"Hello. W-welcome, welcome. I'm surprised you showed up... you're very late but, well, better late than never, right?" The Master nervously shifts from one foot to the other in front of you. It's been years since you last talked to him. Your relationship has been rather bitter for quite some time, but it seems tonight, you're ready to talk again.

You look funnily to the side, asking yourself why you refer to him as the Master. He's Lysandre, your friend of eight years. You remember when you met him. You were nineteen, young and anxious to see what will become of you. He begged of you not to refer to him formally, seeing as everyone else saw him as high and mighty, but alas, it seems that the informal bond you had has all but faded ever since his encounter with the law.

"Hey, you seem rather quiet. Are you doing all right?" Ly cocks his head to the side, looking very concerned for you. You snap out of your trance of memories, shaking your head.

"Yes," you say, "I'm doing fine. You?" You grin at him. A rather lovely smile, if I do say so myself.

Ly shakes his head, smiling sadly. "That's nothing of importance. Besides, I'd rather not let you into the labyrinth that is my mind. It is... very strange and frightening." He looks down at the carpet. You look down to see what he's staring at. It turns out to be nothing, but since when has this carpet been white?!

"Well, I'll leave you be", Lysandre says quietly. "Please make yourself at home, socialize, whatever you need I will provide you. My friends and I have decided to play a game of cards in the dining hall, tonight at ten. I hope you'll be there. Lysandre winks at you, smiles, then walks off somewhere...



You watch him disappear into the crowd. After that talk, you really could tell that he's changed. He seemed a lot... more considerate than usual. Caring, even. Something that doesn't come naturally to someone like him...

You turn around, now face to face with a butler. You jump in surprise and he does the same. Champagne spills, and the silver tray clatters to the floor. The man then takes immediate action to clean up his mistake.

"I'm so sorry, miss," he says rapidly. Something tells you he's new. "I didn't mean for that to happen, or to scare you!" He looks up at you, in a dorky way. Classic. Bump into someone, fall in love with them. That's how most stories went. But your life is not a love story! No, you just help him up.

"I believe I must introduce myself to you formally, now that we've met," he says, bowing in your presence. "My name is Tyler, and as long as you are staying here I will be your humble servant. You seem quiet, tonight, miss...?"

"(Y/N)," you say. You've always found your name to be lovely, and if I am to be honest with you I've found it quite likable as well. Tyler smiles and nods in response, cheeks reddening a bit.

"Miss (y/n). I... I like that name. It sounds like something an angel would be named..." Tyler backs away, bashfully looking at the carpet. You look down, contemplating why in the world this carpet might be so interesting to everyone...

"Anyway, you seem quiet. Might there be a reason for this? Are you just intimidated by your new surroundings? If you are, I'd be happy to-" He's cut off in the middle of his sentence as another person somewhere in the manor calls for Tyler, who nods with a grin, and rushes off somewhere to tend to the guests. The image of his hazel eyes glimmering is imprinted in your mind— a reminder of someone kind-hearted.


In the middle of all the chatter, another person approaches you. A man with midnight-Black curls and eyes silver as the full moon. He seems like a happy person, but the expression on his face is nothing short of somber.

"Excuse me miss," he says, looking down at you despite the fact he's only a tiny bit taller. He seems rather young at first due to the pitch of his voice but you know otherwise: he's Professor Augustine Sycamore, a man thirty-one years of age. Four years older than Ly. They had dated at one point, but their relationship ended up unbelievably bitter just before the end of November 2013. When Ly got into that... incident.

"I've seen you talking with Lysandre. Just a few words of advice, he's not really who he seems. He can be two faced, snakelike even." You give him a confused look. "Just wait... someday he won't be the same. Even if you love him... he will change for the worse." he pauses for a minute. He diverts his attention to the carpet. His expression turns somewhat confused at the wool garment on the floor.

"When did this carpet turn white?" You laugh at his remark, remembering you were just thinking the same. "I swear," you say to yourself, "that carpet gets more attention than I do."

"Well, that's enough of that. We're here to have fun, because we were obviously invited to. So," he raises a glass of champagne. "Here's to a great night!" 

--To Be Continued--