8. Tea and conversation
Marinette sat in her front garden buffing. How come that she couldn't go out now? She had no personal butler nor any friend her age in this town. If only Fei and Kagami could casually pass by. But they had no male companion either and it was too risky to let everyone know that they knew each other before the event.
She spotted a group of girls walking to her house. Were they alone? No, there was a man with them.
"Hi! You must be Marinette Lenoir," greeted a girl of dark skin and auburn hair.
Marinette smiled.
"Hello, yes I am. Are you my neighbors?"
"Oh, hardly, I live three streets away, but we are the other girls in town and we were wondering whether you would like to join us for a walk."
A girl of bright pink hair grabbed the young man's arm and dragged him to the front.
"We have our very own man to follow us around!"
Marinette smiled at them and jumped the couple of steps.
"I would love to."
The girl of auburn hair smiled too and pointed at the group.
"My name is Alya. That aggressive one is Alix, these two blondies are Rose and Mylene and these are the twins Luka and Juleka."
"I am Marinette. Pleased to meet you all."
Alya intertwined her arm with hers.
"So tell us, Marinette, what brings you to Saint Emilie?"
"I have finished my studies in the city, so my grandmother had me brought here."
Alix's eyes shone with interest and jealousy.
"What studies? I didn't know women could study!"
"I learned how to take care of a household, to paint, to sing and dance, to cook, read big books, you know, to make a proper lady of me."
"Oh," Alix sounded less excited.
She had studied that but mostly her instruction had consisted of learning about plants, crystals and the control of the mind and the energy, but she couldn't say that of course.
"Why did you not study it here?"
Alix clicked her tongue at Rose's question.
"Are you kidding? We can't do half of those things."
"I can," said the man.
Alix glared at him.
"You are a man! Why are you even here? Oh, right, we need a nanny."
Alya shook her hair.
"Enough! We are supposed to be nice in front of Marinette."
Marinette laughed.
"It's alright, really. So, what do you do here for fun?"
"We used to hang out in the woods but now we can't."
"We like to sing and dance too. But we aren't instructed on it, so we look like savages."
Marinette's face gleamed with excitement.
"I can teach you! It would be better with some guys so you can learn the ladies' steps, but I can dance with you."
"I can bring a few friends," said Luka.
"I can bring Nino," sneered Alya.
Marinette smiled.
"And you, girls, can bring your callers too."
Mylene, Rose and Juleka blushed furiously. They fell apart into apologies and excuses and dragged Luka with them to the next street, leaving Alya, Alix and Marinette alone at her house.
"Was it something I said?"
Alya sighed apologetically.
"The man that holds Mylene's affections is a sailor. He has nothing at his name and barely a name at all. Her father used to be like that when he married her mother, but now that they are both dead, her grandmother won't allow her to even see Ivan."
Alix nodded.
"And Rose and Juleka don't seem to be even interested in men, so they have no callers."
Marinette's cheeks glowed in pink.
"I'm sorry, I didn't intend to…"
"That's alright. Alix makes fun of them all the time, even though she herself has no callers."
"I do! Two of them actually. And there goes one," she waved her hand violently to a young man of specks walking down the street. "Hey, Max! Mind walking me home? "
The guy nodded.
"Sure! Hey, guys!"
Alya laughed as Alix left.
"I guess we're stuck together, Marinette. Until a good rational man comes to our rescue."
Marinette laughed too.
"We could use a butler."
"Or a boyfriend."
Alya smirked.
"I wish I had brought mine. At least we could go around."
The other girl sighed.
"I don't even know men here and my grandmother is out with the butler all day, so I'm stuck pretty much forever. Do you want to come inside?"
"I'd love to!"
Marinette called her servants to make some tea. She had once in the city tried to have her shadow-servitors make it instead but that hadn't gone well.
"How are you adjusting to Saint Emilie?"
Alya helped herself a honey cake and Marinette emulated her.
"People have been nice to me. The town is quite colorful, but…" she weighed whether to say or not her next thoughts.
"But?"
"I admit I never saw this much devotion in the city."
Alya giggled.
"Madness, you mean. This town wasn't so obsessed with sin and virtue before Gabriel Agreste became the minister."
"How was it before?"
"Well," she twisted her lips, "minister Tsurugi was more concerned with earthly threats. He was very hard on robbers and such, but he died two years ago."
"And why is Gabriel Agreste so… pious?"
Alya shifted her weight. Was it wise to tell so much to the new girl? Marinette noticed this and smiled.
"Speak with confidence, Alya. I am not very fond of religion myself."
Alya laughed.
"His son is friends with my caller, Nino Lahiffe. And he told him that his father truly believes that his late wife, Emilie Agreste, was killed with witchcraft."
What? That was possible, but highly improbable.
"Why?"
"Her sickness was very sudden, she claimed in her delirium that a white shadow was hovering over her. Then, from one day to the other, she was coughing blood and that very same night she was dead."
Marinette's heart rushed in her chest. That was witchcraft, a servitor probably and her health? But from who? Why?
She cleared her throat and tried to smile agreeably.
"How long has it been since that?"
"This year it will be 9 years. She died on her son's tenth birthday."
"Oh my God. That is horrible. And, did Mister Agreste, um, targeted witchcraft before that?"
Alya nodded.
"He spent years advocating for minister Tsurugi to burn or hang witches."
Ah, yes, Kagami mentioned something like that years ago.
"And he refused, I take."
"He did. He said that he would not kill citizens without solid proof."
Marinette made a mental note to pay her respects to Kagami's father's grave.
"Adrien isn't fond of his father's ideas…" she mumbled without thinking.
Alya smirked.
"I know, poor Adrien," Alya said mischievously. "The girls and I were planning to welcome you yesterday at the mass, but we saw you with Adrien Agreste, and, well, we would have hated to interrupt."
Marinette blushed.
"Nothing to interrupt, he was so kind to walk with me while I waited for my grandmother."
Alya took a moment to decide whether she should warn the girl.
Yes, I should
"Anyway, apparently he is a taken man." Marinette widened her eyes. "Both the governor's wife and madam Rossi want to marry their daughters to him, even the chief of police does, I think, but his daughter holds no candle to Chloe Bourgeois and Lila Rossi."
"What is the position of Madam Rossi?"
"Her husband is the third son of an Italian prince, I suppose that gives them some status. But he has told Nino that he wants none of them."
Before Marinette could manage an answer, a maid came to the company room.
"Pardon me, Miss Lenoir, but there are two callers for Miss Cessaire."
"Sent them in."