PLEASE READ - A/N Hello! Sorry for the delay but I had to sort out the timeline problem in the story. Basically I have changed the story slightly meaning that if you are a regular reader, please start from Chapter 12 since it's different to the previous one. I have deleted chapters 12-14 and uploaded two new chapters which are now chapter 12 and 13. I hope people are not too disappointed with the change to the story and if there is any confusion just PM me and I will gladly explain in more detail. Thankfully the story hasn't changed too much and I hope you all enjoy it! If you are a new reader just ignore this message!
With Claude reading, the journey went by quite fast and soon Penelope found herself preparing to get out of the carriage. The house, which although was in the city of London, was vast in size and made Penelope's own house look like a garden shed in comparison. Turning to Claude, Penelope gave him a small whistle and gestured to the size of the place. Claude just smiled at her reaction.
"It is indeed quite a large estate" he responded before making his way out of the carriage. Moving her skirts, Penelope took Claude's white gloved hand which was waiting for her and got down slowly. Standing at the door was a butler dressed in a rather viscous shade of violet and had a bored expression painted on his face. Claude allowed some servants to take the carriage before standing dutifully behind his mistress.
The colourful butler managed to crack a half convincing smile when she approached and gestured for her to continue. The minute she stepped foot into the estate, noise surrounded her, and she felt herself stop, not used to the atmosphere. Yet she felt a cold gloved hand on her lower back push her forward and carried on.
The ballroom was a sea of masked faces and bright colours. All around her was a display of bold flowers which fragrance perfumed the room. Chatter and laughing echoed of every pale yellow wall and Penelope felt both ill and excited at the prospect of getting involved.
"My Lady" Claude spoke softly and gestured for her to go in. As she walked through the door, another man dressed in violet announced her name to the room and waited for the next person.
Feeling slightly overwhelmed by the atmosphere, she was very tempted to turn back and run but she felt a hand on her back preventing her. Claude glanced down at her scared form and escorted her to the side, out of the way of the other guests.
"My Lady, please relax. Perhaps you should introduce yourself to Irene Diaz who is situated over there" Claude gestured smoothly to the striking couple who Penelope recognised from watching them so much on the stage. Turning to Claude she watched as his eyes narrowed and she tugged on his sleeve to gain his attention.
"Please excuse me mistress. I will find you a refreshment whilst you introduce yourself". Penelope didn't get a chance to reply as Claude had already began stalking across the room and slowly was engulfed by the sea of masks.
Shaking her head, she walked forward in the direction of the opera singer, who was happily talking to a young gentleman, but her path was blocked by a plume of multicolour feathers.
"Oh what beautiful creature, an elegant swan you are! You are the true personification of the Garden of Eden, and I must taste the apple!" swooned the excitable character in front of her. The man, or rather peacock, was dressed head to toe in bright bold colours and had a mask that was jewelled with ruby like crystals. Penelope had absolutely no idea how to respond to the odd man but she had little time to reply when he grabbed her white gloved hand and kissed the fabric. Swooning once more, and rather dramatically twirling her around so that she found herself in his arms, he stroked her mask.
"Who are you my dear swan?" he asked with an airy voice.
"Lady Penelope-" she didn't get a chance to finish her sentence as he gave a cry of happiness.
"The name, derived from the suffering wife of Odysseus' wife, oh you must be as angel like as you appear". He carried on touching her, a little too inappropriately and she decided that she wanted to know who he was.
"Viscount Druitt! Unhand that girl at once!" snapped a female voice from nearby. The Viscount in question gave a startled jump, before plastering a smile back on his face.
"Ah my beautiful Irene Diaz, your voice is on par with the angels who sing sweet melody's in my sleep!" He still had not let go of Penelope and she attempted to dislodge herself. The opera singer, who was accompanied by the man she had seen him talking to earlier on, took Penelope's hand and got her away.
"Now, perhaps the Viscount should go and say hello to the rest of the guests" she said coldly and with one last scathing look at the down looking Druitt, she hooked her arm in Penelope's and took her back to the corner which she had originally came from.
"You must never allow a man to take advantage, as females we are seen as below them on all levels, but we are far more". Irene said with a determined glint in her eye, which quickly turned to surprise.
"I do apologise, I have not introduced myself, I am Irene Diaz and this here" she gestured to the man "is Julius Pitt". They both bowed their heads and in return Penelope gave a small curtsy.
