After Seraphina had almost slammed the door into the emperor, she seemed a bit surprised. The empress' eyes widened for a moment upon seeing her husband. She stepped closer to him with a worried expression. “I sincerely apologize. I did not pay enough attention. Are you alright, Your Majesty?”
Theodore made a rejecting gesture while regaining his balance. “I'm fine, you don't have to be sorry. Luckily, my reflexes seem to be in good condition today.”
A barely visible smile tucked at the corner of the empress' lips. “Thankfully.” She responded in a warm voice, which sounded odd to Blanche.
The concubine had never received a word from her nemesis that wasn't spoken in a hostile or icy tone. She was currently witnessing Seraphina's amicable behavior for the first time. Well, this was to be expected due to the more than strained relationship between the two women. But since this was mostly caused by Blanche's own actions, she couldn't blame the heroine. Though seeing the fated couple interact made it hard to think clearly or fight the unease pricking in her stomach.
Blanche balled her fists and stood there in silence and watched them smiling at each other. The last discussion really seemed to have improved the spouses' relationship, just like Theodore had said after he made Blanche wait for an hour while he chatted with Seraphina. Blanche considered clearing her throat or greeting the other woman, but these little things would enforce her role as the envious villainess. She needed to hide her jealousy and accept their future devotion to each other in order to avoid becoming an obstacle to the main characters' love story, even if it hurt.
Her dialogue with the emperor about her worries had only been a few days ago, and he had already asked why she questioned his commitment then. Showing her envy now would only lead to him believing that she didn't trust him. So, she did her best to swallow the bitter feelings bubbling inside her and stayed silent.
Blanche kept her graze trained on the heroine and quickly realized that her decision had been a good one.
Seraphina noticed the concubine from the corner of her eyes, and immediately, her stoic mask returned, which was a somewhat amusing image. It was soothing to see that the villainess and the heroine felt similarly about each other.
Blanche bowed down in an exaggerated curtsy to greet the woman in front of her.
Seraphina obviously was on guard, but she didn't ignore the other woman. There was no way that the paragon of royal conduct would ignore the protocol because of her own emotions, even if it was probably tempting to her. “Lady Blanche. I wish you a pleasant day.”
The concubine made sure to use the most formal phrase to address Seraphina. “Greetings to Her Majesty, the empress of Artias.” No one could tell her that she was impolite now. The following silent eye contact was uncomfortable enough to make her want to turn away, but that would equal admitting defeat, so Blanche stared back at the empress.
Thankfully, Theodore quickly chimed in. “Did you find satisfactory attires today?” It was painfully obvious that he tried to break through the tense atmosphere and prevent a possible conflict, for which Blanche was really grateful.
Seraphina replied in a perfectly calm voice. “Naturally. Madame Charture brought as beautiful exemplars as usual. I assume that you came here to see her. I do not want to interfere, so I will take my leave now if you grant me permission.”
The emperor nodded in response. “We will see each other after the meeting this evening.”
The empress affirmed this and waited for Theodore to open the door to the parlor.
Blanche rushed to her lover's side and unconsciously stood closer to him than she had needed to as she stepped into the room. Theodore bid farewell to the heroine, who began walking down the corridor, which caused the concubine to let out a deep breath.
The emperor raised an eyebrow at her and followed her into the chamber. “This went pretty well.”
Blanche shrugged and admitted the truth. “I guess. But it's stressful either way. When she's around I'm always tense. I don't look forward to seeing her for hours at the tea party.” Her statement had rather been an expression of her nervousness than a serious complaint, but Theodore seemed to have misunderstood.
He made eye contact with her and remained silent for a moment. “You know... If you don't want to go, you don't have to.”
Blanche blinked at him before she could put her confusion into words. “What do you mean? I received an invitation from the empress, so I can't simply refuse to attend. That would be impudent.” Her reputation was awful enough, so she needed to be perfect if she wanted to improve it.
The emperor stared at her for long enough to make her question whether he had understood her.
“Theo?”
Theodore only spoke up when she called out for him. “You could say that you are sick. She certainly wouldn't check whether that is true.”
