Her Royal Highness

Chapter 12

Mal massaged her knuckles, wincing in pain every time she applied pressure to a particularly sore area. It was seven at night, and her day had been filled with lots and lots of paperwork as she documented and arranged things for the Isle.

She pushed open the door to her and Ben's room and discovered Sophia setting a long bag on the couch with a smile. Mal paused in the doorway as Sophia turned around. "What's that?" Mal asked.

"From Belle." Sophia smiled. "It's a gift. She thought you might want something pretty and warm."

"It's a dress?" Mal frowned.

"Yes, but don't knock it before you try it." Sophia told her. "I know it's not ripped jeans and combat boots, but I think you should give it a shot." She picked the heavy bag back up off of the couch and handed it to Mal, who gave a half-hearted sigh. She glanced towards the bedroom, and noticed the door was closed. "Is Ben inside?" She asked, walking towards the door.

"No." Sophia shook her head. "He left a few minutes ago."

"To go where?" Mal asked with her frown deepening, twisting the knob and glancing inside. It was predictably empty. She thought for a second but couldn't remember if Ben had told her he was going anywhere this evening. He didn't usually.

"Everyone's gathering in the family room." Sophia told her with a smile. "They think it might snow."

Mal blinked. "Oh." She hummed. She glanced down at the large, heavy bag in her hands. "Should I wait to try this on and just head down?"

"You could wear it down." Sophia suggested. "Ben actually came up just to get changed before he went down."

"What kind of dress is this?" Mal asked, shaking the bag a little to get a feel for where the fabric was. It was long. "Unless Ben got dressed in a suit with cufflinks and the entire get-up, I doubt we'll match."

"It's not as fancy as you think." Sophia rolled her eyes. "Belle knows better than to get you a ballgown. It's just a warm dress. Try it on." She reached for the door handle and tugged it closed in front of Mal, who sighed and unzipped the dress bag. Inside was a mess of velvet. The dress was a deep brown-red mix with long, warm sleeves. The heavy velvet skirt swished around her calves. It was double sided, sewn in a giant loop that made the dress pleat in a very feminine way. She slipped it on and then fiddled with the seams until it fell down the way it was supposed to. She tried to reach the zipper and found it entirely out of her reach, so she swallowed and held the back closed as she stepped back out of the room.

The skirts brushed against her legs in a tickling sort of feeling and Mal swayed from side to side to feel the comfortable, almost cool weight shift from side to side. She hadn't liked it first seeing it, but now that it was on, she felt nice. Not hideous. Not even close.

"Need me to zip you up?" Sophia chuckled, walking out of the bathroom with a brush and some hair ties.

"Yes please." Mal smiled and moved her hair out of the way as Sophia approached and dragged the zipper up the length of her dress. She went back to massaging her fingers as Sophia smoothed down the fabric around her neck. Her fingers felt warm on Mal's skin.

"Do you want to see it on you?" Sophia asked. Mal hesitated, and then slipped past her friend and towards the bathroom without a word. The lights were already on as she stepped in and examined the dress on her. There weren't any patterns on it, no decorations either. It was tapered to her hips, but there was no one hem for her waistline. Everything was one big block of fabric. It had a high neckline too – very modest - but looked very nice. Mal turned to examine her look from behind and nodded in approval.

"That's a lovely dress on you." Sophia smiled from the doorway as she watched Mal appraise the outfit. "Belle did well. It'll keep you warm too."

"Won't the living room be warm enough?" Mal asked, combing her hands through her hair as she continued examining herself.