About Love and Crystal Slippers.

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About love and crystal slippers.

Chapter 1

1778

Last night it rained like it hadn’t in months, it always did in the first week of October. Diana used to love the rain, now the pretty and refreshing event was something that Diana had to work around to keep the house clean and pretty for the family, still from time to time she enjoyed it. Diana let out a breath of relief when she remembered she fixed all the leaks on the ceiling just last week, or Bri and she would have to sleep in the hall by the stairs like last year. Breena hated sleeping on the floor, and Diana also had trouble resting there. What if there were mice again? If the rain was too intense, it could ruin the wood and they would not have a place to sleep for God knew how long. Thankfully, Diana neatly organized her cleaning time to be nice and warm at night, without worrying about rain, except that day Diana was waiting for the rain to stop, as it was preventing her from leaving Borton house.

She waited by the door in the kitchen, tapping her left foot against the tiled floor. If the rain didn’t stop before sunrise, Diana would have had to take anything big enough to cover her head and she would be on her way. As soon as Diana woke up, she knew it was going to be a disaster of a day with the rainy season coming. When you lived in Biathe and spent every day running around you learn sooner than later to work around the October weather. After all, no matter how sunny, rainy, or cold, Diana had work to do.

Diana knew the main entrance of Borton house was getting soaked and slippery even without checking. She better get it dry and clean when she came back, or her stepmother would be upset. Diana sighed when a chilly burst of wind rushed to her side of the mountain. It was a nice feeling against her face and legs covered by the old and no longer white fabric of her stockings. Slowly the rain calmed down and the view of the mountain cleared as the sun raised in the sky, the view at her home was breathtaking, and unlike anything she had ever seen, she was sure it could compete with the beauty of the royal gardens, even if she had not seen them in years.

The only downside of living in the mountain, as her stepmother would often complain, was that you would get mud and dirt everywhere for half of the year. That was why more than half of the houses in these mountains were empty in the rainy and windy months. Thankfully, Diana did not really mind cleaning it. She had always liked the baroque house, spotless and pretty, just as it was when her mother was alive.

She took a big breath of fresh air and perked up at the silence.

It was no longer raining. Diana ran out of the family house, one hand holding up her long light blue skirts, the other carrying a straw basket and a pouch with coins. In her haste she splashed water everywhere she ran, cruising the big open space behind the house in seconds as she was getting late for her daily chores before work. She had to buy food, take everything back home before Agnete woke up and-

The entrance to the garden was worse than she expected, flooded with mud and rainwater. It was too deep and dangerous for her to make her horse Flower try to go through there, even without the wagon or any of the carriages. If just the entrance was this impassable, then the road to the village would be impossible to transit. She looked at the sky, it was not as late as she feared, the sun was not fully up yet, and because of the rain, the market must have opened later than usual. Her stepmother and Debora surely would wake up later due to the chilly weather.

She took a moment to make sure her straw hat was safely tied and her shoes were well in place and she ran to the village using the drier parts on the woods.

Descending the mountain that fast was not as easy as she made it seem, Diana had done it for years. The first couple of months she would trip and fall all of the time. It was a miracle she never got herself badly hurt, only a couple of scratches here and there. The road was always too slippery and tricky, but now she had a cane and years of experience on how to get down the mountain without falling. Her cane was nothing fancy, just a big and sturdy branch that fell off a tree years ago. It took double the time to safely arrive at the village, but if all the food and goods were not sold yet it would be worth it.

The market stall became visible as she got closer to the village and the surrounding trees slowly started to grow apart from each other the more she walked. She left her cane safely hidden behind one of the biggest pines by the road, and she fixed her skirts and hair as she went to the plaza with a quick step, looking for her favorite stand first. Mrs. Larue always had a soft spot for her and tended to save some of the food her family hunted and bred outside the village. The woman would give Diana a discount if the young woman saved one of her tarts and cakes for them.

As she walked through the market, people smiled and stopped to talk to her. Some asked about what she would cook that day, especially about the tarts. Everyone knew everyone in the village, and Diana was no exception. It was nice being noticed and being able to take a moment (just a moment) to just chat about what had happened in the village lately. One of the young unmarried ladies smiled at her from her small group of young women chatting by the fountain, and Diana felt her cheeks warmer as she walked past them, too busy to go and chat to the unmarried young women who were probably not interested in men.

Mister Laramie stopped her when she passed next to his stall. He was offering a gift for Breena and Diana was already shaking her head no before he was finished.

“I cannot accept it, it’s all you have left, sir.” It was way too kind of a gift. Sometimes she would accept a piece of old bread or a broken piece of furniture from people if they insisted, but this was an expensive-looking ribbon, at least thirty centimeters long. “It is too much.”

He shook his head. “Nonsense, child. It is the last I have of that ribbon; it would not be enough to make anything. Perhaps a necklace if you sew it to something else or a small ribbon for her head.” He smiled and his face crinkled. “Your little sister will love it, Diana, and no one will buy it, take it”

She bit her lip, reaching for her pouch. “Let me pay for it. I am sure I can pay at least half of it.” She looked into the green purse as the coins clinked on her hand.

“No need.”

“At least allow me to give you something in return. Misses Kenna adores my tarts; I can bring you a couple.” She caressed the soft lilac fabric being offered in front of her. Lilac had always been Breena’s favorite color; every time Diana finished her errands early, she tended to the lilacs and other flowers by the woods and in the old greenhouse, all so she could do natural dyes for her sister’s dresses and skirts. They were not fancy, but Bri loved them.

Mister Laramie shook his head again. “That festival for the prince starts in a week. She will want to wear something new for the celebrations, like all her friends. You are lucky I’m not giving something to you either.”

“You know I am too occupied to attend the festival.” Her resolution started to diminish when he dangled the pretty piece of fabric in front of her. “Are you going to take a no for an answer?”

“Ha! No!”

She sighed and bit her lip. “Fine. Thank you so much, Mister Laramie, she will love it. I will send Breena to you with something sweet for you and your wife. Would cake be fine?”

He nodded while laughing and handed her a soft piece of fabric. After that, he started to put the last of his inventory in a box, ready to pick up his stall to go back to his home. It must have been an extremely good morning for sales with how happy he was. Good for him.

Diana looked down at the delicate, silky thing in her hand. It was beautiful. The Laramie’s were so kind of a couple that Diana sometimes feared people would try to take advantage of them. The sweet couple never had children of their own, and the man responsible for the orphanage down the road refused to give them one since the wife, Misses Kenna, was a teacher. Not only that, but a teacher that accepted women in her classes. They both chose to educate the children in the village rather than having their own, and Diana would always be thankful, thanks to them, Breena could go to school. Just like the man did today, they gave anything they did not need to the children in the orphanage and to the poor families in the village, and Misses Kenna taught them for free. Bri adored her, every day after class she chatted for hours about everything she learned that day.

Diana decided she would send them one of her best recipes that day. She shouted at the man slowly leaving the market. “Thank you again, send my regards to your wife.”

He raised his hand in acknowledgment and she rushed to safely place the ribbon inside a pouch in her basket.

Mrs. Larue laughed when Diana finally managed to come to her stall. The woman was such a gossip that surely, she had managed to hear and watch everything. The old woman smirked at her.

“Ye ready to buy, girl? Or are you going to keep talking about yer kid?”

The stew boiled on the stove as Diana took the cake out of the pot and hummed an old song to herself. Tomorrow she would bake the tarts, and today she was a little late to cook them. The people in the tavern loved her baked goods, and she always got a lot of extra coins from them when she brought her sweet creations to the tavern. As soon as she was done with all of that, she better rush to the tavern as it was getting late-

“Can I have a piece?”

Diana jumped at the voice of her little sister and almost crushed the cake in her hands.

“God, you scared me!” Diana exclaimed, checking on the cake. It was still fine.

The little girl had always been silent when she walked. It used to drive Diana crazy when the girl was learning to walk. She would get distracted for only a blink of an eye to check on the cooking or wash something and the baby would be gone. Now the girl used her “gift” to terrorize her oldest sister and it worked most of the time since the old kitchen door never made any noise if you opened it carefully, and Diana was always busy if she was in that room.

The young woman turned to look at her and with a sigh, she got closer to fixing her sister’s dress. The apron wasn’t tied the right way. “After I cut it, you may have a piece if you behave, bug. I’ll give you a big portion for Laramie’s, okay? And I want you to thank them.”

“What for?” The little girl asked, sitting down next to where Diana was working.

Diana smiled conspiratively and took the ribbon from her apron’s pocket. Bri will love it.

The girl squealed and jumped out of the chair. “It’s so pretty! Thank you, thank you so much. You are the best sister!” The girl practically ripped it out of her hand and studied it under the natural light coming through the high window in the kitchen. As soon as she was done marveling at the pretty piece of fabric, she started tying it around her neck to no avail. “Help me!”

“Don’t thank me. Thank the Laramies when you see them today.” Diana said softly, still smiling as she walked behind her sister, trying to remove the long wavy hair from her back, still not as long as Diana’s. The lace barely fitted around her neck, she tied it. Standing next to her, she could see how fast the little girl was growing. Soon she would need new clothes. Not yet, thankfully.

The girl was starting to look so much like their mother. Diana also looked like her, but not in the soft, small, and graceful way Breena did, though. At first glance, they did not look like sisters. Diana had straight dark blonde hair, her skin tan, and her nose covered in freckles for spending so much time in the sun; while Breena had wavy brown hair and lighter skin. The girl turned to look at her, her brown eyes sparkling with excitement, and Diana remembered they have the same eyes and the same nose. They both looked like their mother in their own way.

“Why do you have your hair down?” Diana frowned. “I just taught you for the third, not fourth time how to tie it the way you like it, and how to put your bonnet without crushing it. I cannot keep doing your hair forever, Bri.”

“The ribbon broke.” The little girl said and handed her the bonnet from inside her apron. “It was too old, I told you last week it wouldn’t last, Dee.”

It was a blessing the cake was delicious, it would be gone by the end of the day, and the next day Diana would buy a new cheap piece of ribbon. The young woman quickly untied her hair, the soft sandy locks falling over her shoulders and back, and used the old piece of fabric that held her heavy hair together to tie her sister’s. Bri looked adorable with the new bonnet Diana got for her just over a month ago. She also hoped that it would draw less attention to the kid, now that it covered most of her face.

She took the stew away from the heat and tried it. It was delicious and Diana breathed a little easier, knowing it would also sell well. By that time, her stepmother and stepsister had already eaten. She could take a little more time to make breakfast for both of them. She hummed another song while cooking the eggs, as their hens had laid a couple more eggs than usual, and the sisters had the luxury to eat some that day.

“You should save the ribbon for the prince’s festival. I heard there will be free cakes and music in the church.”

“Really? Clara invited me to her house on the first day of the festival. Her mom is cooking pasta.”

She hummed in acknowledgment as the water boiled to make tea. Her stepmother adored drinking tea while she read.

“Does that mean I may go?” Breena’s eyes shone with excitement.

“Yes, you may go as long as you’re home before it darkens. It’s rain season and I don’t want you outside in the rain, and less at night.” She served the eggs, pretending to not notice Brenna’s portion was bigger than and from the two pieces of bread she bought a week ago, the softest was for her sister.

“You should come to the festival too. Who knows when the princess is going to marry someone too?” Bri laughed, and ate, eager to gossip about the royal family, and stuff herself full. “It could be years before we have another event like this.”

Diana sat in front of her, on the creaky chair. She ate with gusto, finally aware of how hungry she was. “Benny says the princess is too beautiful to marry anyone, so it could be years.” She sighed. “I’m busy, bug. And you know, I don’t think I cannot leave my work early.”

“I’m sure you can. It will have games and cakes, you can’t miss that! Please” she begs.

“You don’t know that. It could be boring.”

Breena looked at her even more intently, shinning her big brown sad eyes. “Please, Dee. You never go outside and have fun. Just one night, for me.”

