what a waste of a lovely night (roceit week 2022)
Day 2: dance/protect
Premise: A masked ball is the perfect place to flirt and flit about with rich strangers you'll never meet again. Just don't be mad when it's your gentleman-in-waiting that you're swooning after.
TWs: N/A
Word Count: 1135
AO3
"Care for a dance, stranger?" That was the phrase of the night, it seemed. The biannual Citrine Gala was underway, and for a fun twist on what was otherwise doomed to be a boring, socialite-only event, its dress-code dictated two crucial rules: one, to bring an "unlikely" plus one, and two, to disguise your face.
Yes, a masquerade ball would certainly make things interesting this year. Of course, certain people couldn't help but stand out. You'd be a fool not to recognize the heir and eldest son of the Alestria family; never mind the fact that his suit had the family's crest pressed into his lapel (he would like the record to state this was against his request), most guests first noticed the grand portrait hanging over the mantel in the dance hall. It was his parents turn to host after all, so masked or not he was easy to find. It didn't help that he towered over the majority of the crowd, enough to make anyone intrigued and vying for a closer look. With sun-kissed skin and a delightful, messy toss of dark amber hair, the signature hue of the King himself, there was no mistaking him.
For the sake of the event, party-goers pretended not to know who he was, tried to speak casually to him, but the prince could spot a poor liar a mile away. It was a laugh that rang on for too long, or a second glance that turned into a third, and then a fourth. And in all the guffaw of pretending he wasn't a walking retirement fund, not a single soul had asked him to dance.
At least, until a stranger in a gilded ballgown strode forward, outstretching their hand, waiting for him to take it. "Care to join me?" they asked, a hand fan conveniently hiding what was left of their face, so that only their eyes could be clearly made out. They were honey colored, bright and sharp, but they also stirred something within the prince's chest, something warm and familiar.
He eyed over the stranger with intrigue. Namely, their dress did not seem to be of any famous designer like all the other guests; it was skillfully crafted, not one ruffle out of place, nor one stitch falling apart. But the fabric was cheap, not even a royal-grade seamstress could hide such an obvious fact. The hand fan, which at a first glance seemed to glimmer with jewels, at closer inspection seemed more like the work of shards of glass and glitter. Their shoes that clinked against the tile floor were dull, either a worn down heel or dress shoes, both odd for someone who carried themselves as though they were born suckling on a silver spoon.
The prince smiled, and took up the stranger's hand. Around the pair, a quiet roar of whispers erupted and were silenced within a single breath. "I would be delighted," he hummed, and the stranger's golden eyes crinkled, a secret smile hidden for just the two of them to hear. They clicked their fan shut, hanging it from its loop around their wrist in one easy motion.
Upon their hands they wore black, satin gloves (the only piece in their ensemble that seemed to be worth any real money), all the way up to their elbows that matched the accents of the dress, and hands that the prince first thought were dainty and pristine, felt svelte, yes, but also callused, work-worn in a way that tugged at the prince's heart and baffled his mind.
They smelled like fake money, and dressed like fake royalty.
And in spite of the questions racing through the prince's mind, they were all washed away when the stranger pulled him forward in a fluid motion until they were flush with one another, and lead him twirling across the dance floor. Whoever this stranger was, they were hellbent on putting the prince into the role of an admirer for the evening, and with a level of ease the prince did not think he was capable of, he allowed the other to dictate his night.
At some point the two abandoned the event, finding themselves wandering the garden as the hour grew close to midnight. The prince then posed a question: "And what might your name be?"
The stranger answered, "Well, that would defeat the point of the masks, wouldn't it?" They pulled their fan back out, hiding their expression from him.
The prince smiled, "And what does that matter? Tell me, where's your family from?"
Once more, but now with a soured tone, "I shouldn't say, I don't want to spoil our fun."
With a soft frown, "I only ask so that I might find you again."
The stranger paused, lowering their fan with slight amazement. "…And why would you want that?"
Instead of a reply, the prince first reached for the other's hand, running his fingertips lightly over their palm, feeling the calluses underneath the gentle fabric. "So that I might know a way to spare you from your labors. You dance far too wonderfully to have hands like this."
The stranger smiled, lifting their fan once more. "My prince, you won't know me unless I want to be known. But rest assured, you will see me again."
With a startled look, "you knew who I was? What gave it away?" he asked, a pout on his lips, and the stranger couldn't help but laugh.
"My prince, you still haven't learned how to waltz properly. I would have spotted your lopsided gait a league away," they snickered, and the prince grew even more lost.
"How would you even know that? Who are you, really, I need to know!"
"Ah, there it is," they smiled tiredly, tugging their hand away and turning neatly on their heel back towards the party. "That impatient, curious mind of yours. Honestly, if you'd spent even half the night thinking through the clues I've left you instead of tripping all over me, you'd have known my name by now."
"But—" The stranger tutted, cutting the prince off. "None of that now. If you haven't found me out now, then I doubt you ever will." And if there was a touch of bitterness in their voice, they chose to ignore it. "Perhaps, even, it is better that you don't."
"Goodnight, Roman," they said quietly, walking off into the night with false merriment in their steps, and a simmering regret in their heart. What were they to do? They was his gentleman-in-waiting, the "help", nothing more. A glorified personal servant. Never able to rise above their role, forget courting a member of the royal family.
As for the prince, the gears clicked slowly in his head as the familiar stranger grew distant, and as his jaw dropped, his heart soared.
"… Janus?"
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