I’d never known just how beautiful I was. Beauty was not high up on my agenda, and yet, I couldn’t help but look at myself in awe.
When Louis came over with a huge case that opened to show a whole rainbow of colors, I almost asked him not to bother. I didn’t want to change a thing about my face. And yet, I knew it was fruitless. The people who had gone before had done an amazing job; I had to trust that he would too. He was short and blond, and unlike the exuberantly dressed and made up Alezis, he wore no makeup. Instead, he had a small mustache that sat almost square on his top lip and wore jeans and a t-shirt. He could have been a plumber or mechanic. A small purple elongated star was pinned to his top. His way of showing he was a Magi without going overboard about it. Nothing about him said make-up artist, and yet, Xavi was fluttering around him in obvious excitement.
“Will you make me up using Magic?” I asked, eyeing up the pin.
“I always perform Magic sweetie.” He winked at me, but instead of bringing out a wand, he pulled out a full set of makeup brushes.
Despite his looks, I had the feeling that he knew exactly what he was doing. He was much quicker with his work than Alezis had been, and he even let me watch in the mirror as he applied more powder to me, this time, around the eyes, layering up subtle shades of beige and browns. He made my eyes appear bigger, bringing out the hazel shade of them to perfection. When he’d finished on my eyes, he moved to my cheeks, sweeping the faintest shade of pink before applying gloss to my lips. It had taken him less than a minute, but he’d made me into something stunning. He’d turned me into a princess. I was assured, he’d do something spectacular on the night of the ball, but I wasn’t sure how he could improve on the perfection he’d created.
Two more people were ushered in, and it turned out, they were to do my nails. One applied a subtle shade to my fingernails, and the other worked on my toes.
All the while, Jenny danced around, clapping her hands and grinning; the anger at her being ordered around had obviously left her. She was enjoying this.
“Charmaine, you look stunning!” she kept repeating, over and over again, between grinning at everyone around her. When the two nail technicians had finished, she hugged them both before hugging a rather rattled looking Xavi.
The last seven turned out to be my dressers. The last set of double doors opened, and they paraded out, each with a dress in their hands to show us.
They stood in a long line, waiting for inspection. By now, there was only Jenny, Xavi, and I left.
The dresses were extravagant and horrible, each more poufy and fluffy than the next.
“Nope!” I said. I was expecting Xavi to argue with me, but instead, she ushered them all back to the room from where they had come. A minute later, they all trooped back out with seven more over the top gowns.
“Didn’t you hear what her highness said last time?” Xavi shouted over at them. “Nope. I agree with her. They are a whole lot of nope. Do better!”
“I think they are beautiful,” said Jenny.
“Hmm,” I replied noncommittally. They were beautiful, but they weren’t me. Not that I could think of any style of dress that would be me.
Finally, after six or seven attempts, Xavi went into the dressing room with them. When they all lined up the next time, the styles of dresses they brought out were much simpler. I had to hand it to her; she knew what she was doing.
“These are much better,” she said, taking a place by my side. “I think the white one for your official introduction to the press today. It’s understated but regal. The pale yellow for tomorrow. It will go nicely with your hair, and the paparazzi are bound to want lots of pictures of you. After that, I think the pink, then the blue, then the beige. From then on, we’ll keep you out of view until the big day. Do you agree?”
The ball! I’d almost forgotten about it in all the excitement.
“I agree,” I said. I didn’t much like any of the dresses, but at least they were simple. The white one was brought over and the others taken away. It had navy blue piping on it and reminded me of a sailor dress, with pleats along the skirt. A matching jacket was brought out along with a pair of plain gold studded earrings and a simple thin gold chain.
“Now, I know you don’t like fuss, but it will be expected that you wear the insignia of the crown.”
Grace wore hers as a diamond broach. She wore it at every official occasion and had even been wearing it as she was buried. I waited for Xavi to pin something similar onto the jacket, but instead, she told me that my mother would give it to me later.
