After the meal had finished and Venus stalled by washing up with Phil, she found herself being urged to bathe so that she could appropriately be both hygienic and dry for her crowning. She sat in the bath, appreciating the smell of spiced berries while thinking of how far she had gone from where she came. Her status was as volatile as the international coal trade. Princess, adventurer, princess once more, messenger, princess yet again, traitor and fugitive by law, target, dead; she was considered dead for a few months - before returning to her ascribed status of princess, and at last - empress. It could change, nothing was stopping her from returning to being a princess.
As she rested, head partially submerged in the warm water, she thought of if it was worth it. Would it be worth her revealing she was alive to a family who would overall not care. Well they would care, it wouldn't be in a good way.
Her fingers pruned as she pondered before she finally decided to climb out and dress herself. She wore a blue dress, it wasn't often she wore blue - it was the only thing she could really remember from her sister, Cecilla. But it wasn't a bad colour, so Venus spun in her dusty blue dress, leaving the bathroom while the water drained. A maid silently excused herself and went in behind Venus to clean up - Venus hoped it was an easy job for her, she cleaned everything other than the bath. Hertha sat there with Kristen looking at the dress, it was an amazing blue; cotton and satin with fine lace over it for a glimmer in the light. They settled on the mermaid cut, with gold and yellow sequins forming flowers and plants from the waistline downwards. Kristen turned to Venus and shot a sorrowful look.
"Darling, do you know what we could do to make this dress better?" She asked pitifully. Venus looked at it, and though being self-conscious of her sense of style (a lot of what she suggested and offered was often disagreed with by a few people whenever she offered her opinion), she squinted.
"Hm... why not... silver beading across the neckline and trailing across the waist above the sequins... is that too odd? Why not lace the neck with an overlay bodice instead? You could make it yellow." Venus contemplated. Hertha gasped and smiled.
"I wanted to have a lace mask like Queen Kristen! That would go perfectly!" She celebrated and pulled out the yellow lace.
"I'll do it, darling. Go take a bath." Venus stopped her and pushed her behind the painting after the maid had left. "Alright. Let's give this a makeover." Venus sighed confidently.
"Mhm... I was thinking that shoulderless didn't suit her." Kristen nodded. Venus agreed. "Sleeveless and short sleeved do. Why don't we give these on top? It can help cover the emptiness of her neck when the time comes."
"Mhm, she can pull them down if she doesn't want them, how about we add some short sleeves? Like lace... ruffles?" She offered the idea of sleeves, Kristen wanted a demonstration and Venus went through the effort of pinning lace how she wanted by the straps.
"Oh! I see! That's cute! We can add some simple gold and yellow to the straps and we can have blue sequins down on the bodice!" Kristen's lightbulb moment sparked and the girls scrambled to get the dress done. Hertha was taking a while in the bath, by the time they had finished, Ranboo was waiting by the door to escort Venus to her dress.
When they had finally finished, Venus hurried with Ranboo to the room, where Minerva and Wilbur were waiting. Both had good style, so were both elected to help. Venus looked at the dress and saw the over-skirt resting calmly on the dress, the red was the slightly darker red of the bodice, which stood out over the lighter lace which was kept on top.
Both Wilbur and Minerva were dressed for the occasion. Minerva wore a blue skirt, but had a separate bodice - which was grey. She wore a blue corset on top to fit her figure. Wilbur was wearing a suit. Three-piece, with a blue tie to stand out against all of the other colours. What more could Venus say other than he was dashing?
She didn't take long to dress herself, finding the extra weight behind her was mildly frustrating. She could cope though, enjoying the simplicity of the skirt. Minerva helped her with her shoes and Wilbur kindly offered his gloves, which Venus declined and wore the lacy gloves which were slightly too small for her larger hands. But she looked amazing.
Music began flooding the halls as guests arrived. Maids were running back and forth to mildly decorate hidden parts of the palace which would probably be seen by only a few people; if any. As the strings and harpsichord promenaded through countless halls and rooms, Wilbur helped Venus do her hair while she did her face. Her hair was put up into a bun completely and had strands shaping her face, her shorter hairs. It was unlike Minerva's, which was also put into a bun, but hers was a military-friendly hairdo. It was tighter and neater, made of a braid.
Her makeup was just tinting her lips and shaping her eyes, after that, she didn't bother with covering faint bruises and scratches across her face - she thought they made her look strong. Wilbur reddened her cheeks with some blush, before kissing her on the forehead. Minerva, who was watching, coughed and shot a look.
"What? She's like my sister!" Wilbur argued, "I'd ruffle her hair but she has to look good. Are you feeling okay Venus? We should start getting you ready. Have you got a speech ready?" Wilbur stood her up and his face dropped at her distressed look.
"Speech?" She asked faintly. Minerva handed a set of cards.
"Well I figured you wouldn't know what our coronations are like, so Tubbo and I spent all night making cards for you to follow." Minerva explained and smiled softly at Venus, who crouched to her level and kissed her cheek.
"I owe you my world." Venus thanked and looked through the cards, before walking out. There was some chatter and the music grew as Venus, along with Wilbur and Minerva, made their way to the ballroom. She was stopped by the door by Minerva as Wilbur walked in to inform Techno she was ready.
