The girl who chased the moon

Chapter 7

My next task was another ball. Mentally, I sighed, because I was sick of balls. At one time, they were the epitome of slayer life to me. The glamorous and exciting part of walking the darkened path, it was the thing that made slaying seem more attractive because the splendour and beauty distracted from the horrors that came with hunting the night. 

I layed out the dress I intended to wear, it was black. It was unusual for me to wear black to a ball, as it actually stood out more than blended in due to everyone wearing brighter colours, depending on the season. It skimmed above my bust and the corset strings were tight, it was designed to stand out in a sense, but that was what I needed. To lure out those after the diamond. 

It was nearing five, and I reminded myself I needed to powder my face and style my hair, another monstrous task. It was really the last thing I wanted to be doing on my birthday. 

Sitting by the dresser, I unravelled my hair and began to wind the curls upwards until they were wound into an intricate bun, sitting high on my head. Some curls escaped, and in annoyance I flicked them off my face furiously. I put in the glittering diamond clip, inlaid with pearls and rimmed with sapphires, it was quite the accessory. It must have been worth at least a thousand pounds, if not more. 

The necklace was equally as exquisite, pearls seemed to drop effortlessly from a white gold chain and hung delicately around my neck. Looking in the mirror, with the shadowy eyes and pale skin, I could easily pass for a vampire. There was no colour in my cheeks, and dark shadows hung on the panes of my face. It was a positively haunting sight. 

Yet, for the first time in a long time, I felt beautiful. Not like some classically gorgeous oil painting beautiful, but still, somehow, beautiful. I looked..dark, deadly...I looked like a vengeful angel. 

After hooking the stake into my garters, unfortunately, the dress did not accommodate katiana so I settled for a small dagger, when used correctly, it could be deadly. I wrapped the satin drape around me, and made my way down the spiraling stairs. 

Lydia was at the bottom, dressed in her usual plain black dress, high collared and made of a thick wool, if she had not been vampire, she would have been hot. 

"Beatrice! You look magnificent!" she cried as I descended. I blushed, though the colour barely touched my cheeks. Brendan did not come to see me off, I had not seen him since the kiss and Carlisle was still angry at me. Though this seemed to have pacified since I saved his life. 

A carriage waited outside, order the day prior to take me to the Marquis de Everlie's lavish estate. I waved briefly before stepping into the carriage and drawing away into the night. 

***

The Marquis' estate was just as grand and flamouant as I had imagined. The driveway was lined with perfectly trimmed hedge rows, not a stalk was out of place. The gravel seemed to shimmer in the moonlight, perhaps it was granite. 

The whole estate seemed to ooze decadence, and once inside, this did not diminish. The front of the house was rather imperialistic, almost rigid in it's format and design, but inside, drapes hung lazily and gold and ornate jewels glittered down like a glistening, celestial waterfall. 

I stood out amongst the riot of bright colours, like a black swan. Couples twirled across the dance floor eloquently, it was a vibrant sea of splendour and everything that represented the aristocracy. A stark contrast to the desperate poverty in the slums a few miles south. 

Making my way across the dance floor, I found myself picking up a sparkling glass of champagne, pretending to sip it and skimming my eyes across the room. Everyone was smiling, laughing and enjoying the splendour on offer, unlike myself, as I remained watchful and vigilant.