You stand in your room looking at the dress draped over the chair. Mother walks in. "Have you still not put on the dress?! Child, we need to be there in an hour, come here I'll put it on you."

Mother tightened the corset until your ribs ached. "I can't breathe, mother.""Oh shush you're overdramatic. Well look at that! It fits you perfectly, the color makes your violet eyes more violet. Now hurry up or father and your brother are leaving without us.""Yes mother."

As you and mother walk through the house, you see birds flying and chirping in the garden—free and unencumbered by corsets or societal expectations. My mother pulls my hand sharply. "Come on, faster. We are late!"

You step into the carriage, the scent of polished wood and leather filling your nostrils. Through the window, you watch the countryside roll by, green fields giving way to the stone buildings of town. "Sit up straight, you don't want to look sloppy.""Yes mother."

God, the corset is uncomfortable, you think, shifting slightly in your seat. "So, I want you to meet the son of Lord Hughes."

She wants me to marry him, doesn't she? "Of course this is no surprise, because you are already eighteen after all, and why would the Speakers Society keep rules? Why wait until twenty-one if you can marry younger?" the Voice whispers in your mind.

"Yes mother.""Father? Are we attending a party?""We're visiting a wedding—Lord Bennett and Miss Bailee."

"Of course, Hanna Bailee is marrying already."

The carriage jolts to a stop, and you smooth your skirts before stepping out onto the stone path with your family.