I (Kinda) Don't Like Mondays

Honestly, if I, Hailey Stevens, was forced to select a phrase to describe 2023, it'd be chaotic.

2024, however, despite only being a few hours old, already feels boring.

It's NOT because I don't like Mondays, which is the current day of the week.

It IS because if you don't include Valentine's Day and the various upcoming long weekends, my next big event isn't until - hey, what's this text?

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[Hi, Hailey, it's Amber! I heard about a Renaissance Faire-styled event called Winter Fantasy, which sounds like something you'd adore. It's at the park from 9-7. Dress in whatever style you want to wear. I'll be coming to take you to Winter Fantasy in about 10 minutes or so. TTYL!]

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Wow, Winter Fantasy sounds like SUCH an amazing event! However, I don't know anything about it beyond the text Amber just sent to me. Still, I need to get ready for this event.

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Alright, I'm wearing a pastel fairy outfit and am now waiting for Amber to arrive. Let's hope she shows up soon.

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Wow, she's already here!

"Hi there, Hailey! Come on, get in the car! I do NOT wanna be late and miss the costume contest. We are six minutes away from the park and the costume contest begins in 12 minutes. LET'S START 2024 OFF ON THE RIGHT PATH! HURRY UP, PLEASE!!" Amber shrieked. She was also dressed in a fairy outfit, except that hers was pink and black and paired with ripped fishnet tights.

"Alright, I'm coming," I sighed as I headed towards her car.

"GREAT!"

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Once we arrived at Winter Fantasy and found the area where the costume contest would occur, we actually had two minutes to spare!

"Wow, look at all these costumes. I can see several anime character cosplays, many decades-themed outfits, a ton of steampunk looks, numerous Renaissance Faire-like clothes, and don't forget -" I gushed as the contest began.

"Never mind, Amber. I'll talk to you after the costume contest ends!"

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As the costume contest judges, all three of whom were dressed in Renaissance-inspired outfits, gazed upon me, Amber, and the other contestants, I still felt underwhelmed, however, I then remembered that it wasn't even sunset on New Year's Day yet. 

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"Alright, we have determined our Top Five costumes. Those who do not place within the Top Five shall each earn a well-made bracelet of their choice. Anyways, here are the Top Five costumes. Fifth place is awarded to Crystal Chang, who is dressed in a well-made cosplay of the Pokémon known as Altaria. Fourth place is awarded to Kellie Klein, who's y2k look is just stunning. Third place is awarded to the duo of Hailey Stevens and Amber Davis, both of whom are dressed in what appears to be a set of good-fairy/evil-fairy costumes. (YAY!) Second place is awarded to Becca Sherman, whose outfit almost perfectly blends vampiric and steampunk assets. The Costume Contest winner is Byron Walters, who looks exactly as how we three envision a vampire prince. Anyways, the All-Ages Knighting Ceremony shall take place at the Regal Stage in 15 minutes. There shall also be many more splendid events throughout the day," the Costume Contest judges concluded as they handed out the medals to the Top Five.

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"Alright, today's actually shaping up to be quite enjoyable," I whispered to Amber as we each bought ourselves a sword (+ a matching sword holder.)

"I knew it! I think you'd really enjoy the All-Ages Knighting Ceremony, Hailey. It sounds a lot like a Renaissance Faire knighting ceremony. Come on, come on, I don't wanna miss this!" Amber squealed as she dragged me towards the Regal Stage (which was obviously after we paid for our swords/sword holders.)

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"Good day to all. To help start off this new year, I shall knight the masses. In order to receive your knighthood, please line up on the right side of the Regal Stage!" explained the Winter Fantasy Queen, who seemed to be dressed in a much more formal, elaborate, and regal version of my outfit.

"Oh my goodness, Amber, I feel so nervous right now. Let's get knighted together!" I mumbled as we got in line, with only two others ahead of us.

"Yeah!"

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The first person to be knighted was a dark-skinned man dressed in a Kermit The Frog T-shirt and ripped jeans.

"What is your name?"

"Damien," the man replied.

"Why do you think you should be knighted today, Damien?"

"Well, uh, lately, I've been doing a lot of volunteer work, especially involving animals," Damien explained as he kneeled.

"Well then, by the power invested in me, Queen Andromeda of Avalon, by the heavens and the Almighty Pickle, I hereby knight thee as Sir Damien the Charitable. Please rise and collect your certificate!"

As Damien cheerfully collected his certificate, the next person to be knighted, who was a light skinned girl with deep-green eyes clad in a Sylveon (Pokémon) cosplay named Alina, knelt before the "queen."

