The next morning, Alison woke up to a loud banging at the door. With a groan and a blanket over her shoulders, she got up to answer the door. She could see that the sun was just barely over the horizon when she saw the same footman that drove her home a few days prior. She yawned.

"I'm here to retrieve you for the queen. I assume you received the invitation," he explained.

"Right, of course," Alison whispered before throwing the blanket on the couch. Then she closed the door.

"I don't mind waiting if you wanted to change," the man offered.

"I only have one other dress, and unless you want me to wait to do laundry, we should get going," Alison informed. She was annoyed that she was being dragged from her house at such an early hour.

"You have two outfits?" the man asked before he could stop himself.

"I haven't received my paycheck yet."

The footman helped her into the carriage again before stepping to the driver's seat. Alison leaned against the window, watching as the scenery blurred passed her. Soon, she found the ride soothing and fell asleep.

The footman knocked on her window when they had arrived at the castle. She rubbed her eyes and sighed. The footman helped her out of the carriage as Alison saw the queen with Gideon standing on the steps.

"Good morning!" the queen greeted, waving with one hand. Alison waved back, wondering why she was being dropped off yards away from where the queen was waiting. She walked up to the queen, and found a sleeping Wisteria in her arms.

"Early morning?" Alison teased. Wisteria stirred at her voice, but didn't wake up.

"She was up all night, and I decided to let Louise have a day off," Artemisia smiled.

"So what's he doing here?" Alison wondered, shocking Gideon. He frowned and looked away.

"He found out that you were coming, and came to check up on you," the queen grinned, hoping to ease some tension. Alison huffed and turned to Gideon.

"Feeling guilty?" Alison guessed, making Artemisia laugh under her breath. 

"I feel like I should set the record straight," Gideon answered. Alison noted that he looked embarrassed, and her telling everyone that he kidnapped her probably didn't help him. She shrugged.

"The record is already straight," Alison answered with a shrug. "You kidnapped me after I got knocked out."

"What was I supposed to do? Leave you there to bleed out?" Gideon asked rather loudly. Artemisia shushed him as Wisteria stirred again.

"Maybe go get help on the world I lived on? I probably would have been able to trust you if you actually got help where I needed it," Alison retorted. Gideon puffed his chest out in annoyance, which she relished in. She knew that he had done his best in the situation and that he was a bit awkward, but that didn't excuse his actions. He brought her to another world, and basically trapped her in it. She would be lying if she said that she wasn't angry with him.

"If you two are done, let's go inside. I have a few ideas for you to choose from, Alison," the queen smiled as Wisteria yawned. Alison nodded, following her inside, but staying as far away from Gideon as possible.

Artemisia guided them to a room that was adorned with colorful fabrics of different textures. Most were the same silky fabric that the queen wore so often, but there were denser fabrics that Alison liked more. Gideon sat by the door, his arms crossed. She couldn't figure out why he was still here, so she ignored him.

"The tailor should be here soon," the queen whispered, setting Wisteria down. The toddler sat down and played with the nearby fabrics. "I hope he gets here soon. I heard that you started working at the local restaurant. Madson came by before going to the town hall."

"Yeah, I'm a waitress there. They were very kind to let me work there," Alison replied, smiling. "Especially since I don't how long I'll be working there."

"I've heard that the chef there seems strict, but has a kind heart. I've been meaning to make an appearance there, but I haven't been able to."

"I think that Puck would like that."

"I'm so sorry, my queen!" a voice shouted as the doors swung open, nearly smacking Gideon. It was a smaller woman, a little older than Artemisia. Her large glasses were nearly comical, and she had long red hair that trailed down her back.

"Good morning, Gwen!" Artemisia greeted, walking over to the short woman.

"I overslept, my queen. I hope you haven't been waiting long," Gwen commented, out of breath. Her cheeks were red underneath the freckles, hinting that she ran to the room.

"Nothing to worry about. I know that this is earlier than when I usually call on you. Although, you nearly flattened Gideon, so you might need to talk to him for a moment," the queen remarked before Gwen turned to Gideon and apologized profusely. Artemisia smiled at Alison. "That's Gwen Arden. She's my royal stylist, and she does wonders. We'll have a dress for you in no time!"

