Cantarella Chapter 1- Introductions

Cantarella: A Fanfiction
Part 1: Introductions
Mckenna's POV

Looking out at the rolling landscape that passed by swiftly, Mckenna saw the outline of a grand palace-like mansion peaking out from the horizon. Her eyes widened in awe; the manor looked as though it was a fairytale castle in the mist, though it was hard to distinguish any specific features from this distance She reached over to nudge her sister, Layla, to look at their destination, but she was asleep with her head leaning against the left side of the carriage. Mckenna smiled. They were in that carriage for at least several hours, and the sky was changing from it's usual light summer blue to the purple twilight. She could hear the sound of the horse hoofs against the gravel path, and the carriages that held her parents in one, and the servants in the other behind them.
This year, she was finally old enough to attend the annual week-long ball thrown by some friends of her parents. It was legendary, known for it's high society guests, glamorous parties, and the many marriages that came out of it. The thought of dressing up in a pretty gown and a mask, dancing for hours with a handsome boy who she would likely marry sounded like the greatest thing in the world when she was a child. Not that she was saying she still didn't carry that fantasy.
The carriage went over something large, and jolted Mckenna. Across from her, Layla groaned and stretched her arms.
"Are we there yet?" Layla murmured sleepily. Mckenna smiled.
"Look!" She pointed to the grand mansion that they were approaching. Layla scooted to the window and smiled. This was her third year attending the party. Last year, she met Gallus, a lord of a large manor by the sea, who is now her fiancee.
"It's even more beautiful then last year." She sighed with nostalgia. She adjusted the skirt of her gown; a pink sleeveless silk dress with finely embroidered lace covering the upper torso, and the neck and waist had jewels stitched in. She had black gloves, and her beautiful long pink locks were piled on top of her head into an elegant French twist with many thick strands of hair swooping down over her shoulders. Mckenna, not knowing how to dress when arriving, stuck with a simple long sleeved black dress at ankle's length with white lace, accompanying it with a black choker with a rose. The rose was a made of scarlet red cloth, and was handmade to look almost identical as the original flower. It was a precious gift from a childhood friend of hers years ago. It matched almost every gown she wore, and was given compliments by many friends.
The castle-like house was much closer, and Mckenna began to see the lights of other carriages lining up in front of the main entrance. The mansion looked as though it was came out of one of her fairytale stories she use to read. The walls were made out of finely-cut grey stone with towers rising from the top of the house. There looked as though there were miles of green grass, and to the left was a large garden leading to some woods. The black iron gates gleamed as two men dressed in identical uniforms opened them for the carriage. Mckenna felt her stomach take somersaults inside of her. Finally, she was here! She glanced over at Layla, who, even though maintaing proper poise, looked a bit excited herself. The door opened from outside, and a gloved hand was offered. Layla took it and stepped out of the carriage. Seconds later, another hand reached inside, waiting for Mckenna to take it. The tealette paused, wanting to take this all in before leaving the comforts of the carriage. The hand hovered at the entrance of the door patiently, so she sighed, and reached over and took it and stepped out of the carriage.
"Welcome to the manor, Lady Mckenna." The man dressed in a uniform greeted her with a smile and helped her down onto the tiled ground. She smiled back and gazed up at the mansion in awe. She would be staying here for a least a week, with a party almost every day. She could only imagine what type of man she would meet here..."Lady Mckenna?" The man's voice snapped fer out of her thoughts.
"The luggage...?" She nodded, but didn't really know what to do with it. "Umm, take it-"
"Take it up to her bedroom, Lyon." Layla cut in, sensing Mckenna's nervousness. The man-Lyon- nodded and amazingly hoisted one of her two giant trunks and headed into the mansion. The girls followed. Behind them, her and her sister's maids, Kotette and Nerinne, waited patiently to help her parents. They passed through an outdoor part of the mansion with arches revealing the garden where another small group (probably more guests) walked right by, and then passed into the stairwell until they reached the third floor. The servant turned right.
"Mistress Layla, this is your bedroom here." Felipe opened the white wooden door into a large room. It was lavender with white tiled floors, a gold chandelier,  two velvet sofas and a tea table in front of a fireplace, and large windows. A pair of double doors lead into the bedroom, which was also the same color, and across the door there was a king-sized bed with gold sheets. Miku gasped, amazed that a place like this could be so luxurious. "You and Lord Gallus will be sharing this room, as you may know." Layla nodded. Even she was a bit amazed with the beauty of this home.
"Wait... you and Gallus... you're sharing a bed together?" Mckenna asked. Layla's shoulders jerked a bit, and her sister looked flustered. There was a long pause.
Lyon coughed awkwardly, and then quickly turned and began walking out of the room. "Lady Mckenna!" he called. "Your room is this way." Mckenna quickly scurried out of the bedroom, leaving Layla alone in her bedroom. Her room was next to Layla's but she would have it to herself. It was also lavender, but a bit smaller. The smaller living room had a pair of french doors, which led to a small Juliet balcony; the black-iron bars were wrapped in layers of ivy. Her bedroom was the same color, with large windows, white-tiled floors that showed her reflection, and white duvet covers under a canopy queen-sized bed. "I'll leave your things here." Lyon said and gently placed her giant trunk onto the ground. "I'll come back with the other one in a moment". She smiled. "Thank you Lyon." He smiled and closed the doors behind him, leaving her alone.
Giddy, she twirled in place with her arms out and laughed. This place is beautiful! She couldn't wait to enjoy all the festivities that were about to come. After several more seconds of spinning, she fell backwards onto the bed. The sheets were soft, and smelled like fresh wildflowers. Mckenna giggled and closed her eyes. If this whole trip was a dream, she would never want to wake up.
*******

