Masquerade (fem reader x scaramouche)

Ch.2 - Signora

Dancing lights. Dancing silhouettes.
A sea of masks — everlasting mystery.
To whom hid behind the masks, one may never know. Or will they?

You entered the venue and were astonished by what you had seen. The tall ceilings were adorn with chandeliers that produced light that danced and shimmered. The rays of light casted beautiful reflections onto the walls. The large room was filled with beautifully decorated tables that surrounded the ballroom floor in the center of the room. Men and women, whom were dressed in their nicest attire, ready to impress, populated the room. Some chose to stay seated or stand off to the side and chat amongst themselves, but the majority had found themselves gracing the freshly waxed ballroom floor.

"I'm going to grab a drink, want to come?" Vanessa had asked, voice straining to be heard over the loud music and the bustling crowd.

As much as you had wanted to drink the night away and let loose, you had remembered your priority for the evening. The meeting with Lady Signora. "I'm ok for now, you got ahead and I'll catch up with you in a bit!" you replied, giving her a reassuring smile.

Giving a slight nod, she turned and walked away, heading towards the open bar.

Drowning in a sea of mystery — a sea of masks, rather — you made your way to the back of the large ballroom. You observed how the people around you had immersed themselves into the party. Women dressed in an assortment of dresses, and men adorn in clean blazers and dress pants, danced and almost seemed as if they were in a trance. You noticed how their skin glowed both partially from built of sweat caused by endless dancing and from rays of light that cascaded from the chandeliers that hung above.

After bumping into people, and voicing slight apologies as you navigated through the crowd, you reached your destination. It was a private room in which shielded it's occupants inside by a hanging red velvet curtain.

"State your business." A man spat out rather bluntly. Looking towards the direction of were the voice came from, you observed his appearance. He was tall and was pretty built... almost unnaturally built. He, like everyone else at the party, wore a mask. This was no surprise, and you knew it was only a mere coincidence. You knew what he was. He was a Fatui agent. Oh how easy it was for the Fatui the infiltrate the party — it was a masquerade after all. How anticlimactic it was, the idea of masks.

"I am here for Lady Signora. We have a meeting set in place." You stated boldly.

The man eyed you suspiciously. You could not quite pinpoint why you had felt so off put in that moment. Was it how he towered over you with a look of intent to strike at any moment, or was it because you knew he would soon be your coworker — your comrade so to say. Regardless of what it was, you knew better than to let these silly feelings hinder you.

"Ha! M'lady does not take appointments from just anyone." He scoffed at you.

"Oh? But I'm afraid I am not just anyone." You deadpanned rolling your eyes at him. "Now, if you would excuse me." You said as you walked towards the entry way between the curtains.

Harshly, he grabbed your wrist in a swift motion. Looking down at your wrist, you winced in pain. Gritting your teeth you looked up at him to see how he smirked down at you. Not appreciating this man's rather unnecessary advance on you, you in turn too sent a smirk his way. In a quick motion, you kicked him in the groin. He made a loud hissing sound which had caught the attention of some of the party attendees nearby. Regaining your composure, you walked back to the curtains.

As he was once again preparing to drag you away from the scene, a tall woman appeared from behind the draping curtains. From how the Fatui agent had quickly let go of you and stood at attention, you knew right away who the lady that stood before you was. Signora.

You couldn't help but stare in awe at her. She was beautiful, stunning even. Her beautiful blonde locks swept elegantly to the side of her face and draped down onto her shoulders. She wore a black and red floor length dress that had white embroidery and detailing on it. As you looked up and studied her face closer, you noticed what everyone in the room had had in common — her mask. The mask she wore revealed half of her face while leaving the other half to be a mystery. Pondering for a moment, you thought, "She must be..."

"Leave her to me. I have been awaiting her arrival." She said turning to look at you, examining your features.

The man who had not moved or spoken a word since the woman's arrival finally muttered out a quiet yes and returned to his post. He spared one last glance at you. His eyes showed a hint of something you knew all too well. Fear. It was the same look you saw from those who had fallen to your sword. But if it was a look of fear for himself or for you, you would never know.

You followed Signora behind the curtains and into the lavishly decorated private room. She motioned for you to sit in a chair that sat across from the one she had occupied.

It grew silent, too silent. The only sound that emitted throughout the room was the sound of Signora's fingers taping the armrest of her chair. Her eyes never left you, a smirk growing on her face. "I have heard much about you, Y/N." She said in a singsong voice.

Looking up to catch her eyes you scoffed, "Oh, really? Tsk." You spat out a dry laugh and shook your head.

"But of course. My my, dare I say you remind me of my younger self." Signora laughed out.

Examining the room you replied, "You know nothing about me. But any-who, I'm the type that likes to get things done quickly. So tell me, what does a harbinger want with someone like me? Even though I'm confident I may know the reason, I'd like to hear it from you."

"I like you, I like your style. Too bad I won't be the one to be graced with your assistance..." She muttered out, voicing the later half under her breathe.

You had caught onto what she had said and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

A smirk returning to her face once again, Signora spoke, "Time will tell, and I do suppose I should no longer beat around the bush as that would be a waste of time for the both of us. But first, I have a proposal for you."

You nodded at her and urged her to continue, your curiosity getting the best of you. It was silent for a moment, the atmosphere growing still and stiff. Signora began tapping on her armrest again and looked as if she was deep in thought. As you were about to speak up, in a low voice, she spoke, "Join us. Join the Fatui."

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Word count: 1221
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A/N: Wooo!! Second chapter done!! I hope this is an improvement from the first chapter! Be patient, scara is coming soon haha!! Or is he? I guess you will just have to read to find out~
This already has 15 reads and that is crazy to me! I wasn't even expecting anyone to read this lol~ I hope I can produce an entertaining story for you all to read!! For now I will leave this here! Until next time, and as always, happy reading!💗