Chapter Text
The following morning, Alice woke up in pain.
It was typical, actually. The sun burning her face through the window, her dress torn and clumsily put back together. No blanket covered her, and her head didn't even touch the shabby pillow. A typical morning after a consultation.
She tried to get up, but the pain was like having knives stabbing her, and moving only made them shift angle, offering not a single drop of relief, just a sea of agony. Between groans and a few tears, she reached for the old pillow and let out a muffled scream.
"Why does this hurt so much! It's more than usual!" she thought, dizzy and gasping. Judging by the sun, it should still be morning. On normal days, Danielle would barely wait for daybreak before sending some maid to fetch the girl for her duties. After a consultation, she would usually be left alone for half a day, or, with great luck, an entire day. But that meant a day without eating.
"I'm hungry," she thought and hit her head on the pillow. This only made needles of pain pierce her eyes, but it helped her forget other aspects. "If I ask, would Elise give me something?"That was the last thought she had before passing out.
This was about a month ago, and since then life had continued as always for the younger girl, but with a persistent strangeness in the air that she couldn't quite decipher. Consultations tended to have an interval of about 15 days between them, sometimes more, sometimes less. But a month had already passed, and not even a comment about a new summons had been heard. Which was both a relief and concerning.
But that wasn't a problem that mattered now.
What mattered was the inordinate workload that the woman in front of her was delegating.
"Did you clear the leaves from the garden?""Yes, ma'am.""Did you dust the chandeliers in the west wing?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Did you organize the tools in the stable?"
"Yes, ma'am.""Did you polish the mirrors in the bedrooms?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Very well." Danielle turned to the younger girl, setting aside the paperwork on the desk.
Danielle’s office was an annex located on the first floor, near the maids' dormitory. It was small and convoluted, with more creaking shelves than circulating space, but it was impeccably organized and clean, almost excessively so. No dust and no scratches on the oak furniture, nothing to indicate personality, just cold calculation and professionalism, only broken by the glow of the sunset around them.
"One of the kitchen boys hurt himself yesterday; you will be taking his place. Follow Elise's command and please, don't cause any trouble, alright?"
"...Alright."
"Dismissed." And with a flourish, she returned her brown eyes to the notebook, her posture firm as the girl gave a forced curtsy and left the room.The kitchens were on the other side of the mansion, near the guest area. Which was a perfect excuse to dawdle and snatch some time for herself.
Breaunt Manor had three floors in total: the first being the party wing, reception, and staff quarters; the second floor was where the office, library, and guest rooms were located, and the third would be for the accommodations of the Count's family. Strictly off-limits, with very few exceptions. Despite being less than a maid in this hierarchy, Alice's room was on the second floor of the mansion. This only served to further provoke the hatred and apathy of the people around her, not that they need much to be provoked, but it is always a pain to have anything to further that hatred.
"…I swear it's true! An Inquisitor even showed up in the village a while ago! They say they were looking for Lindsey."
"But no way! Lindsey can't be..."
"I said it was strange. Did you know she talks in her sleep?" A group of three women were whispering while sweeping the corridor. The three looked young, in their 20s, and were so focused on the subject that they didn't even notice the girl approaching. Alice turned the corner of the corridor.
"My brother talks in his sleep too, but you won't see him casting spells because of it! That sounds like nonsense, Anna!"
"Say that to the Inquisitor's face, not mine. Have you seen her around these days? She ran away fast! I say those who have nothing to hide have no reason to flee."
"Maybe she found her 'great love' and ran away with him!"
"Only if it was with a toad! Hahahaha!" And with that, the three laughed nonstop.
Alice, frustrated, held back a scoff and decided to walk past the women, who quickly noticed and turned their attention to the girl. "Anna" smiled, leaning against the wall.
"Speaking of the devil… Look here, darling, the Inquisitors are hunting witches around, if I were you, I'd ask Davis for a few more days off, maybe you can get a potion to disguise yourself then."
"I don't know, I think Dani would be more likely to hand her over right away, at least that way she'd have peace of mind!" The three laughed again, and Alice seriously wondered if there was some crude inside joke or if these three were under the effect of some unknown drug that made people laugh. As depressing as the thought was, Alice could tell when a joke made at her expense was funny, which was not the case here, not even close. She stopped at the end of the corridor and stared at the maids.
"Look, the way you three sound like mangy hyenas laughing at anything, I think you sell the witch idea better than I do."
A sepulchral silence fell over the corridor. One of the girls looked embarrassed and regretful, while the other's mouth dropped open in shock. "Anna," however, was livid.
"...What did you just say?~"
"It would make my job, you know, if i'm truly a witch, way easier then! Who would suspect a little skeletal girl with three old bags like you as coll..."
"Anna" grabbed her by the collar, lifting the girl and slamming her against the wall, an expression of pure hatred stamped on her face. Alice felt her heart stop as the pain of hitting the wall crushed her."Listen here, you little bitch, I was going to leave you alone, but since you insist on being such a menace..."
"ENOUGH, ANNAREIA!" A deep voice intervened.The girls behind shrieked, and Annareia released Alice, who fell to the floor.
At the end of the corridor, the tall figure of a woman stood imposing, cold anger detectable in her features. Elise Hollow was an impressive woman in her own right; tall and muscular, She had more angular features upon an olive skin, and her brown, big hair was trapped in a braid, a rare vision for the woman who works in the kitchens. Even though she had been at the mansion for less than a year, she was highly respected by the staff, and even Danielle avoided clashing with her.
"O-oh, Eli, you know I wouldn't attack without reason! She provoked me!"
