Title: Our Lullaby
Author: Marie J.W.
Chapter: CHAPTER TWO
Rated: PG
Email: mariejwchan@yahoo.com
URL: www.clik.to/mariejwchan
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Summary:
It all started on a rainy night in June when Lady Serenity ReCinny of the House of Chesterfield ran away from her home, her rich life and the ones that she dearly loved… And all for what? …A baby.
This story is about a woman who sacrifices everything: her family, her best friend and her joy of life all for one little infant who doesn't even know her own mother.
AN: This is an alternate reality that takes place in the early 1800's. This is a Serena/Darien fan fic.
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…Serenity's Dream…
"Momma! Momma! Look!" A small three year-old Rini ran across the front of the cabin towards her mother. Serenity looked up as her daughter came running clothed in her light blue muddy dress. She had obviously been near the murky woods again. Serenity sighed and shook her head before finally letting a small smile creep upon her face.
"What did you find this time?" Serenity sat down on the end of the front porch and let her daughter come and sit in her lap. Rini situated her self then slowly opened her closed hands for her mother to see. In her little palms sat a tiny caterpillar.
"It's a fuzzy worm!" Rini giggled at her find, "He looks funny."
"Worm?" Serenity laughed, "No, Small Lady, it's a caterpillar."
Rini scrunched her nose, "Cat-e-piler?"
They both watched the little thing try to crawl its way off Rini's hand only to be cut off my lack of footing.
"He's pretty, isn't he?"
"Yeah…" Rini stared awed at the thing, "It's so soft…"
Serenity marveled at the peace she felt just then as she watched her daughter stare at the little bug. Soft curls that escaped her daughter's pigtails brushed against her little red cheeks.
"Can we keep it?" Rini suddenly turned her sky blue eyes upon her.
Serenity looked at the caterpillar with a soft smile, "No, we don't want to do that. We need to let it go so it will turn into a butterfly."
"Butterfly? It will have wings?" Rini turned back to the caterpillar very amazed and entranced.
"It will… and it will be very beautiful…" Serenity brushed back some loose strands of hair from her daughters face, "just like you."
Rini giggled before placing the caterpillar down on the soft earth by her momma's feet. Together they watched the caterpillar crawl off. Suddenly, Rini turned around and hugged her, "I love you, Momma!"
"I love you too, Rini," Serenity wrapped her arms around her daughter and pulled her closer, "I love you so much…"
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I awoke from my dream feeling a sense of loss. Why did things have to be this way? If only things had been different that night, if only I knew of another choice, if only it happened later and with a man who loved me… just as much as I knew I loved him.
What would he do if he knew he had a daughter? Would he shun her? Would he ignore her? Somehow, I couldn't picture him being so cruel. He was gentle and fun if a little bit serious sometimes. He loved life and how it grew, he wouldn't hate Rini, I knew that much.
However, he wouldn't forgive me. I know he wouldn't. I should have been wiser. I should have kept sober. If he knew what happened that night, he would never forgive me and he might even hate himself for his actions. I bit my lip, trying to keep the tears at bay, "What is wrong with me?" I slid out of bed and started to make my bed, "Ever since that day I can't keep my emotions under control. They just seem to flare up all the time," I let out a long sigh, turned and headed for my dresser, "Maybe I should take a vacation up at our cabin… that might clear my head… but it also might bring up memories…" I shook her head and pulled my hair up into a braided bun then washed my face.
A maid knocked at the door, "Miss, breakfast is ready."
"Thank you," I called then quickly pulled out my black dress and pulled it on, buttoning the back with some struggle. I slipped on my shoes and then headed for the door. Slipping out of my room and shutting the door behind me, I took a deep breath and straitened my back, smoothing my features to a careful blank as I walked down the stairs. This would be another hard day for me, another hard and lonely day, I only hopped I could get some happiness out of today.
In the dinning room sat Ellie and her husband John with Rini sitting at the end of the table playing with her food. I could tell by just watching the family that there was tension in the air. As I took my seat, I could tell that Rini didn't look the least bit happy as she stared at her food and pushed her food around with her fork.
John sat at the head of the table reading the morning newspaper while Ellie ate gracefully as she went from looking out the window to glancing at John. I sighed, Ellie reminded me of our father, always keeping out of everyone else's business and keeping to himself. Didn't Ellie ever wonder what John did while he was away? As far as I knew, Ellie didn't even know what he did to support them.