“I just went out with Benny and his friends.”

“That was three months ago.”

“I may get fired if I do not go to work.”

“Madame Bellamy would never fire you.”

“Fine, she may not, but that one night is money we lose, Bri. Soon you will need a new dress, and I already have to go get you a new ribbon.”

“You owe me one night! You already turned down an invitation to the ball, and I really wanted to go. You did not even ask for my opinion.”

“You are twelve, you cannot go to a ball where the prince is looking for a wife.”

Two months before that, an emissary from the palace visited the village and handed special invitations to young peasant women that were both single and pretty enough for the man.

Officially everyone was invited to the festival, but only nobility could attend the royal ball in the Palace, and this time attractive bachelorettes that the prince may find attractive were considered for the event too. As soon as the royal emissary landed his eyes on them, he handed the Borton sister’s invitations. He probably believed they were low-class women that would not get an invitation to the ball any other way. They sure looked like it. Diana swiftly turned him down, highly offended that he would consider a little girl for such an event, a ball where she would surely be seen as a potential bride.

Breena looked a little older than the twelve-year-old that she was, but still, she did not look like an adult in any way. Why would he invite her? Also, Diana was too occupied with chores and work to attend a silly ball to impress the Prince. None of the sisters would go. Breena was upset for the rest of that day, highly disappointed that none of them would go to the exclusive royal ball, and she used Diana’s frustration at seeing her little sister unhappy to make her promise that she would attend some event of her choosing to compensate for what had happened, even if Diana didn’t do anything wrong. If only Breena knew what she was being protected from, she did not see how older men looked at her yet. It was terrifying, a pit in her stomach growing larger and larger with every day that passed and with every man that noticed her. Even if the Prince was a decent man and was not interested, anyone else could try to get her hand, and if they were rich enough, it would be almost impossible to refuse their offer if they met her at an event like that.

Maybe it would be better (and safer) if Diana accompanied her to the festival. It would be nice to get to know better the parents of Breena’s friends and to have some sort of free night. Madame Bellamy may close the Boutique early to go to the festival.

Dee sighed, faking exasperation, and the little girl’s eyes brightened up. “I will check with Madame Bellamy and the Scotts to see if I can miss one night, just one.” The young woman said seriously. “I will try, but I cannot promise anything, you spoiled brat.”

“You love me.”

They both smiled. Of course, Diana loved her sister. Mrs. Laure’s words repeated in her head “Are you going to keep talking about yer kid?” Sabrina was not her daughter, even if she raised her in every way that mattered and she had been sacrificing everything she had to keep the girl safe. It hurt, loving her sister filled her with a warm sensation and it shattered her heart at the same time. How was she supposed to keep her sister safe and happy? The world was too big, too arbitrary to have control in any situation.

Before long, they finished their breakfast and it was time for Breena to go. Diana shoed her away to school. If she wanted to be a teacher, she needed to be on time. Breena disappeared through the door, eagerly trotting down the mountain with the cakes safely protected in her bag as a gift for the Laramies. As she cleaned the table, Diana pretended not to notice her sister take an extra piece for herself.

Diana liked to sing when she was alone. It was a welcome distraction that made everything go quickly and not as tedious. Her favorite song was a tale her mother used to sing about a girl trapped in a gilded cage. She had to stay there or her family would be harmed. It was a happy melody with sad lyrics, not easy to sing, but she loved it. She sang that song almost every day.

The water for the tea was ready, and she went to the stove.

Poor sweet lady trapped in a gilded cage.

It could be worst, sweet lady. You haven’t seen their rage.

She prepared the tea, still singing.

Forced to stay and smile. Take it easy or they will see.

Stay away if you wish to keep your family.

There was a knock on the door.

You were music, hush now.

Smile, don’t let them down.

Smile, put on that gown.

Smile and wear your crown.

As she went to open the door, Diana kept humming the rest of the song. The handsome mailman smiled at her and handed her three letters and five huge boxes from Bellamie’s Boutique. Right, Debora’s and her stepmother’s evening gowns were due for today. The boxes got placed by the door in the kitchen, and she went to get the tea ready to serve.

Smile and hide that frown.

If they see you, little lady.

Do not forget I tried to warn you.

The words of the song remained in her mind, even after it was finished. Humming the song again, she checked the letters. They were invitations to the ball for the Prince’s festival. Finally. Debora had been talking about the Royal engagement ball for the last six months since it was announced, the last two weeks her stepsister had been unbearable. The girl was too worried that the invitations had not arrived yet, and she would go on and rant for hours that she needed to chat with her friends about her gowns, and how they all would finally meet the prince.

Well, now the invitations were finally there, and Debora could stop ta-

There was one invitation for her (Thank God there wasn’t one for her sister). It should not have been a surprise. After all, at least in name, she was part of the nobility. Even if all she did was clean and cook, she was still invited. She was not happy, it was an odd feeling in her stomach if she did not think about it and only felt the sensation it was similar to that moment when you let yourself sink in the lake at the side of Borton house. Maybe she felt like this due to how much everything had changed since she was a kid. Now it felt real, and she still had her last name as proof that everything had been real, that she was still Diana Gentille Borton.

Deep down, she felt glad about receiving an invitation. At least in the eyes of the Royal Palace, she was still seen as an heir to the Borton family. It did not matter at the end, as she would not go to the ball. Diana had a lot on her plate to even consider attending the event not only of the year but of a lifetime. It would take too much time to go to a six-night event at a Palace far away from there, even if she used to dream about going when she was just a child and her mother was alive. She saved the letter in her pocket just to burn it later, before Breena could see it.

To be able to enter the room, Diana had to use her foot to kindly push the door open since both of her hands were busy. As she entered the den with the silver tray that used to be a family heirloom from her mother’s side of the family filled with scones from the bakery, tea service, and the two invitations, her stepsister stopped on her singing practice, as she visible tried to see if Diana had anything for her. In the last year, Debora had been trying way too hard to act like the perfect lady, like the ideal future wife her mother wanted her to be. Diana would pity her if the girl wasn’t that rude to her. Just last week, Debora got most of the main hall covered in mud after she came back from a walk with her friends, and when Diana asked her to change her slippers, Debora took it to herself to dirty it daily.

Her stepmother, Agnete, a young-looking woman with voluminous curly black hair, pale skin, and green eyes were resting on the canapé in the green room, reading a novel. She looked up from her book, her mouth lightly twisted into a fake kind of smile, and she raised her left eyebrow.

“What do you need Diana? Is my tea finally ready, dear? I may starve with how much time you took this morning.”

Diana nodded. “Your invitations have arrived too, Madame.”

Debora walked as fast as possible, practically sprinting to reach Diana, forgetting for one moment she should not run since it was “unladylike” and Agnete would surely scold her if she was not currently analyzing the mail. Diana’s stepmother took the envelopes before her daughter could read them, and Debora shook her head. Her dark hair and green ribbons swung all over her face as she tried to read over her mother’s shoulder.

“Mother, can I see them?”

“Please let me read, dearie.”

Diana remained silent as she placed the tea on the table, waiting for instructions. Debora sat next to her mother, smoothing down her robe a la Anglaise green skirt, and she turned to look her up and down, just as she had always done. Diana tried to not quiver under her gaze, but the green eyes felt too heavy on her. She was aware her clothes were partially covered in mud and water stains from the rain, her hair partially undone under the cap. Crap, as soon as she went to the boutique, she would look for fabric scraps that Benny wouldn’t need anymore. Her hair could not be down all the time, especially with Debora judging her every second of the day.

The girl pursed her lips. “Did you get an invitation too, Dee?” She popped the D in her name way too loud.

Agnete raised her cold eyes from the letter. “Did you, dear?”

Oh no.

The smart thing would have been to hand her the invitation to Agnete, but she had never been the brightest and it was too late to come clean now. Agnete would be upset about her keeping secrets. Surely she would distrust Diana for keeping it, even if the three women in the room knew she did not want to go to the ball.

“No, I did not receive an invitation.”

“It is better that you do not get your hopes up, Dear. We both know you feel better if you stay home, social life is not the thing for you.”

It once was, she did not allow herself to miss it. The dancing, chatting with friends and meeting new people, it felt nice. She enjoyed it so long ago.

Debora giggled. “I was right. I told Isabelle and Clarissa that they would never invite you to a Royal ball. You are completely covered in dirt and mud. You would not even get past the door. The prince is not blind, you know?”

She could not speak, she could not talk back. It would have been bad for both Breena and her, and at the end of the day, Debora’s words had never felt that sharp, to begin with.

“Enough, Debora.” Agnete chastised, her eyes hard and cold, but her mouth slowly went upwards. “Our dear Diana does not need such a reminder of how dull she is. She is aware of that. Don’t you, dear?”

Diana nodded. Her neck felt too rigid, and shame-filled her body.

“What was that, dear?”

Diana blinked, this was not the first time she had to go through moments like that. She was already accustomed to her stepmother talking to her like that. She was fine, totally fine- soon it would be over, soon. Dee took a big breath. “I am aware of my looks, Madame.” She looked like her mother- and her mother was beautiful, she was sure of it.

Both of them smiled, Debora, giddy with the joy of a teenager being mean, but Agnete’s eyes were hungry for something that Diana could not decipher.

“Is that all, dear?”

“Your evening wear for the Royal ball has just arrived.”

Agnete frowned, unimpressed at her service for them, and Debora was already on her feet. “I need to try them on, now!”

“Then- why have you not brought them to me, child?” Unlike her daughter, Agnete did not need to raise her voice to make Diana tremble. “I need to see them immediately. They need to be perfect.”

“Yes, Madame.”

Dismissed from the room, Diana was on her way to the door when Agnete stopped her and Diana nearly jumped. All she wanted was to be out of the room, maybe out of the house for the day.

“Before you go to your- work in that tavern, I need the library to be pristine, so you can help my dearie with her dresses.” Calmly she took her cup of tea and sipped on it, she added. “We will leave tomorrow morning for the house of my dearie son Dren, and that wife of his.”

“Yes Madame, I will have everything ready on time.”

“Of course, I would accept nothing less. As you know, they live close to the palace, and we will stay there for the duration of the festival. I trust you will keep the house as it should. You will keep everything in place. Don’t you, dear?”

Diana could not look into her eyes. As the woman slowly invaded her personal space, she was a blink away from shivering uncontrollably, holding back tears just from the pure will. Thank God Breena was gone, always gone to never see how Agnete treated her.

“Yes, Madame. You can trust me.”

Agnete gave her a tight smile and her eyes shone as she raised her hand to give her three little smacks on her cheek. It did not hurt, but she still flinched.

Chapter 2

Relief coursed through Diana’s body as she arrived at Bellamie’s Boutique. The cake and the stew got completely sold before she even finished cleaning the tavern. Most days there was a little bit left of whatever dish and baked goods she was selling before she left for the boutique, and she picked the money on her way home, but that time everything sold immediately. It was great. Some of the patrons left an extra coin to compliment her cooking, which she immediately saved for Bri and her. Even with the tavern and her stepmother’s share of the money, it still was more than what she usually got.

Three years before, the tavern’s kitchen burned down, and part of the structure of the room got badly damaged. The owners were unable to afford to rebuild. Diana already worked there cleaning daily. Soon enough she made a deal with them, and she would bring food to the tavern to sell it there, and the owners got a share of her sales. It worked better for them since they did not have to do anything but let her place her cooking by the drinks, and the patrons immediately wanted to try some of it.

She liked cleaning the boutique better than the tavern. The building was big compared to the others in the plaza, and it had a place of honor in the middle of the village; it had big French windows that let a lot of light in and helped to make it welcoming and the ornamental flowers remain alive for longer, it was always filled with expensive pretty fabrics and dresses in every corner. The wooden floor was smooth and a light shade of brown, the wallpaper had always been a warm light yellow shade. The owner, Madame Bellamy was really nice to Diana, she paid her well unlike most people she had worked for, and her son, Benny was also kind to her and they liked to chat while she cleaned, they were friends. They made a good team.

