Halloween Masque

The Venetian Room at the Hotel Pavane was known for the five great crystal chandeliers that hung from the ceiling, four of which burned real candles tonight for the great Halloween Masquerade, giving the most extraordinary warmth and light, at once revealing and concealing as it reflected off of the crystal lavalieres and sent shards of brilliance glinting off the fantastic garb of the celebrants. The candles were scented as well, and emitted the subtle fragrances of gardenia and attar of rose, patchouli or Siberian musk as one wandered about the ornate ballroom decorated with orange and black, admiring the elaborate costumes and gowns of the revelers, watching the eyes that followed you from behind one or another of the gorgeous masks.

Juliette had let Anna talk her into attending just hours before and, despite her costume, chosen at the shop downstairs, still felt nervous and ill at ease. No one could see her face—her mask covered everything but her eyes, and her honey-colored hair was hidden by a fancy headdress—but still she felt conspicuous. Perhaps it was because she herself knew what she was doing here, and knew what everyone else was doing at this ball as well. They were too old for spooks or trick or treat but not too old for disguises, and this masquerade was a time when one could put one's personality aside and be who one wished. This was Halloween at the Hotel Pavane, and there was only one reason people came here.

Her mask's expression was flawless and unmoving, as perfect as the moon which shined down on the cypresses and the little lake outside, upon which the white swans swam; as perfect as the expressions on the masks of the other guests in the room: the queens and fairy princesses, the sultans and fantasy beasts, houris and slaves, monsters and witches. Juliette's gown was of silver and indigo with gray lace and purple and green organza touches. She was supposed to be a goddess of the moon, all shadows and secrets, and she'd had no idea concealment could be so thrilling.

The Halloween Masque was one of the most popular balls at the Hotel Pavane, the premier chance for people to mingle and expose themselves while keeping their identities hidden, and the bolder or more impatient among them were already finding dark corners and shadowy spots on the veranda or by the lake to share their bodies with a temporary lover, often while keeping their masks on in surreal and dreamlike (or nightmarish) acts of love. To Juliette, who found voyeurism so exciting, the attraction of the ball was irresistible. There was no way she could have stayed in her room tonight.

"Have some punch, Juliette. It'll help you relax." Anna was dressed as Flora, the spirit of Spring, some impossible flowered creature in an elaborate red, green, and yellow gown with a rose-covered hat, and the harlequin mask she wore left her lips free, lips painted as red as the blooms that were festooned upon her costume.

"What makes you think I want to relax, Anna?" Juliette had to smile, because when she spoke, her whole mask moved. It was made of fine, bone-white porcelain, decorated with faux jewels and sequins, with holes for her kohl-rimmed eyes and her nostrils. The lips of the mask were painted in mauve and silver.

"You're being ridiculous," Anna told her. "You're just worrying about Alex. I know you and you're really being ridiculous, acting as if you're going steady or you owe him any sort of loyalty. You've been out together what? Four times? And now you act as though you're engaged to be married. Really, Juliette! We've had this trip planned for six months. Don't throw it away just because you have a crush on some self-styled wizard. Relax. Have some punch."

Beneath her mask, Juliette's face flushed. "What are you talking about? I'm not throwing anything away. The hell with Alex. I'm just not in the mood, Anna, really. This place is a bit much for me. Too much to do! It's tiring."

"Too much to do? You haven't been out of the room since we got here, Juliette! You sit there with those binoculars!"

Juliette turned her mask and stared at her. How did Anna know about the opera glasses? She made a face, forgetting that Anna couldn't see it behind the white mask.

"What are you talking about?" she objected.

Anna laughed and took a drink of her punch.

"Lift up your mask, would you, Juliette? I can't hear a damned thing you're saying!"

They were standing at the top of the double staircase at the south end of the gallery, leaning on the balustrade looking down into the crowd, well away from the orchestra at the north staircase, and from here they could see the whole floor and the lavish fountain, the dancing couples, and the men, many of whom wore tights and codpieces, or no codpieces at all, as the fancy struck them, giving the scene a distinctly medieval air. The Hotel held many balls and masques throughout the year, but Juliette and Anna were novices, and still didn't know what they were supposed to do with the silk fans and clutch purses they'd been given.