"Good morning, John, Ellie, Rini," I picked up my fork and ate my breakfast.
John grunted while Ellie spoke for the both of them, "Morning Sere."
Rini just glanced up from her plate and mumbled a "good morning".
I kept back the frustrated sigh that wanted to escape and also the reprimanding words that sought to escape my mouth. I so badly wanted to tell John what a horrible father he was being and what a horrible and selfish husband he was being as well. I also wanted to yell at Elli for her passiveness and acting like such a spoiled queen. As for Rini I just wanted to take her away from all this and 'finally' let out my precious secret, that Rini was truly MY daughter and NOT my sisters.
However, I held all this in and calmly ate my meal with a frown, a frown I wore all too often these last few years.
The doorbell rang long and loud throughout the house. There was only one person who rung the doorbell in such as way and that was Mina Revolli. The sound of footsteps reaching the door shut off the annoying sound and was replaced by the opening of the door. I listened to Mina's cheerful voice as she asked where the family resided. Therefore, when Mina appeared in the doorway it was no surprise to see her smiling at us.
"Good morning, Starant family! And how do we do this lovely morning?" Mina practically bounced into the room.
John looked up from his newspaper, clearly looking annoyed, "Just fine, Miss Revolli, what brings you up here at such an early hour?"
Mina's eyes brightened, glad that John had asked her so soon, "I have the most wonderful news from town for Ellie and Sere. I must speak with them at once on the subject, oh, and you must hear it as well Mr. Starant, for I'm sure it will interest you."
"Well, by all means, sit down Miss Revolli," Ellie waved towards a chair near her but Mina refused and immediately flounced over to my side and took a seat next to me. Ellie looked a little annoyed but quickly smoothed her features into a pleasant expression.
Mina smiled at Rini, "And how are you, my dear? How are you riding lessons going?"
For the first time that morning I saw Rini smile, "Very good, Miss Mina. My instructor says I'm improving nicely."
Mina smiled and nodded, "Very good, you shall grow up to be a fine lady."
Rini giggled.
I fought down a smile to match Rini's and turned to Mina, "You said you had news from town?"
"Oh! Yes!" Mina scooted her chair in and leaned forward with shinning eyes, "There is a new fellow in town. His name is Mr. Birmington and he's come all the way from Eyre! Can you believe that? And he's looking to settle here. I've heard he had a fortune and that he is looking to catch a bride as well!"
"My, that is something, isn't it John?" Ellie glanced at her husband, "Where does he plan to reside? Not in the west side of town, I hope."
"No, in fact, that's what I came here to tell you. Mr. Birmington bought the estate just north of you just this last Wednesday. I would have told you sooner but I only heard about the whole affair last night from Mrs. Winslow," Mina took a deep breath, "You must invite them over, it is your duty as a neighbor to introduce him to the towns' people."
John nodded, his newspaper forgotten, "And indeed we shall," then turning to Ellie he announced, "You must organize a ball, my dear, and send out invitations in Mr. Birmingtons honor."
Ellie nodded, "Of course! I will get Mrs. Bluet and Margaret to help me this afternoon. And you, John, must visit our new neighbor as soon as possible and let him know your plans."
"I shall," John smiled and folded his newspaper, setting it aside his plate. He looked at his pocket watch, "I have an appointment this morning but as soon as I'm finished I will visit Mr. Birmington."
I watched all of this in amazement. It is a wonder what a distant family can do together once something happened in town. I wondered who this man really was. Not too many people just up and moved into our little town. If someone were to move here, we often heard about it months before hand, which was one of the reasons I choose to move in with my sister.
Mina clasped her hands together in the excitement of it all, "I also heard that he is hosting some friends from New York, can you imagine that? There are two young men with him and they are quite distinguished and if I'm guessing correctly they are single," with that last sentence Mina immediately turned to Serenity, "Who knows, Sere, maybe one of the three will fit to your taste."
Ellie laughed, "I highly doubt that, Miss Rovolli."
"You can never tell, Ellie," Mina smiled and glanced in my direction.
I glared at Mina. How dare she? I'm in no way in the mood to entertain men. I have enough responsibilities to take care of… Well, she will soon find that this woman will not budge. I will insist that I stay in my room the entire night of the ball, besides, someone has to watch Rini while her so-called parents are soaking themselves with wine.