"It is an honour… it really is to meet you Miss Diaz and you Mr Pitt. I have been to the theatre to watch you countless times Miss Diaz and each time you are as spectacular as the last. Thank you for saving me from that situation before and Oh I am Lady Penelope" she said in a rush. In a space of ten minutes, Penelope already felt as though too much had happened, but seeing her favourite opera singer cheered her up. In reply to her rushed speech, the couple laughed at her enthusiasm.
"I'm always honoured to meet a fan, not all people appreciate music and it's obvious you do. So please call me and my friend by are names my Lady. Are you here all alone?" Irene asked with a charming smile. Her outfit was a light shade of blue, pink purples and reds. Looking closer it reminded Penelope of the way the sky looked in the very early mornings. Julius was wearing the same colours but considerably darker, and Penelope could guess what they were.
"Then you must call me by my name also. I am not alone…. I have my butler with me but I can't for the life of me tell you where he has gone. Also, would I be right in guessing that you are dressed as the sunrise and sunset?" The two looked at one another in surprise, and at first Penelope thought it was over her butler's behaviour.
"You are the first person other than Lord Davis to recognise our costumes! I'm so very glad our idea was not wasted. Julius here spent at least a week coming up with the idea. You are a swan, are you not?" asked Irene who was happy to have a conversation with someone who was not obsessed with climbing up the social ladder. Penelope in return smiled and began to answer the question. As she spoke Penelope realised that the night might not be as bad as she first thought.
Meanwhile, Claude who had abandoned the search for a drink for Penelope was standing outside, listening very carefully for any disturbances in the wind. He had sworn that he sensed Lucy when he was in the ballroom and felt a surge of anger at the very idea of Lucy being within the same proximity as his Penelope. But his instincts had oddly enough been proven wrong since he could no longer feel any unusual presence. Feeling guilty about leaving Penelope on her own, especially considering that she had been so nervous; Claude slowly made his way back into the large building. He didn't notice as he left however, two glowing red eyes watching him from the bushes.
Penelope was laughing happily when a sudden cough from behind her caused her to jump in surprise. Turning around from her conversation with Irene and Julius, she was greeted with the sight of a butler and a tall young man who looked as though he was only a few years older than her. The young man was pleasant looking and wore a big toothy grin, and his eyes were a sparkling blue which were slightly shadowed by a golden mask. His entire outfit for that matter was in fact golden, from his shoes to his headpiece. She gave a smile back in return and Irene grinned from behind her shoulder.
"This is Lord Davis who I mentioned before Lady Penelope! We will leave you both to get acquainted. We will make sure to talk later". Irene spoke cheerily as she dragged Julius away with her leaving Penelope alone with the new strangers.
"Lady Penelope, what an honour it is to see you. We have met once but that was a long time ago. I would also like to give you my condolences, I knew you father through my cousin". Lord Davis spoke softly and Penelope just nodded in acknowledgement. Usually she would have told him that she does not need nor want any sympathy but considering he seemed to genuinely mean it, and obviously meant no harm, she let it slide. Holding out her hand, she waited for him to accept it, which he did almost hurriedly and give her gloved hand a tender kiss.
"Thank you. I appreciate the thought. But I do not wish to discuss the past, so I must ask because I'm quite curious, what are you dressed as?" Penelope asked, hoping to stay away from the topic of her parents. She still found it hard to talk about them. Considering she now knew they were murdered she felt even less inclined to talk of them. She pretended for Claude's sake that she had moved on, but deep down she still felt a painful stab when they were mentioned. She was snapped out of her sad thoughts when Lord Davis gave a gleeful chuckle.
"Ah! Yes! I'm glad you asked. But before I tell you, you must guess". Penelope had to admit that his merriment was infectious and she couldn't help but laugh. She wished Claude could act a little more jovial at times but quickly got rid of that thought. Yet the thought of Claude led to her attention being focused on the bored looking butler who was standing loyally behind Davis. Lord Davis noticed her looking behind him and waved a gold covered hand over his shoulder.
"Dean, you are excused. Please find something useful to do". At these words Dean just walked away slowly, still wearing the bored expression. Davis' attention was now solely focused on Penelope and gave her an encouraging smile.
"And what will be my reward if I guess correctly my Lord?" Penelope asked with a mischievous smile. He gave her a playful bow and put his hand to his heart dramatically.