Juliette lifted her mask up and relished the feel of the cooler air on her face. Anna too lifted her mask and placed it on her forehead and fanned herself. Juliette was surprised to find that her face still felt hot. She was blushing. She hoped Anna didn't notice.

"Now, what were you saying?" Anna asked, posing herself conspicuously against the balustrade for the benefit of any men who might glance in her direction.

"Nothing." Juliette wasn't sure she wanted to pursue it.

"No. You asked me what I was talking about when I mentioned your binoculars. You think I don't know what you're doing in your room all day and night? You're spying into the other rooms, the ones across the way. That one couple are a pair of shameless exhibitionists and leave their blinds open all the time, don't they? I know you saw them when he fucked her lying across the table."

Juliette blushed and lifted her fan. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, don't play coy. I know you were watching because I was down in the courtyard with that Neil Zaphir and we saw you."

"Oh, fuck you, Anna! Really! I can't believe you're spying on me." Juliette turned away.

"What? What are you so upset about? Honey, this is me, Anna, remember? I know all about you and your voyeurism. More power to you, I say. It's just that there's more to life than voyeurism, you know. We've got to get you laid."

"I'm fine as I am. I don't want to get laid."

"The hell you don't."

"I don't."

"Well maybe you don't, but I'll bet your body sure does."

"Anna, I know what my body wants. We're still on speaking terms."

Anna sighed. "Well really, you're just being silly throwing it all away for that Alex and his wizard bullshit. I really don't know what you see in him. The man creeps me out."

Behind her mask, Juliette pouted. "He's sexy. Besides, he said he'd put a curse on me if I fooled around.He said I'd lose my looks."

"Oh, please, Julie."

"What? I think that's cute. It's romantic. I don't want to lose my looks. That's why I have this mask."

Someone on the floor caught Anna's eye and she stood up, straightened her back and thrust out her chest. She waved her fan in front of her face, knowing instinctively how to preen to draw attention to herself and she spoke out of the side of her mouth as she kept her eyes on whoever it was who'd caught her attention on the floor below.

"Fine, yes, right. Juliette. You're at the Halloween Masque at the Pavane. People come here from all over for the most fabulous sex in the world. They have everything here, everything!. And you're going to blow it all because your tinhorn wizard boyfriend put a curse on you. Fine. Whatever. Just don't get in my way." She flashed a smile down at the floor. "Is my hat straight, Juliette? Isn't that Michael down there? I can't tell from this distance."

"Where?"

"Those two men, down by that whore in the red dress near the fountain. It's Michael and David from lunch the other day."

Juliette looked and saw two men with their masks lifted, looking up at them. Sure enough: Michael and David. They'd met them two days ago in the conservatory, looking at exotic plants, joined them for lunch, then somehow lost track of them when Juliette had insisted on going back to her room, complaining of not feeling well. Actually, it had been David's attentions that had affected her.

People were different in this place, where you knew everyone was out for sex and every meeting had erotic potential. Of course, David had been aware of that too, so lunch had been delightfully tense, with seductive overtones. David was interesting, a strong but quiet type whose attractive sensuality was tempered by a gentle sense of humor, a refreshing break from what she was used to with Alex's saturnine earnestness. They had hit it off at once, and that had made Juliette nervous and uneasy, so she had talked Anna out of keeping their after-lunch date, and soon another man had called Anna and she'd gone off with him, leaving Juliette to sit in her room thinking about David, using her binoculars to watch a couple across the way and masturbating to try and relieve her loneliness.

Now when she saw David looking at her from below in his harlequin costume, she quickly lowered her mask over her face, flustered. She was embarrassed about the way she'd left him that day and didn't know how to explain it. Meanwhile she couldn't be sure if he'd seen her or not. She felt herself blush.

"Damn!" she said, turning away. "I don't want him to know it's me! Don't tell him!"

Anna calmly lowered her mask after making sure that Michael got a good look at her. "You really think he won't know? As you wish, Julie. I'll play along. Here they come. Just let me do the talking."

For a moment Juliette thought of fleeing, she was so torn about seeing him, but she stood her ground, picking up her fan and hiding behind it instinctively as the men climbed the stairs, Michael dressed as Death in a hooded robe, and David as Harlequin in a motley clown suit. The suit was snug and showed off his body. He looked splendid.

