บท 13: The Blue-Blooded

CRYSTAL CHANDELIERS, A live orchestra playing waltz music for the ball, servers bringing drinks around a glitzed out dance floor, and party guests dressed to their nines with puffy gowns and sleek suits. The scene that was in front of Alice was everything she had ever dreamed it would be. Story scenes from her fairytale picture books had come to life, depicting a perfect Cinderella ball that was complete with nobility, fancy outfits, and handsome Prince Charmings.

The ballroom had a large dance floor with a glass dome ceiling right above it. A single crystal chandelier hung from the very center of the dome and down towards the dance floor. However, with the height of the structure, the lights were still far above their heads. Each crystal sparkled like a star, the glass showcasing the navy night sky outside. With the way the ballroom was constructed, sound traveled brilliantly, perfect for a live performance. The floors of the ballroom were marble colored a rich gold and two winding staircases leading to a second deck that overlooked the entire dance floor. There, Alice could see two red velvet gold-gilded thrones where sat the king and queen of the kingdom. On the king's right stood a black-haired prince, a silver crown on his hair, standing a little behind the king's throne. Like all the other guests, he, too, wore a mask that covered his face.

A long line snaked up the stairs and towards the throne, most likely filled with the nobility that were lining up to greet the king and queen as well as the starring prince of the ball. No doubt that was what Wyatt had dragged her back to the ballroom for.

For a second there, Alice forgot about the skyscrapers she had grown up with. She no longer cared for the towering buildings, the bustling roads of the city, or even the conveniences of the internet. All she wanted was to stay in a world where magic finally seemed possible. It was a place where no one knew who she was, a place where she could start afresh. Finally, no more schemers that hid in the shadows.

Or so she thought.

Nonetheless, in the glitz, glamor, and gold of a royal ball, there were no shadows that could be spotted by Alice's untrained eye. All she could see was a sea of the rich and their riches, dancing and swaying to the beat of the music that flowed from the polished instruments.

"Beautiful…" Whispering under her breath, Alice could hardly contain a sigh. First a majestic garden and now a grand ballroom filled to the brim with glittering lights, she could hardly even remember how the small little town of Riverside Creek looked like. "I've never seen anything like this other than in movies."

"Moo-vees?" Wyatt echoed from beside her, scrunching up his eyebrows. He stared questioningly at Alice, head tilted to one side in confusion. Only after that had Alice realized her slip-up.

"Oh. Erm…" The gears in her head spinning fast, Alice dug as far as she could to try and think of something that could serve as a proper cover-up. "It's a type of picture book that is popular where I lived. It tells stories in a unique way."

"Fascinating! They must've been truly different from typical storybooks if they've made such an impression on you." Rubbing his chin in delight, Wyatt's ruby eyes seemed to almost sparkle.

Praying that he wouldn't ask any more than that, Alice nodded with a smile.

"It was."

Thankfully, he dropped the topic after that.

Led by Wyatt, the two quickly made their way through the ballroom where they found Charlie all by himself in a corner of the room. With a head of bright lilac hair, he wasn't that hard to miss. He held a drink in hand almost defensively, scanning the dance floor. Whenever a woman neared him, he would flinch, stepping back a little until she had completely passed him by. Only then would he relax. Watching his reaction, Alice wasn't sure if she should laugh or cry. If this little teenager was thrown into her world instead of her stepping into his, she wondered how well would he have survived.

Once they were close enough to the teenager, Wyatt lightly coughed into a loosely clenched fist. "Back straight, Charlie. Don't slouch."

Hearing his brother's voice, Charlie straightened instantly. The sight of Alice and Wyatt standing side by side nearly made Charlie cry in relief. Even behind his noir mask, Alice could spot a few drops of tears gathering in his eyes.

"Brother! You've found Alice! Thank goodness." A hand placed on his chest over his heart, Charlie sighed in relief. He proceeded to turn to Alice, taking a step closer towards her. "I'm so sorry I left you alone back there. I turned back to look for you almost right after but you weren't in the hall anymore and I didn't know what to do."

"It's fine," Alice said, waving the matter off. "I bumped into someone who was nice enough to show me around."

Wyatt stiffened at her reply, though Alice hadn't noticed. He glanced her way, cracking a thin smile as she continued to speak.

"He was certainly a strange gentleman. Rather rude sometimes yet…" Trailing off, Alice's voice softened.

"Yet?" Charlie prompted.

"Yet very sad, for some reason. He showed me a garden and said that his mother designed it. Though, I'm not sure why she would be designing a garden for the royal palace." Spinning on her heel, she faced Wyatt, asking, "Say, Wyatt, do you know who that gentleman was?"

