MILLIE PLACED THE last golden pin in her hair and stepped back. After what seemed like hours, the lady's maid was finally satisfied with the look. Vivienne took a moment to admire herself in the looking glass. Her blonde hair seemed almost golden with the pins reflecting the light ever so slightly. That was not all that Millie had done. Somehow, Vivienne's cheeks were rosier than ever, and her green eyes were lined with something called kohl, making them seem more defined and vibrant.

She turned around and clasped Millie's hand, "Oh Millie, you've done wonderfully. I almost do not recognize myself! It's hard to imagine that I could look like this."

Her lady's maid blushed, "I'm glad you approve my lady. I was practicing all of last week hoping for perfection."

Vivienne gingerly raised a hand to a blonde curl, "I must admit, I don't know much about London fashion, but in my eyes, you've achieved perfection. I'm so grateful for your help."

The lady's maid bowed, and Vivienne grabbed the creamy white gloves and slipped them on. The chain of her emerald pendant caught on one of gloves and she tugged on it, carefully removing it from the fabric. She glanced at the pendant and a feeling of sadness washed over her. It seemed so long ago that Agatha had promised Vivienne that she would get to experience the season and now that she was, her governess was not with her. Vivienne hoped more than ever that Agatha was safe, wherever she was. Although James might not believe it, deep in her heart, she knew her governess was alive.

"I almost forgot, Lady Torrington gave me something for you earlier this morning," Millie said excitedly as she rushed towards the armoire.

Vivienne watched as the lady's maid brought forward a beautiful golden necklace and matching earrings. Millie held up the earrings to her ears, "I think it will look spectacular with the dress."

Vivienne watched as Millie placed them on and then her fingers grasped the clasp of her pendent. She raised her hand back, "No, I'll do it."

The pendant had been around her neck for as long as she could remember. If anyone was going to be taking it off, it would be her. Vivienne softly removed the pendant and placed it on the velvet pouch that sat on the table. Millie replaced it with the golden necklace. It felt foreign and cold upon her skin, but as usual, her lady's maid was right—it went spectacularly with the dress.

"There, that covers everything. Lady Torrington should be waiting for you downstairs."

Vivienne nodded once and took a deep breath to calm herself. She was doing this; it was no longer a dream she conjured in the cottage with Agatha, it was now a reality.

"I'm sure you will make a wonderful splash in the London season, my lady." Millie said with a comforting smile.

Vivienne returned her smile before descending the stairs. Sure enough, Lady Torrington was waiting for her, dressed in a dark blue, almost black gown and powder white gloves. The dowager looked at her appearance, and a rare, satisfied smile made its way upon her face.

"You clean up quite nicely, I've done my job well."

Vivienne touched the golden chain upon her neck, "Thank you for allowing me to borrow your jewelry."

"I expect it to be returned to me after the evenings over—in the condition I lent it to you of course."

Vivienne wanted to smile but her stomach was beginning to feel a bit queasy. "Are we still waiting for J-His Grace?"

Lady Torrington shook her head, "No, James went to White's a bit earlier. Apparently, he had some rather important business to attend to."

"Oh," Vivienne said as her heart sank. She had assumed that James would be the one that would escort her onto the ballroom floor for her first dance. Now, he couldn't even make it to Almack's.

"He will of course be at Almack's to escort you for the first dance," Lady Torrington said, seemingly reading her mind. "I did stress to him the importance of being on time."

Vivienne gave the dowager countess a shaky smile. Having a dance partner—that was one less thing she would have to worry about tonight.

Preston walked up to the two of them, "The coach is ready, my ladies."

They were escorted outside to the coach and settled in before they were on their way. On a normal night, Vivienne would peer out the coach window and take in the streets, but right now all she was trying to do was recall every lesson Lady Torrington taught her in the last few months.

"If you are going to cast up your accounts, do not do it inside here."

Vivienne expelled the breath she did not even know she was holding. "I'm fine," she said but she knew that she wasn't.

"For goodness sake," Lady Torrington said crossly. "We are going to Almack's, not the gallows. Breathe, you will do fine. All the ladies I've help to bring out have done wonderfully."

Vivienne took the distraction offered, "How many ladies have you helped make their debut?"

"One," Lady Torrington said cheerfully, "You, that is why I know you will be spectacular. I do not take on fools and I trust that I've trained you well to guide yourself through an evening at Almack's."

Surprisingly, she felt better after Lady Torrington's words. The coach stopped and the two of them stepped out. Vivienne watched in fascination at the long queue of ladies waiting for their admittance into the establishment.

It seemed Lady Torrington shared her confusion as the dowager clutched her walking cane with one hand, and her chest to the other. "My goodness, one would think the Prince Regent himself decided to grace us with his presence this evening."

Nevertheless, it seemed like they were mistaken about the wait time for the admittance because ladies were being refused one after another. Vivienne was only able to see a handful of ladies enter Almack's.

"Why are they being turned away?" Vivienne asked.

Lady Torrington turned up her nose, "Entrance to Almack's is only by voucher. If you do not possess one, you will not be admitted. The Lady Patronesses of Almack make the final decisions regarding absolutely everything."

Vivienne vaguely remembered the dowager countess explaining the rules of Almack, but it seemed like that had been years ago. They arrived at the door and Lady Torrington took out the vouchers from her reticule and handed it to the finely dressed man outside.

And then they were inside.

Vivienne gasped as her eyes widened and swung everywhere.

