Borderlines

Chapter Eleven

Fawn left the stables without so much as a goodbye to Travis once they reached them. She didn't want to go through something like that with him again. Walking to the palace, she ran up the stairs quickly. Time must have slipped away from her. It was only three hours to the ball. This sounded like plenty of time, but really it wasn't. She would need to bathe, pick out a dress, get in that dress, and then get her hair and makeup done. No, three hours was not plenty of time. Fawn turned into her room to find a flustered Violet standing by her bathroom. Her maid marched toward her angrily.
"Fawn Simmons! I have searched the palace for an hour trying to find you! Not one servant knew where you were. Do you know how worried that makes me?" The maid scolded, an angry blush on her face. Fawn ducked her head, not from embarrassment, she was trying to hide a smile.
"I'm sorry, I guess I should have told someone I was going to be out so long." Fawn said apologetically.
"You should be." Violet huffed. She dragged Fawn into the bathroom, where a bath was already drawn.
"Scrub yourself good,." Violet said, tsking her tongue as she saw the dirt underneath Fawn's fingernails. Violet closed the bathroom door, leaving Fawn alone. She quickly got undressed, slipping into the warm water. Following Violet's orders, Fawn scrubbed her skin and nails thoroughly. The importance of this ball could not be unstated. As of tomorrow there would only be a week left and it was starting to get serious. The crown needed someone and the pressure weighed down on every 'contestant'. Once Fawn was clean, she slipped into a towel and walked into her room. There were three dresses sitting on her bed. A purple one with a giant skirt, Fawn definitely didn't want that one. She looked at the second one, it was a dark blue. Fawn liked it, but the material looked uncomfortable. Her eyes stopped on the third dress. It was a darker red and strapless. Milky colored tear drop beads covered the top of the dress until the skirt started. The skirt was long and looked as if it was layered, more of the milky beads held up the cloth in rows, giving the layered effect. The skirt wasn't tight, but it wasn't full either. Fawn liked it. She touched the dress, finding the material to be silk, that would be very comfortable.
"Violet, I think I'll wear this one." Fawn called to her servant. Violet smiled.
"You will look most stunning." The servant said, grabbing the dress. Fawn stood still as the dressing process began. There was a corset, which made Fawn groan, but she let Violet put it on. Violet only put on the undressings before sitting Fawn down to do her hair and make-up. Fawn watched her hair transform from a wet mop to a beautiful masterpiece. Violet brought most of her hair back into a clip, before curling it, letting it fall down her back and bare shoulders. The makeup was done much quicker than Fawn's hair, as Violet liked to keep it simple. After that was done Violet helped Fawn into her dress, maneuvering carefully so Fawn's hair was not ruined. When the dress was on, Violet pushed Fawn over to the mirror with an excited smile. Fawn stared at her reflection. The girl staring back at her was beautiful, no, magnificent. The girl couldn't possibly be Fawn, but when Fawn moved so did she.
"Fawn you look...I can't even describe it." Violet said beside her. Fawn gave a nod of agreement, still awestruck by her appearance. She turned in a full circle, looking at herself one more time, before stepping away from the mirror. The clock indicated that she needed to get down to the ballroom. Fawn looked at her servant.
"Thank you so much, Violet. You are amazing." The servant ducked her head timidly.
"Thank you, Fawn." She bowed and then immediately straightened.
"Now you better get going, no one will be able to take their eyes off of you." Violet said, opening Fawn's door. Fawn was flattered by the servants comments, but she knew she wasn't the most gorgeous girl in the palace. She stepped out of her room, glancing down the hallway.
"Good luck." Her servant called as Fawn headed towards the staircase. She carefully descended the marble steps, it was not be the most convenient time to fall down the stairs again. Fawn could already hear the violins when she reached the bottom of the stairs. Walking down to the ballroom, Fawn couldn't help being a little nervous. All the overseers would be together for the first time since Trent's death. Who knew what that would cause. Fawn peeked into the giant ballroom. The floor had an elegant design and was spacious, for dancing of course. The ceiling was tall, as there was a balcony on the second floor the overlooked the room. People mingled everywhere throughout the room. A band played on one side of the room, bidding people to dance. Some were, Willow and Garrett included. A table with food and drinks were along one wall also, a necessity for balls. Fawn walked through the doorway, looking around tentatively. She ducked her head, when gazes switched to her, including the girls. Fawn saw Ruth purse her lips in a mocking style, but Emma smiled at Fawn. Garth was by her side before anyone could sweep her away. He looked handsome in his suit, his tie was red, matching her dress somehow. He smiled warmly at her.
"Fawn, you look breathtaking." He complimented her. Fawn blushed immediately.
"You look nice as well." She said awkwardly, not used to complimenting men.
