Sudden Departure

Chapter Thirty-Two

The devilish grin on Death's face grew and the twinkle in his eye got brighter. A collective gasp drew from the crowd, just before it exploded into a mass of hysterics and babbling.

I furrowed my brow and turned to my friends. Unsurprisingly, they seemed to be as discombobulated as everyone else.

Millie was staring at the table, her eyes wide, looking back and forth from one end to the other. She was muttering to herself, "We haven't had an actual visitor in a thousand years. What does this mean? What's going on?!"

"SILENCE," Death roared. His voice echoed through the Hall in fierce, controlled torrents.

The horde immediately halted jabbering and stared dumbly at the figure ascending the stairs.

It was a scary looking, confident women. The mystery woman met Death with a firm grip on his elbow and a harsh peck on his leathery skin. She smiled at him with a look that was more of a smirk than anything, before whipping her head to us and beaming mischievously.

More muddled murmurs slithered into the air.

The unknown woman's eyes narrowed and her lips pursed. At that, the entire room ceased all talking. You probably could have heard a pin drop.

"Hello, all," she gushed. "I, as most- excuse me, all of you should know I am Madalyn Belle the First."

 I had never heard anyone put so much emphasis on any words in my life, but here was this strange woman putting all of her energy into two syllables. “The First.”

Trust me, this lady really was strange. She had the appearance of a fifteenth century royal. Her perfectly round porcelain face was blotted pink in her cherub cheeks. She had a microscopic mouth that was rouged flawlessly with a button sized heart shape. Only the rouge was black. She had on black winged eyeliner underneath her eye brow piercings (three in total).

Madalyn Belle the First's hair was shaved on one side. The reminder of it was choppy. It was cut short in the back and had a long, curved piece in the front. It was dyed black and had a deep purple streak. It was a sloppy dye job.

As for her clothes, Madalyn had on a flamboyant, gothic-styled ball gown. The top half of the dress was corseted with a thick gray, material and covered with a delicate layer of black lace. The skirt was full and round, so lengthy the hoops scraped the floor when Madalyn walked in her punk boots. The fabric was luxuriously thick and heavy. It was bunched in certain places, pinned up with black roses.

Madalyn's fingers were decked out with rings. Every finger had at least two. They were made of all different metals and gems, but all glittered with every twitch of her fingers.

She actually moved her fingers a lot, constantly waving her hands around in fluid and graceful movements. Her head was constantly following her hands. She stared at them longingly, as if she were in love with them a billion times more than we all should be.

She glared for another few seconds before grinning widely and continuing. "You may be wondering why such a magnificent and revered Paradise Dignitary has suddenly graced you with my utmost respected and brilliant presence."