#opalsinvitation

ROSE STOOD OFF to the side, away from the commotion of the party and partly in shadow. she held a glass of champagne delicately between her fingers, occasionally taking small sips. the new prodigies were so nervous, she thought as she watched them. some stood talking with opals, hands fidgeting in front of them. some drank freely, clearly uneasy about the feeling of joining a secret society. she couldn’t blame them really, she remembers her jitters on the first night. 

they were going to learn so much ( and hopefully also no find out about poppy ). god, poppy. who had to miss her ceremony as a diadem. who’s been gone for –– god, thinking about it made rose yearn for a way to help. when she first joined the society, and her own predecessor, philip greeves, told her about the disappearances and the murder, it had piked her curiosity. that’s what always got her in trouble, anyways. after learning more, finding out details about the past, well, rose had begun to think that poppy was no coincidence. this was planned, as were the others, and the secrets they’ve tried so hard to keep were coming to light. 

philip told her when she’d called him after poppy’s disappearance, told her don’t snoop, don’t get caught up in that business, if you start digging were you shouldn’t bad things will happen. 

but this was her family. all of them were. and they deserve better. they deserve to go through this process with poppy by their side. no one is going to take any more of them away from rose, and she’d go far beyond her limit to figure out why poppy was gone, and if she was alive. ( god, she better be alive, please be alive ).

it’s not like anyone knew about her investigations anyway. ( beyond mia, rhys, hollis, and philip, of course ) –– most people assumed her article and her successful investigation was a one time ordeal. if there’s ever been a time to put her mind to work, it was now. she needed to get poppy back, for herself and for her circlet. but there was still so much left to solve, so many questions left unanswered. 

why did poppy go missing? were they planning to pick all of them off? why this year? why now? how much did they already know? are they out for revenge? why - why - why –––

         EAGER IS THE BEST WORD to describe nora on that evening. placed in the honour of being invited into the opal society ---- the most prestigious group on campus ---- she’s practically drunk on the excitement and intrigue swirling in the air. so many people - the current opals, and the other prodigies being called to join. nora wants to know every single one of them.               only ---- where on earth is she supposed to begin? she knows june, of course, and she knows the sapphire inviting her into the line ( nevermind how her heart MELTS with that knowledge. she was chosen ! they wanted her there ! they saw her as earning of the place ! oh, nora could swoon with how lovesick she was. ) and while it was appealing to trail at their heels like a lost puppy, she decides against it for now. instead, she weaves her away around the room, searching for someone to meet. 

                                                    ◟    *    something    sinister    written    in    the    way    she    sends    them    a    look    over    a    raised    glass    of    deep    scarlet    .    the    tilt    of    her    head    ,    eyes    sweeping    over    twenty    four    bodies    before    returning    to    the    person    in    front    of    her    ,    her    lip    curls    .     𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒓    𝒕𝒉𝒆    𝒑𝒐𝒕    ,    figure    it    out    .    ❝    riddle    me    this    ,    thirteen    new    kids    ,    twelve    forgotten    ones    .    ❞    a    blatantly    disrespectful    joke    toward    her    seniors    ,    but    she    takes    a    sip    of    her    wine    anyway    .    ❝    what    gives    ?    ❞

     it’s  a  lot  to  take  in  ---  the  evening,  it’s  purpose,  the  location,  the  society  itself.  not  one  to  typically  take  a  step  back,  she  finds  herself  behaving  out  of  character  by  standing  at  the  edge  of  the  elegant  room  watching  others  mingle.  she’ll  get  in  there  soon,  work  up  the  nerve  to  do  what  she  does  best  ---  life’s  one  big  networking  opportunity,  after  all,  and  this  might  be  the  grandest  there  is.  she’s  determined  to  keep  her  wits  about  her  to,  to  not  be  made  a  fool  with  liquor-loosened  lips,  but  nerves  have  her  downing  one  glass  of  dom  perignon  and  then  another  and  another.  

     someone  approaches,  joining  her  side  ---  she  can’t  tell  if  they’re  there  to  size  her  up  or  if  they  too  feel  hesitant.  “  this  is  . . . ”  she  trails  off,  searching  for  the  right  words.  she  normally  always  has  to  work  this  hard,  but  she  usually  never  lets  it  show.  perhaps  with  all  the  masks  in  the  room  this  evening,  her  own  seems  to  be  slipping  just  a  tad.  “ i  don’t  know.  i  think  i’m  rendered  speechless.  i  can’t  believe  this  exists.  that  i’m  here.  ”