The Dress

Rosalie stood in front of the dress boutique, staring intently at its sign.

"Aurora... Are you sure we should be going in there?"

The dress shop in front of which they were standing belonged to Lady Cecilia Bennett, the most famous and expensive seamstress in the whole Capital. As it was said in the novel, she only made one-of-a-kind dresses, and they could only be afforded by the high-ranking nobility. And Rosalie Ashter was no longer one of them.

So why would Aurora bring her here then?

"Pardon me, My Lady, but those were Lord Ashter's instructions. He told me that you should buy a dress in Lady Cecilia Bennett's boutique."

Rosalie looked at her maid's nervous expression and let out a tired sigh. She knew exactly why her father wanted her to buy a dress in this boutique – he intended to gift his daughter to the Young Lord of the Amado family as a mere present and an expensive present needed nice wrapping.

"Alright. Let us come in then."

She pushed the tall wooden door and was immediately greeted by the melodic sound of the crystal windchime. Immediately after, a rather short, but thin and strikingly good-looking woman in her early thirties came out from behind the backroom of the store, her beautiful and beaming face instantly turning sour upon recognizing her early visitors.

"Ah... Good morning, Lady Ashter. What brings you here?"

Rosalie, clearly annoyed by that ridiculously blatant question, faked a polite smile and offered Cecilia a light bow, trying to suppress her still-evident annoyance.

"Good morning, Lady Bennett. I'm here to buy a dress, of course."

The seamstress took off her narrow rectangular glasses and estimated Rosalie's current appearance, her beady dark eyes running up and down as if collecting and calculating the data they were receiving upon briefly pausing at each and every part of the girl's body. At last, when that shameless inspection was finished, Cecilia let out an obviously disappointed sigh, and said, rather carelessly,

"Are you, perchance, looking to buy a dress for the upcoming Imperial banquet? If this is the case, I'm afraid, I will not be able to help you, my services are entirely booked."

Lady Bennett's rude reply did not surprise nor offend Rosalie in the slightest. Truthfully, she would rather buy a cheaper dress just so that she could avoid being treated like an outcast, but she was still somewhat scared of her father's backlash, thus, she had to brace herself and endure as much humiliation as needed. After all, vile verbal abuse was still the least of her problems.

"I understand. Could you show me some of your ready-made dresses then? I will not require additional alterations, I will take whatever fits me."

Rosalie was prepared to hear another smug remark – due to her thin frame, no noble lady spared her the rumor of being underfed due to her family's poor financial state, however, much to her surprise, her request was left with no additional bashing.

Cecilia gestured for both Lady Ashter and her maid to follow her to the furthest corner of her store and placed her skinny, somewhat withered hand on top of one of the mannequins, her face still distorted with subtle annoyance.

"These are the only three ready-made dresses that might fit your frame, Lady Ashter. The fitting room is at the counter to your right."

The seamstress threw the last judgemental look at her visitors and disappeared into the backroom, while Rosalie kept silently looking in her direction.

'She did not even bother to take the dresses off the mannequins... Ugh, never mind, let's just get it over with and leave.'

***

Aurora deftly collected the garments and briskly made her way into one of the fitting rooms adjacent to the store's counter, muttering something rather sharply under her breath. Meanwhile, Lady Ashter eagerly indulged in an extended exploration of the exquisite beauty displayed in the form of dresses, blouses, skirts, and accessories. She took her time appreciating the surrounding splendor until the maid's mildly impatient voice compelled her to enter the fitting room.

"To think she would have the nerve to give you these discarded dresses! Just look at the stitching in this one, if one were to see this, they would think you were the one who made the dress instead of the most famous seamstress in the Capital!"

"It's alright, Aurora, people would talk about me no matter what I wear, so let me just try something already."

As if to support Rosalie's words, a sudden wave of lively female chatter seeped into the fitting room, bringing in the cacophony of harsh words, unbefitting the sweet melody of the voice that carried them out of their owners' mouths.

"What in the world was she thinking coming here? Has she no shame at all?"

"You don't have to tell me, Lady Juliana, I was so shocked when I saw her standing in my shop! If I were not that stunned, I would have kicked her out of here like a lowly commoner!"

Thanks to Cecilia's ruthless reply, Rosalie realized that the woman she was talking to was Juliana Elsher, the oldest daughter of Earl Elsher, one of the wealthiest merchants in the whole Empire who had been on good terms with Cecilia Bennett for years, ensuring her business's support and success.

Juliana was a renowned socialite whose presence was coveted at every gathering, not solely due to her high status and prestige, but primarily because of her razor-sharp tongue that never ceased to produce new gossip. Her ability to provide a constant source of entertainment, irrespective of the occasion, made her company highly sought-after.

"Have you heard, Lady Cecilia? Lord Raphael Ashter will be presenting his hunting loot to his sister this year as well. Honestly, such a loving and caring brother does not deserve a sister like her! She pretends to be modest and obedient but it is all just a mere act to seduce innocent men, while Lord Raphael has to waste his time cleaning the mess caused by her stupid actions."

"They say that Lord Raphael put his own marriage on hold because he wants to make sure that his sister is married off to a great family, but my husband once told me that there is a rumor circulating amongst the gentlemen who frequents the Tulip Room, that Lord Raphael is shunning Rosalie's potential suitors away because he himself is secretly lusting after her!"

Aurora widened her eyes, her face pale both from shock and anger, but Rosalie remained stoic and unfazed. "Tulip Room" was a gentlemen's club founded and run by Marquess Stainhem, and since no woman, except for courtesans, was allowed inside it, the audacity of the things that were discussed behind the closed doors of the club was not really that surprising.

"These venomous snakes... They are talking so loudly on purpose, to make you hear them, Lady Rosalie! What a disgrace!"

Rosalie offered her maid a subtle, nonchalant smile and shrugged her shoulders.

"It's no use getting upset over such worthless talks. Let me just try on one last dress and leave."

Aurora couldn't help but let out a sigh. Her lady's remarkable resilience was an admirable quality, but it also served as the cause of her immeasurable heartache. Determined to support Rosalie, she assisted her with the dresses, filling the fitting room with her own mindless chatter in an effort to divert her lady's attention away from the bothersome gossip circulating in the boutique's lounge area, and Rosalie secretly felt a deep sense of gratitude toward Aurora for that thoughtful gesture.

"This one. Let's buy this dress, it fits me the best and you will not have to work hard on re-fitting it."

When they were finally done with the fitting, the girl pointed at the long crimson dress with an elegant corset, ornamented with golden lace which she tried on first. Aurora was about to retrieve it when she halted, her gaze fixated on the fitting room door, wearing a slightly apprehensive expression.

"But, My Lady... Don't you think it has been rather quiet out there?"