Tonics were brewed with certain types of magic imbued within them. Wanted a contraception tonic? It had to have a little Destruction Magic, a little Creation Magic, and a little Pleasure Magic mixed together. My sleeping tonic? That had a bit of Destruction Magic that was combined with Air Magic, which was closely linked with dreams. There was a city alchemist who employed a variety of Mages to mix their magic so he could create tonics for all sorts of ailments, but my family didn’t trust anyone outside of their household staff. Regimes had been brought to their knees from a laced tonic or two, and my parents were extra careful to make sure that no poison was unknowingly ingested. Instead, they had sent our Healer to receive alchemist training at Lord d’Refan’s palace, and she infused many of our tonics at home.
As I finished my tea, Jaclyn reentered the room and quickly went about opening my curtains, starting my fire, and heating a bath.
“No breakfast this morning?” I asked as Jaclyn worked.
“No. You know your mother’s rules,” she replied. My mother never ate before a dress fitting, and made sure I followed the same pattern, which I found counterintuitive. Sure, the dress would fit tighter to mybody during the fitting, but I had to eat during my party. There’d be nowhere for the food to go if my stomach was cinched into my spine.
Though, come to think of it, maybe that was Mother’s goal.
I huffed and got myself out of bed. Jaclyn quickly approached the wardrobe, selecting a gown in record time. I wondered if she even looked at the options.
“Your mother requested this particular gown today.” Well, that explained the quick selection. It was a light-pink monstrosity with a scooped neckline, three-quarter sleeves, and a long, flowing hem. There was delicate beading throughout that made it sparkle even in the dullest light.
“I hate that color,” I said under my breath. It washed me out and pink was just so...flowery.
Jaclyn raised her eyebrows at me, entirely unimpressed with my annoyance, before continuing to undo the buttons on the back of the dress. She and I both knew it wasn’t worth fighting.
I stripped and took the quickest bath in the history of baths before Jaclyn helped me into my clothes for the day. A pair of dainty pink embroidered slippers accompanied the dress and I had to hold back a gag.
I really hated pink.
I sat at my vanity, and, with deft movements, Jaclyn made incredibly quick work of finger curling my hair and pinning it into a half-up, half-down style. It was one I enjoyed.
“Can you teach Pip how to do my hair, please? And half of the other things needed as my maid,” I said the second part under my breath.
Jaclyn laughed silently behind me.
“The girls have been trying. That is where she is today, in fact. She should be ready and properly trained by the time you leave with a betrothed.”
“I’ll be taking Pip with? What about Talunda?” Jaclyn’s hands froze in my hair.
“Yes, it is customary for a lady to take a personal maid with her to her new home,” she said stiffly. “Talunda notified Bern of her resignation last week. Her child is not doing well, and she wants to be with him before he passes.”
My heart broke at the last part. I missed Talunda and wondered if I’d ever be able to see her again.
Jaclyn finished prepping me for the day and curtsied as I rose and exited from the room. I met Mother in the entryway to our home, and we were escorted into a waiting carriage by two Mage guards. They both stepped onto the back of the carriage, obviously accompanying us into Katiska today, and the driver clicked his tongue, urging the horses into a trot.
Mother was silent for the first part of the ride, seemingly lost in thought. I picked at my fingers absently and gazed out the window, watching again as our country estates gradually changed into more compact housing.
“Stop,” Mother commanded, swatting at my hands.
“Sorry, Mother. I didn’t realize I was doing it,” I said contritely.
“Well start realizing it. Lord d’Refan and your suitors will be here soon. It is imperative that you act according to your station, young lady. We will not be embarrassed by your lack of manners or decorum, am I clear?”
I nodded stiffly. “Yes, Mother.”
I straightened my spine and pushed my mind into the tiny box that I used when I had to act as the Lord of Hestin’s daughter. It helped to compartmentalize portions of myself that were deemed undesirable in order to survive high-society functions.
We were silent for the remainder of the ride and our carriage eventually stopped outside of the seamstress’ shop. We could have had the seamstress come straight to our home, but it figured that Mother wanted people to see me before my ceremony—she wanted that boost in social status that came from people looking at her.
I hated it.
The guards opened the door, and we were escorted into the shop.
It was a quaint building, shoved between a tailor’s shop to the right and a tea house to the left. The outside was painted a stunning black, which matched the tailor shop, but the inside was bright white and airy. The seamstress was an Air Mage and her husband, the tailor next door, was her True Bonded Vessel. Both of their shops had a constant light breeze that flowed throughout, chilling the inside even on the hottest days. I always appreciated the use of her magic because dress fittings were long and stifling, and the dresses were often larger and hotter than they needed to be.
“Lady d’Aelius, Miss Ellowyn,” the seamstress, Kana, greeted us with a curtsy befitting our stations, eyes fixed on theground. “I have Miss Ellowyn’s dress in one of my back fitting rooms, if you would accompany me?”
