Chapter 16: Thorns around the rose
At night, the temperature had dropped around the Kingdom of Versailles, and everyone stayed inside their rooms and their beds. The people with high status covered their bodies with thick quilt-like blankets, while the ones of the lower class, like the servants, used the thin bedsheets around their bodies, but that wasn't enough for them to sleep comfortably.
In the servants' quarters, Anastasia had fallen asleep sooner than the other days, as tonight she didn't want to touch the charcoal piece to sketch and was tired.
Deep in sleep, with the silence surrounding the servants' quarters, Anastasia dreamt of what her heart longed for.
'Anna?' Her father's voice echoed. 'Anna?'
'I am in the backyard, papa!' Anastasia replied, who was hanging the clothes on the rope, which she had washed at the riverside.
Anastasia wrung out the dress and hung it on the rope, while her father stepped out of the house through the back door. He said, 'There you are! I have brought the plums that you like. The small purple ones.' They looked the same as when she and her sister were little girls.
Her mother, who followed her father, said, 'Anna, it is time to come in. Mary said she wants your help. We cannot be late for the celebration.'
'Of course, mama,' Anastasia said, pouring the water from the bucket on the ground before entering their lovely and warm house. Wiping her hands, she went to her sister's room and knocked on the door. When she turned the knob, her eyes fell on her sister, who wore a simple white gown. 'You look beautiful, Mary! I am so happy for you to be marrying the man you love,' she said, hugging her sister.
Marianne's eyes were moist, and she smiled, 'I am happy too, Anna. I cannot believe the day has finally come.' She pulled Anastasia in front of the long mirror and remarked, 'But it is time for you too. Look,' her sister urged her, turning to look at the mirror.