Chapter 1
“You’re the eldest of the house you need to start acting like a proper lady” Rose told her. Rose’s blue eyes shone brightly with disapproval her long perfectly groomed blonde hair had been braided and pinned like a crown on her head. Her rosy pink dress had just been hemmed and the golden colored thread made the silk shine even more.
Adeline sighed as she compared herself to Rose in the mirror yet again. Rose sat perfectly lady like on the edge of Adeline’s bed, some how resisting the urge to swing her feet against the bed. Her perfect golden hair, seemed to shine almost as brightly as the sun.
In comparison Adeline’s hair, even when just brushed and washed looked like an horrible matted mess. Rose puckered her full ruby red lips at Adeline’s cuss, but said nothing more, just like the proper lady she was.
Adeline went back to fiercely brushing her hair. “See? That’s what I mean!” Rose exclaimed, she immediately apologized for her sudden out burst and took the brush from Adeline, starting to show her the proper way to brush her hair.
“I hardly think the way I brush my hair matters” she snorted insecurely, tucking a strand of curly hair behind her right ear.
Rose sighed “Ade, that’s just the kind of thing that makes you unlady like. Though I suppose it isn’t all your fault” Adeline smiled, glad to know Rose thought do “With your curly hair you were always predisposed to look like a mess” Adeline rolled her eyes.
“You simply must stop with that as well, rolling your eyes is a very bad habit” Rose pattered on about all the things Adeline was doing wrong for quiet some time before putting the brush back on her dressing table and sighing “So you will put a stop to all we talked about?” Rose asked.
Even though she had no idea what they had talked about her putting a stop to Adeline nodded. Both her and Rose knew she wouldn’t stop her supposed bad habits, but Rose still lectured her about it.
“Excellent then my work here is done, if you need me I’ll be in town visiting a friend. Not to worry though, I’ll be back before noon” Rose informed her, before exiting her room.
“What’s at noon?” Adeline asked. She got no answer from Rose who either was out of ear-shot or just didn’t care if Adeline knew or not. No doubt it had been in the lecture Rose had given her, but as usual she hadn’t been listening.
She sighed and plopped down on her bed, what ever it was she hopped it didn’t require her getting something ready. She gazed up at the celling, it was a plain white celling of course but she stared at it as if was the most interesting thing in the world.
She knew she needed to find out what Rose had planned, but she wasn’t exactly sure how to. After all, Adeline had never really been a sweet talker. Well that was an understatement, Adeline was horrible at social things and could never get talk someone into doing something for her. Unlike the ever proper lady of the house, Rose- Adeline made a disgusted face at the thought of her every so proper sister.
Eventually Adeline decided that she would just lay on the bed for awhile and not get up. After all, Rose had said noon and it was...fuck it was 11:00am which gave her only an hour to find out whatever Rose had planned, and set it up. Adeline hopped whatever Rose was throwing wasn’t too extravagant.
She leapt up from the bed when she heard a knock on her door. She wasn’t sure why it was so shocking to her, people knocked on her door all the time and she’d been planning to ask someone about Rose’s event anyways. Perhaps she had been lost in thought? As another knock startled her she decided that was it.
Adeline smoothed her hair and gown before striding towards the door as confidently as she could muster and opening it. A women, no a girl, wearing a simple brown dress stood outside it. Her long autumn colored hair was braided and fell down her back, stoping at her waist.
"Lillian? Oh thank god it's you" Adeline said, placing a hand on her heart to calm herself.
"Who else did you think it was?" Lillian asked, raising an eyebrow curiously.
Adeline shrugged "I need your help finding something out" she told her.
"Oh gossip! Well let me come in and we can talk about whatever it is you need me to find out" Adeline backed out of the door way and allowed Lillian to enter her room. Lillian was a childhood friend of hers, the two had met before they had known to care about ranks and even though Lillian was a servant the two had stayed friends.
Adeline gestured towards her bed and Lillian sat down as Adeline closed the door. Her gaze wandered around the room before eventually coming back to Adeline. "So what did you want me to find out for you?" she asked.
"I want you to find out what event Rose is holding today. " she confessed, which for some reason made Lillian start to crack up. She slapped her knee before sitting back up and gasping for the breath she had lost.
"Only you Adeline could not listen to your sister when she tells you the prince is paying a visit" Lillian continued to chuckle as Adeline's face went pale.
"You're joking right?" she asked, hopefully but Lillian just shook her head.
"Nope, it's all anyone can talk about how did you miss it?" she asked, but as her gaze fell upon a stack of old books, tucked under Adeline's dresser she understood. "You were reading?" she guessed.
Adeline sighed and nodded beginning to run her hands through her hair. "What am I going to do?" she asked. Lillian shrugged.
"Don't know, but the servants and maids should have most things taken care of, all you'll need to do is show up and talk until Rose get's back" she informed her.
Adeline nodded "She said she'd be back at noon. When does the prince arrive?" she inquired.
"At noon" Lillian told her "When does Rose get back?"
"Same time" Adeline said.
"Good then, she'll take care of the small-chat and the like, so all you'll have to do is mind your tongue" Lillian warned.
Adeline sighed she was horrible at minding her tongue, it was the one of her supposed faults that Rose returned most to. Over and over she'd been told that ladies must mind their tongues but she had never really gotten the hang of it. The fact was that if someone pissed her off enough she couldn't control what she said and someone always seemed to piss her off enough.
Lillian stood up with an all knowing grin on her face. "I need to get back to work, and Ade try not to get pissed off" she called as she left the room.
Adeline sighed, she would try but she couldn't make any promises.
