Um, I already have a lot of this written, so I decided to mash a couple chapters together. Hope you don't mind. xD
Don't be afraid to say anything harsh.
*Note: I know some people say that Annabelle and Kendell are too modern for their era, but there is a reason for that, and because they act so differently is the reason that they're mostly shunned in the town. .___.
--------------------
I sat in the chair in silence for a bit, eating the rest of my ice cream and getting up to leave. Mariam came up and blinked in confusion,
"Where is Mr. Inkcrest?"
"He left... There was an unexpected guest, so to speak."
"Was it that Larissa?"
I sighed, "Yes..."
She sighed with me, "That young lady sure does know how to make a temper rise. Honestly, it astounds me that no one else except you has told her what her place really is." Mariam stared at the money on the table and smiled back at me, "Have a wonderful day, then, Miss Drevensek."
"Thank you." I scooped up my sketchbook and left, standing out in front of the restaurant to look at the clear afternoon skies. July 4, 1886, another beautiful day. I had almost forgotten the date again. The slightest breeze swished my hair, and I searched the streets for Kendell. He was nowhere in sight. I cursed Larissa for barging in on us, and decided I might as well give him some time alone. My heart ached for him, for all he's been through in his life. What would a spoiled daughter of a lord like me know? He had to rely on drinking to keep himself sane, and many people in the town treated him awfully for it, along with his long hair and brazen attitude. Once they got to know him I'm sure they wouldn't feel as they do now. But no one wanted to take the chance. Except me, of course…
God, how I wanted to help that poor boy.
I guess you could say I was slightly... infatuated. But definitely nowhere near love.
Looking around at these people, I don’t think I should be here with them. I’m already shunned like Kendell, despite my status… Because I refuse to follow proper etiquette… I shouldn’t be here at all. The people around me seem less like people and more like humans, like just another creature. It feels strange to look at them and, unlike everyone else, see something alien and unnecessary, even if their customs are what I’ve grown up with. No matter how kind my father and the house staff were, I would never feel as if I belonged here. If I did, I’d certainly have more than one friend, right?
I skipped down the road until I came to the bottom of the hill that lead to my father’s manor. There was nothing else in town to do at the moment, so why not spend the rest of my day in the comfort of my home? And besides, my dress was starting to irritate me.
I all but ran up the hill and up the steps of the manor. When I got inside, I ran upstairs. I passed my father’s lounge, and he called out,
“Now where do you think you’re going, Annabelle? Nichole won’t appreciate you running in the house.”
I backed up and smiled at him through the doorway. He was sitting in his favorite red chair reading, for what must have been the hundredth time, “Around the World in Eighty Days”.
“I know, father.”
“What are you doing home now, anyway? Shouldn’t you be taking your walk to the pond, or somewhere out in town?”
I sighed, “I was…”
He read my face and frowned, “Come sit down and tell me what happened.”
I told him about my stroll with Kendell and how we went to the restaurant, and how Larissa so rudely interrupted our chat, which caused me to explain this morning’s incident at church. I always hated explaining things.
My father sighed with me, “That girl is rotten to the core. And so is that boy Kendell!”
“Father…”
He sighed again, “Yes, yes, Mr. Inkcrest is your friend, I know. And what is this about Father Patterson? Has he gone mad?”
“Apparently so,” I huffed. I meant no disrespect, but the intolerance these people had for me was simply absurd.
“It’s alright, petal. As long as I’m alive, you’ll never be in any true danger, you know this. I could never allow you to be hurt.”
I couldn’t help but to smile, “Thank you, Father. Now if you don’t mind, I wish to change out of this dress.”
“And back to the pants and shirts she goes, “my father chuckled, “Alright.”
I smiled and wandered back out into the hallway. One of our maids, Katherine, smiled at me as she walked towards me,
“Hello, Miss Drevensek.”
“Katherine, how many times must I remind you to call me Annabelle?”
She looked down in embarrassment, “I-I’m sorry, it just seems so… informal…”
“Don’t worry about it. I do hate formality anyway, as you know,” I winked and she laughed heartily.
“How could I ever forget? Is there anything I can get for you today?”
“Oh no, I’m fine. Thank you anyway.”
She nodded and I continued down the hall to my room. My room was my everything. The walls were painted a deep brooding purple, the curtains and silk bedspread a slightly lighter color. A dark purple canopy hung above the bed. A grand piano covered with blank sheet music and a violin sat in one corner of the room, my art supplies and writing desk in the other. The vanity sat in the last corner, along with my closet. This was where I created everything, from music to stories to art. Some days I wouldn’t even leave my room. The maids would just bring my meals up.