His voice echoed loudly through both the hall and the place itself, the gentle pattern of snow outside seemed to stall in time so that his words could travel comfortably through the atmosphere. His light laughter as he cracked a few jokes and invited others to talk put a spotlight on his amazing hosting skills, the charisma he had was impeccable. But deeper down, he was quite pretentious, to those closer. So it was hard to admire his good qualities past the fact they were good qualities. Wilbur and Ranboo both appeared from the door, amplifying Techno's booming voice to echo across the halls. His hand was outstretched to motion to the door. It was Venus's cue to step in.
With some grace and anxiety, she walked in slowly, hearing the light murmur then applause as she walked up to the stage with both the boys who opened the door for her. All throughout, she had a humble smile plastered to her face. Philza flew down with a sword, a goblet and the crown. Technoblade was given a trident, Venus had heard of him carrying one, but hadn't seen it until the coronation. He apparently used to use it during war before he suddenly switched to loaded and ranged ammunition. Venus felt that Tubbo had something to do with it, since he was obsessed with the forward motion of time and explosives themselves. The trident was blue with golden edgings, he then held her hand behind Phil's talking figure and smiled at her.
It calmed her, seeing his supportive smile, it made her feel like she was doing the right thing. Philza stepped to the side and motioned for Venus to stand where he did, and with grace and sheer talent, she swerved and faced the crowd, tilting her head slightly to give a smile. A small applause went around before Techno gave her the trident and the goblet.
The goblet was filled with what smelt like fire and blood. A deep red. Venus knew what it was, it was a strength potion. Philza stood in front of her and asked her to bow, telling her to keep holding the two upright. So she did, feeling the blade rest on both of her shoulders before being lifted.
"Your new empress; the co-leader of the Antarctic Empire - and queen of this land: Venus Erotes." Philza announced, stepping to the side to reveal the crown on Venus's head. A heavy yet comfortable accessory which matched Techno's. She thought it was over, but Phil slipped in one last message, "and now: her speech."
The moment of truth. She was offered a free hand to hold both of her items - she only gave the trident back. It sent some confusion, but she swallowed her nerves and rested a hand on Technoblade's shoulder, pulling her next to him. She wasn't going to do it alone, "I first want to make a toast..." she raised the goblet softly, feeling her eyes squint as she smiled, "a toast to Technoblade. Enyalius Technoblade Jovis. A toast to Philza; to both of their families, Hertha, Ranboo, Dream... all of you. All have treated me nothing less than family - without them, without you, I wouldn't be where I am now, privileged to hold this empire in my arms. With care - believe me. But to my speech... as your new empress, crowned with your grace, I will push us all to our best. Your pride has become my own and under common interests - this empire will prosper with an iron fist and a platinum heart. I heard of our invasion a few days ago: congratulations! But now, I hold up this goblet not for myself, but for the empire. Let our strengths amalgamate into a flower, and have the snake under't. As your empress, Technoblade's partner, treat me as your friend." She concluded, letting the goblet get taken by Techno, who hurriedly took it away while Dream approached the new crowned empress.
Music started up again and Dream whisked her away to the dance floor, where they spun only briefly before Technoblade stole her back. They waltzed to the steady cello and violins, which supported and carried the harpsichord's continuo politely.
"You know Venus... it wasn't traditional for you to keep the goblet and make a toast." Technoblade murmured as they stepped from side to side.
"Was it not? I'm sorry, Technoblade." She apologised quickly, feeling the anxiety high die down and get replaced with embarrassment. "I wish I did more studying on the tradition... Thank you for being there. No matter how much dirt I gave you in the past, you've still graced me with this position in your kingdom... and you held my hand along the way. Thank you..."
"Now, now: Venus. I may start blushing if you continue this gratitude talk. You'll eventually understand that I'll be willing to conquer the world if it meant you'd be happy about it. If it all meant you'd be safe and where I can keep you close; fighting in a war would have been worth every drop of blood on the way. Now, shall we continue the dance or shall I continue confessing my thankfulness or you, Venus? At this point, I wouldn't care if you disagreed - as long as you have that inkling that I'm glad you made this choice to be by me, and by my side when you return to your family; I could rest easy at night. You deserve this vengeance. You deserve this status, with or without me. I'd sacrifice it all if it meant you continued to accompany me with my empire." He rambled on and on, his confession of excitement reaching and reddening Venus's ears. It sounded quite like a love confession Venus read in her books. But it was only a charming string of compliments woven by the man above her, his arm around her torso while his other hand wrapped itself around her own.
"I'm glad you enjoyed it as such, the song is ending, shall we switch?" Venus asked, Technoblade looked up and around.
"My brother wants to dance with you, I suppose we should." He nodded as the song ended. He dipped her slightly and let her spin into his brother, Mercury.
"Venus! It's been so long!" He joked, spinning the girl with one hand.
"I know! Great heavens Mercury, have you grown since we last saw you?" She asked, Mercury stood at an amazing 6'6, slightly taller than Wilbur.
"Would you even realise if I did?" He asked with a smile.
"Don't get cheeky." She warned kiddingly before continuing to dance.
And so the ball carried on until dawn.