5 hours left...
Mai nervously smoothed down the fabric of her dress as she checked her reflection in the mirror. It was pretty certainly, she particularly enjoyed the dark purple, but less modest than she was used. Not that her dress was particularly raunchy, she would not be showing any more skin than say, Madoka or Luella, who she viewed as particularly refined and sophisticated ladies of the court, but nevertheless she felt a bit exposed.
There was a gentle knock at the door. "Come in!" Mai called, turning the other way.
Ayako entered the room and clapped her hands excitedly. "Oh Mai, you look wonderful!" She rushed forward to examine her more closely.
"Do I?" She mused worriedly. She tried to adjust her skirt so it would flatter her figure more. Ayako slapped her hands away.
"Yes, you do. You look wonderful. I'm sure you'll attract him."
Mai bit her lip and nodded uncertainly. "... I hope."
"Any guy would be lucky to have you."
"... Thanks, Ayako."
"No problem." She smiled broadly. "Now let's get out there." She grabbed Mai's arm and tore her away from her reflection. Mai was not a vain person by nature so was relieved at this; she'd spent too long fussing over how she looked and frankly, she wanted a fun night. No matter what happened at the end.
"You look nice." Mai said suddenly when they were in the corridor, remembering awkwardly she hadn't complimented. Ayako's dress was a dark red affair, with shiny silk pulled up to her waist in a ruffle, revealing a slightly darker skirt underneath. Silver snaked its way up her bodice from the ruffle to the topmost hem. Her hair was done in an intricate knot at the back, with pearls adorning her ears and some strands. Mai wished wistfully she had pearls in her hair, she was rather fond of the look.
"Don't I always?" She sighed dramatically, tucking a strand of ginger hair behind her ear.
Mai laughed. "Yes, of course you do."
A gleeful shout interrupted their laughing, Mai paused and looked around. Yasuhara, Houshou and John were only a few metres away. She waved, and John waved happily back, but Ayako - who was still in control of one of her arms - dragged her closer.
"You look lovely Mai." Houshou complimented.
"Lovely! She looks fantastic. Mai, if Noll continues to ignore you like the blind fool he is, may I have the honour of dancing with you tonight?"
Mai's cheeks flushed crimson. "Thank you. I would love to Yasuhara." She smiled happily. Yasuhara smiled back.
Next to her, Ayako pretended to huff impatiently. "And myself?"
"I suppose you look good, you know, considering you're about a hundred." Houshou teased.
Ayako batted his arm lightly, but smiled at him nonetheless. John was saying something to Yasuhara, who was smiling. Mai smiled too - but it was a mixed smile. She was glad her friends were happy of course, and she was excited for the ball, but tonight could be the last time she saw them. It all depended on Noll, and she felt it in her heart that however much the others encouraged her, they were wrong, and he didn't feel anything special towards her.
"Mai, don't look so gloomy. Tonight you shall enjoy yourself, no matter what happens." John said softly. "Will you take my arm?"
"Gladly." Mai slipped her arm round his elbow. Behind her the count offered Ayako his arm. "I will miss you."
"I think you are mistaken." Mai looked at John with wide eyes. "Noll may not love you, but he will. I'm sure of it. But, correct me if I'm wrong, the curse says it has to be your true love? Then he does not need to love you at the moment. Or rather, be in love with you at the moment."
Mai was thoughtful. John was offering her hope that none of the others had managed. Maybe she was looking for the wrong thing. She expected that her true love would land in front of her, fully formed, but that had always been unrealistic. People only fell in love gradually.
"Thank you John." Mai said, at a loss to say much else.
"You look afraid."
"I am afraid."
"I wish I could make you less so."
"Thank you. You are very kind." Mai squeezed his arm. John bowed his head. They passed the rest of the walk through the castle in silence, but Mai found it more comforting than trying to make small talk. Finally they reached the main entrance hall and walked down the stairs.
Mai gasped.
Ahead of her the banqueting hall opened up, full of people and chatter and light reflected of hundreds of mirrors that lined every wall. There were so many colours, so many ladies in fancy head pieces that must have been sewn onto their heads to prevent them from falling off if they wanted to dance. The younger girls had curls spilling over their shoulders, the older dames were encrusted in jewels. The men were no less fine, covered in embroidery and brocade. For a moment her heart faltered, how was she to find Noll amongst the crowd? Her foot slipped off the edge of the step she was stepping onto.
"Be brave Mai." John whispered beside her as he gripped her wrist to prevent her from falling. Mai nodded. Falling down the stairs would be a typical, though not reassuring, start to the evening.
