As she stepped down from the hired coach, a young woman gazed up in awe at the splendor of the majestic castle. This was so exciting, the thought of working for the prince and princess themselves! It was as high as any servant like her could possibly go!
And as if that was not enough, the girl squealed for joy upon seeing her beloved cousin racing towards her.
"Sabine!" she cried, throwing herself into the older woman's arms. After all, it was Sabine's good word that had secured her this job in the first place. The girl owed her everything for the opportunity.
Sabine laughed, hugging her tightly. "Ma petite Avril, it has been too long!" she said, putting Avril at arms' length. "Let me get a good look at you; it's amazing how much you've grown!"
The woman looking back at her was far from the gangly, clumsy child that Sabine had last seen. Avril was now a pretty, poised young lady, with deep green eyes and long blonde hair that was tightly pulled back into a braid. Eighteen years old and raised as a servant since birth, she was a fine choice for the opening that the master and mistress had on their staff. After many requests from Sabine's aunt, who wanted the best for her daughters, Sabine had finally been able to pull a few strings and Avril was sent to join her at the castle.
After paying the driver and helping to gather Avril's few small bags, Sabine said, "Come, let's get you inside and prepared for a proper introduction." She happily wrapped her arms around her little cousin as they walked inside. "Letters do little to soothe the heart; I'm so happy to actually have you here with me at last, petite!"
"So am I, undoubtedly!" Avril replied before finding herself speechless once she stepped inside the castle. "Mon Dieu, this place is more beautiful than you described!"
"Let's see if you still think that after you begin cleaning it," Sabine said with a wink and a grin, leading Avril up to her room. Once they reached the door, she opened it and stepped aside. "Here we are, this will be your room. Make yourself at home, and settle in a bit. Then meet me downstairs, and I'll introduce you to the head of the household."
"Très bien, I'll be right down," Avril said before Sabine left her with one last excited hug.
Once she was alone, Avril took a moment to gaze around the room, still hardly able to believe that she was now a servant at the royal palace. The room itself – though simple and somewhat tiny – was heaven, for it was hers. Prior to this, working for the Marquis and Marquise de Leon, she had shared a room with her mother and sister. Finally, she had complete independence in the finest place of luxury she had ever seen.
As she began to put her things away, Avril heard an unexpected knock at her door. Puzzled, wondering who it could possibly be, she answered it, and found two maids about her age waiting on the other side with curiosity written all over their faces.
When all they had offered was silence, Avril attempted politely, "Uh…bonjour."
"Oh, so sorry!" one of them replied suddenly in response. "Sabine had mentioned earlier that there was a new girl joining the staff, and we thought we'd be the first to welcome you. I'm Sophie, and this is Jeanette."
The second girl smiled, and Avril offered her hand to both of them warmly. "My name is Avril; it's nice to meet you."
"Would you like some help unpacking?" Jeanette asked.
"Yes, please!" Avril replied gratefully, gesturing them inside. "It may only be my first day, but I don't want to keep Sabine waiting. She asked me to meet her downstairs as soon as possible, and if there was one thing ma mère taught me since I could walk, it was to always be punctual."
Sophie laughed as she and Jeanette helped fold different pieces of clothing and put them away. "Well, that will certainly put you on Monsieur Cogsworth's good side!" she said. "He is the head of the household here, and demands that the entire staff be perfect as far as time is concerned. He's a firm believer in every minute of the day having some kind of useful purpose."
"Sounds like a tough man," Avril said, putting one dress into a drawer and taking on a new one.
Jeanette waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry, you learn how to handle him very quickly," she said. "What position were you hired for anyway?"
"According to Sabine's letter," Avril began, "there's been an opening for a housemaid for at least a month now, with not only cleaning duties, but also to help with serving dinner and such. And here I am!"
Sophie and Jeanette became as stiff as statues, looking at one another warily at that answer. Had the search for…her finally been put to rest?
Avril glanced from one to the other, confused. "Is something wrong?"
Jeanette bit her lip, offering a tight smile. "Non, nothing wrong…per se…"
"Per se?"
"Don't listen to her," Sophie interjected, subtly glaring at Jeanette to keep her mouth shut. "She's just jealous because you are the most fortunate woman alive."
Avril shook her head. "You have completely lost me. How did I go from wrong to fortunate exactly? It doesn't make sense."
Sophie moved closer as if she knew the grandest secret in the world. "To be honest, any girl would give her right arm and leg to be on the serving staff," she explained. "The maitre d', Monsieur Lumière, is an absolute dream, and there you will be, at his side every night at dinner!"
Avril admittedly began to blush. "Well, I don't know about that; I am here to work, not…"
"Work or not, if you catch his eye, there's no resisting him," Jeanette said with a sigh, clearly smitten with the idea. "Nor will you want to."
Avril tried not to appear interested. Between her and her sister, Anne, she was always the sensible one when it came to the opposite sex, while Anne did enough swooning to last them both a lifetime. That was not to say that Avril did not have her own share of interest in men, but she had been taught her entire life not to risk anything over a few passing words of flattery.
"I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," she said. "For now, I'd really just like to focus on making a good impression."
"Suit yourself," Sophie said with a shrug. "But if I were you, I would grab him while I can before someone else does."
As uncomfortable as the conversation was, it did the trick to pass the time until every bit of Avril's things were put away and she had picked a dress to change into before she went downstairs to meet Sabine. The girls left her alone then, inviting her to join them in the maids' common room later that evening.
"I like her," Jeanette said, decisively blunt, once they were out of earshot.
Sophie nodded in agreement. "So do I…but five francs says that Lumière knows nothing about this."
