The Feast of Fools painted Velder with colours and the streets tempt the citizens to enter and enjoy the festivities. From the cold stones that would usually keep any passers-by in their homes, near the fireplace, festive torches lit up the path for a night to lure the most reluctant habitants into the smell of food and dance. It was exactly what the most important port city of Lurensia needed to brighten its gloomy nights. Raven organized most of it, and the main event would decide who would be crowned as the king of the Feast.
The question lingered on everyone's lips, for they had to find the ugliest and dumbest fellow to take the crown as the King of Fools. Amidst the crowd of dancers was a group of red-haired gypsies making their guitars, voices and dances entrance the whole town to their rhythms. Ara was the captain of the foreign guards that looked to maintain the city peaceful during the biggest festivity of the year.
The summer nights dissipated the heat of the day with a calm breeze. The people of Velder were dancing and even the man that had organized it all was having a good time near a food stand, talking to a blonde woman. The black-haired woman had overheard some citizens talk about a group of gypsies that were excellent dancers. This got her curiosity, as she had talked with a red-haired gypsy around a week ago. Her name was Elesis, and she was a very beautiful woman. Ara wondered if Elesis could dance as good as she looked. Vanessa noticed that Ara, her superior, had been staring at the Clocktower Square, where tourists, citizens and gypsies all danced at the rhythm of violins and guitars.
"Ma'am. You can go dance if you wish to. We can take care of the rest." Vanessa said.
Ara was a bit startled by her subordinate's words, taking a moment to clear her throat before replying. "Vanessa, I am the captain of this guard, how can I disregard my duties?"
The blue-haired spear woman chuckled at her captain's hesitant words to mask her true desires. "Captain, I doubt you will have the time to go and dance in festivals when you marry your cousin Aren. Once you're married, you might not have free time, trust me on that."
Ara glanced at Vanessa, she was already a married woman and her advice on the matters of the heart was rarely wrong. Although, Ara was glad that her subordinate wasn't fully reading her mind. If she had, she would probably scold her about her reticence regarding marriage. Aren was a good person, but perhaps a bit sentimental for her. Ara had grown to imagine a knight in shining armour as her future husband.
When she met Aren, however, she noticed that he was far away from that image. Maybe this night would clear her mind from those bitter thoughts and replace them with the dances and the music. The image of Elesis, sitting on the stairs leading up to the Cathedral came back into her mind. Ara hoped that the Church of Ishmael would be asleep during the party, although it was unlikely for Raven to prevent Monsignor Ainchase from stopping the party if he so wished to.
Ara took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "Alright. I guess that some dancing won't hurt. I leave the command to you. Only for tonight."
Vanessa saluted her superior. "You can always count on me, ma'am."
Ara nodded and walked towards the Clocktower Square, knowing that what she had truly left for wasn't something she could ever hope to trust Vanessa with. Ara shook slightly her head as she made her way through the crowd, looking for the red-head she had seen before. She simply wanted to see Elesis but thinking about the reason why brought her down into a spiral of thoughts that she would never think about before. Her work and Aren should be the only things she should thoroughly think about, not a red-haired gypsy.
Ara bumped into someone and immediately excused herself only to realize that it was the person that had redrawn the thoughts of her mind with her image.
"Ah. Good...evening." the captain muttered.
Elesis wore the same white shirt and the long marine skirt from a week ago. The red-head combed some locks of her hair back and greeted her. It was then that Ara remembered that Elesis had worn the same white and navy blue dress when they met.
"It has been a while, commander Haan." The gypsy said. "Are you on duty today?"
Ara shook her head. "No, Not yet. I've got the time to enjoy the festivities for a while." A smile was creeping up her face, just like the time they first met. There was something about Elesis that made her mind forget its troubles. However, it seemed that there was something clouding the very same warmness that she had known Elesis for.
"That's perfect!" Elesis chirped, clapping her hands twice, her golden bracelets chiming with her excitement. "Then, could you dance with me until duty calls?"