The seven women helped me into the dress and Xavi guided me to one of the full-length mirrors. She handed me a pair of white shoes to match, and I slipped my feet into them. They were not as flat as I would have liked, but the heel was small enough for me to feel comfortable in. Before me, stood a princess. For the first time in my life, I looked like the woman I was supposed to be. Despite myself, I smiled. Beside me, Jenny bawled.
CHAPTER THREE
The Lessons
My mother’s eyes lit up when she saw me in the parlor later that afternoon. Perhaps she’d forgotten for a moment and thought I was Grace. I looked more like her than I cared to admit now that I was dressed up. The light didn’t die as I sat down opposite her, so perhaps, I was wrong. Maybe she was just pleased to see me looking so well turned out for a change. One of the servants brought in a tray with platters of tiny sandwiches and cakes. She also placed a couple of teacups down with a pot of Earl Grey – my mother’s favorite.
“I must say, you are simply sparkling today. Xavi and her team have done a wonderful job with you. Did you enjoy it?”
“Not at first,” I replied truthfully, “but I feel wonderful. I enjoyed the head massage when I was having my hair washed.”
My mother laughed. “That’s my favorite part too.”
I took a sandwich and nibbled on a corner of it, waiting for my mother to continue. The ball was less than two weeks away, and I was woefully unprepared. A nice dress and hairdo was one thing, but knowing how to act was a whole different ballgame.
“I’ve drawn up a schedule for you. You are to have intensive etiquette lessons, and lessons on deportment and speech. I’ve asked for the young men to send photos, so you will study them in great detail and try to learn as many of their names and titles as possible.”
“I thought there were a hundred men coming?” I asked, feeling overwhelmed at the prospect of remembering so many names.
“And so there are. They may be bringing family members with them, so I’ve asked that photos be found of those people too. Many young ladies from the finest houses in the district have also been invited to even up the ball somewhat, and some of the ladies of the staff will make up the number. It would be strange to have a hundred men and just one woman to dance. They have all been instructed only to dance with the young men until you cut in on a dancing couple if you so wish; however, your teacher for the next week will show you how to do this delicately.”
“Teacher? Who is going to be my teacher?” I asked in horror. I was never going to be able to learn all the things I needed to in less than a fortnight, and the thought of a stranger teaching me all these things filled me with dread. I remembered my horrible teacher that attempted teaching me etiquette throughout my schooling. Needless to say, she failed.
“Jenny has said she’d do it, but I’ve also hired a dance teacher to show you the basics. Grace has...” she caught herself and then like the queen she was, carried on “had been having lessons for four months. I don’t expect you to get to her level, but I do expect you to learn some basic dance steps without falling over anyone’s feet. You’ll do the dance lessons in the afternoons and the rest in the morning. For now, the press have set up in the sitting room. I’ve asked that just one person interview you, and I’ve expressly told them that the interview will be no more than ten minutes. I’ll be with you the whole time, and I’ll help if you feel overwhelmed.”
I felt overwhelmed already. I’d been told
hours earlier that this was something I had to do, but with my makeover taking so long, I’d had no time to prepare. This was my first ever interview, and I was terrified.
As I walked through the double doors to the sitting room, hand in hand with my mother, what felt like hundreds of flashes of light from all the cameras blinded me, leaving my mother to guide me to the sofa. It was the same sofa where she had sat and told me about the ball only yesterday except now it was I by her side, and a squat man with a balding head in a smart suit was sitting in the place I had taken.
“Welcome, Your Majesty and Your Highness. Thank you for agreeing to this interview and for inviting us here today to celebrate at what must be a difficult time for you.” His voice was even and bland.
“You are more than welcome.” I didn’t turn to look at my mother, but I knew she was smiling. I tried plastering on a smile and hoped I didn’t look too fake.
“So, Princess Charmaine, how are you feeling, knowing that you get to be the belle of the ball?”
Dreadful, scared, annoyed, aggravated… “I’m happy to have this opportunity.”
