Chapter Twenty Four ~ Arrival Of Old Faces
With my birthday fast approaching, I barely had any time to think. Loveday kept me busy non-stop and would constantly bombard me with questions. I had tried many times to escape her clutches by hiding in the grounds or in the kitchen with Marmaduke, but when she found me she would give me double the amount of work to do. I wasn't sure why one party needed so much work done for it, but I didn't want to ask Loveday incase she gave me more work to do. I dreaded my 16th birthday and vowed to myself not to let Loveday plan it.
A simple dinner would suffice.
We were given updates from De Noir castle of Robin's condition frequently. He was apparently getting better and Mrs Harper had said that it was likely that he would be up by my birthday. Though until then, she thought it was best he didn't have any visitors. So I wasn't allowed to see him until my party.
My feeling for my birthday were mixed. I was looking forward to it as I would get to see Robin, though there was the concept of the party in general. I wasn't very good when it came to big crowds. The reason why I only wanted a small dinner.
Loveday had arranged for Georgina and Claire to arrive a few days early so I could catch up with them in advance. I was grateful for this as I had not seen my two best friends in so long.
On the morning they were coming, I hurried to get dressed and headed outside to meet them. A carriage, much grander than Digweed's, pulled into the grounds. I felt myself grin as I waited for the carriage to stop and my friends to jump out. The carriage stopped in front of me and the driver rushed to open it. Claire was the first to get out. She grinned at me and embraced me into a large bear hug.
Claire was the figure of perfection, as Georgina and I would say. She was the taller of our trio and had matured much quicker than both of us, though now Georgina and I had caught up. Her hair was a beautiful shade of blonde that glowed in the sun. At the moment she had it arrayed in a high bun, but when it was down, it flowed right down her back and around her waist. She vowed to us that she would never cut it as it was her protest to her parents. I could never quite work out how it would work, but I never bothered to ask her.
"Maria!" She cried, holding me at arms length and looking at me. "It's been so long!" Did I mention she was beautiful aswell? Her features all perfect and to die for. I felt puny next to her. I only smiled at my blonde friend. Georgina stepped in, shoving Claire out the way and hugging me hard.
Georgina, the listener. She was only a few inches taller than I was, but looked a considerable amount older. Her hair was darker than both Claire's and mine and a shade between dark brunette and auburn. It was shorter than last time I saw her, cut just above her shoulders.
When she released me, she gave me her unforgetting familiar smile. I've always liked Georgina's smile, as it made me feel better when I was sad. A smile that was friendly and welcoming. I also teased her about her having dimples when she did it.
After a extravagant greeting, I took my two friends inside and found Loveday waiting for us.
"You must be Georgina and Claire." Loveday smiled, holding out a hand for Georgina to shake. When Georgina shook it, Loveday offered her hand to Claire, who did the same. "I'm Loveday, Maria's aunt." It felt weird Loveday introducing herself as my aunt. I had never heard her say it before. "Thank you so much for coming."
"Thank you for inviting us." Georgina replied pleasantly. She was always big on manners. I saw Claire gazing around the house with awe. Everyone seemed amazed when they came to the house.
"I'll show you up to your rooms." Loveday said before turning around and heading up the stairs. She took us down the same corridor where Mrs Heliotrope's room was situated and lead us to two doors which stood next to each other. She opened the both and stood back. "You may choose which room you would like. Maria can show you around the house and if you excuse me I have work to do." She gave us one last smile and left after Georgina and Claire both said their thanks.
On the tour around the manor we ran into Mrs Heliotrope, who bombarded Georgina and Claire with happy greetings and expressed how good it was to see them.
"You've both grown too!" Mrs Heliotrope cried. "But still equally as pretty." I rolled my eyes, Mrs Heliotrope had always liked my two friends.
After I had finished the tour, we found ourselves sat in the smaller sitting room. Marmaduke had left some cakes and drinks for us to eat and conversations and catch ups began.
"How is London?" I asked, sipping at my drink.
"Incredibly boring." Claire sighed. "I'm moving as soon as I turn 18."
"And where will you live?" I asked, slightly amused with Claire's plan.
"France, I think." She said, matter-of-factly. "I've always wanted to see Paris. It is the capital of love after all."
"So you have no plans for university?" I asked. She shrugged.
"An artist does not need to go to university." I had forgotten how narrow minded Claire was. Though it was kind of nice to see she still wanted to become an artist. I couldn't deny that Claire was very good when it came to art and painting. Plus she had always dreamed of becoming one, even when Georgina and I didn't see the likely hood of it happening. She was very determined. Even when her ideas were slightly outrageous.
"What about you, Georgina?" I asked. Georgina was the opposite to Claire. Her mind always changed when it came to her future. One minute she wanted to be in politics, the next she wanted to travel the world. She vowed that when it came to the time to choose, she'll know exactly what she wanted to do.
"I want to become a doctor." Georgina replied. This was a new one and probably one of her more likely ideas.
"Since when?" She shrugged.
