It is the second day since my arrival here at Versailles and still my mind does not truly comprehend the reality of the situation in which I am placed.

While I walk in the lower gardens of the palace, my arm brushes past some of the most powerful women in France, and I must twist my handkerchief tightly around my fingers to keep myself from bursting out.

I know no one here except for my servants and my recent acquaintances, Elizabeth Phillippe and her brother Louis. We are hardly on terms to walk together throughout the palace, and they are far too important to ever want to. After all, Louis is the grandson of the currently reigning king, Louis XV.

No, I shall just walk alone, my imagination keeping me company.

I glance up to the sky, the entire west a beautiful melding of pink and orange.

I remember sunsets before coming here, just two days ago, but never in my life have I seen anything as glorious as the sight before me. Not even the most mastered painter would be able to capture the majesty of it all.

The people continue parading down the sidewalks and back into the palace before the sun sets.

None of them seem to notice the golden planks of sunlight squeezing out their last gleams before they must retire for the night, the very breath of the Gods issuing forth, their colors exploding across the sky.

But it's alright. It means it's all mine. It'll be my little secret, this moment.

Nobody will be able to steal the glory of this moment.

I am here. I am alive. I am at the center of the universe.

At supper, I sit amongst the court in my newest gown. It cost a small fortune, straight from Le Grand Mogol on the Rue St Honore, but it was well worth it. It would hardly be fitting to be seen in her working garments, all tinged with paints.

I am very hungry, but my stomach will only allow me to gulp down some soup, it is so tense.

I can look across the hall and see the king himself feasting. His appetite doesn't waver as he piles food onto his china plate. Beautiful faces and extravagant gowns line the king's table, little Elizabeth Phillippe amongst them. She is so young but at the same time incredibly graceful. She knows her place and keeps there, not at all the way I acted when I was her age. I was too rebellious, feeling like I owned the world.

But, she sits there calmly, her hands in her lap, knowing she owns the world.

"And what is your name?" I hear a voice wrap around my ear, making me nearly swallow my soup spoon.

I look to my right and spot two soft brown eyes smiling next to me.

"I am Marie Louise Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun." I burst out, bowing my head lightly in accordance.

I glance back up to the face, and see my neighbor's face has broken out into a grin, making sharp creases around his eyes.

"That's quite a mouthful." he replies, breaking off a piece of bread and ripping it apart with his teeth.

Is he laughing at me? It is hard to tell if his smile is one of good nature or ridicule.

"What do your friends call you?" he asks me. I glance around me to see if anyone else is paying attention to this exchange, but nobody takes any interest in the matter.

"Amongst my friends, I am known as Beth, but as I don't know your name, I cannot yet consider you amongst them."

I am surprised with my own incisiveness. But, he merely laughs it off and continues.

"I am Charles Alexandre de Calonne," he bows his head, returning the gesture.

"And what do your friends call you?" I coo back, taking a quick sip of soup.

"Charlie."

There was a moment's hesitation as our eyes locked on each other. The entire room had begun roaring with sound, but I couldn't hear a word of it. I feel as if I once again am looking upon the sunset, like I am at the very center of it all. I can hear my own heart beating, beating fast but beating strong.

Then at once, he looks down to his plate and the spell is broken.

"But of course, you are not among my friends," he mumbles, "so you cannot address me in this way."

"No, I am not." I return, not sure what to make of this man.

He continues on with his meal, as I sit there, confounded, my spoon hovering in midair.

The easy, unimpressed look on his face makes it seem that the last few minutes of conversation had never even occurred, as he scoops up a big dollop of cream on his forefinger.

I know it is only polite to let it go and continue throughout supper with my hands pressed gently in my hands, like Mademoiselle Elizabeth Phillippe, but I cannot take this sudden change of attitude.

"And what is it you do, Monsieur?"

He glances over at me quickly before returning to his plate underneath him.

"I am a statesman." he responds, nibbling on a small pastry.

"Ah, a gentleman of the parlement, are you?" I shoot back, my hands gripping around my soup spoon.

He merely nods. He is playing with me, I know it.

"A man of notable business abilities, I am sure." I continue, not realizing where I am taking this. " A great entrepreneurial spirit, one of unscrupulous political action, and yet unable to make proper dinner conversation."

He blushes and glances around the table after my sudden outburst.

"Not at all. I am actually rather skilled in the area of proper, civil dinner conversation."

I begin to tear at the napkin in my lap, furiously trying to appear graceful and gentle to the court, while inside I am boiling at this so-called 'statesman.'

"We could for instance discuss the events over in America if your interests lie in government," he mentioned, reaching for his wine goblet.

"Or we could talk of music. Are you a fan of Mozart, for instance?"

I didn't respond, but kept my eyes on him, unblinking.

"We could talk of art. Or of the latest fashions from Paris. Or we could talk of sunsets."

I can feel my heart jump up to my throat, making me utter a tiny gasp.

He turns to me at this, his soft brown eyes quickly noticing my hands fidgeting angrily underneath the table. "What do you think of sunsets, Mademoiselle?"

I open my mouth to respond, but quickly close it again, feeling as if my soup would come back up with my words.

"Aren't sunsets breathtaking?" he whispers, inching closer to me. "They make one feel as if they are the only one in the world, just gazing up at the clouds, painted in the brightest colors. Brighter than even thought possible, melting into one another."

"You..." I breathe, the only word I am able to squeeze out.

Suddenly, the blaring of horns echoes throughout the hall, signaling the end of the meal.

Before I can even blink, he has risen from his seat and marches out of the hall, falling in with the rest of the court.

I am just left there, my fingers twisted around my napkin, my teeth digging firmly into my bottom lip as the court begins to rise from their chairs, and off into their private quarters.

If I was to scream now, would they take any notice?

I decide against it and manage to pull myself out of my chair, straighten my gown and smile my way past the incurious eyes around me.

Now, as I walk back to my own private rooms, my stomach drops to the polished floors as I desperately try to recall the way I felt in the gardens. But it is no longer there.

That formidable calm that had taken me over was now long gone, ripped out by that monster with the chestnut brown eyes.

No, I will not allow myself be dominated in such a way any longer. Tonight I end my second day in this kingdom, this palace of the gods as a mere commoner, not worthy to walk its halls, but tomorrow I will wake a noble. An aristocrat. A force to be reckoned with.

And my little statesmen better be prepared for that.