Ara nodded and took the red-head's hand, just to not lose her among the cramped space around them. Elesis's grip was warm, but also very fragile, as if it were asking to be held tighter. Ara closed her grip softly, but the thoughts of her unwanted fiancé came back into her mind. Her hand was squeezed by Elesis and she looked at the woman in front of her, how the long ovals of her earrings danced with each step. It was a fleeting thought, but it left an echo in her mind.
Elesis was probably the most beautiful woman she had seen. Even if she wore clothes that could barely be considered above rags, the simplicity of her dress under the night lights made the most vivid colours of the rainbow, violet and red, burn intensely.
The music of the guitars got louder and Elesis turned again back at her and grabbed her other hand as she spun to turn along the rapid rhythms. The necklaces around Elesis's neck chimed against the breeze that waved their hair to the side. Ara had never danced to the bohemian melodies and their rapid steps. Elesis's sandals were light on the floor, but their movements were as blinding as a burning flame. Her long skirt was fluttering, uncovering glimpses of her legs and sometimes her thighs.
It took Ara a lot of focus to follow Elesis in her dance and not lose herself in the fiery gaze that would perhaps send her to hell itself. The two women weren't aware of the minutes ticking by, only of each other's eyes and bodies, stepping along each note as if they had danced together since the beginning of time.
The songs eventually came to a halt and the two were already sweating from their dance. Ara decided to give Elesis something to drink from one of the food stands. They walked with a cup of juice in their hands, speaking about the other festivals they had attended to. Although neither of them said it, that night was one of the few where they had had a lot of fun with someone else.
They ended up sitting on a fountain near the cathedral, gazing up at the constellations blurred by the city lights.
"Ara," Elesis began with a much calmer voice which Ara didn't expect from her, nor that she would call her by her first name. "I'll probably leave Velder soon. Even if my family decides to stay."
Those words made Ara's heart sink like lead, spreading an invisible and cold weight in her chest. "Why?"
The red-head lowered her head and smirked to try to brighten her sad gaze, but it only got Ara more worried about her. The commander of the knights turned to the side to look directly at her. Elesis looked for her hand again, but this time, Ara took a second longer than before tying her warmth to comfort Elesis.
"It's a long story, Ara."
Ainchase had been forced to open the gates of the Cathedral to host the refugees that had been fleeing from the war. Among them were the gypsies, who rarely turned their prayers to the Goddess. Instead, they danced, and they sang with their strange rhythms.
The mid-summer evening was ending when he knelt down in front of Ishmael's altar, holding a rosary wrapped in his praying hands.
"Our Goddess, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name." he mumbled as he touched the sacred cross of Ishmael with his thumbs.
Ainchase closed his blue eyes and lowered his head, offering his full mind to Ishmael's guidance. Instead of the peace he found in prayer before, his thoughts came back to the red-haired gypsy and how she danced over the stairs leading to the Cathedral, light like a fairy and fearless in front of the only Goddess.
The Monsignor took a deep breath and opened his eyes to look up to the marble cross coloured in purple and crimson by the stain glass windows above it.
He got up, glancing at the cross again before heading to the Cathedral's second floor where he lived. Elesis held the sin of Eve within her and perhaps she had a demon inside of her. Her crimson hair and eyes were the explicit warnings of the evil that inhabited her. At least, that is how things should have been. Elesis's eyes held no malice and neither did her voice; she was the only one who could soothe the orphans that the nuns had given up on. Could there be a soul and not a devil underneath her clothes?
He had observed her for as long as she had stayed in town, but if he got too close, Elesis would push him away. She was the sun and his words were wings made of wax, melting as they got too close. He couldn't give up yet, for the absence of his faith had left only a burning shell in him. That was why he had sent Add to get the sun instead. By now, the Festival should have ended, and the opportunity would be just right.
"If she won't let me see her, then I'll bring her to me." The blue-haired priest affirmed with a smirk on his face.
Add had been wondering around the streets, hidden by an old cloak Ain, his adoptive father, had given him. It helped him hide his white hair and his scarred black eyes; those were horrendous marks that the Devil had given to him since birth. If it wasn't for Ain, who knows if he would have lived long after being abandoned.
