Madam Fernanda walked slowly around the room, her eyes sharp as she inspected each girl's drawing. The air felt so tight that you could almost hear everyone's heartbeats. Ella's hand was shaking, gshe hadn't even drawn a thing. She'd spent the whole time glaring at Lavender instead of doing her work, and now she was doomed.
Lavender, on the other hand, had rushed through her drawing last minute. Honestly, it looked nothing like the model on the table, but at least she had something.
"Your drawing is… unique," Sarah said softly, trying to sound kind.
Lavender shot her a suspicious look. Why would this gir,this perfect blonde daughter of a Duke,try to compliment her? It made no sense. She must have an ulterior motive, Lavender thought.
Madam Fernanda stopped in front of Sarah's desk, looked at her work, and smiled. "Beautiful, Sarah. You have your mother's touch."
Sarah froze. Her mother hated painting. But she just forced a smile and nodded.
Then came Lavender's turn. Madam Fernanda took one glance and sighed. "You can do better, Miss Lavender." And then she walked off. No lecture. Just disappointment. Somehow that stung even worse.
When the teacher reached Ella's empty paper, her expression changed completely. "You haven't done anything?"
"I got distracted," Ella mumbled, still glaring daggers at Lavender.
"You do not get distracted here," Madam Fernanda snapped. "You were brought to this school to be molded into perfection, not to waste everyone's time. What is wrong with you?"
For a moment, Ella felt embarrassed,but that disappeared fast. Who was this lowly woman to raise her voice at her? She was the daughter of a Viscount, after all. Madam Fernanda saw the look in her eyes and said nothing more, though she clearly wanted to.
When art ended, the girls moved to their next class,music.
---
Lady Koral, their music teacher, entered with a bright smile that instantly made the room feel lighter. She was different from the other teachers,young, cheerful, always smelling faintly of roses.
"Good morning, girls!" she greeted. "I am Lady Koral, and today, we will learn something very dear to my heart,music. A proper lady must have grace in her voice and hands, after all!"
The girls giggled softly as she brought out a few instruments,small harps, flutes, and a pianoforte in the corner.
They started with simple instruments,the recorder flute, something even Lavender had at home. She sat straighter, placed it to her lips, and began to play. The notes were clear and soft, floating through the room like petals in the wind. When she finished, the other girls clapped.
Ella clenched her teeth. How could they clap for her?
She grabbed her own flute and started to play,beautifully, but with that burning jealousy showing in her eyes. Soon it became an unspoken competition, one note fighting the other.
Lady Koral noticed and quickly stopped them before things got out of hand. "Ladies, this is not a contest," she said with a calm smile, though her eyes said she meant it.
---
Later, during the break, Lavender and Sarah found themselves surrounded by curious girls. They were suddenly interested, asking Lavender silly questions, pretending to be friendly. Lavender didn't trust them for a second.
Ella couldn't stand it anymore. She marched right up to Lavender.
"Who do you think you are?" she hissed.
Lavender ignored her, turning away, but Ella shoved her shoulder.
"You come here with your tainted skin and act like you're better than me,but you're not!"
Lavender's eyes burned. "Don't touch me again," she warned.
"Or else what?" Ella sneered. "Will you run to your precious adoptive parents? They sure made a mistake taking in dirt like you."
Lavender snapped. She grabbed Ella's fiery red hair and yanked.
Ella screamed and pulled back. Sarah, panicking, ended up grabbing Ella's hair too. Then Tiffany, Ella's friend, joined in and pulled Sarah's. Soon, it was chaos,girls yelling, curls flying, ribbons everywhere.
Until...
"Enough!"
Lady Antoinette Deveraux, the headmistress herself, stood at the door, eyes blazing. She looked furious,and kind of terrifying.
"Four of you,stop this nonsense at once!" she yelled again, even repeating it in French this time. The girls froze instantly.
She stared at their wrinkled dresses, their tangled hair, and sighed so deeply that it made them all shrink in shame.
"Follow me," she ordered.
---
In her office, Lady Antoinette made them sit down and handed each of them paper and ink.
"You will all write me a lengthy apology," she said. "It will fill three pages. No less."
Lavender almost smiled. That wasn't punishment,it was practically relaxing. But the other girls groaned like they were being tortured.
"I am ashamed of you," the headmistress said, pacing. "How could you fight on your first day? Are you not embarrassed?"
"We're sorry, ma'am," Sarah said quickly.
Lavender frowned. Why was she always so polite?
Ella mumbled an apology too, pretending to look remorseful, and Lavender finally muttered one just to get it over with.
When the headmistress left, Sarah leaned close to Lavender and whispered, "You were really brave."
Lavender blinked. "What do you mean?"
"You pulled Ella's hair so tightly," Sarah whispered, trying not to giggle. "It was… kinda fun."
Lavender tried not to laugh, but she smiled a little anyway. Maybe Sarah wasn't such a good girl after all.
Ella glared from across the room, her face red. Sarah was supposed to be her friend, not Lavender's. But one sharp look from Lady Antoinette made her look back down at her paper.
---
When they finished their letters, school was finally over. Lavender walked toward her carriage quietly, ready to leave. But before she could climb in, Sarah ran up behind her.
"Wait!" she said, slightly out of breath. She held out a folded piece of paper. "This is my home address."
Lavender frowned. "Why?"
"So you can write me letters," Sarah said.
"Why?" Lavender asked again, still suspicious.
Sarah grinned shyly. "Because I want us to be friends. And before you ask why again...because I like you."
Lavender sighed, trying not to smile, and scribbled her address on the back of the same paper.
"Goodbye," Sarah said, waving as she ran back.
Lavender waved too, quietly.
And from that day on, they started writing to each other. Letters that made the distance between them feel just a little smaller every time.