In a fortnight

[Monday]

Over all, it was a very boring day for Penelope. Isabel came to visit her for a while, but she had to get back to work before to long, just like everyone else did. Even Sir Harold came to visit her for a bit. He said that it was all right that she might not be able to dance at the up coming ball, for Sir Harold probably wouldn't be attending it until later on in the night anyways. This made matters a lot simpler for Penelope. Now she would be free to dance with whomever she wanted and her mother would be less intent on finding out where she was if Sir Harold wasn't involved.
After Sir Harold left, Penelope read until her mother brought up her dinner and then she went to sleep. Her ankle still hurt, but her mother was going to call on the doctor tomorrow to come and check on her. Mostly, she was worried about the ball. How was she supposed to dance the night away, when her legged throbbed every time she moved it? She got in bed the best she could and slept as well as one could hope to with a hurt ankle.

[Monday]

Day 6
A Little White Lie

Because she went to bed so early the night before, Penelope was up at the crack of dawn the next morning. She felt fine, and her ankle no longer hurt, but she didn't stand on it, afraid that she might re injure it. Her bed was right next to the window, however, and she could see the morning sun lighting the land, and watched as the shadows slowly became smaller and smaller.
It appeared that she wasn't the only one that was up early that morning, however. She could see Derek, shirtless by the stables, already at work. She was wondering what work he needed to do so early in the morning, without a shirt no less, when he turned around. She could have sworn that he saw her, but she closed her curtains swiftly and leaned back in bed. Whatever he was doing, she decided that he probably didn't expect to have an audience, or else he would have kept his shirt on.
Not to long afterwords, Pamela came in to help her dress, which turned out to be a kind of wrestling match. Penelope refused to stand up, fearing she might damage her ankle beyond repair for the ball, but also making if very difficult to squeeze into her light blue petticoat. After about a half an hour though, Penelope looked presentable enough for the doctor, at least.

[Monday]

The doctor came in, but her parents weren't there. Her mother was buys with the servants, preparing for the ball, and her father was off entertain Sir Harold for a while, but at least Pamela was in the room with her. The doctor was a nice old man, and (much to Penelope's relief) didn't use any leeches on her. She had never really been very sick other then the occasional cold, but she had heard horror stories from some off the other servants about some of the doctors more common practices.
He was very kind and gentle and after doing a very thorough examination of her foot, he concluded that it would be fine to walk on, and she shouldn't worry to much about dancing as long as she didn't stay on her feet the whole night. Penelope was over joyed.
"Imagine," said Pamela later on, after the doctor had left, "If you would have to stay up in bed the whole night during the ball! I'm sure the ease would have been off your mother though. She wouldn't have to worry where your were and who you were with the whole night."
That's when a brilliant idea struck her. But first, she would need Pamela's full cooperation.

[Monday]

"Pamela," she said with a smile spreading across her face, "you're a genius, you know that?"
Pamela cast a suspicious gaze on Penelope. "Are you sure you're alright, deary? Should I call the doctor back?"
"Oh no," said Penelope, "but there is something that you could do for me."
"Here it comes." Pamela sat down on the bed beside her on the bed with a reproachful sigh. "What is it that you need."
"I know how much you disapprove of my parents making me marry the duke. Don't try to deny it," she added seeing Pamela's surprised look, "I'm not daft, I here the way you talk about him, he might as well be a mule to you."
"You're right," admitted Pamela, "and I think if you the donkey had more money and power then Sir Harold, you'd be marrying it instead."
Penelope tried not to giggle at this, but went on with her explanation instead. "Right, so you would agree that I should have as much fun as I can while I'm still a free women?"
The suspicious looked that had faded from Pamela returned in a blink. "Yes, and your point is?"
"Well, I was hoping that you would tell my mother that my ankle really is hurt, so that I might go to the ball unhindered by her gaze."
"I don't know, dear," said Pamela a little apprehensively, "I don't think it'd be wise to lie to your mother, and let you go gallivanting about the ball unsupervised."
"Oh come on, Pamela," said Penelope, pleadingly, "since when do you have moral qualms about lying to my mother? Remember that time you told her that I had a fever so I wouldn't have to go to the knitting circle with her? Or the time you told her that you had gotten rid of that stray cat when you had really gone and given it milk?"
"Yes, but those times were entirely different. This time it wouldn't be a little white lie."
"And as for leaving me unsupervised, I'll be in a ballroom with 150 plus people. I won't exactly be alone. And besides, I'm going to turn 17 in only a few days. I'm completely capable of taking care of myself. Please, Pamela, this is my last chance at one night of happiness."
"Oh all right!" said Pamela, finally consenting, "and remember, I'm doing this because I love you like you a grandchild and I only want to see you happy. Even if it means lying to your terrible mother. Especially if it means lying to your mother."
"Thank you so much Pamela!" said Penelope, getting up and launching herself into Pamela's arms, "you won't regret this!"
"I sure hope not child," said Pamela, hugging her back, "and if your supposed to be injured, I think it would be unwise to jump at people like that again."