"What gentleman?" Charlie asked.

"I was in the palace gardens just now and a man with red hair was the one that led me there."

At the mention of a 'man with red hair', Charlie's eyebrows jumped his forehead in surprise. Yet, he kept silent, gaze turned to his brother in search of his reply.

Wyatt, who had been reaching for a glass of champagne from a passing waiter, paused. His hands hesitated before landing on the glass, picking up the flute of champagne and delicately sipped at it. The golden liquid bubbled on his lips, leaving a lingering tingling sensation before he finally parted with the glass.

"Why do you ask?" Swirling his drink, Wyatt beamed. "Everyone here is somebody anybody in high society should know. Nevertheless, it is a masquerade ball."

Immediately, Alice's nose wrinkled. She wanted to argue that the masks actually did little to nothing to hide the identities of the nobles. If knowing each and every noble family member was such an important detail for the blue-blooded folk, then a flimsy material covering less than half a person's face shouldn't do much to hinder identification. After all, such conveniences happened only in movies.

However, Alice had learned her lesson once. She should be warier of what leaves her lips. If she mentioned the word 'movies' one more time, or any other futuristic invention of any sort, Wyatt might start to raise suspicion around her identity. She had finally found a home she enjoyed living in. It wouldn't be worth it to screw it all up for a moment of folly.

"Oh," she laughed, "It's just that he was acting a little weird. It seemed almost as though he was hiding some secrets. And with the way you reacted back at the garden, I assumed that he's one of your acquaintances."

With that explanation, there wasn't much else for Wyatt to say. He continued to sip at his drink, seemingly deep in thought.

Regardless, if Wyatt truly didn't know the identity of the man, then it meant well for Alice. After all, when they had first met, she had also said some things that she probably shouldn't have.

"Well, but if you're not too sure of who he is, then I can only assume that you don't know each other too well." Placing a hand on his chest, she sighed. "I guess not knowing him is a good thing, then."

Wyatt's ears perked up. "What makes you say that?"

Waving a hand as if to dismiss any negative thought that Wyatt might have, Alice nervously chuckled.

"Oh, it's nothing much. It's just that when I first bumped into him earlier on in the evening, I also sort of kind of reprimanded him for not watching his step."

"You what?" Unable to keep it in any longer, Charlie exclaimed. His raised voice gathered the attention of several nobles that hovered near the three of them, eyes all turning to land on the trio in shock and mild disdain. Charlie murmured a quick apology, paired with a swift bob of his head before inching closer to Alice, repeating, "You what?"

"Well, he was going about acting all high and mighty. I couldn't really help myself. Next thing I knew, everything was already said and done. Even if I regretted it now, my words can't be taken back. But since he isn't that far up the social hierarchy, then I guess it should be fine for me to have said those few words. Hopefully, he forgets about it and nothing else comes out of that."

Standing beside Alice, Charlie paled by a shade. The color of his cheeks immediately turned dusty and ghastly, all signs of life draining away as he slowly pivoted his head towards his brother. In contradiction to the young teenager's dramatic reaction, Wyatt simply sipped at his drink, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as he swallowed the last drop of alcohol with a satisfied sigh.

Unbothered, he placed the champagne flute on the table nearby, one that was designated for empty cups and plates used by guests if a server wasn't around to collect, before dusting his two gloved palms together. With a carefree grin, a signature of Wyatt's, he gestured towards the grand staircase that led up to the thrones where the royal family sat. In its direction was a server that hurried their way. When he arrived, he dipped down into a polite bow.

"Ah. It seems like it's finally our turn." Twinkling, Wyatt said. "Shall we?"

Even before he received a reply, Wyatt had already turned to leave. The heels of his shoes clicked as he glided over the marble floor, headed straight for the stairs with the server leading the way. Alice and Charlie, who both lagged behind, hurried to keep up with the older man.

"Be very careful of them, Alice," Charlie whispered to Alice as quietly as he could, all while keeping up to her pace, not too far back and not too far ahead. His voice was as soft as a flutter from a butterfly's wing, barely heard over the music. "No one with blue in their veins can be trusted. These people don't bleed red."

Instinctively, Alice gulped in fear. Her hands started to grow clammy, forehead gathering beads of perspiration. For the first time in her life, she was about to present herself before the royal family. If these people were anything like Wyatt and Charlie had warned, her life might be forfeit even with the slightest of mistakes.

They weren't human. After all, as Charlie said, these people didn't bleed red. Like a monster, they bleed blue.