AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The all-powerful yet fleeting dream dies in my core. I'm not about to ask them to incur his wrath, even for my freedom.
But thereisa way to get back home...
The maids finish fussing over me, knotting my hair in a complex half down, half up style, making sure my clothing—if one can call it that—is perfect, before escorting me out once they're satisfied with my appearance, not to mention, my hygiene. We walk through the rows of tents, getting closer and closer to the magnificent castle. I can barely look away from it.
At long last, we reach a field where one single hectare-wide white canopy floats, without any poles—that I can see.
Candles gently dance near the top of the fabric, providing a dim light. Underneath, hundreds, if not thousands of people dance, and sing, and drink to the rhythm of deep beats I feel under my bare feet and in my core. This is the outdoor party to kill every rave, every garden wedding, every concert.
I want to join them. Ineedto join them. But the maids continue pushing me forward, away from the dancers, and farther into the gathered crowd.
“You shouldn’t dance, my lady,” Flyn whisper quickly. “It isn’t safe.”
Safe? Who cares about safe when one can be ever sohappy.
“You’ll dance and dance until your feet bleed and you collapse of exhaustion while they laugh.”
Oh.
Oh.
It’s a struggle, but I let them steer me away, doing my best not to steal any looks over my shoulder. At first, I feel like all of the happiness in the world fades as each of my steps take me away, but with some distance, I start to dread the dance, the lure of the music.
Is it me or are those devious notes— the ones responsible for dragging me to Night Hall that night, and therefore, for my entire presence here—mixed into the song?
I decide Idespisethat melody.
At long last, the music, and its pull, fade as conversation grows louder.
We’ve reached the thick of the crowd.
To my bafflement, I don't stand out.
Oh, some women, like Fawn, are dressed in respectable gowns, covered from neck to toe, but there are others like me, and worse. One blue-haired, tall beauty with a deep tan seems to have fabric everywhere except where propriety recommends: silk covers her arms and shoulders, her midriff and thighs, but her pierced nipples and her hairless pussy are completely bare.
I can only stare. Catching my eye, she winks at me, before returning to her conversation with a handful of men and women, all almost as daringly clad.Leather, open breasts, cut-out fabric; they’re dressed for a rave. Which I suppose isn’t entirely inaccurate, though the music is closer to a minuet than metal.
One of her companions, a tall man with golden-blond hair brushed back and eyes the shade of molten amber, turns to me and stares. It makes no difference that the gorgeous, model-like fairy woman at his side is, for all intents and purposes, naked.
I've never seen a man like him with my own eyes; at least, if one forgets the one I imagined days ago. If the first fae I saw had been him rather than Cissa, Eochan, and the other Night Hall dwellers, I would haveknownthat he wasn’t human, or even a simple sup, clueless though I was. At the very least, I would have guessed he had a lot of work done to be this symmetric, glowing, and airbrushed.
His face is perfection: a strong jawline and a full mouth made to be kissed over and over again. His defined, lean muscles are on display, as he wears a dark skirt low on his hips and falling to his feet.Despite his choice of accoutrement, there’s nothing effeminate about that man—not with the abs, cut in the marble of his hard torso, the cleave on either side of his hips leading down to his narrow waist, and his wide, strong shoulders.
Golden hair, golden eyes, and a wielding a wicked smirk like a weapon, he's Adonis made flesh.Unfortunately, he seems aware of it.
When he raises his glass high, saluting me from a distance, I flush and wave awkwardly, sheer, giddy delight fluttering inside me.
The only man as beautiful as him is the one I imagined days ago. Part of me wonders how I’d feel if it had been him and not Junis who came to steal me away. Would I have been willing to be here? Likely not.
I’m almost glad when my escorts lead me to Junis, and escape after a deep bow. All fluttering, all giddiness, all thought of the dance and the beautiful stranger die, replaced by hatred.
That feels a lot safer. I remember all the reasons why I want to be anywhere but here.
I’m not a guest at this party. I’m a piece of meat on display, as surely as the roasts and cuts on the buffet.
“Ah, here she is.” Junis shows all his teeth as he lifts his head and announces proudly, “My new acquisition, freshly plucked from the mortal realm.”
I close my eyes and dream of plunging a knife between his shoulder blades. Only, that death would be far too quick for him. I’d remove the blade, and do it again. And again.