Since that morning Madame Bellamy did not have any appointments for fittings or measurements in the main room, Diana took advantage of the empty room to clean it perfectly like she rarely had the chance. Cleaning the floors was relaxing, but tiring at the same time and she sang lowly while tying a piece of wet cloth to a long stick of wood to mop it. The familiar and rhythmic movements caused her long blonde hair to spill under her cap.

Poor little thing trapped in a gilded cage.

It could be worst, young lady. You haven't seen them change.

“Why are you singing that sad song again, doll?”

“Hush, Benny.” Dee huffed and pushed the heavy hair away from her face. “I like this song, so stop or I will throw this cloth at you.”

The tall young man gave her a sad smile. His dark brown eyes looked friendly though and she smiled back at him when he passed next to her. Benny was carrying a medium crate full of scraps of all kinds of fabric, and walked to the door, stopping to look at her.

“Still, you could sing something happier.”

“Well, it makes me happy.” She frowned, still moping. “Are you going to keep calling me a doll? It’s not funny anymore.”

“Your wishes are my commands Diana doll.” He grinned with mirth and ducked down when Diana threw a cloth at his face. Not the dirty one, and it just made him smile more. He had been calling her a doll since they were kids and Diana’s mother, Gabrielle, brought her to the boutique for a fitting of her first court gown. He would probably never stop, and Diana knew it.

“What do you want Benny? I’m working.” She looked at him intently, supporting herself with a stick.

He looked at the crate in his hands, like it was obvious. “Help me organize all of this in the backroom.”

She followed him. “I’m going to start calling you a doll and we will see how you like it.”

“I would love it.” He flashed her a big, flirty smile. “I have always believed I would be a stunning doll.”

He would have been, Benny was tall and muscular, the kind of handsome man who knows he is attractive with his brown skin, and pretty smile, and yet he did not act like he was better than others. Some noble girls tended to come and get their dresses here just to see him, instead of ordering them from Paris or London, and the little flirt did not stop them, though. He adored it and he adored them, he was lovely.

They took the big crate to a big oak table in the middle of the room and started separating the fabric into pieces that could have been used for buttons, flowers, and other fine details, from the scraps that would be sold on the market the next week. Like she usually did, Diana concentrated on the task at hand, and almost without noticing she started humming a song, Benny turned to look at her and Dee ignored him as she kept working.

“Why do you have your hair down? You always look well put together.”

Conscious of her image, she pushed some locks behind her ear. “Breena’s ribbon broke. I am going to buy one tomorrow unless you have something you can sell?”

He looked at the long piece of discolored black fabric in his hand. “Take it.” Benny placed it in her hand before she could say no. “It is in no condition to be sold. Look at it, the die is missing in some places, no one will want it, you can pay with some bread next time you bake.”

She snorted, joyful, and touched at the same time. “Thank you, Benny. You are way too kind to me.

“I know, doll. But I do it because I only wanted some free cake.”

They went back to work after she quickly pulled her hair up in a messy bun covered by her cap, and went back to humming a cheerful song. If she ignored that moment with Debora and Agnete, the day would have been pretty well and she intended to keep it that way.

“I do have good news.”

In the blink of an eye, Benny raised his head from the boxes where he was saving the fabric, and Diana wondered how he didn’t get hurt at how quickly he did it. The young woman smiled, taking her time to tell her story, as she took an old rag to dust off the furniture in the room. She had just done it two days before, and it was already dirty. Unbelievable.

“Agnete and Debora will be gone for the festival. The three whole weeks. They are going to stay with Dren since he lives closer to the palace.”

“Really?” He beamed at her. “Finally, you will have a break from those crazy ladies.”

“Yes, I know.”

“And you will have a house for yourself.”

“I know.”

“And you can take a break.”

“I kno-. Not really, I still need to keep the house in place and go to work. Maybe I can take a night off since Breena wants us to go to the first night of the festival, you may come too.”

Benny laughed at her and his eyes gleamed. “That kid sure knows how to get what she wants. Not even my mother would give me everything I wanted when I was a kid.”

Diana stopped her cleaning. It felt way too real, she did not know how long it had been since she started to see Breena less of a sister and more like she was raising her child. She still remembered the first time someone mistakenly believed Bri was her kid. She had just turned fourteen, and Bri appeared so much younger at the time. It was a woman with a thick accent from Europe (probably) who asked her with a sad smile how old she was when she had her little girl. She did not know how to answer.

Benny stared at her when he noticed she was no longer cleaning. His gaze turned sad. Please don’t pity me, she hated pity, she could do this on her own, she could raise Breena on her own. What happened to her family was tragic, but that was life, and she could deal with it.

The young man placed the crate by the door and slowly walked to her as he would to a scared wild animal ready to bolt out of reach.

“I worry about you, doll. You have been more tired and worried each year. You are going to drive yourself mad with so much work and protecting her.”

She sighed. “Things get more expensive and she is getting older and I cannot hide her from the outside. We will be fine when she is eighteen. I know what I am doing.”

“If you wanted to… you could come and move here as long as you need.” He said, walking closer to her friend. You should not be with that woman. Of course, Breena can come here too.”

In another life, one where her parents were alive and happy, one where she did not have the need to raise her sister-, maybe in that life Benny and she would have been engaged. Perhaps they would be married and with a kid on the way, but that life was not real. They did not have the privilege to choose the path their lives took and there was no point in wondering about what-ifs.

“You know why I cannot do that.” She mumbled, eyes hard, and went back to dust.

“You are already eighteen, you can leave that house.”

“I can’t! Do not ask that of me.” She sighed to cover up a whimper. Being emotional was a waste of time as it did not help her with her responsibilities, but actively slowed her down. She hated being like this. “I could leave, but she couldn’t. You are well aware Agnete will not let her go, so it is my responsibility to wait for her to reach the age of majority. I have waited ten years, and the next six years will go quicker. All I can do is to save money for that day.”

“You can wait for her here.”

“Agnete would treat her worst that she does me.”

“You said she was not that bad.”

“Come on Benny, we are both aware I was lying.” She kept cleaning, looking at anything but him. “If I stay, I will keep on distracting Agnete from noticing her. She would do anything for money, and I suspect she would not be happy if I left.

“There has to be something I can help you with.”

“Unless you know where my father is, there is not anything you can do, well- that or you have enough money to convince my stepmother to name me as Breena’s guardian, but that will never happen.”

“Diana-”

She could not keep talking about it, it was too much. There was no way to fix that and unless a miracle happened, or having help from the fricking royal family of Adenaire, things would not change. It was useless to pretend otherwise, and Diana had to use her time and energy to protect the little family she had left. Time was money and that money one day would help them to get back just a little of the life they had lost.

Diana desperately looked at the wall for an idea to come and distract him. The letter crinkled on her skirt as she moved away from him. Right. The invitation!

“I received an invitation for the ball.”

It successfully drew Benny’s attention and he got silent for a short while, uncertainty showing on his face, probably deciding if it was worth fighting over if he should insist on their discussion. He gave up.

“Really?” The corners of his mouth raised just slightly. “I imagine you are not planning to go?”

“No, even if I wanted too, I don’t have a dress, and dear mom and Debora will be there. They would probably try to send me away as soon as they spotted me.

“I just imagined her red on the face at seeing you, she would faint of surprise.” His shoulders shook with laughter, and that time it was an authentic one. “If you truly wanted to go, you still could. I would love to attend with Pauline, but you know I’m not nobility like you, doll.”

They went to the door to the street on the side of the building. Everything was clean, and she had to go back to cook for her family before it got too late, as Agnete and Debora were in something of a good mood, and she did not want to ruin it.

“I’ve heard the princess is gorgeous. That she looks better than her portraits.” He signaled to the open door of the church down the road, where a fancy portrait of Princess Juliette on her eighteen-birthday rested.

“I’ve met her before. Did you know that?” She was lovely.

Surprising her, he took her by the shoulders and with his eyes big and quite eager, he panted. “Tell me everything about her, Diana!”

“God! Calm down Benjamin, you are acting worse than a child on Christmas morning.” Annoyed, the young woman freed herself from his soft grip. “I was probably five and she was seven or eight. The queen invited my mother and the rest of the family to the royal court for tea. She was- quiet, timid at first, but nice. We played together, the prince was playing with other noble kids. That is all.”

He rolled his eyes. “That was disappointing.”

“Oh! Hush. I never said it was interesting, I just mentioned meeting her, not being best friends. If you are still curious, the painting looks a lot like I imagine how she would look today.”

“That is sweet. Do you still think about her?”

“Stop!” she exclaimed, her cheeks turning slightly pink. “It was a dumb child obsession. I just thought she was pretty!”

“Sure… And here I thought you had only seen a painting of her, but you met her when you were kids and you never forgot her.” He grinned.

Exasperated, she sighed and turned to check everything was in place, she opened the door. “I have to go, my work is done here. Send my regards to your mom.” She ran away from the building before he tried to change the topic again about Breena or that dumb infatuation she had for a month all those years ago.

He waved goodbye as she rode Flower back to Borton house. The road was fine enough, as the afternoon sun had dried most of the mud. She still had to be careful where she guided the horse, and it took more time, but it was better than walking up the mountain. As soon as she left the village, the horse took some speed and Diana could almost taste freedom as the chilly wind rushed against her face and made her skirts dance with her on the way back home.

On the small mountain where her home laid, hidden between the trees and pines, the house waited partly hidden for Diana to come back. Borton house had been there for almost half a century. Her mother’s side of the family had decided that raising their only daughter on a mountain in the countryside would be better than raising her in court. The Borton’s family moved there and decided to order the building of a small house for their standards (only five rooms, her mother would say laughing) was the best option for the baby to be raised in. After all that history, love, and heartbreak, decades of loving care for the house, the Beloved Borton heritage now belonged to Diana’s stepmother, the only comfort that Diana had was that at least Breena and she could still live there-, in the attic.

The food was ready faster than usual, and it was one of the best dishes she had cooked in a while. It was warm and tasty, even Agnete’s fine palate would approve of it. There was even some fish left for Breena and her that they could eat as soon as the girl came back from class. Diana smiled to herself, humming with contentment at the thought of having the house only for them for three weeks. It would be such a blessing. In what could have been a record time, the dining room was set and the dishes were ready to serve. Agnete had mentioned she did not want to be bothered with mundane events besides dinner, which meant she would have a free evening for herself. God, she did not remember the last time she was able to choose what to do with her free time. She decided to check Breena’s old dresses that were no longer fit to see what could be rescued to create new garments.

Right on time, Debora entered the dining room, mostly ignoring her step-sister just taking enough time to send her a dirty look on Diana’s way out. Agnete was not in her room or in the office on the first floor, the greenhouse seemed to be empty and the den was void of her, it would’ve been uncharacteristic of her to be on the library connecter to the den, since she always insisted the room was too dark and preferred to read in other rooms, still, the young woman made her way to the library, if she skipped announcing dinner was ready Agnete would be quite upset. Both doors of the library were closed and that almost convinced her Agnete was not in the dark room until two voices stopped her.

“- Such an educated woman like yourself.”

The voice that was not her stepmother sounded familiar, but she could not quite place it yet. She did not know they would have visits today, and it escaped her how she missed someone knocking on the door.

“Mr. Blanc, I am honored with your offer for the hand of my daughter, but she is not an object to be sold to your son.”

That was definitely Agnete talking to Mr. Blanc senior. Oh no.

Oh, poor Debora! She was not an asset to be purchased and even if Agnete was told otherwise, Diana knew that with the right price they would come to a mutual accord. It did not take a lot of intelligence or time for the young woman to understand that her stepmother only cared for money and the image she portrayed to the outside world and having Debora married off to the Blancs would check both of her wants. There was no way around it.

