Koy should have been fussing over the final touches to her new Divine Touch swimsuit line. She should have been studying the photos make-up and hair had sent over. At the very least she should have been worrying that Daven Mallie of Millie & Mallie?s Department store would delay her runway show again if her designs still weren?t up to his standards.

Instead, the elf had her head buried inside the drawers of an old file cabinet.

?Looking for something?? Her young assistant, Tula asked. Tula watched Koy, half-amused at seeing her boss searching through the little-used cabinet.

?Measurements,? Koy grunted in response. Pulling out a dusty sketch pad, Koy scrunched her nose at the design on top. ?I can?t believe I even thought this might be a good idea.?

?Florals were big that year.?

?This looks more like wha would happen iffn a wood nymph threw up.? She tossed the pad aside, reaching a hand back inside the not-so-clean drawer.

?You do realize that the measurements for all the models are on your desk don?t you?? Tula wondered if Koy was cracking under all the stress Daven had been placing on her to deliver.

Koy stopped bending over the drawer for long enough to shoot Tula a narrowed look. ??Course I know tha. Wha?s wrong with ye??

The blond girl snickered. ?You?re the one asking me that?? This was typically how they talked to each other. Tula had worked for Koy for years, way before she had gone through puberty or discovered that boys were more than hair-pullers. She knew Koy?s boundaries and teasing her wasn?t one of them.

Yanking a worn notebook from the bottom of the drawer, Koy waved it in the air for Tula to see. ?This is wha I was lookin? fer.?

Coming closer, Tula observed the notebook over Koy?s shoulder. ?Planning on styling another movie?? The girl sounded hopeful. She remembered how cute some of the interns and production assistants had been on set when Koy worked on Maz?s documentary.

Koy wasn?t a mind-reader but Tula was far from complicated to understand in certain areas. Koy rolled her eyes. ?Do ye ever not think ?bout boys? No, I need ta find out someone?s measurements from the film.?

No young guys working up a sweat lugging heavy camera equipment around? Tula suddenly had little interest in whatever it was Koy was doing. ?All right, well I?m going to pick up those shoes you ordered. I?ll be back in a few.?

Koy barely nodded, already flipping through her quick sketches, cost estimates and design notes. Finding the information she needed, she went into the main showroom of The Heavenly Boutique and began picking through the clothing racks.

Iona had gratefully accepted the dress and box of shoes from Tula, eyeing the packages curiously as she made her way up the stairs to deliver them to Jewell. She was fairly sure that Jewell had not done any shopping lately--she only left her house to visit the cemetery and the Inn--and she certainly had not placed any orders for her Mistress at any of her favorite stores.

She tapped on the door to the master bedroom with her knuckles, only giving that small warning before opening it and stepping inside. "Miss Jewell? A young lady just delivered this here for you, I'm guessing it's a dress of some sort judging by the bag." She looked up and around the room, locating the lady of the house; she was lying on her bed, hands beneath her head, just staring up at the ceiling, her grey eyes somewhat vacant.

Iona held back her worried sigh and approached the bed, speaking louder to jar Jewell out of whatever daydream she was indulging in, "Miss Jewell...someone sent you something. Wouldn't you like to look at it, see what it is?"

Jewell blinked owlishly, turning her head so slowly to face Iona that is was unnerving. Iona was one of the few people Jewell hadn't been trying to hide her grief from; that woman could see through any mask she could ever fashion for herself. Jewell looked Iona, and the package, now without trying to mask her indifference. Sitting up with a little sigh, she motioned her housekeeper to set the two packages down with a resigned, "Might as well."

Iona did so, stepping back to watch Jewell carefully. The Empress opted to open the card first, nimble fingers lifting it up. She traced the somewhat familiar, engraved logo, a little half smile forming on her face. She had taken to Koy because of the woman's keen fashion sense and because she could still look gorgeous and kick some serious butt in the dueling rings. That mix of femininity and hard-coreness earned Koy Jewell's respect.

She opened the card, reading the three sentences quickly. She mouthed the last one to herself, "Looking good is not dependent on being happy." It was no secret that Jewell was far from happy these days, but she hadn't been looking too good either. She knew that looking in the mirror and seeing her less-than-beautiful self hadn't been helping her disposition in the least. If she wanted to try and at least pretend to be happy, perhaps she would have to up her appearance to knockout status once more.

Curiosity getting the best of her, she quickly unzippered the garment bag and "Ooh"d at the dress inside. She was going to go to the awards ceremony and try to look gorgeous; the dress Koy had provided was certainly going to make that task a whole lot easier.

She held it up for Iona's inspection, "That's gorgeous, you going to find a reason to wear it?" She tried not to sound too hopeful but she was dying to see Jewell get out of the house and try to obtain some normalcy in life again.

"I think...I'll wear it to the awards ceremony," she bit her lip, wondering if she could pull off a whole night of being The Empress.

"Well, if that's the case lets see it on you and figure out somethin' to do with that mess you've been callin' your hair!"