As they entered the ballroom the noise hit her. She had not been to a proper ball for years, she could barely remember the last one. There were people speaking in all sorts of languages, some of which she could not identify at all.
"Would you like some food?" John asked courteously.
"I'm too nervous, but thank you. Perhaps later."
"In that case, would you dance with me?" John smiled at her.
"Of course."
They progressed to the edge of the floor. Mai's stomach churned as she saw one of the twins flash past her with a pretty girl in his arms, but she breathed out in relief when he winked at her. She hadn't realised she'd been holding her breath. Luella and Martin followed at a more leisurely pace. She couldn't see Noll anywhere, but she guessed dancing wasn't his thing.
As the piece of music came to a close she and John made their way onto the floor. There were a few moments of silence punctuated by the general hubbub as she got into position. Then she saw him fleetingly, just beyond the edge of the dancing area. Was he looking at her? She thought he might have been, but then he turned and was lost to the crowd. Her cheeks flushed crimson. Had he seen her, or had he been looking straight through her? Luckily the music started again and she had to focus on her feet.
She was grateful that it was a slightly faster Waltz so she had no time to think about him. As she whirled round she felt strangely calm, but she knew it was the eye of the storm. As soon as the music finished she had a panic attack, but was saved by Houshou coming up to her.
"Mai, you look terrified. I was going to ask for a dance, but you seem frightened by the prospect. Come, let's go find Ayako, she's wandered off somewhere. Probably to rest her aching, geriatric bones." He grabbed her hand and pulled her back into the throng.
They battled their way to the edge of the room where seats lined the walls. Ayako was standing near Masako, who looked paler than she did normally. Mai's heart sank as she saw her, her dress was dainty, making the already tiny girl look even more doll like, and her hair and make up tastefully but becomingly done. She should have looked radiant, but she looked as ill as Mai felt. Suddenly Mai realised with a stab of pity, she was presumably here to be paraded so a suitable match could be made for her. It was unsurprising she looked so unhappy. Mai felt compelled to make another stab at diplomacy. If she was to leave permanently, she'd like for Masako to at least be neutral towards her.
She was greeted by them both as she came closer. "You look lovely Lady Hara." She greeted Masako politely and was rewarded with a curt word of thanks.
"If you're looking for the twins, I saw Gene dancing with Princess Elysia of Mardonia a few minutes ago." Ayako butted in not very helpfully. "And if I know anything about Oliver he'll be sulking in a corner trying to scare away people."
"I wasn't looking for the twins-"
"Yes, you were." Ayako gently turned her around. "Why don't you check all four corners of this room until you find Oliver and see if you can get him to not frown for a few seconds."
"I don't-"
"Yes." She pushed Mai away gently. "Do you want me to babysit you?"
"No." Mai muttered, resenting a little bit Ayako's attitude, but she did really want to see Noll as it turned out.
Yo, Noll, how are you holding up?
... I hate this every year.
I saw Mai, if you're interested.
I'm not.
She looks really pretty tonight...
Are you going to list every girl and their appearance?
Only if you want me to.
I don't.
Gene bowed to his partner as the dance ended and started making for where his twin was roughly. Maybe he could convince him with his physical presence...
He spotted Mai out of the corner of his eye and instead changed course to go to her. "Mai!"
She turned to look at him, momentarily startled, and then smiled broadly. "Gene! I was looking for you." It was a small lie, but she didn't really want to explain why she might be looking for his grouchy brother who probably thought staring at plaster was more fun than dancing.
"Actually, it's Noll. My infinitely more handsome, intelligent and charming brother managed to knock some sense into my dense head." He joked.
"You're identical twins." She deadpanned. "Nice try Gene."
"Awh, was worth a go." He grinned broadly, then bowed and outstretched his hand. "May I have the pleasure of this dance, Miss Taniyama?"
Her smile grew as she curtsied and placed her hand in his. "Why of course, your highness."
He led her gently closer to the other dancing couples and together they started dancing.
"You look lovely tonight, Mai." Gene complimented and for a brief moment Mai wished with a pang that it was Noll saying those words to her.
"Thank you. You look rather dashing tonight."
"Well, I maintain that I am by far the most handsome brother."
She laughed loudly and he quirked a grin. "Of course Gene."
They talked pleasantly as they danced, though Mai feared she didn't reply much as she tried to focus on where she was putting her feet. All too soon, the dance was over and Gene was leading her back to the edges of the fray.
