Somewhere with a Monarchy, 1835
"Emray, but you must!" my mother was insistent I went to the town square with her today, but it was raining and she would never even consider letting me wear something comfortable, or at least not a dress.
"Mother! It's raining!" I exclaimed as loud as was considered ladylike, feeling my olive cheeks redden with anger, and I liked to think my blue-gray eyes were narrowed.
"So bring a cloak," she reasoned, powdering her nose in the washroom two doors down from the sitting room, "there's going to be a big announcement today regarding the royal family!"
My thoughts on Prince Damien Brioc Lovette? Spoiled. His name means "tame mighty prince loved one". There's no such thing as a more condescending name.
"Damien-"
"Prince Damien, but with any luck, darling, it will be proper for you to call him that someday," my mother didn't even glance at me as she walked into the finely furnished sitting room where I was. So she didn't see my obvious struggle to not yell at her.
"Mother, I thought I already told you. When Damien and I saw each other last, we were toddlers and you thought I would eventually be his bride no matter what. Now look where we are, he's going to announce a betrothal celebration for all the nobles," I stated, before I realized, that I was Lady Emray Evergreen. Lady. Ugh.
A slow grin spread across my mother's face, and I knew she thought I was right. There was a betrothal ball every year for all the nobles, and this year, the newly 19 year old prince would have be involved. As soon as they announced the betrothal celebration, which I knew they would, she would be strategizing like I was going to war.
Although, I guess if I did go to war, it would look like the palace's grand ballroom.
"Honey!" she exclaimed. "You could be the prince's bride! Become queen one day and therefore our lineage will be royal!"
She wasn't going to stop. What she didn't know was that I wanted to find my soulmate, my other half. Sometimes, I wondered if she even saw me as a human, not just a daughter who could bump her up in the social rankings.
"Mother, if I go with you to the square, will you please silence yourself on this topic?" I offered, watching my mother carefully. If her eyebrow went up, she was going to try and trick me. If she picked up the fan next to her on an end table, she was lying. And if that vein in her forehead started popping out, she would agree fair and square, if reluctantly.
"Alright," the vein on her forehead popped out, even under all of her face powder, "I agree to your terms if you allow me to shop with you for an opening day dress at the garden party, or better yet, the masquerade ball."
"Mother," I sighed, "I will agree to that. But I do wish you would consider thinking Prince Damien will not instantly fall in love with me."
"I know that. But he will," she replied, and before I could respond, her blonde hair swished around the corner, along with her beige day dress.
When she was out of sight, I stood up and took off my high heels. Feeling instant relief from the wicked torture devices, I sighed and walked to the front of the house.
My family's house on main street was in the valley, underneath the castle's mountain. Almost all of the nobility have identical houses: picket fences, brick walls, eight windows, and brown shingles. Inside, since my father is a high ranking nobleman, every room is lavishly furnished. In the sitting room I just left, there are rose printed couches and a chaise lounge by the window that lets soft beams of natural light into the room. In the kitchen, we have a fireplace to put the ceramic pots and pans over to cook our food. There were also dark wood cabinets and rose wallpaper. The staircase in the entryway was a dark wood, engraved with the family motto: aliud fidem potissimum, meaning "loyalty above all else". I climbed the stairs to my bedroom, the style of the century with a four poster bed, more rose wallpaper, a dark wood nightstand, a golden candelabra, and a dark wood dresser.
I walked over to my wardrobe, also dark wood, and opened the door. I was met with every kind of dress for every kind of high society event. After rifling through my selection quickly, I found my navy blue afternoon dress along with a corset and petticoat to go with it. I took off my dusty rose house dress and placed the corset around my torso. Wincing when I felt my insides shift at the sudden tightness, I tightened my corset until my waist until it was tiny and what was expected of a lady.
After my torso was sufficiently squished, I slipped the petticoat on and placed the navy dress above it. Satisfied, I grabbed my hairbrush and started twisting my hair into an intricate bun on the top of my head. Grabbing my fan, I walked out of my room and met my mother in the entryway.
"Ready to go, darling?" my mother asked, happiness evident in her eyes when she saw my choice of a plain yet sophisticated dress.
"Yes, let us get this over with," I groaned, feeling myself heat up, so I unfolded my fan and started flapping it at my face. However, when the chilling afternoon breeze entered the house, I felt myself shiver and immediately put down my fan. My heavy cloak was hanging by the door and I draped it over my arm. It would be far better to be dry and have to carry the cloak to the carriage than be soaked and not have to carry the thing at all.
"Well, it is certainly chillier than I expected it to be today," my mother was already breathless. If my corset was tight, hers was clenching. It never ceases to amaze me how much the corset could make my mother look like a doll.
"I did tell you earlier that it would most likely rain today," I stated primly, hoping no one was paying my mother and I special attention. I could even see some beads of cold perspiration on her brow.
My mother sighed at my tone and led me to our family's carriage where it was waiting in front of our house. Our coat of arms, a golden band encircling two hands, was on the door of the red carriage. My mother told the driver to hurry to the square, and now he was pushing the majestic beasts that were our horses down the red and brown cobblestoned road at a fairly fast pace.
We reached town square in the nick of time, as a small man was climbing onto the fountain's ledge with a sizable crowd gathering from the nearby stores and merchant shops. My mother and I exited the carriage and rushed over to the crowd, pushing our way to the front. That came without much struggle since the other women recognized my mother from the hearings and charity events that came with being a nobleman's wife.
