[What failness? :o ]
Tallow was in and out of her room in record time. She was fitted into a dress--her maids had, in a fit of mischievous fun, prohibited her from actually seeing it with a spell that just turned the fabric gray and fuzzy. Her red hair was put up in a similar fashion, and as Tallow watched her reflection as the maids applied dabs of makeup here and there, she rather fancied the thought that she looked like a moldy old dwarf, with a fuzzy gray mass that was her hair, and her torso and legs disappearing into a similar cloudy mass.
She was very apprehensive about the results, but in her time at the palace, she had come to trust and even like her maids--she refused to call them her ladies-in-waiting, because those were reserved for people of rank and elegance, like the queen.
After much hair-pulling and hair-pinning and fabric-rustling, the maids pronounced her ready for the ball. Tallow wondered why they were making such a big deal out of all this, but as they sprayed her with perfume and released the spell, she couldn't help but gawk at her reflection.
The gown was a thousand shades of green, ranging from the shade of the treetops to a hazy emerald. It hugged tight to her torso and then released its grasp with a flourish at the waist, leaving a sweeping skirt all around her. The sleeves draped over her shoulders, the silk soft and cool. Her hair was loose and curling around her shoulders, with a small silver circlet inlaid with emeralds keeping it all in check.
She wasn't beautiful by a long shot--but this outfit gave her a semblance of..elegance? Tallow dismissed this discomforting thought with the knowledge that anyone who spoke to her would easily think the opposite.
"Well..are we ready?" she said after a moment, feeling snappish and slightly uneasy about having to make an appearance in this. "Are you sure the king ordered this himself?" she clarified as Silvea lead her out of the hall. They had been gone only about twenty minutes--she it had been longer, so she had to stand around in this for less time.
"Yes, milady," the girl said, ducking her head demurely.
Tallow sighed, and pushed open the doors to the Great Hall, a room adjoined to the throne room, where the main festivities were going to be held. She could see that food and dance had already commenced in the throne room, and sighed.
This was going to be a long, long night.
Normal User