Blanche actually considered his suggestion for a second. Not appearing at a gathering during which she was on her own would take a huge burden off her shoulders. However, along with the obnoxious rumors about her, she was pressured by something else too. She needed to improve her image in the next ten months. This wouldn't be possible without showing herself to the public. While ignoring this opportunity in favor of attending an event during which Theodore could help her was tempting, she couldn't continue to rely on him constantly. Otherwise, she would be taken by complete surprise when the novel progressed and he abandoned her to stay at Seraphina's side.
So, Blanche forced herself to reply. “I thought about it. But in that case, she'll know that I'm lying for sure, and I don't wish to infuriate her even more. And you have heard the rumors Lady Lemares spread about me, right? I will have to show proper manners to erase those accusations from the public's minds.”
At the mention of the former tutor, Theodore's jaw tensed, and he crossed his arms. “That unpleasant woman really is full of herself if she dares to openly antagonize me and spread her lies. She can't do whatever she wants only because her family backs her. Just thinking about this impertinence aggravates me.”
“Of course, I'm angry at her too. But it's not like we can do anything about it. Forbidding her free speech isn't a possibility, so we'll have to ignore her.”
Theodore let out a huff. “You're right. However, if she doesn't stop spreading her made-up stories, I will file a charge for defamation.” He was about to add another sentence when his gaze fell onto something behind his lover.
The concubine turned around to face the tailor, who greeted them with a bright smile.
Madame Charture had bound her graying hair in a loose bun, and her face was covered in wrinkles. Even though she physically looked older every time she visited the estate, her eyes still twinkled with the same youthful energy behind her glasses.
Theodore quickly spoke up. “Welcome to the royal palace, Madame Charture. I hope that everything is to your liking. If anything is missing, please inform the servants, and they will bring it to you.”
The tailor shook her head. “As always, I don't have anything to complain about. My utensils and the fabric are here. I have already taken Her Majesty's measurements and will begin work on the dresses she has chosen. Good afternoon, Your Majesty. It is an honor to be here once again.” She turned to the concubine while her grin didn't falter for one second.
Blanche returned the smile and made a small curtsy. “Good afternoon, Madame Charture. How are you doing?”
The tailor giggled quietly. “It is wonderful to see you again, Lady Blanche. Fortunately, I'm in a good position. Except for a few small disputes in my family, nothing upsetting occurred. Well then, I assume that you are here to decide on new attires too?”
Theodore affirmed this with a nod and turned to his lover. “I'll wait on the sofa there, and you can show me what you want, like always.”
The concubine nodded and complied with the tailor's gestures that encouraged her to follow the elderly woman behind a room-divider while Stella stayed at the entrance until her mistress required her help.
Madame Charture started to scurry around while picking up a measuring tape. She approached Blanche and gaged the concubine's shoulders, waist and hips. “Nothing changed, much like Her Majesty didn't either.” She scribbled down a few numbers. Then she looked up for a short moment and changed the topic. “Has something special happened in the palace since my last visit?”
Aside from the life-changing memories that Blanche had gained, nothing exciting had really taken place, so she replied with that. “No, I don't think so. Theo has a pretty stressful amount of work right now, but I haven't done much except drinking tea and taking walks.”
The tailor's head shot up, and realization shone in her eyes. “I knew I had forgotten something. Tea!” She wrote down another note before returning to Blanche's side.
The concubine tilted her head and observed Madame Charture with a questioning gaze.
The tailor continued to take the measurements while speaking up. “Is there possibly chamomile tea, of which I could borrow a tiny amount, in the palace?”
Blanche was baffled upon hearing that request and replied in an uncertain tone. “I believe so. There shouldn't be a problem if you take some of it as long as you have Theodore's permission.”
Madam Charture took Blanche's confusion as a cue to explain herself. “You must be surprised about my sudden appeal. If I wasn't in such a hurry, I wouldn't bother you, but I need to acquire some chamomile tea before I visit my sister. As I mentioned earlier, we have had a few fights in the past, and I wish to reconcile with her. However, my sister is quite a willful person, and I'll have to pacify her first. Chamomile is not only her favorite flavor, but it's also known to be calming, which means that it's a perfect pacifier. If you intend to make a request and fear the other party's anger, you definitely have to bring chamomile tea, and your chances of success will double!”
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
The concubine expected the other woman to finish after that, but the tailor only got lost in stories of her family and didn't stop talking until she had taken all the measurements.