The whispering started immediately in our wake, because my family wasn't exactly known for coming to these announcements. We normally sent our maid, Bethenny, to the square to report back to us on anything important. That way we didn't have to go anywhere unnecessary.
I caught sipits of whispered conversations, such as, "What do you think could be so important for the Evergreens to show up?"
"I don't really know. What if it has something about Lady Evergreen's daughter marrying the prince?"
I stopped listening after that, because I didn't want to hear anything else. Those women acted so high and mighty, but the second something happened to them they would grovel at our feet. It was one of those things that was annoying about gossip. However, it should fizzle out soon.
Suddenly, the little man began talking, causing all eyes to move to him, "All of the noble ladies, aged 18-20, and all of the noble lords, aged 18-25, are invited to attend a betrothal celebration. On the first night, a masquerade ball shall take place, so you know not what the other person looks like. This is to keep the identity of the Prince Damien a secret. On the second day, there shall be a garden party, on the third day there shall be a sparring match for the men and a beauty day for the women, on the fourth dates, and on the fifth, the betrothals. If the prince so chooses to extend the duration of the celebration, all those participating shall be asked to stay. Any and all questions must go to Hebert at the palace. Thank you," the small man stepped down from the podium in the center of town square, and as soon as he hopped into his carriage and road away, the square became alive with buzz.
I would've rolled my eyes if it wasn't unladylike.
"Darling!" my mother exclaimed, and I had a feeling what she would say next. "You were right! Now that it's been announced, we must go and buy you a wonderful dress and the mask! Oh, the mask! It will be spectacular!"
Now she was gushing and her cheeks were reddened. I was embarrassed for her, so I pulled my mother into her favorite dress store. Immediately, she stopped talking about the ball or the betrothal celebration and went straight into the ball gowns section.
After four hours, I was sitting behind the changing wall, trying to figure out why I pulled my mother into this store. She had already made me try on three quarters of the selection, and she had yet to be satisfied with any of the well sewn dresses I came out from behind the changing wall in.
"Mother," I said finally, "I've tried almost everything on in this store. I don't think we'll be finding anything here."
"But Madam Claire runs the top store in this town! Where else would we go?" she cried, going back around the seamstress's store, almost like it would be a disgrace to leave and get a dress somewhere else.
"Mother, Juline's is down on the corner. We can check there!" I offered, not thinking my mother could taken offense to a suggestion to go to a different clothing store.
I was wrong.
"How dare you even suggest that? My own daughter..." my mother trailed off and turned around, desperate for another solution.
Faced with a choice of finding the perfect dress or staying in a high profile store, my mother chose the dress.
We walked outside, and the air was significantly cooler. Because of this, we hurried down the side of the cobblestoned street to Juline's small shop. I had thought about the other shop only because no one else walked in that direction to see what new dresses Juline might have. Personally, I loved some of her work. The dress I was wearing was done by her, custom made so that I could have exactly what I wanted.
When we reached the shop, my heels slowly killing my feet, mother looked behind us to see if anyone saw us going into the lower end store. After she was satisfied, my mother opened the door and ushered me inside the store quickly.
She breathed a sigh of relief and faced me, "Darling, if you don't like anything at first sight, keep looking. We don't want to take too long in here. Imagine if someone saw!"
"That's agreeable," I said, and I began browsing the different selections of dresses in the store.
"Hello?" someone called, and I turned and saw Juline coming from the back of the store.
Juline was someone who reminded me of a kindly grandmother. White hair, wrinkles around her eyes from smiling so much, and she wore floral dresses all the time.
"Hello," I sang, "could you show me a dress that will catch everyone's eye at the masquerade ball for the betrothal celebration."
"Preferably the prince's eye!" my mother called.
"Well, lucky for you I just finished a beautiful ball gown. Would you like to try it on?" Juline asked, looking at me intently, like I could walk out any second.
"Yes, please!" I told her, and my eyes widened when I saw the masterpiece she brought out from the back.
The dress was a deep teal, bordering on blue-grey, with golden embroidery. The off the shoulder sleeves cut off at the elbow, and she brought a golden feathered mask out with her. The skirt was puffy on its own, so I wouldn't need to wear a petticoat, and the hem scraped the floor. It was so breathtaking, I was momentarily speechless.
"Yes," I said again, not even realizing it.
Juline just laughed, "My first customer, the best dressed customer at the ball," she stated, handing me both the mask and the dress.
I took it into the back to try on. Slipping off my dress and petticoat yet again, but leaving the corset on, I put on the dress, and the mask had an ear clip so I didn't have to hold it. Looking at myself in the mirror, I knew this was the one. It fit perfectly.
I twirled, the ultimate dress test, and it flared out around me. How did nobody come to Juline's store when she created magical pieces like this?
When I stepped out from behind the changing wall, there was an audible gasp from both my mother and Juline when they saw me in the dress.
Happily, my mother bought the dress immediately, having Juline package it up so that nobody could have a copy made. My mask went into the parcel with the dress, and we were set.
The ball was in two short days. Two short days, and I would be dancing with the other nobility looking for my soul mate. In two short days, I could fall in love.
~o0o~
Word count: 2,253
HELLO AMAZING PEOPLE! It is I, C. J. Powers! Recently, I decided on that pen name, what do you all think? Anyways, I have self diagnosed myself with insanity because that's what I must have if I'm writing this. Note: Brownies and pudding cups were eaten in the making of this chapter.
~happyperson081