Becoming a Princess

Chapter Seventeen

Arrest warrants were put on both Fern and Clementine. Palace officials went to each of their homes, but the weren't there. Everyone tells me to not to worry, everything will be fine, blah, blah, blah. In all honesty, I'm not scared of them, just angry.

"They probably just thought you would die in that closet, so they didn't bother leaving until now," informs Emmeline.

"When you could talk," finishes Annie. My throat is no longer swollen so I can talk with no pain.

Currently, we are in Emmeline's room, gossiping and discussing things.

"Whatever," I reply, not really focused nor interested in the conversation because I'm trying out a new braid on Annie's hair.

"What do your dresses look like for the Report tonight?" asks Emmeline excitedly.

"I haven't seen mine yet," I reply.

"You'll probably have the prettiest," sighs Annie.

"Me?" I ask, appalled.

Annie turns around to face me. "Yes, you. Your dresses are absolutely fabulous. Everyone talks about them," she states.

Emmeline sees my look of confusion. "In the Women's Room, almost every girl talks about your maids and how you always look stunning," she says.

I take a minute to process.

Everyone talking about me?

"Well, you can borrow one of my dresses anytime," I say quickly, wanting to change the subject. "Emmeline, what does your dress look like again?"

Emmeline babbles on and on about her dress, using terms that I have never heard before. I just keep braiding, tuning out Emmeline and Annie's conversation. I finish the braid and decide to join in on their useless gossip.

Time flies and before we know it, Emmeline's maids came into her room to start getting her ready. Annie and I took this as a sign to leave and go to our own rooms.

I walk into mine and see my maids.

"Victoria!" squeals Beth, making my face smile and light up just like hers.

"We have the most drop dead gorgeous dress," gushes Belle.

I giggle as Gwen comes out of the closet holding a stunning dark blue gown. The top has lace designs that drip down into the skirt. The skirt of the dress puffs out at my waist a little bit, making it so it doesn't fall straight down.

"Girls," I sigh, absolutely shocked. "This is the best yet," I say, fingering the material.

"Try it on! Try it on!" Gwen exclaims.

After I've put on the dress, I'm ushered to the bathroom.

Belle talks to me as she curls my hair. "We're not really supposed to do this, but we sneaked a peek at everyone else's dresses. Just to see what everyone else was wearing.

"Your sure to be a standout," says Gwen as she applies my makeup.

"We need everyone's first impression of you to be good," states Beth.

"Exactly," agrees Belle. "We need people to see that you look like a queen, not some snobby wanna-be teenage princess."

The sudden realization hits me. Being queen. If I win this, I have to be the queen. I have a tough time taking care of the plants in my dad's shop, never mind a whole country! I take a deep breath and try to push my mind from that thought. Instead, I focus on what the girls are doing.