Debora was awful to her, but she was still a child, only seventeen, and still almost six months left for her to be of legal age. That was not alright, and the fact that Teddy Blanc, the son of Mr. Blanc, was older than her stepsister only made it worse. Teddy was a vile excuse for a man. He used to visit the street where the Laramies taught the children and would offer some silver coins to the little girls to accompany him home. Nausea coursed through Diana, and she closed her eyes with disgust. She had hoped- maybe Agnete cared in some way for her daughter, but it turned out she did not. She should warn Debora. Yes, Debora was awful to her most of the time, and they had never been close, not even when they were small children learning to adapt to a new family. Debora surely would never help Diana if the roles were reversed, but she was still so young, not even of age. No one deserved that.

Carefully to not make a noise, Diana got closer to the door to be able to hear better. It should be easier to convince Debora to believe her if she heard everything, to provide something, anything akin to proof. She skipped that damn floorboard that always made a noise if you stepped on it the wrong way, and with half of her attention to the door to the den room to not be discovered, she leaned into the door.

“Madame Gentille, I beg you to reconsider it. My son is infatuated with your sweet daughter. He only wants to give her a better life.”

“I am sure he is. She is charming and beautiful and soon will be a devastatingly gorgeous woman, but my dear Sabrina is not just-

Noise, all the noise was gone and her head felt as if it was filled with air instead of a brain and everything went into a second plane. Her vision blurred at the same time all objects, the walls and floor started to move at the same time she fell, going down the mountain and she rolled on the floor for what felt like hours. A dark hole opened under her and all the noises went up as she fell through the floor and someone kept screaming in her ears.

It did not make sense.

She wanted to laugh, too confused to even start processing the words. She must have heard it wrong, she could not- she wouldn’t… right? Was she shaking? Diana blinked and tried to move away from the door, but her legs would not listen to her and her hands were shaking violently. It was not supposed to happen like that.

With a stomach full of dread and a sudden sensation of sickness, Diana blinked again, locking her eyes on the floor, then the door, and with hurting arms she started to regain some control over her movements. She was not on the floor like she had expected. Painfully slow, the word started to have shape again and she fought to remain calm. Her mother taught her how to breathe once. She would breathe when her father drove her mad and she could not talk back.

“If you offered double the money and paid completely for the wedding, I could perhaps consider such an arrangement.”

What was happening?

“I do not believe an uneducated and manner less child is worth two thousand and a half Adenaires.”

How was that happening?

“Well, I know what she is worth, and Sabrina’s qualities are that, and even more. She will be the most beautiful bride and we are both aware of that. As soon as she is fifteen, suitors will come begging for her hand with their carriages full of riches. You are a clever businessman, don’t you Mr. Blanc?” She chuckled. “You want to avoid all the competitions before they start to notice her. I wonder- the odds that you came to me, just before the eve of the prince’s engagement festival.”

She was supposed to have time! She had been saving money to go, to have a life-

She could hear Agnete's smile in her voice. “Even if the prince is not interested in a bride this young, I assure you there are others. I have seen them admiring my dear Sabrina and she will be seen by the entire village at the festival next Friday. Is three thousand Adenaires the right price for you, Mr. Blanc? I am a busy woman wasting my time with childish offers.”

Diana did her best to keep her younger sister away from all those monsters. She kept her away from their stepmother’s limitless cruelty, too. Apparently, it was not enough, it would never have been enough. Her fate was sealed.

A sob threatened to leave Diana and she held onto the wall.

“I feel like you have bested me Madame Gentille. I am ready to call it a deal.”

She was just a child, only twelve. Breena wanted to be a teacher, not a child bride!

“I will come for her in two months from today. My son and I have business to finish and a wedding to attend by the border of Adenaire. I will send for her when he is ready for his bride.”

All she ever wanted was to keep her sister safe and happy. It was not fair, not just, it was a crime.

Taking a deep breath, Diana pushed the tears away, refusing to cry as it would not fix anything. She pushed herself in and out of the room before the pair in the library came out and found her half broken and leaning onto the wall. She had to find a way out for Breena- she had to make a plan to stop it. Before her brain caught up with her body, she was running out of the house.

The well-lit but claustrophobic ceiling and walls of the mansion changed to a clear blue sky as she ran and the trees and pines got bigger and thicker the more she ran downhill, getting closer together the more she advanced, making it harder for her to move in her desperate rush. At that time of the day, the woods were already starting to get chilly, except she did not feel it with how fast she was still advancing through the forest. Her thoughts came and went, trying different possible ideas and others that would never work. She ran until she found herself out of breath, coughing when her mouth ran out of moisture and it felt drier than those days she would work in the garden under the merciless heat of the summer sun; with her feet throbbing, she laid back to a half-fallen pine in the middle of nowhere, her legs burned and she turned to find small cuts on them, and some on her arms, the twigs must have broken the thin fabric of her chemise and stockings. She was lost, tired, and confused. What was she going to do? In those brief moments, she rested there. She felt herself trapped in that strange period between a night of deep sleep and the moment when you are waking up and nothing makes sense if you are still thinking about a dream.

What was she going to tell Breena? It would never work to beg Agnete. She would enjoy seeing her like that. That- woman only cared for Dren and Debora. Fuck.

She fell to her knees, breathing heavily. Urgently, she had the need to take a few of her mother’s jewels and sell them to run away with Breena. They should still be hidden from Agnete, soon enough she found the problem with that logic. Agnete would call the authorities as soon as she could not find the girl. They would be quickly found if they stayed in Adenaire, they couldn’t stay on the small island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. She had seen it before, twice; one or two kids running from their families, they were quickly found and brought back kicking and screaming to their homes.

What if- what if they crossed the border to any of the neighboring kingdoms? There were other islands near them. It would not work without the official papers. Agnete had both of their papers hidden, and especially the one that had her as the official guardian of Breena. Diana had not enough money to bribe the sailors to get them away without papers, more at this time of the year where they would rather spend their time at the festivals that would have to be their last option. They could not swim through the ocean or rivers, it was too dangerous.

They could not run and they could not stay.

But maybe she could convince Mr. Blanc to choose someone else. Her stepmother only listened to money, but maybe she could reason with him.

The sky was still bright enough to keep walking. She imagined that she still had an hour before Breena came back home as she had not heard the bell of the church yet. She had to take the chance and do it. Even though she did not know exactly where she was, Dee assumed walking downhill would take her to the base of the mountain, and eventually, she would find the village. After all, the Blancs lived by the lake and it would not be hard to find them.

How on earth didn’t she notice that--- man looking at his sister? She knew this could happen, she was expecting this could happen, but she had convinced herself that by that time someone noticed her sister, Breena, would be old enough to make her own decision or that Diana would be her legal guardian to protect her.

Many years ago, probably a decade ago, when both of her parents were gone and her stepmother had started to treat Diana like the maid of the house she had started to go to the village by herself, people started to notice her, they wondered why a noble young girl was by herself on the village buying food, looking every week more like a commoner than the last day they saw her. Most people were kind and helped her. They cared for the children in helpless situations.

Sadly, not everyone had good intentions towards her. At first, she did not notice them, then she started to like their attention. They pretended to be kind, and interested in hearing about a lonely little girl raising her sister by herself, she needed to be heard. Soon enough, she grew uncomfortable with their gazes and gifts, how much they insisted on taking care of her or invited her back to their mansions or houses to “clean” in exchange for money. She was so alone and hungry.

Since the village was so small, word of sight of the daughter of Gabrielle Borton being alone quickly traveled to Madame Bellamy, and God, she helped her so much. The kind woman kept all of them away from her, threatening to tell their wives and who knows what; she explained and protected her in any way she could, but there was always a limit. Most of the men left her alone after that. Still, from time to time they insisted and tried to get her attention. As she grew older, she started receiving some offers of marriage, some due to her beauty; some for her name and nobility descent; and some for her devotion to Breena, they assumed she would be a great mother. On a fair few of those offers, they were asked to her and others directly to her stepmother. They refused all of them. Diana would never leave her little bug alone in that house and not so surprisingly, Agnete liked her better cleaning the house, working, and raising her sister by herself. She gained a lot keeping Diana around, more than she would get her married.

But Breena was different, she did not have anything that Agnete could consider of worth, well anything except the money one day she could produce for her via marriage and Diana knew it, and Agnete too, now the worst had happened. She still remembered that day, Breena was innocent and happy, sometimes naïve, and she still saw the good in most people and would smile and talk to anyone who would listen. When she turned ten, her hair had darkened and curled, her eyes big and her cheeks pink with happiness, and ran all over the village’s plaza laughing and playing with Diana, happy for her new dress as a birthday present, some looks turned to her, and Dee’s stomach fell to the ground. She knew the cycle would start again, she had to protect her sister.

The Blanc house was twice as bigger as the Borton house, the brick was white and well kept, and the French doors of the main entrance were painted yellow and the ionic columns shone with the little light left. She could see the grandiosity of the house from the mountain as she tumbled her way down the road. Considering her options, she went first to the lake to take a look at herself, she was a mess. Her cap was gone, probably forgotten at the house, her hair half out of the black ribbon, the dress covered in dirt again and she was bleeding, still she did her best to look presentable. She had business to do.

The maid was lovely to her, she had a warm smile and freckles covering her sweet face for working in the sun, just like her. Recognition shone in her eyes as she opened the doors and let her inside through the lit hall with expensive rugs, and bases with red flowers and roses, the color of the kingdom. They stopped before a pair of big baroque doors.

“He’s been expecting you.” The maid whispered with her eyes down. “Don’t take a no for an answer.”

Before she could react, the maid knocked on the door to what she thought was a studio and suddenly she was inside a big and overly decorated library painted blue and full of objects from different cultures.

“Oh, Miss Gentille. I’ve been expecting you!” Mr. Blanc said way too cheerful. “I knew you would come to talk about your sister’s engagement as soon as you heard. I assumed it would take you a while longer, but this is good since my son and I are leaving tomorrow for my youngest daughter’s wedding.”

She took a big breath, repressing the need to shiver and scream.

“Mister Blanc-”

“Yes?”

“This wedding cannot happen, sir. My sister is only a child.”

“Oh sweet child, do not worry about your sister’s age. My son will respect and honor her. We are not expecting a child from her for the other two years, and there is no pressure on her. My first wife was only seventeen when we married and we were so happy until she passed after giving birth to my third son. She will be fine.”

Why couldn’t he listen?

“That is not my concern, sir. I will not let her-”

His face went from cheery to hard in the blink of an eye. “You are misunderstanding this situation, Miss Gentille. Your kind mother, Madam Agnete, is Sabrina’s guardian. You do not have a say in who she marries. Now if you have a concern with that, please discuss it with her, not me. Though our deal is already done.”

“It does not matter who her guardian is, she doesn’t want to marry, and less to an adult man.”

He got up, now looking big and threatening with his almost two meters of height and big muscles and stomach and the little white hair does not deter her impression that he could attack her and harm her before she could even react.

“Miss, I do not have time for your baseless feminine concerns.” His nostrils flared. “Be a nice girl and go on your way. You are already getting old and you should be looking for a husband of your own too. Surely someone as appealing as you would not have trouble doing so.”

She gulped. “I will do anything, absolutely anything, that you ask of me, - I can marry your son instead of Breena! I am eighteen now and I do not need my- mother’s approval, you would not need to pay for my hand.” She stood with her knees shaking and went to him. His pupils flared as she got down on her knees, begging. “If he does not want me, you can take me as your mistress, just cancel this engagement. That’s all I ask.”

She kept silent as he regarded her. Diana closed her eyes, willing to take anything he would do to her if it meant Breena would be safe.

“Please,” she said.

He helped her on her feet and caressed her face, her plump lips, and she froze. With her eyes big, she knew he could see the terror and determination in her and it did not deter him. “Oh, beautiful Diana. If you wanted to be my mistress, that is all you needed to say. I would pay handsomely for the attention of a lady this lovely.” She smiled, hopeful, yet terrified. “But Sabrina is who my son wants and I will not change this deal that I have made with your mother.”