[Monday]

Her plan was quickly set into place. As soon as her mother found time to get away from her planning, she came up to visit Penelope. She was kind enough to give her a sympathetic pat on the arm when she heard the news, but besides that she didn't seem to torn up about it. "Don't worry, Penelope, there will be plenty of other balls and dances for you in the future." She might have plenty of more balls to attend later on, but they would all be in the company of Sir Harold, and therefore would not be that much fun.
When Isabel heard the news she rushed up stairs to see Penelope, nearly in tears. That is until she heard Penelope's plan. "Wow," she said smiling, "I'm impressed. I'm usually the one with the sly plans."
"Well I did learn from the best, after all."
Isabel promised to be back later, for them to finish the last touches on her dress. Until then, Penelope sat through the numerous servants and friends who came by to give their condolences. It seemed like she was on her deathbed, instead of just a rest bed. But maybe many of them realized that this would be her last party before getting married.
When Isabel finally arrived, it was becoming dark outside, and they had to sew by candle light.
"What kept you?" asked Penelope, more out of curiosity then annoyance. Isabel's only response was a deep crimson blush creeping across her face. Isabel wasn't the type to blush, and that was enough to give her secret away to Penelope. "You were with him, weren't you?" she said smiling broadly.
Isabel looked up in dismay. "Was it that obvious?"
Isabel had been in love with the farm boy,Tom, from down the road since she was five when he gave her an apple. Isabel was eighteen, and Tom was nearly ten years older then her, but she loved him all the same. Isabel had urged him for the longest time to marry her, but he thought himself to be to old. But Penelope had seem them together before and she knew that they were both completely in love.
"I think I finally convinced him that I don't care how old he is," explained Isabel in triumph, the pink on her cheek turning red with excitement. "He said he would talk to my father soon."
"That's great!" said Penelope, meaning it, "Don't forget to invite me to your wedding." It made her sad to think that she would never be so much in love and so sure of wanting to be with a person like that, but she redirected her feelings toward making her dress absolutely perfect.
Penelope had sent Pamela out with some of her money, and when she returned, she presented a mask and jewelry. Everything was ready for the following day, and as she bid Pamela and Isabel good night, she couldn't help but believe that the next day was finally going to be the night she had been looking forward to so intently the last few days.

[Monday]

Day 7
The Ball

Penelope awoke once again early in the morning. She closed her eyes again, seeing that the sun had barely risen, and willed herself to go back to sleep for a couple more hours. She had barely gotten any sleep that night, she was so excited. Then again, she was also very nervous. It wasn't so much the chance of getting caught that made her anxious. No, the risk made it more of an adventure, and there for more fun. She was mostly worried that she wouldn't have as much fun as she wanted. What if no one wanted to dance with her? What if her idea of looking gorgeous that night didn't work at all? Her dress did look splendid, but she might not look so great in it as she would hope.
These thoughts had been plaguing her all night long, and now, despite herself, she lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling thinking over the exact same things.

[Monday]

She must have been laying there for a while, for soon Pamela joined her, a broad smile on her face. "Today's the day deary, are you excited?"
"Nervous is more like it," she said, giving her a smile.
"Don't worry, I know you'll look lovely."
Penelope hated it when people read her mind. Well, read her face more like it. She had been told more than once that the expressions on her face could be read like a book. Pamela was an expert at telling what was on her mind, and so was Isabel, and, unfortunately, even Derek could sometimes to. Luckily her parents were ignorant of this little trick she supposed it was because they didn't spend as much time around her...
If she was supposed to be mysterious, she was going to have to work hard not to show her emotions so easily. She hoped that the mask would help. It did cover most of her face.

