16 — Girl Talk

Mr. Fisalis and I had missed our chance to start dancing because we were busy analyzing the trend shift towards simple and natural (well, moreso just Miss Verbena’s incredible change). We also ended up talking to Corydalis and Miss Iris.

But thanks to my slip-up about the men here all being sight for sore eyes (even if he misunderstood!), Mr. Fisalis was still gripping my hand tightly. Miss Iris kept teasing me. It was nice and quiet earlier, so where did that go? I’m here sweating and getting embarrassed. I’m super uncomfortable now!

“I’d just love to hear all about those sapphires, so let’s go somewhere to have a chat!”

Smile.

Miss Iris took my opposite hand from the one that Mr. Fisalis was holding, accentuating certain words. Wow. Why am I suddenly feeling trapped? Everyone’s so good at using their smiles!

And on the other side:

“It would be rude for us men to intrude on you ladies, so we’ll leave you alone. By the way, Vice Captain... the Minister of War was looking for you,” said Corydalis.

“Alright. Then we’ll separate for a bit. Ladies, please take good care of my wife,” Mr. Fisalis agreed, giving the girls a charming smile as he let go of my hand. He was squeezing it so hard it’s gone white! The moment he did, he sneakily whispered, “I’ll be back soon,” in my ear.

We found a place to sit, and the moment we sat down, the ladies began their brutal attack. I knew it was coming from Miss Iris’s smile from earlier.

“The necklace and earrings you’re wearing—those are ‘Viola Sapphires,’ aren’t they?”

“Is it true that only the highest quality ones can be called ‘Viola Eyes’?”

“They’re the same color as your eyes. So beautiful~”

“I’d love to get my hands on some, but Pommier’s owner hasn’t gotten them yet.”

They shot off questions in rapid succession. This was the perfect time to advertise, but I couldn’t get a word in edgewise. I was a failure of a billboard.

The ladies looked at my jewelry and chattered about the sapphires.

“Duke Fisalis was the one who named them ‘Viola Sapphires,’ wasn’t he?”

And so came the unavoidable question. Miss Iris just asked it straight out. You’re making it a lot harder to answer. But I couldn’t escape from their sparkling (more like evilly glinting) eyes.

“...Yes.”

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

I just barely managed to squeeze out the words and they all started screeching in glee. They were all squirming in delight, too! I’d do the same if it was one of my friends, but it was humiliating when it was directed at me. My face was on fire.

“I said it before, but he really does love you! I’m not only talking about the sapphires, either. I mean the gentle way he looks at you, and how considerately he escorts you. I couldn’t look away when I saw you enter hand in hand! Ah, I’m so jealous!” Miss Iris said the same thing as she had earlier.

You don’t have to repeat yourself! My face wasn’t just burning—it was on fire! I mean yeah, Mr. Fisalis started treating me differently when—hmm, maybe even before?—Miss Calendula left, and he’d only had eyes for me since they’d broken up. There might’ve been that one suspicious incident, but he rushed to clear that up as soon as it happened.

And then that time on the hill in Montjuc back in Le Pied... No. I’ll get even more embarrassed if I think about that!

I hadn’t minded since no one had teased me about it up until now, but I couldn’t help but be self-conscious about how he thought of me now. When I looked away to try to calm myself down, my eyes just managed to land on Mr. Fisalis anyway. He was so tall and almost seemed to shine, so he stood out wherever he went. It did make him easy to find, buuuuut...

He was talking to someone with Corydalis, but he gave me a small smile when he noticed he’d caught my gaze.

Oh no. I feel so awkward. I can’t even smile back. So many things were shooting through my brain that I just went even redder.

“Oh, Miss Viola, your cheeks are so flushed! How cute!” Miss Iris said, grabbing my hands.

“Miss Viola, Miss Iris just loves cute things. She’ll never leave you alone if you’re not careful,” Miss Nastersham said, laughing.

Seriously? I don’t want that!

“Geez, Miss Amaranth! Cute is justice, after all! ...Hmm? Oh, what a beautiful ring. Are these Viola Sapphires too?” Miss Iris started to banter with Miss Nastersham, but since she was gripping my hands, she’d just now noticed my ring.

