I don't own any of characters, blah, blah, blah…
I wrote it just so. The story timing is someday before Trapped. But it's not important… Oh and I used lyrics of Madonna's song Frozen. (I'm sorry if you don't like Madonna ;) )
Hope you'll enjoy it! ; )
Damned letter
Marguerite was 'unpocketing' all pockets before washing clothes and noticed that Roxton has no activity to do; so she offered him to help her. He wasn't too excited but willingly stood up and came to her:
"Is there any work for me?"
"Not yet," answered Marguerite and thrown her own shirt right to him,
"But then you can packed all clothes and carry them to our 'washing place'."
He didn't say anything, only just for sure.
In that place she washed about a half of all laundry. Then she waited until that gets dry, put off the at-that-moment worn trousers and immediately clothed just dry skirt. She unpocketed some composed and trite paper and she was going to hide it in pocket - but poorly; Roxton was just coming back to her and realized it:
"May I ask you what it is?"
She fetched breath and answered:
"Of course, that's… one letter," and when she noticed his not satisfied face she said:
"That has long history…"
"We have plenty of time, don't you think?"
Marguerite had to agree with him but she didn't forget to make sure:
"Do you really want to hear the story of this letter??"
"Of course... I desire to know everything..."
Marguerite sat down as comfortably as possible and started to narrate…
"I hadn't called these scenes back for ages… Everything happened when I was a young girl. I lived in the boarding-school named Maids' School. That was in Bristol and I really hated this mad-house…"
Roxton suddenly interrupted her with his covert laughter
"… That's girls' school with strict rules, but some of resist girls always found some ways how to leave given area and met boys behind gateway. I was around fifteen years old. I absolutely rejected whole emotional attitude between us; I meant those girls and me; but they affected me adversely…"
"Sorry, but how could they affected you if you rejected them?"
"Be in no hurry and let me to explain it."
"Fine."
"So it commenced with the first Christmas which I spent there. I was almost the only one who stayed for holidays. That untuned me even thought I can say I was accustomed to be lonely…"
"Don't say such things. Nobody can take the loneliness…"
"I haven't said I took it; but it didn't happen occasionally; I was lonely almost whole my childhood. I remember I was standing upstairs leaning on a rail and I caught one talk not destined for me although about me," Marguerite paused. She half closed her eyes in order to recall all words and recited:
"Have you seen that novice? No? Oh it's no wonder… She is sodown-trodden and sheepish! One of that judies who would never leave school yard…I'm laying a wager that she'd never get any boy, "Marguerite grimaced and added:
"Nobody wagered with girl who said that; they started to laugh…"
Roxton regretted that he asked her for that damned letter.
"However they didn't except that I heard everything… Why are you so blank?"
"I'm a little afraid what happened then…"said carefully Roxton.
"Yes, you should be…," laughed Marguerite,
"…because I changed my access. I was still myself… ok, not myself, but I stayed the girl who I pretended to be. Though I became a little arrogant and only for one drift: to get some really superb and rich boy."
Attentive hearer raised his eyebrow in order to show her that he grasped why she wanted such perfect boy to the eye and let her continue.
"I think I got them. Of course that wasn't any big problem for me to leave school area. Teacher supervisors weren't too much attentive mainly in cold or adverse weather… Oh and looking for boys? That wasn't any problem, too. I always used to use my hair in wrapping men. And surprisingly it still works…" she said last words expressively and gently tossed her free hair. Then she had to grin because of her companion. John surprisingly got red and fixed his wool-gathering sight on water line. He acted so childy that Marguerite had calling to caress him softly. But she overcame it and took up again:
"I found what I searched. I met the most suitable boy I could ever wish. I remember that day clearly – boys stood along the road in their typical formation and he… imagine it… HE went around them with a great haughty sight," she showed her teeth in an adorable smile and Roxton understood. He fancied that significant while: she; charming and proud girl; and he; probably rich, good looking and maybe even haughty boy. How romantic!
"Well," Marguerite went on,
"since the first while I've known that he's the right one for my plan… but… I'm afraid he fell in love."
Roxton wasn't able to believe her word by word. She's described him as a kind of person who doesn't fall in love every day. So he had to ask:
"How did all of this come about?"
