Ball

Lei cocked her head and considered her best friend standing there in swaths of burgundy. She wasn’t about to say anything to Kaukahi, but it sure didn’t look done to her. Maybe Lei really was a “non-visionary,” because it was impossible for her to imagine what it’d look like when it actually fit the wearer.

“We good? Can I change?” Kaipo asked, clearly ready to be out of the spotlight.

Kaukahi helped him to carefully step out of the gown.

“And I think we’ll have enough fabric left over to make the pāʻū out of the same stuff!” Kaukahi announced.

“Wait, what? Your mom isn’t wearing this to the parade?”

Kaukahi looked around and took in the shocked faces. “No, remember, this dress is for after. When she’s actually riding the horse, they wear pāʻū. They have a very specific way of wrapping the yards of fabric, and only use six kukui nuts to hold it on. I’m not about to mess with tradition like that. This is for the ball.”

At Lei’s blank stare, Kaukahi continued. “At the palace? The one I’ve been practicing the song for? Come on, keep up.” She went back to rolling up the cloth measuring tape and putting the scissors back into her sewing caboodle.

Lei just blinked. This was definitely her first time hearing about a ball. “Oh, okay, right, the ball…at the…wait, did you say palace?”

“Yeah.”

“You get to go to a ball in a palace?”

“ ʻIolani Palace, yeah,” Kaukahi said, looking for a hanger for the dress.

“Kaukahi, do you even hear yourself right now? You get to go. To a ball. In a palace.”

“Mm-hmm.” Kaukahi maneuvered the billowing dress into the bathroom and hung it over the edge of the shower’s glass door.

“You do realize that as our friend, you’ve got to bring us to the ball, right?”

Kaipo cut in. “Uh, Lei, I’m pretty sure I don’t want—”

“Not now, Kaipo. Trust me. You’ll thank me later.”

“I don’t think I—”

Lei whirled and glared at her best friend. “I swear, if you do anything to prevent me from going to my first and potentially only ever ball in a real, honest-to-goodness palace…”

Kaipo held up his hands and it looked like he was fighting back a grin. Lei narrowed her eyes to show she was serious and he pretended to zip his lips and flick the key away. Satisfied, Lei turned back to the seamstress.

“What do I need to do to be invited?”

“I didn’t know you liked grown-up parties?”

“I mean, come on. It’s a ball…”

“Okay! Sheesh, just stop saying that word already. Do you all wanna come? My mom had asked if I wanted to bring friends since she might be busy schmoozing.”

Lei squealed. “Yes! Yes, I’d love to go to the—”

Kaukahi put a finger against Lei’s closed lips. “Don’t say it,” she instructed.

Lei huffed.

“Besides, it sounded like we came up with a pretty good plan while we worked. Shouldn’t you all go find the moʻo so we can start saving keiki?”

Kaipo wrapped an arm around Ilikea’s shoulders and ushered her out of the room. Makani dropped the velvet scraps they’d been playing with and blew after them. Lei chewed her lip. Apparently absence hadn’t made the heart grow fonder.

“Speaking of priorities,” Lei started.

But Kaipo called from the hallway, “Lei, I think Aunty Lori just pulled up with Tūtū.”

“Whoo cavalry!” Kaukahi said, very obviously content to sit out this moʻo search.

Ilikea popped her head back in. “Solid word choice.” She grabbed Lei’s arm and tugged her toward the kitchen.

Lei grabbed the wall Ili was pulling her around to pause for a second. She whispered back to Kaukahi, “But remember to talk to you know who, okay? Bravery and all that.”

Kaukahi sighed. “I hear you. Just go get that moʻo and I’ll work on figuring out how to make it up to Ilikea while I pull the baskets together. Maybe I’ll have time to get one more round of practice in, too. I’m just mildly freaked that I’m going to screw up during the performance.”

“Well, yeah. Who wouldn’t be freaked about a ball—” Lei ducked out of the living room as a wadded-up piece of fabric flew her way.

Kaukahi screeched, “Just stop with that word already!”

“Kidding! We’ll see you soon.” With that, Lei joined Ilikea and Kaipo in the kitchen. Time to figure out where the moʻo might be.