AdrimiWeek2019 Day 1 - Isolation
“You’re quite a dancer Madame Tsurugi.” The servant gave her a gentle smile, his blue-tipped hair swaying as he poured her a glass from the refreshments table. “It’s a rare occasion to see the heiress at an event like this.” Or ever, she thought, accepting his drink.
“Thank you Monsieur… Luka, was it?” Kagami eyed the drink carefully. “One always has to be wary of assasination attempts, especially when the current political affair is… we know how it always is.”
Luka chuckled and nodded. “Well, whatever happens, I hope for only the best. If you ever come back, maybe I’ll have usurped the ranks and become a noble. I’m sure I’ll become a better dancing partner in any case.”
Kagami gave a small hum in response. “For a peasant born like you, you certainly had a way with your movements. You could charm anyone here… Shame no other noble would give you the time of day.” The drink swirled around in her glass, yet remained undrunk.
The gentleman quirked an eyebrow at her comments. “Oh? And why would the Tsurugi heiress bother a mere servant at the gala?”
Discreetly, she placed the tip of her nail into the glass. “To rebel against my mother’s futile isolation policy, of course.” Her once transparent nail turned bright red. Spiked. “Being cooped up in an estate for months on end can be particularly… dreadful. Not only do you forget how to interact with those around you, but undesirable feelings can show and take a turn for the worse.”
Kagami was unsure why she was telling a possible assassin about her isolation and how it had affected her as a child. She wouldn’t be telling her mother about this however, the rest of the nobles in this forsaken place could burn for all she cared. They were the ones who put her in a suffocating place, they were the ones who deprived her of any connections and friends, they were the ones who kept her chained from the world.
“My condolences Madame. I sincerely hope things will turn out for the better.” He softly smiled.
They bid adieu, and Kagami wandered off the ballroom floor, making plans to get rid of her spiked drink.
The hedge maze seemed to be a bit pretentious, but it was only befitting for such a family like the Bourgeois’s. The carefully clipped bushes called to her, almost beckoning her to fall into its trap and suffocate her forever.
If she were to be isolated forever, better a beautiful maze than the depths of the Tsurugi estate she supposed. Kagami still had her drink spiked with who knew what in it, and she’ll be damned if she were to be caught with a drugged glass. Yes, she thought, better the maze.
The stars shone above in the night sky as she let herself loose within the cornered pathways. Get lost, dispose of the drink where no one could find it, that was all she had to do. Despite her rigorous thought sequence, Kagami found herself twirling in the moonlight, prancing around the maze with all of her cares tossed in the wind.
“You’re quite a dancer Madame-” An unexpected voice crept through the open air, startling Kagami as she whirled around, ready to strike the servant she had previously danced with. Throwing the glass towards the voice, she jumped back and crouched low, listening for the tell tale signs of a struck down enemy.
Her eyes scaled the darkness, spotting the sad dark lump on the maze floor. Kagami cautiously moved towards the figure, brandishing a stick she had found in case they would try to fight back.
“Ow…” she could hear the figure moan. She gulped, but took a step closer nonetheless.
On closer observation, she could see the faint stain of her drink on their suit. He, she noted that he had to be a guy, had a much darker suit than the servant from before, his blazer as dark as the night with an electric green accent. And… oh dear, his hair. His gorgeous blond locks looked nothing like the blue tips the servant had. Kagami had believed she was completely isolated, and from thinking such a thing, she had thrown her spiked drink at the wrong person.
She had thrown her spiked drink at the wrong person.
“What- pray tell,” Her eyes locked with stunning green, heart sinking as she put two and two together. “-did you do that for?”
Adrien Agreste, heir to the well-associated Agreste family, heavily acquainted with the Bourgeois.
Her mother was going to kill her.
“I- I,” Kagami managed to sputter out, dropping the stick as if it burned. “I’m so sorry. I swear- I was deeply on edge, I thought… I thought you… I made a mistake, and- I am so sorry..” Mother was going to profusely punish her, she was going to lock her up all alone and it was all her fault-
“S’okay. You don’t have to worry about it.” He wobbled up to his feet, unceremoniously dusting himself off. “What were you doing here anyways?”
“I… The drink was poisoned. Or drugged, or… I don’t really know.” His face blanched, and Kagami quickly bit her tongue. “I was trying to get rid of it discreetly, wouldn’t want an uproar at the Bourgeois’s party after all, right?” Adrien chuckled back nervously. “I thought this place was pretty isolated away from everyone and when you came…” She trailed off, the pit growing deeper in her stomach. “I thought someone had come to finish the job.”
“I guess it’s not everyday the Tsurugi heiress comes out to the public. I’m… sorry you had to go through that.” He extended her a hand. “I’m Adrien, Adrien Agreste, but I guess you figured that out already, me being the main guest and all.” She nodded along.
“I’m Kagami Tsurugi, but I guess you already knew that too.” Her hand stretched to take his, and she firmly grasped it into a firm handshake. He lazily grinned, looking up towards the moonlit sky.
His hand lifted, before twisting to hold hers as if she were a lady in waiting. “Well, Kagami, how about we share a dance? After that little mishap, I think you do owe me a little favor.”
She giggled at his proposal. “Of course Adrien, I would love to.”