"Well!" Michael looked Anna up and down through his mask. "Could this be Anna? It's good to see you again! What happened the other day? We missed you after lunch."

Anna smiled. "Oh, Juliette took ill, poor thing, and I had to stay with her. You're looking well, Michael. I'm so sorry I couldn't keep our date! Why didn't you call me?"

"You never gave me your number! And is this mysterious creature Juliette? She's feeling better now?"

David was staring at Juliette as well, she could see him through her mask. His gaze made her warm.

"I wouldn't know who this is," Anna said with mock innocence. "You'd have to ask her. I really don't know. She goes by the name of Selene, Goddess of the Moon. She just followed me here, apparently."

David leaned forward and looked at Juliette with knowing eyes. "So that's your name? Selene? My name's David. Do you speak?"

Juliette shook her head. She didn't want him to hear her voice and she wasn't at all sure she wanted to get involved.

"No? Too bad then. But this is rather exciting, isn't it? The Pavane does such a great job, everyone masked, no one knowing who anyone is. It really sets you free, doesn't it, allows you to do whatever you want? I could pass you in the hallway tomorrow and never know you were the girl I was talking to tonight. Don't you find that exciting?"

She knew he knew who she was and she was afraid of him, afraid of what he might make her feel. She tried to summon a vision of Alex.

He looked at her with some amusement for a moment, then pulled his own mask down. "Is that better?" he asked. "Maybe you'd prefer it if you couldn't see who I was either. Then we can be two strangers to each other. I see that they gave you those little purses and the fans too?"

"Yes," Anna interjected. "The fans I understand instinctively. They're just perfect for flirtation. But what are these purses for? They have these little pumpkin discs in them and pens."

"I believe they're for writing down room numbers or other discreet notes," David said. "And slipping to a gentleman."

"Ah," Anna said. "Of course!"

He turned back to Juliette. "The only problem with your mask is that I can't kiss you through it. That's a pity. And I was looking forward to a nice conversation and perhaps a kiss or two. Still, it's such a beautiful mask. Absolutely flawless. Is that a comment on your character?"

Juliette's face was hot. She was blushing furiously, but David couldn't see, and she was thankful for that.

"I can still see your eyes, you know, and they look terribly familiar. I knew a girl with eyes like that, a girl named Juliette, but I don't suppose you know her?"

She shook her head then closed her eyes and turned her head away, angry at herself for her shyness. So she found him attractive? So what? That was no reason to act like a school girl.

"That's what's wonderful about Halloween. No one's who they seem to be. I look like a nice enough guy, don't I? You wouldn't believe how wicked I could be."

She made herself lift her face and look at him, and she found his eyes bright with laughter. He was aware of the game they were playing, and she warmed to him instantly. He was telling her she could play her game and be aware of it too and that would be fine. This was, after all, a Grand Masque.

"Would you like to dance, Lady Selene?"

She hated dancing and was terribly self-conscious about her body, but she had to accept. She literally couldn't say no. Shaking her head wasn't going to dissuade him.

He took her arm and led her down the marble stairs to where couples were already dancing to a slow Renaissance sarabande as best they knew how. He put his arms around her and they began to move, joining the swirl of ravishing colors and costumes, and Juliette managed to stay out of the way of his feet and pick up on the general rhythm of his body. And as the masks glided past, she began to feel a strange sense of strength or invulnerability, a feeling of being there and of not being there. It was her voyeur's dream come true, in the scene but not of it, observing everyone but shielded from their eyes by her mask, by the magical anonymity of her beautiful white mask.

She caught a glimpse of herself as they passed the mirrored walls and the sight startled her: her body was not her own. It belonged to this masked creature held in Harlequin's arms, a creature of grace and perfection of form. She'd never seen herself like this, looking like someone else, and she was able to evaluate herself objectively without her self-deprecating prejudice. She was an attractive woman. The flaws she always saw were minor, she realized now. She smiled behind the mask. Maddeningly, the expression on mask stayed the same: bland, non-judgmental.

She was sexy, she realized. She wanted herself. If she were David, she'd want her too. She'd want to be mean to herself, to slap her ass and pinch her nipples and force her to her knees and shove a cock into her mouth. She'd want all of that, she realized, all because she wore a mask, because she seemed above it all.