"You don't believe me, huh? That's all right… I'm not sure if that was a real love however I guess that he felt something. I don't know how it's possible but he became another person. He brought me flowers wherever we met; he was speaking about my beauty and telling me how important I'm for him… I let the fear to develop inside of me and I wished I'd have never begun with the revenge."
Roxton didn't know what to do; smile or to be jealous… Fortunately she calmed him down:
"But I was only playing with him" she continued,
"He couldn't understand why I was locating how popular he's between others. Grasp it; I needed only well-known and admired boy…"
"I caught it…"
"Only he didn't…" interrupted him Marguerite,
"When girls came back and saw me with such a good looking boy they became green with their envy… I had to laugh… But he still wanted more and more. Oh yes, I had good times with him nevertheless always when I promised to come and met him I've cried off at the last moment. I didn't want any dates in privacy. And do you know what's crazy? I kissed him only in crowd; before eyes of the others. It's dreadful, isn't it?"
Lord Roxton had his own opinion for her behavior but said only:
"And what about the letter?"
"The letter," repeated Marguerite in some melancholy,
"'My boy' really kept taking care of me; he was fighting with other boys and screaming at girls…"
"The right gentleman," thought Roxton.
"…and everything because of me. And I couldn't appreciate. My cold heart wasn't able."
Roxton didn't know what to say - again. He looked into Marguerite's eyes and she gave him that letter with words:
"Here you are. He left it on my windowsill."
Impatient Roxton took that piece of paper and read:
"You only see what your eyes want to see
How can life be what you want it to be?
You're frozen when your heart's not open
You're so consumed with how much you get
You waste your time with hate and regret
You're frozen when your heart's not open
If I could melt your heart…
We'd never be apart …
Give yourself to me
You are the key.
Now there's no point in placing the blame
And you should know I'd suffer the same
If I lose you, my heart would be broken
Love is a bird, she needs to fly
Let all the hurt inside of you die…"
Marguerite supposed that Roxton read it almost million times because he stared to the text at least ten minutes. In fact he wondered about how someone could write such a gorgeous and well-aimed letter in one. He pretended that he's still reading such as not to have to answer the question which was surely going to come.
Only impatient Marguerite couldn't wait any more. So she asked:
"What do you think?"
Roxton compose the letter and handed it to Marguerite.
"What do you want to hear? I have no idea what to say…"
While she was hiding it back to her pocket she tried to finish the history of the letter:
"Always when he wrote me some letter – and he was doing it quite often – that meant the only thing for me. I had to meet him in 'our hour' under the tree behind gateway. So I did it; I came. He awaited me with flowers in his hand… again… Do you know what's strange? I didn't tell him even one word. We were looking at each other for a long time. It might take several minutes but it seemed like years. He comprehended that I'll never change myself so he told me only that we'll never have any other date and that he loved me but I destroyed it. I… I regretted a little but on the other side I was eased because I could breathe again. Later I learnt about his arrival. He left his school and got back home – wherever it was."
"May I ask you something?" said John carefully.
"Sure."
"Why are you carrying it in your pocket?"
She made a funny grimace and answered:
"It always reminds me who I was. No, no don't oppose me. You may think whatever you want but I know who I was. And he was the only one who wrote me it in that way how he felt it. And it really fitted me, didn't it? I was fifteen so I can't say that he or this letter changed my life. You know that then I used to be even worse; more cruel and cold. It has no practical reason to carry it in my pocket. It's only my daily minute of well-aimed poetry."
Sometimes Roxton hated her sense of self-against humor. That was her way how to hide her real feelings. But for him it would be better if she released her emotions and started to cry. He didn't want her to cry but he also didn't want her to be so cruel to herself.
He wondered about what to say and finally he decided to leave the 'letter theme'.
"We have fallen behind with our work. Let's finish it."
"Oh come on," said Marguerite and didn't let him to stand up,
"I think we must ease a little… we are simply working too hard."
"I don't…"
"Shhh…," she interrupted him,
"Our laundry isn't going to run away, is it?"
Roxton raised his eyebrow in expectation what's going on, Marguerite took off his hat, came closer and closer till the moment they lips knitted in a sweet kiss…
THE END