Read Online God Save the Queen by Amanda Dacyczyn - Free Book Online
Authors: Amanda Dacyczyn
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appearance as the almost new Empress of Russia. LaGard had explained it to me earlier that day during the meeting that it was the most important ball of my life, besides the Coronation Ball, which would be held on my eighteenth birthday, when the whole world would know who I was. Tonight, however, only a few representatives from certain countries would know exactly what my secret was. This included ambassadors from the U.K., France, Spain, the U.S., and other nations that would be key allies during my rule. Oh, how I was looking forward to the stimulating conversations I would be having with them, probably all politics and economic discussions. Wonderful.
When I snapped back to reality, I realized I was in the hallway outside of the ballroom. I could hear the music playing as other members of my court slowly made their way out and then down the grand staircase. As I looked around I was aware that even though no one was supposed to know who I was, my outfit was slightly more elaborate than everyone else’s. I also noted that, at least in my court, I was the only woman in a deep purple dress. So I wasn’t as incognito as I thought I was going to be. But then I remembered that the ballroom was going to be darker, so maybe people wouldn’t notice. Or maybe it was one of LaGard’s idea to have me wear a unique color so that one of the V.I.P.s could find me and then bore me to death about stuff I wasn’t really interested in or even understood. No maybes about it, I thought; that was the exact reason.
Suddenly I felt someone pulling at me. Of course I wasn’t sure who it was, but the next thing that I knew I was making my way down the grand staircase. It was coated with fake cobwebs and other eerie Halloween items. They had even gotten each step to creak as you stepped on them. That was when I finally got the finished look of the room before me.
The room looked a lot better than it had this morning. The purple light actually darkened the surroundings slightly more, yet you were still able to see. All of the windows looked as though they hadn’t been touched in years. So did the tables, which were cobwebbed from the edges to the floor, reminding me of Miss Havisham’s dilapidated dining room. Unlike that scene in Dickens’ Great Expectations, however, there was no petrified, moldy wedding cake, but a spectacular spread. Now I began to understand why Mrs. Rontes was all frantic this morning. She had really knocked herself out for this party. Finally, I was amazed by the guests on the dance floor.
They were really, really into this ball, and that attitude was infectious. As I looked around I saw that I wasn’t the only one who looked as if I had stepped in from another century. Many of the men were wearing suits that could have dated back to the days of Peter the Great. Others were wearing tuxes but an older-looking style, from the 1920s, maybe. The women were costumed in period styles ranging from Louis XVI to the Roaring Twenties. The band was even costumed to look like the court orchestra of one of the Esterházy princes--powdered wigs and all.
Apparently I had been so captivated by the sights around me because suddenly I lost my footing and I felt myself start to go down. Almost as soon as I felt myself falling, I glimpsed a hand flying out of nowhere and grab me before I was able to start a domino-effect mass accident on all the people in front of me. As quickly as I could, I regained myself and headed down the stairs. Thank goodness I was about ten feet away from the bottom.
Once I made it down the staircase to safe ground, I turned to thank my savior for saving me from my first public disaster. He was a very tall man in a black pinstripe suit that was slightly dusted, along with his face to simulate the zombie look. Part of the reason he seemed so tall
When I snapped back to reality, I realized I was in the hallway outside of the ballroom. I could hear the music playing as other members of my court slowly made their way out and then down the grand staircase. As I looked around I was aware that even though no one was supposed to know who I was, my outfit was slightly more elaborate than everyone else’s. I also noted that, at least in my court, I was the only woman in a deep purple dress. So I wasn’t as incognito as I thought I was going to be. But then I remembered that the ballroom was going to be darker, so maybe people wouldn’t notice. Or maybe it was one of LaGard’s idea to have me wear a unique color so that one of the V.I.P.s could find me and then bore me to death about stuff I wasn’t really interested in or even understood. No maybes about it, I thought; that was the exact reason.
Suddenly I felt someone pulling at me. Of course I wasn’t sure who it was, but the next thing that I knew I was making my way down the grand staircase. It was coated with fake cobwebs and other eerie Halloween items. They had even gotten each step to creak as you stepped on them. That was when I finally got the finished look of the room before me.
The room looked a lot better than it had this morning. The purple light actually darkened the surroundings slightly more, yet you were still able to see. All of the windows looked as though they hadn’t been touched in years. So did the tables, which were cobwebbed from the edges to the floor, reminding me of Miss Havisham’s dilapidated dining room. Unlike that scene in Dickens’ Great Expectations, however, there was no petrified, moldy wedding cake, but a spectacular spread. Now I began to understand why Mrs. Rontes was all frantic this morning. She had really knocked herself out for this party. Finally, I was amazed by the guests on the dance floor.
They were really, really into this ball, and that attitude was infectious. As I looked around I saw that I wasn’t the only one who looked as if I had stepped in from another century. Many of the men were wearing suits that could have dated back to the days of Peter the Great. Others were wearing tuxes but an older-looking style, from the 1920s, maybe. The women were costumed in period styles ranging from Louis XVI to the Roaring Twenties. The band was even costumed to look like the court orchestra of one of the Esterházy princes--powdered wigs and all.
Apparently I had been so captivated by the sights around me because suddenly I lost my footing and I felt myself start to go down. Almost as soon as I felt myself falling, I glimpsed a hand flying out of nowhere and grab me before I was able to start a domino-effect mass accident on all the people in front of me. As quickly as I could, I regained myself and headed down the stairs. Thank goodness I was about ten feet away from the bottom.
Once I made it down the staircase to safe ground, I turned to thank my savior for saving me from my first public disaster. He was a very tall man in a black pinstripe suit that was slightly dusted, along with his face to simulate the zombie look. Part of the reason he seemed so tall
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