Fermina’s reprimands were insufficient to stop Rascal from running in the hallways. Undeterred, the youngest sister kept urging us to partake in her race. I understood her enthusiasm, but if we were heading to an exhibition of my first work, it would pay to have some decorum upon arrival, the model most of all, since I had put an effort to make her seem distinguished. At least her shoes were a matching pair this time around.
As advertised, a small crowd had gathered to observe a relatively small portrait recently framed and placed on the east wall on our way to the dining room, an area typically frequented. Princess’s perfectly capable eyes could discern a metallic plaque under the picture from a distance, which would most likely inform of the artist’s name and when it was painted.
We were not noticed at first, as the dozen or so individuals from all walks of life were otherwise preoccupied with their own discussions or watching the canvas itself; it was a new addition to the Master of the House’s collection if nothing else.
“I told you not to run inside the manor, Riatna!” Fermina scolded when she caught up to her little sister. “And you have not heard the last of me regarding your poor behavior in front of a royal Princess!”
“Look, Fermina! Look!” Rascal was too excited to listen to her elders and pointed at the adorned wall in a frenzy, jittery and afire.
“We do not point,” Fermina corrected again, seizing Rascal’s arm and forcing it down. “We use words to describe the direction.” Fermina then turned to see the completed work, and her amazement was evident, raising a sentiment of pride and accomplishment in me. “You were not lying or joking, were you? You were telling me the truth when you showed me this before,” she recalled from last night. “It was not Lord Revier, it was…” she turned to Princess. “It was truly yours!” she congratulated us with a smile and clasped our hand with her characteristic tenderness. “I don’t know what to say, Aufelia. I… I apologize for my skepticism!”
“Don’t look at her; look at the picture! Look how pretty I look!”
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With the outrageous fuss Rascal was raising, it was inevitable that we became the center of attention, although not the positive kind. That all changed immediately after a single soul noticed that the lovely Lady in the picture and the wild child raising her voice near it were one and the same.
“You are Lady Riatna de Irchard! You were the model for this piece,” an aged gentleman observed.
Rascal nodded effusively with her singular charm, and a tidal wave of twelve curious admirers surrounded Princess.
“Congratulations on your debut. I must say, you are much younger than I imagined. You are truly talented.”
“Who was your teacher, if you don’t mind me asking? They require some credit, I’m certain.”
“With this sort of skill, you surely take commissions, do you not? I’m interested if we could discuss it in private.”
“How lovely. Your art feels like it is alive. I did not fully grasp it at first, but seeing the subject you painted in the flesh, I know now that you captured her essence.”
“Wait, are you not the young woman declared to be ‘The Prettiest Flower in Irghumin’ by Her Highness, Lady Coroscina herself? It’s an honor!”
“There used to be a different painting here. It was an inferior depiction of Mount Sert, painted by that Azchatar spawn. I am glad you came to replace it. Mockeries by foreigners belong in their own courts.”
Princess’s fame soared, and she was bombarded with questions from all sides, forceful introductions, and even a few suitors. It was impossible to keep up with the torrent of words from everyone’s mouths. All had good things to say about us, and all of them fought for our attention. The overwhelmed Princess, intimidated, had to excuse herself and, with the help of Fermina, fled the scene as fast as it was socially acceptable. Rascal happily stayed behind to answer anything asked of her, enjoying basking in the notoriety she had garnered.
“Look what your hobby got us into!” Princess, now all alone, slightly disheveled, talked to her reflection at a nearby window.
“My dear Princess, all this does is open a new world of opportunity for us. Forget about polishing mirrors behind necklaces and earrings. I have a better idea of how to spend our time.”
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