I actually got chills reading this. It's simply wonderful.

I love how you unveil what is happening so slowly, forcing me to change my initial analysis. At the outset, I thought the protagonist was flouting the death-worship of Numenor, only to find out that she is, of course ... but it is because she expects to be immortal!

The imagery is beautiful and reinforces the dual ideas of death/decay and celebration. And the last line really packs a whallop!

(I also remember the Three Colour Challenge on HASA. Wow. That's a blast from the past!)

This was a fascinating read! It took me a while to understand just when exactly this was taking place (in spite of the summary... I'm slow sometimes! ;)), but that was precisely what made this story so intriguing to me. At first, I thought it was merely about flouting superstition/tradition, and when I realised just why the lady planned to turn the colour of mourning into one of celebration (and what would happen then...), that was a really intense moment. Very well done!