She took a step back, her mouth opened and her eyes widened.

“Consider my offer, Diana. I will be back in two months and I expect an answer from you. If that is all, I must attend to a previous appointment.”

He called for the maid back, and Dee was guided out of the house, in shock. Only able to walk from muscle memory alone. She was outside before she knew and the sun was finally setting.

She was completely alone, hopeless.

Chapter 3

Diana shivered as a particularly cold burst of air passed by, her summer clothes would not be warm enough sooner than she expected. She walked by the road in thoughtful silence, the edges of her vision were unfocused and she did not notice it, too submerged in her thoughts. At the edge of the lake, she sat on a big rock that was mostly untouched by moss. As soon as she sat down her head and lungs screamed for attention, the almost unnoticeable ache turning into an acute burn; she almost did not care for it as arcades forced her out of her stupor and she threw up in the lake, her knees complaining at the feel of gravel under them and emptying the little food she had in her stomach. She felt dirty all over, not only by dust, cinder, and mud from the woods and old roads, but for that awful man touching her face as if she already belonged to him. She could still feel him.

God, what was she going to do? Breena would never survive going through that, her spirit would be broken in a matter of months. She cried out, helpless and it only worsened the bitter taste in her mouth and that soreness in her throat. Her reflection looked back at her as she took water from the lake with trembling hands, she had to get rid of that awful taste of bile. The woman looking back at her was not her, it couldn’t be. Even since her mother died, she always looked put together, no matter if her clothes were dirty, she was clean and tidy, no matter the day she tried to smile, but now her eyes and face were red and blotchy, even if she did not cry, she was a mess. She idly thought that she had never cried since she was six, all tears always got quickly ignored and forgotten.

She had to put herself back together. With a big breath, she gathered enough strength to get back on her feet. That monster that called himself a man would not help her, fine! She could come up with another idea. She had two months to do something, and maybe she could save enough money to bribe the sailors, if she sold all of the jewels and gowns from her mother, some of the bases and sculptures, it could be enough to get away to another continent where they could not find them or force them to come back and they would start a new life.

Except she did not know where to sell all of those things in a day or less than a week without raising suspicion or risking the gossip to come back to Agnete, though. Obviously, she could not get enough money to buy the guardianship of Breena on time. She had been saving for years and it wasn’t enough yet, (not that Agnete would grant it to her, as she had a special kind of dislike for Diana). Years before, one girl had badly burnt her face to get herself out of an engagement, but it was not a given that it would work. She could not ask that of Breena.

Using the light from inside the houses to guide her, she started walking by the road, careful to listen to not being crushed by a carriage as sometimes the drivers did not see well as soon as the sun was down. Bri must have been home by that time. She knew where to look for the food, she still had some time before going back. Still walking, she took a scrap of fabric out of her pocket to clean her face when a crinkling noise stopped her. Right, she still had not gotten rid of the letter from the palace inviting her to the prince’s engagement ball. She had forgotten about it with all the things that happened- The invitation to the ball!

It was an implausible idea, but it sounded way better than half of the other plans that she had come out with that day and over the years. She was not the smartest, kindest, talented, or ideal bride in any way, but she was aware that some men wanted her. She could see how they looked at her. What had happened with Mr. Blanc was only proof, and maybe the prince-. Diana could go to the festival to try to be the prince’s bride. All she would ask of him as a wedding gift would be her sister’s freedom! He could be interested in someone like her, or she could be what he wanted if he was not the superficial kind. It could work…

There would be dozens if not hundreds of other women trying to get his attention, but she was still nobility, still pretty, and if he was not interested in her the first or second night, she could try something else. If they considered the potential brides for their surname, Borton was one of the most important in the country, and if he was having an engagement ball surely it meant he already discarded the other noble girls above her position for the running. She could have a chance if she played her cards right.

Diana was getting way too excited and hopeful, she should get a second opinion before doing anything crazy, someone who could see things a little more clearly, and maybe could know if she had a chance. She was going to ask the only person she knew for sure that once chose her as a romantic interest, the person that she knew loved her. She ran for Benny.

Now that she had a semi-viable plan, she was filled with adrenaline again, running through the entire village in record time. Bellamy's Boutique had just closed, but Benny was still inside, working. His silhouette could be seen inside the back room, working by the flame of a candle. It did take him too much time to let her inside with the insistent knocking, he looked tired but happy to see her.

“Everything alright, doll?” He frowned and offered her a plate of fruit that he was sampling off while drawing some ideas. “You never come to visit once it darkens.”

“You were in love with me, right?”

He contemplated her in silence, she could almost see the ideas creating and traveling in his head. “I did, I was in love with you, doll.” Stiffly, he sat by the oak table. “Why do you ask? I thought you knew. We talked about this.”

Right. That may not have been the best way to start a conversation. Feeling suddenly nervous, she sat in front of him, careful to fold the skirts beneath her to not send dirt everywhere. He scrambled to his feet as soon as her face was fully illuminated by the candles on the table. “Christ! Diana, what happened to you, love? Let me do something with those cuts.” The young man brought her a handkerchief submerged in water to clean herself and the dried blood over her arms.

She flinched. “Do I look that bad? Don’t worry about that. It’s not important.”

“How do you expect me to not be upset? I worry about you and you look like you’ve been attacked! Was it Agnete? Are you okay?”

She sighed in defeat and started to explain everything to her friend. The deal to marry her sister, her ideas, how she went to try, and change Mr. Blanc’s decision, and her final plan. It was a miracle he was not hugging her and crying for her at the end of the story. Well, that or calling her crazy for thinking that she may have an opportunity to marry the prince. He was a young, handsome, and rich prince, after all.

“That is why you asked me if I loved you?”

She leaned in to take some fruit from the table, her stomach complaining and she remembered she had not eaten anything since the morning. “Yes, obviously.” The young woman smiled while eating the fresh apple. “I know you let go of those feelings for a while now, but I wanted to make sure I had not gotten it wrong.”

He laughed. “How could you have gotten it wrong? I asked you to marry me.” He huffed and smiled back. “Do not get me wrong, doll. You are beautiful, and wonderful in so many ways, but you are a little- hmmm wild, I would say. I am not sure if a prince would like that for a queen. Remember that he is looking for a queen as much as a bride.”

She frowned, cleaning her hands with the handkerchief so she could put her hair back together. Most of it had gotten undone while running to arrive here. “Benny, do you even remember who I was before? Before this, I mean.” She signaled to herself, to the clothes, to her tied hair, the cuts.

He chuckled. “A posh little doll”

She laughed, throwing the rag at him, and he bent over to avoid getting hit on the face. Diana got up laughing and running away from him as soon as she saw the intent to throw it back at her. They ran around the table, playing like they had not in years.

Dee smiled brightly and raised her hands in defeat. “Exactly, a posh noble girl that speaks five languages, knows her way around the needle, how to sing and court manners, or I knew them, I’m not sure if they have changed. The point is… even if I am not her, anymore, I could be if that’s what it takes to keep Bri safe.”

He sat on the table, his long legs touching the floor. “It’s not the same, doll. It is not only dresses and manners, you would have to resign to everything else that you are to be a queen. Would you really sacrifice yourself like that? You have done so much already.” Benny offered his hand to help her sit on the table, the pair of lifetime friends sitting side by side. “You really would marry a man that you don’t know and could be an abusive monster or a bore with no discernable personality?”

“She is the only family I have left, and she is just a child. I don’t have a choice, Benny.”

“Then I will take you there.”

“What?”

“You heard me. I will take you to the ball. Your carriage is old but still nice enough to take it there, but you will need somebody to drive you if you want to make an impression. I am sure it would be strange to see a Borton without company.”

“Absolutely not! You would miss the festival and would wait for me the whole night!”

“Actually, I will not go to the village’s festival. I was already planning to go to the city. I have- I’m going to visit some friends there. They live in a couple of houses down the road from the palace. They are not interested in the prince, so they won’t go. I can pick you up when the church bell marks twelve, that way we both will know exactly when you need to leave.”

The candles flickered as she threw herself at him in a big, tight hug. He hugged back gladly and they both pretended everything was fine. She did not mention how he doubted telling her what he was going to do. He was either lying or planning to go and visit Pauline.

“You are way too good to me.”

“Don’t be that clever, doll. You owe me a whole cake.”

“Of course.”

“And a tart of peaches.”

“Sure.”

“And I always wanted to try a batch of-”

She pushed him lightly. “Okay, that’s enough, Benjamin.”

They both laughed. Diana rested her head on his shoulder with a sigh. “Do you think I have a chance?”

“Maybe, you have surprised me before. I know I said you don’t act like a noble girl anymore, but you’re amazing and I am sure the prince will see that.”

She gave him the tiniest of smiles and jumped off the table, of course, then fixing her skirts and apron. “It’s getting way too late. I have to go back before I cannot find my way home and Bri starts to worry.”

“Doll, wait!”

She turned, doubt written on her face.

“You will have to let me and mom design your wedding gown.”

She laughed and promised it, saying their goodbyes in a rush. The young woman made her way up to the mountain, careful not to fall with the little light the moon provided. Luckily, she knew the road almost perfectly.

As soon as she stepped into the house, Agnete called her from the den. “Where were you, dear? You left so quickly that I did not hear you announcing it.”

Automatically deflating Diana walked into the room where both her stepmother and Debora were lounging by the lights of the candles. “I am sorry. There was an emergency at the boutique and I had to go and help with the cleaning.”

“Is that so? I did not hear young Benjamin coming to call for you.” She sneered. “Did he send a pigeon or how did you know that you were needed there?”

Dee gulped and willed herself to not look guilty or nervous, that would be her undoing. “I saw him outside before he could knock while I was at the entrance. I left so quickly that I forgot to let you know. I am so sorry for my mistake, it will not happen again, Madame.” She turned to the floor, trying to make herself look smaller, it wouldn’t work. Diana was not only tall but also more muscular than some women in the village due to all the cleaning and physical activities she did daily.

Agnete regarded her with an analytical look, surely deciding if she would believe her or not. She settled to believe her, thinks Diana when the woman relaxes and smiles lazily. “Well, that must be true. Since you look like you have been dealing with cleaning chimneys all day, you look worse than usual, dear. Be careful not to come back through the forest, it gives us a bad image if you look like that.” The woman got up and with an insistent clapping, she signaled her to raise her eyes. “Go on and assist Debora to put on all her new gowns. I want to make sure they all fit perfectly before we leave tomorrow. After that, you must pack the luggage for our morning trip.”

The first gown was a dark green sea of heavy silk and golden bows, the robe a la Anglaise fitted perfectly over her slim body, and Debora admired herself in the mirror that Diana brought to the library for the occasion. The dress was not the classiest choice but was still tasteful, if not a little bold for a seventeen-year-old girl… young woman?

The second gown was even bigger and more decorated than the one before, it was made of steel gray silk with a light blue and pink flower pattern all over it. It was hideous, and the skirt did not have the proper structure due to the fabric choice. It was heavy and strangely puffy. Madame Bellamy would never design something like that without external pressure. Agnete had always said that they must stand out over the rest, and now that Debora was old enough to be eligible as a bride she had been wearing even more extravagant dresses, but it did not help her, it just made her look like a small butterfly trapped in a sea of poisonous flowers, some men made fun of how they look in those dresses and frankly Diana felt bad for her stepsister being forced to wear those.

The steel gown was smaller than it should and her breasts almost came out of the over-structured bodice, poor girl; she would not be able to properly move and dance. Still, Agnete insisted to tie the stays tighter, but it would not work. Those were made with her specific measurements and would not make her waist and ribs thinner. They settled to make her wear the dress without the stays, it did not show that much that she was not wearing them. Still, if some nobles were still as judgey as she remembered they would notice. She looked pretty, though, if you ignored that the color gave her a strange green tint to her usually pink skin, also she looked like her dress was not made for her, too small and too long at the same time, what had Agnete done to her? Debora looked miserable in the expensive gown, and Agnete did not care as she smiled and took ribbons and placed them on her daughter’s hair.