"I hoped you would notice." Garth said. He glanced around the room while a new song started.
"Dance with me?" He asked. Fawn smiled.
"Of course." Garth seemed to be relieved with her answer, taking her hand in his. They walked towards the middle of the floor. Fawn placed her free hand on his shoulder, feeling his settle around her waist. It made her pulse accelerate. The music was slow, a waltz. Fawn could feel the warmth of Garth's body. He twirled her in a circle, theirs eyes meeting as she returned to his arms. His eyes were gorgeous, or whatever word was used to describe men's eyes.
"I was told about what you did for Aster." Fawn nodded, looking at Garth.
"You were right, about needing to forgive myself." Fawn admitted. A giant smile spread across his face.
"I'm so glad to hear that." He said and the song began to settle down. Garth was about to say something when he was pulled away by Nathan. Fawn watched him go, regrettably. She saw Willow standing alone, Garrett seemed preoccupied in a conversation. Fawn walked over to her friend. Willow smiled faintly at her.
"Why is a beautiful girl like you over in this corner alone?" Fawn asked her. Willow looked at Garrett.
"No one else has much interest in me anymore, especially after Trent got shot. They think I'm cursed or something." Fawn frowned, what was wrong with these people?
"Well I don't and I am not going to let you sulk in this corner by yourself." Fawn grabbed Willow's wrist, yanking her onto the dancing floor.
"Fawn what are you-" Fawn didn't let her finish her question, as she ran over to the violinist and whispered in his ear. He smiled and nodded. Fawn ran back to the confused Willow.
"Fawn what did you do?" Fawn didn't answer, just grabbed her friend's hand while a lively song began to play. Emma recognized it and ran across the room, grabbing Willow's other hand. The girls giggled, kicking off their heels. They began by putting one hand in the middle of a circle, before beginning a series of spins and bows that came along with this song. Soon the other girls joined them, except Ruth. They formed a giant circle, beautiful dresses swirling around all of the girls ankles. It took a minute for the male overseers to catch on, but soon they formed the outer ring around the girls. Fawn laughed as she spun, she saw Willow smile as she twirled around a laughing Garrett. Another verse in the song started up and the girls dispersed, winding in between the boys. They would spin over to one and then dance away quickly. Fawn's heart raced with happiness, she watched everyone. She was surprised when she came face to face Travis. Her footsteps faltered in surprise, but his didn't. He picked her up by the waist, hoisting her in the air. His strong hands braced against her hips as he twirled her in a circle silently. Fawn's eyes locked with his when he set her down. They both placed their right hands slightly elevated in front of them until their palms touched. They slowly stepped around in a circle, their hands not moving,
"You look nice." He said, not breaking their interlocked gaze. Fawn refused to be flattered by his compliment.
"Why are you not dancing with Ruth?" She asked as they both spun apart. Travis didn't answer until they had come back together.
"She doesn't like to dance." Travis said while he spun Fawn in a circle.
"How surprising." Fawn's voice was laced with sarcasm. Travis didn't seem affected by the comment. Why did that frustrate Fawn? She shouldn't have been surprised when Travis pulled her close hoisting her right hand and his above their heads, it was part of the song, but she was. Her pulse immediately quickened as they moved as one, two bodies that were close together. She could feel his chest move every time he took a breath.
"Besides," Travis twirled her to where her left arm was pulled over her midsection by his right, her back was pressed against his chest. His left hand was wrapped around her waist.
"I find you a much more interesting dance partner." His breath tickled her ear. Travis spun her away from him, the music ending. He bowed to her and walked away. Fawn watched him go. Ruth glared holes in her when Travis returned to her side.
"Fawn are you blushing?" Willow asked, stepping in front of her. It blocked her view of Travis and Ruth. Fawn's hands flew to her cheeks.
"Am I?!" She asked without thinking. Emma laughed.
"Yes, like very badly." Fawn groaned.
"That's just great." Willow smirked, glancing at Travis.
"Looks like Fawn has-"
"No!" Fawn said quickly, too quickly. Willow and Emma both laughed.
"It's not that funny." Fawn sighed, she grabbed her shoes and quickly slipped them on. She walked over to the food, seeking to be away from everyone for a minute. Looking around, Fawn noticed Clay was making his way to the front. He called for the band to stop playing.
"Attention Overseers!" He shouted. All eyes turned to look at him. Once everyone was quiet he began to speak.
"Due to the recent complications with the warring Sections. The Council-" Fawn frowned, is that what they called themselves now?
"has decided that for the best outcome for this competition and the country is to pair an Overseer from the West and East together. Starting tomorrow Overseers from the East are only eligible to marry overseers from the West, and the West only eligible to marry the East." At that moment, the peacefulness the room held shattered like glass.