Rookery ~ Assassin's Creed Syndicate

Chapter Forty Nine

(A/N) Sorry in advance for the shitty filler chapter. I just wanted this in here so I could describe their dresses. Sorry again :P

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The next morning, while Jacob was gathering a Royal Guard's uniform for Freddy, Evie and I went on the hunt for dresses to wear to the ball. To make it as simple as possible, we visited a dress shop. The ball was fairly soon, so we didn't have time to have any alterations made.

I hadn't gone properly dress shopping since my mother had been well. In all fairness, I was quite excited. Plus, all of the bright colours and the smell of clean fabric filling my nose was somewhat calming.

Evie strolled around the shop, completely disarmed and running her fingers across the silky skirts, criticising every single dress. 'That colour is ugly', 'what on Earth is that?', 'who would wear this?' and 'Carina, if I ever wear that, please kill me'. I laughed at all of the criticism, simply because I agreed with it.

"This one isn't horrible." She stated, pulling a green dress from the rack. "I mean, this colour would look horrible on me, and the shape of the skirt is all wrong. Plus, these details are-- Never mind, I hate this dress too." She huffed and placed it back. "My goodness, I have no clue what to wear."

"One second, let me get someone to help us." I approached the front desk where a woman stood with a wide smile.

"Good morning."

"Good morning. My friend and I are looking for ball gowns to wear to the ball tomorrow." Her eyes widened.

"At Buckingham Palace?" I nodded. "Oh, incredible!"

"We were wondering if you could help us to find the perfect dresses." She clasped her hands over her mouth.

"Of course I can! I can't believe you want to wear our dresses to the Queen's ball. Right this way." She stepped out from behind the counter and began to lead me towards the back room of the shop. "We keep our nicest gowns in the back to keep anyone from getting any mess on them at all."

"Evie!" I called across the shop. She jogged over as the woman peeled back a curtain to reveal a doorway into a well-lit room filled with wedding dresses and - that's right - ball gowns. "Wow..." I breathed. The sight was incredible. The colours in the back room were even brighter than on the main shop floor. Blues, reds, greens, even yellows. Evie immediately went to the red dresses.

"Do you like the colour red, then?" Evie nodded with a smile. "Ah, I know the perfect dress." The woman picked a beautiful red dress from the rack. The underskirt was an off-white, cream colour. The bodice and the overskirt were red, the skirt with a slight cut in the front to show off the beautiful fabric underneath. Evie grinned at it.

"I love it." She squealed slightly.

"First one in the whole shop, hmm?" The shop assistant giggled. Evie shrugged with a nod.

"It is."

"Here, you take this into one of the changing rooms upstairs while I sort your friend out with a dress." She took the dress and left the back room. Then, the shop assistant turned to me with a small smile. "So, any ideas?"

"I like turquoise. That is the only information I have for you. I haven't properly bought a dress for years." I scratched the back of my neck awkwardly.

"I can find something. Turquoise..." She tapped her chin, then reached for a dress. "This one." She held it out to me.

It had sleeves which fell to the elbows and the bodice tied with lace in the front. Black lace hung in the front of the skirt and bodice and the underskirt, beneath the turquoise, was made from black lace as well. The collar, which would have covered just under my collar bone, was the same black lace as everything else. I gave a huge smile to the shop assistant.

"It is gorgeous."

"Fit for a ball?" I nodded.

"Let me go try it on."

"Of course. Will you and your friend be needing shoes to match?" I nodded again as I made my way out of the back room and up the stairs.

"Yes. Thank you."

Evie and I exited the changing rooms at the same time. The large mirror in front of us showed the entirety of both dresses perfectly. We stood beside each other, and Evie grabbed my arm with a grin.

"I don't think I have ever looked so beautiful. And, Carina, you look stunning." She ran her hand from my shoulder to the bottom of my sleeve.

"Nothing compared to you, Miss Frye." A slight, pink blush grew on her cheeks. "These are definitely the dresses for us to wear." There was a knock at the door.

"I have your shoes." The shop assistant mumbled.

"Come in." She stepped through the door, her orange curls now tied up in a ponytail, and she clutched one pair of black shoes and one pair of red heels.

"Those dresses look far more beautiful on the two of you than the hangers give them credit for." She blushed. "These shoes should complete everything. Black for you." She dropped the black shoes in front of me and I quickly slipped my feet into them. "And red for her friend."

Once we were both fully dressed, we took a while to admire how we looked. I had never seen Evie dressed so elegantly before, so it was such a wonderful surprise to me. She was truly breathtakingly beautiful in her outfit, and I couldn't help but stand there like an idiot, completely speechless.

"We should probably pay for these now." Evie's voice shook me out of my daydream. I chuckled with a nod.

"Of course." I faced the shop assistant. "We will get changed and then pay for these, Miss..?"

"My name is Abigale."

"Thank you, Abigale. These dresses are beautiful."

We left the shop with our boxes in our arms, ready to head back to the train. The next evening, we would be on our way to the ball just like the other guest. We would have blended in perfectly, and looked gorgeous while doing so.