vol 002

Yvonne was dressed beautifully to say the least. She wore a cornflower blue ball gown, she made sure to remove all of the childish decorations off her clothing. She is slowly making sure her siblings and parents know she has matured.

She wore simple opal jewelry, and matching shoes for her dress. Her lips were painted with a soft pink gloss, her eyelashes were made longer by clear jelly, soon hardening to keep their shape. She wore no powder because her face was naturally flushed. Her hair was in a loose braid with silken, curly strands loose on the sides.

"Your Highness, you are going to be the prettiest one at the ball!" Genevieve said excitedly and Yvonne couldn't help but feel endeared.

"Thank you both so much," Yvonne responded and smiled at her maids while they bowed. While she was only fifteen now, Yvonne was not a child anymore. She had to show everyone how much she had matured so far.

Holding her head high, Yvonne lifted her chin ever so slightly and kept her eyes straightforward. She was ready. Taking in a deep breath, Yvonne took the first steps out her room and was met with instant awe from the butler.

"Princess, shouldn't you be resting?" He was concerned, mostly of Yvonne ruining the ball, but he didn't know that Yvonne was no longer Yvonne mentally.

"I am feeling just fine, Henrick," She looked back at him with a refined, strong gaze.

——

Yvonne was fashionably late, she entered after a few minutes of the music playing. It was a soft, airy tune, to start the night.

She relished in the peoples gaze. Taking confident, elegant, steps towards the center ballroom. Yvonne specifically enjoyed Lydia's disdainful stare, contempt swirling in her irises. And Yvonne just met that gaze with a polite smile, the nobility turning their heads towards Lydia's disregard for her youngest sister. Jasper was gazing upon Yvonne as well, he could never hide his emotions well. He looked shocked yet mesmerized as well. His older brother, Abner, was flickering his eyes towards Yvonne. Being five years older than Yvonne, he may be a little interested, but won't get too close because she is still a minor. Girls are granted adulthood once they turn 16 in the Holy Land. They must serve God, and only then can they think about matrimony.

Lyida, at age seventeen, is in her second year of serving. After her third anniversary, she marries Abner Abellion and then becomes the next Empress. Yvonne whisked her thoughts away when a young man, Duke Johansson's son, Viktor, offered his hand. Yvonne stared at his hand for a brief moment, and delicately placed her hand in his.

The two were silent while they danced, staring into each other's eyes every so often. Viktor twirled her, his hand feathered on her waist. The warmth of his palm calmed her when they transitioned into a lazy waltz. No words needed to be spoken, there was something pulling them together during the dance, but Yvonne brushed it off as a successful trap. Yvonne looked especially beautiful tonight, and the first dance with the eldest son of the Duke was not a bad start to the night. Viktor was only one year older than Yvonne, so they had much more alignment with one another.

As the song ended, the two pulled away, Yvonne curtsied as Viktor kept ahold of her hand. He pressed his lips to the back of her hand, standing up and releasing her hand. Yvonne was just as shocked as the young noblewomen. She wasn't expecting to receive a proposal so soon. In her novel, Yvonne remembers that a kiss on the hand is a subtle way to ask a lady for an informal meeting, a date more or less. She took out her fan, a wide smirk adorning her lips as she passed her sisters with a clam, confident gaze.