Golden Sword

Chapter 4

Dinner was at 7:00 PM, followed by the ball at 8:00 PM, but Kate and her team started working on Keika at 3:00 PM and were not finished until 6:30. Again, it was an experience in fashion which was more than she was prepared for. Her hair was what required so much time. She had always worn it long, to the middle of her back, and straight. It was quite full and heavy, but Kate wanted her in ringlets. The project was a massive undertaking, not to mention smelly and uncomfortable. She was about ready to pull all of her hair out by the time it was over, but then they moved her in front of the full length mirror in her room. Her fussiness disappeared. Kate gave her a smug look, "Not bad, eh?" "No." responded Keika slowly in surprise, "......not bad at all."

The girls had managed to make her look every bit the story book princess. The dress highlighted her figure and looked fantastic on her......the shoes....some of Stephanie's jewelry, and the tiara....all added to the effect. "Enjoy it while it lasts, honey." said Monique, "We don't have the strong chemicals they used in the past, so it won't last that long, but on the other hand your hair won't be damaged by what we did." Her hair was straight until it reached the side of her face at the eyes and then fell into long large black ringlets to past her shoulders. She smiled broadly. Kate had been right. Wait till Eric sees me.

As if the thought of Eric had summoned him like a genie, there was a knock at the door and his voice, "Aren't you ladies finished yet? We only have a half hour until dinner and we want to be a few minutes early if we can." He sounded a little impatient. Kate had her stand just on the other side of her door and Carmen opened it. He started to say something else, but as she came into view he just stood there looking at her with his mouth open. She smiled. After several seconds of silence from him she asked, "What do you think?" He walked into the room and took her hand, apparently afraid of embracing her. "You look......I have no words to describe how beautiful you are. You are a goddess descended directly from Mount Olympus....or, in your case, Mount Fuji, I suppose." She beamed, "Thank you sweetheart. You are the only one I care to impress." They kissed. He looked her up and down. "Well, consider me impressed then........and so will everyone else be......the women will hate you." He smiled roguishly, "Sounds like fun, let's go and make em all look old, fat and ugly." Her friends laughed.

The girls would not be at dinner, but were allowed to attend the ball as their guests, and she would see them there. She hugged and thanked them all, still with a big smile on her face. She had never felt quite so......pretty, so female and girlish. It was a nice feeling. Eric escorted her down to the dining room and, just as he predicted, all eyes were on her. They were ushered over to sit beside the king and queen at their reserved spots. It was just like something out of one of her movies. She again had the unreal sensation of being in a fairy tale or fictional story.

Predictably, the dinner was delicious. She had actually eaten earlier, while her hair was setting up so that she wouldn't be so hungry for the actual meal and make a spectacle of herself. They talked with the king and queen for the most part, and everything was very pleasant. She made a show of daintily picking at her food. Feeling eyes on her, she unexpectedly glanced about the table and nearly all of the men and many of the women were looking at her. The women's stares were not especially friendly. She flashed them all a big smile and they suddenly were all looking somewhere else. Beside her Eric chuckled. "Caught them, didn't you." he stated with a grin. "See, I told you. Watch out for the old biddies, they are more dangerous than they appear." Keika laughed and responded, "Of that I have no doubt. In a way, this is sort of fun, making them all jealous." On the other side of her, Patrice had caught her words and laughed out loud. She leaned over. "This, my dear, is the most fun I have had at one of these things in a long time. You have really upset the local ladies social applecart. I think it is hilarious." The three of them laughed, and the king looked over at them a bit puzzled. The queen leaned over in his direction and whispered to him and after a minute, he smiled, shook his head yes and chuckled as well.