A/N: Awwww... I'm soooo sorry. I felt bad enough not doing this chapter for the longest time then when I finally was ready it was the first day they shut down the uploading tools on ff.net so it didn't work. Well anway enjoy your next chappy!!!
Chapter Four :: Life Can Change :: Frell comes.... and Evil Children
"Wake up!" someone shouted a tad too loud in Merri's ear.
"Oh come on, I'm not that heavy of a sleeper to where you have to attempt permanentally damaging my ear drum."
"My dear child, you would sleep on as the walls of a building burned down around you," replied her aunt who had first yelled to wake her up. And that was every so dainty, Merri thought.
"So what should I do now?" she asked.
"Right now, several servants are carrying your luggage to your room-"
"So I get a room?"
"Of course you get a room. We have to make you presentable if anyone comes over. You'll of course just be staying the guest room. I don't think you'll be staying for too long."
"Oh no, I shall not be staying long," she said. What her aunt said was very true. She would stay there for scarcely more than a day. A lot would go on in that short amount of time.
"And before I was interrupted," her aunt continued. And the attitude fights back. "Some servants are starting your bath and as soon as you see them, you're their responsibility. I've informed them on what to do with you. I don't want to see you until they make you come down for dinner. As for the ball tomorrow I'm sure you have a dress or if not we can adjust one of my daughters dresses."
Before Merri could ask any questions, her aunt walked away. She walked up the stairs and asked a couple of questions to make sure she was headed in the right direction. After she finished bathing, she found her room. Not bad, she thought. If any people do happen to come over it will look like quite hospitable accomindations.
She sat there thinking for a while. Tonight she would have to up with having dinner with the two most likely horrible children in the world. Now why did she already assume they were so evil. Evilness runs in the blood, she told herself. Merri could decide for herself tonight. That was what? Two or so more hours.
Merri put on a red dress that she had brought from home. The main and perhaps only reason she felt like joining them at all was her curiosity to meet their daughters: Adelaide and Freya.
She stepped into the room and the others were already sitting at the table. She observed the two girls, who looked extremely bratty and spoiled. The one that appeared to be younger and about her age was dull blue-eyed (sad that she had obviously inherited her mother and father's color) with brown curly locks. Merri suspected it was another wig. She had a bland look about her: like she was just staring into space. Merri assumed there wasn't all that much happening between her ears.
The older of the two, Merri had to admit, was pretty. Unlike the rest of her family she had somehow gotten blessed with think blonde natural looking hair. She also appeared to be smart. Her eyes were not empty like her sisters; instead they were filled with a demonic little glare. She was one of those people who knew what they wanted and how to get it. Underneath all of her beauty, Merri could see total ice. Merri had a knack of "reading" people just by looking into their eyes. In her opinion, eyes are the most expressive feature of everything.
Her aunt finally spoke, "I'm glad you were able to come down and join us." How can she be so cheery towards me one minute and so dark the next? It's just plain creepy. Her aunt pointed to the elder of her two daughters and said, "This is our lovely daughter, Freya. She just recently turned 18. And this is Adelaide, who's 16. How old are you again?"
"I'm 16," Merri replied. She was in a way crept out with her aunt being this nice. They forewent a while of cheerful conversation, and then their supper came out and with it talk about the ball.
"So Meredith, are you looking forward to the ball?" Freya asked.
"It seems quite exciting," she replied with no enthusiasm at all.
"Of course it shall be exciting. The darling prince shall be there. That man is so charming," Freya started. "Wouldn't you say Prince Andrew is the most lovely man alive?" That wasn't exactly a question you could answer. She would probably jump on her if Merri said she found him handsome, and she would probably yell if she said that he was ugly.
Fortunately Adelaide's eyes lit up with joy as she heard something she recognized. "Everyone has been saying that the prince fancies Freya. That would be so wonderful if she became Queen." At the mention of that Freya's eyes lit up, a fire dancing inside of them. Merri could see how power hungry she truly was. It was frightening. Adelaide continued, "And you're quite right. He is charming and very handsome. I love his freckles." She let out a little giggle after the last statement.
Now Freya's eyes burned with anger. "Do not talk of him like that. You have no right to be saying such things. I am the only one with those special privileges. He fancies me and me alone!" Freya didn't look pretty at all when she yelled, and was obviously very prone to jealousy. Merri doubted any of the things she said were true. Then again, she considered. Royalty is extremely shallow, and it's not as if she's an ugly hag. From what I've seen she certainly a bitch though.
After more screaming, yelling, and arguing, Merri slipped away and into her guest chambers for the night. Apparently, no one even noticed she had left. When she got up tomorrow she had much work to do. She had to pack very lightly and think hard about what to take. She decided not to bother herself with it tonight and to deal with it in the morning.
She slept soundly throughout the night and woke up in the morning to find a rush of servants coming in to pamper her. She had to admit it was nice but at the same time a little alarming. It was odd how her relatives seemed not to like her at all but yet their servants were taking such good care of her. She kept telling herself it was merely the fact that she must look presentable. Merri decided to go ahead and ask one of them, except not exactly in the form of a question. "You sure take good care of your guests here."
"We are accustomed to treat all of our guests to the most of our abilities, and we decided that since you were our lord and lady's niece to take extra good care of you." The servant was very helpful, but not quite bright because to her it seemed like it would be obvious to anyone that the Duke and Duchess did not want any special care towards her. She wasn't going to tell anyone; she may as well enjoy this now and if they did eventually find out she would be long gone, or at least she hopefully would be.
At just about eleven o'clock she had grown extremely tired of having people wait on her hand and foot. She asked them to leave several times; they argued a little, but one tiny glare from Merri sent them quickly away. She didn't really want to scare them, and at the same time knew one of her "looks" would. People who were too exceedingly nice annoyed her.
The ball didn't start for another five hours, and she desperately needed to prepare for her escape. She thought for a while about what she might need, and then set off to collect it. She gathered a few light changes of clothes, boots (she knew slippers would not last long), and a ton of money. Most of the stuff she needed would just end up being bought, such as food, and it didn't make much sense to carry so much stuff. She also carefully snuck around the manor and stole a pouch of money from her relatives. She wasn't necessarily greedy; she just happened to feel that they had too much money and likely wouldn't even notice its absence. She wouldn't use it on herself; just on all deprived people they had never bothered to think about helping. Well perhaps she may use it to buy herself some necessities.
She slyly crept into many of the other rooms, mainly to explore. She couldn't help the feeling of being watched. She pushed it aside knowing it was just her being her usual paranoid self. It wasn't like her uncle would send his guards to spy on what she was doing.
In one of these rooms she found a map of the area, which proved to be very useful. There was a town far enough away where she wouldn't be recognized (it wasn't as though she met many people anyway), yet close enough to where she could reach an inn and be in bed at a fairly decent time. The town she was to be headed was called Hondiel. She pocketed the map. Could anyone surely miss this that much? she wondered. Not likely they'd be traveling in a manner that would allow them to become as lost as I probably will be getting.
Feeling the stares at her back again she turned around and visually searched everywhere in view. No one was there but someone surely had to be. Annoyed she called, "Who the bloody hell is watching me?" No one replied, nothing even stirred mind Merri's own self. "I swear I'm crazy. Someone's going to lock me up one of these days," Merri said as she walked out the door. Little did she know she wasn't crazy (well in this situation) for in the very room she had just left, someone remained. They slowly turned their bright green eyes and left--though not in the same way Merri had.
~*~Jane of Q~*~