That Night

"Goodnight Mari."

"NIght Aiden." Mari gave a small wave at Aiden who turned the call off. He then leaned back and stretched his arms as he then stared at the ceiling.

Aiden then looked back at his computer and read the time,12:05 A.M. 'Wow, it's already this late huh.' Aiden then started to stand up and when he was about to stand up straight he started to limp a bit. 'Damn it, training is a pain in the ass.' Aiden then started to limp towards his bed.

But he then stopped as he then seemed to remember something and started walking towards his laundry basket.

"It should be around here," Aiden mumbled to himself as he starts to dig through the dirty clothes until he found his jeans. "Bingo." Aiden then starts to dig through the left pocket, but as he did his smile starts to fade away.

"No no no no no no..." Aiden then started to dig through the clothes frantically searching every pocket, he quickly stood up as he nearly lost his balance and quickly went to his cabinets and started to pull out the contents searching for something. "Where is it!!!" Aiden then threw away a pair of jeans to the side. Aiden then fell back towards a couch as he placed his hand on his face as he started to lose himself in his thoughts.

'Where did I place it? Where the hell did I place it? Did I leave it in the Hospital!?' Aiden then quickly sat up in his chair as he then went to grab his phone on his computer desk.

The phone dialed for a few moments and was then picked up by the receiver. "Hello, what is it, Young Master?" a tired voice said on the phone.

"Hello, Cindy?! I really need your help, can you go to the hospital room I was in two days Ago? I forgot something really important in the room and I really need you to find it please Cindy!"

"...So you want me to get you something, you forgot in the hospital which could've been taken or thrown away already?"

"Yes, please Cindy please," Aiden said as he now constantly rubbed his forehead to calm himself down. Cindy on the other line just sighed with a few seconds of silence, she then gave a tired yes as she promised that she will check the hospital tomorrow morning.

"Yes, thank you, Cindy."

"Of course young master." Cindy then hung up as Aiden now was back wondering who the masked girl might be.

Outside Aiden's room and inside the manor, a maid is seen carrying a few folded blankets as she walks in front of a door. Faint yet audible sounds can be heard from someone talking on the other side as the maid knocks on the door.

"Come in." A voice said as the maid pushed the door open. Inside was a large room with a queen bed and three large windows looking out into the outside, framing the starry night.

The room is being occupied by the girls as Alexis is scanning through the channels in the 20-inch tv while she is spread across the bed in an odd position as she scans through with a bored face. Zarrah is seen training with sweat dripping down her head and Shaniah who is now in front of the maid greeting her as she entered the room.

"Good evening Ma'am's, here are your fresh blankets." The Maid then set down the blankets on the side of the bed as she then quickly exited the room.

"Thank you," Shaniah said as the door then closed behind the maid. The room now returned to its silent atmosphere. After a few seconds, Alexis then threw the remote to the side as she then groaned in annoyance. "UUUUUUUGH! There's nothing great here. All of the channels are just stupid news reports, why did they remove the others!"

Shaniah just continued reading her book, but after a few seconds of Alexis twisting and turning on her bed, she just sighs and closed her book. She then stood up and approaches the bed sitting by the edge. "Well, do you want to go and roam the mansion?" Alexis then quickly sat up with a smile on her face. "Yeah sure, beats just sitting here all night long."

They both then looked towards Zarrah who was still seen shadow boxing and focus on her training. "Well, let's go." Shaniah then grabbed Alexis's hand and exited the room. Zarrah then started to increase the speed and the intensity of her training as she then gave one final punch, splattering some sweat towards the ground as a small breeze blew from the speed of her punch.

Zarrah then starts to pant, grabbing the towel on the chair behind her. While wiping the sweat from her face and upper torso, her gaze then wandered towards the window and stared towards the moon.

She then starts to lose herself in her thoughts who then wandered towards the heir of the mansion. She then gripped the towel as she flashes back towards the night of the ball.

