A Royal Pain in the Ball ✓

Chapter 16 - Warm, Sunny- Day

Averithe stared at herself in front of the mirror. As she wore her earrings, her mind thought of what went wrong. To the topic of why did he keep her in this castle. Sure, she didn't pesterise to go home- which her mother should be looking for her by now. But she didn't care. She didn't felt a sense of need in the world to come back home, or an urgency to come back into her mom's arms. Rather, she felt more comfortable here than ever in her own house.

And that's all because of him.

She sighed as she started at her reflection in the mirror. A headpiece and a gown of white and yellow. More of like a gold shade that he- again- forced on her to wear. Which she despicably admitted that it looked good. She wondered.

What the people would think of her when she made her walk. When they saw her, or whether it was by chance she bumped into another who would seem to  want to eat her. She hoped, probably not as she turned aside and saw that the door could be almost opened. Might be almost time for him to come around, and push the door open.

Hopefully not.

"Master Cain, your guests will be arriving shortly-" A man spoke and turned the doorknob open to reach to a halt.

"My, young lady, I got the wrong door open, and you are as beauty as ever." He smiled, the butler who seemed rude and barely approachable when she saw him in the garden was one of the best other that she could come up to. Talk to about simple stuff, and anything really that would brighten up her day from the gloomy man she's living with.
Or that currently she's having a fight with the man that just couldn't let her go.

"I'm sorry. Master Cain might be waiting, so could you please--"

"Mr. Yadalen. Or Mr. Y. Could you please stay for a little while longer? And.. can you please aid in.. make sure that I won't bump into him by any chance?" She asked, a quite small voice for her to ask, as she didn't figure out any other way to ask of him this way. Even though it might seem weird.

"Ma'am. Mrs. Ave, I am strictly spoken to escort Master Cain and you after. So I don't think I can.." He trailed off as they looked at each other.

"It's no big deal, I just don't want to walk along beside him. Just for a moment." She pleaded, in her voice that she just wanted to get this party started and have him as company for the day.

Who knows what these people could do or think about her.

She smiled.

"All right. But only for a short moment." He added. As he lifted a finger and returned a tiny smile.

She felt relieved as he complied. Not being a sticky old man whose so strict they can't serve and aid a helpless young woman. She turned back to the mirror.
At least she won't die today.

"I would take my leave. Ms. Averithe. The party will start in about a minute. " He informed as she could hear the pleasantness in his tone as he clicked the door a second later.

She sighed. This might be the biggest, foolish, extraordinary party of her life.
Well, in commemoration of his anniversary. Which he explained so vaguely about. Which to her annoyance. They had a quarrel that he wouldn't compromise a bit about renting a hotel and having his party there. Her thoughts trailed in annoyance.

Something rang. It was not the clock she knew. But it was not a bell as well, as it was the Big Ben? She thought as the chime was large and merely could only be possible come from a large tower from the middle of the street or a public usage of royal erection.

She put the brush down.

"Madam, the party's getting started. You might want to get down already." A man, the bald Butler knocked on the door and informed her. To which she replied with a smile as she was delighted to see him. Delighted to have her arm against his own as be escorted her down the stairs.

And only to be met by the man who she regretfully had to see. Or to come into place with. Her smile dropped down not so gracefully as he looked at her with his shimmering eyes, and he almost smiled when the butler saved her.

"Well, then. I must have some business to attend to. I will get quite busy, so- please enjoy yourself ms." The butler politely departed, as he took a step back and walked away as he spun. His posture relieved as be disappeared into a missing corner of the ball.

"So. That was quite fast." He spoke to break the silence. And out of all things, he just had to speak that one.

It did not please her one bit, "Yeah, it did not take long for me to get ready." She tinily rolled her eyes as she approached, but halted.

The man also wanted to walk towards her, but cancelled in his foot as he started at her. The both of them looked at each other as if they had gone for 3 weeks and had come back so randomly they don't know what to say or do.

The man prissily walked up to her and connected his arm against hers. To her dismay, he seems awfully pleased as he had a smile on his face. And walked towards the exit before she could even say anything.

And she had to go down.

The stairs towards the place he would hold the party. The big ball. The big center of the whole castle. She was flabbergasted, yes, but it did not occur to her that it wouldn't be such a big of a deal. Besides the fact that she will now meet countless men and women who would judge her up and down and they would now look at her outfit, makeup and an overall rating inside their heads. Which she doesn't look forward to, considering the fact that all she had was the makeup available displayed on her bedside mirror the morning she woke up.

And it was pretty. She thought. That she held the brush and wore it on like some painting, and that she wouldn't be too much embarrassed to wear it out on a celebration, or an event. She looked up at him cynically.

To which he ignored and practically pulled and slightly dragged her along until they reached the backstage of a place. Somehow. Somewhere, she had spaced out. The area was black, but not dark enough for her not to see anything. And in accompaniment by the man next to her, she had never felt even better.
She played with her lips. Biting it. Inside of it. And of course, wanted to rip her arm off of him, and run away somewhere else. Be somewhere else anywhere but here.

Her mind wandered. And once again, she forgot. That the people present or anywhere she had not figured out yet could read her mind. If they wanted to.

Which again, she was distracted by the fact that she doesn't even remember which way to go if she ever got lost. Or what direction she would possibly take if she ever got embarrassed and wanted to run away. To her locked room. She remembered the key inside her right pocket. A flash news that came because who would make a dress with 2 pocket invisible on both their sides?

That would be in congruence of an incident if she happened to fall down on a table tripping on some linen or white cloth. She would've died. In a clear mere existence and she would've easily made her first wish of falling down in a black hole.

She gulped. As a voice sounded out through an echoing microphone. The voice sounded excited, deep, and it was clearly not her day to be. On a sunny, warm day such as this.

"We need to hide behind the curtains." He said, announcing. A bit eerily whispering as she had no idea how to respond. As he held her arm in his grasp and dragged her alongside her, probably keeping her from running away. And here they were. Standing like sculptured stones behind a black veil. To which she wasn't pleasant about, standing by this man. And to say, she wouldn't have smelled the ashened smell of the smoky scented fabric.

She slapped his arm. "What are you doing..?" She clasped her nose. "Why are we hiding, and how long-"

"Shh." He interrupted her. "The event is about to start." He proposed. To which she internally groaned and dreaded the moment to which the man announced that they are free to take whatever desserts and will legally commence in a ten minute or so. To her horror,
of the fact that she didn't know when she would come out of the darkness.
She released her nose.

"If I die, I will sue you for this." She didn't speak clearly but it was clearly loud enough for him to hear.

"Well, then. May I present to you, the guest of honor?" The man excitedly spoke as it was follows by large applauses after and to which her horror she saw a glimpse of light, and the black curtains swished in slow motion. As she squinted and all she see was a white light. Until it doomed on her that the people were there, clapping with their ourifts and dresses on, very poise and tall statured as they all had hats and she had nothing on.