THE LADY.

Yvette slept lightly, propped up against the wall.

When morning came and she was woken up by the sound of the Decaux staff running around upstairs, she groaned as she stood up. Sleeping sitting up always came with a price, and her spine seemed to complain with the way it remained stiff even after she did her morning stretches.

Still, despite her body protesting, Yvette wasted no time now that she was up. She walked over to the door, quickly picked the lock, and then calmly walked up the stairs.

Yesterday when she was led by the butler to the cellar, she made sure to take note of the layout of the Decaux manor.

On the lowest floor it was just the cellar, Yvette's second bedroom. On the floor above there was the kitchen as well as the rooms for all the staff. Above that was the main floor of the manor, where the foyer, drawing room, dining room, study, library and ballroom were located. On the highest floor was where the Decaux family slept, even Yvette, though they rarely ever actually let her sleep in her bedroom.

Knowing that all the staff would either be busy setting up Genevieve's tea party in the garden or in the kitchen cooking, Yvette didn't worry about bumping into anyone as she made her way upstairs.

Yvette made it all the way upstairs to the bedrooms without anyone spotting her, and she took her time looking through everyone's bedrooms. Claude, she knew, would likely be in his study working on something. Adele and Genevieve would probably be overseeing the maids as they set up for the tea party. And Sabine... was probably just hiding from the rest of the family reading.

Thinking of Sabine, Yvette started with her bedroom first.

Sabine had a collection of books spread around different areas of her room. She was the smart sister, after all, and the books scattered around her room certainly seemed to enforce that image. Yvette looked through Sabine's closet and tried out a couple dresses, but her style didn't really suit Yvette. Sabine had a more plain style that Yvette didn't really enjoy, so she gave up and decided to move onto Genevieve's bedroom next.

Genevieve's bedroom, compared to Sabine's, was obnoxiously bright. Everything was either pink or blue or yellow, it seemed to be a child's room, even though Genevieve was already seventeen. There was not a single book in this room, but there seemed to be a lot of other things, make-up strewn about, and other miscellaneous toys here and there. Genevieve's wardrobe was as colourful and tacky as the rest of her room, so Yvette only needed to take one look before walking out, without even trying any of the dresses on. She knew they wouldn't fit anyway, was Genevieve was quite... flat in the front.

The third bedroom Yvette wandered into seemed entirely empty, at first. She wondered if maybe it was a guest bedroom, or a spare bedroom, before she realised it was actually hers. There didn't seem to be anything personalised in this room, but when she walked over to the dresser, she saw a comb and a white ribbon there, and she recognised them as her own. Looking in her own closet, she saw only four dresses inside, and they all looked the same. Black and simple, just like the uniform the maids wore. The Decauxs didn't bother spending any money on Yvette, since they never took her out for events anyway, and always kept her locked up whenever they were hosting their own. Four identical black dresses were enough for the unloved daughter of the Decaux family.

Finally, Yvette reached the master bedroom, where Claude and Adele slept. It was certainly the most regal looking of all the bedrooms, with dark velvet drapes and matching bedding. The connecting bathroom looked extravagant as well. Yvette looked through Adele's collection of perfumes sitting on the counter, and picked up a couple to smell until she found one she liked. It was a clear glass bottle with a slight green tint to it, and it had a subtle refreshing fragrance. The scent wasn't as flowery or as heavy as the other perfumes, and it was clear Adele didn't like it as much as her other perfumes because the bottle was still practically full. Seeing as her mother didn't enjoy it, Yvette took the bottle for herself.

Surprisingly, out of the entire family, Adele was the one who shared the most similar taste with Yvette in regards to fashion. Adele's dresses were less frilly than Genevieve's, but not plain and boring like Sabine's either. Most of her dresses were understated but still left an impression and looked expensive. Yvette immediately found a deep blue dress that was to her liking, and when she put it on it seemed to compliment her perfectly. The size seemed just right, the dress matching her black hair and bringing out the brightness of her eyes.

She took a couple spins in the mirror, admiring her reflection, before she went digging around for jewelry. It would be too much to get a showy necklace, but Yvette found a perfect pair of glittering sapphire earrings that matched the dress perfectly. She placed them on her ears, and then finally went to the vanity, where all of Adele's makeup was.

She didn't intend to share any lipstick with her new mother, but she managed to find an unopened burgundy shade and applied it. Afterwards, she sprayed some of the perfume she stole from earlier and finally completed her look.

When she returned to the mirror, it really looked as if she was another rich, pampered young lady. Though her look was still quite bare compared to her mother and her sisters, it had all the essentials.

Satisfied with her full look, Yvette finally left the room. She first placed the stolen perfume and the lipstick she used in a drawer in her room before making her way downstairs, ready to get started on her work.