[Monday]

Pamela helped her get dressed, much more efficiently this time now that Penelope could stand on both feet. She arranged herself nicely and waited for her mother to come in and check on her.
Once she was away, and after Penelope had eaten breakfast, there plans were immediately set into motion. Isabel came in to help Penelope start to get ready, and Pamela would stand guard outside their door to keep a watch out for her mother.
The servants were not allowed to attend the ball as guests because they were needed as servers. If Isabel caught wind that someone was going to go visit her room during the ball, she would warn Penelope immediately. Pamela would create a distraction in the hall outside her room, giving her time to slip in through the window by climbing up the latices on the wall. Penelope thanked them both immensely, but they waved her off, saying that it was the least they could do.

[Monday]

Fortunately, her mother seemed to preoccupied with last minute arrangements for the ball to come and make surprise visits to her daughter, so Penelope and Isabel were left to get ready in peace.
She first soaked in a nice long bath, and poured every good smelling thing she could find on herself. She scrubbed her hair until it shined and rinsed it with rose water.
After she was completly dried, they began to dress her. The dress fit nicely onto Penelope, and she wanted to immediately look in the mirror, but Isabel refused to let her do so until she was "perfect". Penelope was doubtful that such a thing existed, at least for her, but she decided to humor Isabel. She was helping her out a lot after all.
After making sure that everything was in it's proper place, Isabel moved on to her hair. She put it in a neat and elegant bun on top of her head, leaving a few soft curly tendrils to float down onto her shoulder. Isabel then fastened the mask around Penelope's face and stood back to make one final assessment before she would allowed Penelope to look into the mirror. Finally, a broad smile lit across her face. "Perfect!" she couldn't help but exclaim as she turned Penelope to face the mirror.

[Monday]

Penelope gaped at herself in the mirror. This was as close to perfect as she could ever achieve. She looked absolutely stunning, and for a few seconds she wondered who this woman was, staring back at her.
The collar of the dress ran directly under her collar bone, leaving her shoulders bare. This was more of a French touch to the dress but it suited her perfectly. The soft tendrils of her hair echoed against the milk white skin of her shoulders and made it shine. The sleeves belled out slightly and, along with the thin waist of the dress, gave her a very elegant look. The dress belled out from her legs, but avoided the extra fluff that was fashionable for the time. A small train flourished out at the bottom of the dress, adding even more elegance. The collar, the side, and the train of the dress were all a delicate pink, but the main body of the dress was an ivory white. Along the bottom of the dress were embroidered roses, a deeper pink then what else was on the dress, almost a red.
Her mask was a silvery white that created an accent on her rosy lips. Her green eyes shined brighter then she had every seen them in her life. In her hair, was a single red rose, and around her neck was a simple silver chain with a rose pendent hanging around it.
She couldn't imagine looking any better in her entire life, and was sure that this night was going to be magical.

[Monday]

Penelope descended down the stairs, her heart hammering in her chest. By the time she was done the ball had already started, but she had to wait a little while for the ballroom to fill up some. She wanted to slide into the ball without having to introduce herself to her own mother. She had already decided that if someone asked her name, she would tell them Anna, her middle name. She hoped that she wouldn't have to lie very much though, she wasn't very good at it.
So, as she waited patiently in her room, she watched elegant after el agent couple enter into her home. She had always been fascinated with watching people dancing, seeing the beautiful dresses swish across the dance floor. She had learned at a young age how to dance, and she was better at it then walking. In fact, dancing was the one thing that she could do without falling on her face.
She had asked Isabel every few moments what time it was, wanting to join the party immediately, but now as she made her way to the ball room, all she really wanted to do was go upstairs and hide under her blankets. This was by far the most exciting and nerve-racking thing she had ever done, and despite the pleas from her head to turn and around and go back upstairs before it was to late, her feet kept walking.
The next thing she knew, she was opening the doors to a different world.

