Fara

Of all the hypothetical scenarios she could have conjured up, ending up with someone like Lord Viktor was not something that came to mind. In fact, Fara was so sure she would end up with a lady. But fate had a different route. And the road led to a man who, once inside the carriage, took off his shoes.

"Shoes are a nuisance," the young lord tried to explain, and Fara nodded, feigning empathy. But she had a feeling that there would be more quirks to come. She attempted to mentally prepare herself, but she wasn't sure of what yet.

It was a rather long ride from Canroy Hall to her new lord's residence, roughly an hour or so. They sat across from one another, Viktor filling up the quiet with his recollection of gossip from the masquerade, all of which went right over Fara's head and out the window into the cold night.

Lord Viktor was rather young, most likely only a few years older than herself. He was very attractive, she could almost say he was pretty. His green eyes were shaded by long blonde lashes, his nose slender and to a point, full lips, and a strong jawline. He was lean, but she could see the muscles underneath his suit. Subtle, but there. The ends of his gold hair just brushed his shoulders. He had it tied up during the masquerade, but Fara was surprised by its actual length once he took out the hair pins.

"You know," he cut himself off mid sentence, "you can take off your mask."

"Oh, I nearly forgot," Fara slipped off her mask and laid it across her lap. Her shoulders jolted as Viktor leaned across the space between them, a hand on his chin, his eyes roaming. At least his face was a forearm's length away.

"I don't see many dark-skinned girls with gold eyes like yours," he observed, his own eyes bright.

"I believe I got them from my mother," Fara said.

"Did you know your mother?" He asked softly.

"No. But that's what Madame Dalnore used to say."

Viktor nodded, then leaned back against his seat, eyes still fixed on Fara, like a cat sizing up its new toy.

The clattering of metal detoured his attention out the window. He straightened up. "We're here."

Viktor's mansion was a massive artwork of stone and white marble. They exited the carriage headed up the steps, the lord with just his socks on and carrying his shoes in one hand. Waiting by the front door were two maids, adorned in their crimson dresses and bleached aprons. Their chins were tucked to their chests, eyes cast, their silhouettes waning.

Without a word, Viktor dropped his shoes in the outstretched palms of the one on the right, while the girl on the left opened the front door. Neither of them looked up. Neither of them uttered a word. Viktor gestured behind him, as if he were guiding a dog without a leash.

It was brightly lit on the inside, and warm. Fara assumed he must have a gas furnace that filtered heat throughout the building. Right away, she could tell this lord threw lots of parties. Right when you step over the threshold, the first thing your eyes snagged on was the bar on the left side, then the lounge area that was...well, almost the entire first floor.

Love seats, couches, throw pillows, lavish rugs that were obviously imported overseas, and there were dark red sashes dangling from the high rise ceiling as either decoration or possibly used by dancers.

The maid with Viktor's shoes shuffled behind Fara and began taking her coat off her. Fara slid her arms out and opened her mouth to thank her, but the maid was already removing Viktor's coat.

Fara followed Viktor up a spiral staircase, the railings peppered with cascading pearls and...she looked away from what seemed to be lingerie. The lord raised a gold brow as he noticed what she noticed.

"My guests always leave things behind," he explained with a humored sigh.

Fara played with the frayed string of her mask as she followed her lord down a dimly lit hallway, all the way to the end and took a right at a forked turn. Down the end of the corridor was a massive wooden door. A maid stood at the door, and without raising her head, her dark hair a curtain masking her face, she unlatched the door and pushed it open.

"Your chambers, I assume?" Fara asked, looking around as they stepped inside. It was quite spacious, a king sized bed in the middle of the room up against the far wall, the floor covered in skins of the animals Fara had only seen in books. There were precious oil paintings hung around the room, adorned and framed in gold or silver.

"The favorites of my collections I like to keep in my living quarters," Lord Viktor began, stopping at an ivory desk where there was a small selection of wine. He poured out a glass. "I have rooms dedicated to my collections, but these ones are just..." He waved the glass as if hoping the wine would finish his sentence.

"Marvelous?" Fara offered. Viktor's gaze slipped to hers, the corner of his lips twitching.

"Breath-taking," he finished, walking over to Fara slowly. He stopped in front of the girl.

"Drink," he said, raising the glass to Fara's eye-level.

Fara blinked, perplexed. "My lord, are you testing me?"

"I'm afraid not," Viktor replied. "You will live under my roof, follow my rules, and eat my food. That includes my wine." He took up Fara's hand that was holding her mask and switched it with the wine glass. "Drink."

Fara kept her gaze level with his. His green eyes were unsettling. She carefully raised the glass to her nose and breathed deeply.

"Rose wine," she finally said.

A smile danced across the lord's face. "The Bainnor family crest is the rose. We pride ourselves in our wine business, widely known throughout Andreyes. But I'm sure you already knew that." Viktor's eyes flicked down to her lips then back up. "It's not poisoned, if that's what you're stalling for."

Fara tipped the glass to her lips and drained it down to the last drop. It burned her throat and the warmth trailed down to her stomach.

Viktor's lips melted into a satisfied smile. He patted Fara on the side of her cheek before grabbing her glass and walking back to the ivory desk. "Now, Fara--may I call you Fara?" He looked up at her. He still had her mask in his hand.

"Yes, that's perfectly fine, my lord."

"Oh, don't bother with honorifics when we are alone," he said waving his hand before pouring another glass. "You may call me Viktor when it's just the two of us, you may call me Lord Viktor around the maids, and you may call me your lord everywhere else."

Fara twisted her fingers in her hand. "I think I'll just stick with the honorifics, my lord. At least for now."

Viktor nodded, walking back over to her with his wine in hand. She could see her mask on the table. "Well, it is getting rather late." He stopped just in front of her. With his free hand, he reached for the wall and leaned forward. Fara quickly turned her head away.

But then she heard the click of the lock and looked back to see Viktor holding the door open for her. "The maids will show you to your quarters."

Fara quickly composed herself before bowing and exiting the lord's chambers. The door shut soundly behind her.