Chapter 1
Annmarie awoke to the sun streaming in the tall palace windows and her sister's snoring. Lillian had crept from her bed the night before unable to contain her excitement about today.
It was easy to see the similarity between the two girls, they both had their mother's soft golden blonde hair and their father's dark brown eyes. Their differences lay in that Annemarie was taller and curvier while Lillian had their mother's tiny delicate frame.
Tiring of watching her sister sleep Annemarie pokes her
"Wake up its Independence Day"
Immediately Lillian's eyes snap open and a grin appears on her face. With a yelp of joy she leaps from the bed.
"Oh Annie I can't wait for tonight we are going to have so much fun after we leave the ball!"
Independence Day is the over two hundred year old celebration of Penzai revolting against Jemisan the once huge empire stretching across the continent. On this day the revolution started empowering the other nations under Jemisan's control to start their own revolutions and destroy the empire. Tonight there was to be a huge ball in celebration of the event at the palace and throughout the country everyone would be celebrating with music, dancing, and as much food as they could eat. The girls' father, the king, was sending a feast to the people living in the palace city just so they could eat as well as the nobility.
"I'm so glad the dresses are ready" Lillian said dragging Annemarie off the bed so they could whirl around. "This way you don't have to stay at the stuffy ball filled with all those boring suitors"
Annemarie was eighteen which meant that until she turned twenty and was old enough to marry she would be courted almost nonstop by lords, princes from other kingdoms, and wealthy young men who want a title. Luckily for the kingdom their older brother Phillip was going to be king so the future of Penzai did not rest on Annemarie finding a husband.
"Ugh don't remind me, if I had to hear bad poetry all night then I think I would go mad." Annemarie groaned sinking into a chair.
"Good thing you don't because we have these" Lillian reached under the bed and pulled out a box with two dresses in it. They were two blue serving dresses swiped from the laundry. Over the past month they had been cut to pieces and sewn into two lovely lower class party dresses.
Instead of staying at the party Annemarie was going to fake illness and leave after an hour and a half to go to the ones in the city. Due to their status the young women had only been taken on supervised journeys outside the palace grounds. Annemarie considered herself a scholar, and was fascinated by studies on culture and human behavior. She wanted to see the theories and the norms described in books for herself, and begin to develop a connection with people that would allow her to conduct surveys of her own. Once reaching twenty Annemarie would be eligible to marry because of her status as a legal adult, but that status would also allow her to make other decisions about her future. For instance traveling to other countries and learning about them before she settled in to a marriage and the duties associated with marrying nobility. Tonight they had a great cover and perfect disguises to allow her to start her field work. No one would answer the princess's questions honestly, so she had to go undercover.
A loud knock on the door signaled the start of the morning of preparations for the ball.
"We have too much work for you girls to still be sleeping" the brisk voice of Ms. Kern announced as she swept into the room. Ms. Kern was the manager for the princess's daily activities. She coordinated their schedules for their many tutors and appointments. If she decided to quit the castle would fall to pieces and the kingdom would descend into chaos.