I admired my piano for a few minutes before I walked to my closet. I managed to undo my dress and corset by myself, although it took a bit longer than I anticipated. Tossing the white pile of fabric to the ground, I sat in just my underclothing as I ran through the clothes in my closet. I found another more practical white corset that covered everything well and a simple white blouse with black pants. Out of stubbornness, I had learned how to put on a corset myself. It was much harder than I thought. When it was on, I heard the door creak open and I turned around, expecting a maid.
“Oh, I’m sorry Annabelle!” Kendell had walked in and stood blushing as he eyed me.
“Damn it, Kendell…” I sighed and crooked a finger, motioning him to come in and close the door. I didn’t care if he saw me without proper clothing on.
“No, no, I shouldn’t see you like this-“
“Just get in here.” No, I didn’t care if he saw me like this. Did that make me a harlot?
He timidly scurried in and closed the door, shying his eyes away from me. I couldn’t help but chuckle at his embarrassment. I turned to face him as I pulled on my pants and work boots, then put on my blouse, leaving it slightly unbuttoned. No reason to wear dresses if I was going to be home for the rest of the day.
“I thought you would enjoy seeing a woman in her underclothing,” I smirked.
“Ah-I-well, you know-“
My laughter cut him off. “I’m astonished at your reaction.”
Kendell blushed deeper, “Well, I can’t help it! Anyone else and I wouldn’t have cared!”
This caught my interest. I looked at him with amusement, “Oh? What do you mean by that?” Soft chuckles continued to escape my lips.
I swear, I could almost hear the pounding of his heart from across the room. He stuttered, “It’s j-just so forbidden, s-seeing you that way…” Kendell eyed me again with lust.
Forbidden because I was a friend and a lord’s daughter. These were his reasons, I could read it off his face. I sighed, “Ugh, forbidden. You know how I hate being treated like I’m any higher than others. And please, do tell me what you decided to stop by for.”
He sighed as well, “I’m sorry for leaving at the restaurant.”
“Oh, don’t be. That harlot Larissa was so rudely speaking of things that were not her business. I should be apologizing for that.”
Kendell smiled, “Thank you for understanding.”
“Of course.”
He sat on my bed and reclined, his hands behind his head, “Care to make up for the lost time?” That devilish smirk crossed his face and I couldn’t help but smirk back.
“Mr. Inkcrest, what are you implying we do?” I jumped up on the bed next to him.
Kendell rolled on top of me, pinning me down with his hands on my shoulders. The smirk never left his face as a mischievous gleam crossed his eyes. He bent his head to my ear and whispered, “Well, I was thinking we could fool around a bit…”
I rolled him over and leaned over him, grinning, “Absolutely not! I wish to keep my innocence for as long as possible and you aren’t taking it. Unless you want to marry me, of course. Then it would be all yours…”
The look on Kendell’s face suggested he was actually considering it before he pouted, “What an offer. But you and I both hate the idea of marriage, sweet Annabelle.” He feigned a serious nature, one of his strong hands curling into my hair that brushed his chest as I leaned over him. I smiled and let my gaze flicker down to his beautiful red lips, then back to his blue eyes. They looked a deeper blue in the dim light of my room, sparkling like a lake. Kendell was my best friend, my only friend, and my piece of living artwork. I cherished him.
The door creaked open again and I heard a gasp. I laughed as I turned to see Katherine staring at us in shock. The young maid, no older than twenty five, blushed a deep red and looked down at her shoes, “I’m so sorry, Miss Dre- I mean, Annabelle! I didn’t know you were busy…”
Now it was Kendell’s turn to laugh, “Katherine, we weren’t doing anything we shouldn’t have. We’re just friends.”
A small dagger of pain ran through me as he said that, but I shrugged it off. He was right, we were friends, only friends. And that alone was wonderful. Katherine chuckled and spoke,
“Well, you certainly could have fooled me. If I had ever seen love, this would be it. Anyway, I had come to take your clothes down to be washed…” She walked over and collected the heap of clothe that was my dress.
“If I had ever seen love, this would be it.”
Was it really? I smiled and looked down at Kendell, who must have had the same thoughts. He met my eye and his cheeks rouged again. It was confusing, because I didn’t know what I exactly felt towards him. But I could tell by his reactions that he felt something for me.
“Well, I’ll be going… Don’t do anything sinful, you two.” Katherine smirked at us and disappeared back out the door into the hallway.
I got off the bed and straightened out my blouse. Kendell sat up and stared at me with curiosity, “What are you doing?”
“Let’s dance.”
His face blanked at my words. “Dance? With no music?”
“Dream it, Kendell. Move with me.”
A smile broke out on his flawless face and he got up off the bed, clasping his hands around my waist. He began to follow my random movements as blissful piano music ran through my mind. We twirled and twisted for the longest time, our laughter the true music in the air. The dancing slowed, and Kendell pulled me up against him. His arm curled around my waist and he stared into my eyes, then whispered softly,
“Why can’t all the young women in this town be like you?”