[Monday]

Her ears were greeted by the beautiful sound of the orchestra playing, and her eyes to the dazzling color and light surrounding her.
She couldn't help but smile.
This is what she loved. Music, dancing, and laughing was all she needed to be happy. Even if Sir Harold wa- No, she told herself. Tonight was all about her, and she would not spare one more thought for her betrothed tonight.
As she glided to a spot near the dance floor, she couldn't help but notice a few heads turning in her direction. She smiled at herself, and wondered how long it would be before someone asked her to dance.
Not long, apparently.
The first man to ask her to dance, looked very self assured, and Penelope turned out to be correct. He spent the entire time they were dancing on talk about his inheritance and how he was one of the most eligible bachelors in the county. Penelope smiled and nodded politely, but when the dance ended she went in search of a new partner. She didn't want to get the poor boy's hopes up.
And so it went. She danced with one person and after the tune had ended she found someone else to chat with. She was having a marvelous time, meeting so many lads who wished to rule her attention.
Finally, she needed a break, and she sipped a glass of champagne while resting her feet and watching the other dancers. She was about to rejoin the other dancers when she felt someone watching her.

[Monday]

A very tall man with dark brown hair was staring at her from across the room, and even with his mask on, she immediatly realized that he was handsome. His gaze was locked on her as he walked across the room toward her, and though her heart raced, she did not think of looking away from him. Her eyes were as glued onto his as his seemed to be onto hers.
Before she knew it, he was right there, starring down at her. "May I have this dance?" Her voice caught in her throat at the sound of his smooth deep voice, but her hand shot into his without hesistation. He smiled sweetly at her as he led her to the dance floor. They joined in a fast pace gavot, so they had little breath in them to speak to each other, so Penelope took her sweet time looking into his lovely hazel eyes. She was looking so intently that bye the end of the dance she felt almost dizzy. Whether it was from the champagne or the intensity of his gaze, she could not tell. "I need some fresh air," she said to him, smiling naturally, "would you like to accompany me on the patio Mr. ...?"
"John," he replied, with a smile, "just John."
"Well, just John," she teased, taking his arm, "I am just Anna. It's very nice to meet you."

[Monday]

When they walked outside the cool breeze seemed to ease her queasiness, but as she looked over her shoulder at her companion, she still felt in a daze. They were alone with the sounds of the night, sounds that she had fallen asleep to her whole life. She couldn't even imagine being upstairs in bed right now.
She moved to the railing around the patio and gazed at the reflection of the moon and stars on the lake surface. "It's so beautiful," she said turning toward John.
"Yes, it is." he replied, his gaze never wavering from hers. She wasn't sure how it happened, neither of them seemed to move, but all of a sudden they were both inches away from each other. Before she could think, before she really contemplated what was going on, he was kissing her, and she was kissing him back. His lips were sweet on hers, and he was kissing her like he knew her, and not like he had just met her ten minutes ago. She wasn't a nun, she had kissed boys before. But none of the boys from the village kissed like this.
He pulled away from her abruptly. "I hope you don't take me as the type of guy who often steals Innocent young ladies away from parties and kisses them in the dark." He was smiling.
"As long as you don't take me as the type of girl who would follow young men into the dark and let them kiss her."
And with that he returned to his job of thoroughly kissing her, and Penelope enjoyed a few blissful moments before Isabel came interrupting them.

[Monday]

((ok, here's the next post))

"Uh... excuse me..." Penelope heard Isabel say nervously from behind her. She sighed and pulled back from John.
"Um... Isabel, this is my...um, friend, John," she said gesturing to the man beside her, "John, this is my best friend, Isabel."
"Nice to meet you," he said, not sounding very sincere. Isabel flashed him a knowing smile, and turned her attention back to Penelope. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I think you should get back to your room pretty soon. I over heard your mother mention that your..." she glanced over at John quickly, then back to Penelope, "...uh Sir Harold would arrive soon. And he might decide to pay you a visit." Isabel tried her best to whisper all of this, but it was a quiet night, and she new that John had probably heard all of it. No matter, she would probably never see him again anyways.
She turned back to John. He had a blank expression on his face. "I really regret saying this, believe me," she said her eyes dropping down to his lips before looking back at his wonderfully blue eyes, "but I must leave you now. Thank you for the wonderful night, I had a marvelous time."
And with that she turned around, before she could change her mind. "Wait..." she heard him say hesitantly from behind her, "is... is that you, Penny?"