Kaito's POV
"I don't understand mother!" Kyle cried, exasperated. "Why did you make me come here again this year?" Kyle's mother, Anne-Marie, sighed and shook her head.
"I told you. You're 20. It's quite about time that you found yourself a bride. And this is the perfect opportunity to." She waved her hand as she spoke. "I don't see what your problem is. There are plenty of pretty girls here from good backgrounds who are suitable for you."
"But I don't like any of them!" He yelled in reply. Thankfully, he knew the walls of his bedroom here were thick, so none of the the guests could hear them from their rooms next door. Anne-Marie rubbed a gloved hand to her face.
"If you don't care about finding a wife, then you're going have to talk about that with your father." She looked up at her upset son and smiled. "For now, just try to look as though you are enjoying yourself. You should go and thank Byron and Clarice for inviting you again this year." Not wanting to upset his mother anymore, Kyle nodded.
"Yes mother."
"Alright then. Why don't you go downstairs to dinner? It should be ready soon."
"Yes mother." He said. Anne-Marie stood up and adjusted the collar of his dark blue coat and he left the room. Kyle didn't think this was fair one bit. He came every year, smiled and presented himself as a young man ready to inherit his father's manor, spoke to every girl his mother introduced to him, and acted like a gentleman. Why was he still being forced through another year of this?
He hardly made it to the end of the hall before a small crowd of young women began to swarm him. He sighed. Here we go again.
"Good evening, Lord Kyle." Sienna, a young maiden whom he met last greeted him.
"Yes, good evening." He forced a smiled back at her. Her peachy face turned bright red.
"Oh yes, good evening, Lord Kyle!" Coleen, another maiden from a wealthy family who he also had seen here for the past two years said anxiously. She twiddled her bright hair around her finger flirtatiously. Kyle nodded in reply. He began to walk down the steps, and the girls followed.
"How was your year, Lord Kyle?" Lilliana asked cheerfully.
"Very well, thank you." He said.
"Have you found yourself a wife yet?" asked Aoife, looking a bit worried as the other girls were when she asked. They walked into the open-air hallway that gave a view of the garden.
"No, I haven't." He grimaced, but the girls didn't seem to notice. They sighed in relief. He continued towards the dining hall, passing a small crowd of guests heading in the other direction. A flash of teal hair caught his eye.
Kyle stopped abruptly and turned around. A girl with teal hair in two pigtails was walking with a tall pinkette, and in front of both of them appeared to be a servant holding an abnormally large trunk. As if in slow motion, the girl with pink hair said something, and the girl with teal hair laughed. It was a beautiful laugh, a laugh he felt like he had missed for so many years. A dizzying sense of deja vu passed over him and his eyes widened.
Mckenna?