I was flattered, “Because then you would never take a second glance at me. There’d be so many copies, they’d all be the same to you.”
Kendell smiled, “No, I’d take a second glance. And a third, and a fourth, and a fifth…” I giggled as he rested his head on top of mine, “I’d want the original, not the copies… Only you, Annabelle Delilah Drevensek.”
My heart fluttered in my chest. His beautiful blue eyes slipped shut and his head dipped in towards mine. I let my eyes close and reached up as well.
Before our lips could meet, the door flew open and my father stood in the doorway smirking. Kendell and I jumped and I stared in disbelief. He interrupted us on purpose!
“Dear Annabelle, dinner is ready. You can join us if you’d like, Mr. Inkcrest.”
My head turned back to Kendell and I bit my lip. He looked at me and smiled uneasily, “Thank you, Lord Drevensek, of course I will.”
“Please, call me James.” My father turned on his heel and continued back down the hallway, walking confidently. He was always so casual. Because of this, I would hear other lords referring to my father as a fool, or a respect-less clown. A shut-in, even, because he rarely left the manor for whatever reason. They irritated me to no end.
The awkward silence was left between us. I sighed and was about to step away, but Kendell kept me close. He dropped his head into my shoulder and ran his hand through my hair. I bit back a shiver as his voice, low and husky, murmured,
“You drive me mad, woman…”
My face was in flames, truly. Why was he being this way now? My heart wasn’t fluttering anymore, it was hammering. A pounding beast in my chest. I leaned up and kissed him softly on the cheek, then turned and beckoned him to follow me down the hall.
------Chapter 3-------
He wandered close behind me as I pounded down the stairs to the dining room. The maids were finishing setting the table, silverware for three on the table instead of two. My father always sat at the head of the table. Two more places were set on the right of his, so I took a seat next to the head of the table. Kendell sat down next to me looking slightly nervous. My father strolled in casually and smiled at both of us as he sat down. He shot an especially pointed smile at Kendell. I cringed thinking about what my father had planned this for. The dinner was carried in by Katherine and two other maids, an old maid that was like my grandmother named Nichole, and a middle aged maid named Alyssa. Katherine was the only one with black hair and hazel eyes. Nichole had steely gray eyes and gray hair, and Alyssa had light blue eyes and blonde hair. They set down soup, roast turkey, baked asparagus and carrots, fruit, jam, bread rolls and butter and a pitcher of water. It was a usual dinner for us because of our wealth, but Kendell stared wide eyed. My father had never let him over any later than mid afternoon so he never saw dinner at the manor. Mr. Calsworth wasn’t very financially stable and I heard Kendell complain more than enough times about the lack of food. I gave him our food every now and again when they were in a worse situation than usual. I felt so embarrassed as he gaped at the food. I do hate showing off our money like this.
The dinner was served and I ate silently. Kendell ate silently as well. My father, however, started a most awkward conversation.
“So, Mr. Inkcrest… If you don’t mind me asking, what are your intentions with my daughter?” The grin on my father’s face was fake, no doubt.
“Uh-I-um…” Kendell sputtered, his face flushing.
“Surely you would never think of hurting my petal, would you?”
“Absolutely not!” I was relieved that Kendell finally found his voice. “I would protect her with my life, Lord Dre- James.” The fierce gleam in his eyes was quite convincing.
“I see… So do you love her?”
“Good God, Father! Leave the poor man alone!” I slammed my hands down on the table in frustration. “He’s my friend, my only friend in this town. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t hound him like this.” My appetite left, so I just pushed the turkey around my plate.
“Fine,” my father sighed, “but only because he’s your friend.”
I knew that my father was just looking out for me and I loved him for that. But I didn’t want to risk anything with Kendell, especially with the way he’s been acting towards me today. It was confusing. I decided to at least finish the food on my plate. I was about to pick up the dinner role when another hand snatched it away. Kendell grinned childishly at me and took a bite out of it. A pout consumed my face and when he turned away to laugh, I swiped a carrot off of his plate. When he gave me a mock glare, it took all of my power not to laugh. He poked me in the side, causing me to jolt. I swatted his arm,
“Bastard.”
“You love me,” the famous smirk reappeared on his face.
“No. No I do not,” in an effort to hide my smile, I crossed my arms and turned away.
Kendell poked my side again, this time sending me completely off my chair and onto the floor. I burst out laughing with him and got up, taking a hold of his hair tie and ripping it out. His silky raven black hair swept around his shoulders like a cape. He looked like a wild beast.
“How dare you!” I was laughing too hard at his shocked expression to notice that he got up. Kendell grabbed me and poked both sides of my waist, sending me to the floor again.
