Preparing for the Dance

I awoke sharply fifteen minutes to eleven, a jolt running through my spine. A gown covered a dressmaker’s model. The gold of the fabric shined in the moonlight, and I knew what it meant. We were being summoned. The Underground King wanted us to dance tonight.

“Rosa, Iride!” I called for the sisters closest to me. “Get the others ready.”

I heard muffled acquiescence, before throwing open my door to get to the three younger girls that I was in charge of. Poppy, Gladiole, and Buttercup were already moving, gathering their dresses, and jewels. They brought everything back to my bedroom, where I would assist them, and they would help with my laces. “Quick, girls.” I pushed them into my room, gathering them around, so I could attempt to start on their hair. “We only have an hour before we have to start moving.

I heard fumbling and crashing coming from Rosa’s room, and cursing coming from Iride’s. With all twelve of us trying to prepare at the same time, it was so much harder than it needed to be. My room alone was a mess of scarlet, yellow, white and gold. One by one the girls sat in my chair, and I twisted their hair into elaborate shapes. As sixteen year old girls, there were appropriate ways for them to wear their hair.

“Poppy, you first.” I push her into the chair, and spin it away from the mirror. “Gladiole, start on her makeup. Buttercup, start unbuttoning the dresses, and laying out the crowns. You still can’t wear earrings. I promised Mother not until you are seventeen.”

They barely grumble as they start getting everything ready. I scrape my comb through her hair, gathering it in three sections. I pulled her hair taut, and twisted the strands together, forming a long braid that I proceeded to pin around her head. I planned on doing all of the triplet’s hair the same way, crowning them with a braid.

I took her tiara of mother-of-pearl flowers surrounded by tiny rubies, and pinned it to her head. "Gladiole, get over here. Buttercup, help her into her dress. Poppy, do her makeup. We only have an hour left. Get to work, girls."

I brushed out the long thick blonde hair in my hands, cursing internally over every knot. "Gladi, you need to braid your hair at night. We can't keep fighting this battle."

She nodded, jerking her hair in my hands, making her braid askew, but I didn't have time to go back and fix it. I still had Buttercup, and my own hair to do. Not to mention that I was still in my wrapper and nightgown. I had no time to waste. Buttercup and Poppy cursed.

"What did you do?" I dropped Gladiole's braid, having tied it off, and whirled to face the destructive duo of the twins. Poppy's dress sat oddly on her body, and I waved Buttercup to Gladiole. "Pin up her hair so it looks like Poppy's. I'll fix her dress."

I motioned for Poppy to turn, and started tugging on the corset ties of her dress. They were looped wrong, leading to the bodice crinkling up along her sides, rather than sitting smoothly like it should have. I tugged it smooth, and tight. "Can you still breath in this?"

She nodded. "Good. Now help Gladiole into her dress, and I better not have to fix it."

I turned to see Buttercup brushing her hair, gathering it into a braid. "Don't do anything drastic, Buttercup. I looked at Gladiole's hair. Her amber beaded tiara was slightly askew, but it almost added to the charm, so I would just leave it.

I reached for Buttercup's silver and pearl floral crown. Their crowns were good for younger girls, but one of these days, we would have to get them more grown up tiaras. "Hold still, and I'll pin your tiara."

"Margherita, you know you don't have to help us? You could spend the time that you spend helping us, getting yourself ready." Buttercup took the tiara from my hands. "Start on your hair. I'll have one of the others crown me."

Maybe it was time to do a new split to get everybody ready. Buttercup was probably right. They could probably do their own hair, and one other girls. Maybe I should give them one of the younger girls, next time. I ran the brush hurriedly through my own hair. I couldn't do anything simple, like I did for the triplets.

I gathered the top half of my hair, securing it with a tie, before curling all of my hair. It was a rush job, so I only curled the ends, pinning loops above the tie, and eventually collecting all of my hair into a huge messy bun. I pulled on the front hair, to make it loose around my face. I lifted my tiara, gold and diamonds glinting in the candlelight. Flowers. I was so tired of wearing a child's crown.  So tired of being treated like a little girl. But I placed the crown on my head, and moved onward.

The girls were in their gowns, and were doing each other's makeup, so I moved on to my own make up. I did it simple, focusing on colors that would be described as nude, or natural. I hated wearing makeup. If I ever got out of this curse, I would never wear makeup again.

I pulled my dress from the mannikin, the fabric hanging heavy in my hand. I pulled it over my body, from the ground up. It sat loose on me, and I strained to reach the ties behind me. The satin was smooth, the boning in the bodice forcing me upright as I tightened the lacing.

"Please tell me that you have your shoes on." I could hear the begging in my voice as I slipped my feet into the two inch heels that I had been provided with. I buckled the straps, and looked at the triplets. "And please tell me that you haven't heard Sir Roland."

They grinned. "Not interested in being taller than your husband, Rita?

I ignored their words, grateful that they had flashed me a glimpse of their heels.

As we had gotten ready, my fireplace has slowly disappeared, turning into a staircase. I looked over the girls in my room, the rest of our sisters filing in. Silver, blue, brown, green, pink purple, maroon, and ice added to the ruby, gold, yellow and white. If only Klover were allowed to join us, then we would be balanced out with the black of her wardrobe. I started down the stairs, listening for the tap of eleven other sets of footsteps as we journeyed into the dark of our Uncle's Underground kingdom.