Titanic: A 1912 Fairytale
"Mummers Dance" ~ Loreena Mckennit
Deborah Bell Hockley was a second class young lady, she was boarding the Titanic for the first time, en route to New York and then to travel by car to Lexington KY to go work for the well-off Irish Logan family with her two step-sisters. As she boarded the Titanic, she was overwhelmed by the smell of the ship, the look, the feel of it. It smelled new, it looked rich and it felt like a whole new world that she had never known before. Of course, she wasn't boarding it alone; with her were her two step-sisters, Ruth-Ann and Louisa. Louisa and Ruth-Ann were staying in first class, while they had Deborah staying in third class. Deborah was their maid and her two step sisters made Deborah do anything and everything they commanded her to do. They were extremely cruel to her. Her two step-sisters hated Deborah because Deborah was a pretty young, and a youthful looking girl, with long, blond hair and bright, blue eyes and slim with fair, smooth, white skin, while her step-sisters looked older than their ages of twenty-six and everyone could tell they had aged plenty and looked over the age of thirty.
As they boarded the Titanic, Louisa and Ruth-Ann stepped in front of Deborah and blocked her from going further away to the staterooms of the ship.
Louisa: (coldly) Hold it there, sissy. When you get to the room, don't just think you're going to sit back and relax. You're to go and get us water and something to eat, because we're awfully hungry and we want you to make sure to shine all of our shoes, so they'll be nice and pretty, when we go out amongst the first class.
Deborah: But Louisa—Miss Louisa, there are servants who bring room service to the room, who can bring you food and water.
Louisa and Ruth-Ann laughed loudly.
Ruth-Ann: So what! We want YOU to do it and we want you to do it NOW!
Deborah looked at her two sisters with tired eyes and nodded humbly.
Deborah: (low voice) Yes Louisa.
Louisa smiled and looked at Deborah amusingly.
Louisa: Nah, ah, ah, what are you to call me?
Deborah: Miss Louisa.
Louisa: Very well, now run off, your ugly face is making me sick. Go! Now! Bring my water and food to the room!
Deborah nodded with sadness and walked away quickly and as she looked back, she saw her sisters walking off towards their staterooms, laughing.
As Deborah was walking down the hall, she felt herself becoming increasingly lightheaded. She hadn't slept for HOURS, due to her step-sisters' ordering her to do this and to do that—manual, hard labor that only men would do. As Deborah reached the stairs that led to the dining room of first class, she felt her dizziness take extreme precedence. As she leaned over the balcony of the staircase and closed her eyes briefly, she felt herself about to go down and faint, and she indeed almost dropped to the floor—until a man, caught her just before she was about to fall. The man held her up in his arms and looked at her with concern. Deborah looked at the man with a curious frown. The man was quite handsome, with silky, black hair, with hints of gray in certain areas. He wore a well tailored, suit, and had the smoothest, creamy white skin she had ever seen. Sure, to Deborah, it appeared he was much older than she, but indeed, he was handsome. He blinked twice at her with his soft, hazel eyes. His name was Thomas Andrews. Thomas Andrews looked at her and immediately felt something from her, a strong rouge, a strong attraction, he immediately felt like he had been struck by cupid, and touched by angel, upon seeing Deborah.
T. Andrews: {Irish accent} Are you alright, miss? It looks like you were about to have a collapse.
Deborah gently pushed him away and smiled, and looked down at the floor away from him, shyly.
Deborah: Oh yes, thank you, sir. I just felt a little lightheaded.
T. Andrews: Perhaps, you need to rest. Where are your third class quarters?
Third class quarters? Well now, how did he know she was from third class? She looked down at her clothes, the old, green, rugged, floor length 1900s dress she had on, was a sure giveaway that she was from third class.
Deborah: I can't sir—(T. Andrews cut in)
T. Andrews: I'm Thomas Andrews, sir makes me sound so—old. (laughs)
Deborah giggled and coyly placed a long, shoulder length, blond strand of hair behind her ear.
Deborah: Mr. Andrews—I can't. My two step-sisters have me running around everywhere, doing their errands. May I ask, where can I find the kitchen to get water and some food for them?
T. Andrews raised an eyebrow at her and looked at her confusingly.
T. Andrews: What do you—(stops and scoffs and smiles) You don't need to get food and water from the kitchen, we have waiters who will do that for you.
Deborah: Yes, I know, as I tried to tell my step-sisters, but they've ordered for ME to go get it for them.
T. Andrews looked at Deborah with a baffled look. Never had he heard such a thing. Why send your step-sister to do a job that a waiter can do—who's hired to do the job?