"I like the whole concept of saving people's lives." She smiled at me. "What are your plans, Maria?" I sighed.
"I haven't even thought past my 15th birthday, let alone what I want to become." I replied, honestly.
"Do you think you'll move back to London when you're old enough?" Georgina asked, her eyes seemed to plead with me slightly. I shook my head.
"I don't think so, I like Moonacre." I answered. They shared a look with each other.
"You hated it at the start." Claire reminded me. "You would write how much you wanted to come back in all your letters." Georgina nodded in agreement.
"Yes but if you had read my other letters, then you'll see I've written how wrong I was about this place. I love it here."
"We did read your letters." Georgina nodded. "Though we were slightly baffled why all of a sudden you loved this place." Her eyes wandered around the room. "I mean, it is beautiful, but it's in the country!" I laughed. They reminded me of myself when I first moved here. I despised the country with so much passion, longing for life back in the busy city of London.
"It's grown on me." I replied.
"It's the boy, isn't it?" Claire asked. I turned to her, confused. "The boy you write about in your letters." She explained. I had forgotten I had told Georgina and Claire about Robin. "Where is he anyway? Or did you make him up to impress us?" I sent her a glare. I didn't appreciate being accused of lying.
"He doesn't live here. He lives up in De Noir castle." They both stared at me blankly. "He's a De Noir."
"As in, the De Noirs from that story you told us about in your letters?" Georgina asked. Again, I had forgotten I had told them about that aswell.
"Yes. He's Loveday's brother."
"I thought the Merryweathers and the De Noirs were supposed to hate each other?" Claire asked, raising an eyebrow. I sighed and proceeded to tell them both the Moon princess story and why our families used to hated each other. After, I told them briefly about what happened when I first arrived here and how I saved Moonacre and became a Moon princess. I tried my hardest not to sound boastful or like I was bragging. We had enough of that from Claire.
"But now everything is fine?" Georgina asked. I nodded.
"Uncle Benjamin's and Loveday's marriage brought our families together." I explained.
"And when do we get to meet your friend, the De Noir, then?" Claire asked.
"His name is Robin and not until my birthday." I sighed, remembering Robin's injured self back in De Noir castle. "He's not well at the moment." I saw them share a look. I could tell they were both hesitant to believe in Robin, but I didn't care. They would see soon enough that I wasn't making Robin up.
The day with Claire and Georgina was spent talking and catching up on all the time we had missed apart. Which was a lot. At dinner, I introduced them both to Uncle, who greeted them warmly.
I walked them up to their rooms when we headed up to bed. I gave them hugs and they both retreated into their separate rooms, bidding me goodnight. With a sigh, I headed up to my bedroom in the tower. The days events had left me exhausted for some reason and I collapsed onto my bed and fell asleep instantly as my head touched the pillow.
The next day was even more exhausting than the last. It was a day before my birthday and Loveday seemed to be stressing out about it all.
"Loveday, calm down." I sighed. "It's just a birthday party, it's not like it's my wedding or anything." Georgina, Claire and I were helping set up the large hall which was to be in use tomorrow.
On the guest list was the De Noir clan, the ones I knew. I had told Loveday it was fine for Robin's friends to come, deciding that they were probably decent people after all. Aswell as them, Loveday had invited a lot of people from the village. I had spent a lot of time in the village over the year I had spent in Moonacre and had bonded with a lot of the villagers. Loveday told me they were more than happy to come. She had also, some how, managed to track down some of my relatives, despite both Uncle's and my complaints.
"They'd want to see you." Loveday would argue. "They haven't see you since you came to Moonacre." Thankfully though only my Aunt Sylvia and Cousin Barney could come on such short notice. The prospect of my Cousin Barney coming, seemed to lighten Claire's mood even more. She had a thing for my cousin, who was a considerable amount older than she was. It was quite amusing to see her flirt with him as it was clearly a lost hope. Though maybe now Claire had matured more, Cousin Barney may see her in a different way.
Time could only tell.
"Are you sure it's safe for all these people to be travelling here when there's that thing in the forest?" I asked Loveday in a hushed tone so Georgina and Claire didn't hear. They were both unaware of the beast in the forest. Though Uncle had expressed how they were forbidden from the forest. Unlike me when I first came here, they listened to my Uncle's words.
"The villagers and the De Noir's already know about the beast and are on full alert." Loveday explained. "So the only people who do not know are your aunt and cousin. Benjamin has sent for Digweed to collect them and a few of my father's men are to go with him, just incase. We have thought about this, Maria."
"I was just making sure." I sighed, glancing at my two friends. When we were allowed a break, I headed outside into the snow with Georgina and Claire.
Another thing to be thankful for was that it would be snowing on my birthday. It had snowed non-stop in Moonacre over the past few weeks and I couldn't even remember now what the ground looked like without the white stuff coating it.
"So you've never thought about moving back to London?" Georgina asked. We were sat on one of the swing benches. I shook my head.
