Chapter 9: "Dance and cry"

I was led past the tremendously tall hallways. Past them, Seth pushed open a wide and garnished door. He pushed into a larger room, a room loaded with life. Not only was the interior lively, but it also had so many different beings around the room. Angels, cupids, more cherubs, and even some tiny heaven pups ran all around, covering up the space. 

The room made my mouth open wide. It was huge, tall, and even wider than the rest of the palace. Windows lined the room, casting sunlight down on the large floor that was engraved with gold and bright teal-green images. The floor was decorated in circles, shining brightly due to the sun glaring down at it. The walls were also decorated with tall, huge windows. They hung on the white marbled carving into the wall with even more golden lighting.

More vegetation sneaked inside- trees burst through the walls, and colorful flowers filled with prickly vines snuck around the windows and along the walls. The leaves that were as big as my head dropped water; they looked radiant and moist, glistening in the sunlight from above.

When I looked down, my senses pulled me down due to the cold yet comfortable surface below my feet. I watched in amazement as the ground reflected back up. It looked like a flowing river was just below my feet. It was like I was walking on water, stepping on the ground each time and watching the crystal blue liquid run through my toes. 

Even with the blossoming of unnatural colors, the sunlight made everything appear brighter than it was. The room was glowing and filled with life; light rays popped through my vision. I had to blink a few times to focus on the.. dancing… Others were dancing or what seemed to be dancing in the middle of the room.

I saw flashes of white wings, flowing robes, and laughing expressions. The room echoed with laughter; the sounds of paddled paws and feet hitting the ground and the flaps of consent wings made my eyes waver. Heaven pups ran around in joy, some in the arms of angels while others flew around. 

Besides the bustling of beings in the middle of the large room, the left half housed a long table. Like the rest of the room, the table was filled with life, like flowers and vines. All of it took over the wooden table and transformed everything into a majestic garden home. Even so, the table was loaded with different food dishes. I couldn't tell what the food was, but it was various things. I caught sight of some a large turkey and whole chicken breasts—other things like large bowls of green shrubs with bright red tomatoes. A few plates had large desserts like colorful cakes, brownies, and cheesecakes decorated with plums or strawberries. It looked fresh and new; the smells swarmed my senses, drawing me closer.

"Hey now, let's not get distracted yet," Seth called from beside me. With his hand still on my shoulder, Bridget came from my other side. 

"What.. what's going on?"

Bridget was the one to respond to me. "A party, of course," she smiled happily. "Everything in Wonderland is invited to come and eat, dance, and talk with others."

"And… The party, what's it for?" I turned to her to ask.

"Does there have to be a purpose for a party?" She laughed.

Seth pulled me closer to him, speaking loudly while the music started to grow: " Come on, Vienna, let's go have some fun!"

I was pulled forward by Seth's hand; he held my wrist, guiding me into the mess of others in the middle of the room. I dimly heard Bridget calling after us, but I didn't have the time to turn around when a few angels swarmed me.

Seth was now in front of me, both his hands clasped around mine. I looked up at him, dumbfounded. He smiled back, "come on, don't tell me you can't dance."

"What dance?"

"Anything really," the angel said, pulling his wings closer to himself. With his long sleeves flying around beside him, he held onto my hand. "If you don't know what to do- follow my lead."

"That doesn't sound like a good idea," I mumbled, looking at our connected hands with a raised brow.

"Ok, rude." Seth rolled his eyes, and with his wings close to his body- he moved me around with his wild but soft movements. 

The music was loud but didn't drown out the laughter that filled the room. The music hit the giant walls, echoing back onto Seth and me in the middle of it all. The beat was wild but held a sense of familiarity. It was somewhat relaxing. The beat was rough, changing from up to down and changing every few seconds. It had a soft echo, pooling around my head while I was turned and twirled around.

He let me go, catching my hips with one of his hands. I felt my wings open, trying to catch myself instinctively. A strong pull of strings chased the sounds and complex melody, bringing laughter and excitement to my ears.