“Yes. They made this from the sapphires that weren’t suitable for larger jewelry. Mine has more of a cute design and it’s multicolored, with sapphires, diamonds, and rubies. You could make a ring with a different look if you used differently colored stones. You could make one any color you want!”

I mean, probably. You could, right? I might’ve been talking out of my hat, but I figured it was probably mostly right. I was trying to advertise, so I held my hand up in front of my face to show them as I explained.

“Oh my. You said mine. Does that mean that Duke Fisalis has one too?” Miss Krokusse pointed it out. Whoops, she caught that. She seems so quiet, but she’s sharp... No, I probably just shouldn’t have phrased it that way.

“Um, er, yes. He has one of the same design...” My enthusiasm had disappeared and I confessed with a mumble.

“Ah, I saw that! Duke Fisalis had a blue ring on his left hand! Geez~ So you match! Paired rings are so wonderful,” Miss Columbine said, as if she’d only just thought of it.

I mean, yeah, they match, but Mr. Fisalis had them made secretly. It’s not like I wanted them... No! I should be advertising right now! This isn’t the place to get embarrassed, self!

“Mr. Fisalis’s ring is made with both sapphires and diamonds, so it must have just looked blue at a glance. It uses different shades of sapphires to make a beautiful ombré,” I said, telling them about his ring as I kept showing mine off.

“Now that I think about it, you’re both wearing your rings on the same hand, and the same finger. Does that mean something?”

Here we were again with the hard-to-answer dig! Miss Columbine had an amazing memory for someone who only got a quick glance at that ring!

“Oh, really? Does the left hand’s ring finger have some kind of meaning?”

“Ummm, Mr. Fisalis said something about rings meaning different things depending on what finger they’re worn on in some faraway country,” I explained, trying to get away from the ring finger part, but...

“So? What does the left ring finger mean?” Smile.

They were all leaning towards me. The pressure behind their smiles was going to crush me! Damn, I can’t get away! I gave up at the four ladies’ forceful smiles, answering, “...The left ring finger means ‘progress in love, and deepening the bonds of love.’...”

“Kyaaaaaaa!” they screeched again. That was exactly why I hadn’t wanted to say it...

“The Duke is so wonderful! How romantic!”

“Oh, so Duke Fisalis is a romantic! If he said something like that to me, I just might die~!”

“That has to get popular!”

“This would become trendy even without our help!”

“Maybe wearing ‘Viola Sapphires’ will make anyone as lovey-dovey as Miss Viola and Duke Fisalis.”

“People will be popping up one after another, trying to get lucky! When I get married, I’m definitely going to have matching rings made!”

The ladies got all worked up again, while I just sat there with my soul leaving my body.

While we sat there chatting about the sapphires and rings instead of dancing and socializing...

“Duchess Fisalis,” someone said from behind me. Oh no, were we too loud? We must’ve gotten too excited here in the seating area. I’m sorry. But a lot of people are talking to me from behind today... Oh, no.

I turned around, thinking about how I thought I’d heard that thorny voice before, and of course—it was Miss Verbena.

She had her arms crossed, and was looking at us sort of crankily. And up close, I could see that she really had adopted a natural look. Wait, no. Don’t just observe! Be sorry.

“I’m so sorry—were we too loud?” I knew we had been, so I apologized before she’d even said anything. But she stopped me with the fan in her hand.

“Not really. It’s loud in here anyway,” she brushed it off easily. She might’ve taken on a natural look, but her curt nature hadn’t changed. If she wasn’t talking to me because we were too loud, why did she come over here? Did she have something else she wanted to say to me?

“We’ll still be careful not to get too loud. I apologize for not greeting you sooner—you were dancing, after all. Good day to you, Miss Verbena. It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other,” I said as I stood and gave her a lady’s greeting. She was the star of the show tonight, after all.

“It really has been a while. ...Not since that evening party, isn’t it?”

Maybe it was because I’d given her such a stupidly polite greeting, but she was looking at me with eyes wide. Hmm? Did I do something weird?