"I don't care who provoked whom! She's an eleven-year-old brat, and you're a grown woman. As far as I know, you're here to work, not to engage in this foolishness. If I hear anything else..." She looked at the three, who involuntarily shivered. "The Count will find out who's been stealing from his wine collection. Am I clear?" The three nodded quickly, holding their breath.
"Then get out, BEAT IT!"
The three ran off, and Alice was almost certain she heard one of them cry a little.
"...Unbelievable. Annareia and Zula are to be expected, but Lisa? And I thought she was sensible..." Elise muttered to herself, collecting the brooms that had been thrown by the women. Alice remained there, leaning against the corner of a wall, not really observing much as she brought her knees close to her chest, hugging herself in a gesture of comfort.
Elise looked at the girl and sighed, putting the brooms aside and sitting on the floor with her.
"What was it this time? Did they throw dust at you?"
"...They were talking about Lindsey, I wanted to listen. She was nice, and she had just entered..." Alice sighed, looking ahead. "They called me a witch too."
"If you’re a witch, I’m afraid of what they would be." Elise said, leaning back against the wall.
"They say Lin managed to run off with that carpenter boy, remember the one who hung out with Benni? She’ll be fine." Elise watched the girl sinking into herself and held back a sigh. Lindsey was one of the few people in this God-forsaken place who treated the girl like a human being, which only confirmed people's biases in the long run.
"Not that people here need any incentive to be awful," she thought disdainfully.
"What if they're right? What if the Inquisitors come for me?" The girl murmured. Elise held back a sigh while running her hands through her hair.
"Our boss might be a snooty jerk, but if he wanted you dead, you'd already be dead. No Inquisitor is going to override a Count." Elise looked at the girl, and gently placed her hand on Alice's shoulders. "Besides, I've got a cleaver and very little sense, so they better be smart around me".
Alice laughed a little, and Elise felt slightly better about herself.
"We've wasted enough time here. Let's take a detour, put these things away, and go to the kitchen, okay? I'll put you to accounting today." Elise stood up and offered her hand to help the girl, Alice accepted with a small smile.
"Supposedly, I don't know how to write, remember?"
"Supposedly, you'll be taking care of the chicken. Now, go on ahead."
. . . ✦ . . .
Something was wrong.
"How has your day been?"
Very wrong.
It should have been around 5 PM when Alice was summoned by a displeased Danielle to the garden gazebo, where Simon sat with some documents on the table, a teapot, and some pastries on display. Alice contemplated the question silently for a few seconds, an unexpected wave of rage taking hold of her the more she observed the place, only to be silenced by common sense.
She should have known she wasn't that lucky.
"It's been good, why?" she asked while looking around. Among all the different places in the mansion, there were few where Alice hadn't been in the last 12 years, and one of them was, somehow, this gazebo. It was said that Simon's mother, Lady Lucretia, had a greenhouse with all sorts of plants from all over the world. A way to bring her and others' adventures into her personal space. A pity her son, apparently, decided to destroy the garden to plant small red flowers that Alice didn't know the name of.
'A curious, but stupid choice,' Alice thought, focusing on admiring the pastries and confections spread across the small table, deliberately ignoring the fixed gaze that the owner of the said greenhouse was giving her as he shifted his weight from one leg to the other.
"Can't I ask my subordinate how working in my house has been?"
"You haven't bothered with that for the last eleven years, sir."
"I am bothered by it now."Alice sighed audibly.
"What do you want, Sir?"
"...Sit down." He gestured to the chair in front of him.
Alice held her breath as she sat down, her posture as straight as she could manage, her gaze fixed on the stained apron at her waist.
Simon merely nodded to a specific corner. Out of Alice's sight, two maids arrived with a service cart and refreshed the tea in the pot, besides serving both Simon and Alice. Simon remained calm and observant while Alice held her breath and froze in place.She could feel the murderous intent of the maids miles away, but quickly noticed that the hand serving her tea was trembling. She looked to the side, and the angry face of Millicent Pitterson greeted her with a choked snarl. Fortunately, they left moments later, but not before the redhead tried to spill some tea on Alice's shoe; she moved her foot out of the way without much trouble.
'I guess I'll just skip the tea,' She sighed, smelling chamomile in the air. It was the only tea flavor she had ever drunk, so it wasn't fair to say it was her favorite, but she appreciated it immensely. Unfortunately, there was no world in which Millicent would have served tea to Alice and it hadn't been tampered with in some way, and she already had enough problems on her plate.
"Next week, we will be receiving a visitor at the mansion." The Count began as he sweetened his tea. Alice froze. "He is a very distinguished and important gentleman for business. You will be helping during the reception. Mrs. Davis will guide you through the process."
"...But, I've never been present during receptions. You always told me to stay out of sight."
He brought the cup to his lips."It's a special occasion. You won't need to do much, just be visible and silent." And then he drink, lowering the cup soon after, he then fixates his eyes on her.
"However, I make it clear, Alice, that you must have exemplary behavior during the two weeks our guest and his entourage remain with us. It is of vital importance that everything is in order, do you understand me?"
"...Perfectly, sir."
He merely nodded, observing as she turned over a blueberry tart, without actually eating.
"I wouldn't have invited someone to the table to admire the food. Drink the tea, at least."
"...The tea is not to my liking, sir, I wouldn't want to inconvenience you." She murmured, looking at the cup, without noticing how Simon's gaze followed hers.
"...Hum, what a pity." he says, and lean back in the chair. "Do as you please, but remeber: this is all for you, Alice" and he dismisses her.
She could feel his gaze upon her, until she was out of sight. And then, on a small corner in the Count private garden, she falls to her knees, huggins herself as tears start to cumulate on her eyes.
"Don't cry" a voice says. "Pretty ladies don't cry, is a nuisance."
"I won't" a voice that isn't hers respond.