"Again!" Madame Lafean, princess Anai's music instructor snapped, clapping her hands repeatedly so she could stay on beat. She pushed the violin to her jaw, pulling and pushing the bow to present her melodic tunes. Many days in the palace were like this for princess Anai. She was often locked away in the rehearsal room, perfecting pieces and going through lesson after lesson.
"Again princess" Madame Lafean clapped but the princess was quite tired of practicing and dropped the violin into her lap.
"I have been dancing and practicing for 5 hours straight madam. I can perform this in my sleep" the princess grumbled, tired of the excessive training.
"Then we must do 6 hours. Again!" she clapped, lifting the violin back to the princess's shoulder, "Your banquet is tonight and your mother says you must be perfect."
Princess Anai was now 16 and it was customary to throw a lace curtain ball for the royal daughter of each kingdom. It was a sort of coming of age tradition that introduced a princess to the aristocratic society. Princess Anai of course begged her mom against the tradition but her pleas fell onto deaf ears.
"And I will be perfect!" the princess bragged; she was the best violinist in the land. "Please Madame Lafean, I more than ready. May I please relax with the little hours I have left before the banquet?" the princess sighed, slouching back in her chair.
Madame Lefean tapped her wooden stick onto the base of the chair so Anai could sit up straight. "No slouching, it is bad for your posture."
Break her stick.
Madame Lefean saw the grief in the princess's face and sighed, almost feeling pity on her. "Fine. We will practice for one more hour then you may go"
Princess Anai smiled and quickly lifted the violin to her chin, offering the best performance she had played since the morning.
——
"Sit up straight daughter" Queen Agatha came behind her daughter's petite frame as three servants prepped her daughter in the mirror. Anai reached for a small pastry to snack on but Queen Agatha pushed the tray away, shaking her head no. "No eating until the ball"
"Yes mother" the princess nodded, making sure to meet her mother's standard of excellence. Not a hair was out of place as she stood at the base of the podium. Three servants zipped her elegant green dress while a few others softened her curls.
The queen came behind to look at Anai's progress, picking out any loose strings or speckles of dust the helpers might have missed. "Now remember...this is the night...OUR night" Queen Agatha beamed watching her daughter in the reflection.
"You mean my night?" Anai smirked.
"Yes...that is what I said Anai" she frowned, adjusting her daughter's crown in the mirror."You have your white pouch?"
"Yes mother" Anai sighed, lifting it up to show her.
"And the ball is inside"
"Of course it is mother" she glowered, annoyed by her mother's incessant questions and commands.
"You must uphold the best standard of perfection! You might find your future husband at this ball and then? Your life will change forever" she mused, praying the same timeline of events that happened to her would befall on her daughter.
"Oh I am excited!" the princess gasped sarcastically. Her mother beamed at her fake enthusiasm and nodded.
"I was 16 when I first met your father at my lace curtain ball"