"It's a pity you can't talk," David said. "I'd ask you how you like wearing that mask." He gazed into her impassive face as the dance. "Perhaps we can try this: tap me once for yes, twice for no. Is that all right?"

She thought for a moment, not sure she wanted to break this cocoon of silence, then she tapped his shoulder once.

He smiled. "Good. Then tell me: do you like wearing that mask?"

She paused for only a moment, then tapped him once.

"I thought so. And do you like dancing?"

Another pause, then she tapped him three times.

"Hmm. Does three times mean 'I don't know'?"

One tap.

He laughed.

He took her hand and led her from the dance floor and out onto the veranda in the moonlight. There were a few people here taking the air, or hiding in the shadows, a few people smoking or getting intimate. He walked her to the stone balustrade and lifted his mask to his forehead..

"Alright, Selene," he asked mischievously. "I've got to ask you. You look very familiar. Do I know you?"

She was pleased that he couldn't see her smile beneath her mask.

She put her hand on his arm and tapped him three times.

"Do you know yourself who you are?" he asked.

Juliette paused, then tapped him three times again.

The look he gave her was so penetrating and prolonged that she had to look away, even with the mask protecting her.

"The mask has made you into someone new, hasn't it?" he asked.

He was right, and she felt a thrill run through her body like an electric current.

Her eyes lit on a man and woman, standing in the shadows of the French doors that led into the ballroom. She hadn't noticed them when they'd come out here because of the shadows, but she saw them now, dressed as courtiers from the time of Louis XIV, down to the white silk stockings on the man and the ornate white powdered wigs. They were locked in a passionate embrace, their masks up on their heads as they crushed their mouths together in a way that made Juliette's blood hot. The man had one hand up beneath the woman's voluminous satin skirts, and from the movement of her shoulder, she appeared to be beating him off, milking his cock with slow, languid strokes.

When he saw the look in Juliette's eyes, David glanced back over his shoulder to see what she was looking at, then he turned back to Juliette, deciding her reaction was more interesting than what the man and woman were doing, even if he could only see her response in her eyes behind the mask. Juliette's pupils were dilated and bright. Her chest was lifting and falling.

She was spellbound. They were close enough to hear the wet, hungry suck of their kisses and their hot eager panting and moaning, and when the man suddenly dropped to his knees and stuck his head under the woman's skirt, Juliette felt as if she'd been struck in the stomach. She instinctively grabbed David's arm and sunk her nails into him, a small gasp escaping her own lips. The woman lifted her skirts and leaned back against the ivy-covered wall, spread her legs and began to wail softly, biting her knuckles to stifle her cries. Looking up, she saw Juliette watching her, and she reached up and demurely pulled her mask down over her face, presenting a blank, ghostly visage to the world. She turned her face to the side and covered her low-cut bodice with her fan to hide the way the man was reaching for her breasts, fumbling to find her nipples and pinch and squeeze them as he ate her cunt beneath her satin skirt.

The gesture gave Juliette chills. She couldn't take her eyes off the masked woman and the way her head rolled back on her shoulders in shuddering pleasure as soft cries and gasps issued from beneath the grotesquely impassive mask. The man's arms disappeared under her skirt and from the way the fabric moved it was obvious he was using his hands on her as well as his mouth, fucking her, pumping into her with his fingers, shoving his hand into her cunt.

"You see that?" Suddenly David was behind her, his arms encircling her, holding her wrists. He was whispering in her ear, so close she could feel the warmth of his breath. He gave her goose bumps. "He's putting his finger inside her, fucking her as he eats her, and she must be spilling all over his hand, spilling her hot juice on him! Look at how she loves it! I can do that to you, Selene. I can do just what he's doing to her. Eat you like that and put my finger inside you till you cum..."

He brought her wrists up till they crossed at her breasts, then let go of them and cupped her breasts in his hands, and Juliette almost swooned. The thrill of watching another couple while being so roughly handled was almost too much for her and she let him pull her in against him till she was leaning back against his body with his cock pressing against her ass and his hands on her tits. She slid her thumbs under his palms to keep control of him and squeezed his hands once, then twice more, then she squeezed them three times.