I Am Bree - Book 1

Chapter 9 - Rainbows and Tears

*Since I couldn't find any pictures/designs that really suited my imagination, I decided to draw something which will give you a tiny idea of what Bree's dress would have looked like...I'm not a great artist, so you'll have to use your imagination a great deal, but at least you'll have a starting point, right?? XP

Greta and I had no time to fix up the gowns I was given, so I would be forced to wear them the way they were. I dreaded the dawning of each day, hoping and praying that it wouldn't be the day they decided it was time to leave. Adella was having some new things made, and they were toying with the idea of leaving on the thirteenth—almost three days before the first ball.

In the mean time, I was set to work ironing and starching until I could hardly stand by the end of the day, for while Adella had her new things, Flora and Annabella had to make do with their last year's dresses or go without. Dotty stayed up for hours, hardly getting a wink of sleep as she made sure the gowns were fixed and altered to the latest styles. Greta, however, she was the busiest of us all. The girls were so worried that something wasn't going to go right that they downed twice as much food as usual, and Greta nearly killed herself trying to keep up with them.

"It'll be a wonder if they can still fit into their finery when they reach the city!" Greta told me, wiping sweat form her brow with the back of the hand that constantly held her cooking spoons these days. "I doubt if the other guests at the ball will be able to eat anything after they arrive." On the other side of the room, Ava laughed heartily as she scrubbed away at the pile of endless dishes.

"Will they even be able to fit inside the door?" She chirped, sending soap suds flying as she laughed again.

I laughed with her at the thought but only halfheartedly. I wasn't really nervous about going, but the prospect of seeing so many new people was a formidable concept. Not only would I have to deal with that, but also there was the problem of my shabby wardrobe. In those loose-fitting gowns, I would be laughed out of society, and honestly, my family wouldn't be able to avoid the threat of scandal.

In essence, I was scared. Father was no longer there to comfort me, and I had to face it all alone. Greta wouldn't even be there to comfort me when I returned from  long night of standing alone in my frumpy finery.

"There we are. Take that to her ladyship." Greta handed me a tray a niceties she had just finished. "Aren't you supposed to be leaving one of these days?" She asked, and I could hear the exhaustion in her voice and hoped for her sake that we would be leaving soon.

"I don't know." I answered honestly, attempting to give her a reassuring smile. "I'm still a servant and won't be allowed to get my two cents in on the planning. Madame's been talking about leaving on the thirteenth." I shrugged. Greta turned on me, her brows knit together.

"But, that's today." She said. I frowned, too.

"No, it can't be." I began mentally counting off the days that had passed since they'd decided to drag me along. Six. Today was the thirteenth. How could I have lost so much track of time?

Without saying anything to Greta, I raced up to the drawing room where Mother, Flora, and Annabella were doing embroidery. Of course, that was why Adella had been going into town every day this past week. She was nervous about her dresses not being ready in time. They'd all been on edge, come to think of it, and I had been too busy dreading the passing of time to realize.

"Pass me the tray, Annabella, dearest." Mother said absentmindedly as I entered the room. She had abandoned her sewing and was looking over several papers which I suspected to be bills. "Adella will be back soon, Angela, and you'll need to get some more food."