Midnight's Song (13 page)

I felt a huff of air
expel itself from my chest. Although I stood within reach, they
still acted and spoke as if I wasn’t there.
Poor little Stella,
I rolled my
eyes.
So upset that she can’t go to all of
her friend’s parties!
She was lucky that
being confined to this mansion with a multitude of servants was her
only complaint. The horse-like boy looked in my direction; opening
his mouth and revealing a set of abnormally large teeth that made
him look even
more
like the animal than I had previously
thought.

“Stella, I’m
sure
that there’s more
to it than that,” he irritatedly told her. “Things are changing
around here! You’re coming of age anyway. Perhaps it’s better to
have a season where you’re not as busy as you will be when you
start courting.”

“Reginald, don’t be
absurd!” The redhead shouted, suddenly whacking him on the shoulder
with her hand fan. “Stella is
already
of age! Why is it your
concern all of a sudden that she not be courting
yet?”

The horse-faced Reginald quickly
reddened. A quiet, tall brown-haired boy stood next to him just as
embarrassed as he was. A slender brunette suddenly chimed up from
the side; Reginald’s sister, clad in a depressing grey gown than
only accentuated the fact that she also had horse-like
features.

“I’ll bet that
Stella has
many
suitors who have come to vouch for her hand already! Isn’t
that true, Stella?”

All eyes fell on her. Stella looked to
both sides, acting as if she felt that someone was monitoring her
every lie. Even from the far side, I could see that she was
blushing and even beginning to sweat! She puffed up her chest and
fidgeted her hands before she began to stammer.

“Of course! I’ve had lots of suitors…I
uh…uh…”

“How many?” The
quiet brown-haired boy skeptically spoke up. Suddenly, the boy
glanced in my direction. “You’re not even 16 yet, Stella! But,
isn’t your cousin? Is she bringing you the suitors? I assume
that coming from a family with such fine looks as
yours that you would be able to at
least
give us a reasonable
number!”

At the very mention of my existence
she turned dark rouge. I could have sworn I saw the steam coming
from the top of her head! Stella took in a deep breath before she
had to over-confidently assert herself in order compensate for such
an embarrassing loss.

“Alright
then,
10!
I’ve
had 10 suitors come and ask for my hand! And none of them were here
for her!”

“Stella, how impressing! Why don’t you
tell us their names?” The horse-boy teased in response to her
far-fetched reply.

Knowing where this
conversation must have been going, I lost whatever spark of
interest that would have kept me here in the first place and
decided to tune them out. The bickering became annoying, even
slightly disturbing. If I stayed here any longer, Stella would
probably decide it was time to kill me. Perhaps there was
something,
anything
else I could do that might be of interest until the night was
over!

Unfortunately, I was
wrong. Upon scanning the room once more, I took notice of a scene
not so different from the one I was already a part of. Wealthy
dignitaries stood with plastered smiles, letting out an occasional
and very superficial laugh while they pretended to participate in
meaningful conversation. There was music playing, but not one
person danced to the monotonous tune. A string quartet was seated
on a platform in the center of the room, playing a continually,
lulling, and for the most part mind-numbingly boring series of
symphonies. It didn’t take very long to realize that this room had
absolutely
nothing
to offer.

And it was my turn to escape
it.

Without paying it another thought, I
decided to sneak out through a small door at the end of the
corridor. No one seemed to notice my presence, so I didn’t think
they’d mind any lack of it. The door led into a vast hallway that
led to my most precious place of escape; the garden. As soon as I
reached it, I twisted my fingers around the dimly lit world
outside.

“Finally…”I sighed in relief, away
from the monotony of the party inside. It was a feeling of triumph
and freedom, to be away from that superficial prison of
torment.

The relief was short lived, and I
quickly started to second-guess myself. Even if they’d hardly
noticed me at the part, if someone found me out here it might
reflect badly on my family. It might have even seemed ungrateful
for me to skip out on my own presentation like this. At the same
time, every inch of my mind detested the idea of going back in. I’d
have rather sat naked in the snow than do things their way. I think
I still might.

In the end, I decided that it wasn’t
going to kill anyone if I found a quiet spot to get some air before
slipping back inside. I scanned the scenery again, hoping to find
the perfect retreat. The hedge maze seemed to be the perfect choice
for my hiding spot. I quietly wandered across the courtyard and
opened the metal gate that led to the hedges. I wandered deep into
the maze, cut across the center and found my way out the opposite
end. When I emerged, I saw that I was standing at the foot of the
forest.

“I’m safe here,” I let out
in relief, taking my shawl and laying it across the grass so that I
could lay down on it. “No one will find me now.”

I let out a breath, gazing
through the branches of the trees at the full moon that lit the
clear night sky above. Even though it was bright, it was blanketed
with stars that I could clearly see. The cold air crept in an out
of my chest in a way that almost burned, yet I thoroughly enjoyed
it. Free at last, I took my fingers and ripped the ribbon out of my
hair.

The feeling of the
hair tumbling free was like a chain being loosed from around my
neck. There was no one here to tell me to bind my hair, to button
up my dress or wear a tight corset. There was no public to paint a
perfect façade to, and no Magistrate to fear the worst of. I was
simply
free.
It
truly seemed that I was to myself in the darkness of the crisp,
February night.

I had no idea that someone else was
watching.

