Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter one

A shudder ran through me. A shaky breath escaped my lips as I stared at the elderly woman in front of me.
“Rosaline, it is your duty.” The woman reminded, she was always quite stern. The toll of her work showed on each wrinkle that decorated her face. Forcing myself to take a deep breath, I slowly nodded my head.
“It will be okay,” the woman, Annie, our head housekeeper, attempted to console me, a hand patting my shoulder.
“Yes, Miss.” My voice came out shaky. It won’t be okay, she’s just signed my death sentence.

I could hear the whispers of the other girls, not so quietly taking bets on how long they think I'll last. Even as the new girl I had been warned about the cruel legacy of our masters, heard the gossip of what happens to the Lady’s Maid of the most feared of them all; Jane. Apparently Hattie, the girl before me, had a habit of being quite heavy footed. All it took was stepping a bit too hard onto the floor for her head to be rolled off her shoulders.

Before this assignment I was a kitchen maid for another noble family, I spent most of my time baking complicated recipes and cleaning the cutlery. I had started off as a scullery maid but had managed to work my way up, what I would give to stay in the kitchens. Apparently those kinds of maids are not useful for this family, I am not sure what kind of household does not find a kitchen to be useful. There have been mutterings of the words ‘monsters’ and ‘devils’ but it is not my duty to ask questions, it is my duty to serve. And if that duty is to serve Jane Volturi, then I shall do my best. It seems like my life depends on it.

A gaggle of chambermaids stood by the door, they giggled to themselves as I walked towards them. “No bother to learn your name now,” they laughed. I tried to remain calm, I tried to catch my breath and I tried to show no emotion on my face. It wasn’t working well if their growing smiles were anything to go off.
“Girls, leave her alone!” Annie snapped, “make sure to get a good night's rest” she added on in a much more gentle tone. I nodded and kept my head down as I quietly made my way up to my new chambers.

The one positive to becoming a Lady’s Maid is being able to move from the servants corridor. The servants quarters were all kept to the left side of the castle, we had a couple of rooms with as many beds that could fit on the ground floor, the rooms were separated by girls and boys. Just above was a small and not very updated kitchen, there wasn’t an area dedicated to eating. We just ate as quickly as we could where we stood. The bathroom was next to the kitchen, there was one toilet and one bath that only produced cold water to share between all the castle servants. Throughout the floors were the servants' halls which allowed us to move as swiftly as we could across all the floors while avoiding being seen by the masters. All of the areas used only by the servants were all dimly lit and held a musty scent but it was the only place where we could speak above a whisper or hold a smile. Not that many people here did.

A Lady’s Maid gets to sleep on the same floor as their Lady, our room is conjoined. Unseen by the Lady but close enough for us to come as soon as we are called. Being a Lady’s Maid is normally a high honour, for most maid’s starting at a scullery maid and ending up where I am now normally takes a lot longer. However, this place, this family, everything is different. Everything feels weird.

From what I’ve heard about Lady Jane she goes through maids very quickly, according to the gossiping chambermaids Hattie was her fourth this calendar year and it is currently only month eight. Of course you send the new girl to be the fifth, why send someone you're familiar with? It’s not as much of a loss when you’ve only been here for less than a month.

My new room was cramped, there was a small bed nestled between the wall and a small chest of drawers. On the other side, behind where the door opened, was a toilet with a sink next to it, above was a dirty mirror. I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my lips, it was compact but it was all mine. A room I didn’t have to share with 5 other girls, my own bathroom I didn’t have to share with over a dozen other people. It almost made it worth it. Until I glanced at the piece of paper that was on top of my thin pillow, it was Annie’s handwriting detailing Lady Jane’s schedule for tomorrow and the jobs I will need to complete.

I felt my heart stutter, I need to get my head clear so that I can do my work tomorrow and stay alive. Sleep struggled to come. But soon enough the morning came and I heard Lady Jane calling for me.

Chapter Text

This is a strange castle. As servants we’re taught not to let our eyes wonder, not to ask questions and most definitely not to let our minds run wild with theories. There will always be idle gossip between maids but it will never be confirmed. The normal whispers that flow through the walls of a noble family consist more of affairs or who we think will be next to marry. The ones in this house are much more sinister, much more confusing. The older maids, who have somehow survived to work here for multiple years, try to discourage any chatter about the Masters. They say we don’t need to know, to keep quiet and keep our heads down. I have yet to see the Masters in person, I’ve heard about their red eyes and how they don’t sleep. How each member is impossibly beautiful and beautifully cruel. On every third day of the week, all servants are required to stay in their quarters until late afternoon. We try to talk amongst ourselves but the blood curdling screams ring out and bounce off every wall in the entire castle. I had experienced two, the sounds of their scream echoed in my bones and made it impossible to sleep that night. At first the other maids comforted me but now they say I will get used to it, it’s just something that comes with the work.

Annie sat me down when I first started to tell me who each of the Masters were, as the head housemaid it is her duty to ensure all of the maids in the castle are doing their work properly. It’s a role she takes very seriously. There are three main Masters; Aro, Caius and Marcus. Those are the three who are in charge, they are the head of the household, we are to refer to them as Master. A step down from the Masters is; Chelsea, Jane and Alec. The rest of the members are Heidi, Demetri and Felix. Apparently the family has a strict hierarchy to adhere to but no matter how low down they are from the Master’s they will always be a lot higher up on the social ladder than any of us. Just before Annie gave me the news of my new position she made sure to let me know about Lady Jane. She gave me a list of things to avoid doing and some things that she knows Lady Jane approves of, she warned me of her temper which has only increased since her twin brother Alec had been away. According to Annie the two are inseparable so if I was to serve Lady Jane I would also serve Alec too. He went away the week before I arrived, there had been no whispers of where or why he went, and until he came back Lady Jane would continue to torment.

