensing and processing special energies.” Dr Koronov explained.
“Dr Koronov told me your school has a special department for Espers, I’m going to get in contact with them tonight to figure out what we should do about your… Talents.” Gerald told them.
“I’m really tired.” Rubi said.
“I can imagine. Get some sleep, everything will be better tomorrow.”
Gerald said as he petted his daughter’s heads.
“Get well soon.” Chip said with a wave as he left.
“Cya tomorrow.” Tommy added as he left with him.
“Don’t die on us.” Mascara said as she placed a black get well card on the bedside table.
The Rubies meekly thanked them for visiting and after everybody had left they lay down to get some rest. The two girls looked at each other and for the first time in their lives came to realise that they could not feel each other’s presence like they used to. It felt lonely. Reaching out, the two held each other’s hands as they drifted off to sleep.