When Madame Charture got ready to show Blanche the dresses she had brought, she excitedly stepped out from behind the room-divider and began to present the attires.
The concubine followed her and glanced at her lover in the process. Theodore had gotten comfortable on the couch and smirked at her. He seemed to have heard everything that the tailor said as well and was amused by his lover being forced to listen to it.
Blanche rolled her eyes but returned the smile. With a few more steps, she reached the many clothing racks, which had been squeezed into the room so that they almost formed a circle. Like during the last few times, one of them was filled with navy and gold attires that were specifically for the empress. The concubine vaguely remembered demanding some of these dresses the last time, which had led to a dispute with Seraphina. Blanche inwardly winced at her old self and took an exaggerated bow around these attires as she trailed after the tailor.
Madame Charture stopped in the middle of the remaining racks and began chirping again. “These are the designs that I worked on for the last three months. I allowed the current developments in the fashion world to influence me while keeping my own style, and these are the results. I sincerely hope that they are to your liking.” One only needed one glance at Madame Charture's face to recognize that the woman's lifeblood flowed into her work. Her creations were not only made with much love, but they also were of great quality, and most of them were stunning.
The concubine felt like she hadn't appreciated this before, so she turned to the tailor with a beam. “I'm sure they will. Your dresses are always gorgeous, so I don't doubt that I will adore every single one of them.”
That little remark was sufficient to let the elder woman's face light up, which made Blanche's heart feel warm as well. If she could bring happiness to people this easily, why had her original counterpart acted so hostile?
After that, Madame Charture encouraged her to look around with even more excitement than before.
Blanche complied and began inspecting the room. She quickly came to the conclusion that the attires were breathtaking once again and that she would have trouble sticking to her conviction. All the dresses seemed to call out to her, and her eyes got wider at every piece. She wished to try all of them on and spin around like a little girl that was pretending to be a princess while listening to Theodore's praise. But she knew that she would want to own the gowns even more once she had worn them. She felt a bit uncertain as she wandered around and bargained with herself. She didn't have to take just one or two dresses. As long as she bought fewer attires than the heroine, it should show that she had changed.
Blanche sneaked through the room and carefully pulled out some dresses to get a better view of the creations. Unsurprisingly, she fell in love with all of them, which made her even more unwilling to decide against them. For minutes, she simply walked around to stop at some spots while the tailor's gaze observantly followed her, which put even more pressure on Blanche to finally choose the first item. She aimlessly grasped the dress that hung next to her and pulled it out.
When she took the time to inspect it, two things immediately stood out. Firstly, the soft fabric was covered with tulle and flower ornaments, which formed a gorgeous ballgown that almost made her gasp.
Secondly, it was navy.
A wave of disappointment crashed over Blanche as she realized that a dress in that color would be too similar to the empress'. It didn't have any gold in it, but most of Seraphina's attires were mainly blue with only a few golden accessories as well. Impersonating a member of the royal family would be a sign of insolence, and especially the concubine couldn't afford to make people believe that she wished to take the empress' place. She was about to let go of the gown when a voice sounded behind her.
“Have you found something you want?”
The concubine whirled around, only to see Theodore, who had followed her into the circle of racks. Her eyes wandered back to the fabric in her hands, and blood rushed to her cheeks. Convincing her lover that she intended to pick fights with his wife while attempting to claim a position that didn't belong to her was the last thing she should do. She spun around and hung the dress between the others while making sure to obstruct his view on the attire. “Uhm, yes. They're all pretty, so I can't decide.”
Theodore let out a chuckle as he approached her. “You always had a hard time deciding. If I remember correctly, you took almost all of them last time.”
“I guess I did. But I can't do that every time.” She twirled a strand of hair around her finger while trying to seem as inconspicuous as possible as she turned around to face her lover.
“Why not?” The emperor positioned himself next to her and looked down at her with a soft smile.
The answer should actually be obvious. “I haven't even worn all the old ones. And my wardrobe is huge, but it still has a limited capacity.”
Theodore raised an eyebrow. “How is that a problem? We already talked about getting you a dressing room months ago, and if you need more space, this is the right time. There are enough empty guest rooms on the third floor, you can simply choose one or two.”
Blanche remembered him promising something like that after a fight with Seraphina to pacify her. But she had to remind herself to be modest. So, she wanted to tell him that she didn't need a dressing room, but he continued before she could speak.
