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It was by mere accident that (Y/N) was able to hear the soft sound of a meow. Looking around to be sure they were not going insane, they paid closer attention to the vegetation surrounding them.
The path leading back to the Beneviento house was isolated and covered from both sides with trees and bushes, resembling a forest. It was nice, quiet and isolated, probably one of the main reasons the Lady refused to move out.
The silence was thanked when once again, the sound reached them, forcing them to move fast to discover where it was coming from.
Trying to pinpoint the origin, they stumbled upon what looked like a tiny fat ball of black fur. Sensing a presence nearby, a pair of blue eyes directed their attention at the human in front of her, making (Y/N) awe in adoration.
“Hey there, buddy. What are you doing here?”
The prominent belly told them that this animal was clearly carrying, which most likely was the reason behind her being in the middle of nowhere. Given her small stature, (Y/N) assumed she must have given birth young, stopping her growth too soon.
‘God, please don’t tell me she brough kittens to this place’, ran through their mind, while carrying the cat in their arms.
Going back to the village, they started a search trying to understand why her new companion was taking occupation in such a faraway area.
“Sweetie, I think that is the Rizzoli’s little one. I remember their oldest mentioning something about losing their cat”, commented the old farmer, Ophelia, once she gave it a second thought.
“Wait, didn’t they move back to Italy like, last week? How long has she been missing?”
“I believe for almost a month now. They swung by a few times but never received any good news. Maybe they assumed someone had found her and took her in”, wondered the woman, scratching the animal’s head.
“Fuck”, they mumbled, “do you at least know her name?”
“Principessa. I believe it means-“
“Princess in Italian. Yes, Lady Beneviento has Italian heritage and Miss Angie enjoys learning so I’ve picked on a few words.”
“I see”, spoke the woman with suspicion, but (Y/N) paid them no mind.
This hadn’t been the first nor would it be the last time people had eyed them differently once they mentioned the Lady of the Doll House, how it was described by the villagers. Not many could understand why they had taken the job as maiden of the Lady.
Initially, they had been sent to Castle Dimitrescu, but after a tea party with Lady Beneviento and a rather fun encounter filled with banter and dark humor between Miss Angie and them, Lady Dimitrescu had requested an audience (reads, forcefully told them) to explain Lady Beneviento’s need of a new housekeeper, having indicated them for the job.
It was a welcome change, from the loud and sometimes rather inconvenient presence of the sisters to an owner who barely spoke, given them free reign over the house. Most of the time, Angie was the one that kept them occupied with snide remarks or snarky comments about whatever tasks they were performing in that moment.
Since they always replied in the same tone at Angie, the doll quickly started considering the person a friend.
“Where’s you’ve been? Your almost 2 hours late! What’s that in your arms?”
“Calm down, porcelain. It was one of the villager’s cat. They moved back to Italy last week and since no one wanted to take her in, I’ve decided to bring her here since I was already late. I’m taking her to my mother’s house tomorrow. Don’t worry, she loves chewing on dolls, especially talking ones!”
“Piss me off more and I’ll make a bow out of your guts.”
“Awnn, as if you could reach me…”
The soft steps of the Lady pulled your attention away from Angie. As on cue, Principessa decided to poke her head out of the coat that was wrapped around her, to see what happened in her surroundings.
“Good evening.”, spoke Donna in a whisper
“Donna, look. Fresh meat.”
“Hey Angie, how about I test that theory about your ability to fly and throw you out the window?”
“Fuck off!”
Trying to avoid any more arguments, Donna lifted her hand in the air, indicating she wished for silence. Angie walked closer to the Lady, requesting to be lifted, getting picked up and placed in safety between the Lady’s arms.
“My Lady, with your permission I would like to keep Principessa with us tonight. She won’t bother you or cause any sort of trouble. It will be just for the night and by tomorrow morning she will be gone.”
Angie approached her head closer to the veil, listening carefully to Donna’s words, nodding every so often. After an agonizing long period, she finally spoke, “Donna says the cat can stay. And that we should feed it too.”
“I’ve actually taken care of that. She’s been fed and cleaned while I was at the village. That was actually the main reason it took me so long to return.”
“Donna says it’s okay, but to please not make it a habit or she’ll turn you into one of us.”
“That is not what I said”, whispered Donna, more to herself than to correct Angie.
“Careful Angie. Hot as I am, I might just take your place as the best doll of the house.”
“Watch your back, human!”
******
That one night, turned into two. And then three.