“And are you looking forward to meeting all those eligible bachelors?”
Nope. “Yes, of course, it is always an honor to meet new people and in this case, someone who will change the course of my life. I’m very excited.”
“Is there anything you can tell us about the men? Are there any front runners?”
My mother jumped in. “The princess Charmaine has yet to learn the identity of the hundred men who have been invited, but I can assure you, when she does, she will give each and every one of them careful deliberation.”
“There has been a bit of controversy over the men who were invited though, hasn’t there?”
“In what way?” my mother asked. I could feel her going rigid beside me. What controversy was this?
“Well, it’s been noted that no Magi have been invited.”
“We put out an expression of interest many months ago, to everyone in the Kingdom of Silverwood as well as to neighboring kingdoms. Everyone had a chance to apply for a position. We had over five thousand applications. The royal advisors, along with myself and the king, handpicked the hundred that we thought would provide a good match, not only for our daughter but for the kingdom as a whole. Then we sent out the invitations.”
“But none of the hundred are Magi. Many would say that you are purposely marginalizing them.”
“That is not the case at all. We picked the hundred men we thought most fitting for the role.”
“Did any Magi apply?”
“I couldn’t possibly say,” replied my mother. Her usual poise was beginning to crack. It was subtle, but I could hear it in her voice. “We chose the men months ago.”
“I happen to know that more than one or two Magi did apply,” continued the interviewer.
“Is that so? Well, as I said, there were over five thousand entries. Unfortunately, not everyone could get picked. We hope we’ve picked out some wonderful young men, and on the day, the final decision will belong to Charmaine. I thank you all for coming, and we hope to see you at the ball in two weeks.”
She stood up, signaling the end of the interview. It was the first time I’d ever known her to cut an interview short. It was great for me as I didn’t want to answer any questions anyway, but I had to wonder why.
I wasn’t given long to ponder it as my first dancing lesson started in less than half an hour. The thought of dance lessons terrified me, but I was pretty nimble on my feet. How bad could I be at dancing anyway?
“Ouch!” cried Stephan as I stepped on his toes for the hundredth time that day. Stephan was a world-renowned dance instructor that my parents had hired. He was also a very short man, at least, a foot shorter than me, and after an hour with me, was professing that he’d never be able to dance again.
Apart from his melodramatic statements, he was a great dance teacher. Unfortunately for him, I was a lousy student. I tried, I really did, but my feet wouldn’t go the way either of us wanted them to. After four hours, I’d barely managed a single dance without either stepping on him or knocking him over.
He signaled for one of the servants to turn the music off and called it a day. I had a feeling he’d be spending the evening soaking his feet in a herbal bath.
I felt a complete failure and was ready to give up everything when I bumped into Elise on the way to my room.
As soon as she saw me, her hands flew up to her mouth.
“Mama told me how gorgeous you looked, but she was wrong; you are stunning!” She ran up to me and flung her arms around my neck. “Come to my room and tell me all about it. Did they wax you?”
I laughed at her excitement. “You knew about this?”
I sat on her bed, and she sat right beside me.
“Waxing? Of course. I’ve been begging Mama for years to let me get my legs waxed, but she always said I was too young.”
“But it hurts!”
“Yeah, but you have nice smooth legs. I swear I’m turning into a gorilla.”
I punched her playfully on the shoulder. She was anything but a gorilla. She was one of the prettiest girls I knew.
“It’s a pretty awful experience, but if you like, I can ask mama if you can have a makeover before the ball. Xavi and her crew have done wonders on me, although I don’t know how they are going to be able to improve you.”
“Would you? Oh, thank you!” She flung her arms around me again, this time, knocking us both flat on the bed.
“Only you would attempt wrestling after spending all morning being made prim and proper.”
I looked up to find Jenny there. There were few people who would just walk into our bedrooms, and Jenny was one.
I sat up and smoothed my hair while giggling.
“Sorry, Jenny,” we chorused, although guessing by the way we were both giggling, she could tell we were anything but.
