youtube writing prompts

you're stuck on the dance floor with the villain you were meant to assassinate

This work is inspired by a YouTube video posted by Ivoryyy, posted February 17, 2021.

-Ω-

"What a shame. This dress is far too beautiful to stain with blood." You stepped out of the carriage, taking the arm of your accomplice as the dark fabric of your dress softly fluttered around your ankles.

"You say that every time," scoffed your accomplice, similarly clad in a silken suit. "And yet, you drench yourself in it every time." He slipped on his bejeweled mask, tapping your hand in a reminder to do the same.

You smiled, donning your own mask. The two of you, arm in arm, walked towards the ballroom, blending in with the masked crowd as you stepped into the light of the chandeliers. You paused, momentarily sweeping your eyes over the colorful swirls of dancing couples already on the dance floor. It was enchanting - you rarely had moments like this to admire the gleaming qualities of balls in their peaks of beauty and euphoria. After a mission was complete, it was usually panicked screams that followed you, not the soft notes of cello and violin in euphonic harmony.

"Come," your accomplice murmured after a short pause. "You know what we have to do."

"All too well." You hummed back, shaking your head. This was not the time for distractions, however pretty. "What did you say the target looked like?"

"Dark hair and grey eyes, from what I hear."

It was your turn to scoff. "Dark hair? Like every man here? Should I gaze into the eyes of all of them?"

"If you must." You turned your head to your accomplice, catching a glimpse of a playful twist on his lips. "But with your skill, I doubt we'll be here long."

"Let us hope so." You sighed, separating yourself from him and beginning to accept the offers of dances from hopeful masked men.

And so the night continued as you spun in the arms of countless men, tamped frustration growing as each pair of eyes failed to produce any shade of grey. You sighed in exasperation at the start of a particularly fast-paced dance, catching the gaze of your accomplice as he twirled a glowing girl around, offering an apologetic smile.

"Bored, my lady?" asked your newest dance partner, extending his hand.

You bit back a retort as you took it. "No sir, not at all. What makes you think so?" He tugged you towards him, and you spun into his grasp as the mass on the dance floor seemed to press into the two of you. You glanced up at his face, ready for the next disappointing shade of brown or green, but your breath caught as you noticed.

Grey.

"Forgive me. Perhaps it is just my impudent nature speaking," he said, raising an eyebrow, noticeable even under his mask. "Or perhaps it is because I noticed that you have yet to find who you're looking for."

He held you too tightly, hand with an unforgiving grasp on your waist. You couldn't breathe, too close to your newfound target and the crowd pressing in from all sides, your accomplice nowhere in sight.

"Forgive my impudence, my lady," your target whispered, breath warm against your ear. "For I'm afraid that the only blood that will be staining your dress tonight will be your own."