When they had arrived at the Palace, the sun was shining and the sky was blue and there wasn't a cloud in the sky.
As she got out Danielle looked around at the palace, this would be the place she would spend the rest of her life, yet she still wasn't used to it. Hand in hand Danielle and Henry walked into the palace, the queen who was just coming in from her morning tea in the garden met them.
"Henry, you're back so soon, oh my dear Danielle, I heard you were ill, I do hope you are all right." The queen exclaimed as she saw them.
" Danielle is all right, she is better than all right, In fact, we have some great news, We are going to have a baby" Henry replied.
The queen was overwhelmed with happiness, she hugged them both. "This is wonderful news, oh I am going to be a grandmother, oh this is indeed a wonderful day."
The news soon spread and the visitors soon came pouring in to congratulate the Prince and Princess. Even Danielle's Childhood friend Gustave came to visit Danielle with news of his own.
"Gustave, what a surprise, I thought you had forgot about me, I haven't seen you in weeks!" Danielle exclaimed as she saw him walk in the door.
" I have been very busy, and I have something to tell you, Danielle you have been my best friend forever and your opinion means a lot to me and well I am to be married and I want you to meet my fiancé." He blurted out.
" Your getting married?" she said surprised.
"Yes, her name is Helene, and I know you will like her, her father is an artist, senior Da Vinci Introduced us, I've only known her 2 months, but I am truly in love with this woman, so will you meet her?"
"Of course Gustave, If it really means that much to you. Maybe tomorrow we can have lunch in the garden that would be nice, I haven't really had a chance to be in the gardens yet, but they are so beautiful."
Danielle said goodbye to Gustave and headed to the queen's sitting room where she was having tea with her that morning.
"Danielle, we are to have a ball, In honor of you and to celebrate the wonderful news of your baby, I have been planning this ball for weeks but I didn't know about the baby, so now we have more to celebrate." The queen announced.
Danielle was surprised " a ball, in honor of me, but why?"
"Oh darling, you have done so much for this family, without even knowing it, you've changed my son, I have never seen him so happy, and he and his father are actually getting along now and all of it is because of you."
"Well I was not aware that I had done that, but I am happy to do it and I can't wait for the ball. " She replied.
"Well that is wonderful, the royal dressmaker should arrive next week, and you shall have the most beautiful dress in all of France."
Meanwhile...
"Mother, I am never going to be married, no decent man would have me now, look at me, I look dreadful, why I look like...Danielle, my hair is dirty, my skin is rough and I have nothing to wear you sold all of my gowns to pay for this disgusting excuse for an apartment. We have no money!" Marguerite whined as she stood in front of a broken mirror looking at herself.
"You think I haven't sacrificed anything, I sacrificed my whole life for you, you ungrateful swine, Now it is time for you to sacrifice, I wrote a distant cousin of mine to ask to borrow money, his reply came this morning, He agreed to give us all the money and everything we would ever need, under one condition, you marry his son."
"What? I don't even know him, what if he is horrible and ugly?" she continued to whine.
"that is a sacrifice you will have to make. This is not a choice Marguerite, I am telling you to do it, and you will, this will secure us the life that we deserve. He has sent us 500 gold francs that should be enough to buy you a new gown and me as well and for our trip there. We will leave for Paris, tonight." Rodmilla demanded.
Marguerite stood there and looked at her surroundings, the moth eaten curtains, the chairs they had gotten off the street, and the bed she was forced to share with her mother, she hated this life, and would do anything to get out of that place, so she began to pack her things when her mother stopped her.
"Marguerite, what are you doing? you don't honestly think we are going to arrive there looking like peasants do you?"
"But you sold all my gowns, these are all I have" she shrieked.
Rodmilla walked over to the bed and pulled out a trunk from underneath it. sat it on the bed and opened it up.
"I had a friend borrow some clothes from your dear step sister, I don't think she will mind."
"You mean these belong to Danielle?"
"Yes, but you will only have to wear it until we get to Paris, there is a dressmaker there, she is the best in the Province, you'll look like a princess when we arrive at my cousins. He also gave me this beautiful sapphire necklace, It also belongs to Danielle, she probably won't even know it is gone. It is almost midnight; quickly put on that gown, our carriage will arrive any minute."