T. Andrews: (nods with unreal understanding) Ah, I—see, I suppose. Well the kitchen is just that way. (Points to two white double doors, across the dining room floor) Its past those double doors. However, I suggest after you—bring them their water and food, that you get some rest, you look slightly pale.
Deborah smiled and just knew she was blushing and that her cheeks were a rosy red.
Deborah: I will, thank you Mr. Andrews.
Deborah turned to walk away but T. Andrews lightly grabbed her arm.
T. Andrews: Um, I never got your name.
Deborah: Deborah, Deborah Bell Hockley. Good day, Mr. Andrews.
T. Andrews frowned as she walked away. Deborah Bell Hockley, that last name sounded familiar. He widened his eyes as he realized who the last name belonged to. He quickly walked after her and lightly grabbed her arm.
T. Andrews: Um, Deborah, your last name is Hockley. Do you know a Caledon Hockley? Is he family?
Deborah looked up at the ceiling, briefly as if thinking and then shook her head no.
Deborah: No, if he's family, I do not know him. My step-sisters told me when I was little that I had no family to find out about because I was—(stops and sighs with a slightly hurt expression) I was a bad luck charm for my mother and father when I was born, so they said my parents hid me from their family, out of shame.
T. Andrews looked at the young girl with sympathy, sympathy for two reasons, the first being that she was obviously being verbally abused and mistreated by her two step-sisters and the second being that if she was related to Caledon Hockley, she had no idea that she was related to him and that he was on this ship and would verbally cut her down to shreds, if it came out to everyone that a relative of his that was very poor and third class, was on the Titanic. As Deborah continued talking, T. Andrews looked her over, there was something about her that he found interesting and even attractive, yes she was in that rugged, green dress, but he saw something beautiful about her. It was her sun golden, blond hair that was tousled in a ball, but partially, lying freely on her shoulder, it was her ocean blue bright eyes, it was her smooth but strong and attractive bone structure of her face and the smooth, silkiness of her white skin. T. Andrews had never seen someone so beautiful before in quite a long time, he became mesmerized by her.
Deborah: So, don't you see?
T. Andrews quickly snapped out of the visual daydream he was in, with him staring at Deborah's exquisite beauty.
T. Andrews: (smiles) Yes, I do. Um, what room are you staying in?
Deborah: Room 419, in—third class.
T. Andrews: (nods and looks down and half smiles) Um, well I should let you go, you look beyond tired. Please take my advice and get some rest.
Deborah: I will, thank you. (laughs)
Deborah started to walk away, but came back and looked more red than when she first blushed in T. Andrews's presence.
Deborah: Oh, um, may I ask the waiters in the kitchen if I can have a plate to take upstairs to my room for later? (scoffs and looks down at the floor and briefly smiles) My step-sisters probably won't even allow me a moment's rest to get something to eat later, with all the running orders they'll have me doing.
T. Andrews stared at her, he didn't know why, be he wanted to see this young girl again, a STRONG feeling compelled him to want to see her again, and what better time and place than at that night's dinner in first class?
T. Andrews: Um, I have a better idea in mind. Would you like to accompany me to dinner this evening, here in first class?
Deborah's heart began pounding with nervousness. She was ready and eager to say yes to this attractive man, whom she felt drawn to like a magnet, however she knew better.
Deborah: I—(stops and laughs) I would love to, Mr. Andrews—(T. Andrews cut in)
T. Andrews: You can call me Thomas. (smiles)
Deborah: (smiles) Thomas, I would love to, but I can't, my step-sisters would never allow me to come to dinner in first class. You see, they treat me so harshly and cruel, actually, they hate me. (laughs bitterly) I don't know why. I'm sorry.
T. Andrews looked down and frowned at the floor, as if thinking what to do.
T. Andrews: Please, bring them along too. The more the merrier, they'll be my guests—along as you come as well.
Deborah smiled and blushed more heavily than she expected to.
Deborah: (nods) I'd love to, Thomas.
T. Andrews: (smiles) Great, dinner is at seven, so I'll see you then, Ms. Deborah.
Deborah: Alright, Thomas. Good day until then.
Deborah walked away and Thomas watched her walk away intensively. He felt a strong magnetism and attraction towards her, in the few minutes he had talked with her, and he indeed looked forward to seeing her again that night at dinner, although she'd be accompanied by her, apparently 'mean' step-sisters, he was indeed eager to see her in his presence again, however, he was forgetting the fact that she'd be sitting at the table with Caledon Hockley….that was going to make for an eventful evening, indeed…..
TO BE CONTINUED…