Chapter 2: Breakfast

Veronica has outdone herself again with the dining room design. The color themes of the room were gold and navy, but now they are white and a light violet color. I fixed my posture, lifted my chin slightly, and entered the room.

Always practice being lady, even in the most ridiculous situations. I reminded myself. That's something that my aunt taught me when I was a little girl.

I saw Amelia sitting at the table, playing with one of the purples irises from the vase that served as a centerpiece for the table. Amelia was wearing the exact same dress as me, but rather it being blue, it was a light pink. She was twiddling the iris in between two of her fingers, and her face was rested on her other hand, which was settled on the table. She was obviously bored. Oh, how I admire my 13-year-old twin.

I sat down gracefully in the chair opposite of her, and I smoothed out my skirt. I looked up at my bored sister, and I smiled.

"Sarah!" Amelia shouted suddenly, standing from her chair and slamming her hands on the table, causing the silverware to shake. I jumped.

"U-um, what is it, Amelia?" I asked, settling back down and letting my heartbeat settle back into a steady pace.

"When did you get here, silly?" she asked, putting a wide grin on her face. She sat back down in her chair. I felt my face relax.

"I just got here. You didn't notice?" I replied, tilting my head to the side and giggling slightly.

"Whoops!" Amelia laughed, rubbing her head and giving me an uncertain smile. I replied by stifling another giggle.

Sarah is so…. quiet. I feel terrible when she enters a room and I don't notice. I feel like a bad sister when she is hurting like this. That last giggle and when she said that she had just gotten here, she was obviously forcing a smile.

I lowered my head out of embarrassment. How can I make it up to her? I am getting worse and worse the more time that we're together. She's doing nothing wrong, because I know it's my fault that things aren't changing around here.

I just want Sarah to be happy. She has been quieter ever since our parents were killed. She was always a calm, collective girl, but now she is even less talkative, and she somehow strives to be a perfect lady. Maybe our aunt's death had something to do with her sadness…

I feel so bad for her. She has every right to be depressed, but she still pushes through to achieve her goals. I'm surprised because, well, she watched our parents die. She watched our Aunt die. She has seen death of her loved ones at such young ages.

Sarah had a nightmare one night, and my parents came in her room to comfort her. They were all huddled together in each other's comforting arms when three men came crashing into her window. They were planning to rob us supposedly. My mother hugged Sarah tightly and tried to block her from the men. My father tried to reach for anything to defend my mother and sister with, and he was shot right in front of them. They shot him several times and Sarah watched it happen. The men approached my mother and pointed their guns at Sarah. My mother was screaming for them to leave our family alone through all of her desperate tears. To my mother and Sarah's horror, the men ripped Sarah out of my mother's grasp and tossed her into the corner of the room. Sarah looked up just in time to see our mother brutally stabbed. For some reason, they spared Sarah and left. They took nothing. Sarah accidentally mentioned to me that the men told her something before they left. But she won't tell me any more details.

I feel kind of guilty. I am always so happy and upbeat because I have no reason to be sad. Of course my parents' death was tragic, but I don't think about it too often. Sarah was scarred at such a young age, and then there I was, having no reason to cry. I want her to know that I understand her pain, but I honestly don't. I have never experienced anything like she has in my life.

Then there was the case with our Aunt. This happened a few months ago. Sarah once again refused to tell me the details, but she told me that our cousin was there. Not our Aunt's son, but our other deceased Aunt's son. Sarah told me that she was walking through an empty street while she was doing some shopping when she noticed our Aunt, our cousin, our cousin's butler, and another man all together in an alley. Sarah didn't tell me what they were saying, but our Aunt tried to attack our cousin with a knife. But, she refused to kill him in the end. Then the man said that he was disappointed in her, and he killed her with a strange contraption like nothing she had ever seen. Sarah fled from the scene after our Aunt was killed. She described this man as a tall man with long, flaming red hair and he wore red glasses with chains on the sides. It sounding like a strange man to me. But all I knew was that she saw another family member die covered in blood. I wish Sarah would tell me more. Maybe I could help….

"Amelia?" Sarah asked me quietly. I snapped back into reality. Her face was filled with concern.

"Yup! Just daydreaming is all. Don't worry your pretty little head, sis!" I replied with my face flooded with joy. Sarah made a pouty face. She hated being called "pretty" in a sarcastic way. When I mean it, she smiles. In this case, well, I love annoying my little sis.

What are they saying? What are they thinking? I can't tell from so far away. Peeking through a door isn't exactly what the head maid should be doing.
It bothers me seeing the two ladies so quiet at meals. They barely have anything to say to each other anymore, and it's quite concerning. I think it is mostly because of Lady Sarah's quiet nature. She tends to push Lady Amelia away.

I don't see why. Lady Amelia is a nice girl who would do anything for her sister, but I'm not sure that Lady Sarah would do the same. Lady Amelia is always a joyful person, and quite a pleasure to be around. She has very excellent people skills, which is admirable for a lady.

They need to be prepared for the world that awaits them. They might not realize this, but I won't stand by them forever. I will move on, as they will. When they are adults, they won't need me anymore. Maybe I could get a new master after they grow up. I might have to stay for a while to take care of the sister who inherits the company. A maid is a maid. One of them will require a maid anyways, so I might as well just stay.

It's hard taking care of them, but I have to stay strong. They need me, and I'm actually growing quite fond of them.