“That’s right. I don’t go to many parties, so we haven’t seen each other in a long time. I’ve been looking forward to seeing you again, but I was shocked by how much your image has changed. That dress looks wonderful on you. It brings out your natural beauty!”

She really did look more charming than she did wearing those busy dresses, so I wasn’t lying! The dress was probably made by Madame Fleur. I’m so jealous of her good figure! And of course, I’m not going to specify what, exactly, makes me so jealous!

“I-I’m not copying you! Madame just made me this dress after I asked for something fashionable!” she said, rattling on with a blush after I gave her my honest opinion.

Ahh, so her dress really was made by Madame... Wait. Um, when did I say she was copying me? “Okay,” I answered vaguely, tilting my head a bit.

It didn’t seem as if Miss Verbena liked my answer, though, because she continued. “It’s only like this because simple and slender is the current trend! You’ve got it so good, not having to lose any weight.”

“I see.” I mean, I know you said it with a sigh, Miss Verbena, but I saw where your eyes stopped after giving me a full look-over. She averted her eyes once she noticed my cold stare.

“W-Well, simple and natural being in style isn’t so bad, since it brings out my beauty!”

“Uh huh.”

“The design would look better on someone with a trimmer figure. But even if simple is trending, isn’t your dress a little too plain? Ah, but it does make the ribbon on your back stand out. And it’s just right for setting off the necklace you’re wearing. Hmph... I might have one of the same style tailored for me, next.”

“...Thank you?” I really had no idea how to react anymore. I didn’t know what she was trying to say. Was she insulting me or complimenting me? It didn’t feel much like an insult.

She was babbling on by herself, so I just gave her half-hearted replies. While I tilted my head and gave vague answers to Miss Verbena’s confusing chatter...

“Ah, you’re picking another fight with Viola, huh, Verbena?” said Mr. Fisalis as he slipped in over my shoulder. You scared me! When did you get here!? I stood frozen in shock while he hugged me from behind.

“Cercis! I-I wasn’t picking a fight with her!”

“Mr. Fisalis, she wasn’t picking a fight.”

“We were just having a fun chat about current trends, weren’t we, Duchess?”

“Ah, yes... kinda.”

We weren’t exactly fighting... I think. But I didn’t think ‘fun’ was the word, either, so I muttered the last word quietly.

Miss Verbena seemed offended that he thought she was picking a fight. If she wasn’t, what did she come over to talk to me for? I don’t get it. I racked my brain, trying to figure out what she wanted.

“Verbena just wanted to make friends with Madam Viola. She’d even had an enthusiastic conversation with Madame about what she’d worn where. Isn’t that true, Verbena?” Next, it was Celosia popping up behind Miss Verbena with a smirk. Huh? That’s not what she said before.

“Wahhhhhh! Brother, what are you saying! All that work you do is getting to your head and making you say ridiculous things! Ohohohoho!!”

“Oww, oww!”

Miss Verbena’s expression changed, and she started whacking Celosia with her fan. I know it’s kind of rude to say about someone who’s older than me, but it was actually a cute change from her usual composed look.

Mr. Fisalis, the girls, and I watched the Argenteia siblings’ fun little spat with smiles on our faces. It was wonderful how close they were.

“I see. So Verbena just wanted to be Viola’s friend. That’s good, isn’t it, Vi?”

“Yes! I’m happy that she wants to be friends with me.”

Mr. Fisalis was happy, and I actually was glad we’d gotten a little closer, since I didn’t have many aristocratic acquaintances.

“It’s always nice to make new friends.”

“Yes!”

“But I’d be happy if you’d return the favor, too.”

“Really!”

Even Miss Iris and the girls were agreeing. Yep, everyone should be friends! I nodded to myself with a big grin.

“Urgh... T-That’s not what I wanted!”

“Huh? What did you want, then?”

Miss Verbena went red as she denied it, but rushed to correct herself when she saw me get disappointed.

“I-I mean, I guess we could be friends!”

“Oh, really?”

My dig asking which one vanished into the air.

Miss Verbena looked away, still red. I mean, it’s great that she wants us to be pals, but does she also have a crush on somebody or something like that?