Princess Vivianne & Juniper the Guard

Chapter 20: They'll Think of Me Kindly (1)

The attendants, Nina, Rose, and Eloise, were young ladies born of lower aristocrats who had taken apprenticeships from the senior maids at the royal court. Often, noble children who didn't score well enough at the Royal Academy to be appointed for record-keeping or rulers became servants or party arrangers.

Nina and Rose were twins, two girls with pale skin and flaming red hair in soft waves. The two girls had upturned eyes that looked like they were sneering at her.

The girl called Eloise was meekly looking around, despite her working in the court for years. Her big glasses covered the majority of her face and her freckled cheeks. Her hair was a mousy brown in a single braid and straight bangs.

When they had walked into Vivianne's room, Peony was preparing the Princess clothing, a soft pink tunic with no sleeves and a frilly underskirt. They had taken one look at Peony's work and scoffed loudly, pushing her to the side.

"We'll handle her majesty's clothing; how about you bring the breakfast from the canteen?" Rose had said, picking out a deep blue gown from the closet. Peony looked at the odd choice and frowned. That was an evening gown in a dark colour for outings, entirely out of fashion and inappropriate for Vivianne's office work and meetings.

The girls were intimating, and Peony felt inadequate with her limited experience and understanding of high fashion. She meekly stepped aside, keeping her head down. Rose and Nina grinned at each other, scoffing at the skinny commoner hurdled near the vanity.

Looking down at the vanity, Peony recalled the concubine she had escorted to the infirmary; even when she was dangling off Peony's back, she had never stopped cussing and fidgeting, full of fight.

Peony falling back into her old people-pleasing habits, especially after she had managed for the first time to do something courageous, was humiliating; her cheeks burned.

What was the point of booking a seamstress if they insisted on dressing the princess sloppily?

"Where is her powder? Braids, did you steal it?" Nina had asked, flicking Peony on the forehead.

Having dealt with the head maid before, Nina only looked like an annoying bully in Peony's eyes, who signed whilst smacking Nina's imposing hand from her face.

Screw this! There's no way I'm getting the blame for their shitty sense of fashion!

"I'm Peony, not Braids," she said, hoping an introduction would steer the conversation to more friendly territory.

"I'm the princess's lady-in-waiting; therefore, my choice of outfit will be the one she wears," Nina turned to Rose for guidance, who had a carefully blank look on her face.

"Eloise, bring the breakfast," Rose said, and Eloise immediately hurried out of the room, jumping on the chance to leave the tense room. Peony watched as the short girl almost tripped over her skirt in a hurry.

The dynamic between the attendance was apparent, with Rose and Nina being the ringleaders and Eloise serving as their lackey. She wondered why Vivianne would keep such horrible people as her attendants, but suddenly Rose clutched her shoulder with a sincere smile.

"We're sorry. We had no idea you were the new lady-in-waiting!" Rose looked away with downcasted eyes. Nina bowed in apology before reassuring Peony that they had no idea.

It felt like a weight had lifted off her stomach, and she couldn't help but laugh, relieved. All doubt vanished from her mind, and she silently reprimanded herself for jumping to conclusions.

In the back of her mind, she still worried about their behaviour, as her not being in charge didn't mean she deserved to be mistreated by her coworkers. When Eloise returned with the trolley propped with warm food and tea, Peony chose to share her thoughts.