Silence reigned supreme between them as neither believed they had anything worth sharing, the clacking of their shoes against the stone floor as well as the crackling and flickering of fire being the only melodies to echo.
Silas and Arabella ascended the same spiraling stairs that had led them down to the trophy room.
As soon as the wooden door creaked open, a feminine voice blared through the hallway, "Master," Katherine curtsied before Silas first.
"Have you been waiting for us here?" Silas asked her.
The lack of light penetrating through the windows and the ignited candles hanging from the chandeliers communicated to Arabella that the sun had already sunk behind the horizon.
"The Lady would like to see Arabella in the music room and one of the maids reported seeing her in your company, coming in this direction, so I waited for you to return here," Katherine bowed slightly towards the end of her sentence.
"Well then, I shan't hold you back any longer. You are free to go," Silas turned to Arabella, "Excuse me, I, too, must go my own way," he added before walking away from them.
Arabella watched him as he went, but Katherine quickly ripped her attention away, "I am glad to see your colors have returned," she smiled brighter, "Yesterday you were all pale, I feared you'd fallen ill. Even your heart has simmered down and that is a good sign," the vampire nodded, "Come now, we mustn't make the Lady wait more than she already has,"
Arabella followed Katherine to the music room where not only the Lady awaited but Grace, Allegra, a third young woman that hadn't yet been introduced and a young man that Arabella had also never met prior.
"There you are," the Lady expressed herself calmly without a glance at her, "You sure took your time,"
"Forgive me, my Lady," Arabella curtsied before her, eyes on the floor.
"Right well, let us not waste any more time," the Lady set her customary teacup upon its saucer, "Meet Sebastian," Persephone gestured towards the tall young man standing by the piano.
Dressed in a black and white formal attire, Sebastian stepped towards Arabella, bowed and gently took her hand before placing a tender kiss on its back, causing every muscle in her body to stiffen.
Upon straightening his stance, he towered over her, offering a grin that did not spread beyond his lips.
Soft black hair and eyes just as black with his flawless skin, Arabella would have wagered the vampire had women throwing themselves at his feet while men wished to be him.
From the way he gazed into her eyes, only breaking the connection to stare at her neck, he'd captured her breath for all the wrong reasons.
Sebastian was a man Arabella did not wish to be left under the care of.
Arabella only remembered to blink when the Lady's voice reached her ears again, "Just like Katherine and her sisters, Sebastian is one of our entertainers. The female guests practically line up before him at every gathering, don't they?"
The Lady offered him a faint side smirk to which he responded by bowing, "I do not deserve such flattering words, my Lady,"
"I assume that as a nobleman's daughter you've received dance lessons," the Lady's eyes squinted momentarily.
"Dance lessons," mouth ajar, Arabella repeated the vampire's words in a mutter.
"Yes, and by that, I mean precisely couples' dancing,"
"I have received training for that, yes," eyes on the floor again and in a quiet tone, Arabella answered.
"The guests may sometimes request a dance from an entertainer. It is therefore essential that you know how to proceed when that happens and to carry yourself accordingly,"
Arabella merely nodded, clutching between her own hands and the skirt of her gown.
"I am aware that the Lustrisan couples' dance varies quite a bit from the Umbrarian one, so Sebastian here will assist you with those differences,"
With a smile that still did not reach his eyes, Sebastian offered a hand to Arabella, "May I have this dance?" he bowed slightly.
Once again, Arabella nodded before taking his hand and allowing him to pull her closer his way.
"For the Umbrarian dance, the woman does not hold onto her partner's back but to his shoulders," at those words, Sebastian gently grasped both of Arabella's hands then guided them up along his chest only to stop at his shoulders, "As for the man, he takes his partner by the waist,"
Arabella shuddered and attempted to tug away from him a little the instant Sebastian's hands lay on her waist from both sides.
Though completely unfazed by her expression, he held her firmly and pulled the young woman even closer to him.
She knew he sensed her discomfort from the way her heart battered its cage, threatening to escape it.
There was no world in which a vampire would miss that from that short of a distance.
Yet he made no attempts to ease her nerves and further squeezed around her middle, "You only need to follow my lead," he spoke softly, giving her a look she could not withstand and instead stared at the blouse shirt button facing her, "Amelia, please," he turned towards the woman sitting in front of the piano momentarily.
The so- called Amelia seemed to have gotten the cue and had begun to run her finger upon the piano keys.
Sebastian took one first step to the side bringing her along with him, then another and then another while never taking his hungry eyes off her.
Arabella voiced no complaints even when the vampire drew her body further towards his until her breasts connected with his chest.
"Enough!"
Amelia immediately stopped playing when the Lady had demanded it.
Sebastian took a few seconds before releasing Arabella's waist, only for her to look around and notice the look everyone in the room, with the exception of the Lady, unanimously shared.