Red Room

Untitled Part 2

Felicity stood looking in the mirror trying to decide if she should wear her hair up or down. After her conversation with Oliver earlier that day she was leaning towards leaving it down and she finally decided to wear it down and pinned it up on one side with a gold hair pin given to her by her Mother. As she looked at herself she felt those all too familiar butterflies returning and when she put on her bright red lipstick and took one last look they settled but only slightly. She knew she looked beautiful and it gave her a confidence that she had a feeling she would need for the upcoming evening.

The people that would be at the ball that night were the wealthiest of the wealthy. Felicity had never really been comfortable around those type of people, her childhood with a mother who was a cocktail waitress in Vegas didn't exactly lend itself to good conversation. But she was confident in how she handled people, being a journalist gave her that much and so she squared her shoulders and walked to the living room.

She heard the doorbell ring and wondered who it could be, as she had not been expecting any guests. She opened the door to a black box sitting on her doorstep with a beautiful black silk bow, and she glanced around to see if anyone was nearby before she reached down and picked it up. She closed her door and walked to the kitchen bar, setting it down before she tugged on the bow to open it. Inside was perfectly folded black paper and sitting squarely on top was a black envelope.

She opened it and then smiled when she saw the note:

"You need a mask for a masque ball. I hope you like it. ~ Oliver"

Felicity slowly pulled back the paper and she gasped when she saw the mask inside. It was a beautiful gold mask with black beading around the eyes and black feathers flowing from the right side. It had a sparkling white diamond in the center of the forehead and Felicity was not at all surprised when she realized the stone was real.

She took it carefully from the box and felt a familiar shiver run down her spine at the thought that he had picked this out for her. Hearing a honk, she glanced at the clock and seeing the time, grabbed her clutch purse and throwing in her phone she grabbed her keys and the mask and then headed out the door. She had decided to Uber to the ball and she thanked the nice gentleman as he helped her into his car before she gave him the address to Queen Manor.

She was looking forward to seeing his house this evening. She had seen many pictures of it in the tabloids but as the driver neared the front gate and spoke into the speaker she looked on in awe. The huge black iron gates opened and before her stood a house that could only be described as a castle. It was made of brown stone that looked old and weathered and she noted beautiful stained-glass windows. The driver pulled up under the port cochere and a tuxedo dressed doorman, opened her door. She paid the driver and then stepped out of the car looking at the huge wooden doors in front of her. Two well-dressed men opened the front doors and she walked into the most beautiful house she had ever seen.

The huge foyer was a deep rich mahogany wood and there was a fireplace front and center with two sweeping staircases flanking each side. A lovely woman in a grey uniform approached and offered to show Felicity where to go. They walked down a long hallway and Felicity noted a library and sitting room and she could hear voices and light music as they neared the double doors at the end of the hall. She pulled her mask on and waited as the woman opened the doors.

Felicity stepped inside, and she felt like she had entered another world. There were tuxedos and beautiful dresses with some of the most elaborate masks she had ever seen. She stood in the doorway looking around and gasped at how beautifully the room was decorated. It was a huge room with standing tables strewn all around. Large feathered center pieces with silver and black feathers were strategically placed and a five-piece tuxedoed band played at the far end of the room. There was a bar to her left and tables with chairs for a sit-down dinner to the right and deciding she needed a drink she made her way to the bar.