The Other Side of the Mask

"Everytime I see this, it surprises me!" a couple people say.

Others stare speechless. The two Kings and the Queens stand on the podium.

"Let the ball commence!" they announce.

I meet up with KaiZhen, and we dance the first dance, just like what escorts are supposed to do. He isn't a bad dancer… After that, I leave the dancefloor quickly, avoiding as many people as I can. I meet with Xing, at the refreshments.

"Xing! Why aren't you out there dancing?"

"Ah, I don't enjoy dancing, and I'm not really good at it," she explains.

I nod and take a glass of sparkling lemonade. I look at the dancefloor with the Kings and Queens dancing together, chattering with their friendship known. The maids and servants dance too. It is quite a joyous occasion for everyone in this palace. If any kingdom were to invade now, the people here would be absolutely livid. Maybe even destroy the other kingdom. I laugh at the image in my head.

Xing starts to talk, "Ah? You're not taking any alcohol? What a pity."

"Haha, I don't like it. I've also never tried."

Xing gulps down an entire glass.

"Ah! You'll get used to it once you drink it," she says with a dreary smile.

I laugh as I relish some truffles and macarons. I look over at the dancefloor, as I munch. XiaoLong and TianYu are dancing together for the tenth time or something. Wait why am I counting? It's none of my business. As long as he doesn't come here, I'm fine. I turn away and focus on other things.

But after a couple minutes, that moment comes to reality. XiaoLong comes up to us as Xing and I converse.

"May I have a dance with you, Princess YingYue?"

Cold sweat drips down my back as I fill with fear. One wrong move and we're all done for. Xing nods at me and smiles. I look over at my parents who do the same. All of the eyes in the ballroom are on us. I gulp down nervously. My shaky hand reaches out and takes his. He pulls me in as the orchestra starts a new piece. I dared not to meet his eyes. I look around the ballroom, light on my feet, dancing.

"You remind me much of a friend of mine," XiaoLong starts to talk.

"Oh? Do I look like her?" I try to answer as normal as possible.

"Not really," he responds, "She's really beautiful and sweet."

"O-oh…"

"However, she left me."

I try to look for an opening to switch partners.

"How do I remind you of her?" I ask as I try to stall time.

"Well… I just get the feeling…"

"Well, I hope you find her," I lie.

I leave the dancefloor as the song ends and return to my room.

"What's wrong?" Ji asks.

"I'm fine," I respond, "Just a bit tired."

I ask the maids and everyone to leave and enjoy the rest of the ball, as I stay in my room and read. The novels and fairy tales take me into an imaginary land where I escape to get my mind off things. I laugh and smile as I read.

About a half hour later, a knock comes from my door. I put away my book.

"Come in."

Mother and Father enter the room. They slowly walk over and sit on the couch. I sit across from them. A moment of silence fills the room, and I realize the serious topic they address.

"YingYue," father says in a somewhat sad tone, "You're the QiLing they're trying to find, right?"