Riku had arrived.
The young man, steely eyed and handsome, was not sure why he was here at the gates of a large mansion.
The evening sun was descending, filling the sky with deep dark shades of amber.
A large courtyard filled the distance between a wrought iron gate and an impressive estate, which could hardly contain its sound.
Rumbling bass, rapid beat, and frenetic rhythm were all manipulated by the sure hand of a talented DJ. Add in the scores of screams, shrieks, and yelps and it was obvious that a party was raging inside.
Riku ran a hand through his silver mane, fingers gliding through locks that fell past his shoulders. If he had known the party was held in this kind of swanky manor, he would've worn something more presentable than his yellow vest and blue jeans.
If he went home to change now, there was no coming back. He had come out here on the flimsiest of whims, and not wanting to waste this effort, he quelled his doubts and passed through. He slid the iron bars into place behind him and confronted a well tended yard.
A park was a better term for it, given the wide expanse and smooth pavement that led to the manor. A water fountain in the center disturbed the path, where beams of light and water crisscrossed in the air.
Flat-sided rectangular bushes flanked the road and tall columns of leaves, reaching as high as three stories, loomed over the evening sky. Recessed sockets in the ground illuminated the way forward, drawing him towards an increasingly noisy situation. The ground was trembling.
He wondered if he was the last guest to arrive. There was no one around. Just him and the manor's growing facade. The three story building was modeled after classic aesthetics, with tall thin windows covered in intertwining ivy.
A grand balcony rested above the main entrance with a white plaster rail made of rounded columns that looked like antique table legs stacked in parallel. The surfaces were patterned with discolored bricks ranging from gray to orange. On the rooftop sat sharply angled spires and towers. The windows dimmed on and off with shadowy figures dancing through the light.
Riku ascended the stairway with heavy steps and was met with a monolithic door covered in polished patterns of rich wood. The entrance was wide from the ground but narrowed upwards until it converged into a point above the frame. He pushed the doorbell and wondered if anyone could hear it.
The sound of the door opening answered him.
Riku had arrived.