My life has been a breeze since my reincarnation four years ago. Everyone has gone out of their way to accommodate me, and I've been having a great time for the most part. I am getting spoiled day after day, and I am enjoying the treatment. Even though I was only born with a silver spoon and did not come from a royal family in my previous life, I had grown accustomed to a certain way of life, and it would be difficult for me to break away from that pampered lifestyle. Good thing that Mariana thought of that.
The four years I spent here taught me how poorly this world is written. The worldbuilding, from the broadest to the most minute details, is shoddy. The fashion, for example, is modeled after Western fashion, with crinolines, big ball gowns, and lavish designs, but the historical accuracy is absent. Although it is referred to as fashion from Victorian times, Victoria reigned for many decades and fashion changed year after year; and the people here are dressed in gowns and accessories from various trend periods. The current trend is crinoline dresses, and everyone seems to be into bold colors right now, which I despise because I am a sucker for pastels. I'm not even sure what years these bold designs were popularized in history, or whether they're from the Victorian era.
"No. I look like Snow White! Snow White wouldn't even think of putting that on," I whine. The outfit they're trying to squeeze me into is hideous. It's a terrible rip-off of Snow White's already historically inaccurate costume. The entire dress is blue, with a large yellow bow in the back and a bright red waist strap.
"But Saridayang, this won't possibly be in whoever-that-girl-is' wardrobe as it is custom made just for you," Nanny reasons. "You have to make do with this for now or you'll be late, so please bear with us and we'll call the tailor early the next day to get you a new wardrobe to your liking."
"Head Maid is right, Saridayang. You can't afford to be late since this is the only time of the month that you would be able to dine with your whole family. It is your first time to attend the monthly dinner and you should show everyone how dignified you are now that the King has finally let you join the monthly dinner."
"The Head Maid is correct, Saridayang; you can't afford to be late because this is your first time attending the monthly dinner, and you should show everyone how dignified you are now that the King has finally allowed you to dine in with the rest of your family," Jenna interjects but I don't falter.
"No, it's revolting!" I huff and stub my foot on the ground, scrunching my face and crossing my hands on my chest. "I'm not going to wear that. There's no way I'm wearing that. I'll look like a Philippine flag."
"Then how about this?" Jenna shows me a puffy white satin gown. It's better than the other one because it's plain and doesn't have any clashing colors, but the back bow is too large for my taste.
"I would look like I'm about to walk down the aisle with a bow like that. A white satin gown with a bow at the back, plus the veil that I have to wear everywhere, I look like I'm getting married."
"But children are required to wear a bow because it symbolizes their innocence. The veil shields you from evil spirits who prey on children's souls. Do not worry, you'll be able to wear gowns without bows and you won't need to wear a veil anymore once you've reached the appropriate age."
"I don't see my brothers wearing a veil," I counter back. The reason for that is because only women get their periods. Once I get my period, I will no longer be required to wear a veil since evil spirits don't like the smell of blood. Pff! Stupid tradition.
"But Saridayang, no one gets married in white." Jenna slumps to the ground, her greasy hair sticks to her forehead. "White is only worn by children under the age of eight. When you get married, you will don the royal garb, which is purple in color."
"That's even more hideous. Purple isn't a bad color, but the vibrancy with which you people created it hurts people's eyes. With how you guys love colors, I'm not sure if you'll be able to achieve the lavender color."
Everyone lets out a loud sigh and exchanges glances, unsure of what to do next. Fortunately for them, the door to my room has been knocked on. It is Ash. They all exhale a sigh of relief, and their faces brighten.
"Gods' great souls, thank heavens that you're here," Nanny says, and Ash walks into the room, instantly understanding what's going on.
Ever since Ash and I became closer, he has become the only person who can get things going in my residence which everyone appreciates. People who couldn't handle my obnoxious behavior turned to him. Everyone has accepted him and has welcomed him into the residence as a member of the household.