***

Zarrah was riding upon a limo, she wore a golden dress, patterns of roses decorate each corner as the golden hue slowly fades away when it reaches up towards her torso. Her soft hair now straight and flowing down her shoulders. And upon her breasts was a golden necklace which shone in the vehicle. Zarrah now looking out to the empty streets, street lamps passing by becoming blurs with her face in her hand each lamp briefly lighting up the limo. "You don't have to be nervous, it will be a grand party."

Harold who sat in front of Zarrah noticed her expression and placed his hand on top of hers, trying to comfort her. "Thanks, Harold," Zarrah said with a small smile placing her other hand on top of Harold's. But Zarrah then removed her hands as she then returned to gaze upon the city now seeing the spotlights of the Agrest Manor.

"But I feel like this dream of mine, isn't what I expect it to be." Zarrah then slowly rubbed the necklace on her chest. The Limo finally arrived in front of the Manor, the door was opened by the driver and Zarrah then stepped out and gazed upon the Mansion. Zarrah's breath was blown away as she stared upon the Manor, she then let out a sound of amazement as Harold stood beside her softly chuckling at Zarrah's awe. "Well, no matter how many times you see it. It is still a sight to see." Zarrah then snapped out of her dazed now the look of awe is now replaced with the look of nervousness.

Guests and people entering through the gates, each one of them wearing beautiful dresses and neat suits each one unique from the other. Seeing Zarrah's state, Harold then placed her hand on his upper arm. "Well then, shall we enter?"

Zarrah noticing Harold's comfort, then calmed down. She gave off a deep breath as she looked to Harold and gave a small nod. Both of them then entered the Mansion, Zarrah observed the garden seeing the beautiful flowers letting the wonder return to her eyes. Harold keeps observing Zarrah, seeing the wonder and joy she has brings him joy as well.

They walked through the mansion doors and seeing the interior design, Zarrah cannot help but let her jaw drop. "Wow, this place is like a castle!" Zarrah said in a loud voice, Harold then chuckled yet again seeing her childishness. He then directed her to a hallway, and when the butler upon the door at the end of the hallway, golden light bathes the pair. Zarrah was now seeing the grand ballroom, she was rooted on the spot seeing its majestic presentation. Harold slightly nudged the girl as they both sat upon a table and waited for the guests to our in and enter the ballroom. But from the guests, she sees a particular guest which catches her attention. The guest was a young man, he had soft skin yet he had visible bags under his eyes. He wore a pure black suit, he had a black undershirt and a black tie. His hair neatly combed yet is slightly fuzzled and needs a bit of combing. His date was what looked like a younger woman who wore a light green dress, she was beaming with light from her bright green eyes and her blond hair in a hairball with an excited look on her face, unlike the man.

Zarrah felt wary of the man while she continued to stare at him unknown to the man. But she was then interrupted by an echoing tap of a cane. There on top of the balcony was none other than Francois Agrest.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I thank you all for coming to this party. As we all gather here tonight, I will give you the greatest night you will ever have. Enjoy the party, and let the magic of the night engulf your selves with mysticism and fantasia."

Francois Agrest stretched forth his hands as the orchestra starts to play an Oratorio. Harold then stood up and offered a hand to Zarrah. "My Lady, would you partake in this dance with me?" Zarrah replied by taking his hand, they both walked towards the center of the room, and slowly they started to dance to the music.

Zarrah upon dancing was suddenly lost in the music, her mind drifting to her imagination. The whole moment felt like a dream, she then closed her eyes as she wanders off to the world of dreams and the magical depths of her subconscious. Harold, despite his old age, directed the dance letting Zarrah get lost in her own mind and experience the surreal dance. Zarrah finally felt like the princess that she dreamt to be. Each step opening a memory of her younger self always imagining a night of magic, and dancing in a castle feeling the magic in the air. And now she finally felt the experience she always dreamt to have into reality. The nostalgia of magical worlds and memories she imagined when she was a child start to rush towards her mind. The surreal experience she had, wrapped her with the child-like wonder she had, dancing in her own room lost in her own fantasies, now giving her the charm she forgot long ago. The golden light only gave the atmosphere a breath of magic letting Zarrah finally feel her dreams converge with reality.