I awoke with a start, my heartbeat racing against my chest. Taking a deep breath I focused on the mirror across the room, my heart calming down. Only to jump again when another thud was heard. Light floated into the room from the small window at the top of the wall, the sun had yet to rise so I knew it was sometime before 6:00. I gently raised from the bed and softly got dressed for the day. I knew to be as quiet as possible and to make my steps as feather light as I could.

“Girl.” If not for the stern demanding tone of the word, the voice itself could almost be musical. It was officially my first day as Lady Jane’s maid. I stepped into her room as quickly as she spoke, my head tilted down and arms clasped respectfully behind my back.
“Yes, Ma’am” I responded, I felt my heart stutter in fear, as if she heard it, I could practically feel her smirk in response.
“Ah, a new girl. Tell me, did you know of the last?” Her tone was teasing, how could one speak so lightly over death?
“No, Ma’am. Sorry, Ma’am, I did not meet her,” I whispered back. I knew to be quiet but I could not trust my voice to be any louder than a whisper.
“Speak up, girl. I do not care if you knew her. You know what happened to her, do you not.” It wasn’t a question, it was a warning. Of course I know what happened to Hattie, I know what happened to most of the maids that she got annoyed by or tired of.
“I do, Ma’am.”
“Good. Now get me ready for the day.”

The morning was spent getting Lady Jane ready for an important meeting with the Masters in the late afternoon. Her twin brother, Alec, is due back today. I overheard her speak to Lady Chelsea about it while I was running her bath. Most Ladies like their maids to bathe them but I was forewarned that Lady Jane liked privacy so as soon as the bath was filled, I nodded and left the room. I got the clothes ready for her day and laid them out on the plush four poster bed that stood in the middle of her large room. My room could fit inside here 15 times over.

“Girl, I am ready.” Lady Jane’s commanding voice drew me out of my thoughts. I stood by the bathroom door and slightly lifted my head as she came out of the bathroom, a fluffy white towel wrapped tightly around her body. She came to stop in the middle of the room as her eyes ran out of the black dress I had chosen for her. “My brother bought me this dress.” She hummed, a rush ran through my body thinking I had correctly chosen. “Now, girl.”
“Yes, Ma’am” I hurried over to her, careful to keep my footsteps light. It didn’t take long for Lady Jane to be dressed yet she still seemed impatient as if she could do a corset up a quarter of the time it took me. However, any amount of appreciation I got from choosing the right dress completely disappeared when it came to doing her hair. My fingers clumsily attempting to braid her hair, I could see the annoyance darken her eyes.
“I’m sorry, Ma’am.” I stuttered, I could feel my eyes brim with tears as I worried how she would react.
“Just get it done.” her tone was clipped and frustrated.
“Yes, Ma’am” I nodded, my hands shakily undoing the mess of the plait I had created. My fingers softly combed through her hair, instead of going back to braiding, I twisted the strands together to create an elegant updo.

As soon as I was finished I stepped back, my head turned down and my hands behind my back. Lady Jane stood up and swiftly turned to face me, her expression thunderous. I should’ve asked Annie or one of the other maids to teach me to braid properly, if I’d have known it was one of Lady Jane’s favourite hairstyles I would have practised every spare moment. Her eyes narrowed on me and in the next second all I could feel was an imaginable amount of pain spread through my body, it was like my blood was on fire. My knees buckled as I fell to the floor but I could hardly focus on anything other than the agony coursing through my body.

And then all of a sudden it stopped. I gasped as I abruptly remembered how to breathe, trying to get as much air as possible into my lungs. “Get up, girl.” Lady Jane sounded bored, she looked at me uninterested as I attempted to stand up. My legs were unsteady, I was like a fawn standing up for the first time. Lady Jane was already at her bedroom door by the time I was fully stood up.
“Learn how to braid.” Lady Jane said before she opened the door and walked towards the throne room. I quickly followed after her, my legs moving before my brain commanded them too. I stayed a few paces behind, close enough if she was to need me but not too close to seem familiar.

My mind was racing, I didn’t understand why her eyes were red, why she didn’t sleep or how she managed to cause all that pain without even touching me. I fought with my mind to forget those thoughts, I just had to be better than I wouldn’t have to go through that again.

Waiting outside the throne room I made eye contact with a male servant of one of the Masters. My watery eyes, shaky breathing and unreliable legs must have given away what had happened for he gave a sympathetic smile. I just turned away with my head down. The servants are not allowed in the throne room, we are permitted to wait outside in silence or we were to do a job if ordered.

We stood outside for a while before all of a sudden the massive double doors were thrown open, I kept my head down and tried to not show the fear that was bubbling inside. I knew my heart beat gave me away. In an instant a figure was in front of me, a cold finger rested below my chin and tenderly lifted my head up. He was gorgeous. They all were but this man was breathtakingly stunning. His dark hair fell slightly into his eyes as if it had recently had a hand brush through it, his eyes–like the others–were a wonderful red, I could see them swirling with emotions but none I could confidently pick out. His lips are full and were a pretty shade of pink, I wanted nothing more to reach out and gently swipe my finger across them. His eyes met mine, my heart lurched and breath hitched.