They quickly got into their "borrowed" dresses, and as Rodmilla stood looking out the window, waiting for the carriage to pull up, Marguerite looked at herself in the broken mirror, she hadn't worn a dress this beautiful in months, she twirled around and felt the soft velvet cloth, She felt like a queen, she had forgotten all about having to marry a complete stranger.
Rodmilla saw the carriage pull up, she closed the curtains, grabbed the bag of coins on the table, and then they left, forever closing the door to the life they thought they were destined to.
As she stepped into the carriage, Marguerite looked back at the old run down building she had called home for the past 3 months, she never wanted to return, she didn't know what lie ahead but she would do whatever it took to be wealthy. And just like that they were headed for Paris, they held each others hands and both had that devious grin on their faces that they had so many times before.
In the morning, the palace was in a state of chaos.
Danielle had awakened that morning, humming happily as she put on a dress, and fixed her hair. She then walked over to her vanity and opened her jewelry box, and was shocked when she couldn't find the necklace her mother gave her, she searched her box frantically, taking everything out until she looked over every inch of the box and around the box, she was flustered, she didn't know what happened to the necklace, she continued to search though everything, on the floor, in every drawer.
She went into her room and made a final attempt to find her necklace, she looked all over the bed for it, but she didn't find it, she finally realized, her necklace was gone. She sat on her bed distraught, biting her bottom lip, trying to remember when she had it last. Her chambermaid came into the room and quietly asked her " your highness, I am sorry to bother you but that light green dress, on that chair in your dressing room, did you move it?"
She looked at her and replied "no I didn't, why?"
"It is missing Madame, It is laundry day and I was going to send it to be washed, but this morning when I went to get it, It was gone. I've asked all the other maids, and no one knows where it is, we believe it was stolen sometime yesterday evening."
"Stolen?" Then it hit her; her mother's necklace had been stolen.
"Yes your highness, there was also a gown stolen from the queen's dressing chamber as well, and there also was some slippers and jewelry stolen." The chambermaid replied.
She stood there stunned, and in disbelief. "Henry, Henry, Come quick!" She shouted.
Henry who was in his dressing chamber, half dressed, quickly pulled a shirt over his head and ran to Danielle.
"What is it? Is it the baby? Are you okay?" He quickly spoke.
"Henry, My mother's necklace has been stolen" Danielle replied.
"Stolen? How did this happen?"
She began to cry as she whispered " I do not know I had it only yesterday."
"Your Highness, we believe a thief came yesterday while you were having dinner, they also took some of your mother's things as well." The maid announced to Henry.
"Does captain Laurent know about this?" He shouted.
He quickly stormed out of the room, Danielle following behind him, as he looked for the Captain.
As he was looking for Captain Laurent he ran into his Mother and Father,
"Father, have you seen Captain Laurent? Something Horrible has happened." He shouted.
"I know, your mothers prized possessions have been pilfered and I am going to get to the bottom of this immediately." The King announced.
"yes father, but the necklace Danielle's mother gave her is also missing."
The queen put her hand over her mouth in disbelief. The king was even more flustered now. Just then Captain Laurent came walking down the hall with many guards behind them.
"Your majesty, I think we know who stole the queen's jewelry and gown. The guard that was in charge of the royal bedchambers is missing. We believe he is the one who did it. There is more, Rodmilla De Ghent and her Daughter did not show up at work today, I went to their apartment and it was empty, they to have gone missing." Captain Laurent announced.
"What do you mean they are missing? You cannot find them?" the king shouted with anger.
"No your majesty, I have sent men everywhere possible, but so far they have found nothing."
Just then Jacqueline burst through the door with a letter clinched in her hand.
"Laurent, I found this letter on the door step of the manor, It doesn't tell much but It might help." She handed him the letter and he read it
I Jacqueline dear, I know in the past you have resented the things I've done but I can't do anything about it now, Your sister and I are traveling to my cousins, Marguerite is going to marry his son, If I never see you again, I just want you to know that everything I did was to better our lives, I may not have made many friends, but I tried, and I cannot help you anymore, you are a grown woman, and whether you like it or not you are my daughter- your mother /I
"Cousin? do you know where he lives?" Captain Laurent questioned Jacqueline.
"I wish I did, I do not, she had a cousin in Paris, but he died when I was young." she replied.
By the time all the commotion settled it was nearly noon, and Danielle had nearly forgotten about her garden lunch with Gustave and his fiancé. They were already sitting at the table when Danielle finally made her way to the Garden.