After the Oratorio ended, Zarrah leaned down to Harold still lost in her own world, She then raised her head and stared at Harold's eyes. Harold saw the true wonder and magic in the girl's eyes. He gave a small smile as he reminisced about seeing that look in the girl's eyes. He gave a warm smile as he then directed Zarrah towards their table as another song starts to play.

Zarrah fell down on her chair drunk of imagination, placed her head on her hand as she continued to watch the crowd dance to the next piece. A small tear ran down her cheek, not of sadness but of happiness. The child inside of her finally got the fantasy she always wanted, in her life of normality she always wanted to know what a princess felt like, and now she finally got her answer.

Her eyes start to wander around the ballroom, it was decorated like those from shows and movies she watched and saw her favorite princesses danced in.

Suddenly, the doors opened stopping the music and capturing everyone's attention. In walked was a young boy, the boy had a captivating look, his face emanated charm and beauty, he held his head high releasing a well mannered and gentlemanly aura, his brown eyes shone under the golden light with a piercing look that can capture anyone's heart. Besides both of his sides were two girls both wrapping their hands around his. One had fair skin with light blue eyes and blond hair, she wore a white satin dress. The other wore a blue beaded gown which highlighted her fair skin, she had her curled hair that seemed soft and which also made you see her beautiful and alluring eyes, it was as if a prince was accompanied by an angel from the winter snow and a princess of the night.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! I would like to introduce my son, Aiden Whitlock Agrest." Francois gestured towards the boy. 'Aiden Agrest...' Zarrah wondered to herself as she is somehow entangled upon the charm of the boy, now Zarrah seeing her cannot help but romanticize seeing him as her prince. But her dreaming was then suddenly broken as she sees the same man sat down on his table who was staring intensely at the boy, he had what looked like a look of focus and the best way Zarrah can describe to herself self:'the look a predator gives as it finds its prey.'

Zarrah's suspicions only grew as she kept observing the man. Zarrah then stood up which garners a bit of concern from Harold. "Ms. Carringan, are you feeling well?" Harold says with concern for the young girl. Zarrah then gave him a smile as she replied in a relaxed and happy tone. "It's ok Mr. Northeye, I'll be right back."

Harold just nodded understanding Zarrah and just continued watching the dance. Zarrah quickly returned to his serious face as he now quickly exited the ballroom.

By the time the ballroom door's closed, Zarrah quickly took off her shoes and sprinted through the mansion, she sped through the garden catching a bit of wind swaying the flowers. When she finally arrived at the Limo, she dug through the back of a seat and took out a gym bag. She opened the gym bag in which she had a slight frown. 'Well, I'll work with what I have.' She then went inside the Limo and changed. After a few seconds, she exited the car wearing a baggy pink-outlined jacket and tight black gym pants, she had her old and worn-out sneakers, and inside the bag, she then took out a pair of black gloves with metal dents and dull spikes on each knuckle and on the backside of the palms. She put them on feeling the gloves and she kept opening her hands to get used to the gloves.

'Damn it, I need a disguise.' Zarrah then dug through the bag again, she then picked a mask, this mask covered the upper portion of her face yet left her lips visible., it was adorned with patterns and glitter. 'Mom's gift to me, she gave me this when we went to a play.' Zarrah then placed the mask on as she stared onto the mansion and stealthily sneaked towards the premises.