I was pulled back up once again, greeting Seth's cheerful expression. "Come on, let go."

Let go?

Loud yells of joy were all around, and the atmosphere was circled and filled with beauty. The music brought a smile to my face. It closed around my ears, relaxing my tense wings but making my body build up its energy—the adrenaline, the feeling that was pumping through my blood. 

My body moved on its own. With my hand tightly closed around Seth's, he let me go again. With this toss, my body seemed to know what to do. I twirled around, holding onto the blonde angel that pulled me back into him. I landed in his chest, wrapping my arm around his shoulder while he lifted me back up. 

A smile was evident on our faces. He spun me around, turning around as I anchored myself with a leg wrapped around him. He let me go again in a flash, spiraling to the beat of the music. I lifted my hands, freeing myself from him while he held my hips tightly.

He laughed out loud, saying something to me, but it drowned in the music. It seemed to be the only thing my senses were focused on. The sound drowned all my worries, stress, and thoughts. I had no control over my body anymore; I let it flow, trusting the music that bounced off the walls.

It was tight, the hand on my hips, and the music controlling my moves. It was holding on tightly, afraid to let go. I opened my eyes, my hand on Seth's shoulder and eyes on his joyous smile. 

"There it is," he looked back at me, an expression of.. something.. I wasn't familiar with.

I couldn't finish my thoughts when a figure came from behind me. A familiar voice called out to us, "having fun without me, huh?"

I turned to Bridget, an annoyed smile on her lips. Seth laughed, gently letting go of me while backing up. "No, no, just showing Vienna around. I know you don't like to dance."

I tilted my head at the small girl, "you don't?"

"More like I can't.." Her voice was shy, and her cheeks held a slight red tint. She shook it off, walking between Seth and me, "but that doesn't mean we can't dance together."

"More like we dance; you just bop your head around," Seth smirked down at her.

She shoved him, "oh whatever."

With a smile, she pulled her wings close to herself, and her shoulders relaxed. Seth laughed, dancing alone by himself with a relaxed expression. The two chuckled together. What Seth said was true; Bridget did just bop around, but it looked like she was enjoying herself. 

I pulled my wings closer to myself, fidgeting slightly because I feared I might hit someone. The crowd in the middle of the room was getting bigger, and I didn't even realize that the music was also getting louder. The thumping and flaps of moving beings mashed together with the music, hitting the walls and back to my ears. 

My eyes closed, and a soft breath escaped my lips. A still smile was on my face as my mind wandered. Bridget and Seth closed me off; they kept themselves positioned in front of me so I wouldn't bump into anyone. I felt safe and comfortable enough for my mind to let loose.

The music gave me a funny feeling. It made me think back to someone or something I once did. I enjoyed doing it, but what was it?

I tilted my head back, and the sun shined against my closed eyes. The warm feeling, the overwhelming beat, hit my body, guiding me along the floor while my feet tapped the glass.

I have done this before. The music was different—it was a rock song— but I still let my body loose like this. I loved dancing and letting myself go with the rhythm.

Suddenly, I was no longer in the large palace. I was in a dark, crowded room filled with bopping heads, smoke, and loud drumming music. I turned to a man who was dancing with me. He brought a sense of familiarity to me. I felt comfortable, dancing wild and free. I did so, swinging my head around to the loud clashing of metal music. The faded purple hair on my head felt damp, sticking to my skin.

I didn't seem to care; my body moved around wildly. I didn't care who was looking at me or watching my movement. Probably because everyone was in their own world, only one person was watching me. I finally decided to open my eyes to look back at him. He was closer now. With his body pressed into mine, he kept his arms in the air as we danced together.

I tried to glance at him. He was shadowed by the smoke in the air and the dark surroundings. I couldn't see his appearance, and I didn't know who he was.

So why did I feel so safe?

It was weird, but I was comfortable, happy, and free. He was the one making me feel all this. But I couldn't remember his face. I couldn't remember him.

