A Courtyard of Roses

Chapter Nine

THE DAYS PASSED by quickly for both the people in the palace and the rest of Gladiolum's citizens. With all the preparation for the ball and the hunt for the best outfits, the time for the ball had soon arrived.

On the day of the ball, the staff of the Ragan household tried to squeeze Alice into a hundred different dresses. There were every color and shade, some with frills, some with lace, others with ribbons. The three maids assigned to her fussed about her appearance, throwing dress after dress on her. Her corset was laced so tightly that she couldn't breathe, the necklace on her neck so heavy that she could barely even stand straight.

Alice couldn't understand why the people of Gladiolum needed to dress so extensively. In her opinion, the corset was an unnecessary torture device, along with the assortment of jewelry.

In the end, they settled on a pale periwinkle dress that showed off Alice's collarbones. It had a square neckline that had a lace trim, off-shoulder sleeves that were a translucent blue and reached her elbows before fanning out, and a very puffy skirt that dragged across the floor when she walked barefoot. With heels on, the dress still nearly skimmed the floor, barely an inch off.

The dress itself was made with different materials. While the main fabric was light and had a shine to it, the skirt had a translucent, shimmery layer that added volume to it. Upon closer inspection, flower detailing that was a shade darker could be seen on the main fabric of the dress, adding depth and dimension.

The whole look was finished with a dazzling diamond necklace Wyatt had forced upon her, along with a matching pair of earrings. Her hair was curled and framed her face, two thin strands pulled back and secured with a sapphire clip.

Alice felt like a walking time bomb. If she had worn such an outfit in the 21st century, she would be the victim of robbery cases without a doubt. Any piece of jewelry on her would probably provide her with a comfortable life for at least a decade. Yet, in the weird aristocratic world of Gladiolum, she was adorned from head to toe with jewels like they were worth no more than a cheap dollar.

"Simply dazzling," Wyatt smoothly complimented upon setting sights on her when she had descended the stairs of the mansion. He was dressed in an all-white suit, complemented with gold buttons and detailing. As usual, his hands were covered by white gloves. "What a magnificent sight to behold. Don't you agree, Charlie?"

On the other hand, the younger Ragan heir was dressed in a black suit. The first two buttons of his shirt were left open, showing a set of pale collarbones and fair skin. In his coat pocket was a violet handkerchief tucked in, matching his hair color. On his suit jacket was a thin silver chain, attached to his shoulder.

Alice realized not long after arriving in the Ragan household that the people of Gladiolum had a wide variety of natural hair and eye colors that were impossible in her original world. Wyatt's snow-white hair and Charlie's violet strands were their natural hair colors, taking after their mother and father respectively.

She had asked during her first few days in the Ragan household whether their natural hair colors were indeed such striking fashion shades. However, Charlie had laughed in her face and called her ridiculous for thinking otherwise. Apparently, they hadn't invented any permanent hair dye of any sort yet and it was impossible for them to change up their hair colors through means other than a wig. Ever since then, Alice tried her best to conceal her surprise whenever she encountered someone with an even more bizarre hair color.

Charlie, whose face was a brilliant scarlet, glanced at the floor, then to the ceiling, then to the main doors. He seemed determined to look anywhere but at his brother and Alice, fidgeting where he stood.