The sunlight was so much brighter and warmer than Effie had remembered. She'd almost forgotten the way its yellow rays warmed the surface of her skin. She'd almost forgotten the sound of chirruping birds flitting through the tress, and the way the breeze rustled the leaves overhead. She'd forgotten just how vibrant and alive the world was on the surface. Even though it had only been days - maybe a couple of weeks at most - Effie felt as though she had been brought up from the world of the dead to rejoin the world of the living.
"Remember," one of the palace guards who were escorting Effie and Anise started to say. "Soon we will be entering the palace of Avanthia. And you two are currently criminals in the eyes of the law. Suspected witches at that. It would be best to keep your heads down and not speak until we've reached the throne room where his majesty will receive your request for audience. Try not to do anything to displease him if you value your lives. The fact that he is even willing to listen to the pleas of two suspected witches is unheard of."
"Unheard of indeed," echoed the other guard. "It's no doubt thanks to Prince Reign. He may not be the heir, but he is the king's favored son, isn't he?"
"That's true," the first guard replied. "The king is probably just pleased to see some sort of activity from Prince Reign these days. Normally, the prince mopes about the palace doing nothing, and seeing no one. But lately he's been much more lively. More... commanding." The guard shivered as if that final thought had chilled him to the bone.
Then, as if the guards were worried they had said too much, they continued on in silence, making their way through a small wood that surrounded the grey, stone fortress which housed the prison underneath it.
In honesty, Effie was growing quite tired of being escorted everywhere by guards, but at least the palace guards had treated her and Anise with much more care than the prison guards had. So she was at least grateful for that, as they were lead nearer to the palace.
Effie had never seen the La Croix's palace up close before, but she had heard many tales about it's grandeur. They said that the palace of Avanthia was the grandest, and most beautiful structure within thousands of miles, but somehow she had an impossible time picturing it in her mind.
Effie had no idea what to expect, so when they finally began approaching the palace, her eyes grew wide, overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude and opulence of the structure that towered up toward the sky before them. The building sprawled out across the span of many hundreds of thousands of meters. Thin, delicate spires on either side of the main palace rose upward as if reaching for the clouds. The palace's white walls and glittering gold trim glistened in the sunlight. The long walkway leading up to the main entrance was made with tiled marble, polished until it reflected like glass. And stationed on either side of the grand walkway were many rows of guards, standing as motionless as statues, barely appearing to breathe as Effie and the others passed by them.
Soon, they were making their way up the steep, grand staircase leading to the impossibly tall archway that was the entrance to the palace.
"We'll be heading to the royal outfitter first," the guard said as they passed through an enormous, ornate double doorway which was carved with scrolling designs that were outlined in gold leaf. "You cannot see the king dressed in those rags."
But Effie hardly had a chance to take in his words, because she was too awestruck by the rich, lavish interior of the main receiving hall which now met her eyes. The glassy, polished marble tiles continued on inside the palace. Massive rugs of red velvet were rolled out across the length of the room toward the back where a huge, grand staircase spiraled upward onto an upper landing above, it's intricate, scrolling rails made entirely of gold. The room was massive, the ceiling several meters above their heads, and from it hung a huge chandelier that dripped with glittering, clear crystals. The entryway before them was lined with rows of tall, beautifully crafted marble pillars that rose to the ceiling, making Effie feel smaller than she'd ever felt in her life.
Instead of leading the two women up the grand staircase in front of them, the guards took a left, and headed through a tall archway which lead to the palace's lower left-wing. Row after row of tall, glass window draped with luxurious red curtains passed by on their left side, while rows of high, ornately carved doors passed on the right. They continued down that long corridor for quite a few moments until finally, the guards turned sharply to enter one of the rooms to the right.
"Ah, they've arrived," came the nasally voice of an older woman just inside the room.
The woman looked to be somewhere around Anise's age, but tall and rail thin, with an extravagant white-powdered wig sitting high on top of her head which was adorned with many bows and pearls. Her dress was equally outlandish and excessive, with a big, round skirt like a bell trimmed with lace and a with large bustle accentuating her from behind. Her wrinkled face was caked with layers of vibrant make-up, making her appear whole-heatedly eccentric.
And as the woman turned to greet them, and got a good look at their shabby appearance, Effie could see the light instantly go out from her eyes.
"Oh. Oh, my." She clicked her tongue. "Prince Reign hadn't told me they would arrive in.... such a condition. I really have my work cut out for me this time, don't I? Well, no matter. I'm the most skilled outfitter in the four kingdoms for a reason. I am the one and only Zophia Ravine! They'll look fit for any palace once I'm done with them. But first, I think a bath is in order. They both reek of sewage. Ladies!"
