"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?" Flora screamed as two ladies burst into her new bedroom chambers. She snatched the covers to hide her chest as she glared at them, awaiting an answer. The two women bowed in sync, both a mirror to the other. They were dressed in the same servants clothes as the girl yesterday, flowy black pants with a matching black tunic. With the black stone of the walls, they almost seemed to blend in. Maybe they were dressed like that on purpose to be neither seen nor heard.
One of the women spoke up in a calm, steely voice, "we are here to prepare you to meet his majesty the emperor your highness."
"I already have a hand maiden to dress me."
The other woman countered, her long black hair unshifted as she stood frozen, "we are here to make sure you are properly presented in front of his majesty." Her eyes flicked to the pile of luggage stacked against the wall. "Your highness was requested to be presented in Leostan traditional garb."
Her partner added, "it would be disrespectful to not follow our customs here your highness. We have been sent here as a gesture to make this easier for you." The two of them looked at each other, nodded, and stepped closer to Flora.
Flora flinched back from the women, a hand raised. "Wait, who sent you here then?" The two servants didn't stop as they swung off matching bags from their backs and unloaded some items onto the vanity counter. Neither of them answered Flora's question, continuing their setup. "I need to wash up first." Flora didn't say it as if she was asking. She wanted to have at least some control of the situation. Walking into the bathroom, Flora felt a whoosh of air, causing her to look back. One of the servants had followed her into the bathroom. "What do you think you are doing?"
Her face didn't move as she answered, unfazed, "I am showing you how to use the bath tub."
"What do you mean? Shouldn't you be going to get some hot water first?" The servant didn't move as Flora looked at her incredulously. "I know how to bathe myself."
The woman ignored her yet again and walked around her to the tub. She motioned at a spout connected to the wall with two handles near it. "The water comes out of this spigot. You turn the left handle for hot water and the right handle for fresh water."
Flabbergasted, Flora asked, "is it connected to a well? How does the water get warm?"
"Magic of course. There are pipes throughout the palace. Did you not have them at your castle?"
"...no" Flora didn't want to look ignorant and uncivilized in front of a servant so she waved her away and started running the water. She passed a hand underneath the water reluctantly, jumping back when she realized it was actually warm. Flora washed as quickly as she could, trying not to be too impressed by this bit of luxury. When she returned to the bedroom, wrapped in a plush robe, the two women had already laid out her dress.
Amelia curtsied to Flora, obviously unnerved to have walked into Flora's room where two strangers had taken up residence. "Good mornin' yer highness." Flora eyed her, noticing that she was dressed not in servant's clothes, but in a finer dress. She made a note to ask Amelia about it later.
Amelia helped Flora into a wispy dress made of decadent silver silk. Flora ran a finger along the fabric, so soft and smooth it felt like a fresh flower petal. She had never seen anything like it, and even more peculiar, it was only a single layer or so throughout. It looked as if it could be a nightgown with the thinness of it. Flora turned toward one of the servants asking, "where is the rest of the dress?" She looked around the bed area for more pieces to the gown. "Are there crinolines or something for layering?" The servants looked at each other, confused by the question. Oh, this was all there was to it.
Flora inched in front of a mirror by the bathroom looking at her outfit that was supposedly fit to be seen by an emperor. The dress was masterly made, with soft embroidery on both the hem and the sleeves with gorgeous blue thread. The neckline was more modest than other dresses that she had worn before, with her chest covered by two layers crossing over each other to make a v. The skirt was almost flat as it fell across her hips, not flaring out like her normal garb. While she was mostly covered, with sleeves to her wrists and a long gathered skirt, Flora felt more exposed than ever. Was this really traditional Leostan clothing?
A hand pressed her into the chair in front of the vanity, and the servants got to work on her hair. One of them muttered to Amelia, "now watch girl, you will need to learn how to do this properly." Flora scowled at the one who said that, irritated at the fact that they thought Amelia incompetent. The servant corrected herself saying, "I mean you will need to learn the Leostan fashions." The two women worked quickly on her hair, pulling it up into a glorious knot at the back of her head. They pinned some chains into the middle of her hair, azure jewels dripping from her golden locks to her shoulders. Flora touched the engagement ring of the same hue on her finger out of instinct, dread filling her stomach.
