Selphie had stars in her eyes as she walked down Winhill's small but serviceable fashion district beside Rinoa. She hadn't gone to a masquerade ball in over four years and had missed the experience more than anything. She liked shopping but truly loved parties. Each of the buildings they passed had perfectly trimmed greenery and flowers decorating their sidewalks. Glass windows with beautiful displays taunted potential shoppers to come and see what's inside. Ballari had already bought a forest green dress from the Siren Boutique and was spending the rest of the day inside Kadowaki Bookstore.

Rinoa was still undecided and Selphie kept twirling her umbrella in annoyance. Selphie surprisingly bought the first dress she saw, a yellow dress from a lesser-known shop that needed only a few modifications. But due to the color, she couldn't find the right slippers to go with it. Nothing that the stores had on offer seemed to match such a bright hue and Selphie refused to have dancing slippers that didn't match. A sky blue fabric caught Rinoa's eye and Rinoa stopped to look at at the window displaying it.

"Sefie, let's go in here?" Rinoa started walking in and Selphie followed.

A portly woman with gray hair from behind the counter stepped towards the two women and another smaller woman took their coats and umbrellas. "Good afternoon ladies and welcome to Shiva's. How may we be of service to you?"

"Good afternoon, ma'am. I would very much like to try the blue dress on display." Rinoa said while pointing towards it. Selphie took a seat on one of the waiting chairs and drummed her fingers on the armrest while looking around.

"Of course you may. " the graying woman snapped her fingers and suddenly two more women came to remove the dress from its display. "If you please." Rinoa nodded and followed the older woman to the back rooms.

After what seemed like an eternity, Selphie got bored of waiting and stood up to walk around and look at some of the clothes. Just as she began doing so, a brown haired woman immediately appeared at her side. "Do you need any help?" she asked in a trained voice.

"Excuse me, aren't these clothes for men?" Selphie asked while scrunching her nose at a black and white pinstriped suit jacket. Just as the woman was about to answer, Rinoa and the trio of saleswomen emerged from the changing rooms. "Oh wow! Rin that looks great with your hair color!" Rinoa stood in front of three full-length mirrors, which were angled in such a way that she could see her sides. As she was getting a better look at the dress, the women continued to adjust the dress to fit her properly. Rinoa smiled and tried her best to stay still and quiet, as pins were being put in through the dress at various points.

"As I was going to say, these are not men's clothes. They are actually high fashion designs by Xu." The brunette said.

Selphie took a pair of pants from the rack and waved them at Rinoa, "Look Rin! Trousers for women! Now there's something that will NEVER happen!" Rinoa craned her neck to look at the pants and raised an eyebrow. She had worn trousers herself a few times when helping with the gardening at Trepe Manor but decided against saying anything at present.

"I have to agree." The saleswoman sighed. "Between us, Xu's fashions aren't doing that well. None of them have sold from here in the past month. Xu's main investor, a Quistis Trepe has been running a large debt because of it."

"Did you say Quistis?" Rinoa abruptly turned around until a few needles poked her and she grimaced. The women fussing about Rinoa's body tugged her back into position and the gray haired woman made a smacking noise with her cheeks in annoyance.

"Yes, it's well known that Lady Quistis Trepe is the main sponsor behind Xu's fashions in Deling City. These fashions were the biggest thing for only one season, it didn't do well outside of Deling since most women…"

Rinoa's forehead creased with worry as the woman continued to talk about Quistis' mistake in putting all her money towards the Xu fashion house. Fashions meant for men but made for women, that sounds just like something Quistis would do… I hope she's all right.


After they finished having afternoon tea at a small cafe, Rinoa, Ballari and Selphie struggled to carry the boxes filled with masks, shoes, accessories and dresses. While it was not unusual for women to go shopping, the three made quite a sight carrying their things across the town. Rinoa and Ballari had not expected to spend beyond their own dresses and alterations, but Selphie impressed upon them the need to get all the details just right. To get them to agree, she insisted on treating them just this once.