He really owed his life to his only father. Even if he had to remain hidden within the bell towers of the cathedral, even if he could only look from afar at the new comers, he was fine with it. Everyone but Ain would reject him if he tried to approach them anyway. At least, that was what he thought until a red-haired gypsy had come into the cathedral. He didn't know her name, but he had called her 'Belle', as it was the only word that suited her well.
She was beautiful, and she was not scared nor disgusted by his horrendous face. She had helped him get down to the main floor after he had lost consciousness due to the heat. The woman with the hair of flames had given him water; it was the only person he knew besides his father that would dare to get close to him. Oh, how much would he like to run his fingers through her hair! However, he had to fulfill Ain's orders. If he obeyed, he would probably have a better chance to see her dance like a bird trying out her wings to fly away.
Add finally noticed that the red-haired gypsy was talking to commander Haan and Raven Cronwell, an important noble. They were talking about crowning the king of the Feast, the king of Fools.
Add began to clasp his hands nervously and tried to pass without being seen, walking slowly and glancing from time to time at the redhead. How long had it been since he had seen her so close?
"Ah, Elesis, you're certainly the most beautiful woman around. Even commander Haan agrees with me. The honour should be yours." Cronwell said.
Elesis took a crooked crown of wood in her hands and chuckled. "If you insist, Mr. Cronwell, I guess I will accept this honour. Did you find the king?"
Add turned towards the group and muttered the red-head's name. Elesis. It had such a beautiful sound to it. He almost didn't notice the breeze that pushed his hood down.
"Ah, I think I found someone you can crown, Elesis!" said commander Haan. She had seen his face, Cronwell had seen his face and who knows who else had seen his demonic ugliness. Add felt his heart race faster as his temperature rose and his nervous hands almost ripped his hood instead of putting it back.
He had to run. They would laugh at him if he stayed, they would be disgusted to see the spawn of Lilith walking around like this.
"Hey, wait!" Elesis hollered.
Add stopped and let her catch up with him. She was just behind him, he knew it. It would be the second time he would see her face to face if he dared to turn around. If he did, he would be crowned as the King of Fools in front of all the city. Everyone would see him and laugh at him, but maybe he would see Elesis dance again. She would tell stories with each dance and her clothes would shine under the mauve and cherry shades the sun could give them.
He clenched his fists and turned around, keeping his hood on. Instead of the disgusted or scared faces that people used to make when they saw him this close. She had the same kind eyes that he had invaded his dreams.
"Oh! You're the one that rings the bells of the cathedral!" she exclaimed.
"Yes. I am." He replied, looking at his feet, feeling almost the urge to cry. He couldn't believe that she had remembered him. Nobody except from his father could remember him. Maybe it was because of the curse that had made his hair white.
Elesis asked for his name and his mind went blank for a long succession of seconds. He couldn't keep his mind focused on answering her when so many things in his life, so many thoughts he had taken for granted, were turned upside down. It was because of Elesis, the Belle Elesis.
"My name is Edward. But, uhm, father calls me Add. It's shorter and I also call him Ain. It's like, you know, nicknames. Nicknames are shorter than names, I think. At least that's how they should be."
His words were getting faster as the temperature of his face was rising dramatically. He didn't dare to look back at her again. Maybe the other two were already laughing next to her at what he had said. He was indeed a King of Fools. Elesis took advantage of his lowered head to put the crown over it.
"Voilà!" she mused. Add raised his head to see her smile, not mockingly, but as if she was genuinely pleased by how the crown looked on him. "Add, I hereby nominate you as the king of the festival!"
The commander and Cronwell looked a bit uncomfortable because of his appearance, but they nodded regardless. Raven Cronwell took him to a wooden platform in the middle of the Clocktower Square and all the citizens of Velder applauded him as the King of Fools, sometimes turning away or simply saying that Cronwell had chosen him well: He was the ugliest and dumbest fellow everyone knew.
