Walking in that building felt like entering a castle.

It was decorated with golden walls and windows, painted with such intricacy it was a headache to try and notice it all. Flickering candles were scattered throughout the room, and reflected off the floor, bringing out the beautiful caramel coloured floors. However, biggest source of light was the large chandelier that hung from the centre, glittering from the diamonds that adorned it.

I looked up, seeing another painting of the Obsidian Order, much like what was in the church. Instead, it showed them dressed up, and dancing together under a beautiful light.

Taehyung tugging at my arm pulled me out of my daze, "c'mon, you're supposed to waltz,"

"What?" I looked at him wide-eyed, as my gaze fell upon the many people who were standing around, and some dancing to the gentle music in the background.

"We have to make this believable, or this isn't going to work." He whispered harshly, pulling on my arm.

Taehyung gazed into my glaring eyes, until they flickered with realization at my lack of understanding. "You don't know how to waltz," Taehyung chuckled to himself, crossing his arms over his chest.

I honestly thought this would be a simple party where people stand around and flaunt over their clothing and dates. Yet, this seemed much more involved than I had presumed it to be. My palms were red with sweat, watching everyone dance gracefully.

I felt so out of place.

"Never had the privilege," I muttered bitterly, gulping down the nervousness building in my throat. In my town, no one ever danced or listened to music often, only in specific situations. Waltzing, and parties like these were something that represented the richness of the Gems; the slow, sensual dance and exotic imagery.

Taehyung let out a sigh, as he grabbed my hand and pulled me toward him. I gasped slightly, my gaze flickering up to meet Taehyung's. My eyes roamed his face unknowingly, and my stomach did a back-flip upon truly appreciating his beauty. The small mole on his waterline and on his nose, and the monolid I'd never noticed.

Too bad he was a spoiled asshat. I exhaled a small breath, reminding myself once again I just needed to live with it for a few hours.

"First, you put your arm on my shoulder," Taehyung pulled my hand to place it on his shoulder, as his hand fell to my waist. "With the other hand—I hold yours like this," his gloved hand slid into mine as he held it outward.

I looked into his eyes again, the black abyss staring back at me. But it wasn't dark and eerie like the other times, it appeared more playful, a small fire burning behind them. "Now, we waltz." He said, as his foot stepped forward and I stepped back.

My head fell downward to watch my feet, making sure I was stepping correctly. The last thing I wanted was Taehyung to lose his shit because I stepped on his precious foot. Then I felt his finger tilt my chin, forcing my gaze to meet Taehyung's. "When waltzing you never take your eyes off one another," he whispered as his eyes scanned my face, and I removed his hand.

"If I do that, I will literally step on your foot. My two left feet are quite hard to control." I said with a smirk, and Taehyung snorted shaking his head.

"You in general are just hard to control," Taehyung remarked with an eye roll, and I swatted his arm, my eyes glaring into his.

"Shut up. Degrading is my thing." I replied, trying my best to follow his swift movements. The stares Taehyung was giving made me nervous and giddy, but I knew it was all an act for the people to believe. If he showed how he truly felt, it would have been nowhere near the same flirty glances.

I glanced over Taehyung's shoulder, my eyes meeting two girls waltzing together, and I stiffened upon realizing it was Lisa and Ryujin, laughing and giggling. Ryujin seemed to notice me first, and she winked, earning an eye-roll from me.

"Who're you rolling your eyes at?" Taehyung questioned, watching me like I was crazy.

"Weirdos." I smiled, until my gaze met someone else's.

He watched me with beady eyes intently, swirling the wine in his glass before sipping it, not once did his gaze waver. He looked different than the other Gems, with his hair being a perfect mix of green and blue giving his locks an ocean-like colour.

"Someone's watching us," I whispered to Taehyung as quietly as possible, my eyes breaking the stare I had with other Gem.

"Who?" Taehyung's eyes flickered down to mine, and I pointed subtly. I observed Taehyung's expression change as he realized who the man was, his jaw sharpening and ticking.

"That's Jun," he said bitterly. "He works under the Order,"

I frowned with curiosity. "His hair doesn't quite look like the others,"

Taehyung looked down at me, seeming annoyed with the other man's presence. "He's a mixed sect. Mixed between Sapphire and Emerald."

"That's cool! Their powers must be super epic or something," I said excitedly.

"But it has its drawbacks," Taehyung explained, and I tilted my head. "They can't be a replacement of the Obsidian Order."

Taehyung licked his lips before speaking again. "To work under it, you must be a pure sect with no mixes."

"My father is a Purist, all of our parents were." Taehyung looked down at me, and I nodded gently. "They believe the sects shouldn't mix."

"Shit, he's coming," Taehyung mumbled to himself.

I glanced where he stared, as the aqua haired man approached us with the most artificial smile I've ever seen. I wanted to throw up.

