Sewing in a crowded room. What a great way to spend one's birthday, Solstice thought.
A sharp rap broke her concentration. She sighed. Five more minutes and she would be finished with Princess Channary's dress. Solstice set down her work and rose to open the door.
A messenger stood at attention just outside. "Urgent message from the queen and her daughters for Solstice Kaur."
"That's me," Solstice said quietly.
"Please report to the throne room immediately."
Why would the queen need to see her? Channary's fitting wasn't for another hour. Had someone made a mistake with the time? As she followed the stone-faced sentry out of the room, she snuck a quick glance at the clock on the wall. Solstice gasped and slammed her eyes shut. The fitting was supposed to be at noon, not at one, and now she was fifteen minutes late! She kicked herself mentally. How could she have been so stupid? Breathing deeply, she reminded herself not to say anything about the time change. If she wasn't careful, the queen would easily have her hauled away and killed in a heartbeat.
She considered all possible outcomes of her mistake. Would she be fired? Imprisoned? Killed? Regardless, she knew she would never see Evret again. Solstice followed the messenger numbly through the maze of halls and tried not to think about how outraged the queen and princess would be.
Finally, they arrived in front of the hulking doors to the throne room. Two angry-looking guards heaved the doors apart, slowly revealing Queen Jannali and her daughters. They were all so beautiful, so regal… nonetheless, Solstice heard a quiet, nagging voice somewhere in the back of her mind. It's not real. They're lies, tricks. Glamours. Don't compare yourself. Solstice used her glamour too, of course, though often just to make her small, petite frame appear taller.
Another serious and silent guard ushered Solstice in closer to the royals. This was her first time being called in alone and she was oblivious to any strict protocol. She held herself as still as possible and hoped the queen wouldn't see how hard she was shaking under the three piercing glares of the sovereigns. Even Levana, at only six or seven, had a scowl that could scare anyone.
The queen coughed very quietly, but in the otherwise silent room, it echoed off every wall. "Solstice Kaur. My best seamstress." Jannali's demure smile hid the biting edge in her voice that none but Solstice seemed to notice. "I believe you were assigned the honor of creating a new gown for my daughter Channary. The princess's lips twisted into something between a grimace and a smirk. "She was supposed to attend her final fitting today, was she not?"
Solstice swallowed the lump in her throat. "Yes, my Queen." Her focus was directed at one small tile between her shoes.
"I wonder then, why the seamstress decided we were not worth her time and that she had much better things to do than her job." The queen's voice remained level, but her smile was gone now and replaced by a much less attractive sneer.
Solstice glimpsed up quickly, and in doing so made eye contact with the guard standing behind Princess Levana's small gaudy chair. Evret. Solstice's eyes widened and she begged silently for him to do something. The look on his face was absolutely heartbreaking.
"Well?" The queen snapped. "Where was my seamstress?"
Solstice blinked several times. "We-well, you see, my Queen, I-well-I-got held up in my work." She looked up again in time to catch Evret give a tiny encouraging nod. "The-uh, the embroidery took a bit longer than expected. I-just want everything to be of the best quality for the princess." She centered her vision on the tile at her toes again.
The queen nodded slowly. "Yes, I see. And how much longer will it take you?"
"Ha-hardly anytime at all, your Majesty. Only a few moments. If I could just go get-" The queen silenced the seamstress with a delicate hand.
"We will have them brought to you and you will finish under my supervision. Then you will fit the dress as I decide your consequences."
Solstice's jaw fell and Evret's typical stern façade missed a beat.