Bright chandeliers with twinkling candles gleamed across the ceilings, basking the room in a wonderful glowing sight. Dresses of different shapes, sizes and colour filled Vivienne's vision. She saw ladies conversing with sharply dressed gentlemen, coyly waving their fans and giving them doe eyes. Refreshments had been placed to the side, but they were mostly unattended. Vivienne's eyes wandered the room, looking for Fiona but she could not spot her friend with the amount of people in front of her.

Lady Torrington tugged on her arm. "Follow me, I'll introduce you to the Lady Patronesses."

Vivienne gave her a startled look, "Right at this moment? Should we not wait and get more acclimated to the room."

The dowager countess gave her a look as if she had lost her mind. "Before the first dance begins, you must get approval from them. There is no better time then now, you can find Fiona later."

Vivienne didn't question how Lady Torrington knew that she had been looking for Fiona but instead, she followed the dowager. Walking cane hitting the ground, she saw more than a few people move out of the way and give them room. Lady Torrington did nothing to acknowledge them and continued forward, looking back once in a while to ensure that Vivienne was still trailing after her.

They arrived at a corner where a group of ladies stood rather exclusively alone. She could see other ladies looking at them curiously, but hesitant to approach them. Lady Torrington felt no such way as she marched right up to them.

"Ah Lady Torrington, what a rare sight it is to see you honouring us with your presence at Almack's."

Lady Torrington walked up to the lady and gave her a rare smile, "Lady Cowper, I do not believe I would find you elsewhere on a Wednesday evening".

The lady, who was quite petite and had a small round head, brown hair, and full lips smiled herself. "You know me well Esme, nothing soothes the soul more than a little dancing."

"I can't say the same for myself." Lady Torrington said with a slight tilt of her head.

The lady's smile slipped for a moment before it was plastered back on. Vivienne watched in amazement. To have the ability to hide one's emotion like that seem quite the gift in a setting like this. Lady Cowper's gaze landed on her and warmed, "Who is this?"

"May I present the debutante that I am sponsoring this season? This is Lady Vivienne."

Vivienne curtsied to the ladies; she didn't know their ranks, but it seemed like the appropriate action.

"Sponsoring someone?" another lady cut in, her voice was a bit sharper as she continued glancing at Vivienne. "Heavens, I must be dreaming. The lady must be special indeed."

"Sarah," Lady Cowper said in a warning tone, before she smiled back at Vivienne. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Countess Cowper, and that is Lady Jersey."

"I must thank you for allowing me to make my debut here tonight," Vivienne said softly. "Almack's is quite the glamorous establishment."

Lady Jersey ignored her, but Lady Cowper was much kinder as she nodded towards the dowager countess. "Lady Torrington does not sponsor anyone and we are very grateful for you to join us tonight. Do you have a partner for the first dance?" Her gaze wandered to the ballroom behind her, "I believe I saw Captain Gronow somewhere around here; he would make for a wonderful partner."

"There is no need for that, Emily. My nephew will be here to lead her out for the first dance."

"The Duke of Lennox is going to grace us with his presence?" Lady Jersey asked in bewilderment.

"I do believe that is exactly what I said," Lady Torrington said coolly. "Do try to listen Lady Jersey, my age might give me an excuse—but yours does not."

Lady Jersey's cheeks pinked at the dowager countesses' comments, but she didn't say anything else.

Lady Cowper took Vivienne's gloved hands into hers. "Well, I do hope you enjoy the evening and the rest of the season," she leaned in, and spoke in a softer tone that could not be heard by the others. "You brought Lady Torrington here tonight, that is enough of a miracle."

Vivienne smiled at that, and they both shared a brief look. She excused herself then, walking a few steps away and Lady Torrington followed her. "Well, how did I do?"

Lady Torrington looked at her and smiled. "Besides Lady Jersey who is always in a foul mood, I do think you did quite remarkably. Emily seems to like you; it will make your transition among the London society much easier."

Vivienne sighed in relief at that. Her gaze wandered the ballroom and she saw a flash of red hair. Lady Torrington followed her gaze and sighed. "That is indeed Lady Fiona. You may go to her but remember the first dance shall begin in an hour."

"You are not coming?"

Lady Torrington shook her head, "I am going to find myself a seat and settle down. Besides, I see a few ladies whom I haven't seen in quite some while."

Vivienne nodded but before she was leaving, Lady Torrington gripped her hand. "Do not leave my sight though, make sure you stay in the ballroom."

Vivienne promised the dowager countess she wouldn't leave and went to find her friend. Fiona was leaning against one of the pillars, looking quite unhappy until her gaze landed upon Vivienne.

"Vivienne, you look like a shining star!"

Vivienne blushed at the compliment and took in the deep green dress her friend was wearing, "You look magnificent as well."

The two began chatting about their journey to London and everything else they had missed in between Fiona's visit to the Chalcott manor. Before she knew it, the time had passed around them quickly and Fiona gripped Vivienne's hand.

"The first dance for the debutants is set to begin, have you secured a partner?"

Vivienne's gaze searched the ballroom frantically, "Ja-the duke was supposed to be my partner, but I cannot see him, do you?"

Fiona's eyes cut through the ballroom, and her face fell. Vivienne didn't need her friend to tell her. James hadn't arrived and now she didn't have a partner for the first dance. Her heart squeezed painfully; she had never thought James would let her down like this. It seemed like he had more important matters to tend to, then her. Disappointment and sadness, like nothing else before filled her heart. He had let her down the moment she needed him the most. 

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What could James possibly be doing? Did you expect him to let Vivienne down like this?