"Gustave, I am so glad to see you." She said as she sat down at the table across from Gustave and Helene.
"Danielle, this is Helene, my fiancé." He announced.
Danielle politely smiled at Helene and looked at her, She had long golden hair and her eyes were the color of the sky, she had fair skin and her dress was a deep burgundy, for it was nicer than he own.
"It is so nice to meet you Helene." Danielle spoke politely.
Helene, who wasn't paying attention to Danielle looked around at the garden and gazed up at the large castle. Danielle began to feel awkward and tried to make conversation.
"Do you like the Garden, It is very beautiful isn't it?"
she nodded her head and took her napkin out of the ring as the first course was served.
"So when are you going to get married?" Danielle asked with a hint of annoyance in her voice.
Gustave answered " well, we were thinking later this summer."
finally Helene spoke " No, No Gustave, early autumn" she said as she looked spitefully at Gustave.
"Are you going to be married at your manor?" Danielle continued to ask questions.
"It would be so lovely to get married here." Helene blurted out as she took a sip of her wine.
Danielle was feeling very awkward "Here? at the Palace? In the Garden? you want to have your wedding here, why I don't know if there is enough room for a wedding."
Helene stood up and walked over to a rose bush and picked a flower and put it in her hair as she spoke " You probably don't want us commoners getting married here, there seems to be enough room here to me, you are just a royal pig"
Danielle sat there in shock, of all things to be called, she was called a royal pig, her temper soon got the best of her.
" How dare you call me a royal pig ,I invite you here and you insult me, you are putting words into my mouth, I never said I didn't want you to have your wedding here, If it means that much to you, then yes you may have your wedding here, after all Gustave is my oldest and dearest friend." She shouted to Helene.
"Okay, if you insist, Did you hear that Gustave? she said we could have our wedding here in the garden." Helene said calmly.
Later that evening Henry and Danielle were sitting at the dinner table talking.
"I cannot believe the nerve of that girl, one minute she was calm and polite and the next she was calling me a royal pig!" Danielle exclaimed.
"She actually called you that?" Henry asked as he laughed.
"Yes, oh Henry, do you think your parents will mind if they have their wedding in the garden?"
"No, of course not, from what I hear he is the next Da Vinci, they will not mind him getting married here."
"good, I don't want to upset them, she just forced me into letting them get married here, I swear she reminds me of Marguerite, throwing a fit if she doesn't get her way."
It was almost noon when they arrived at the dressmakers in Paris. Rodmilla stepped out of the carriage and waited for her daughter to get out, but she didn't, She had fallen asleep in the carriage and was snoring contently.
"Marguerite, wake up we are here and if you are not out of this carriage in five seconds, I will come in there and get you myself." Rodmilla yelled to her daughter.
Marguerite slowly stepped out of the carriage, half sleeping and followed her mother into the dressmakers shop.
As they looked around the shop, a woman appeared and asked them if they needed help.
"are you Nicole de Baulain, the famous dressmaker?" Rodmilla asked
"that I am, how can I help you?" she replied.
" I am Rodmilla De Ghent, and this is my Daughter Marguerite. We both need new gowns, and perhaps a wedding dress as well."
"well I am quite busy at the moment, I am leaving for Hautefort this afternoon, I will not return for a week or so."
"Oh that does present a problem, I have 500 gold francs, do you have anything I can buy?" rodmilla asked determinedly.
" Why yes of course, I have many gowns in the attic that my costumers did not want, I can get those for you, I have been wanting to get rid of them for some time."
She had her attendants go up to the attic and bring the trunks full of dresses down.
"Is there any kind of specific dress you are looking for?"
"Something fit for a queen" Rodmilla said shrilly.
They began searching through the many boxes that were brought down. Marguerite tried on dress after dress, until they found one that would make the perfect impression.
"Oh mother, it is beautiful, its absolutely perfect." Marguerite exclaimed as she looked at herself in the mirror.
"alright, how much for all of these dresses and the trunks?"Rodmilla asked the dressmaker.
"well, this is an awful lot of gowns, usually this many gowns would go for at least 600 gold francs." She replied.
Marguerite took the sapphire necklace from around her neck and said "what if we include this?"
The dressmaker took the necklace from Marguerite and gasped, "I used to have a necklace just like this, oh alright you may have the dresses if you include this necklace."
they changed into their new gowns, paid the dressmaker, loaded the trunks of gowns onto the carriage and went off to start their new life.