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"Yes, I'm up," I say dryly, pulling a robe over my usual barely-there nightgown that I'm wearing. I'm not sure who could sleep with someone banging things around practically over their head.
I feel stiff and sore from yesterday as I move around, but all my cuts seem to have healed. I will have to check my wings later when I have some privacy.
"It's all over the castle, King Aiden is holding a ball to officially re-introduce you to society," she says delightedly, clapping her hands together in excitement.
Although a part of me is annoyed that Aiden didn't talk this over with me before planning it, another part of me is over the moon. What girl doesn't dream about going to a fairy tale ball with her fairy tale prince? Although in my case it's a king, who is actually my long-lost husband, who saved me from a life of pain and torture when I was about to be forced into marriage with a deranged lunatic. But a balls a ball right?
Gwenny's muttering about how everything needs to be perfect and how there's so much to get done. She practically pushes me to the table. I'm surprised she doesn't shovel the food into my mouth as well with how impatient she seems.
"When is this ball?" I ask, my mouth half full of food.
"Why, tonight," Gwenny tells me. Suddenly, her anxiety makes sense. I can't go to a ball tonight, I have nothing to wear! I don't know the fairy dances. What if I don't use the right silverware? I immediately feel ridiculous at my train of thoughts. I'm a magical queen in a castle full of other magical beings. I'm sure someone can handle making me a dress. As for all of the other things, I amtheQueen. I'm pretty sure everyone just has to kind of accept everything I do. Which is pretty good for a situation like this if you ask me.
My ears perk up when I catch the word dress in Gwenny's continued ramblings.
"Who's making my dress?" I ask her, setting my fork down from finishing stuffing myself.
Gwenny blushes. "I am, Your Majesty. My family is famous all over Tir Na Nog for their exquisite dresses."
She gets a determined look in her eye.
"You will have the most beautiful dress this land has ever seen."
The day passes in a blur and I find myself wishing I was participating in flying lessons or magic lessons even with the risk of being attacked by killer crows or having Aiden growl at me. Gwenny is a perfectionist I've learned, and I spend the day being poked and prodded as she creates my dress. I expect Aiden to appear at some point in the day, but he never does. I would have thought with the events of yesterday he would be close by, but I suppose he has a lot to prepare for to get the palace ready for a ball. The timing still seems strange to me but perhaps he had it planned for a while and was going to surprise me.
After what seems like years of "holding still" while Gwenny does "just one more thing", she hustles me into a bath she has prepared. She's poured some sort of oil into the water that makes my skin feel like velvet, and that smells faintly like almonds. I walk into the bedroom afterward and gasp in amazement. In the short time I was in the bath, Gwenny finished my dress. She has it displayed on a mannequin that has magically appeared in my room. It's a glimmering gold color that looks like it's going to fit me like a second skin. It has a sweetheart neckline that dips daringly low on the mannequin and I'm sure will fit even lower on my larger chest. It's form fitting until it gets right below the knee where it fishtails out in a flare to the floor. The material is a shiny, satin material. It's the most beautiful dress I've ever seen.
"Do you like it?" Gwenny nervously asks, wringing her hands while she waits for my answer.
"I love it," I say as I walk around it, trailing my hand along the smooth fabric.
"I wanted to do justice for The Golden Queen," she says. "Not that it's possible to do that," she adds.
"It will be the prettiest dress at the ball," I tell her. She beams at the comment and goes to work getting me ready for the party.
She brushes my hair what must be a hundred times until it lays, gleaming, against my back. Then, with a wave of her hand, my hair curls into perfect ringlets. It's a nifty trick that I will need her to teach me if I ever get control of my magic. She then opens a jar from off the table and begins to pull out tiny, sparkly gold jewels that she places strategically in my hair.
"There's no need for makeup on a face like that," she says. But I think a bit of a gold glitter will go with the theme we're going for.
"Is this a themed ball?" I ask her.
"Not exactly. But the Fae always dress to impress at events like these dearie. Not that we've had an event this exciting before," she tells me, chortling to herself.
She then takes a brush and dusts gold powder all over my cheekbones, across my eyes, and across my forehead. She also dabs a cream that's a rose gold color all over my lips.
"Perfect," she whispers looking at the final product. "Now, let's get you in that dress."
For the first time since waking up here I take my time picking a set of lingerie to wear. I look through each piece carefully until I come across a gold encrusted set that looks like it was made for the dress. I somehow feel stronger as I put it on, like it's some kind of armor for the night ahead of me. Gwenny gives me a nod of approval when she sees my outfit, no doubt thinking that I've picked it for Aiden. I blush but say nothing. I'm sure most of the castle thinks that Aiden and I already have a romantic relationship going.
I step into the dress and stare at myself while she fastens the hooks in the back. Despite the fact that my magic isn't working quite right, or the fact that I almost died yesterday during flying lessons, today I feel like I can wear the moniker of "The Golden Queen."
I hardly recognize myself as I stare in the mirror. I look how I would picture a fairy queen should look with the gold dust sparkling across my features, and my hair dripping in jewels. Having my wings out would complete the otherworldly look I have going. However, since my wings seem to be an anomaly among the Fae, it's probably best that I keep them in while getting to meet some of my people for the first time.
Gwenny is bouncing on her toes and practically glowing as she looks at me. I'm wondering when I should head down to the party when there's a knock on the door.
"That will be King Aiden," she says with delight, giving me a little bit of déjà vu from the first time that I woke up in the room and he knocked on the door. Unlike the time before when I just wanted answers and wasn't really thinking about anything else, I'm nervous. This is the first time he's seen me dressed up and for some reason I really care what he thinks. I anxiously smooth down the invisible wrinkles in my dress as Gwenny walks to the door to open it instead of just telling him to come in, assumedly so we can get the full effect of seeing each other in our outfits.
The door opens and my mouth drops. Aiden is stunning. He's dressed in what looks similar to a military uniform. It's much more similar to the suits that men would wear on Earth than the tights and loose shirts that I've seen him in every day. There's a glittering gold sash across his fitted, long sleeve shirt, and he's wearing perfectly pressed suit like pants. His black hair is slicked back elegantly, showcasing his perfect features. He's a dream.