Blissfully unaware, I continued to
bask in the night and all of its glory. It was times like this that
I truly lost myself and became a child again. Nature simply did
that to me. Even though the air was frigid, I suddenly felt
compelled to throw off my shoes. I took my satin slippers and
kicked them aside, digging my toes into the cool earth. I found my
mind temporarily brought back to a simpler, peaceful time. A time
before this mess had started and my life had ended.

In completely
unanimity with the feeling of my toes burying themselves beneath
the soil; I felt the same thrilling sensation of having them
covered in
sand.
I could almost hear the rhythmic ocean pacing itself back and
forth. And for the first time in almost a year, I felt that the
world was – at least for a moment – simply
perfect.

All the while, my
unexplainable behavior had been taken notice of by someone else.
Perhaps it was signal of the pain I had suffered, or perhaps he
could see something…something
more.
Whatever the case, he watched over me quietly
from a distance as it all transpired.

I felt a strange trance
come over me, and I began to sing…

“
Dance with me to
midnight’s song

A tale of lovers, old and
young

Sing to me of the world
beyond

Under the moonlit
skies”

The sacred song sent chills through
me. I stood up, dancing around the clearing. It was a feeling of
ultimate freedom, even joy. Little did I know, my voice also did a
very earth-shattering thing at that moment. It wrapped itself
around my guardian with a supernatural grasp; beguiling the one who
had been watching over me and causing him to remain speechless
where he had been spying. I couldn’t stop here. I opened my mouth
once again and continued my singing:

“
A world of crystal seas
and crimson moon

Of blood-red roses and
lives anew

Where the scarlet lilies
bloom

Under the midnight
sky”

There was a rustling in
the bushes behind me, but I didn’t notice it. I was simply too
caught in the enchantment of my carefree roaming. He too was caught
in the moment. Though, he was captured by something much deeper
than a childlike joy. I opened my eyes and looked at the moon, and
suddenly my joy began to quiet. I realized that I wasn’t on the
beach watching the tides, waiting for my mother to run toward me
and cradle me in her arms. I attempted to continue living the
moment by finishing singing this one last verse. Though, as I did
so – reality suddenly caught up with me.

“Under scattered
stars and bright full moon –”
I attempted
to sing, but with each word I choked even more so. I stopped for a
moment, sucking in a heave of air and trying to move on as my voice
began to shake. When I weakened, the one watching me took notice.
Seeing my pain, it was something he
sympathized
with. He looked over me,
reading into my soul while continuing to watch me silently from
where he hid. I opened my mouth again – but I just couldn’t do
it…

“
A single kiss that binds
the two

Under the midnight
-”

I stopped, the tears falling from my
eyes uncontrollably. I fell down onto the ground and wept. For some
reason, it made me feel weak and inferior – even though I was sure
that no one was around to see it. In my moment of sorrow, I closed
my eyes; but I was quickly jolted out of my sorrows when I felt a
strange hand settle itself on my shoulder.

“Please don’t stop singing, it’s
beautiful.” A smooth voice called from behind.

I leapt up and jumped back, completely
terrified at the same time. When I whirled around I was met
face-to-face with a strange young man whose features were distinct
but dim in the moonlight. Probably seeing the shock on mine, I
witnessed a look of embarrassment creep over his expression in the
darkness.

“Oh – I’m so sorry if I startled you!”
He suddenly apologized. I relaxed a bit, trying to study his
features and see if he was someone I knew. Seeing the tears on my
cheeks, he pulled out a small cloth and offered it to me. Though,
he remained silent. It seemed that he wasn’t going to speak until I
put forward a single word.

For a few seconds, I
studied him. I didn’t recognize him at all, not even a small bit.
Though, my fear dissipated and my body became relaxed within those
few seconds when I realized the large wall that separated the
far-reaches of the manor from the rest of the world. This person
was not an intruder – how could he have been? No one could scale
that wall or get past that gate without permission unless by
magic.
I guessed that he
was simply a party-goer who – like me – hadn’t felt like staying
for the monotony inside. Then I had another thought. One that
bothered me quite a lot, actually.

“Did you…follow me here?” I
uncomfortably posed.

I’m sure he could see me tense up
again along with all of the tears that had already fallen down my
cheeks. I lost my balance slightly, and I ended up nearly falling
into him. He caught me, but not quite so gracefully. We actually
bumped into each other more like two bobbing flamingoes awkwardly
butting heads. Attempting to stabilize me by placing his hands
firmly on my shoulders, he hurried to give me an answer before
something else happened out of the awkward and
unnecessary.

“No, I promise I wasn’t,” he hurried
to tell me. “I just…was getting a breath of fresh air is all. Then
I heard you singing.”

I expelled a breath
of relief, but half of the tension was still there. Unable to read
all of his features, I could still see that he was
tall.
Obviously most
everyone was very tall next to me – but this person stood tall even
by
average
standards (whatever you’d like to define “average” as being).
His eyes stood out, glowing almost like a cat’s – I guessed it to
be the effect of the moonlight or maybe my slightly less elevated
point of view – but I didn’t pay much attention to the color. The
situation was actually much too awkward for me to be in any way
mesmerized by him. I let out a nervous laugh to lighten the
situation.

“So…you don’t like the party either?”
I ineptly chimed.

Something about his expression changed
that I could see, faintly lit as it may have been outside – and it
caused a strange calm to come over me about him. It was like my
soul – spirit – whatever it was inside of me; was telling me that I
was going to be alright. He wasn’t a bad person. He was
okay.