Victoria sat on a cushioned stool before her small wooden dresser, a maid gently brushing through her long golden hair. The mirror in front of her was slightly cracked in the corner, and the light from the lamp on her bedside table flickered faintly. Her room, while tidy, was plain compared to Selene's lavish chambers. There were no velvet curtains or floating chandeliers, no enchanted pillows that fluffed themselves or silk sheets embroidered with her family crest. Just a modest bed with neatly folded linen, a wardrobe with creaky hinges, a side table with an old lamp, and her dresser cluttered with second-hand makeup and half-used perfumes.
She huffed loudly. "Has Selene arrived yet?"
The maid, who was now applying a light powder to her face, shook her head. "No, milady. Not yet."
"Ugh! What is taking her so long?" Victoria grabbed a delicate glass perfume bottle, one of the few expensive items on her dresser, and hurled it toward the wall.
The maid yelped but caught it just in time, placing it back on the dresser with trembling hands before quickly returning to her task.
"She's such a loser," Victoria muttered under her breath, crossing her arms. "I told her to arrive after twelve, which means I expected her to be here by eleven, no, ten! That's common sense! And if she dares use some dumb excuse like traffic or sick pets or whatever, I'm not forgiving her. Nope! Not this time. She's not my friend!"
She jutted out her lip, pouting at her reflection.
"Unless she brings me more gifts. At least ten. Yeah. Then maybe I'll consider speaking to her again."
The maid cautiously asked, "Should I check if the carriage is near?"
Victoria ignored the question and instead turned her head. "Did you lock Miranda in her room like I told you to?"
"Yes, milady. Just as instructed."
Victoria sniffed, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "Good. I mean, Lucien's not dumb enough to stay behind and hang around her, but I just know she would've tried to cause a scene. She's always acting all righteous and loud and… ugh, so annoying. I don't want her ruining my tea party."
Her gaze drifted toward the perfume bottle she'd just thrown. Her lips curled into a smirk.
"It took sooo much effort to keep those two from becoming friends," she added in a whisper, mostly to herself. "But I had to do it. If Selene had other friends… I wouldn't be special. And then who would she spoil with gifts, huh?" Her eyes glinted as she stared at the bottle. "This perfume was two gold small coins alone… and it smells divine."
The maid hesitated. "But what if Lady Selene finds out—"
"She won't!" Victoria snapped. "And even if she does, so what? If her parents abandon her like I hope they will, she'll be desperate enough to cling to me. And if not? Whatever. She won't be useful to me anymore if they did anyway."
There was an awkward silence as the maid finished curling her hair and stepped away.
Victoria sighed dramatically and stood up. "At first, I didn't even want Selene to come to this party, okay? But Daddy and Uncle Julius kept saying things like 'it would be good for the family's future' and 'we should include her since she's… important to us.' Like, ew. I'm doing everyone a favor."
The maid walked to the wardrobe and opened it, pulling out several dresses. Some were plain and wrinkled. Others looked old and tattered. A few shimmered with expensive fabrics and gemstones sewn into the hem.
Victoria pointed dramatically. "I want to wear that one." Her finger landed on a once-elegant pink and silver gown.
The maid paled slightly. "Milady… that's the dress you wore to Lord Lucien's coming-of-age ceremony. It's, um, falling apart."
Victoria gasped in horror and snatched the gown off the rack, cradling it like an injured pet. "Nooo! This dress cost sixty-two small gold coins! Do you know how many letters I had to write and how much begging I had to do to get Father to buy it for me?!"
The maid gave a nervous smile. "Yes, milady, but… the seams are ripping, two gems fell out of the bodice, and the back zipper is broken—"
"It's only been two months! I only wore it once!" Victoria cried, nearly sobbing. "This is cruelty! How could something so expensive fall apart so fast?!"
Unbeknownst to her, her father had purchased a counterfeit version of the popular gown for a mere ten large copper coins from a traveling merchant.
The maid cautiously suggested, "Why not wear one of these?" She motioned to the newer, more luxurious dresses.
Victoria wrinkled her nose. "Ugh! No. All of those are from Selene. If she sees me wearing them, she'll think we're friends! I'd rather die!"
"But, milady—"
"I SAID NO!"
The maid sighed, then carefully held up the least offending option: a deep violet gown embroidered with tiny stars and silver lace.
Victoria gave the dress a death glare before reluctantly snatching it from the maid's hands. "Fine! But only because I don't want to look like a peasant at my own party. Hmph."
As she stepped into the gown and the maid adjusted the fit, Victoria grumbled, "Stupid Selene better bring me more dresses after today. Like, a lot more. At least five. Custom-made. Maybe then I'll let her sit next to me."
She turned back toward the mirror, fluttering her lashes with a smug grin.
"…After all, she should be grateful just to be in my presence."
The tea party was set in the sunroom of the Valemont estate, an airy glass chamber filled with golden light and potted flowering vines that curled up the walls like carefully arranged art. A large table was dressed in pale lilac silk with matching napkins, and the finest porcelain set had been laid out: each cup etched in gold, each saucer rimmed with painted violets.
Victoria sat at the head of the table on a cushioned high-back chair, swishing her teacup around with a pouty frown.
She wore the violet dress she despised but refused to admit looked incredible on her. The diamonds at her ears sparkled when she tilted her head and the silver lace caught the sunlight just right. But her expression was far from pleased.
Her guests, other noble daughters from baron and viscount families, whispered quietly among themselves. Some stole admiring glances at Victoria. Others looked around awkwardly, clearly trying to figure out why they were called here.
Victoria tapped her fingers impatiently on the table. "Ugh! Where. Is. She?" she snapped, startling the girl sitting closest to her. "I told her to arrive fashionably late, not obscenely late!"
One girl cautiously offered, "Maybe something happened?"
Victoria's eye twitched. "Oh, something will happen, alright. If she doesn't show up in the next ten minutes, I'm canceling the whole thing and writing a very strongly worded letter to her parents."
"Wouldn't that be a little… extreme?" another girl muttered under her breath.
Victoria slammed her teacup down, gently enough not to crack the porcelain, but hard enough to make a point. "Excuse me, what did you say?"
The girl shrunk into her seat. "N-nothing, Lady Victoria."
"Hmph." Victoria leaned back with a victorious smile. "Thought so."
Just then, her maid quietly approached and whispered something in her ear.
Victoria's eyes widened, then narrowed into gleaming slits. "Oh? She's arrived now, has she?"
The girls at the table perked up, some smiling in anticipation, others exchanging nervous glances.
Victoria stood abruptly, smoothing her skirt as she stalked toward the entrance of the sunroom. "I'll personally greet her. Can't have my guest of honor wandering around like she owns the place."
Her heels clacked against the polished floor as she walked with exaggerated poise. Inside, though, her thoughts churned.
"Finally. Took her long enough. She better look like she crawled here through a sewer so I can shame her in front of everyone. Or better, she brought a lot of gift. Big ones. Dresser. Jewelries. Ans more."
She paused just outside the sunroom doors and took a deep breath, arranging her face into a perfect mix of smugness and cold indifference.
"Time to remind her why she needs me."
With a flick of her hair and her nose in the air, Victoria flung the doors open dramatically, ready to greet Selene with a rehearsed icy welcome.