A Girl Who Can Dream

Chapter the Second

Molly looked through my chest of clothes as I sat on my bed reading the newest Edgar Allen Poe novel that I'd gotten from Miss Woods. His viciously enticing suspense stories weren't really the reading material that Father had approved of, but when I'd first snuck a peek at his books from Miss Woods' collection, I'd been hooked. Now, I couldn't stand the boring French authors that Father had picked out for me anymore, though I still did my reports on them, even if it was only to get him off my trail of disobeying him.

"Are you going for the look of regal or trending tonight, Cecelia?" Molly asked, bringing me back into the present instead of in The Fall of the House of Usher, where I wanted to be. She was the only servant on a first-name basis with me, something I'd asked of her myself. Other than Grayson, she was my second best friend, again, to the disapproval of my father.

"What do you think?" Unlike many of the women I knew, I didn't follow the latest feminine fashion trends, instead leaving it all upon Molly, whom I trusted to dress me properly. "What do you think Poppy, Hattie, and Elizabetha will wear?"

Poppy, Hattie, and Elizabetha were the prim and perfect upper-class noble girls that Father had picked out for me to become best friends with. I'd met and interacted with all of them before, but this time would be different. This time, Poppy and Hattie, the twin daughters of Lord Reynard Neville, of the House of Neville, were both going to be engaged young ladies instead of just unmarried noble girls. And their close friend, Elizabetha Lennox, would now be a married woman. Just a few months ago, Father and I had attended her wedding to the charming Antoine Lyon, Marquis of Lyon, from France. He was a cold-looking man with harsh but handsome features and I'd been stunned when Elizabetha had said that they'd both fallen for each other.

Only I was still an unmarried girl, though all three of them were my juniors. Poppy and Hattie were both a year younger than me and Elizabetha, half a year. In Father's view, this was a shame, as he, and, as a result, I are higher ranked than all three of the girls, their fathers, and their suitors.

This, of course, didn't bother me nearly as much as it bothered my dear father, though I would never tell him so. Father had told me just yesterday that this ball was going to be my chance to find myself the perfect suitor, something that I desperately didn't want to do. That wasn't how love worked.

Molly, who'd been thus far thoughtfully thinking through my question, smiled as an idea hit her. Looking through the chest for something specific, she quickly pulled out a dress that made me do an unladylike groan. She frowned. "What's wrong with it?"

The gown was made of a thick cotton material on the inside but displayed the richness of satin on the exterior. It had a high neck and long sleeves, all of which were decorated with pink embroidery. The dress was made for the trendy "hourglass figure," which I did not have, meaning Molly would have to extremely tighten my corset. The entire dress was the most ghastly shade of blue, which made it all the worse.

"Everything," I murmured, though it was loud enough for Molly to hear. "Please, don't make me wear such a horrendous thing as that." The begging, of course, wasn't necessary, though it made her smile.

"You asked for it, Cecelia. This type of high-necked ball gown is all the rage right now, are you sure you won't wear it?" Molly looked pleadingly at me, though this wasn't something I could agree on.

"All the suitors that Father will bring up will run away after seeing such a dress, Molly. I'm thinking of something simple yet elegant, and maybe a little fancy." I said, reluctantly putting down my book and joining the young servant girl near the dresser.

Together, we dug through the chest, pulling out several gowns which I knew wouldn't suit the occasion. Finally, we agreed on a deep blue ball gown with a square neckline and long sleeves that had a ball of ruffles at the end. The dress puffed up with an extreme amount of frill and lace, and there were at least five layers, but it was the best that we could manage with the ball in only an hour.