“You just held a dress in your hands, right? I saw you staring at it, so you must like this one. Let me take a look at it.” Any interjections were stuck in her throat when he turned to the rack and removed the gown from the stand. “Is this it?” Denying it now would be useless as he had probably watched her before she had become aware of his presence.
Blanche avoided his gaze while fiddling with her fingers.“Yes.”
Theodore lifted the dress up and scanned it for a moment before he addressed her. “It really is magnificent. Do you want to try it on? Madame Charture still has to adjust it to match your exact measurements, but it seems like it might fit already. Probably because she makes most of those for you anyway.”
The concubine scratched her neck as she found the courage to look into his eyes. She would never have said no to this in the past, so it would be odd for her to do it now, especially since it was very tempting. So, she nodded. Her lover handed the attire over to her, and she hurried behind the room-divider. While she moved, she beckoned Stella over with a hand gesture.
The maid followed her and helped her mistress with putting on the dress, which only took a few minutes.
One small glance into the mirror proved Blanche's concerns true. Wearing the attire only made her want it even more. She turned around a bit and watched how her reflection's body was being framed by the flowing fabric liked soft blue waves.
Stella seemed to like the dress as she muttered a response in awe. “How beautiful, My Lady.”
The concubine thanked her but couldn't bring herself to be happy about the compliment. Not when she knew that she couldn't keep this gown without emphasizing her reputation as a power-hungry woman or risking a dispute with Seraphina.
Stella gave her a soft nudge and whispered. “You should let His Majesty see you. We don't want to make him wait.”
Blanche reluctantly followed the maid's advice and stepped out from the room-divider.
Theodore was standing a couple of meters away from her, in the middle of the room. Upon seeing her, he just stared at his lover for a few seconds before a glowing smile appeared on his face. “You are stunning.”
This sentence was enough to make Blanche's heart skip a beat and filled it with warmth. A small grin tucked at her lips, but it was quickly wiped away by the realization that she wouldn't be able to wear this in the future nonetheless.
The emperor seemed to have noticed her dejected expression as his beam also faded slightly. He approached her and stopped only when he was right in front of her. “You don't like it?”
Blanche wrinkled her forehead as she responded. “I do. But I don't think... The dress is a little...”
Her lover's face didn't change when he questioned her. “What do you mean?”
She lowered her gaze to the side and bit the inner side of her cheek. It should be obvious what she was referring to. Theodore always paid close attention to following the social norms and would never be ignorant enough to overlook such an obvious red flag. “It's a really pretty gown, but the color is...” Her unfinished remark had to be sufficient to hint at what troubled her. When her lover still didn't answer after a while despite this, she sighed. “I can't wear this.”
“In public.”
A frown appeared on Blanche's features at his response.
Before she could say anything else, Theodore cupped her cheek and brought his face close to hers. “Don't look at me like that. I know that you probably shouldn't show up in this dress at a ball, even though doing that with silver accessories wouldn't be problematic either. But I get why we would avoid that. Nevertheless, no one can forbid you from putting it on when you are in the palace. Then it shouldn't matter.”
The concubine's eyes widened as she realized what his words implied. Inside his palace, he decided what wasn't allowed, and as long as he didn't object, she would even be free to dress in the royal colors. Since she wouldn't be in public, the conventions of noble society couldn't apply to her attire.
However, that wouldn't prevent other people from seeing her and spreading the same rumors that would surface if she appeared during an event. Not to mention the heroine was here too. The concubine could run into the empress on accident, and with her current luck, that wasn't so unlikely. If Blanche wore the gown in private, Seraphina most likely would ignore it, but a bitter aftertaste would still remain in the other's mouth when she observed that a concubine dressed up in one of the empress' colors.
“What if outsiders notice that? They will talk badly about me and you for allowing it. What if Her Majesty-” Blanche began to complain, only to be cut off by Theodore giving her a kiss on her forehead.
“During the last weeks, you've started to tell me that you worry about what other people think all the time. When did this become so important to you? It shouldn't matter what they think as long as we know how we feel.” He took her hands and brought them to his face to brush his lips over her knuckles before he resumed in a whisper. “It also doesn't matter if the empress over-interprets your new attire. In the case that she chooses to dwell on a non-existing issue, it's her own fault.”
