Rumius eventually returned to his room after a rather exhausting time talking with his mother.
The first thing that he had been made aware of was that his birthday was supposedly in a week and that with it, a massive ball would be hosted. Invitees included high ranking nobles from across the kingdom and, although unlikely, members of the royal family may also be in attendance. That very word made Rumius freeze up.
" So be a good boy,and make sure you're on your best behavior okay?" His maman had said, so casually that you'd think she was talking about a family picnic.
Rumius wanted to faint. There's no way he can face royalty! Where would he even begin? He wasn't made for this!
'That's not true!'
Rumius literally stumbled, crashing into Rennie's foot who had escorted him back.
' It's not that far fetched! You're nobility as well!'
That's right. He wasn't just some ordinary salary man. Not anymore! He was the first born son of the Eldmich clan, a proud noble house that went back thousands of years! There was no reason to be afraid!
The thought boosted his ego somewhat, comforting him.
The second order of business was that to prepare for the ball, he would no longer be able to go to the library since he would be spending that time with his mother to choose his outfit and to learn the expected courtesies and manners. Well, mainly the former.
That made Rumius a little grouchy.
"Really? Does it really matter what I wear?"
" I get that it's my birthday but…does it even matter what I wear? They will still think I'm just a child." He had protested.
" Tut. Tut. You're not just a child, you are my child. There is a difference. You need to dress up nicely."
The easy-going mother that he was used to had suddenly turned so ferocious.
" I won't entertain any arguments, you're going to look good and that's final. Be lucky that I'm not making you take dance lessons!" She threatened.
That shut him up.
Rumius signed and flopped on his back, lying eagle-spread on the floor.
" Young master!" Rennie exclaimed in shock.
"Goodness! You mustn't do that!"
Rumius pretended not to hear.
" Why does Maman make such a big fuss of my birthday? I can hardly imagine it being anything so big." Rumius said, trying to change the topic.
Rennie paused, considering her next words.
" Are you angry young master?" Her tone was delicate, somewhat wary and carefully measured
" Angry? No! Why would I be?" Rumius sat up.
Rennie nodded. " That's good."
" Hmm..then I suppose that such a sentiment would come from the fact that you don't seem to understand your position very well."
This time, it was Rumius's turn to frown.
" What do you mean? We're nobles aren't we?"
Rennie let out a small sign and sat down, straightening the creases out of her dress like a true lady as she did so.
" That answer proves my point."
" You see, you aren't just any noble. You are the firstborn of the Eldmich household and that alone, holds great prestige."
"More than you can imagine." She stressed.
Seeing that Rumius didn't quite understand what she was getting at, Rennie saw fit to elaborate in slightly greater detail.
" The Eldmich clan is among the 5 highest ranking noble houses in the kingdom. If I remember correctly, our influence is amongst the top three in the list."
" It's not like Nobility doesn't have classes. Even amongst these elites, households are split into central and regional sections."
" Central nobles tend to hold more influence and power and you, a member of the Eldmich household, will grow up to hold immense power within this nation. Your decisions will shape the lives of the people and will play a direct role in the workings and politics of the kingdom."
" On the other hand…"
She paused, seemingly hesitant about something but eventually went through with it.
" ..regional nobles more or less hold a title but little to no influence."
Rumius had stopped listening halfway. Anymore and his ego would have had inflated larger than his body. Top 5. Third ranked. Influential. Rumius liked the sound of these words.
" Does this mean that we're very important people?"
" Hahaha" Rennie chuckled, reaching out and covering his hand.
" That means, young master, that you are a very important person. Trust me when I say that many people would travel half the country to get here to have the honor of attending your birthday."
Suddenly, the idea of holding the ball didn't seem so bad, Rumius was even beginning to look forward to it!
In the afternoon, Rennie brought Rumius to meet his mother again, this time at a different room. As he entered, Rumius froze on the threshold, overwhelmed by the flashing colors that shone from within. Notwithstanding the room's massive size that didn't match its use, what was even more surprising were the three massive closets that were housed within.
Each was probably the size of an elephant. From the left was a closet filled to the rim with headwear. Any type, you name it. Top hats and bowlers, pointed dunce caps and the like. There were also some incredibly strange ones present, like one that had peacock feathers blooming from its top.
Next to it was a closet that was bulging with vests and formal wear, filled with robes and clothing articles that he'd never seen in his life, each more special than the last.
The last closet was filled with pants. There wasn't much to say about these since the only difference between them seemed to be their color.
The room was also anything but neat, with clothes of various types and colors laying all over the floor, sprawled in a fashion that left a scent of someone going through these clothes and just randomly throwing them down on the floor.
" Baby!"
The voice originated from the far corner of the room where a fair skinned lady was in the process of turning into a human clothes hanger.
Rumius made his way over.
" Maman…what are you doing?" Rumius could feel the sign of exasperation already building up in him.
Reverie shook the clothes that she had off her arms, sending them to the floor without batting an eyelash.
" Whew! I was finding your outfit for the ball!"
Rumius looked around, gesturing to the mess.
" In…this?"
Reverie flitted away her son's worries.
" It's no big deal, it will be cleaned up after we're done but more importantly.."
She scampered over and picked up two different pieces of clothing, vests both, that were hung over the back of a chair that seemed to be in set with a nearby table. She held them up for Rumius to see.
" Which one do you prefer? The red? Or the white?"
Rumius blanched.
The red vest, held firmly in his mother's right arm boasted gold embroidery, flowing sleeves adorned with some sort of white animal fur and finished off with a high collar and Ruby-like gemstones. He was almost positive that his mother intended for him to become the new queen, if not king of hearts.
The white piece was no better. The silver accents on it were no longer limited to simple accents but were so ubiquitous that one had to wonder if he had silver flowing through his veins. A cape cascaded from the coat's ruffed collar that was embellished with opalescent pearls.
It was next level extravagance.
" Maman… I can't wear that.."
" But why?"
Reverie casted a fond gaze on the outfits.
" You'll look majestic!"
" There's no way! Mom, I'll look like an overdressed goblin! I-"
Reverie waved a finger, halting Rumius in his tracks.
" Tut, tut child. You will look marvelous. Now, try it on."
" Wha- But!"
" No buts!"
Reverie clapped her hand twice and two maids seemed to materialize from thin air.
" Come now, let's get to it."
The women lifted Rumius, limp and flabbergasted into the air promptly followed their mistress into the changing chambers.
The next two hours that followed were arguably some of the worst in Rumius's life. His mother had directly stripped him of his clothes and got to making him fit into the clothes that she had chosen. His protests all but fell on deaf ears,
At the end of the two hours, Reverie still looked unconvinced and told him to come back tomorrow for another session.
"It is good but.."
Rumius had had that scrutinizing and dissatisfied look of his mother's carved into his brain by this point.
" We'll come back tomorrow! There's got to be better ones here!" She had declared, and now, as Rumius retired to his room, he could only let out a sign of exhaustion.