"I did at first, but now I'm glad that I'm here." I replied. They both looked slightly confused. "It grows on you, trust me."
"I don't think I'll stick around to find out." Claire muttered, kicking up some snow. Just then Wrolfe bounded around the corner and towards us. A high-pitched scream rang out across the grounds and Claire and Georgina jumped to their feet. I rolled my eyes. They were as bad as Mrs Heliotrope.
I had to explain to them both that Wrolfe would not harm them and that he was our pet. Both of them just stared at me like I had completely lost my mind.
"You have a lion as a pet?" Claire cried. I shrugged.
"He used to be a dog." Claire's face scrunched up with confusion.
"What?" I didn't elaborate. Georgina was the first to brave a touch of Wrolfe. Though it was quite timid. She patted the lion's mane and jumped back as he turned his head towards her. I reassured her that he wouldn't bite and petted Wrolfe myself, though more forceful than she did. Neither of them were convinced.
When we had finished preparing the house, Loveday finally relaxed. Georgina and Claire had made themselves comfortably at home and, though they were still wary of Wrolfe, seemed to be enjoying time in Moonacre.
Aunt Sylvia and Cousin Barney arrived late in the evening. It was odd to see them both again. Aunt Sylvia was my mother's sister. Back when I lived in London, Aunt Sylvia would always be in and out of the house, visiting us. Though she had taken a fancy in travelling so her visits became less and less frequent.
She didn't even make it to my father's funeral.
Cousin Barney was her son. I had always got on with him, but we also grew apart due to the travelling he did with his mother. Claire's face lit up when they walked through the main doors, her eyes firmly set on Cousin Barney.
"Maria!" Aunt Sylvia cried, pulling me into a big hug. She had always been the touchy-feely kind of aunt. "It's not even your birthday and you've turned into a young lady already!" I smiled and returned her hug.
At dinner, Aunt Sylvia informed us all of where she had visited. All her tales completely enticed me and I listened intently. Mrs Heliotrope, who had greeted her with open arms, also seemed to be completely overwhelmed by what stories Aunt Sylvia was telling us.
Most people around the table were.
The only two who were not were Claire and Cousin Barney. I was correct to think that now Claire had matured rapidly, Cousin Barney would become interested in her. It didn't help either with Claire's constant flirting and affection. It seemed that my birthday had become useful for something and had become a somewhat 'matchmaker'.
Loveday seemed to be pleased with her work and sent me a 'I told you so' smile across the table. I rolled my eyes and continued to listen to Aunt Sylvia's stories.
After dinner, I headed up to bed with Georgina, Claire staying downstairs with Cousin Barney.
"You excited for tomorrow?" Georgina asked as we headed up the steps. I shrugged.
"I'm not looking forward to all the hassle." I admitted.
"Just think of all the presents you'll get."
"It's not all just about presents though, Georgina." One present came to mind. Robin's promised appearance. I couldn't wait to see him tomorrow, and prayed to God he would be well enough.
"We also get to meet this mystery friend of yours." Georgina pointed out, as if she was reading my mind. I glanced at her to see her grinning.
"I'm not making him up." I said, as she seemed to be staring at me in an odd way.
"I don't think you are." Georgina denied.
"Good." I nodded. "Because you would look pretty foolish tomorrow when you do meet him and realise that I wasn't lying to you." She smiled and we stopped outside her room.
"Goodnight, Maria." She said, hugging me. "Get some sleep, it's your birthday tomorrow."
"How could I forget?" I muttered, smiling. She went inside her room and I headed up to bed.
I was dreading tomorrow. Why did Loveday have to make such a big event about it? Why did I have to agree to let her do it? I would surely have to get her back some day. Though this would be a lesson to not let Loveday in charge of occasions like birthdays. I couldn't imagine what she would be like for my wedding. I couldn't very well say I wanted a 'simple dinner' for my wedding day.
She would probably slaughter me.
Though on the plus side, I would be able to see all my friends and even some of my family. Though Aunt Sylvia and Cousin Barney were the only family, beside Uncle and Loveday, that would be here it was still nice to know that they came. There was also Georgina and Claire. Though they annoyed me greatly, I loved them very much and was very glad to have them here.
Then there was Robin.
I couldn't count how many times over the past week or so I had expressed my excitement to see him again. Especially when I knew he was alright after the attack in the forest. I couldn't wait to introduce him to Claire and Georgina.
Georgina. I had forgotten to ask my brunette friend about the feelings I was having at the moment for the injured bird-boy. I debated whether or not I should go wake her and ask her, but decided against it. I would wait until tomorrow, after she had met him. Then I can confide in her and ask her what was happening to me whenever Robin was around.
The events of tomorrow were drawing nearer and nearer by the second and somewhere during the rants I was having in my head, I drifted off into a blissful sleep.
(A/N) Apologises for all the new characters in this chapter. I had to add them in due to the whole 'birthday party' idea.
I'm trying to update as frequently as I can before Christmas, hence the double update in a day.
Please review.
-jemlou-