I shouldn't feel this way. 

You shouldn't make me feel so safe. Something was off about you. I tried to yell at him but couldn't speak; I was trapped in my mind. All I could do was watch as I danced along with him. The movement moved in a deep tone, sinking into my bones and muscles. My body had tightened up, and some type of fear ran up my back. 

A slight smirk was on his lips. His fair skin seemed to become darker, almost black, like he was being consumed by the smoke in the air. The darkness and the flashing of party lights hit my eyes, blinding me. But my body kept moving. I was trapped. The fear was rippling inside me. The music no longer felt right; it was deep, and the metal tone became a deafening chant. 

It was terrifying. 

I was terrified, so why did I keep dancing?

His face was closer; I didn't realize how close we were until now. I didn't move, my hips sliding against his lower body while his hands hovered beside my waist. We didn't touch, our faces were only inches apart. 

His lips were closer to mine, a feeling of hunger wrapped around my heart. 

Why didn't I move?

I was screaming at myself, pushing hard against the force that kept me in the dark. The blinding lights hit us. Bright red, blue, and even green neon lights gave way to his features, which slowly became recognizable. 

I watched in fear as his lips came closer. I finally managed to shove at the force holding me back. With that hard shove, my head swung back as I evaded his lips.

A laugh escaped my mouth; I was unaware that I was singing along to the song. The force let go, but I still couldn't control anything, including the maniac laughter coming out of my mouth. 

The man began to laugh along with me, stepping back and waving his hands. His voice soothed the body I had no control over, swinging around so we didn't touch; our laughter echoed together.

I felt cold.. confused... Scared. 

What was happening?

My body was cold, and a hard surface lay beneath my bare, open legs. I was on the ground, staring at the rushing spring water that endlessly swam beneath me. The glass reflected up while my hands lay against the glass, my brown skin glowing. 

I was afraid.

But I was back?

I still had no control over my body. My hands came to my shoulders, crossing over my chest protectively. I didn't know what I was protecting myself from, but I was scared. My head was hurting, begging softly- I didn't want to hear it anymore.

Even though the music hadn't stopped, everything in the room had ceased, and the beings that danced had all slowed to a stop. I couldn't hear the soft thumps of feet or the flaps of wings dropping silent feathers.

I felt myself being the surface of attention. I couldn't look up to see; the pain edging into my head was too much that when I tried to move, I cried out from the pain.

My teeth gritted together, tears filling my eyes. It was all hurting so much.

The ache was unbearable. No matter how hard I tried to console myself, to close off the pain hitting me from all directions.

"It.. hurts…" I cried, tears falling from my eyes. My head was lowered, inches away from the glass floor.

I was ready to drop. To weep in misery at the pain I couldn't stop- I couldn't control. It was too much. 

Why?

Why..?

"Why..!."

"Vienna." 

A soft voice pulled my attention up. A soft embrace closed around my small form, and an even softer hand, gentle as a fly, was on my head, ruffling short and gentle circles through my hair.

It was almost immediate. The soft touch sucked away the pain. My eyes finally felt free to open; tears dropped when I forced my head to look up. My eyes met with hers…

The Gate Goddess looked back at me. She sat across from me, her knees tucked under her flowing gown. She kept her gaze leveled, closely holding onto me. I looked up, wide-eyed, while she only giggled at me.

"My darling, do not think. Do not remember.." Her voice dimmed, and the long lashes shadowed her eyes while she moved her hand from my hair, to my chin.

I sank into her, feeling completely and utterly fine. I felt happy and comfortable again; just the soft touch from the beautiful goddess made me completely submit. I did so, dropping my head onto her chest. 

She laughed, the sound sounding like a melody.

With my eyes closed, the warmth and comfort took me deep out of my body and mind. I did what I was told, stopped thinking, and let the comfort take over my senses.

"I will make it go away.. the pain will no longer burden you, my angel."