chapter 1-The Garden
''Tap, tap, tap'', someone was knocking on the door I got up, anything to get me out of my lessons. Angelique stopped me "Miss, please let me", Angelique was a very kind woman she wasn't very young though, she had gray hair and wore tiny spectacles, and I fake bun that she pinned to her hair, I'd told her again and again she didn't have to call me miss, I just smiled and motioned me arm towards the door, I walked back to the table where my french novel, Madame Bovary lay. I watched as Angelique opened the doors after a second series of knocks on the door. The town messenger was standing there holding an envelope out to her, she took it and looked at the back then went upstairs with it most likely to take it to my mother, who was at the moment being fitted for a new dress. She would be having tea with the Mrs. Chateau next week. Mrs. Chateau had just moved to the small town of Berkshire, New Jersey with her family, they came from France, it made me wonder why they would want to come to this small town when they lived there but a lot of people just thought of America as the land of opportunities, the land of freedom. About twenty minutes later my mother came down the stairs with an excited smile on her face. "Victoria, I need to talk to you", she had the envelope in her hand , "Yes, mother?","This came today, it's an invitation there's going to be a ball at the town hall and I'm expecting you to go". She knew I hated getting corsets on and putting uncomfortable shoes on my feet, not like it really made a difference considering pretty much all shoes that a lady wears are uncomfortable, but i didn't really have a choice. "It's in two weeks, so you need to come with me to get fitted for a dress". I just responded with "Yes, mother", and followed her up the stairs into the room next to her and my father's bedroom, where my mother's and my dresses were kept, along with corsets, shoes, and jewelry. It was my mothers favorite room in the house. In there my mother's tailor was waiting next to a table with different fabrics and measuring rolls. She had a parchment along with a feather and ink bottle laying next to the fabrics, on it she had written the measurements for my mother's dressed. I watched as the tailor picked up one of the measuring rolls. The tailor looked at me and said "I think we should start on your measurements", she had me stand on a stool about 9 inches tall, then she started wrapping the measurement rolls around my waist, after all the measuring was done I went to the kitchen, where Anita was making lunch, chicken and vegetables with lemonade and some kind of french pastry. I went to grab one and Anita stopped me, "Your not going to be having any of that til lunch", Anita was nice but stubborn, she was Irish and had bright red curly hair, pale skin, and brown eyes. I was actually a little jealous of her red hair so beautiful compared to my light brown hair, dull and straight. So since I couldn't have any of the french pastries I left the kitchen and went to the garden. It was my favorite place to go, you had to walk down a trail to get there, it was surrounded by a hedge and beautiful fountains at the entrance. When you go into the garden you see all these beautiful flowers and a big fountain in the middle. Including this white arch that holds a swing. I went to the swing and sat down, then I heard footsteps, so I stood up alarmed that's when a rabbit hopped out from behind a shrub and i screamed. Then I realized it was just a rabbit and relaxed, and then the rabbit ran back. Then I heard someone so I looked up,"Who's there?" but no one answered so I left fast because i started to get kind of scared, but I just convinced myself it was the gardener.