Here is chapter 6 :) sorry it's short but it's going to get good from here!

Brittany awoke to the sound of raised voices coming from downstairs, she quickly got out of bed and put a shawl around her for some modesty. She then tip toed out of her bedroom and onto the landing.

She edged towards the staircase and leaned against the cool wall, she could just about make out what was being discussed. "Idiot!" John Pierce shouted "the king himself gave me those men to protect this house and you mean to tell me they are MISSING?"

Brittany could hear an unfamiliar mumble before her uncle roared, "YOU THINK THEY JUST GOT BORED AND LEFT? they are the KING'S men! you and I both know they would get killed if they abandoned their place!"

It dawned on Brittany that the two sentries who had recently came to watch outside her house must be gone. When the guards had first arrived Brittany was curious as to why they were there but just dismissed it, her uncle must have just wanted a little more security.

But now she was concerned about her uncle's desperate tone when he discovered that they had disappeared. Why had the king given them guards in the first place? She knew that John had started working with the royal with some construction work but never thought it important enough to ask exactly what.

"This can only mean one thing" Pierce said a lot quieter now, Brittany had to strain to make out what he was saying, "they were killed. There was an attack on my house the other night, by those bloody assassins, probably to try and steal my plans, or worse have me killed".

Assassins? Brittany was shocked, what would they want with her uncle? The absence of the guards suddenly made her more uneasy, did they need protection? Below was now was eerily silent (her uncle and whoever he had been talking to must have went outside) allowing Brittany's imagination to run wild as she thought of blades in the darkness slashing at her while she slept.

"Hey" a familiar voice said, air hitting her cheek, Brittany jumped as she was so absorbed in her own thoughts.

"Cousin!" she breathed, "don't scare me like that, it's not nice" she glared at Artie as he faced her with a grin on his face.

Artie winked at her then said "so you heard about the guards then?" Brittany nodded, "what is Uncle doing for the king?" she asked.

Artie leaned closer to her and murmured in her ear, aware that the servants could be anywhere "he didn't tell me personally but word gets around. I was at a party the other night when one of the hosts came over and congratulated me on climbing the social ladder. Of course I did not know what the chap was on about so he explained to me how father had been taken on by the king to make the city's castle less impenetrable by enemies. That must be why we had guards because if I was an assassin I would be pretty pissed with father right now" he chuckled.

Brittany looked at him with a puzzled look on her face, "are you not worried that he could be in danger?" she asked quietly. " not really" he shrugged " he's a grown man, he made a decision so he has to deal with the consequences"

Brittany could not believe how non fussed her cousin was. "Besides" he continued raising his voice to a more conversational one "this just means more party invites and pretty ladies to hang onto my arm" he laughed.

"which reminds me..." he rooted in the pocket of his trousers before pulling out two silver metal coins and handing them to Brittany, "these are to get into the masked ball the night after next, it's going to be the party of the year and your cousin here just so happened to get extra invites" his eyes shined mischievously "so bring a friend, maybe an artist?" Brittany smacked his arm rolling her eyes. Arite laughed before moving off the wall "see you cousin!" he waved.

Brittany wondered at Artie's words, so her uncle was doing a dangerous job. She just hoped he knew what he was doing, she did not want anything to happen to the man who took her in when her parents had died of fever years ago. Brittany shook that from her mind, she did not want to dwell on the past any longer than she had to.

Instead the blonde girl looked at the coins more closely. They were intricately designed with loops and swirls with a typical ballroom mask was in the centre. Brittany smiled, she had never been to a real party, she had only once been to an artist's get-together which she had begged Artie to take her with him.

She had felt so uncomfortable there despite the lovely art works on display. Every few minutes she would be approached by a sweaty and drunk men, asking for a dance or begging for a kiss and more. She hated feeling their bodies press against her as they tried to get possession of her. In the end she told Artie she was not feeling well and her cousin had brought her home.

But this event would be different. It wouldn't be a sleazy thrown together party. This ball was going to be the social event of the year with masked men and women dancing the night away. Brittany loved to dance just as much as she loved art. When she heard a beat she could not help but move, it was if the rhythm was coursing through her very veins keeping her heart thumping.

But who will I ask? A flash of chocolate brown melted into her mind, immediately answering her question for her. Santana. As soon as the name flashed in her head she started to buzz with excitement as she thought of being with the brunette girl in the grand ballroom. I'll ask her today and just hope that she says yes!

Brittany then went to her room, humming a tune as she thought about dresses and Santana in them, completely forgetting about the worry she had had only moments before.

XXXXXX

Santana wrung her hands together nervously. Here she was again outside the art gallery in normal clothes. Except this time she was not stalking or chasing anybody, she was waiting for Brittany to arrive. It felt strange to wait for somebody with a different kind of anticipation other than the "I'm about to kill this person" kind that she got so often while she waited for a target so she could dispose of them in the most inconspicuous way possible.

She was nervous as to how Brittany would regard her when she saw her. She had made such a fool of herself the first time they had conversed and just hoped to God that this would be her chance to redeem herself.

She had taken time with her outfit this time, she visited a few of the hideouts before she made her decision on an emerald green dress that had small brown leaves adorning the bust and sides with the sleeves trailing down to her hands, allowing her to conceal her blades.

Having the blades secure on her wrists made her feel more confident maybe even a little arrogant, besides she needed to be able to protect Brittany as best as possible. Every so often she would flick her wrists to bring the blades out before quickly bringing them in again out of habit. No one would be able to see what she was doing, unless they too were assassins. She loved to hear them slide out of their guard and snap back, it made her feel more powerful.

After a few more minutes of anxious waiting, the brunette spotted Brittany who was still a far way off, her trained eyes zeroed in on the girl as she walked down the street. She could feel her heartbeat fluttering against her chest as she smiled a little breathlessly to herself.

She watched how the sunlight made Brittany's hair shimmer and shine, giving the girl an angelic quality that not even all the artists of Italy could recreate on a canvas. She did not think she would ever tire of watching the girl, but as Brittany neared the gallery she spotted the Lopez girl and hurried over to her with a wide smile.

"You came!" Brittany exclaimed, Santana could not help but notice how the blonde's eyes had glanced downwards to her bust before coming to meet her dead on in the eyes. Santana grinned widely meeting Brittany's gaze. Her blue orbs had a less devastating effect on the girl now, instead they gave her a more familiar homely feeling, as though she was floating in the middle of the ocean instead of drowning in it.

"Of course I did" Santana said and boldly held out her arm, her confidence growing now that she was more in control, "I was thinking, it's such a nice day out, why don't we go for a little walk instead of being cooped up in that stuffy old gallery?".

The truth was Santana did not want to spend the day looking at dull artwork, besides she hated how those artists leered after Brittany. The memory of their lurking forms made her wrists twitch, the straps of her blades feeling hot against her skin. She shook off the beginnings of a red haze that would descend upon her on the rare occasion when she lost her cool, she did not want to become angry, not in front of Brittany who was so sweet and innocent.

Brittany giggled and took Santana's arm, the brunette saw a hint of red creep into the girl's cheeks and chuckled at how cute she looked. "Lead the way Santana" Brittany said patting Santana's arm causing a current to run through her making her giddy as they set off down the street towards the canal.

Thanks for reading and hoped that cleared up any confusion people had about the guards being gone unnoticed :) I'll update ASAP!