Silently, she sprints ted towards the edge of the front garden, quickly ducking behind a bush as a guard passed by. When the guard rounded a corner, she emerged from the bush and climbed through a fence. She was finally on the east side of the manor, this part was silent yet had a large number of guards and gardeners patrolling the area. Zarrah clicked her tongue, trying to find a way to navigate through. She then leaped onto a tree and laid still on its branches, she had a better view towards the area, she finally devised a route to take. but she then suddenly hid behind a branch as another guard shined his light towards the tree, he then returned to patrol the area earning a sigh from Zarrah. She emerges from behind the tree and leaped down and stealthily ran through the east garden, she then used the bushes trying to hide from the guards and gardeners as she barely managed to escape from the sight of a gardener carrying a wheelbarrow.

Zarrah finally arrived at another wall, it was around 12 feet tall. She stood at the bottom looking up and hyping herself up. "Okay Zarrah, remember Mr. Li's training."

Zarrah then crouched and leaped around 8 feet as she managed to place her foot on the wall and supported another jumped which made her reach the top of the wall. "I did it.' Zarrah said satisfied to herself. She then quietly ran through the wall completely ignored and invisible to the people on the windows and the guards below. After running for a while then sees Aiden walking through the halls through the window of the Mansion. She quickly leaped and hid inside a tree just as Aiden then stared out into the garden. Zarrah was again captivated by the boy's charm and was just entangled by his pretty face as she stares at him. But after a few minutes, her focus was then disturbed as a guard below hears rustling on the tree above him and shone his light. ZArrah quickly his behind the branches as the guard below slowly took out his pistol and now rotated around the tree, Zarrah just tried her best to be quiet. After a suspenseful handful of minutes, the guard then left and continued his patrol. Zarrah gave a sigh of relief as she turned towards Aiden and was horrified by what he saw. She saw the man from the ballroom repeatedly punching something, Zarrah then went down from the tree and sprinted towards the window, picking up a rock and throwing it towards the window. She then jumped up the wall and quickly climbed towards the window sill, she then boosted herself up and confronted the man. The man had a look of anger as he stared at Zarrah with the intent to kill.

The man rushed Zarrah at blinding speeds, throwing punches at her. Zarrah only dodged each punch as she was slowly back away. After dodging for a while she blocked a punch by hit his fist with her forearm and gave a right jab towards the man knocking him back slightly. She then started retaliating with quick punches. She then blocked another strike and gave a diagonal elbow strike towards the man's jaw. Seeking this chance, Zarrah then decided to use a roundhouse kick, but the man instead of getting dazed quickly recovered and grabbed the kick and punched her between the thighs. Zarrah gave off a loud groan. The man then started retaliating again. His fighting style was very basic and lacked any advanced techniques, yet from Zarrah hit, his punched held so much power despite the man's build. The fight became even more heated as the loud yet muffled song from the band Love Strings blared from the walls. Zarrah tried her best to block the blows but was starting to get tired from the man's power. The Man then crouched and managed to land a haymaker punch on the right side of Zarrah's rib cage. Zarrah gave a loud scream of pain, but she endured the pain and managed to balance herself on time and saw that the man had so many openings. She then gave a strong kick towards the man's groin. The man didn't stream but gave a groan as Zarrah finally winded her fist back and gave a strong punch right in the middle of the man's face. The man then fell back towards the ground barely conscious.

Zarrah then limped to Aiden while grasping her side. Aiden laid on the carpet, she then picked him up as Aiden moaned and groaned. She placed him upon a chair and was ready to leave, but Aiden grabbed her wrist.

"Wait...thank you," Aiden said his a hoarse voice, Zarrah then stared back at him with pity, she was heartbroken that her prince was hurt. So she decided to give him the necklace she wore and placed it in his hand. She then quickly jumped out of the window and landed upon the garden grass. She then quickly went through e garden and climbed up the garden wall. ZArrah gave one more look at her prince.

'Get well, my prince.' Zarrah then leaped down the garden wall.

***

Zarrah was now drinking a bottle of water as she kept thinking about Aiden and the training and the responsibility that she and the others have on their hands.

'I promised to myself that you won't be hurt again. prince.'