Debora looked uncomfortable on that gray piece of fabric as she tried to move around, only Agnete seemed to like it, as she left the room to go pick some jewels for her to try on. Diana sent her stepsister a sorry look in compassion for the monstrous garment that she would wear. The girl pretended that she didn’t see it and insisted on going and trying the last gown, probably desperate to try something that was her real size.

Why would she get a gown that was unfit for Debora’s body? It was just a waste of fabric.

Competently Diana helps her out of the Dress and puts aside the offending gray garment and takes the third option out. That dress was pretty, it was fashionable copper silk as a robe a la Francaise with fewer ribbons, and full of frills in just the right places. She would not have minded wearing something like that. The color made Debora’s green eyes pop, and the girl smiled at her reflection.

The copper dress surely would go nicely with her usual hair if she were to not use many ribbons. “You could wear this gown for the opening night. Girls tend to make their best impression on the first night and this should be your best option. It’s a fine dress.”

“She will wear the beautiful gray gown that I personally designed for her.” Interrupted Agnete, her voice high-pitched. “How would you know what she should wear, dear? You are a maid who has never worn a proper court gown, you must be confused about what is considered the proper way of dressing.”

Diana may not have worn a court gown or any expensive garment since she was… probably six? But she remembered how it worked. She saw the ladies with their fancy dresses and still talked to some of the noblewomen who lived in the mountains for winter or spring, and most importantly, she had been working in an upheld boutique for years. She was sure how she should dress due to her supposed status- well, almost sure. Things could have changed in the last couple of years- maybe she could be wrong, but still.

The young woman kept silent as her stepmother covered Debora with jewels that used to be Diana’s mother.

When Diana was finally able to go rest in her room, she could not help to lean into the wall on the stairs to the attic. The day had gotten out of hand; at least all the gowns were now packed with jewels and shoes. They would be gone by the first hour of the morning and Diana would not need to cook for them since both Agnete and Debora got nauseous if they ate anything before traveling. Breena did not know of the trip, but Dee hoped she would be glad when they had the house for themselves for almost a month.

She took a deep, calming breath before opening the door to their room. The girl could not suspect anything she learned today and seeing her that tired was not normal. She had gotten accustomed to that routine years ago. Breena smiled at her from the bed where she was eating, bathed by the moonlight coming from the window. The room was too dark, with only two candles and dark wood, both on the floor and the ceiling. The bedroom in the attic used to belong to the maid they had years ago, Katherine was her name. She would sleep there when it rained early in the day, and the road turned too dangerous to go back on her own. It was a nice place to stay the night once in a while but it was not good enough to live there full time, especially for two people, but they had no other choice, it was either the attic or the small cabin full of mice and rotten wood, so the attic it was.

“I was waiting for you, but I got too hungry,” Breena said with her mouth full and a guilty smile. She signaled to the old battered vanity by the window. “I left some for you.”

Diana smiled lightly and took her share of the food to sit by her sister and eat together. “Thanks.” At least the poor lighting of the room would cover her scratched arms and legs until she could cover them.

“Did you check if you can leave early this Friday? The festival starts at two pm and I want to try everything they serve at least once.”

God, what was she going to tell Breena? She totally forgot about that.

“I am sorry, bug. I didn’t have the chance to ask Madam Bellamy- I did not see her today.”

“But you promised!”

“I know, I’m sorry. But you can still go with the other girls from school. You’ll have fun.”

“It’s not fair.”

“I know, I am the worst and I never do anything for you.” She sighed and stood up to go behind the folding screen to go change. It felt like heaven to finally be able to change into her old and clean nightgown. Breena looked at her like an angry cat while she brushed her long hair and put her clothes and the stays back into place. “Quit pouting, bug.”

And she kept pouting, while Diana hummed to herself while cleaning and putting things away before sleeping. Breena mumbled something to herself and checked for things in her pockets, probably curious.

“What’s this?” Asked Breena, showing her the invitation. Crap. “Is this what I think it is?”

Diana bit her lip. “Yes… it is.”

“Dee you really, really need to go!”

“I know. I’m- I am going to go.”

“It’s the prince’s ball. You must go!

“I told you I’m going to go.”

She jumped on the bed. “Don’t tell me you’re busy, it starts after you finish working and- What did you just say?”

Diana swayed uncomfortably under her sister’s hopeful gaze. She did not know why she was going.

“I want to go.”

“What? Why! Are you lying so I will stop being annoying?”

“You are always annoying… but I thought about it, and-,” She hated lying, and there was no other option. “I remembered mom always wanted to take me to my first ball to the palace. She was so excited, and-and I wanted to go for her. Maybe just the first night or two, though.”

Breena let out a high-peached scream and jumped on the bed with a big smile. Dee rushed to silence her, covering her mouth. “Hush, you will wake them.”

Breena’s eyes shone with mischief a second before she licked her sister’s hand.

“Gross! You are disgusting, were you raised in a barn?”

“You tell me.” The little girl laughed, jumping down the bed. “You don’t have to go to the festival, I just wanted you to go out and meet some people. All you do is work, Dee, but this is great. You have to go for six nights or I will never stop talking.”

“I will consider it.”

“All of them!”

“I’ll think about it”

“You will go to all of them.”

“Sure, ma’am.”

“What are you going to wear? What are you going to do with your hair?”

She could not help but feel excited too. She would not say it to anyone, but Diana had kind of missed the formal events and the dances she had attended after she was not really nobility. She had enjoyed talking to people, dancing and some other things, but she truly did not have time for all of that, she had always something to do and it would be only a waste of time, but secretly she wanted to go out from time to time.

“Come here.” The blonde woman whispered, leaning to talk to her sister’s ear and keeping an eye on the door. It did not harm to be too careful. “When Agnete moved here, I hid some of mom’s old dresses and some of her favorite shiny things. They’re in those crates by our bed, buried under some linens, Agnete and Debora never bothered to check on them.”

The girl squealed and ran for them. Diana put the lock on the door in case Agnete or Debora came. It had never happened, but still. The crates were too heavy and big to move and open without making any noise. They would have to wait until they had the house for themselves. Tomorrow morning, promised Diana.

When Diana woke up for the second time, the sun was already up, and Breena was still calmly asleep. Agnete and Debora had already left before dawn. Dee helped them both with getting dressed and took all the luggage outside to the taken to the carriage, where a driver waited for them. As soon as they left, she went back to sleep. Mondays were her only free days of the tavern in the morning, so she could sleep in for a while longer and she was not going to waste it.

She hummed and cooked with a smile, eager to try everything that they had. In the uncommon times her family was gone, they were allowed to eat all the food left in the house since no one else wanted it and it would have gone bad by the time they came back. Diana planned a feast, some eggs, cheese, bread, bacon, and the last of the milk from the last day; it had been ages since they last ate that good and much food. She refused to think about her plan and while she had to do it before putting some food in her mouth first.

A loud crash came from upstairs, probably the attic, and Diana bolted upstairs to check what had just happened, frantically she found Breena standing in the corner of the room, surrounded by old boxes, crates, and old dresses and fabrics scattered around and over her.

“Don’t do that again! You scared me.” She sighed, shaking her head. “You couldn’t wait for me, could you?

The young girl smiled guiltily. “I wanted to see.”

“Come, we will eat first, then we can check for things that I can wear.”

They ate happily, enjoying every last crumb of food they could get their hands on. Agnete did not starve them, but she only allowed them to eat leftovers and the food that was about to be spoiled. The little income Diana got from cleaning and selling food was saved for her sister’s needs, like clothes, books, and food when needed. On lucky occasions like those and some festivals, she ate as much as possible, but those were rare.

In a sudden spark of nostalgia and Breena’s excitement to see their mother’s belongings, Diana settled to delay the washing of the dishes and clothes. They opened both windows and doors to let as much light as possible into the room. For those brief moments everything felt lighter and she almost forgot the reason behind their search for a dress.

The first crate was filled with fabrics. Diana managed to hide five dresses, all of them different and for various times of the day and events, and she hoped they were wearable. Breena tried to wear one of them as soon as she took it out, but it was too long and a little big on her.

“Take it off, maybe in two or three years it will fit.”

Breena shook her head and immediately went back to see everything in the box in front of them. The only evening gown that she managed to save was a pretty light blue and green robe a la Anglaise that her mother would never wear to a visit to the palace, yet it could work. She turned the skirt over to check and… oh no, it was badly damaged with water stains and dirt. The bodice did not look as bad, but that model was not an option.

“Can you fix that?” Asked Breena, suddenly serious and sitting by her side.

“I’m not sure, I would need more time than we have to clean it, and the festival starts this Friday. I don’t want to ruin it.” She handed it to Breena and went for the next dress. “Maybe we will find something else.”

The next one was a light pink dress that Gabrielle used to wear to balls before she got pregnant with Breena and gained extra weight, in almost perfect condition, but it was way too small for Diana. The bodice would not close for at least seven centimeters and the skirt felt too tight even with the stays protecting it.

“No. Take it off!” Dee gasped in pain when she bent and the skirt pressed her abdomen. “It hurts too much to even be an option.”

“Sorry, sorry. I just untied it!” Said Bri, rushing to take it off, then coming to her side now with a big ribbon half falling off her brown hair, the kid would not stop playing with the old things.

“Are you having fun, bug?

“Yes.” She smiled brightly. “Was mom too thin? You are not big, but they’re quite small.”

Diana leaned on the bed, her memories were not as good as they used to be. “She was a little short and small, I remember- our dad used to call her a faery for her size. I’m taller, like dad, you probably will be more delicate and petite like her.” She grinned.

The other two possible options were also way too small or unwearable with stains and tears on the fabric. If nothing fit, she would have to cut and sew her own dress with the fabric of those, yet it would be impossible to have it ready on time and she did not have any experience with gowns and silk. The last option was a saving grace that came in a beautiful lilac ball gown made of taffeta silk with a removable purple overcoat. It even had a dark blue long ribbon to be worn as a belt. It was not a court gown but good enough that she would not look too out of place between a mix of royalty, nobility, and commoners.

“Come now, Dee! Try it on!” Said Breena, eager to help her into the dress.

The dress was intact from most damage, it would need a couple of stitches here and there, yet it seemed fine. “I think she wore this in the first months of her pregnancy.” Said Diana, a vague memory on her head. “I think she used this one for a couple of balls when she was expecting you. Maybe it would fit better than the others.”

It took a while for her to feel comfortable with it. It was a little too small and the skirt was shorter than it should be, but for a dress not made for her, it was a miracle it fit enough to close and not look- out of fashion, or ridiculous. As she walked, it felt not too oppressive on her movements on the arms. It was the best option so far, even more, since she could remove the overcoat and make it seem like a different dress.

Once they settled for that dress, they searched for shoes. Maybe she could have forgotten to save a pair, and her usual pair of shoes were almost permanently covered in mud and they showed under the skirt, so not an option. There was only a pair of light blue shoes buried on the bottom of the crate, they had nice ribbons on the tips of the toes and pearls; she could walk well enough in them. On one of the boxes they find a pair of pearl earrings, a nice couple of chemises, one with decorative trimmings and- could that be? Her mother’s sapphire brooch! She was half-convinced that the thing was lost.

“What’s that?” Asked Breena, leaning over to see the blue jewel.

“Oh! It was Mom's. Dad got it for her for their engagement- I think, and she loved it.” Gabrielle wanted them to wear it on their wedding days. It could provide good luck for her when she met the prince-.

“You should wear it!”

“You think? I don’t want to lose it.” It would be a great second option to sell in case the first plan didn’t work and she could not voice her idea.

“Just sew it to the dress, obviously.”

“Yes… obviously.”

Breena cheered at their discovering and got up, taking a long dark blue ribbon for herself from the pile of old garments. Diana pretended she didn’t see it and reminded herself to check on the usable fabrics to make her sister a new dress and ribbons.