"You are a pleasant dancer, Miss Taniyama." He teased lightly. She was, in actuality, a just passable dancer, but telling her that was unnecessary. Also, if he pretended she was pretty good maybe Noll would want to dance with her more. More than he did already, of course, because he was sure that Noll felt a burning desire to whisk Mai into his arms and-
What on earth are you thinking about Gene?
Uhh, nothing.
Outside his head, Mai blushed slightly and smiled broadly. "You aren't so bad yourself, Prince Eugene."
His grin grew wider. "Why don't you talk to Noll? He's busy being moody."
Her blush grew slightly darker. "I, er..."
His smile slipped away and he looked concerned. "I'm not forcing you. I know first hand he's hardly great company..."
"No, no, that's not what I meant. I'd be happy to talk to him. I just… I just don't know if he'd want to talk to me."
"Oh, Mai. Noll likes you more than he likes to let on. He's just… socially dead."
"Socially dead?" Mai asked, unable to stop herself brightening up at the idea of Noll liking her more than he let on. Though, that said, he acted like she were just another person wasting his time and taking up space so that could just mean he thought she was okay to be around.
Gene, unaware of her thoughts, grinned comfortingly at her. "I'm rather pleased with the term. Came up with it myself. Why don't you try and resurrect him a bit? Please."
"Are you suggesting I'm sort of necromancer?" Mai faux-grumbled. Maybe it hadn't been 'faux' enough, because Gene looked vaguely alarmed.
"No, no, of course not. Just joking." He said quickly, clearly eager to fix her unbroken feelings.
"So was I." She swatted him. She felt a burning desire to finally just go to Noll, but alas, she had no idea where he was and asking Gene might make her seem too keen. She couldn't let Gene know she was crushing on his twin, specially with the whole telepathy-magicy-heebyjeeby-thing they had.
He grinned again in relief. "Sorry. Anyway, Noll's sulking over in a corner. Come on."
She nodded, trying to settle any butterflies. "Okay."
She followed Gene uncertainly, slipping through groups of people and muttering apologies when she bumped against someone. Noll was indeed sulking, sitting with one leg up, watching idly the couples dancing. His eyes looked slightly glazed over in boredom but when they came closer he looked up at them.
"Hello." Mai said politely, hoping that her appearance really was as nice as everyone said. Or that it was as nice as that in his eyes. "You don't look like you're having much fun."
"Well observed." He said, tone clipped.
Mai felt her insides sink. Gene had put her in a good mood and it was all dissipating when faced with Noll's marble exterior.
"Mai, please sit down whilst I get you a drink." Gene deposited her by Noll before she had time to protest and disappeared into the crowd. Mai looked wildly around, suddenly wishing she hadn't been persuaded to come here. Noll smirked.
"What's so amusing?" Mai said miserably.
"My brother. He's a romantic." Noll said wonderingly, as though this was an unfortunate disease Gene had picked up and he hadn't gotten used to it.
Mai didn't know how to respond. She made some comment about the couples dancing. He looked critically at said couples.
This is the moment where you ask her to dance... Gene nudged his brother.
Noll sighed. He stood up stiffly.
"Miss Taniyama, may I have the pleasure of this dance?"
Mai's eyes stared up at him wide as saucers.
"I… uh…"
"If you don't say yes or no soon the dance will have ended and the decision made for you." He said dryly.
"Yes!" She said quickly, before mentally admonishing herself for seeming too eager.
He took her hand and quietly led her to the dancefloor, where a slow waltz was playing. Mai was glad for this, for slow waltzes where her best dances and this meant that she was less likely to embarrass herself.
Neither of them said anything for a while, and Mai found herself focussing on the warmth of Noll's hand against her own, the broadness of his shoulder and the feel of his hand on her waist.
"So…" Mai started eventually, desperate to have some kind of conversation.
"You just stood on my foot."
"Sorry." Mai flushed. She hadn't even realised. There went trying to impress him out of the window. Why couldn't she, for once in her life, be refined and graceful? Why didn't she have it in her?
While she fretted over her ability to embarrass herself, Noll was under mental attack from Gene who'd started to constantly bug him about the dance.
She looks sad? What did you say?
I said nothing. Noll defended. She stood on my foot. She's the guilty party.
Noll, you idiot, people don't like it when you point out their mistakes.
I don't care. Where are you anyway?
That's not important. Gene said nonchalantly, but Noll was sure he got a glimpse of him whirling around the dancefloor with a giggling duchess.
He cleared his throat, and Mai glanced up at him.
"You look nice." He said, feeling mightily awkward.
But Mai didn't seem to mind his awkwardness, because suddenly she beamed up at him, like he'd told her her eyes were full of moonlight sparkles or whatever passed for compliments nowadays.
