"I must say, I would have never thought of combining oranges with cinnamon. Especially in tea." The Marquise of Askoy declares as a servant pours her a second cup of tea.
The Marquise is seated farthest from Siv, but she has such a high-pitched voice that it does not matter how far she is. Her voice is still annoying. Choosing a round table was a successful decision, though. It makes all the ladies closer. Of course, each one of them is seated honoring their title, but the round table gives the illusion that titles don't matter that much here.
To Siv's right, the Duchess of Drobak is first, she has the highest rank since her husband, Duke Pihl, has the biggest dukedom and fortune out of all the guests seated at the table. To her right is the Dowager Duchess of Jostad, Rouva Runa's mother and the one Gary warned her about. But the third woman is the one that has all of Siv's interest, Saga Dolph, the Dowager Duchess of Roros.
"Why thank you, Lady Kolbeck." Siv gives her a warm smile. "I like to experiment with food and marry flavors together. The result is usually pleasing." The Marquise nods in approval to the two countesses to her right.
"I am curious about your hairstyle, though." The Dowager Duchess of Navic starts. "Is it also an experiment, Rouva Siv?"
'There it is, they have been silent since they got here. One of them is finally making a move.'
Siv remembers what Gary told her about the duke, but she has no idea how to use the information. Being the host, offending any of her guests would be a disaster.
"I am afraid it is not, Your Grace." Siv giggles. "It was an unfortunate event where my hair got caught, and the only way was to cut it."
"Oh my."
'It is best to keep the lie as close as possible to the truth. Hopefully, no one will press for more details.'
"I remember my niece had her hair…"
Siv tunes out Countess Trygg's voice. She is starting to feel uncomfortable under the gaze of the Dowager Duchess Dolph. What Gary revealed to her bothered her a bit. She knew that Brandt has had sexual partners before her, but she thought that Siv was his first love. This is just another reminder that this is not a game. There was no Duchess Dolph, there was no lover or first love. Siv just has to forget about ever playing that game and any similarities it has with this world.
Her eyes travel to the duchess still staring at Siv with her air of superiority. She takes an elegant sip from her tea and nods at the countess, probably still telling her story about her niece.
'She is beautiful, I'll give her that.'
The Dowager Duchess has beautiful gray eyes that contrast with her fair skin. They sparkle with life like jewels. Her golden brown hair cascades down her shoulders in wavy locks. She is truly beautiful and does not look a day older than twenty eight, even though Gary said she is thirty seven.
They lock eyes for a moment and the duchess curls her lips upwards. She seems very amused for some reason which makes Siv shift in her seat. She feels like the woman is looking deep into her soul with those piercing eyes of hers.
"Rouva Siv." Dowager Jostad gets her attention. "It was a shame that I did not have the chance to converse with your parents at the Vying Ceremony, were they present?"
'You know they weren't there.'
"Unfortunately, they were unable to attend. Speaking of the Vying Ceremony, I think everyone, including the Rouvas, is looking forward to the Royal Ball."
"Why, of course." The countess jumps on the opportunity. "It is when the Rouvas get to showcase their elegance, which is very important for a queen as she is the image of every woman in the country."
"I agree, Lady Trygg." Siv sips her tea. "We should all take Queen Ylva as an exemple."
"Well, she did have good fortune." The countess rambles as she spreads jam on her scone. "Our poor king was so devastated after losing the woman he loved, he did not even have the strength to go through with the Vying and just settled-" The woman's hand freezes mid air, causing some jam to fall on her plate. Her face turns pale and then a peculiar shade of green. "I… I might have said too much." She attempts to laugh, but a loud neigh is all that is heard. Siv is baffled by the woman's revelation.
'I thought she was the destined queen, since she is from a different world.'
"I want to hear about how His Highness decided to invoke the Traditional Vying even though he had a fiancee." Dowager Dolph finally speaks. All heads turn to her in surprise.
Siv is taken off guard. She didn't think she was going to say something so direct. She tries her best to plaster a sweet smile on her face. She has to think of something, quickly.
"It was a bit difficult to understand, at first." Siv starts sticking to her theory of mixing truth and lies. "But I am confident I will win the Vying, so I have no reason to worry." She continues, still smiling. "However, I am more interested in your latest traveling adventure, Your Grace. I heard you visited the city of Ystad. I hope it was worth the distance." Siv can see the shock on the ladies' faces. She is not sure whether it is because of her acting skills that made them believe she is actually confident, or because of all the studying she did about each and everyone of them. Even Dowager Jostad's eyes are bulging in surprise.
'Good.'
"It was worth the distance indeed." The woman finally says as Siv lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding.
The tea party continues in a civilized and uneventful manner after that. None of the ladies dares attack Siv again and the whole thing ends up being a pleasant afternoon. Siv bids every lady farewell as their carriages drive away. The Dowager Dolph is the last one to sashay to her carriage, she stops only steps away from the door and turns to face Siv.
"Do send my regards to Brandt for me, lady Siv." She says as she fixes her gloves. "I do miss him."
'What a shameless woman.'
"I am afraid you are being quite inappropriate, Your Grace." Siv keeps a calm outside even though she feels a strong urge to rip her hair out. "His Highness is not one of your boy-toys you play around with, show some respect." She hisses. The duchess is taken aback for a second before she grins.
"Has he told you about me, Rouva Siv?"
"What? You thought I didn't know about your escapades?"
"Oh I wouldn't call what we have, escapades."
'Have?'
"Let me just put it this way, whatever 'His Highness' has shared with you, is but a fragment of what we have shared together." She gets closer to Siv. "So, that confidence from earlier is highly misplaced."
The duchess enters her carriage and leaves while Siv is left with the disgusting feeling of the woman's warm breath on her face, mixed with the flavors of the tea she drank.
'I will never drink orange cinnamon tea, ever again.'