No one had seemed to notice, but from the corner of her eye, Leanna had seen what she thought was someone hitting the horse. SNAP. The horse reigns broke as the frightened animal  charged forward. She was only on the the other side of the plaza fountain, and her body moved of its own accord. Leanna bolted forwards, running as fast as possible to the child. NEIGH. The horse reared, and it was only a few feet away from the boy. 

She flung herself into the boy and the pair rolled to the side, just in the for the horses hooves to slam down on to the cobblestone right where he had fallen. STOMP. Leanna looked over and all she could see were dirty hooves, only a few feet from her head.  They had caught onto part of her dress, but Leanna could not careless about her dress or dirt or anything trivial at that moment. 

The boy she had rescued was griping tightly for dear life, and even as she sat up with Delaney's help, he held on. She gently patted his back and spoke soothingly to him. "Abernath!" A woman cried out from the crowd, running forwards and falling to her knees. She had witnessed the incident but had been swept away a little by a performance troupe audience. 

She was sobbing from relief, and reached for Abernath, arms shaky. "OH my baby, my poor baby. Please forgive your mother." Abernath, now a bit calmed down, saw his mother on the ground next to them and flung himself into her arms. Tears and snot streamed down his face. "MOMMY! Mommy it was so scary! I couldn't move! Mommy!" The two hugged and cried, and Leanna sat back, her heart still racing. 

She rose with Delaney's help and with a determined look on her face proceeded toward the shop the horse had been in front of. Talking to the shop owner and a few passerby, she quickly came to a possible conclusion of the instigator, and upon searing around the area, found Keaia, looking guiltier than a dog with a stolen pie. Keaia looked nervous, shifting her gaze constantly, and when Leanna strode over, seemed to panic. 

With Duchess Leanna looming over her, she tried to act confident and brazen, failing all the same. "L-Leanna, W-what a c-c-coincidence. I-I was just o-out dress shopping. With my beloved Charles. The Duke. Duke Charles." Leanna took one look at her, and summoning the courage, SLAP. Keaia looked stunned. She had expected Duchess Leanna to back off or look sad and cowardly. 

Charles had told her all kinds of things, but she had never openly met her face to face. She stood there, her cheek red, at a loss for words. "I am The Duchess, the legal married wife of Duke Charles of Sihnegh. I am not some trifling woman who wriggled into his bed. I am a Duchess now, and was the daughter of a Marquis before. You can not and will not refer to me by my first name like we are somehow friends. I will not stoop to the level of a mistress." 

Leanna's words sent Keaia into further shock and had garnered a crowd. While some were wondering why the noble lady had slapped the other young woman, an elderly lady spoke out "Why look its the Duchess of Sihnegh. I remember the wedding procession. Such a sweet lady. And that girl over there is some brat from the brothel two towns over." The elder spat while mentioning Keaia and the crowd leered at her. 

There were murmurs among the crowd as they reasoned Leanna's actions and condemned Keaia. "How dare such a lowly woman try to seduce the duke" "What was this filthy thing thinking" "I heard she referred to the duchess by her first name" "Dirty wench" "The Duchess is so kind and understanding" "How could she take advantage of the Duke and Duchess" 

Keaia shriveled more as the words were hurled at her, and finally understanding her place a little, tried to flee. The crowd parted, as though the thought of touching her would inflict them with disease. Leanna, however, had other plans, and called out "Stop. I have proof to believe you were involved with the incident earlier. Explain to me what happened." Keaia went pale, and turned around, uncomfortably shifting in place. "Well you see...Charles I-I mean Duke Sihnegh told me that someday everything here could be mine. The horse was not paying me any attention, and so I thought I could punish it as...the...future...duchess." 

Keaia seemed to shrink into herself, realizing the brevity of her words. The look on the Leanna's face become one of deep anger, and she wanted nothing more than to scream at this disgraceful woman. Instead, she took a deep breath, and in a stern and commanding voice spoke "Guards. Arrest this woman for harming shopkeeper Martin's horse, disturbing the peace, and nearly causing a potentially fatal accident. She also insulted me, the Duchess. Bring her to the public jailhouse, and by my order, no one is allowed to approach or harm her." 

Keaia started to panic as the full weight of Leanna's words settled, but before she could react, the guards had seized her and took her away. Satisfied by the living evidence she had finally collected, she turned to the townspeople, who had gathered near her. They spoke soothing words of praise and reassured her that they would never support that woman being anywhere other than the jailhouse. Leanna smile and responded back gracefully, and each of the townspeople eventually went back to their comings and goings. 

She and Delaney finally made it to their destination Couture Féerique. This boutique was run by a famous seamstress who had come from the southwestern country of Édredon. This beautiful country was known for its delicious wines and most importantly its exquisite clothing and textiles. Seventy percent of Esmea's import of textile and other related product was from Édredon. The lead seamstress of Couture Féerique could make clothes for everyday wear that were of excellent quality, and could make ballgowns to rival that of those in the capital.

 A dress from this boutique could make one look like a queen or empress. While head seamstress Élysée was incredibly talented, she was also nearing sixty-three and was ready to retire. Thus, she set up shop far from the capital, and enjoyed bringing joy to the people of the duchy. Young girls could get a beautiful dress for a reasonable cost. That was why Leanna loved this boutique, and Madam Élysée. She walked in, and Delaney followed, gift in hand. Leanna breathed in and out, it was time to shed her old shell and dawn a new.