She called out, and four maids appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, bustling toward Effie and Anise with such speed that Effie wondered if she should run for an exit. But Effie hardly had time to react, as two of those maids grabbed her by the arms and began practically dragging her away to another part of the palace. She didn't much like the idea that Anise was being dragged in another direction by the other two maids, but this was a completely different situation than before. She knew Reign would not allow them to be separated ever again. So reluctantly, Effie let the girls lead her into a lavish bathroom that was perhaps much larger than the entirety of the apothecary itself. In the middle of the room was a huge, ivory, claw-footed bathtub filled with steaming water which smelled of lavender.
Effie had assumed that the maids would leave at that point and let her get into the tub herself, but she was sadly mistaken.
"Hey!" She protested as the maids began to peel the dirty, stained rag of a dress from her body. "I- I don't need help. I can undress myself."
But the maids didn't seem to hear her, or simply didn't try to as they continued, working surprisingly quickly until they had completely stripped her bare. The air felt cold against Effie's exposed skin, and she wrapped her hands around herself to cover the vital parts - not that there was much to cover- unused to being fully undressed in front of anyone. Not that the maids seemed to think much of it. This was their duty, after all. Effie thought they must have seen so many undressed women by now that it was simply normal to them.
When the maids reached to remove the Moonshadow stone from around Effie's neck next, she finally put her foot down.
"No!" She snapped a little too harshly, causing the maids to recoil a bit. "Leave it on."
And though they looked offended by this outburst, the maids obeyed her wishes, and left the Moonshadow stone alone.
Then they helped a shivering Effie step into the tall bathtub, and as she sunk into the warm, fragrant water, she began to feel all the knots in her aching muscles come undone. She'd never had such a luxurious bath in her life. It was so pleasant that she began to speculate about what other types of plants and herbs they may have infused into the water to create such a relaxing effect. Either way, she wasn't complaining.
By the time the bath was almost done, Effie was feeling cleaner than she'd felt since maybe ever. Even her hair shone with a particularly beautiful sheen, and her skin seemed to glow. The maids finally helped her out of the tub, and wrapped her in a warm, silk robe that felt smooth and cool against her warm skin. Then she was on her way back to that eccentric royal outfitter.
"Oh, my. That is much better," Zophia lilted as she looked Anise and Effie up and down, studying them in their rich, white robes. "Now this, I can work with."
With that, she bustled around the room, sifting through dress after colorful dress that lined the walls, hanging in rows like the interior of a large dress-shop or some enormous closet. Soon, she returned before them, a silky beige colored dress in one hand and a plum-purple dress in the other.
"The beige will stand out against your rosy complexion," Zophia said to Anise. Then turning to Effie she said, "and the purple dress will really bring out the color in your eyes."
Anise and Effie exchanged worried glances. Neither one of them had worn anything nearly that extravagant before, and they weren't sure how they would look in them now.
Effie wasn't sure what she expected to happen next, but to her horror, Zophia called out to her maids again. "Ladies!'
Then the four maids appeared from the woodwork, sets of two taking each woman by the arm again, this time dragging them behind two separate, floral dressing screens to begin helping them into their new dresses.
Effie shut her eyes as she was stripped bare again, and then helped into some lacy, white undergarments which seemed incredibly impractical and made her skin itch. Next, a corset was wrapped around her bodice, and she had to brace herself as the maids began pulling on the strings to tighten it around her like a vice, tighter and tighter until she could hardly breathe - until her ribs ached. After that, the purple dress was pulled over her head, and draped down her body until the shimmering skirt practically reached the floor.
Once she was dressed, Effie was lead out from behind the screen, and each movement she made was stiff and uncomfortable in all those layers of clothing. Anise stepped out from behind her screen as well at just about the same time.
"Beautiful!" The eccentric outfitter cried with delight. "Simply beautiful, ladies. I've really outdone myself this time, haven't I?"
The maids all agreed in unison.
"What do you think?" Zophia asked, pulling up a tall mirror on wheels so that Effie and Anise could see themselves in their new dresses.
Effie thought Anise looked so stately and royal, almost like a queen herself. However the purple dress on her own body was a bit too much for her. There was too much lace, too much frill. Too much... everything. But the outfitter was right about one thing. It really did bring out the purple in her eyes.
"Now," Zophia said, not waiting for a reply from either of the stunned women. "All we have to is complete the outfits with some appropriate jewellery and hair accessories, and you will be fit to appear before the king."