A Cold Dish

Chapter 29 - Platonic

"Violet and Daisy of house Drakberg greets the Marchioness of house Vanidestine." The twins followed suit and curtsied politely.
Lady Henrietta, however, did not follow. She simply sat there and smiled a content smile. The Marchioness was dumbfounded at this but quickly regained her composure and curtsied politely.
"The Marchioness of house Vanidestine greets Lady Henrietta Albert." She shot a quick glance at Lady Henrietta.
"Greetings, Marchioness Vanidestine. It has been quite some time." Lady Henrietta's voice was polite, yet it carried a cold undertone.
"Indeed, you were still quite small when we met last."
"Have a seat," she beckoned to the empty seat.
We all sat down once more, now with the Marchioness in our midst. She sat opposite us next to Lady Daisy. She was obviously upset at the lack of space. You can only blame yourself, your maids should have prepared an additional seat.
"How have you been, Lady Albert?" 
"Other than the loneliness I felt from Lady Elizabeth’s absence, I have been well." She shot an accusatory glance at the Marchioness and inched closer to me.
"I am sorry to hear, Lord Watson must have felt the same." 
"Yes, he is quite upset that Lady Elizabeth has been at home."
"He could have come to visit along with you."
"He is busy at the moment."
"State affairs I assume."
Prodding for information? How typical of you, Marchioness.
"I appreciate the sentiment however, Lord William's business is kept under the veil," Lady Henrietta's tone no longer carried any warmth, the cold undertone had completely taken over.
I shot a glance at the Marchioness. It does not concern you. 
"Of course, he is the future husband of Elizabeth and the future Duke. Well then, I shall let you ladies enjoy your teatime."
"Farewell, Marchioness Vanidestine." 
With a clack the door closed behind her.
"How embarrassing," Lady Daisy snickered.
"Indeed, is she always that useless?"
"No, not at all. Maybe she's as surprised as I am at how well Henrietta held her ground"
"We may have taught her a thing or two," Lady Violet hummed.
"More like you gave me a confidence boost, but yes you have been very helpful at helping me convey what I feel." Lady Henrietta laughed.
"Anyhow, what were you about to say before you so rudely got interrupted, Lady Elizabeth?" Lady Violet asked.
"Well… I think I know why Flora snuck up on me like that."
They looked at me expectantly. I took a deep shaky breath before speaking again
"She… she uhm." Vivid images flashed through my mind. 
Anne’s gentle hand touched my shoulder.
"Her cousin tried to have his way with me."
Saying it out loud felt as if a huge weight had been taken off my shoulders.
"He what!?" Lady Daisy promptly stood up.
"So she snuck up on you to invoke that fear again," Lady Violet's voice was seething with rage, she gnawed at her thumbnail anxiously.
"Did anyone see it?" Lady Henrietta asked.
"No, thankfully it was raining that day. No students were out and about."
"Good, good. If such a thing came out, high society would ruin you," Lady Henrietta heaved a sigh of relief.
"He would walk free however, happy to do as he please. Is she really trying to ruin you over a man?" Lady Daisy had to remove Lady Violet's thumb from her face as blood began to trickle down it.
"It would seem like it," I sighed, "love makes you blind."
We sat in silence for a while. Why did I bring it up? Now the atmosphere is off. I shot a look Anne’s way. She smiled and shaped her hands like a box and pushed it outward.
"On a lighter note, shall we exchange gifts?" I asked.
Everyone seemed to brighten up at that idea. 

Maids gathered inside the room to hand the ladies their presents which had been left with the rest of their belongings. Anne had similarly gotten my gifts from my room. 
"Gift giving is such a joyous tradition," Lady Violet hummed. 
"Do you want to start, then?" Lady Henrietta asked.
"Gladly." She started handing us intricately wrapped presents. "I hope you do not get upset that I gave you all the same thing."
"That depends on what it is," I laughed.
I carefully unwrapped the present, careful to not tear the wrapping. Inside lay a glass vial with a clear liquid.
"Oh! Is this the thing you have been working on?" Lady Daisy asked and held up her vial.
"Yes, it is. It is the latest prototype."
Lady Henrietta and I looked at each other in confusion.
"It is a type of invisible ink which activates when in contact with heat. To demonstrate..." 
She pulled out a paper which appeared to be empty. She headed over to a light and pressed the paper against the bulb, writing slowly began to show. Lady Henrietta seemed stunned at the invention. 
"It's like magic," she finally said. 
I could not help but burst into laughter at her sudden words.
"It really is, is it not?" I said through fits of laughter.

"I shall go next then." 
Lady Daisy started handing out her presents, except my lap was left empty.
"I apologize, Lady Elizabeth, for I could not think of a gift more fitting than my vow. Especially now that Lady Flora is becoming more of a threat."
My heart skipped a beat as she got down on one knee in front of me.
"How romantic," Lady Henrietta exclaimed.
"I hope it is to your liking." Lady Daisy smiled.
I stared at her in disbelief. She gave her knights' vow to me? To me of all people?
"You only have one vow..."
"I know." Her lips curled into a confident grin.
Tears started welling up again as I embraced her tightly.
"Tears three, Lady Elizabeth zero." Lady Violet laughed.

"Finally, my turn," Lady Henrietta hummed and handed each of us our presents.
They were wrapped simply with a single bow decorating them. I carefully opened it to reveal another book, the cover was of a man in front of the moon. 'Sweet Dreams' was ingrained on the cover with a sheen like finish. Lady Henrietta's eyes sparkled when we had all opened our gifts. With a deep breath she started explaining the plot with great fervor to everyone. The selection of books was quite large, each of us got a different one. 
"And when you are done reading them you have to tell me what you think," Lady Henrietta said thus finishing her rant.

"My turn then," I said nervously.
Everyone has so painstakingly chosen a befitting gift, I hope they like mine. I handed them their gifts, they were kept in small boxes covered with a wrapping imprinted with marigolds. Watching them unwrap the gifts was nerve wracking. My worries were quickly laid to rest once Lady Henrietta saw her gift, she squealed in surprise and proceeded to hug me tightly. 
“It’s so cute! Did you make it?” She held the soft gift depicting a feather close to her face to inspect it.
“Yes.” I glanced at the twins to catch their reactions.
Lady Violet’s eyes lit up brighter than Lady Henrietta’s,
“It is indeed very cute,” her tone was calm and when our eyes met there was a hint of shock before the usual calm demeanor returned to them.
You are very cute. Lady Daisy was swinging hers around as if she was wielding a sword, albeit it was too soft and small to do any damage. When Lady Violet thought we were distracted by Lady Daisy she fawned over her gift which resembled a calico, she carefully stroked it over the head. I felt light as a feather as I sat amongst my friends, I felt free. Lady Henrietta’s excitement and hidden childish nature was comforting, Lady Daisy’s energetic and playful attitude was refreshing, and Lady Violet’s hidden embarrassment was silly. If only everyday could be like this…