Chapter 4

Friday morning, Diana did not have any time to be nervous or excited about the ball. She ran all over the house and to the village, then back to the house doing errands. She cleaned, cooked, sold food, and did everything that was pending on the list in her head faster than usual just to be free by four.

The church in the plaza played four bells when she left the boutique in a hurry. She had an hour and a half at most to get ready since the festival starts at sunset and it was technically a long trip to the palace from the village. Before going back, she made a quick stop on her way home to check on Breena. The little girl was playing with her friends on the plaza, all of them eating sweets and baked goods provided by the palace for the festival in the small cities of the country while doing flower crowns and chatting.

“Dee! You have to try these macaroons. They are wonderful!”

The young woman smiled, humoring her sister. The round sweet things tasted wonderful. She should try to find a recipe to sell them from time to time. She only hoped they were not that complicated or expensive to make.

“I’m just here to see if everything is fine. Do you need anything before I get ready?”

“No, I’m fine.” Bri pushed her away. Since when had that child gotten so entitled? “Go! It’s getting really, really late and you need to get all dressed up before Benny comes for you.”

“Fine! Fine, I will go. You have to come back before six if you want to help me with the dress, if not I left some food for you on th-” The little girl ran back to her friends and Diana sighed loudly, that girl never listened anymore… at least she was happy. “You have to be back by seven! I don’t want you outside in the woods once it’s dark!”

The brown-haired girl raised her hand in acknowledgment and disappeared into the crowd.

That would be the first time she left Breena by herself for the night; even when they were little kids, she would only leave for an hour, two at most, to go buy food on the market, and she could not help feeling uneasy. At least Benny and she should be back by two in the morning, so Breena would not be alone the entire night. She only hoped the kid listened and was back before she had to leave for the ball. The last thing she wanted at that moment was her sister in possible harm’s way.

It rained for the entire week, and everything was dirty and covered in mud, including her after cleaning and coming and going all day from place to place. She took a bath in the small lake by the side of the house. It was quicker than getting warm water into the attic, and the weather was still warm enough to get a quick cleaning before the sun fell. It had always relaxed her swimming there. It was a private space where she could float in the middle of the lake, concentrating on not drowning instead of something else.

The bath was over too soon as Diana rushed back to the house, shivering. She hoped the rainy season was mostly gone since the carriage did not have a canopy, and it would be just awful for Benny and her to end up covered in rainwater in the middle of nowhere.

The dress and undergarments waited for Diana in her room, everything ready to be worn. She ironed and fixed everything the day before, and she cut flowers to decorate her hair with and made a balm to dye her lips and cheeks pink. Now that it was finally the time to prepare for the event, she was starting to feel nervous, her stomach churned and it got hard to breathe as she dried her hair. Dee not only had to play the part of a noblewoman that she had never been, but also the freedom of her sister depended on it. Easy.

Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath. She didn’t have time to worry, she had to get ready to impress the prince and complaining would not help. She opened her eyes and her reflection greeted her in the old mirror at the corner of the room. Her eyes were big and terrified. She did not want to be a queen.

Five bells played in the background and she hurried to the vanity table as it was starting to get late. He started with brushing her long hair, giving up on getting it to curl. She was no hairdresser and it was too heavy and she did not know how to handle heat to get it into a complex arrangement, all she had was a brush and some pins and ribbons she found on the boxes. It took a while for her to create a decent hairstyle using some padding on her head to make it look fuller. She put more pins than necessary to make sure it would not move and covered them with flowers. Diana left some long locks hanging free from her nape to finish the look.

Breena arrived at the house when she had just finished applying the rouge. It made her look more- alive? Youthful? Well more fit to attend the ball, definitely. She kind of missed taking the time to just focus on herself. She always did her hair and washed her face, but it only took half of the time she expended getting dressed.

“You look- different.” Breena said, her eyes slightly widened.

“Thanks?”

The little girl sat on the bed, watching her intently. “No, you look fine, really really pretty, but you look so different. Like that painting on the floor in the hall where you were five, I look at that every day and I can’t recognize you.”

“Sure, bug. I was five like you said, I changed. Help me with the dress?”

Breena rushed to help her with tying the stays closed. “Yeah, I know you look different, but now I can see that it is really you, you know? Do you miss it?”

“What? The dresses?”

Diana was already wearing a simple chemise and stockings, but she needed some help with the stays, as it had to be tied perfectly for the dress to look nice, not too tight or loose. That dress required a bum roll and a panier. They both got tied over her stays and covered with a petticoat. It had been years and it still felt natural.

“No, how everything was before, not having to clean and care for the food, and for me.” Breena’s big brown eyes watered. “You never think about yourself.”

Diana hurried to hug her sister. “I love you, bug, more than anything and... Yes, I am tired of all of this, but I would never get tired of protecting you. I want you to be safe, even if you annoy me sometimes.” She touched Bri’s nose, she was starting to get some freckles there.

“Don’t you want something else?” The girl scrunched her nose, pushing her sister away, and the tears were mostly gone. “I want to be a doctor, but you don’t seem to want anything. All you think about is saving money to leave here, but what else?”

The thing was, she did not know. For years, all she ever had thought about was freedom and keeping Breena safe, there was no place for more. Maybe she did not know how to want something, how to be something besides her sister’s keeper.

“Maybe in the future I can try and find what I want.” Diana whispered. “I didn’t know you wanted to be a doctor. I thought you were learning how to be a teacher.”

“No… I want to heal people now.”

Side eyeing her, Breena let go of the conversation and went back to help her with the heavy and voluminous fabric. The ribbon got easily tied to her waist and the brooch was put over the dress when everything else was well tied and closed. As she arranged the skirts one last time, someone knocked at the door. Oh no!

Benny was already there, and she was not ready to go yet. Rapidly she put on the shoes and the earrings as Breena went to welcome him into the house. Right… The food was ready, she had the shoes on, and the invitation was on the vanity-. Diana stopped in front of the big mirror by the door to check one last time that she was ready. She looked quite different, still like her, but another version; the alternate word version of her, not the one that would have married Benny, the one that was raised as a noble lady and used to balls and fancy events every weekend night. For a moment it was real. For a brief second she did not have to worry about what was and the odds of her plan failing.

She went down the stairs in a spiral of purple and lilac silks flying around her. Both Benny and Breena were waiting for her, and the little girl smiled and cooed at her, excited to see her go to a big event.

Benny gaped when he laid eyes on her. “You look different,” he said with a lazy smile.

“Yeah. I’ve been told.” She saved the invitation in her dress’s pockets. “I like your coat.”

His smile glowed as he spun and did an exaggerated bow for both of them. “Yeah, I look stunning. Ready?”

“Yeah, I already left the carriage by the door and Flower is all ready to go.”

“Well, let us go, doll”

She looked like a doll again, she supposed.

Flower walked in a nice rhythm, not too quick to get her tired, and not too slow to arrive late to the ball. It would have been better to arrive a little later than most, though she did not want Agnete and Debora to see her at the event. She had the advantage of surprise, as they did not expect to see her there, and less all dressed up. Still, it would have been wise to avoid them as much as possible.

She played with her hair, twisting it as much as possible to form some kind of curl. It was not as straight anymore and it would look better wavy but it did not look like it should. They were almost there, and she started to grow restless as she checked for the invitation, the earrings, and brooch to still be there. Once she was sure they were still there, she went to another list, first thinking of interesting things to say, and then in important things to remember; She had to be kind, smart, but not too much, too much personality would be overkill for some men, and too little would get her quickly ignored. What if they found out she was something of a glorified maid? Agnete did not even pay her. Could they throw her out? She was still nobility, but what if-?

“Doll stop worrying. I can hear your thoughts from here.”

“There’s too much at risk to make a mistake. I don’t think I thought this too much. Why did you not stop me?”

Benny laughed. “Yeah, you didn’t, but your best ideas have come out better when you just do them. Don’t overthink or you will scare the prince away.”

“I will try-”

“And don’t sigh.”

“Scuse me?

“You are always sighing, doll.”

The young woman opened and closed her mouth, brought to silence due to her inability to decide on what to answer. She settled for remaining silent, at least she could forget about some of her worries when Benny annoyed her. The silence lasted for only a minute.

“What if he knows I’m not interested in him?”

“It’s a royal ball, I’m sure a big group of those girls aren’t interested in him either. Some of them must need money too, or they like the idea of being a queen. He will be too busy getting to know all of them, so he won’t focus on your exact reasons to be there.”

“I guess. But it is still possible.”

The royal palace of Biathe raised in front of them, glorious and regal as she remembered it from all those years ago. As the light vanished from the sky it remained illuminated from the inside as the sunset behind it. A jewel of French-inspired baroque architecture.

It was a fairly recent building, with baroque architecture, and supposedly inspired by the palace of Versailles, just the perfect amount between a tribute and originality, or at least that was what her mother used to say. It was a huge castle in beige, white, red, and blue colors, sculptures on every wall, marble columns, and precious gardens on every side of it. Now that they were close and it was dark, she couldn’t even see all of the apartments that she knew were near there.

The closer they got to the royal grounds, the more mansions and castles could be seen from the main road, and soon some carriages started accompanying them on their way to the palace. A brick wall marked the start of the royal grounds, and Diana started to hum a song to calm herself down. Benny distracted her by talking about how other carriages were like hers and which crests they recognized. It slowly started to help. He was too good and if things were different, she would not have minded being his wife.

It was a painfully slow process to take her to the west entrance of the palace. Music was already coming from inside and most of the guests were already there, but she had to wait for her turn to get into the festival. And guest by guest they got closer to the French doors, where she could see the lush gardens end with a lavish entrance of black and white tiles, accompanied by a gilded grand fountain where the carriages stopped.

Finally, there were only two carriages before her. It was time. She kind of wanted to have him by her side.

“Remember. I will come for you at twelve. If you need extra time, don’t worry, I can wait for you.” said Benny, turning to look at her.

“Thank you so much, Benny. I owe you. And good luck on your thing, whatever it is.”

He grinned. “Good luck, doll.”

The carriage calmly stopped beside the marble steps and a man in uniform came to help Diana down the car. Fully aware of her surroundings and herself, she fixed her posture and thanked him. She followed him to the doors, walking straight and apparently relaxed until they reached the main doors when she did her best to look graceful to the two men checking the invitations. Everything is fine, the invitation was legit. Everything should be fine.

She handed the invitation and willed herself to not shiver. None of the men at the entrance gave her a second look to her gown or to her. At least they did not think she looked odd and as relief started washing over her, she reminded herself to remain straight and proper, how did she do this all the time? The man on the right made a signal for her to go and wait in a hall attached to the foyer, where there were two other ladies of age waiting. Right, they must have been organizing all of the eligible women to be introduced to the prince, because through the French doors of the hall, she could see how families were being guided to the ballroom. Well, things seemed to be going alright if she had already passed the first test.

She had never been in the room she was in, but it looked so much like the rooms she saw when her family was invited at the palace all those years ago. It had white and gold walls covered with big oil paintings, high ceilings with golden chandeliers, and gilded wooden torchers with candelabras. Her mother used to love the palace, and she always said it was one of her favorite places. Diana did not lie to Breena when she said her mother wanted to take her to her first ball in the palace. It was something she constantly talked about when teaching her about dances, posture, and manners. Gabrielle would have loved the festival. She was a simple woman who did not need luxury, yet she adored pretty things once in a while, visiting the palace was one of those things.

There were only two other women in the room, both of them turned to look at her for a brief moment and continued chatting to themselves. One of them wore a pink robe a la Francaise and had tanned skin, and the other was in a robe a la Anglaise beige gown, and light skin, both of them with long black hair and brown eyes. Dee settled on admiring the paintings by herself. After a short while the one in the beige gown took pity on her, and took the pink girl's hand in hers, and walked them to Diana.

“I am Lady Paladino and this is Miss Robin.” Said the woman in the beige dress with a strong accent and a loud voice, eager but friendly. “This is our first time visiting Adenaire, how about you?”

