A Perfect World

Chapter 31

AELIN POV

"This isn't too bad," Aelin said as she straightened the collar of her evening wear. It was quite plain compared to what she had usually worn as evening wear, but at least she didn't have to wear that same grey dress to the ball. "Don't you think?" But Elide wasn't paying any attention to her at all. The girl was busy poring over the scrolls that Fenrys had delivered to their room. "Elide?" she tried again. 

Elide finally looked at here, annoyed as hell. "You look great, Aelin. Now, don't forget to tell them that I'm dreadfully ill and didn't want to infect the amazing pastries I slaved over all day."

Aelin knew she was being a brat. She really did. She should have faked sick too and helped Elide search for answers. She should have been trying to contact Aedion. She should be trying to figure out some sort of useful thing to do. Instead, she was fussing over her appearance even  though no one would look twice at her at the ball. But what else was there for her to do? Sure she had managed to use a bit of her fire magic but she still couldn't shift, which meant that she couldn't access all of it. It wasn't like fighting would get her anywhere either, unless she marched back to Wendlyn and picked a fight with Galan. Gods, she felt like she was in fucking limbo. 

She was still stewing when a knock sounded at the door. Elide quickly stashed her scrolls under her bed and pulled her covers over her head, pretending to be asleep. When Aelin opened the door, a maid she didn't know peeked her head in. 

"We need someone to receive the guest of honor. Interested?"

"Why me?"

"No reason," the girl said, "Beats serving pastries."

"I think I'd rather serve pastries than follow around some noble," Aelin replied. The point of her acting as a maid was to make herself invisible. Escorting the guest of honor, whoever the hell that was, would put her directly in the spotlight. 

Another whisper sounded from behind them. A second maid popped her head in. 

"Please," the second girl asked, "Lady Remelle is a total nightmare. No one likes to deal with her and for good reason. She's absolutely awful." 

"You're really not doing a good job at convincing me to take your place."

"I'll owe you!" she said, falling to her knees, "Any favor, any time."

"Look," the first girl said, "You're new, so if you mess up you'll get a free pass. Neither of us can afford to lose this job." 

--

It wasn't the desperation in their voices that led Aelin to agree. Rather, it was her own desperation to feel like she was doing something worthwhile with her life. A half hour later, Aelin was in a tea room near the Grand Ballroom with a host of other maids awaiting their honored guests. Whoever she was about to be dealing with would not be pleasant. Of course, she had already figured that out from the situation that led her to even being there. The nervous silence that filled the tea room was only confirmation. 

They didn't have to wait long before the doors of the tea room swung open to reveal their anticipated guests. She could only assume that the female at the front of the party was Lady Remelle. For all her gorgeousness, there was a vain sneer that radiated from every pore of her being. It was obvious that the female was well aware that her porcelain skin and rosy complexion was envied by every person in the room. It would be hard to miss the satisfaction that gleamed in her cerulean eyes. Indeed, she was loaded with enviable features, right down to the fitted dress she wore. Now that was certainly something Aelin wished she owned. It clung to every curve in swaths of blue silk that brought out her eyes. A tiara full of matching sapphires was nestled in a pile of her pale blonde hair. Lady Remelle may not have been royalty, but she definitely looked the part.