"Face powder."

The swish swash of the brush as it moved across already porcelain skin.

"Now, eyeliner."

The woman surveyed her features in the vanity dresser's oval mirror. Her eyes observed, judged."It's doable."

The maid at her side breathed out quickly, then retook the gust of air just as fast. She didn't want the woman to see her relief, to find her incompetent.

The woman stood up slowly, yet with an elegance that the maid did not think belonged to this world. "Mercy?" she called.

The girl in question raised her head leisurely from the pile of pillows. "You already know how you look. So why do you bother asking me to confirm the obvious?"

The maid flushed. The redhead's disrespect was just too much. But the woman just twitched her lips in her the almost smile that she occasionally revealed. "Why", she said, "There is a compliment in there somewhere."

The redhead rested her head on her pale arm. The maid shifted. Suddenly she questioned herself why she was here? Didn't she work at the palace? She couldn't remember walking up these stairs, coming into this room….

The woman saw her confusion. She looked her straight in the eyes and said in a low but firm voice, "Your work here is done. Go back to your dull life."

The maid felt her mind become clear, so clear. Of course. She was just about to approach the stairs, when a figure descended them, walking past her in a stressed manner. "Miss Pamela", he began. "A letter for you."

The woman's eyes flickered over the words. Her pupils narrowed, and her hands folded the paper, handing it back to the messenger.

"Just a second, Lily. You'll be useful after all." To the messenger, she said. "Prepare the horses. We'll be going to Louisiana."