Queensmen

Chapter 91

~The Lady Ria~

Oris didn't pretend that it was privilege that had her in a carriage all by herself when everyone but Wei Wei's golden trio had to share the space with two others.

If any strings had been pulled, they would have been from Andrea's side, her father working his magic to make her comfortable. Not that the carriage was spacious as it was, but there was something about sharing an enclosed space with women who wished you harm that brought on a sense of claustrophobia.

Oris knew that she had been alone only because her presence had yet to upset the hierarchy.

A mysterious two hours with the Emperor wasn't enough to make the lower-ranked women fawn over her. They couldn't risk upsetting the candidates they had long been supporting for something that was probably just a flash in the pan.

Whatever the reason, it provided Oris the opportunity to strip the moment wheels started rolling. Mayree and Seline secured the curtains while she tugged on strings and buttons.

"The relief." She nearly moaned when the dress was off, another reason she was glad to be going down some layers.

Inae's weather wasn't meant for large, puffy dresses, especially when said dresses were meant to be worn outdoors. The sun burned relentlessly, which was why the other women had their maids shield them with umbrellas on the short walk into their carriages.

Oris did nothing of the sort because walking ten steps in the sun wasn't going to kill her. Also, the heat made the dress glimmer and she needed all the attention she could get.

Andrea dug into a sack and tossed over one of the dresses they had packed from the choice selection that had been in the wardrobe. It was pretty basic, hadn't been tailor-made for her, and was wearable in the I'm-tired-of-being-eye-catching way.

She pulled it over her head after realizing that it needed no lacing and had no buttons. If not for the fact that its bodice was covered in delicate embroidery, it would have been mistaken for a night gown.

When Keziah pulled out a sewing kit and started threading needles, Oris grabbed the embroidery thread and began the daunting task of making a perfumed sachet.

That, and small talk, was all she had to entertain herself until they reached their first stop and she didn't feel professional enough to help with the dress now that more people where going to pay attention to it.

The embroidery pattern was a simple one. Simple because it was the first flower she had learnt to draw, the Crocus. Come spring, all the little children in Orse would go around picking the poor flowers and handing their hauls to dye-makers for treats and rewards.

Right in the center of the State's national flag was an embroidered Crocus. It was an unspoken rule that every citizen should be able to draw it so Oris' meager drawing talents were stretched and whipped into shape until she could, decently enough to not shame her family's name.

"Since when did you embroider in your free time?"

The skepticism in Seline's voice made her blush. She secured the cloth in an embroidery hoop and aggressively poked the needle through it. "When I become one of the Emperor's women, I'll need something to do keep busy," she said coolly, distinctly aware of how they had all stopped what they were doing to look at her. "What?"

"This is the first time you've talked about after the Selection," Mayree answered with a weird smile. "It's strange to hear."

"She means that I'm the one who's always talking about things like that," Andrea piped in.