"You think so?" She gushed happily. "Thank you." Then, more shyly, "You look very nice too."
"Of course I do." He said automatically.
"You and Gene are quite similar in some respects, you know." Mai mused as Noll narrowly prevented her dancing into an elderly couple. Mai's lack of sense of rhythm was aggravating when you were on a crowded floor and the rhythm was the only thing stopping everyone crashing into each other. He'd pegged Mai as a shy dancer, much like her personality, but she kept trying to lead. That said, he wasn't sure she was aware of it.
"Pardon?" He asked, eyebrows together in concentration.
"Gene is also very self confident. Of his looks, I mean."
"Why shouldn't he? He's related to me, after all."
She laughed and he felt himself relaxing somewhat. This was nice, even with the permanent loom of disaster. Noll was definitely against accidentally getting caught in a scandal, and the scandal that seemed most likely at the moment was Mai causing an aristocrat to fall, or she would fall on them, or something equally catastrophic, and no doubt he would get the blame as he was supposed to be leading her.
"What's so funny?"
"Oh, nothing, just Gene said something not too dissimilar."
"I see." He said cooly.
Then they said nothing again, but this time the silence was somewhat more comfortable. Or at least it was until Mai tripped over his foot - how, neither knew - and started to fall backwards. Noll quickly strengthened his hold on her, till she was practically held against his chest.
"Don't worry, I've got you." He murmured as she regained her balance with some difficulty.
"Thanks." She replied, before realising that they were a lot closer than they were meant to be and blushing bright red.
He loosened his hold on her at almost the same time, convinced she could now dance without falling over. She tried not to eye his chest and remember how close she'd been, but was failing.
The dance ended soon after that, and Noll and her separated. He led her back to the edges of the room, near where he'd been sitting before.
"Thank you for dancing with me." She said quietly when he let go of her arm.
He glanced at her, but she had no clue what he was thinking. "A pleasure, Miss Taniyama." He said politely and it worried her that she had no clue whether he meant it or not. That said, he'd said she looked pretty, and that was more than enough to make her happy for the time being. She looked around and spotted a table with refreshments, and made her over there.
10 minutes left...
Mai sighed as she rested her forearms on the chilly stone of the balcony outside, watching the lanterns glow golden in the black garden below. There was a large, ornamental clock on the side of the palace, and she knew she didn't have much time left. She'd given up on her true love. Maybe she didn't have one, or maybe she'd never met him. She was tired from dancing and the late hour and accidentally eating too many sweets. It'd been fun, but now she didn't feel like going back in that room. She was sure the others would understand.
There was the quiet sound of footsteps behind her, before someone stood next to her, copying her position with their arms on the rail.
"Why aren't you inside?" Noll asked quietly, a breeze ruffling their hair slightly.
"I want a break." Mai said simply. She wasn't going to explain it to him, he probably wouldn't understand and he'd probably leave before her time came. She idly wondered how exactly thw witch would claim her.
"Tired from dancing?"
"You could say that."
"Hm." He said thoughtfully. "I thought you enjoyed this sort of thing."
"I do. Just not all night long."
"I can empathise with that."
"Oh, you wouldn't enjoy it even if you only had to be there for ten minutes."
He snorted the air out of his nose. "I'm sure." His tone was light, amused even and Mai turned her head to finally look at him, smiling.
"It's quite easy to guess why you're out here."
"I'm hiding from Gene. He's been harassing me for half the evening."
"Is Noll scared of his brother?" She teased, grinning widely.
"No. I'm appalled you would suggest such a thing."
"Well, I did."
This was nice, she mused to herself. I've enjoyed my time here. I'm still enjoying it now. She felt a pang of grief, but suppressed it. She'd have the rest of her life to mope.
"Gene likes to give you trouble during events like these?"
"You have no idea."
"He means well."
"He means to irritate me."
"... Did… Did he… No, never mind."
He frowned at her. "What is it?"
"Well… Is Gene the reason you danced with me?"
His frown deepened. Should he lie? Had danced solely with Mai to get Gene to be quiet for five minutes (not that it'd worked, mind you)?
"I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions." Was what he said. It was nice ambiguous ground to take, and he saw her mull over the answer. She seemed to take it favourably, because she smiled a lazy smile that drew across her face slowly and pleasantly. He turned his attention from her to the garden below them. He could make out the outlines of all the trees, the flower beds and the fountains, all in murky yellow or a dark blue black.
"I think I see people." Mai murmured, who had been doing the exact same thing he had. She could see two shapes, slinking across the grass from one patch of trees to another.