A necklace of the same blue gems was fastened around her neck as one of them got to work on her makeup. One brushed a soft power onto her skin while the other picked up a paintbrush to apply around her eyes. Flora tried not to flinch as the woman painted a sharp line underneath her eyelids. Never had Flora had this type of application done to her. Even more bizarre, the woman came back with a bristled brush, attacking her eyelashes. Noticing her reaction, the woman said, "hold still and look up your highness." Flora did as she said, but grimaced as goop was applied to her eyelashes. The finishing touches involved a bit of sparkling blush and some shadowing above her eyes to match the silver of her dress.
Flora looked in the mirror, not completely hating her look, but very off put by the reflection looking back at her. Was that really her? She felt like a doll being dressed up by a young school girl. Flora prayed to the mother that the servants were actually dressing her appropriately, because it felt like she was being set up to be embarrassed in front of the emperor. Amelia curtsied again to Flora as she stood up and walked out the door, too stunned to say much of a goodbye besides a muffled grunt.
Before she knew it, she was in front of what must have been the emperor's receiving room. Flora had spaced out through most of the walk through the winding halls to get here, and now she regretted not memorizing at least some of the palace's pathways. A small gasp escaped her as the doors swung open wide and she was ushered into a room full of people, most sitting far away from the main dais. At the front sat an aging man, dressed in similar silk to her dress, but way more decorated than her simple outfit. As he looked at her, Flora realized the man had the same sapphire eyes as Prince Andrei. However, his hair was white, with a touch of color that hinted he used to have a ruddy brown mane. An enormous crown bedazzled with blue and white gemstones set in silver sparkled on the emperor's head.
Flora bowed deeply, uncomfortable with the odd feeling of the motion. She held her back bent, waiting for the emperor to address her. He must have been mulling something over, because the emperor waiting a long moment before addressing her. "Rise." Flora straightened her back, but kept her eyes downcast. From her studies, she knew that to make eye contact with a Leostan emperor was a grave mistake on par with verbally insulting him.
From the corner of her eye, she could see three other men on the dais pushed back from the emperor. Flora recognized one of them as Prince Andrei, but was not familiar with the other two. She assumed they must be the two other royal princes since they looked so similar to Prince Andrei. From her memory, she could remember that Prince Andrei had two older brothers as well as two younger sisters. That meant that those other two were the crown prince, Prince Alexei and the second born, Prince Osip.
The emperor spoke again in a deep, accented voice, "Flora Sybille Premoni." He paused for a moment while Flora struggled to remain still in the silence. Finally he continued, "you are going to marry my Andrei... supposedly." Flora tried not to wince at the backhanded comment already being thrown at her. Again the room fell silent for a bit, as the emperor examined Flora in her Leostan fashion. "I vas told you were beautiful." The emperor had said it almost as an accusation instead of a compliment, so in order not to come off as rude, Flora gave him a thin-lipped smile in response "Let me make clear Princess Flora, now that you are in Leosta you must behave accordingly. Prana may be more lenient, but here you must act in a vay fitting of a Leostan royal. Ill behavior vill not be tolerated if you vant to join my family." Flora forced her face into an emotionless mask as she processed the insults he had made at both her and her country. It was clear where Prince Andrei had gotten his tendencies to openly insult another nation from. "Well?"
Flora responded timidly, "It is an honor to join the Usoro family, and I shall work to prove myself to your majesty. I thank you for your generosity your majesty."
"Do not disappoint me," the emperor warned as if she were one of his possessions. Flora bowed, clenching her fists to keep from shaking. He waved her away like a dog, and a noble rushed to seat her off to the side of the room with the rest of the audience. Soon others were presented in front of the emperor one after another, each discussing with him an issue. Flora didn't know that there was going to be a forum at the same time as her introduction, but after talking with him, it was clear no one wanted to waste any of his time.
It went on for hours like that, Flora's stomach growling from the lack of food. Desperately, she tried to keep the sound to a minimum while also struggling to stay awake. The emperor had already implied that she was a heathen, so she didn't want to do anything that would prove him right. Even still, it was tiresome to listen to men drone on and on to the emperor.
Unexpectedly, the emperor rose in a quick motion and exited the room. A beat after the door closed, the people in the room began to shuffle and leave their seats. Some rushed out of the room while many stayed to chat to others. Flora was prepared to follow those who left before a smooth voice addressed her from the side, "Would you care to join me for lunch your highness?" Flora spun around, face to face with the crown prince.