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The ball was to be that very weekend. With a snap of her fingers, Ellie had the whole town putting up decorations and fixing tastries for the ball. Invitations were set out immediately and already I heard that most of the town planned to come.
Mina came by often to share what little information she could gather up about to two other gentlemen that she heard of. For the majority of the week I spent my time arguing with my friend. Mina insisted that I come to the ball while I refused. Mina was becoming more and more persistent and it was making me uneasy as well as annoyed. Couldn't she see that I wasn't going to budge?
Finally, that Saturday rolled around. Mina came flouncing into my bedroom with two large boxes in her arms.
"What, my I ask, is that?" I asked as I sat in my rocking chair reading a book and trying to ignore the loud music coming from downstairs. The musicians chosen for that night were practicing and tuning their music before the ball.
Mina laid it down on my bed and lifted the tops off the boxes, "Your dress for tonight. I had it made for you a couple days ago. It will look absolutely stunning on you!"
"Mina," I sighed, "I will not wear that dress tonight."
"Phooey!" Mina pulled the undergarments out of the other box and laid them on the bed, "I will not let you grow to be an old maid, although, you do look the part this very minute. You are young and beautiful, Sere, it's about time you dressed it and show your true colors."
I ignored her and tried to concentrate on my book.
Mina stopped her actions and looked at me, "Serenity, I will not have this from you. You are going to the dance even if I have to force you into this dress and drag you downstairs."
This got a smile out of me, "Ha, I would like to see you try, Miss Weakling."
Mina glared, "Who said I would do it by myself?"
I looked up from my book, wrinkling my brow in confusion and curiosity, "Excuse me?"
"At this very minute I have a few wonderful girls that are willing to help me dress you… IF you don't do it willingly."
"I don't believe you, Mina," I stood up and put my book down, "I have duties, unlike you and my duty lies with Miss Rini. Someone has to watch her and make sure she stays in her room during the ball. I have no time for frivolous games of cat and mouse," I stood in front of Mina with my hands on my hips, "Now, if you'll please leave and join Ellie downstairs,
I'm sure she'll enjoy your kind of entertainment more than I."
Mina shook her head, "I warned you, Sere, I really did. You are going to that dance. Do you know why? Because I know you're hiding from something, you hide your true self under that mask of indifference and under that shabby black dress that makes you look as unattractive as possible. This is for your own good and as your friend it is my duty to help you," with that said Mina snapped her fingers.
The doors swung open revealing three woman I had never seen before. All wore beautiful dresses adorned with diamonds and jewels. They were obviously going to the ball tonight.
"So, we get to tackle her, huh?" The woman with brown hair and green eyes popped her knuckles, making my eyes widen in fear.
"Yep!" Mina smiled wickedly.
"Lita, we have to be gentle, we can't have you bruise her, that would hardly look respectable," The girl with short black hair and light blue eyes pointed out.
The ravened hair beauty with long hair falling down her back rolled her eyes, "Get over it Amy," the woman looked me up and down making me feel uncomfortable; "she obviously needs some metal help."
"Excuse me! How rude of you to talk like that in front of- eek!" I quickly scrambled around the bed as the woman named Lita tried to pounce on me.
"You don't understand," I jumped onto the bed and tried to cross it only to be cut off by Amy, "I can't go downstairs! I can't wear that! Mina, if you only knew the circumstances…!"
"Fine, tell me but first lets get you into those undergarments," Mina grabbed my ankle making me fall on my butt on top of the bed.
Suddenly the raven hair woman grabbed me by the arm, making it impossible to move, and looked me in the eye, "Sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Ray Danmark, officially your worst nightmare."
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Rini stood up against the door listening to the loud voices coming from inside Aunt ReCinny's bedroom. Earlier she saw Mina enter the room then three other ladies. Now they were making violent noises and she could hear her Aunt shrieking about indecency. What were they doing in there? They weren't hurting her aunt were they?
"Mina! I'm gonna kill you!"
Rini's eyes widened and she quickly backed away from the door.
"Ouch! Dang it, Mina, owie! What are you-hey, owie, owie, owie, OWIE! Let go!"
"Not until you let us tighten this thing!"
"And kill me while you're at it! I haven't worn one of these things since I was sixteen!"
Laughter was heard.