"I see them." He studied them for a moment longer, until they had once again melted into the black. "Just servants. No doubt sneaking off to… Well, you can guess."
"Oh." She could guess, and it didn't surprise her. Everyone else had a more successful love life than her. "Could be assassins." She joked.
"I doubt it. Everyone of political importance is in the room behind us and judging by the lack of commotion I don't think anyone's died."
"Poison." She suggested.
He mulled over it for a second. "It would be difficult to engineer."
"True, true."
"Are you always this morbid?" He mused bemusedly.
"Keep your smarmy comments to yourself, thank you." She said faux-haughtily.
"I am, believe me."
She laughed at that, and he enjoyed the sound more than he would ever let on. A faint smile tugged at his lips.
Then they looked at each other. They had unknowingly slid closer together during their conversation, and now their arms were just millimeters away from touching. They both realised this at the same time and looked at each other. She could just feel the warmth of his breath on her, and she leaned even slightly closer. His eyes glanced down to her lips, and she held her breath as they shared eye contact again-
There was a low rumble as the clock struck midnight and with a horrifying lurch she realised it was over.
Noll had only been mildly distracted by the clock, but Mai's sudden intake of breath and the way her eyes widened with shock made him blink and then there was a faint sound, like a whisper in a wind, and it came with a feeling that they weren't alone anymore. He frowned in confusion and turned to look, as did Mai.
The witch grinned wickedly.
"Isn't this a touching scene." She looked between them. Noll had positioned himself slightly in front of Mai.
"Who are you?" The chill in Noll's voice was palpable.
"A guest of Miss Taniyama's." Her grin was sickening and sadistic.
Noll glanced back at Mai briefly, and judged correctly from her face that the witch was an unwelcome guest. "Leave or I'll have you forcibly escorted from the premises."
"How terrifying. I'd have thought you'd be begging me to stay. But as you want me gone so soon… Come, little princess."
Mai was only vaguely aware of Noll turning to stare at her. Her legs were moving, even though she wasn't willing them to. Her insides felt like lead. He said something, but she was focusing on stopping her legs. Her legs were refusing to listen and all too soon she felt the witch's nails digging into her shoulder painfully.
Mai turned to stand next to her. Her eyes connected with Noll's and she regained herself for a moment. Noll was studying them both with thinly veiled confusion and disbelief. He stepped forward slightly, arm raising as though he meant to grab her. "Mai-"
"I'm sorry." She whispered, but the witch laughed and with a rustle of the wind they were gone.
Hello, sorry for the delay. At first I was trying to come up with ideas for the few days remaining before the ball but I couldn't think of anything so I just gave up and wrote this. I never had any intention of having Noll kiss Mai before her days were up, so it's a relief to be writing something that was planned from the very beginning. Next chapter will the last, an epilogue. Hopefully it will come soon and it shouldn't be too long. (This chapter is twice my average chapter length, consider it an apology of sorts).
I was also delayed by what noise the witch should make when she appeared and left. At first I went for a sucky sound for humour but then couldn't decide what to change it to so you guys almost had a chapter with the lines:
Noll had only been mildly distracted by the clock, but Mai's sudden intake of breath and the way her eyes widened with shock made him blink and then the SCCHLOORRRPPP SHWWWUPPP noise was definitely something you couldn't miss. He frowned in confusion and turned to look, as did Mai.
"I'm sorry" She whispered, but the witch laughed and with a SCCHLOORRRPPP SHWWWUPPP they were gone.
I asked a friend for help and he told me to keep it like that.
I do hope there are still people reading this, any of my old regulars still here? Because I've become slow with updating I'll post a little status update on all our stories:
Aftermath: I want to done with Aftermath, honestly. It was my first story so I have soft spot but I'm tired of it.
Cursed: One epilogue to go before it's all done.
The Storm: I can't really remember where I wanted to go with this. I'd like to pick it up but I'm kind of unsure what to do with it.
Death in Tokyo: I kind of messed up the first chapters, that's why it's taken so long. I can either try and salvage and give the readers a lousy first case or I can delete it and start again.
That's all the ongoing stories, though I should probably mention I have an FMA AU in the works, but I won't post anything until I've got just about everything worked out and probably most of it written so it won't become another ghost.
I've been absent from this fandom, so send me stuff to get me back into the Ghost Hunt mood. Fic recs (especially recent ones I'm likely to have missed), links to fan art, headcannons, anything Naru/Mai.
Golly, this is long. You know the drill, you like, you review, you want to confine me to the darkest deepest pits of hell, don't review, or at least do so politely. Any typos, mention them please so I can fix it.
