Vieve showed up in their parlor, damning and approving the state of hair fobs and follies with great authority for a girl who only wore boys’ clothing.
“No, Dimity, you should leave yours as loose as possible but still up in a ladylike manner. It’s a real scorcher, your hair. Best display it to maximum efficiency. Agatha, try curls. No, bigger curls. Bigger!”
Monique and Preshea emerged from their room, and everyone stopped and gasped appreciatively. The two girls looked truly charming. Monique was all tall blonde elegance, with Preshea the velvet night to her moon. Blast it, thought Sophronia, they look so good I’m coming over poetic. How humiliating.
“Gold brocade?” said Vieve’s little voice. “A bold choice for the first gown of the Season.”
That broke the spell, because Monique turned sharply, squeaking due to the tight bodice of that gorgeous gold gown, and threw her fan at the young girl.
Vieve laughed, batting it away. “Oh, very ladylike. Aren’t you all grown up?”
Sophronia was wearing her new sage dress with the evening bodice and the fancy overskirt. Her hair was up, though not very done, and her jewelry was minimal—paste pearls borrowed from Dimity. She looked lovely in her simplicity, or so Dimity insisted. “Like a fresh green sunflower sprout.”
“I look like a sprout?” Sophronia pretended offense and tried to join in the excitement. But she felt distant and alone. She kept seeing Professor Braithwope’s blank eyes and broken form.
Vieve came to stand next to her. “Aren’t they a sight?”
“Who?” Sophronia was a tad short with her friend.
“All of them. You’d think this ball the most exciting thing to ever happen ever.”
“When a few short moments ago a vampire fell from the sky?”
Vieve turned, tilted her cap back, and looked out from under it at Sophronia. “You may have arranged matters, but the actions of others are not your fault. You know that, yes?”
“How is he, Vieve?”
“We should talk in there.” Vieve gestured casually to Sophronia and Dimity’s room.
As soon as the door was closed, she said, “I overheard my aunt and Sister Mattie chatting with the potentate and Mr. Giffard. Despite Shrimpdittle’s tampering, they don’t think that was the cause of Prof B.’s condition. Giffard said the vampire went crazy the moment they entered the aetherosphere. One second he was standing there in his suit, the next he was gyrating around the deck as though on fire. It was as if he had an adverse reaction to the aether itself. Even if the guidance valve had been working, he was too insane to activate it. Professor Shrimpdittle’s sabotage was irrelevant. And now Professor Braithwope is a babbling madman, and they aren’t sure if it’s the result of aetherosphere exposure, the fall, or a snapped tether.”
“Are they confident that’s exactly what happened?” Sophronia held on to her guilt.
“They should have made the suit impermeable to aether, if that’s even possible, but they only thought to try to salvage his tether. If anyone should feel guilty, it’s the people who sent him up there in the first place. It’s been concluded that vampires can’t go into the aetherosphere, ever. A major scientific breakthrough, so at least he didn’t sacrifice himself for nothing.” Vieve dimpled at her hopefully.
“But if the school could have followed his fall faster? If Shrimpdittle hadn’t… if I hadn’t tricked Shrimpdittle into…”
“Stop being so hard on yourself, Sophronia.”
“Will he recover? Will he be mad forever? Will he die?”
“They don’t know. Matron has never heard of such an extreme case of tether snap, even without the added aether exposure. There is no precedent. He’ll be put under guard, but he may never regain his senses. Or he could expire within the hour.”
Sophronia did not feel any better. She thought she might rush to Professor Braithwope’s quarters and offer up her blood. She felt she should admit her guilt to Lady Linette. She wanted to do penance. Instead, numb with horror, she allowed herself to be shuffled along to a ball.