"Good m. Princess. Happy birthday!" Sophie's voice woke Julia from a beautiful dream. She had dreamed of flying over the kingdom like a bird. Tired, she rubbed her eyes and yawned. She sluggishly pushed her soft duvet aside and climbed out of her bed.

  "M Sophie."

  "Are you looking forward to today? You're sure to get plenty of gifts! And you take part in a ball for the first time! Your debut as Princess of the try. Isn't that exg?"

  Julia yawned again. "Definitely."

  So far, she had not been allowed to attend a ball, because, as her parents said, she was still too young. Her siblings had also celebrated their debut owelfth birthday aer told her that she could look forward to plenty of gifts, as all guests would bring her one. She was most looking forward to the gifts.

  "I've id out your favorite dress for you." Sophie wi her. "And I hung your ball gown on your closet. You will look adorable!"

  "Thank you, Sophie."

  When Julia was dressed up for the day, she made her way to breakfast, where her family was already waiting for her. Lea, Fritz, and Cleo had e especially for their half-sister's birthday party.

  Peter rushed towards her and embraced her stormily. "All the best wishes to my little sister!"

  Julia ughed and hugged her brother. The rest of her family gratuted her less stormily.

  The breakfast table was richly set, as every day there were buns, cheese, jam, honey, and scrambled eggs, but this m there was also a small strawberry cake oable, which Julia had wished for breakfast.

  "Are you looking forward to the ball?", her father asked.

  Julia nodded. "And on the presents!"

  The queen ughed. "You'll have to be patient. It is a tradition that these are given at the ball. Do you remember what I told you?"

  "I get a decorated chair, at the beginning we are only iands and at the gift delivery, I have to get up and nod in thanks... Yes. I remember that. Why 't I say thank you?"

  "It's tradition", Fritz said. "And it would be tiring to say thank you every time, even if most gifts are collected in an adjoining room." This tradition had basically beeablished by him, as he had refused to say thank you in front of all the people as a teehe queen responded by making it a tradition.

  "Now begins a wonderful time for you my little ohe king smiled. "You're twelve now. Magic could e to you at any time. For me, it was very exg to turn twelve and wait for my magic, which luckily came when I was thirteen. Not everyone is lucky enough to be a wizard or a witch. I'm sure you'll get magid in a few years, you'll go to the academy."

  “If magic shows itself", Cleo objected. "It's never guaranteed."

  "I'm sure, Cleo. Just like I was with you, Lea and Fritz. We just have to wait.” The queen smiled.

  Peter stared sadly at his honey bun. He was now sixteen and had to realize that he was mortal. Something that was difficult for him. In the weeks following his birthday, he had barely left his room and had been unusually quiet. Julia was sad. She had waited and waited with him. But he remained without magid now it was too te.

  In the evening, when Julia put on her pink ball gown, her body tingled with excitement. She would have liked to run around the entire castle. Sophie put her hair up and urged her to keep quiet.

  "I 't sit still!" protested Julia. "What if I embarrass myself?"

  "You will not embarrass yourself. And now hold still, please. Otherwise, I'll prick you with a hairpin!"

  "And what if I do?"

  "Then the guests will smile about it and find you cute. Or they don't notice it."

  Later, when Julia sat on her decorated chair and looked at the ballroom, she felt queasy. Her parents had ihe most important noble families, who now gathered to drink champagne in the ballroom. Her siblings talked about her work and her parents looked down on the guests smiling. Peter sat o Julia. He lounged bored in his chair and ignored Babette, who waved happily at him.

  "Don't you want to wave back?", asked Julia.

  "No." Peter smoothed out his dark gree and ran his finger over the golden buttons. "Otherwise she wants to dah me!"

  "Are you sure?"

  "At the st ball, I had to hide from her. Uhe buffet table! She hasn't stopped chasing me. Mom was furious because the prince doesn't seem to be hiding uables. But I had no choice. Babette is annoying!"

  Julia snickered.

  "Luckily, she's going to the academy soon. Then she will no longer appear at every feast and every ball. I would like her to stay away forever. But she probably doesn't do me that favor. Maybe I'm lucky and she finds a lot of friends there that she annoy. I’ll have my peace then!"

  "If she's annoying everybody, she won't make friends", Julia reflected. "Who knows, maybe her cssmates are hiding from her. Uhe tables!"

  "That would be funny."

  The ball officially began. The Queen gave a short speed soon afterward the gifts were presented. Julia tried very hard not to make a single mistake, but whe up she tripped over her dress. Peter caught her ughing and helped her to her feet. "That could have gone wrong", he whispered to her with a wink.

  "Thank you, Peter." Julia smiled sheepishly and stood by her mother.

  She was given jewelry, expensive pens, and books, as well as a rge stuffed horse, which was almost as big as her bed. When it was time to mih the guests, Julia met Helga and Philip with whom she talked. Soon after, Babette joihem, whose dress made a slightly slipped impression.

  "Happy birthday," she gratuted Julia. "Have you seen your brother? I 't fier anywhere..."

  Julia shook her head. He robably hiding.

  Babette snorted. "I was hoping to dah him."

  "How romantic!" Helga beamed and looked at Philip. "Do we want to daogether?" The dance was, after the gifts, a tral part of the ball.

  Philip smiled. "Sure. Let's daogether, Helga!"

  "I'll keep looking for Peter." Babette left them alone again, while the first lined up for the official dahe waltz, to which the ductor of the orchestra had invited with a loud voice. Julia didn't know who to dah, but her mother had said she would surely be asked.

  "Psst", she heard, turning curiously to the sound. The noise came from one of the buffet tables in front of which she stood. When no one looked at her, she looked uhe patterablecloth. Uhe table sat Peter. In his hand, he held a pte full of delicacies.

  "Do we want to daogether?", he asked, crawling out from uhe table and pg the pte on the buffet table.

  "Have you been hiding from Babette again?"

  "Under a table is the best pce to avoid her! So? Do we want to daogether?"

  Julia nodded eagerly. "Gdly! But I don't share with Babette!" She stuck her to at him jokingly.

  Peter grinned. "I’d love to danly with my little sister!"

  And they did.

  They stumbled ughiweeher dancers across the dance floor, because Julia could not dance very well yet and stepped on her brother's foot several times, and awkwardly refused to be led. Therefore, it was no wohat they almost stumbled into Babette and her dance partner. Babette danced with an elderly man who told her sullenly about his problems with athlete's foot. Peter and Julia ughed about it.