Once Upon A Time In England

Chapter 4

"Ladies and gentlemen, the Lord and Lady of the house; Lord Humphrey Moore and Lady Amelia of Birchwood. "
Everyone rose from their seats and turned their heads to see them descending the marble stairs , arm in arm.

"The Lady Aureliah Josephine Moore."
Aureliah descended the stairs as her parents did, her gold skirt sweeping each stair, and with every step, more attention was projected to her.
Her curly locks were held away frim her face by ribbons of the finest silk and the rest of her hair sat down her back.

As she reached the bottom of the stairs and took her place next to her parents, the crowd from the centre slowly made their way closer to them.

"Lord Alessio Edwardo and Lady Agnes Petunia Moore."
Hand in hand, they skipped down the stairs and stood next to Aureliah with wide grins on their young faces.

Soon after, the music and conversation continued in the hall and the twins ran off too leaving Aureliah by her mother's side.

After a long while, when her legs burned from performing all those curtseys and her hadns were uncomfortable in their gloves, she looked around desperately to find someone to approach.

She saw Lady Helen in the distance chatting to a group of ladies, and Aureliah recognised the patterns and beadwork of their dresses.

"Good evening, ladies." Greeted Aureliah which caused the group of women to reply back and gasp.

"Your dress, Lady Aureliah..." Began a tall woman clad in a forest green dress with black lace, and she wore such a shimmering jewel on her neck. "... is absolutely beautiful."

"Oh you are too kind, milady. But I must say, yours is also one that caught my eye." She commented, hiding a smirk with shining eyes.

"Why, thank you." She smiled as she turned slightly pink in the face.
"You know, you should try these dresses." Suggested Lady Helen. "They are made by this woman who keeps her identity a secret. But they dresses are amazing. Look, we are all wearing them today."

And to Aureliah's delight, Lady Samantha and her three friends were all wearing her designs. There were two women wearing the same dress design in different materials and colours and Aureliah's heart did a small backflip.

"I think I will definitely be paying this Madame Reika's dresses a visit." Beamed Aureliah removing her long black gloves and stretching her slender fingers.

Aureliah heard muttering and as she looked up from folding her gloves, Lady Samantha gave a weak smile and then looked back at the other women.
"We were wondering if you would like to accompany us tomorrow noon, as we'd all be going dress shopping for Lord Henri's birthday party on the weekend?" She enquired seeming uneasy as Lady Aureliah might refuse.

"Oh my, yes." Aureliah answered. The excitement clear in her voice. "I would love to."

The women all exchanged pleased looks and Aureliah could swear she saw one of them jump up and down in excitement.

******

Aureliah has danced with many partners and had finally sat down at a chair in the far end of the hall.

Sje looked up at the decorations and glimmering chandeliers and smiled. Her father really wanted to make a good impression on the whole of Manchester, and seeing everyone's reactions and comments; it was a job welldone.

She looked over her shoulder to see Ander in conversation with two other men and he looked over at her. She caught his eye from a distance and as bowed his head back at her, she couldn't help but smile.

After finishing her drink and being pulled into another fast laced dance by a younger gentleman, she made her way to Ander.

"I want to go to the garden for a brief walk." She informed him. "Would that be okay?"