"I should be knighted because I always strive to be my very best self everyday, even as I fight my own personal battles," Alina firmly explained.

"Well then, by the power invested in me, Queen Andromeda of Avalon, by the heavens and the Almighty Pickle, I hereby knight thee as Lady Alina the Brave. Please rise and collect your certificate!"

It was now OUR turn to be knighted.

GULP!

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(BTW: Damien is filming our knighting ceremony!)

"Hello, young ladies. What are your names?"

"I'm Amber, and Hailey is to the right of me," Amber confidently explained.

"Well then, why do you two deserve to be knighted?"

"Uh, we deserve to be knighted because we are often doing acts of community service, having each others' backs at all times, and  above all: always trying our hardest!" I exclaimed.

"Well then, by the power invested in me, Queen Andromeda of Avalon, by the heavens and the Almighty Pickle, I hereby knight you two as Lady Amber the Confident and Lady Hailey the Resilient! Please rise and collect your certificates! Oh, and if anyone is wondering why I knight people 'by the almighty pickle,' it's because the kingdom of Avalon is well-known for supplying pickles."

Amber and I were quite giddy as we collected our certificates.

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The next person to be knighted was Byron, a tanned man with dark brown eyes, wavy, dark brown hair, and was clad in a black hoodie, baggy jeans, and black fuzzy CROCS.

"Your Majesty, I think I should be knighted due to me having been the sole organizer of a coworker's recent retirement party, which everyone adored," he explained as he knelt before the "queen."

"Well then, by the power invested in me, Queen Andromeda of Avalon, by the heavens and the Almighty Pickle, I hereby knight you as Sir Byron the Creative! Please rise and collect your certificate!"

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After getting our knighting certificates framed, Amber and I were browsing through a selection of bracelets when the PA system suddenly turned on.

"Attention everyone: please be on the lookout for a man with hazel eyes who looks to be approximately 67 years old wearing a gray Rolling Stones T-shirt under a dark blue zip-up hoodie, baggy sweatpants that match his zip-up hoodie, and a pair of stained black UGG boots. He was last spotted by a giant tree loudly screeching that he MUST have a conversation with 'Owen Davis,' or else Owen will 'get what he deserves.' Please notify a security guard, all of whom who are dressed in flowing white blouses, flowing white pants, and short, white boots with golden badges on their chests."

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Amber and I, as well as everyone else at Winter Fantasy, were stunned.

"Uh, what's going on?!" she panicked as a pair of men suddenly sped by us - one of them was the man just talked about earlier, and the other one - who was dressed in what looked like a Mewtwo (Pokémon) with a panicked expression on his face (Owen,) seemed to be trying to avoid the first man.

"Come on, Owen, y'know that you are REQUIRED be sad about my upcoming retirement this year! If you're not, welp, let's just say that I will DESTROY something dear to you, like how the newbie will likely DESTROY my legacy!" sneered the man chasing Owen.

"Calm down, please. Just because the newbie is only 30 years old DOESN'T mean that she'll destroy your legacy, Warren. Reminder: all Millennials are now ADULTS. That includes the newbie," Owen pleaded.

Unfortunately, Warren didn't listen.

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"Yeah, Owen, I know that already," he sneered.

Owen immediately replied to him with, "What I meant is that for the newbie, Jessica, this will be her very first dentistry job. She's been so excited for this (I can confirm this due to her recent Instagram posts) and is honored to take this position from someone as experienced as YOU. Oh, and I AM sad about your upcoming retirement. You're such an inspiration to me. I've been planning your retirement party since the very moment you announced your retirement. I am not allowed to reveal exactly what will and won't be at your retirement party, but I CAN say that it will definitely be one of, if not THE BEST EVER, parties you have ever gone to. Now, can you PLEASE stop threatening me?!"

Warren was silent for a while before responding.

"Oh, alright then, Owen. I am so sorry for overreacting there. It's just that since I'm retiring in the spring, it feels like I'm about to leave almost everything I know behind forever before embarking on a new adventure. I also tend to overreact during certain stressful events, if that gives you anymore details," he whimpered.

After Owen accepted Warren's apology, they went to the shopping area of Winter Fantasy to buy each other jewelry.

"Aww, isn't that sweet, Hailey?" Amber gushed.

"Yeah, it's so sweet, Amber. It is so beautiful."

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As we left Winter Fantasy that day, Amber asked me if I enjoyed it.

"Yeah! In fact, this was a great start to the week ... AND 2024! I now kinda like Mondays!"

"Great! May this be the start of a great 2024!"

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THE END

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