He saw her there, among so many people crowded in costumes and feathers. She was beautiful, as she had always been; exotic wherever she went, and yet she had a great desire to go unnoticed. A woman desired by so many people: women envied her audacity when it came to dress and talk, men saw her as a strange lady too far ahead of the time. For whatever reason, she was not unnoticed.

Poor of Benedict’s heart, who had bled for so long for her. There were nights when his eyes had no rest, crying salty tears that tasted sweet on his lips for the deep love she held for her.

"The pain will pass." Eloise had tried to cheer him on one of those nights when Aubrey Hall was too quiet and his heart gave way to the vulnerability of a lover who suffered for love. "The world is full of ladies eager for a man as dedicated and artistic as you are."

"She’s not just a lady, Eloise." When he looked up at her little sister and Eloise saw those watery and dull eyes, she felt a deep sadness for him. "I could live a hundred lives and in each one of them my heart would still look for her in a room full of a thousand women."

For that reason, in the ballroom, he only watched her from afar. Because it was all she had left: to watch her wearing that beautiful dress inspired by the Swan Lake ballet. She could have chosen to be Odette for her precious angelic features, but seeing her dressed as Odile was like seeing her without a costume: in her utmost transparency, appearing in front of an entire audience pretending to be someone she really is not.

"... I never understood Swan Lake." His older brother muttered next to him. Benedict possessed all the passion for art that Anthony lacked. "How could Prince Siegfried mistake Odile for Odette?"

"Maybe he knew it."

"What?"

"Maybe he didn’t confuse her and knew it was Odile." Benedict’s eyes looked at her through his mask. "Perhaps he fell in love with her and was happy dancing with her."

"What an odd thing to say. If that's true, Prince Siegfried was a complete fool."

"A fool in love." Benedict looked away from her when the eyes of {{user}} witnessed that he had been looking at her. "If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to get a drink."