Manni had outdone herself with a light tan brocade dress with a high collar and a sparkle rippling through the cloth. It was richly embroidered with lavish red lilies. Accessorised with a matched delicate floral headpiece and perfectly matched lipstick, her mistress looked for all the world like a little doll.
It seemed like painting an ugly black stroke through a masterpiece to cover her face with a veil, Manni thought, as she looped a tan veil across Meili's ears.
Meili was buzzing with excitement as she left the tent. All five of her brothers waited outside for her and she looked at them all in surprise.
"Why have you all waited for me? I can walk a few hundred metres on my own you know."
"Definitely not," said First firmly, shaking his head. "You're not going anywhere on your own. Ever again."
Her face fell. "It wasn't my fault gege. I was set up and attacked."