"I don't wanna wear it, Ash. You won't be able to make me," I say as soon as Jenna hands him the Snow White dress and the bridal gown. "Nuh-uh!"
He sits in front of me on the floor, tilting his head from left to right and squinting his eyes as he examines the dress. "This does look hideous —" He puts the Snow White costume down on the floor. "But this one is cute-ah," Ash says, his Aryelan accent visible that the word cute sounds like kyuta.
"I know, but I don't wanna wear white. I promised myself not to wear one before I get married." I wasn't able to in my previous life. I was engaged, but died before I could even buy a wedding dress.
Jenna mumbles to herself, "You already wore one," but I overhear her and snarl at her.
"That was when I was still a baby. No one understood what I wanted back then, it's only been four months since I've started speaking fluently. And I'm saying I don't wanna, so I'm not gonna."
Although Earth slang, these people understand the words 'wanna' and 'gonna.' They believe I am having difficulty pronouncing words properly because I am still new to talking. It's either that, or they're afraid to pinpoint things because of my short temper. But, seriously, it was difficult for me to pronounce the words correctly because my tongue is still, what, short? Not practiced enough? I don't know. All I know is that half of what I'm saying is extremely difficult to pronounce.
"You will have to wear a purple gown when you get married. It is the official color of your kingdom's royal women, after all," Ash explains.
"That's only for royal women; if I get married, I won't be a princess anymore, so why do I need to wear one? It's not like I'm gonna marry Brother Lothario or something!"
He sighs and covers his face with his hands. "This is spiraling out of control," he says as he wipes his face with his palms and stands up. "Let's try this: why don't you choose any dress you want and request a change of wardrobe when you visit your father later? You can even tell him that you won't be wearing purple to your wedding; knowing how much the King favors you, he could even bend the rule for you-ah. What do you say?"
I thought about it for a while before I agreed. "Fine. Okay." I hadn't thought of that. I have a simp father and I totally forgot about that. Why did I not think of that?
"Good." He takes my hand in his and leads me to my closet, which is bursting with clothes, jewelry, and shoes suitable for any occasion. "Do you want to wear this?" he asks as he selects a formal dress from the rack and shows it to me. I shake my head, and we move on to another one.
"I hate the bow. It's big. It's bigger than my head."
"Why not wear something that has a small ribbon instead?" He pulls a simple blue dress with a thin ribbon at the back from the rack and shows it to me.
"Okay. But not that one either."
He slides the dress back in and reaches for another. "How about this one?" He leads me to the full-length mirror and places the dress against my body and I observe myself in front of the mirror. It isn't tacky nor hideous, it is okay, I guess.
"Fine."
"Good. Good."
He walks out of the walk-in closet and informs the attendants who have been left in the main room. "She picked out a dress."
I hear muffled voices thanking Ash, and the attendants start to enter the walk-in closet. They put me in a plain primrose yellow gown and we started to depart.
"I look like a mustard." I remark as we enter Father's palace and come to a halt. I'm not happy with how I look.
"Would you like to change into another dress, Saridayang?" Nanny, who is directly behind me and in front of Jenna and Opal, inquires.
"I want to go back. Let's go back, I want to change."
"Do not worry, Saridayang; we have a spare dress for you. Do you want to wear the blue dress Ash showed you earlier?" It's nice that they now call him Ash even though he's technically a prince and should be addressed as such. "There's an open drawing room where you could change."
I bob my head up and down while my gaze is fixed on the hallway's marble floor. They holster me into a deserted drawing room within Father's palace.
It's a good thing Ash advised us to bring the dress in case you sully the one you're wearing by accident," Jenna comments as my head pops out of the dress.
'Oh, believe me, that's not the reason why he told you to bring the dress.'
Ash knows me well; and he is well aware that I would be dissatisfied with the one I am currently wearing. He's well aware that I'll change my mind at some point. He knows I'll have everyone return home so I can change, but if I'm late as a result, I will not attend the dinner anymore altogether.