On the one hand, the concubine was filled with bliss by the knowledge that her lover didn't believe that she was striving for power or using him to gain a higher status. On the other hand, it was naive of him to not consider this option. The novel had explicitly stated how many times Blanche had attempted to claim Seraphina's position, and her own memories showed her somewhat similar scenes. And it wasn't very logical to accuse the empress of overthinking when Theodore had immediately understood what could bother her too.
Blanche pressed her mouth into a line before responding. “Of course, the matters of the palace are yours to decide, but still. I don't wish to provoke another fight just because I don't want to give up a dress.” She scanned her lover's face for any reaction, but she wasn't able to read him.
Theodore tilted his head as he spoke up again. “Isn't this the same thing as the necklace I gave you? You wore that in public too, so this attire shouldn't pose much of a problem.”
“That was only...” The concubine's gaze wandered to the fabric in his hands while she clenched her jaw. She really wanted that gown, and Theodore's arguments made it increasingly harder to refuse. Before wearing his necklace, she also hadn't refused because he had said that it was fine. Why was she so worried now? As long as the emperor allowed it and she avoided Seraphina, no issues could surface. Seraphina was a reasonable person, so this wouldn't cause a fight. Right?
Blanche was still a bit dejected because she had allowed a pretty dress to sway her decision but nodded. “You're right. I'd like to have this dress, please.”
That caused Theodore to pat her head once. “Don't you want to look at the others before making a choice? Otherwise, you might miss one of the prettiest. At least if you don't take them all again.”
The concubine shook her head. “As I said, that would be way too much. I'll only pick three or four ones this time.” She could pinpoint the exact moment when the words reached him.
In an instant, a frown appeared on Theodore's face, and his voice sounded uncertain as he replied. “Four?” He stared at her as if he expected to have misunderstood. She nodded to confirm that that wasn't the case, which made him wrinkle his forehead even more. “That's less than the empress usually takes. This doesn't have anything to do with her though, right?”
Blanche responded with another nod before quickly shaking her head. Theodore didn't have to voice his questions for her to know what he was wondering about. This was unlike her, and she was aware of that too. She quickly spoke up to keep him from saying it. “I made that decision for myself because I still have so many unworn attires for all kinds of events. I'll use them up first, and then I can buy new ones in a quarter year.”
For a moment, the emperor remained silent before his face neutralized again. “If you don't need them, it's fine. But just because you said this now, it doesn't mean that you can't change your mind and take more. Should it become necessary, we can also invite Madame Charture before the next appointment.” He took her hand for a short moment to squeeze it once. “Take your time while looking around. I will sit down, and you can show me what you decided on when you are ready.” With that, he left and disappeared behind one of the clothing racks,
Blanche waited for barely a second before she stood in front of the mirror again. She twirled around a few times and allowed her smile to spread across her whole face. Being able to keep this dress made her more cheerful than it should have. Even though she had given in to her childlike and materialistic side by ignoring her convictions of evading any possible difficulties. It wouldn't lead to a massive dispute, but it could make the heroine dislike her even more, which was risky. Still, the concubine had ignored this because of Theodore's affirmations and her desire to own everything she admired, which wasn't different from what her counterpart in the novel had done.
Though, her initial joy upon wearing such a gorgeous gown overshadowed her doubts fast. After changing out of the dress, she was almost a little disappointed, but that quickly died down as she examined the other stunning attires with sparkling eyes.
Ultimately, Blanche hadn't been able to narrow down the number of her favorites enough to meet her goal. Especially the purple dresses were hard to ignore when they would fit together with her butterfly ornament so perfectly. In total, she chose seven attires, which still was considerably less than what she had requested the last times.
The tailor was visibly confused by this and questioned whether the concubine hadn't liked the selection.
Blanche hurriedly refuted that assumption and gave Madame Charture the same reason she had previously told Theodore, which calmed the tailor. When the concubine left with her lover and bid farewell to the elderly woman, she couldn't help smiling despite her inability to regulate herself.
The day ended as calmly as it had started. The couple ate together and then parted ways, after which Blanche went to bed. But this should be the last time that she had relaxed fully for a while.
While the following four days didn't have any special occurrences either, the concubine felt like the pressure on her was building up with each second that the tea party came closer, and there was no way to avoid that.