It was a beautiful day out but Selphie was still sulking over how she will never find matching shoes for the yellow dress she had picked out earlier. Ballari tried to console the girl by saying she had many other shoes that were as just fine as any but it would not do. They began their walk towards the carriages and passed an antique glass shop along the way. Selphie looked in the window and her eyes widened.

"I think I found my shoes!" Selphie squealed as she ran into the shop, dropping a box or two as she went up the steps. The other two women followed her in after picking them up. A bell rang as the glass door shut behind them and Selphie dropped the few boxes she didn't drop onto a chair. "How much for the glass slippers in the window?"

A middle-aged man with dark hair who was busy dusting other glass ornaments turned around and cleared his throat. "I wish I had a gil for each time a woman rushed into my store asking to try those on…"

"Well…?" Ballari asked. "How much?"

"Normally it would be three hundred gil but since there's not been a woman who has ever been able to fit into them... I'd be willing to part with them for two fifty. That is, if you can even get them on." The man brought the shoes to Selphie, who sat on a chair and slowly removed her shoes.

With Hyne as my witness I will fit into these! They're perfect for my dress and are just my style! Selphie gulped and placed her feet inside.

"Well! I'll be damned... You must have the smallest feet in all of Galbadia!" the old man cleared his throat as Selphie got up and spun in place as though she was doing ballet. Rinoa and Ballari shook their heads.

"WHOOHOO! I'll take them!" Selphie yelled as she continued to dance around.


The sun had since set and Lauren was walking down St. Zack's Street, one of the side streets of Deling City. The street was well lit and filled with exclusive upper-class men's clubs. Lauren had arrived in Deling for a weekend visit to her family's house and was still in her uniform underneath her long riding coat. She had often walked this particular path during her youth in the hopes of meeting handsome noblemen on her way home but more recently she walked the route purely out of habit. It was nearly the end of the season, and the amount of nobles expected to be in town were dwindling with every passing week.

Lauren turned a corner and saw a lone young gentleman dressed in a dark coat with the most exquisite cut she had ever seen. He was standing on the sidewalk and facing her general direction. The closer she came to him, she noticed he had an extremely white starched neckcloth and his face was mostly obscured by his top hat.

"Pardon me." Lauren had meant to to walk past him but for whatever reason she suddenly could not make herself move. She felt herself come to a complete halt right in front of him and could do little else but stare at his chest. Could he be any bloody taller? The man continued to stand still and finally she felt herself able to slowly look up towards his face. He had blond hair, extremely fair skin and looked to be about 20 years old. His elegant dress, his flawless face, and the manner in which he carried himself stunned Lauren speechless.

He took off his hat and began to speak "Who to the stars uncrowns your majesty…" when Lauren didn't answer he asked, "Pray, may I have the pleasure of knowing your name?"

"L-Lauren. My name is Lauren, sir." She managed to stammer out while staring directly into his green eyes.

"My dear Lauren, I would sooner die than be separated from beauty such as yours." Lauren just barely contained a giddy laugh as the control she had over her body was slowly coming back to her.

This is a chance and I'm not questioning it. "Why, you flatter me, sir." Lauren fluttered her eyelids, finding herself playing the part of an innocent young maiden.

"Would you do me the honor of accompanying me to the Count's soiree?" he held out a gloved hand, waiting for her reply.

"I am but a poor maid of the Leonhart family, sir. I do not think such a thing would ever be appropriate." Lauren turned away and lowered her head, moving as though she were to leave but was clearly hesitating.

"Indeed you are. I am a member of the Almasy family and I care not for what you think is appropriate." He reached out and Lauren took a step back, only to to be roughly pulled forward as his long arm quickly grabbed at the silver lapel on Lauren's coat. The woolen fabric and Lauren's weight strained against his hand as he pulled further upwards to let her see what he was looking at. It was the Leonhart family crest of a lion, which he knew was named Griever.

Lauren allowed her hand to cover his and smirked as he lowered her down; she knew very well how much the Almasy family hated the Leonharts. "You know?"

"Which is why I intend to make your acquaintance, for tonight shall be a favorable occasion." He put her arm around his and the two began to walk towards Count Kashkbald's manor.

Lauren smiled, "So it shall."