I gathered my pin cushion and victoriously plucked a needle from the floor. Her eyes lingered on my hands and dirty feet, nose going up in the air.
I kept my face blank. It was the best I could manage under such an insult. Certainly, I wasn't a dazzling beauty like Roselle. Nonetheless, I was proud of my strawberry blonde hair inherited from my mother, and it was offset by the deep brown of my eyes. I kept it tamed during the day in a tight bun or braid, but I thought it could look quite nice if I ever had a chance to style it every day, like Roselle made Marie do for her each morning.
But there was no escaping the scars and marks on my body that clearly labeled me as a member of the serving class. Even the muscles that showed on my shoulders and arms damned me as a woman of working means. Even so, I was proud of the hard work I did everyday—work that would send my step-sister running from the manor screaming.
But I had to be honest with myself as well. Gazing at Roselle in her fine dress, I admitted I was jealous. What would it be like to wear something so fine? To have someone pamper and help prepare you to be seen by society? What would it be like to converse with other lords and ladies, or to be courted by handsome men in fine clothes? That was the life I wassupposedto be living before my mother died and Perron made me part of the staff.
"Wait! That's it! He wouldn't want to marryyou!" Roselle gasped, coming down from her little pedestal to grab me by my elbow.
I blinked, not knowing what to say to that. Roselle paused, looking at me with anticipation. My heart pounded in my chest. It was never good for me when she got that malicious glint in her eyes. "I-I don't understand," I managed to reply.
Roselle waved her hands dismissively. "Isn't it obvious? I will tell Father that the Dark Prince can meet me out back in the garden,alone. What better way to spend some time with my future husband before our ceremony?" She smirked in satisfaction at this plan, draping a silk glove across her breast dramatically.
My stomach flipped and sweat broke out on my forehead.
"Here, get me out of this. Switch clothing with me," she demanded.
My heart stopped altogether. "W-what?" I sputtered, clutching my sewing as if it might save me.
Roselle scowled, already fussing with the ties on her dress. "Are you dense? Pay attention. I'll inform Father the Dark Prince is to meet me in the garden when he arrives. But it won'tbeme, you understand?Youwill sit in the garden inmydress. The Dark Prince will see how plain and ordinary you are and cancel the wedding! No one would want to marry you!" She gave a little twirl of happiness, spinning around and letting go of my arm.
Run. Do it now,my inner voice commanded, but I didn't move. Did she actually think something like this would work? No. If I ran, she'd only go make up a worse story to tell my step-father.
Seeing the doubt on my face, her tone immediately shifted. "Wouldn't you like to wear a nice dress?" She put one hand around my neck, as if we were the best of friends.
I inwardly huffed. Of course I'd like to, but I wasn't stupid. Me wearing a fine dress would be an open invitation for a caning. "That would never work. If someone sees me—"
"Of course it will work," she cut over top of me, undoing the long line of buttons down her front. "Now let's go. I am ordering you."
Oh, great. It was easy for her to come up with such a scheme. If we were caught, she would only get a scolding and no pudding after dinner. If I got caught, I'd be taken around back and beaten so badly I wouldn't be able to sit for a week. I could already imagine the impossibility of getting my work done for the next few days. That would lead to more punishment, more pain, and then—
I bit my lip hard, bringing me back down to earth and putting a halt to my racing thoughts.
The same outcome would happen if I didn't obey her. At least if I played along, there was a chance we might not get caught, as small as it was. Surely, the Dark Prince had heard of Roselle's beauty, or knew her basic attributes. No one in their right mind would take me for the flaxen, blonde beauty with big breasts and doe eyes.
My hands automatically pulled my thin cotton shift over my head, stained with dirt and bits of the lunch I helped the cook make earlier in the day. Roselle fussed a bit more in her underclothes, neither of us looking at the other as she lifted her dress and stepped out. We switched clothing. She held my dress out in front of her like it was a diseased, filthy rag.
My lips pursed as I stared at her, hope rising in my chest. Would she be picky enough to refuse to wear it, and cancel this plan?
With a pinched face and a look of disgust, she quickly put on my work dress. With determination she helped me tie her own wedding dress around me. It didn't exactly fit right, hanging open a little in the breast area and in the back. I didn't have nearly as many curves as her, but then again, I wasn't fed as much either.
"How do you live in this rag? Ititches," she complained, turning me around for inspection. "Here, just let your hair down, but leave the top part braided. We don't have time for anything intricate, but it will do."
With shaking hands, I undid the small leather thong that kept my hair up. I held it out to her, and she glared at it with disdain before taking it and arranging her long, blonde hair in a haphazard bun at the back of her head. I hoped I got it back; I only had the one, and it had belonged to my mother.
Oh gods, we were actually doing this.Keep it together, breathe.I ignored every awful scenario that occurred to me: The Dark Prince screaming at me and throwing me to the ground. He'd likely hit harder too, since he was rumored to be a large man. Would he kill me like he killed so many others on the king's orders?
My breath came in short, panicked gasps. Not that Roselle seemed to notice.
"Well? Don't just stand there, get in the garden!" Roselle hissed at me.
I jumped to obey, dreading the first step I would take out into the hallway. Another servant would see me. My step-father would see me, and it would all be over before it began. My body ached just thinking about the punishments likely to come. To stave away such thoughts, I shifted instead to the Dark Prince himself. I knew he wore a mask, he was large, and he lived across the boundary line between the safe zones of the villages. Forests with wild animals cut off his territory from ours and most of the other larger towns.
Roselle pushed me across the threshold of her room and ordered me to start walking.
I don't know how I made it to the garden without anyone spotting me, but I did. It was just a quick walk down the hall, out onto a lower balcony, and down the stone steps. I sat on the nearest bench I could find, convinced this wouldn't work. Inwardly, I braced myself for another night without dinner.
The scent of jasmine filled my nose and I inhaled deeply, willing my nerves to calm. I wasn't sure how long I sat there, watching the sun begin to move toward the western horizon. I could have been there for hours, or minutes. Time blurred together.