BELLE.
of this she was certain —- here was a place that she didn’t belong. strange to be in such a castle, at such an event, everything felt larger than it was. in the midst of it all, belle couldn’t help but feel SMALL. in an attempt to have a little adventure of her own, news of a ball held promise. inspired not to live her life merely reading of the heroines who took chances, this go around, she would be one.
a break from such a PROVINCIAL life if but only for a night. truth be told, she hadn’t expected to make it past the front doors, much less the front gate. it was but a short ride with philippe, a stammered excuse that her carriage was in the midst of a repair. the excuse even sounded silly in her mind as it came out of her mouth, but they’d gone for it.
once her cloak had been removed and taken to be set aside, the young woman followed the sounds of music &&. chatter towards the ballroom. while she had a dress all her own, it wasn’t nearly as fancy as those she saw that seemed to somehow stand out even amongst the positively outlandish decor. like nothing she’d ever seen before, it truly was another world entirely.
fingertips glazed over the bannister in her decent as those danced in unison down below. a flitter of nerves hit the pit of her stomach, growing increasingly aware of her posture. oh god, did she even know how to dance ?? her thoughts began to carry her away as slowly, she blended into the crowd. a sense of anxiousness she’d been a stranger to until this point. allowing her feet to take control of the movement, as those thoughts simply took in the evening – that look of A W E never quite fading out from her expression.
( @hereforevermore )
the pattern of the night was always the same. it was on his command - a click of his fingers - that the soirée began.
almost immediately it seemed, adam’s hall was filled with dancing, brightly clad revellers. they swirled about the place, the sparkle of their gowns && jewels dizzying to the eye. on a raised platform, maestro cadenza was coaxing a tune out of his harpsichord that set hearts thumping && feet moving faster. to the maestro’s left, madame de garderobe, whose operatic voice soared above the heads of the crowd, the perfect accompaniment to her husband’s music. adam himself sat above it all, for the first part of the evening, at least. seated on his throne, it was from this lofty height that he surveyed his guests, deciding which of them was most deserving of his company tonight.
he finally deigned to descend && mingle, taking the arm of a pretty little thing who had caught his fancy. unfortunately, the girl’s eagerness, her excitement at being chosen, showed all too clearly in her face, && in the way she immediately began to prattle on about her admiration for him. if she was trying to make a good impression, she was f a i l i n g - whilst adam LOVED to be adored, he couldn’t help finding it cloying at such close quarters. he cast his gaze around, already wishing for another partner.
her, adam immediately decided, as his eyes locked onto another young woman, who in stark contrast to all others looked to be trying ( rather unsuccessfully ) to blend into the crowd.
she was in no uncertain terms the most beautiful girl he had seen all evening, perhaps all his life ( which was a grand claim indeed, considering the number of eligible ladies that were continually sent his way ). it struck him, however, that she looked, completely && utterly, out of place. she had a look of wonder in her eyes, as if she had suddenly been transported to another world - && that dress, it was as plain as she was lovely.
with a smug expression, adam thoughtlessly handed off his present partner to another gentleman. he made his way over to the girl who’d caught his eye, && extended a hand out to her.
❛ dance with me? ❜ it was a command framed in a question.
