The manor had not seen this much noise before.
By mid-morning, every hallway was full of people carrying something. Flowers, ribbons, chairs, and long rolls of fabric that nobody seemed entirely sure where to put. Servants moved quickly between rooms, and the smell of fresh bread drifted from the kitchen, mixing with the sharper smell of polish being rubbed into old wood.
Lady Sarah stood in the middle of the grand hall like a general surveying her army.
"No, no, not there," she said, waving a hand at two footmen carrying a long table. "By the window. The light needs to hit the centrepiece properly, or the whole thing looks flat." She turned and pointed at another servant. "And you, the gold ribbon goes on the left side of the staircase, not the right. We discussed this yesterday."
"Yes, my lady," the servant said, already moving.
Lady Sarah clapped her hands together once, satisfied, and turned to find her next target.