"How could he not?" Jeanette asked. "She is going to be a part of his staff."
"He still believes Babette is coming back, and because of that, I add to the bet that he will not be happy when he finds out she's finally been replaced."
Jeanette thought it over, and then shook her friend's hand. "You're on," she said with a smirk that immediately became the faraway grin she had before. "On the positive side of all this, at least he is officially fair game again."
Sophie laughed gently. "Very true!" she said. "It's time for all of us to make ourselves pretty, and may the best girl win!"
ooo
On any normal occasion, the only thing that Cogsworth had to fear when introducing Lumière to a new female on staff was the Frenchman practically drooling over her. This time, things would be a lot more complicated, past events taken into consideration.
"What could possibly be so important right now?" Lumière snapped, storming into the dining room. "Dinner is not for another couple of hours, and therefore I am not needed yet."
Cogsworth grimaced, though he ignored the outburst for once. While Cogsworth was always one to be prim and proper, he was certainly not heartless. This was going to be difficult for Lumière, he knew, but it had to be done.
"There's someone that you need to meet," he replied quietly. "Sabine should be here with her shortly."
"What are you talking about?" Lumière asked.
But a knock at the door stopped Cogsworth from answering, and both of them looked up as he called, "Come in!"
Sabine led the way over to the two men as Avril followed close behind her. "I hope we are not interrupting."
"Not at all, you are right on time," Cogsworth replied, stepping forward to meet them while Lumière looked on, uncomprehending.
Sabine nudged Avril forward. "Avril, this is Monsieur Cogsworth, the head of the household," she said before turning to the man himself. "And this is Avril, my cousin who I told you about. She has come to fill the maid position, as we agreed."
Avril smiled nervously, but curtseyed politely. "Enchanté, monsieur; I am honored to accept such a wonderful opportunity."
Cogsworth nodded, a gentleman in the presence of any lady. "Your cousin has spoken very highly of you, mademoiselle; I've heard nothing but good things. I trust you will be a marvelous addition to our staff."
"I will do everything I can to live up to your expectations, I swear it," Avril reassured him.
Lumière cleared his throat, not liking the sound of this. Sabine glanced at him, admittedly hesitant to continue introductions.
"Avril, this is Monsieur Lumière, the castle's maitre d'," she said, keeping up the proper appearances. "The position, as I've explained, requires small serving duties at dinner, and for that, you will be under his orders."
Upon hearing Lumière's name, Avril immediately took interest in the one man she had heard the most about so far. The girls were correct about him appearance-wise; he certainly was handsome and pleasant to look at. As he came forward, however, she could not describe it exactly, but there was something…cold about his taut smile, as though he was putting it on for appearances' sake. That was definitely unexpected. From what she had been told, she had been expecting a charmer.
"Delighted to meet you, mademoiselle," he said quietly, sounding anything but. He offered her a polite bow, but made no attempt to get closer to her, instead keeping his distance. "I am sure you will enjoy your stay here." Looking between the three of them, he concluded curtly, "Now you must excuse me; I am needed…elsewhere."
Cogsworth glared at Lumière as he headed for the hallway, instructing Sabine to "Carry on," with Avril's welcome and following close behind his impertinent comrade.
"Lumière!" he shouted. "Wait a minute!" The man merely continued walking. "Lumière, as head of this household, I demand that you stop right there!"
Lumière halted, but did not turn to look at him. "Is there something else that you suddenly realized I should have been told?" he asked, sarcastically.
When Cogsworth caught up to him, he gestured for Lumière to step inside the closest sitting room. Lumière reluctantly complied.
"It could not be helped," Cogsworth said simply, closing the door behind them. "The position had to be filled, and it is my job to see that it was."
"There was no need to fill it!" Lumière argued. "What is Babette supposed to do when she comes back?"
Cogsworth sighed, shaking his head. "It has been an entire month. She would have returned long ago if she had any intention of doing so."
Lumière's jaw visibly clenched. "I am going to find her, and bring her home, I told you that," he growled. "Just give me a bit more time!"
"There is no more time!" Cogsworth retaliated. "Babette has obviously made her decision; she is not coming back. I don't enjoy seeing you hurting so much, Lumière, really I don't. You are my friend after all. But I still have a job to do here, seeing that the castle is taken care of! The position has been filled, and that is the final word on the matter, do you understand?"
Lumière closed his eyes tightly, still not able to believe that this was all true. He refused to believe it. But he was in no state of mind to argue. Unwillingly, he nodded in agreement.
"Very well," Cogsworth replied, relieved that Lumière wasn't going to fight him on this. "Please begin training the girl immediately."
ooo
"And that concludes our tour!" Sabine finished with a grand flourish, but her attempt at humor was dampened by the preoccupied look on Avril's face. "What is it, petite? Are you unwell?"
"Non, I just don't understand," Avril replied slowly. "When I was talking with two of the girls earlier, they told me that Monsieur Lumière was…well, very different from how he was when we met him."
Sabine nodded in realization. "Oh, I see."
"Were they just playing a trick on the new girl?" Avril asked. "Or, if he is as they say, did I insult him? Though I can't imagine how; I didn't even have a chance speak to him."
"The girls weren't playing games," Sabine told her. "But Lumière…has not been himself lately. Don't take it personally. Just do what you do best, chérie: be yourself. Who knows? You may make him feel better by showing some kindness tomorrow."
Avril shrugged. "Maybe," she said doubtfully.
"Speaking of which, you need to meet with him early in the dining room tomorrow," Sabine said. "I suggest you get some rest."
"Sleep actually sounds wonderful," Avril sighed with a smile. "Bonne nuit, Sabine; I'll see you in the morning."