After everyone had laughed at him to their heart's content, Add put back his hood and tried to find a quiet way back to the Cathedral. However, he remembered what Ain had asked of him. Elesis had to come back with him, willingly or by force. The crowd was too thick to even get out of the Square fast, but many were gathering again at the platform to see Elesis dance.
Like a moth to a flame, Add followed the flow of the crowd to see her dance freely. He didn't expect the ample clothes of the Belle slowly slip down her figure. Her shoulders and thighs were the first things that the wind revealed. A heatwave was returning to the summer night, although he could be the only one feeling it. A silent sigh filled with anticipation left his lips as he leaned towards the stage, waiting for the crimson shroud that spun around the gypsy's shoulders uncovered her skin. He would have to see hell to pay just by seeing her move, but Lucifer would certainly let him go beyond the goddess' law.
From the other side of the Square, Ara was as mesmerized by Elesis's movements, but her thoughts were stopped again by the inevitability of her fate. She couldn't refuse to marry, not when the image of her family was at stake. Aren would soon become the duke of Hamel and no one else with more influence than him had offered her marriage. Yet, every time she saw Elesis dance, a whirlwind of feelings that she could not quell. Her fiancé was kind by nature and he could very well let her be untrue to him before they married. She knew no love for Aren, and to be with Elesis, Ara would let the Devil take her whole.
The habits of the Monsignor were visible from the boundaries of the plaza and his shadow crept up like an omen over Add's shadow. His blue eyes were a maelstrom of ice that froze the festive aura with a single sentence.
"What kind of indecency is this?!" his voice roared and silenced the bohemian percussions. The crowd turned around to see Ishmael's law stand firmly against the pagan festival. "Have all of you been blinded by the pagan dances of a gypsy witch?!"
Many looked at each other and murmured a prayer before going away. Add stayed where he was and waited for his father to take him back to the Cathedral. Instead, he saw him stare at Elesis with a faint trace of guilt. The blue-haired priest glanced at him and nodded, as if to remind him of what he had to do. The albino couldn't refuse anything to the severe, yet silent orders of his father, even when he disagreed with them. Ain had said that Elesis was a witch, but if he was the first one to throw a stone at her, Add would hang him high and laugh to see him die alone.
Although, he was sure that his father would never be that cruel. It was in his nature to talk to people before judging them. He followed Elesis from a safe distance to bring her to Ain's home. It was the only thing he could do for the two people he loved.
His steps were easily noticed by Elesis, who turned around with a tired smile on her face. She asked him what he wanted, and he had no reason to lie to her. However, he did not imagine that the face of the most beautiful woman could hold the same scorn as everyone else. Her words were insulting nonsense about Ain, calling him an unsettling creep that she would never talk to again. Elesis was kind, he only had to find the right words to convince her that she didn't know his father well. It was probably all misunderstanding, but instead of staying to listen to him, Elesis went away.
That mid-summer night was losing slowly the colours of the festival, the stands were closed, the stage was brought down, and the light given by the torches were dying one by one. Down an alleyway, the scream of a woman was heard; the few passers-by returned quickly home. If there was any killer on the loose, they would rather save their own skin and let the guards deal with the bloodbath the following day.
The morbid curiosity quickly won some on-lookers that were already safely home. They saw glimpses of the black-haired captain of the foreign guard drag towards her men the King of Fools. Soon after, they saw her carry a scared red-haired gypsy towards the city hall. The guards hit the albino and told him he was a monster for trying to kidnap a woman in the middle of the night.
Justice had been done for them and it was enough to bring them back into deep sleep. However, that reality was far away from the minds of Ainchase, Add and Ara. They couldn't get rid of the image of Elesis, dancing naked in their souls. Each one of them knew that desiring her so deeply was something that went against Ishmael's law.
Their prayers to the Goddess were useless, but their desires only grew stronger. If anyone dared to judge the woman they would've sold their souls for, they would all hang him high and watched him die alone. Their prayers turned towards Lucifer, the angel that would let them all go beyond the goddess' law and open the door of love inside Elesis's heart.