Dancing on Strings

Addictive

"It is styled in a variation of what a room might look like in my mother's home country," Mai replied as she brushed through her hair.

"Hmm," The Black Rabbit muttered, amusement in his tone, "I've visited that land; this is certainly one way to imagine such rooms. I'm going to imagine that it wasn't created by someone who has ever actually been."

Mai paused, then looked back at him.

"You've... you've been to my mother's country?"

"Land of The Divine," he said absently, resting his chin on his palm as he continued to look around. "Kingdom of jade and golden dragons. It's been a while but, yes, I have visited."

His attention settled on a structure in one corner of the room.

"Is that your mother?"

Mai glanced back to where he gestured. It was a tiered table that held a beautiful painting upon it, along with fruit, flowers, candles, incense, jade and gold.

The jade comb Mai's grandmother had given her sat centre on the table, the latest of the offerings her mother was given in the fight to keep her memory alive – a cruel irony.

"Yes," she said, looking at the painting of a beautiful petit woman no older than twenty, dressed in flowing silk, with her ebony hair adorned with diamonds and pearls and surrounded by lotus flowers.

"What was her name?"

Mai let out a slow breath. "Fang Mei Ling," she said.

"So tell me about your name."

Mai looked at him.

"That's a name from a neighbouring country."

Mai looked at him, then laughed slightly. "You've been there as well?"

"Land of the Rising Sun," he said simply.

She raised an eyebrow. "Alright, I admit, I'm impressed that you might know that. No one in this kingdom would know the difference."

"I've travelled more than these well-to-do court ponsies," he said.

Mai snorted. "My mother chose it because it means dancer," she said.

"Ah! She had a gift for seeing the future."

"She was a dancer herself," Mai corrected.

"Oh yes? And how did a dancer produce the Princess Royal to one of the most powerful kingdoms in the world?"

"Why are you here, by the way?" Mai asked.

"To see how you were. You had a fright yesterday. And you look pale this morning. Sleep badly?"

Mai looked at him, the dream she had only woken from minutes before rushing back to her.

To the wicked, nastiness of The Black Rabbit's grin. To the revolting thing that masqueraded as an apple. To the talk with Lady Nightmare. To the dancing and Reve.

"Bad dream," she muttered.

"Ah, well, I'm not surprised. Hence why I'm here!"

"Yes, because a weird man in my private rooms makes a lady feel so much better," she said, turning back to her mirror.

"You'll thank me. Look."

She sighed and turned again. He was reaching back down the stairs and dragging something up. It was a large, weirdly shaped case. Setting it on the floor, he unclipped the lid, flipped it open and drew out an instrument, which appeared to be an oversized violin.