The young witch awoke earlier than usual, long before the rooster could startle her into wakefulness. She had spent the rest of the previous evening and well into the night pouring over the volumes Jerel had let her borrow from the library. Her fingertips were still stained a faded black from the many notes she had taken despite scrubbing them thoroughly in the basin the night before.
The sky was still a murky gray as Caroline quickly ran a brush through her long hair and donned another extravagant gown. The dress today was composed of blue satin overlaid in a white floral pattern. The dress neckline sat a little lower than she preferred, and for a moment, she lamented the fact that her chest did not fill the bodice quite as thoroughly as some of the women she had seen in the city yesterday.