"You will get the grandest prize of all. A dance with me". Penelope laughed in reply and nodded her head in acceptance. It had been so long since she had spoken to another person other than Claude or Victoria and although Irene had been lovely to talk to, Penelope found Lord Davis amusing to be around. Placing a finger to her lip, she tapped her bottom lip thoughtfully as she considered what he could be dressed as. Suddenly it clicked.
"Are you by any chance King Midas?" she asked with a smile. The Lord in reply nodded enthusiastically and took her hand in his own larger one.
"You would be correct and now as promised we will dance!" he cried happily and escorted her to the dance floor. She laughed as she danced and they exchanged a few witty remarks about her being turned to gold since he was touching her, and she felt relaxed around him.
Watching from the side, Claude gazed at the sight in front of him. His Penelope was in someone else's arms and looked absolutely content. He felt panic stab his chest. Although she had explained that she did not wish to marry, her joyful expressions directed to the young man she was with now suggested otherwise. Claude had always thought of this happening. At first the idea of her marrying and then no longer needing him, which could release him from his debt, excited him. But now the idea made him feel sick. Clenching his hand around the glass he was currently holding, he turned around and exited the room, just in time for the glass to smash.
Penelope was having a fantastic time. She had just been passed off by Lord Davis to a smaller young man who had a nervous stutter. He had introduced himself as Leonard and she gave him an encouraging smile, trying to calm him down. After a couple of minutes of dancing the young man seemed more relaxed and only stuttered a bit when he spoke. Yet her conversation was abruptly ended when she was pulled into the arms of another.
She was about to snap at the rude man who she was now dancing with but stopped as she took in his costume and mask. As she gasped the orchestra suddenly began to play Tchaikovsky's 'Swan Lake' and Penelope found herself dancing with the black swan himself. The man was dressed all in black with the exact same mask as her own, but in black. It was only when her eyes met golden ones she opened her mouth to gape in surprise.
"Claude?" she whispered in obvious surprise. He in return just smirked and continued to spin her around in small circles along with the music. His arm was wrapped tightly against her waist and her petite frame was pulled up against his own. It was for the first time that Penelope felt a jolt run through her entire body. She felt heat beginning to pool in her stomach and was confused by her reaction. She had been near him before and never felt like this. As he spun her around again, Penelope tried to rationalise her bodies response but couldn't. Instead she could only focus on his lean body against her own. She sucked in a squeal she was about to release when the music stopped and he dipped her body down. Glancing at his golden eyes, Penelope was shocked to see her own desire mirrored in his. The sound of clapping broke the intense moment and before she knew it, Penelope was pulled back up and left alone feeling very flushed. Wondering what just happened; Penelope felt a hand grab her own and was dragged to the side.
"You danced wonderfully! Who was that man?" Irene asked excitedly as Julius wrapped his own arm around Irene's frame. They had been dancing not far from Penelope and had witnessed the exchange.
"Um… Just an acquaintance". Penelope replied as she shook her head. 'The carriage ride home is going to really awkward now' she thought as she glanced around the room. After seeing no sign of Claude, she carried on with the discussion but her mind kept wandering back to the way Claude had felt against her.
The rest of the evening was uneventful with more dancing and discussion. By the end, Penelope was ready to fall asleep on the spot. She was talking to Lord Davis when Claude suddenly appeared and informed her some of the guests were leaving and that they should be leaving considering the time it would take to get back. Agreeing with Claude, she bid Lord Davis farewell and Claude allowed her to exit the room first and followed her.
"It's time to start making some arrangements Dean. I don't want to lose this one". Lord Davis snapped at his butler as he watched Penelope go.
Outside, Penelope awkwardly clambered into the carriage that had been waiting for her. She didn't get very far as Claude appeared at her side and took her hand allowing her to get in without any difficulty. Snorting at her own clumsiness, Penelope gave quite thanks and seated herself down. When they were both settled down, the carriage began its journey home. Yet as the carriage was leaving, Penelope moved quickly to the window and opened it to shout a goodbye at Irene and Julius. They waved in return and Penelope felt an arm grab her waist, pulling her back in.
"You will catch a chill". Claude responded to her confused look.
Five minutes into the journey, Penelope felt her cheeks flame up at the thought of the dance and she looked out the window to distract herself. She was about to drift off to sleep when something entered her mind.
"Where were you tonight? I never did get that drink you went to get me; thankfully I was offered one by a servant".