I pulled away from Taehyung, as Jun walked over and hugged him. The red haired boy's face didn't change from his cold expression, clearly uncomfortable with the interaction. "Nice to see you here, cousin!" He said with a smile, before his eyes landed on me. "And who might you be?" His gloved hand touched mine and I pulled it away.

"An-Annabella," I said trying to smile through the awkward conversation.

"Jun," he smirked, his eyes still roaming my body like a piece of artwork. I wanted to punch him, and tell him to keep his pervy eyes to himself, until he spoke again. "you look just like Da-Eun." Jun smiled sadly.

Taehyung stiffened, and he looked down at the floor.

"Who is that?" I asked gently, my eyes flickering between the two. My jaw tightened, sensing this was a sensitive topic.

Jun's eyes saddened. "It's Taehyung's mom," he replied softly. "That's her dress."

I glanced over at Taehyung seeing him biting his lip, seemingly holding in a wave of emotions.

I frowned and looked down at the red silk fabric on my body. That's when it clicked.

His mother is dead.

I gasped quietly, remembering earlier when he grew pale from the joke I made. That's when I recalled what Ryujin told me about the Garnet's, about the person who died. Could it be why they hated the humans?

"You didn't know?" Jun said, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"No, I-I didn't," I bit my lip and avoiding Taehyung's gaze.

Jun nodded awkwardly, and clapped his hands together, slicing the tension that was building. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Annabella." He said with a smile, before walking past us into the crowd of people.

I looked over at Taehyung, who's eyes were gazing off in the distance. I could tell he was holding back, and I felt a flutter of empathy was over me. I wanted to say something, but before I could open my mouth to speak, he stopped me by raising his finger. "Don't say anything, please, you'll just make it worse,"

"How?" I responded, my eyebrows furrowed with worry.

Taehyung's eyes gazed into mine, pure sadness and unsureness laced in them, until he shook his head. "I have to go," he said, as he stepped past me toward a group of men.

I sighed in worry, watching him so swiftly fake a smile and engage in conversation with them.

Like nothing happened.

I bit my lip, as I sighed in irritation, turning and squeezing myself through the crowds of people. I wanted to escape the heat and pounding music. My vision grew blurry, as more people crashed into me—causing a mind spinning headache to creep in.

Once I tripped into another room filled with no people, I shut the door behind me before anyone could enter. I sighed in relief, leaning my back against the dark wood. My chest heaved with heavy breaths, and my eyes closed at the silence which calmed my nerves, and the isolation allowed my shoulders to sink.

As I ripped the itchy red wig off my head, my thick, black hair fell down my back. I let out a breath of relief throwing the hair to the floor.

I stepped further into the small, cozy room, my eyes wandering for the first time. There was an unlit fireplace, with seven brown leather chairs in front of it. The walls were the same colour of dark brown---reminding me of wood in a deep forest. I walked up to the fireplace, carved with seven angels of thick curly hair. I touched it, observing curiously as a layer of dust accumulated on my fingers.

I then turned to look at the small glass table beside it, noticing a crushed cigarette on the ashtray, which seemingly hadn't been put out in years.

Where am I?

My gaze trailed up past the fireplace, and up to a large, and grand picture of a woman with white and sparkling hair. It appeared like she was a unicorn in human form, with her pale but flawless skin and majestic expression.

"Opal." I whispered to myself, realizing the abandoned room must've been one where the Order held meetings from the medieval design and the cluster of chairs surrounding the fireplace.

I walked forward to take a closer look at the painting, but when I reached the ledge that it hung above, I noticed small carvings within the wood ledge. I narrowed my eyes to see it, and I traced the imprints with my finger.

"Emerald is power—"

My finger followed the vine to the next.

"Pearl is purity—"

"Topaz is joy—"

"Sapphire is intelligence—"

"Onyx is pain—"

"Amethyst is kindness—"

My finger traced the vine to the last one, which seemed crossed out and drawn over multiple times. "Garnet is...passion."

The vine continued on until it led to the edge of the shelf, as the vines intertwined to show something strangely familiar—a brain. A human brain.

I frowned, as I backed away from it to gaze up at the woman...the one with all the answers. The words seemed to be the representations of each sect. As if they were seven different people—seven different personalities. It was why they shared specific powers, because that matches with the personality of each Gem.

But what didn't add up was the brain.

"What does it mean?" I whispered, as I bit my lip with fury. My gaze trailed up the molded walls in thought, until it met another painting; with the same beautiful, and majestic style as the others. It showed a human holding a brown stick in the air with pride, as a massive structure burned before them. It lit up the painting with a warm orange and red, spreading into the trees and killing everything in its path.

My eyes narrowed to the corner of it, noticing a name—Coré. My mind concluded that it must've been the painter who did all the paintings in headquarters, yet...something felt off. Why did these paintings intrigue me? Why did I feel this strange wave of fear in my chest?

My thoughts were cut when the abrupt sound of gunshots and loud bombs reverberated through the room beside me, people screaming with agony.

"Fire!"

[A/N]

Bye.