“Very well, then. My dear Alex and I do have other issues to deal with, but I hope you will keep in mind that we have not forgotten you even if we might not have answers for you quickly.” The faint smile when Elena said “dear Alex” gave Isabella the tiniest twinge of jealousy. She knew who “Alex” was — the Godmother’s Champion and also her husband. To be a Godmother with all that power and to have a truly beloved partner seemed… a little unfair.
Don’t be ridiculous. She probably earns it twenty times over.
“Take care, Isabella. And be ready for my next gift very soon.” The mirror fogged over, and the Godmother was gone.
8
BELLA SUCCESSFULLY RESISTED THE TEMPTATION TO SIT and look into the mirror for the rest of the afternoon. Instead, she decided to follow the Godmother’s orders — they couldn’t be called “advice,” given how they were delivered — and find out as much as she could about the invisibles.
One thing was certain — the Godmother knew something about these creatures, and what Bella had told her had taken her completely by surprise. For a Godmother to be surprised, something quite unusual was going on.
She wasn’t going to be foolish, however. She would try and make her inquiries casual, and put no pressure at all on the creature. If Sapphire answered a question, all well and good. If she didn’t, Bella would let it drop for now.
After she unlocked her door and put the mirror away, she was pretty certain that rummaging through her closet would make Sapphire appear, especially when she began taking things out and laying them on the bed. The servant seemed very… proprietary …about Bella’s wardrobe. And Bella had gotten the impression that Sapphire would have been better pleased if her “charge” liked to change her clothing two and three times a day, as Genevieve did.
Sure enough, she hadn’t gotten more than a gown and two skirts out when her door opened and the blue ribbon appeared, bobbing toward her in what looked like an agitated manner. One of the skirts lifted off the bed, as Sapphire attempted to return it to the closet.
Bella held out a hand, preventing her. “I really do not like these things at all, Sapphire,” she said, frowning at them. “They don’t suit me. I don’t really like this gown much, either. I’d rather be rid of them.”
The ribbon fled toward the little dressing table and returned with the slate and chalk. “Y not?” was scribbled on the surface. “V prity. V V prity.” The words were erased and others took their place. “U r v prity, shud wer prity things.” Aha. Sapphire did disapprove of her wardrobe choices!
This put paid to any fears she still had about the nature of this one of the servants, at least. Here was a creature who understood and adored female fashions, whose heart, invisible though it might be, fluttered at the sight of ruffles and lace. Whatever else she was, Sapphire was no different than Marguerite, the twins’ maid, whose heart broke every time Bella put on one of the severely plain gowns she preferred, and who nearly went wild with happiness when Bella brought her back a frivolous little bit of frippery from the warehouse for her very own.
“These things might suit my stepsisters, maybe, but they are not for me. I can’t really do anything in this gown except sit and read, or sit and embroider. I like gowns that let me — well — do things. Nice, plain ones. And I don’t like fussy colors, like pink, or pale blue, or white. They don’t suit me, and I’m not suited to a gown like this. I’m sure I look like a donkey in a bonnet in it.” She took out another gown and laid it on the bed. Sapphire immediately tried to put it back.
“Sapphire, look at this dress!” she exclaimed. “Tight sleeves — you can’t reach for things, or lift things without popping the seam open. And look here. Lace and ruffles that get caught on everything and tear.” She shook her head. “That just isn’t me. I want clothing that lets me feel like myself, not like a stranger. Even if I don’t actually look ridiculous, I feel ridiculous.”
Sapphire stopped. “We R sposed to mak U hapi.”
“Well, these gowns don’t make me happy. They make me feel as if I was being smothered in whipped cream,” she said decisively, and added as if the question was of no real consequence, “Who told you to make me happy?”
“Duk,” Sapphire replied immediately.
Well…that was kind of him… “Sebastian might have told you to make me happy, but I know he didn’t order these gowns, so that must have been the King’s doing. Sebastian would probably have figured I could use whatever clothing there might still be in storage here.” Assuming he thought about it at all. And she had brought with her a perfectly good wardrobe. “Hmph.”
The King had in turn probably just ordered that clothing be sent with her. Whatever underling he had that he trusted with this had found out her approximate size and made a raid on seamstresses. That made sense; the gown she had on now was only an approximate fit. She hadn’t thought about it at the time, but when Sapphire had been putting her into it, she had been adjusting it via tapes and ties and lacings. Ready-made gowns were often put together that way, and if the buyer had the extra money, they would be tailored to fit. “The King’s steward would have taken care of this, and he probably doesn’t have any better sense about gowns than Sebastian, but he sees a lot of them at Court. He must think that every female has to look like a wedding cake exploded all over her or she will not be content.”
The slate and chalk began jiggling; the ribbon was shaking. For a moment, Bella thought that the poor invisible was frightened, but then she realized that Sapphire was laughing. She smiled. It felt very good to smile.
“Have we got anyone here that can do something about these bonbons?” she asked. “If you’ll have them altered, I’ll wear them, but not as they are now. I can sew a little, but not enough to make these things sensible. I’ll put up with the colors, but if I see one more ruffle, I might turn into a pillar of sugar.”
“Yes,” Sapphire replied. “Sho me wut u want.”