"You're making a dress? For me? I thought I was just getting fitted into one of your old ones," Alison smiled, hoping to get the latter. Making a new dress seemed like a hassle.

"Nonsense! I said that I would get you a dress, and a dress I will get you!" Artemisia sang before pulling Gwen back over. "Now, Gwen, what kind of dress do you think would look perfect on Alison? I'm thinking something a little more slimming that my general dresses."

"I do agree, and I think that a denser fabric would be the way to go," Gwen informed, taking a peak at Alison's old clothes. "I'm thinking something a little longer. I like the calf length, but I feel a floor length would be more appropriate for a ball. Although, the neckline is too high. I think I would take that down a couple of inches. Something that sits beneath the collarbone."

"Sounds perfect," the queen purred as Gwen took out a measuring tape. She measured nearly ever surface on Alison's body, making her slightly uncomfortable.

"How low are we talking?" Alison asked. The dress that Artemisia had given her was a higher neck than her own dress, but she was afraid of how much Gwen wanted to show off. The tailor shrugged.

"Enough to make sure you're not choking. Honestly, I wonder how you breath with so much fabric that close to your throat," Gwen sighed, finishing up the form she had prepared.

"I manage," Alison grumbled as she put her arms down. Artemisia smiled in amusement.

"I should wake you up early more often," the queen teased. Alison grimaced, realizing that she was acting rather grumpy. Gwen placed the pencil behind her ear and smiled.

"Alright, now for colors. I'm thinking a deep blue, like a cerulean. That will compliment your hair and make your eyes pop," Gwen suggested, going through her fabric.

"I do like blues," Alison whispered, wondering if she really got a say in any of it. Gwen pulled out what seemed like thousands of fabrics of similar color, but different in patterns and designs. It didn't take Alison to get overwhelmed and just nod to everything that Gwen said.

"I will make sure that you look stunning for this event, I promise," Gwen enthused, back in her element. Alison gave a weak smile before turning to the queen. She was looking over more red fabrics, which complimented her complexion almost perfectly.

"I can never decide on what I want to wear to these things," the queen complained with a sigh. Alison bit her lip mid smile, afraid of laughing.

After a few more minutes of questions from Gwen and decisions from Artemisia, they finally left. Alison thanked Gwen for making the dress, but she was so engrossed in her new project that she didn't hear Alison at all. The queen smiled as they walked down the hall, Gideon following.

"Why were you there?" Alison asked, finally acknowledging him again.

"I wanted to see if I could show you that I'm an okay guy," Gideon sighed. He knew that he sounded terrible, but stuck with it anyway. Alison raised an eyebrow. "I know that I caused everything, but I don't want you to hate me. I wanted to show you that I'm more than what you think I am."

"Well, you're going to have to deal with my dislike a little while longer. And you are going to have to do some heavy lifting if you want to change my mind," Alison informed. Gideon nodded, knowing that it wasn't going to be easy to prove to her otherwise.

"Anyway, I think we've taken you away long enough. Your shift should be starting soon, right? We'll get you back so you can back to work. I just wanted to make sure that you were ready for the third," the queen interjected, ending their strange conversation. Alison smiled, glad that the queen had kept her job in mind. Although, she didn't think that Puck would have a problem if she was late because of the queen.

"Thank you," Alison replied. Artemisia smiled before picking up Wisteria again, who was walking on the other side of her mother.

"Of course! It's been so long since we've had a newcomer, and I think it's only fair to celebrate," the queen explained as Wisteria smiled at Alison. 

"I'm honored," Alison whispered before they reached the front doors again. The footman was waiting outside for her so they could return to Lochton. "Although, next time, I'll stay longer. These long carriage rides are getting to me."

"Of course," Artemisia laughed before waving her off. "Hope to see you soon!"

"See you soon!" Alison waved back before entering the coach again. The footman climbed back up and sent them flying back down the road.