[PREQUEL TO RADIANCE]
❝you have one job: convince me, or you may find yourself in the rubble of a ruin that was your own making.❞
ontari nightfall is the newest victor for the capitol to add to their list. she'd heard about the horrors that come wit...
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┍━━━━━━━♔━━━━━━━┑ MASQUERADE ┕━━━━━━━♔━━━━━━━┙
｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ
ONTARI DOESN'T KNOW how she'll do it, but she has to talk to Finnick. Though President Snow may have seemed pleased by Finnick's words, he somehow knows that they didn't actually complete their assignment.
The knowledge leaves her unable to relax the entire week following her meeting with Finnick. She's so jumpy that when Cassian soundlessly walks into the kitchen and speaks to her, she spills her entire cup of tea onto the floor. It becomes exhausting to constantly look over her shoulder. She isn't sure why she does it — is she expecting Snow to appear right behind her? — but somehow, it feels like his ice-blue eyes are following her everywhere, even to the confines of her bedroom.
Eytelia had called a few days ago to inform her about her first public appearance with Finnick. The party will be held in the Capitol, and the theme is a masquerade. With the way Eytelia had explained it, it seems like themed festivities are typical. Ontari and Cassian find the entire thing ridiculous. Hestia, conversely, seems peeved that she isn't invited. She gushes over the sketches of Ontari's outfit that Venus mails her more than Ontari herself does.
The party itself arrives way too quickly.
The fireworks light up the sky with periodic bursts of neon light, burning brightly against the pitch-black background for a handful of precious moments before fizzling out into nothing, only to be replaced by an even more dazzling pop of color seconds later. Their booms echo throughout the party but are barely audible over the bass that pumps through the hoard of attendees. While most of the guests are spectators of the firework show, a few of them are paying attention to other exciting components of the outdoor ball.
Ontari is part of the second option. She stands apart from the crowd, pretending to pick through the large table teeming with hors d'oeuvres, when she's actually scavenging the impossibly large throng of people for her target. So far, she hasn't had any luck in finding him. If she wants to complete the night's task, she has to locate him by the end of the party. Not to mention she has to give herself enough time to successfully seduce him.
The theme makes it even harder to locate him. Ontari finds herself partially grateful for her ornate golden mask that frames her eyes and crosses the bridge of her nose. It's cold against her face, made of metal that's cut in intricate designs and swirls at the edges, laden with a line of tiny gems of the same color above her eyes and sweeping out to the corners like sequined eyeliner. The color matches the accent tone in her dress.
The night air is slightly brisk, which is why Venus had designed her gown to be warm yet fit for a desirable. It's made of black velvet, which is incredibly soft against her skin and protects her arms from the cold due to the long sleeves. However, the neckline makes up for the skin that doesn't show elsewhere. It plunges down to the waistline, where a barely visible belt buckle hides the part where the top ends and the skirt portion begins. Roses of dark maroon and metallic gold are printed on the bottom half, beginning at her hips and traveling down to the bottom in neat rows. Leaves and miscellaneous swirls accent them. A wide slit in the skirt starts just below her hip and rests in the front rather than to the side; she has to be careful with how she moves so she doesn't flash her undergarments to anyone.