“Her Royal Highness, the Queen, has asked me to give you lessons. I figured there was no time like the present.”
“Mama said you’d be teaching me in the morning!” I’d had enough lessons today. My legs were still aching from all the dancing.
“Charmaine, you and I both know that you need to put in the work. Do you want to go into that ball not having a clue how to act, or do you want to study hard and enjoy yourself?”
“Ha!” I replied. She knew I’d rather do pretty much anything than go to the stupid ball, and enjoying myself was not an option. However, I didn’t want to let my family down either. It was a huge responsibility.
“Come on, let’s go.”
I followed Jenny to a part of the palace I’d not been to before. The servant’s quarters.
“I thought we’d be having lessons in the classroom?” The classroom hadn’t been used since Elise had finished her schooling last year.
“No. There is always someone around to be nosy. I thought you’d be much happier away from prying eyes. A lot of the information I’m going to give you is for your ears only, and you never know who might be listening.”
“I thought we were learning about etiquette?”
“Among other things. We’ll start on etiquette tonight. I had one of the kitchen staff set a table in my quarters. By the end of the night, you’ll know exactly which spoon, knife, and fork to use.”
“But I already know that stuff,” I whined. Table manners was one of the first things I learned as a child.
“Not like this, you haven’t,” she replied before opening her door.
It opened into her apartment’s living room. Right in the center, filling up almost the whole room was a large round table with a white tablecloth upon it. On top of the table was one place setting with so much silver cutlery, I could barely count it all.
“Why is all the cutlery on one setting?”
“That’s how much cutlery there is supposed to be for that one setting. You’ll be having a seven-course meal, and that is all the cutlery you’ll need for it.”
�
��But there is so much of it.”
“And by the end of tonight, you’ll know how to use every bit of it.”
I wasn’t sure, but I sat at the only seat at the table. Jenny stood next to me.
“You start at the outer cutlery and work your way in.” She picked up a fork and handed it to me. “Hold it like this.”
How was it possible I’d gone eighteen years and didn’t know how to hold a fork correctly? Three hours later, I’d only just gotten the hang of what everything was for. My stomach gave a loud rumble.
“Oh, goodness me. Is that the time?” said Jenny, looking at her watch. You’ve missed dinner. I’m so sorry. You’ll have to go down to the kitchen and ask the cook for something. Can you remind him that I’ll need a bowl of soup for tomorrow’s lesson?”
“Tomorrow’s lesson is soup?”
“How to eat it correctly, yes.”
“I thought we were learning important things? The ball is in thirteen days.”
“My dear,” said Jenny, ushering me out of the door. “There is little in life more important than knowing how to eat soup in a ten thousand dollar dress without spilling it.”
I was going to ask what she knew about my dress for the ball when she shut the door in my face.
Charming! My stomach gave another growl, so I tried putting the dreadful-sounding dress to the back of my mind and headed to the kitchens. The “cook” as Jenny called him, was actually the head chef, Monsieur Pasqual, and he was one of a number of chefs, who as well as many other kitchen staff, fed the royal family each day. I’d only been down to the kitchens on a few occasions, but each time I had, it had been a hive of activity and filled with the most amazing smells. This time as I entered, only one person was there. A young man with curly hair stood with his back to me. To his side, was a mountain of dishes waiting to be washed. As I watched, each dirty plate flew through the air with a flick of his wand before dipping into the sink. He washed each one while humming to himself and tapping his toes. At the same time, on the pile of clean crockery, forks lightly tapped on glasses and plates, clinking as if they were drums, each moving through thin air thanks to the magic powering them. The whole effect was like a magical orchestra, filling the kitchen with a beautiful sound. I vaguely recognized the tune, but couldn’t quite place it. And all the while, he danced to his own music, conducting the cutlery and crockery in a mesmerizing rhythm, oblivious to my presence.
Charm (A Cinderella reverse fairytale) (Reverse Fairytales Book 1) Page 3