Rini looked at the door in confusion.
"Rini!"
Rini turned around to see her mother coming up the stairs, "Get in your room, the ball is about to start."
"I want to see the ladies!" Rini protested as she was dragged to her room by her mother's firm hand.
"No, I will not allow you to listen to all the swearing that goes on downstairs. You're too young for all of that."
Rini pouted. She wanted to kick her mother in the shin but the thought of Aunt ReCinny coming after her with her sharp words and disapproving look stopped her. Despite what her Mother thought, Rini was very concerned what her Aunt thought of her. Something in her just wanted to please her aunt. As for her mother, she could hardly care what she thought. As far as Rini knew, her mother didn't care enough to give her rules or to punish her for being bad. Her mother would let her do whatever she wanted as long as she put up a fight or stomped her foot enough.
"Now, stay in your room, I don't want to even catch a hair of you downstairs," Ellie sighed, "Is that clear? You can play with your toys and you have a few books that Aunt ReCinny has been kind enough to lend you."
Rini frowned. She didn't want to play with her toys and she wasn't in the mood to read a book, she wanted to watch the pretty ladies dance downstairs. They all looked like angels from what she saw.
"Don't frown at me, it's for your own good," Ellie turned to shut the door, "Good night, dear."
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"Wow!" Mina stared at me.
I stood uncomfortable and feeling exposed in the middle of the room. The four girls were all sitting on my bed, catching their breath and staring at me in awe.
"What?" I shifted my weight from one foot to the other.
"You would have never thought that you looked like that from the way you dress, Sere," Mina smiled, "You are going to knock all the men dead off their feet."
My eyes widened as I shook my head.
Mina laughed, "Don't look so shocked, you'll be fine. Now, see for yourself how you look."
I was scared, scared of what I would see, scared that I would see my sixteen-year-old self in the mirror and see that night happening all over again. Swallowing hard, I stepped in front of my full-length mirror. I gasped, I didn't look sixteen anymore, in fact, I looked even more beautiful then I was at sixteen.
I wore a darling pink off the shoulder dress, my waist was tight while the rest of my dress flared off my hips into a ball gown with ruffles and layers of pink silk. The dress felt soft against my skin with a light yet present weight against my body. Half my hair was pulled up into a loose bun while the rest of my hair laid in soft curls down my back.
On top of my head, around my bun, was a crown of soft pink and white blossoms. My face was painted in soft hues that only highlighted my features.
In short, I looked like a fairy princess.
I almost felt like crying. In ways, I saw my old self but in other ways someone new and unfamiliar stared back at me. It was a nice feeling if a bit odd.
"Well?" Ray smiled, "What do you think?"
"I think I'm gonna sit down," I moved from the mirror and sat down in my rocking chair, "I don't think I can do this."
Amy slipped off the bed, making sure to smooth her dress down before approaching me, "I don't know you that well but I can already tell that you are strong and even though this might be scary for you, you'll be fine. At one time or another we all go through this."
I gave Amy a thankful smile. I knew the girl was trying to help me but it only slightly soothed my nerves.
"Well!" Mina breathed, "We're late for the ball, we better get down there before it's all over and all the good men are taken."
Lita laughed, "Trust me, all the good ones are taken before they even make it past the doorway."
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I followed nervously behind the four girls, hoping that if I just stayed behind them all night that nobody would take notice of me. I hadn't felt this insecure since I was fourteen years old and attending my first dance. Back then, my best friend Darien was there to help me relax but now, I was on my own.
We descended the stairs and approached the doorway to the ballroom. People miled around us, talking, laughing, and drinking campaign. Beautiful soft music filtered through the room, luring couples onto the dance floor.
"Oh, look! It's Mr. Birmington," Mina's low thrilled voice announced, "And his companions are with him."
The girls spread out, making room for me among them. I looked over the room. People were dancing, talking and some young men were even playing sword fight with the celery sticks by the refreshment table.
Mina grabbed my arm, "See, that's the man I was talking about."
My heart quickened and my throat suddenly felt dry as I looked in that direction. For there across the room, standing by some men and women was Darien Shields, Rini's father.
To Be Continued…
AN: Great! Another chapter done! Someone asked for this so I thought I'd get to it. I don't think this chapter turned out so bad. I will start writing another chapter when I get some reviews. Until next time, Ja ne!