Sɪɢɴ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ Tɪᴍᴇs | Sɪᴍᴏɴ Bᴀssᴇᴛ

o0o - sɪɢɴ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛɪᴍᴇs - chapter one

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 𝐀𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐎𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 𝐒𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐀𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐃, so did one of the most important days of the year. Today was the day that all eligible young ladies would present themselves to the queen and hope for the best. This day was particularly important to the eldest Bridgerton daughter. The Bridgerton manor was a whirlwind of maids rushing in and out, hoping to calm the young woman.

With all of the stress that came with the social season in general, Callan thanked any god who could hear him for being born male. And unlike Anthony, who was the eldest son and Viscount, Cal, the third son of the family, did not have the pressure to marry.

A complaint from Eloise broke through his thoughts. "I am already roasting."  

Cal absentmindedly tugged at his collar. "We all are, love. However, today is a very important day for Daphne, so you must pretend to be happy. Just remember, smile, nod, smile, and nod. As long as you try not to look as stupid as Benedict, you shall be fine."

"As stupid as who, brother?" Benedict and Colin had come over.

Cal shared a look with Eloise, before waspishly shifting his gaze to anywhere not Benedict. "No one at all. I was merely advising Eloise for today." Cal's twin, Colin, snickered in disbelief. 

To their immense, incredible, great, and incomparable surprise, Anthony was late. One could only hope that Anthony would make it in time for the presentation at all, but Cal knew his brother. He would not purposely mess this up for their family. 

The Bridgertons had all been named in alphabetical order, another example of the perfection of the family. Anthony, Benedict, Callan, Colin, Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory, and Hyacinth. His father had insisted on the names Callan and Colin for the twin brothers, though Callan had always gone by Cal.

"Is our dear sister still not ready?"

"Well, I would think she is dressed by now. Currently, it is most likely that she is having an emotional breakdown." Benedict tried to look stern at Callan's answer, but the three of them could tell he was trying to hold back a smile.

"I shall run upstairs and hasten her along." said Colin.

"Colin, wait. I'll do it."

"She likes me better than you, Benedict." 

"Did she say that?"

"Everyone says that."

Cal and Eloise exchanged amused looks before nodding to each other. 

"DAPHNE! YOU MUST MAKE HASTE!"

Benedict and Colin both jumped in surprise, nearly falling from the sheer volume of Eloise's announcement. Cal on the other hand, was using all of his willpower to keep a straight face, but even then a corner of his mouth was threatening to turn upwards. 

"Should you think she heard me?" inquired Eloise.

Cal pretended to think before saying, "Only a bit louder, and the entire nation would have heard you."

Benedict wiggled his finger at Cal. "Don't encourage her, Cal."

Cal gave him a wide-eyed look that screamed, who, me? I am a very good role model thank you very much.

It turned out that Daphne had indeed heard Eloise, as she headed down the stairs not long after, much to their relief. Their mother rushed them through the door and into large carriages. The palace was not far from their home in Gousvenor Square, and it only took a few minutes to arrive. It seemed that they were right on time, as flocks of excited and nervous ladies walked by. Cal pulled his sister aside one last time.

"Do not worry yourself so much. The queen's words can only do so much."

Daphne scoffed. "How do I not? Opposed to you, brother, the queen's words can do everything to me." 

"Well then, I suspect that every suitor in London will try to get your hand in marriage. I have never met a more beautiful girl than you, sister." Daphne gave Cal a look of appreciation before moving to give him a hug, which Cal stopped with a hand. "I do not wish to ruin your dress, Daph. I will give you the biggest hug after the queen tells you how amazing you are."

Daphne gave him a smile before she walked after their mother, who would be presenting her. Cal inspected his dark navy suit one last time before following. He stood with his family in the crowd, watching one by one as each woman was inspected by the queen. The Featheringtons—Philipa, Prudence, and Penelope—were right before Daphne. Callan had always privately likened the Featheringtons to a group of headless chickens blindly running into each other. The intelligence of the family was pooled purely in Penelope, the youngest of the bunch. Luckily, Penelope was Eloise's best friend, which led to him meeting her. 

She was quite intelligent, able to keep up with Eloise and add in sharp words with her own clever wit. She was quite handsome, as well, and was a lovely match for any suitor. He always flirtingly mentioned his favour towards Penelope. If not for his other inclinations (and for her insufferable kin), he likely would have proposed sooner than later. He rather suspected her kin would be his in-laws regardless, if he had not misinterpreted Colin's attention.

Prudence tripped on the hem of her dress, leading the queen to shake her head in displeasure. Cal exchanged a sympathetic glance with Penelope before they left the room. This would reflect poorly on her own chances. Prudence's failure only made Cal more antsy, knowing what Daphne had on the line. 

The announcer cleared his throat before saying, "Miss Daphne Bridgerton, presented by her mother, the Right Honorable, the Dowager Viscountess Bridgerton." 

Cal couldn't help but feel proud as his younger sister walked passed them with elegance. Her posture was impeccable, and her beauty clear. It seemed that queen agreed with him, for she stood from her throne while Daphne was in her curtsy, and delicately lifted Daphne's chin up. She eyed Daphne before declaring Daphne to be "flawless." A gentle kiss was placed on Daph's forehead.

Cal could tell that Daph was delighted, but only because he knew her disposition better than most. He gave her a discreet smile as she walked past them. He released his smiled inwardly, knowing that everyone had seen her appeal at its fullest. He could only hope that the callers wouldn't crowd up the house too much. 

He did, indeed give Daphne the biggest hug possible, which she returned with equal force.

- author's note : and there it is! so i'm going to try to always write at least 800 words for each chapter, unlike some of my other books heh.