The doors of the room opened, saving Diana from having to answer. She did not expect having to have casual conversation with random guests, and it caught her off guard as she prepared herself to be nice to the Prince, but next time she would be ready. A queen should know how to entertain, she imagined. Other three women were brought into the room and in a couple of minutes, there were ten eligible ladies in there, and in a blink of an eye, they rushed into another room with marble walls and even grander chandeliers where they got in line to make their entrance into the ballroom. On the floor below them, families chatted and some watched them, interested in spotting their future queen.

A woman with blonde hair and a blue dress got placed in line before her, and the two women that tried to talk to her, nervously whispered behind her. The group seemed to be formed of noble, and rich women, with only one girl from a working family; her dress looked old, sewed back together on multiple occasions, but she looked lovely, surely she was one of the women they selected from the village to look pretty. Dee hoped she had fun tonight. A small touch to her back stopped her in her rambling thoughts and nearly made her jump.

“Sorry to scare you. But your white rose just fell from your hair.” Timidly said the woman- miss Robin? Behind her. “Do you want me to fix it? I have some extra pins in my pockets.”

Diana nodded, surprised by her kindness as the woman took some pins with crystals on them and carefully placed them on her hair to fix the small white rose. Her accent was less noticeable than her friend’s but still there.

“There, it looks quite fine. Like it never fell.”

“Thanks. I’m Diana.”

She gave her a small still timid smile “Augustine. Good luck.”

“You too.”

The other girl that was chatting with her perked up, eager to talk. “I’m Ana.”

The man in charge of guiding them called for Diana’s turn and they opened the doors of the ballroom for her. She waved goodbye to the kind girls and left. At least that was a nice distraction.

The ballroom was big, more like gigantic, and filled with golden chandeliers covered with crystals. The walls were red and decorated with even bigger oil paintings and marble ionic columns. The throne was laid on a stage on the far side of the room with red fabrics as ornaments and gilded objects. From the place she was standing, she could not see which one was the prince. The distance made it unclear, though the more she walked down the platform on the second floor of the ballroom. She started convincing herself that the prince must have been the man dressed in expensive red silk and gold embroidered fabrics waiting by the foot of the stairs. She let herself be seen in her best version of a royal walk.

The woman with the blue dress with the previous turn finished her walk where she got guided by the prince to a waiting zone with other girls sitting on French stools around a fancier chair, illuminated by the candles on a girandole. She made her way to the stairs and went down.

Diana descended the marble stairs as graceful as she could make herself, finishing it with a dazzling smile that turned more sincere when she laid eyes on the prince for the first time. He was handsome, exactly what she hoped a prince would look like, taller than her, and with a kind smile, high cheekbones, blue eyes, and dark blonde curls, but he wasn’t… lovely; he was strangely the same as when she visited the palace, astonishing, but not that attractive to her, at least it would be pleasing to see him every day if she managed to charm him into marriage. The idea did not sit well with her.

Diana did a well-practiced curtsy, just as her mother taught her and she taught Breena days before and raised to find herself locking eyes on The Prince. She wondered if her surprise at being greeted by HRH instead of being taken to introduce herself showed in her face.

“It is such a delight to have you as my guest. What is your name?” asked Prince Adrien.

“Diana Gentille Borton, your Royal Highness.” Her voice came out softer than usual, and he softly smiled at her. “I am honored to be received as your guest for such a marvelous event. Your home is beautiful.”

He nodded, still smiling and offered his arm to guide her where the other women waited. She sat where he signaled, and he left to go for the next woman. She hoped he would come back, that was way too fast. Had she done it right? Her stool was luckily on the right side to hide her face in case Debora or Agnete passed by their side, that way they should not recognize her from behind.

Most guests danced to the music, ate appetizers and sweets in the room attached to the ballroom, or came and went to the royal garden. Just under the stairs across from them, a fairly small group of women also waited, it couldn’t be more than six of them.

“They passed the first test and now they have to wait.” Whispered the woman to her left side. She was covered in freckles, her eyes were green, and her hair red. Her blue gown made her look gorgeous and Diana felt a pang of concern. She was beautiful. How was she supposed to win The Prince’s attention with women looking like that?

“Which test?” Asked Diana as low as she could manage to not draw attention from the other women and guests.

She leaned closer, “He is going to talk with us, then dance. If he likes you, you will be moved with them. If not, you are sent with the other guests. I am not sure if we can try again. I am Lady Marie.”

“Miss Diana. I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Of course no one was expecting such a ludicrous request. I am the duchess of Biathe in case you were not aware.” Interrupted a young woman with blonde hair covered in jewels and a high-pitched voice. “For some reason, his Royal Highness believed it was proper to talk to us like a ball for the commoners.”

“Commoners don’t have balls. They have-” Commented Diana before she could stop herself. Fuck.

“I begged Adrien to keep the tradition, but he insisted like a mad man on meeting the guests.” The entitled woman continued.

“It sounds like a good idea for him to find a wife in only three weeks. He gets to know her a little better.” Marie said with her eyes partly down.

The duchess sneered at them. “Not only that but he also invited common girls to this event, as if they were on our level.” The woman looked them up and down. “You should know Marie to not involve yourself with people such as- them.”

Behind them, The Prince came back with the last girl for the small circle and smiled at them. His mouth turned into a thin line when he set his eyes on the duchess. “Lenore, your dear mother was waiting for you in the golden room. Could you please go?”

The woman stilled for a second, then stood stiff from her former place and left with her face completely red, just like that he sent her away from the round. This would be harder than she expected.

“I am extremely sorry for my cousin’s behavior. She has been feeling a little strange lately and I hope you can forgive her ill comments.” The prince said, sitting down in his throne-like chair. All the circle of fancy-dressed women nodded at him.

Oh! Of course, the duchess was the new cousin of the prince. How did she not remember? Almost a year ago, the duke of Grint left his wife for a French actress. He left his religion for another where he could remarry the French woman and give her and her daughter a title. Surely it was not a coincidence that the prince was looking for a wife after that scandal.

“First of all, I want to personally thank all of you for attending my engagement festival. It means a lot to me to have all of you remarkable women in my presence.” He was quite a charm, some of them giggled or blushed and Diana settled on smiling kindly to him when their gazes met. “Second, I do not want to play games or waste any of our time. This event is for me to find a bride and future queen. It is not only a privilege to serve your country as the consort Queen but also a duty that you must not take lightly if you decide to carry on. If any of you do not desire to keep going, you are completely allowed to leave now or in the future. I do not want a coerced bride by her family or such.”

A woman with beautiful silky skin and straight black hair stood up and with a brief curtsy apologized to the prince and left, disappearing into the sea of courtiers. Only eight left.

Should she have said something? Something smart or charming to impress him? He did not look like the kind of man who would get mad about her speaking without being asked, but they just had met-

He grinned at them, now more relaxed than before. “First question, lovely ladies! I want to get to know you, the real you, and I want you to know me. Why are you here? On this ball specifically.”

The answers of the other women mixed between each other, honor, looking for a noble husband, duty, how handsome he was. Diana was penultimate to answer. Maybe it could work being honest, being herself. He seemed to appreciate that. If it did not work, she could try someone or something else, she could try someone or something else, someone or-

“I felt like I needed to try it. That is, meeting Your Royal Highness may be what I needed in my life to be complete.”

His eyes shone with a surprise for a brief second, and he thanked her for her honest answer.

Sitting next, Augustine as red as a tomato, laughed nervously. “I fell deeply in love with someone who did not feel the same and I believe it would be a good idea to meet someone new, someone remarkable like yourself your Highness.”

He laughed, he really laughed and got on his feet, offering his hand to dance to Augustine. The music turned into a slower and romantic rhythm as they spun together on the dance floor.

“Wow!” said Marie next to her. “That was impressive. Look how they are laughing as if they knew each other for years.”

“Yes, they look adorable.” And they did.

The prince came and went, dancing for short periods with them. Augustine got sent to the group with the other ladies that passed the test, Marie was also approved, and two other women were sent with their families to the other side of the ballroom. Finally, after that, it was Diana’s turn to dance and chat in private with him. Why did she even think this was a good idea?

He was a gentleman to her and asked about her family and what she liked to do to pass the time. It was complicated to talk about those topics, but she diverted it to talk about Breena. She could talk about her little sister for hours. “Now she wants to be a doctor, it seems she changes her dreams every month, but I do believe it is good that she feels so eager to learn,” said Diana, keeping an eye for Agnete and making sure she did not step on his foot. “She drives me crazy sometimes, but she means everything to me. She actually insisted on me coming here.”

He spun her, listening to her every word. “Truly? Should I thank her for the opportunity to meet you?” Dee blushed, more surprised than touched by the compliment. “I do believe you, my younger sister, Juliette is also like that. She loves reading and learning, and she cares so deeply for people, but- she can be a little difficult.” He whispered, conspiratorially. His pretty blue eyes were shining with laughter.

“Difficult how?”

He doubted, “She can find it troublesome to engage with new people. For me, it is natural, but she- are you good with new people?”

She smiled, “I believe so. What do you think, am I doing this alright? I do not see a lot of new people where I live.”

“You are doing it just fine.” He grinned. “Tell me, darling. What did you mean about meeting me was what you needed?”

Oh, she did not expect having to explain herself so soon. “I…, sometimes just sometimes, when I go to sleep and I am too tired to stop the wandering thoughts, I do feel trapped in the role that I have- been given. The universe does not let us choose our destinies Your Highness, yet this could be the chance to spin our opportunities into something we want.” She looked at his eyes, his mouth half opened in an unspoken comment.

“Do you feel trapped in a cage?” He asked.

“Not in a cage, more on a loop of sorts, it does not matter how much I do, I keep coming back.” It was getting too personal, too out of control, maybe he did not like something like that. What if she had already ruined it? “Have you ever felt this way, your Royal Highness?”

“Not exactly, but I think- I know what you mean. You are quite surprising and refreshing from some of the companies that I have had lately. If you do not mind my boldness, I am glad I met you. Shall we?”

He did not take her into the group of selected ladies, nor to the other side of the ballroom, but back to the circle of stools with the ladies. What?

“Please wait for me, Diana.”

He asked one of the two remaining women to dance.

The last woman to dance with him on this round looked at her, a question on her face. Dee shook her head. What did it mean? She was not aware there was a third option, did she offend him? Was it good or bad? Could it mean he had already picked her, or would he ask her to be something else? Diana did not dare to sit or move, too confused about the events happening. Only watching the prince and keeping an eye on her stepmother, Debora must have already been presented to the prince, yet she was not with the other women. Agnete would be fuming if she got ignored.

With a confident strut, he came back for the last woman after he took the other one to the far side of the ballroom, out of the competition already. It felt like forever watching them dance, chatting. The woman took a look at her and commented something to the prince. Elegantly, he shook his head and sent her away to the other side of the room.

As if the time slowed, he walked with a big smile and excitement in his eyes.

“Please come with me.” He offered her his arm just like before, and they walked through the ballroom to the stairs on the right side of the room, - to the golden room. The golden room where the senior nobles and royalty could rest without being bothered and could watch the ball from their private balconies on the second floor. He guided her through the gilded doors to the center of the lavish room. There was a set of couches and chairs, and three women lounged on them, eating pudding, scones, and drinking champagne. The one in the center, with the most complex hair and gown of the three, automatically got up when she spotted them.

She looked like an angel.

A lovely angel covered in white silk and silver sparks, just like the figure her mother placed on the top of the tree every Christmas. She stood straight before them, and graceful as she imagined the angel would move if it were real, except this angel made of flesh instead of painted glass was frowning ever so slightly.

“What do you need of me, Adrien? I am resting before I commence my duties tonight.”

Her voice was soft, almost familiar-

“I have found someone you must meet, grumps.” He looked at Diana “Jules this is Miss Diana, Diana this is my sister, Princess Juliette. You will accompany each other for the rest of the night.”

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