Raven

Finding Raven

"Lady Bertram has been looking in this direction for a while now. ", a youth dressed in dark blue casted a glance at a dainty lady in a striking yellow dress sitting across the large hall. "Why don't you invite her to dance?" 

He looked up at the man beside him that has been leaning on the wall all this time and he happened to meet the other's eyes looking intently at him and he glanced back down again, as the hall was only illuminated by a chandelier at the center and the few candle lights at each side of the hall, the blush creeping across his face was hidden by the hall's poor lighting.

The Duke's household was financially loaded so he personally picked a large group of musicians to perform during the party. The maestro signaled, and the lively music spread across the hall. Some daring men asked the maidens for a dance and the few who succeeded, dragged the ladies at the center of the room and danced.

Ivan, the man leaning on the wall was wearing a dark suit and his golden eyes watched Raven's lush eyebrows and raven eyes that stared back at him grudgingly. He badly wanted to leave this blasted gathering and just drag the man beside him along with him for some alone time but considering his status he just has to wait until the end of the party.

"I don't want to dance with her." Ivan glanced at the 'Lady' Raven was talking about, and with this one look he was already filled with utter contempt, she looked exactly like the cake at the table beside her with all the powder and rouge splattered all over her face.

He then looked at Raven, his black hair was combed back showing the adorable forehead, there was no powder but his skin was white as snow, his long eyelashes fluttered like wings and those eyes, those beautiful eyes looked at him like he's the only person that mattered in this grand hall, and though he tried so much to hide it, Ivan knows he felt the same way he did.

He pursed his lips and slightly leaned down over Raven's ear and whispered, "I want to dance with you."

Raven was stunned but after a moment he quickly rebutted, "Nonsense. Why would you want to dance with me? I'm a man."

"And you're beautiful nevertheless.", Ivan said and smiled at him meaningfully.

As Raven looked at him, he knew his heart skipped a beat but along with the beat came the guilt. It was wrong. He pursed his lips and didn't look at him anymore.

A few moments later, the music came to a stop and the people dancing scrambled back to their seats. The lady across the hall that has been eyeing them earlier had stood abruptly and headed straight to their direction.

The moment she grew closer, the thick powder on her was evident and the perfume that was supposed to smell like roses was too strong that a few people close by sneezed.

"Lady Bertram."

It was Raven who greeted her as the man beside him just stood and stared at her with furrowed brows. Lady Bertram glanced at him and gave a nod then looked at Ivan all coquettish.

"Sir Neumann, would you be so kind as to dance with me?", she seemed to have asked in a whisper, but her voice was too loud that the people a few feet away even heard it. To add more effect, she even covered her mouth with the fan she was holding and lightly fanned herself to appear shy, the people present weren't fooled, she had of course blatantly asked a man to dance with her.

Indeed, some women were thick-skinned, Ivan thought. Such was the thought of everyone. The women who also wanted to dance with Ivan just silently gritted their teeth.