After three months, Principessa had become just another member of the house. Her quiet demeanor match that of Donna, growing only fussy by the lack of movement allowed by her growing belly. It almost seemed like destiny, given how well Principessa and Donna got along, something that initially caused jealousy on Angie, only passing after a long discussing with Donna.
Taking her to a professional, it came to a shock to all to learn the animal was in the early stages of the pregnancy. The man explained due to the small stature it seemed she was a long far gone, making it very clear this pregnancy had to be carefully observed.
As a growing habit, Y/N has taken to greeting the animal upon her arrival at the kitchen, early in the morning when they are preparing breakfast.
Principessa would always reach the kitchen and start scratching the chair by the left end of the kitchen table or even pushing it with her paws, and meow at them, letting them know they expected their food. The doctor had explained Principessa suffered from a strange condition that had affected her vocal cords, which explained the reason why the cat had such difficulties at producing sound.
Y/N would laugh without looking at her and would greet her with a “Buongiorno Principessa” and push a small bowl that always stood to her right already filled with her breakfast and few vitamins that the doctor ordered for her.
Today was supposed to be just like any other day, where they would prepare breakfast, annoy Angie a little while they ate and do their household duties of the day. Maybe go to the market in case things would be missing.
So, when they heard a chair moving, they acted on impulse, pushing the bowl lightly with their right feet and saying with a smile “Buongiorno Principessa”.
“Well damn!”
Y/N turned their head so fast, for a few seconds their balance was lost, and they had to support themselves on the table.
Donna stood there, carrying Angie on her arms as usual. She wore the usual black attire and veil over her face so they could only assume what expression was marked on Donna’s face, all while hearing Angie laughing at the situation.
“Lost your words human?”
The sudden comment pulled them out of their trance, “I am so sorry, my Lady. I swear I thought you were Principessa, the cat I mean. That’s what I usually say when she greets me in the morning. You know, since she grew up in an Italian family, I was told they sometimes liked talking to her in Italian, so I figured might as well keep the tradition. Again, I am so sorry. Please don’t fire me.”
A few agonizing minutes spent in awkward silence, Donna lowered Angie to the ground, whispering something in her ear, and with another “Damn” she left them alone.
“Please don’t apologize. I was the one that should have announced my presence. I assumed the new gardener would have arrived today, but I was informed he would only come later. Decided to grab some fruit before going back to my work.”
“Yes. I was the one assigned by Lady Dimitrescu to conduct an interview to see if he deserves the work. But I must insist, my Lady, it was not your fault. There is no need to apologize for this incident.”
“I will accept your opinion if you agree to stop with the apologies. As you have mentioned, it was a mere misfortune that occurred here.”
This is the longest conversation that has happened between Donna and them without Angie’s support, and while Y/N didn’t mind when the Lady requested Angie’s help to communicate, understanding that the Lady’s extreme anxiety made it difficult for her, they were excited about the new advances in what they expect was a growing friendship.
As if planned, Principessa showed herself doing her usual routine of pushing the chair and meowing for her food. Both people looked at each other before snickering that quickly turned into full blown laughter between them.
“You little rascal. You caused quite the mess today!”
“I don’t believe it was her intention to cause such distress this morning.”
Principessa moved to her bowl and started her routine as nothing had happened, complaining only when Y/N picked her up. Caressing her head, the cat purred against their chest, looking discreetly at Donna trying to decipher what was going behind the veil.
“May I?”, said the Lady stretching her arms.
“Uhm…sure. Just be careful. Don’t want her to be scared and try to harm you…”
Placing Principessa in Donna’s arms, the cat quickly moved itself to a more acceptable position, purring when the Lady scratch her head.
“Buongiorno, Principessa. Sei molto bella, lo sai? Sì, lo sei. I tuoi vecchi proprietari hanno scelto bene il tuo nome.” (Good morning, Principessa. You're very beautiful, you know that? Yes, you are. Your old owners chose your name well)
“Anche tu sei molto bella, mia Signora.”, mumbled Y/N to themselves (You too are very beautiful, my Lady)
For a few minutes it seemed the world had stopped in its place to appreciate how well crafted the scenario in front of Donna appeared to be. The person in front of her caressing the small animal’s fur and with a bright smile that managed to crawl their way through Donna’s defenses and place a little flame in her heart.
She wasn’t sure where this feeling would lead to, but looking into their eyes, Donna knew whatever it was, she would love every second of it.
Their proximity allowed Donna to hear the phrase, leading a light blush to creep on her cheeks. She was thankful that the veil concealed her expression. But not so lucky that Angie didn’t interrupted the moment.
“Ugh, affection. Disgusting.”
“ANGIE!”