The Third Day of the Month of PaleFrost.
The Town of Edgecraft.
Blythe woke up with a jolt to the knocking on her door.
Scrambling to collect herself, she hurried to open, setting her messy brown tresses aright as she went.
The man who stood at the door nodded at her, a quick smile displaying across his face, "Good morning, madam. The name is Gregory. I am Prince Augustus' trusted friend: here to assist you in any of your packing duties."
"I, uh," Blythe moved to let the friendly man in, "I'm so sorry. I have hardly woken up. I'm not usually this late!"
The man laughed.
He was a head taller than she with light brown hair and green, happy eyes, "I'm actually rather early. The prince ordered that I arrive early so as to avoid being seen by the townsfolk!"
Blythe hurried to get the man a chair but he waved it away.
"I see you've packed a suitcase. I shall move it into the carriage and await."
"But," Blythe hesitated when she spoke, her heart excited to move but also nervous, "I have very little and I've informed no one. All of the people in this town and my own, know me."
Gregory shook his head, "We will spread rumours of your family seeking to find a very poor life in this country as they have fled their own."
"I'm an exiled princess?"
"Something to that effect," Gregory had picked up her bag, the wrinkles around his eyes showing when he smiled, "Let the prince worry about those details. Get yourself ready. We must leave before the town awakes!"
Blythe rushed to her room to wash her face and brush her hair.
The night before had been spent packing her things and looking through the now-emptied cottage one last time by her tired self.
She bit her lip.
It didn't feel right to make such a large decision without asking her family but Blythe had considered most every other option before deciding to trust the Prince.
She sighed as she rushed to the door.
The Prince had promised to move her family to the Capital and arrange doctors for her mother within the next two days.
Blythe was determined to keep the man to his promise.
The Third Day of the Month of Palefrost
The Mansion of the Everglowers.
Aldith let the man's knuckles brush down the smooth skin of her bare back.
The tailor who fit her into clothes had the most amazing fantasy.
The perverted old man called her his muse and made the most maddeningly delicious clothes to fit her body.
Two of the dresses she had bought from him had earned her a grab of Sir Waldorf's arm and the undying interest of both Cecil and Ernien.
The way the old tailor leered at her all through the fittings did annoy her but the results always stunned her.
The clothes seemed to accentuate every highlight of her physical appeal and bring her victims to surrender within minutes.
"How much do I pay you for this one?"
There was a momentary silence, Aldith catching the man drooling at her by the reflection of the mirror.
"A mere fifteen pouches of high gems, my lovely lady."
Aldith raised a delicate eyebrow, eyeing the man from where she stood in front of the large mirror, "Is the fabric of this garment woven from your life force? Why such a large sum?"
The man's eyes had not stopped trailing the reflection of her body, "Surely you understand, my dearest… This dress is custom made and will appeal on no one else quite like it does on you."
Aldith rolled her eyes before tossing a lock of long blond hair behind her bare shoulder, "Flattery seems your prime weapon when you speak."
She inspected the dress.
The dark blue fabric stood out against her soft, pale skin. The dress started just under her shoulders and took a sharp dive at the middle of her plump breasts, stopping at her waist, her skin prominent to the eye against the colour of the gown. A swatch of delicate lace covered the skin that would have stood exposed by the cut, doing just enough to let the imagination run wild.
"I'll take it."
The Third Day of the month of Palefrost
The Royal Palace
Xyla Riverlove stood nervously behind one the pillars.
The Royal palace boasted the most beautiful rooms and she stood at the hallway leading into a suite of rooms on the same floor and quite near Elliot's.
Xyla had never been to Elliot's rooms.
The two shared long, happy conversations at their special bench in the garden below.
Augustus had asked her, the previous night, to visit the Royal Palace and wait on Elliot's floor after breakfast.
He would move the secret bride-to-be into the lavish suite of rooms where the two women could meet each other and introduce themselves. He had suggested that she find out as much as she could about the new girl so as to be able to prove to anyone who doubted that the two were indeed close friends.
Xyla sighed as she rested her head against the cold pillar.
She hated being dragged into this.
From the moment Sir Waldorf had died, things had started going bizarrely out of hand and she wondered why the royal Palace seemed so full of secrets and scandals that it had never when she had been younger.
The suite of rooms was closed and Xyla suspected the mystery woman stood inside the rooms.
Her heart began to beat fast with her nervousness.
Xyla hoped the bride was kind and nothing like Aldith.
The doors opened and Xyla straightened quickly.
An older man with light brown hair and green eyes stepped out of the room and looked up to see her.
Xyla had seen this man around Augustus quite often.
He nodded to her as he got close, a large smile spreading across his face, "Xyla Riverlove?"
The noble woman nodded, eyes wide as she waited for more instructions.
"I just moved her in. She should be out to meet you in a minute."
Xyla hurried to speak, "Alright! Thank you!"
The man walked past her and walked all the way to the end of the hall before taking the stairs down and out of sight.
Xyla whipped her head back around to see a woman finally walk out of the suite of rooms.