! *crawls out from under a rock* Yeah, I don't know where the last two months have gone either. You have the lull between my internship and classes starting, as well as TabathaBrewer's loving kick in the tush for this! ;) Oh, and that Big Damn Prompt Challenge going on for two more weeks *headdesk*! This chapter's prompt is: ~Contest~
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DG thought this felt like one of the longest birthdays ever. But not in a good way.
DG's parents thought it would be a good idea to start accepting offers to court her this year. It had been three years since the Eclipse and they felt 'it was time.'
DG disagreed. She rather enjoyed single life. She was finally used to the OZ again. She knew its regions, most of its customs, and had a fair amount of friends.
And though she had connected with many young men her own age, and was attracted to some, she never thought of them as her 'Happily Ever After.'
So when a few of them showed up as suitors, DG was more than a little put out. She was afraid turning them down would put a damper on their friendship. She could tell some of them were there more by their parents' request than their own so that made it only slightly better.
Oh well. At least she didn't have to make a decision today. She smiled at the last suitor as he was introduced and they chatted for a few minutes.
Charming. Two sisters. From the Low-Lands. Two years older than her. How interesting…
She was just about to say, what now sounded rehearsed, 'it was nice to meet you…' line when he spoke his own version.
"Well, I don't want to take up any more of your time than I have to. But I do appreciate the chance I was given to speak with you, Your Highness."
DG's smile was somewhat genuine as he approached the dais. What was his name? Jonathon?
He presented her with a gorgeous blown glass vase with flecks of what she assumed to be flakes of real gold throughout the iridescent pink glass. It held some of the more exotic flowers that she'd seen yet that day. They were beautiful. But they were yet another type of flower that would most likely give her the sniffles if she got too close.
'Another bought and paid for gift,' she thought sadly.
Though she had to give him kudos for the blown glass. It was unique. Still, it wasn't like he did it himself.
"Happy Birthday, Princess DG," he said reverently before kissing her on the cheek as was custom.
Nothing like a flower and a kiss to say 'I want to date you,' despite most likely only meeting five minutes beforehand…
He didn't try and linger like some of the men had done, for which she was thankful.
After her quiet thanks he left and she was finally alone. She stared at the carpet where each of her numerous suitors had stood and sighed. Many faces swam in front of her and she could only remember a handful of names. Oh well. She could ask Glitch to make her a cheat sheet.
She finally arose from her seat and straightened her dark green gown. It hung simply from her corseted waist, the silver thread throughout the material shimmering. Her sleeves billowed out at the elbows and DG fought a smile at the somewhat medieval fashion sense the OZ women seemed to have. She rather liked it most days, though she did occasionally miss her jeans.
But now it was time to get ready for the ball tonight. A mixer of sorts, with a fancier dress than usual, and fortunately, she was getting used to them. And then the rounds of one-on-one time each of the suitors were allotted. She would narrow down the field tonight during the ball. She felt like she was on one of those ridiculous Bachelorette contest shows from the Otherside.
She laughed aloud at that thought.
Yeah. Right.