“Would you two please stop fooling around…” I forgot my father was even there. He sounded irritated with us. Oops.
Quickly, Kendell and I sat back down and ate the rest of our dinner silently. He tied his hair back up and coughed, looking at the grandfather clock in the front of the dining room.
“Thank you for the meal, James, but I must be getting back to the iron shop.”
“You’re very welcome. Tell Mr. Calsworth I said hello.”
“I will. Goodbye.” he got up and Katherine showed him to the door.
When he left, my father sighed, “Annabelle…”
“Yes?” I squeaked.
“That boy is so in love with you, that I might as well start planning your marriage now.” He got up and hugged me, “My daughter is a young woman. I still remember when you were just a toddler in your little pink dress-“
“Father, please. He doesn’t love me like that.” I couldn’t help but chuckle at him.
“That’s what you think, petal. Now wash up, it’s time for bed.”
I smiled and kissed him on the cheek, then ran back up the stairs to the bathroom. I washed my face and rinsed out my mouth, then ran off to my room to change into my purple nightgown. Thoughts of Kendell ran through my mind. Did he love me? No, not possible. Still, the thought made me hyper. Instead of sitting at my vanity and brushing my hair, I was dancing around my room with the brush. When I was done I tossed it on my nightstand and jumped into bed, pulling the covers up to my chin. I didn’t think I’d ever get Kendell out of my mind. We met when I was five and he was seven. He had called me so many names and teased me about my hair endlessly. Of course I cried. Most boys didn’t say anything to me because I was the daughter of a lord. My mother was still alive then. She said he was calling me all those names because he liked me. I still cried because I thought boys were disgusting. Little Kendell was so adorable, with his hair slightly past his shoulders and dirt always covering his clothes. A flashback appeared in my mind.
I looked around the town with excitement. Mother almost never let me out of the house, she said I was too young. I had snuck out this time and taken a big lollipop from the candy bin. I felt so sneaky. I wandered for an hour, looking at the bakery and the tailor’s shop. When I got near the iron shop, I got scared. This was where that mean boy lived. I should just turn around and go home, Mother was probably very angry. For some reason, that made me want to go farther into town. So I did. I licked my lollipop a few more times before I got to the beginning of the big iron shop. It towered over me like a monster. My pink dress and long white hair swished around me as I walked further, the pink bow in my hair bouncing with my steps. My bravery started to disappear when I felt eyes on me, like a bug on my skin. Scared, I turned my head to the iron shops’ door.
He was staring at me.
I stopped walking and stared back. My heart was pounding and I whimpered. Another boy called him and followed his gaze. Now they were both staring at me. The mean boy whispered something to the other boy and they both grinned. I was ready to run when they started walking towards me with dark smiles.
“Well, well, well. What do we have here, Kendell?” The other boy smirked.
“Lord Drevensek’s daughter, Calvin. And she’s got something nice.” His eyes fell on my lollipop, staring greedily.
I clutched the lollipop in my small hands and shouted, “Leave me alone! You’re mean.”
The mean boy, Kendell, pushed me to the ground. I heard my dress rip and my arm stung. The pain was small but enough to make me cry. The other boy Calvin laughed evilly and swiped my lollipop away. No one was there to see them or help me. I cried harder. They called me names and then turned to walk back to the iron shop. By now I was only sniffling, but my arm still hurt. Calvin had walked back inside, but Kendell turned around and stared at me. I heard that name Kendell before… He was the boy who lost his parents and was taken in by Mr. Calsworth.
“Calvin, I’ll be inside soon.”
He turned around and ran back to me, kneeling next to me. I scooted away and screamed, “Go away, you stupid boy!”
Kendell frowned, “I’m sorry.”
“No you’re not! You’ll do it again the next time you see me!” I cried again, fresh tears pouring down my face.
It surprised me when he reached out his hand and wiped my tears away. He cradled me against his dirty clothes even though I was trying to push him away. “No I won’t… Promise.”
I looked up at him and blushed. He was actually being nice for once. “Okay…”
“Why don’t you go play with your other friends?” His big eyes stared into mine.
I got sad again, “I don’t have any friends. They all think I’m weird because of my hair.”
“I think it’s pretty…” Kendell whispered. I stared at him and he went wide eyed. “I didn’t say anything! I swear!”
I giggled, “Sure.”
We sat in silence until he stuttered, “I-I’ll be your friend…”
“You will?” I gasped, smiling.
“Y-yeah…”
“Thank you!” I hugged him tight. When I let go, I giggled at his blush. He took my arm and looked at the scrape, sighing.
“Sorry about this. At least it’s not bleeding.”
I got up and brushed myself off. Kendell gasped again and I stared at him in confusion. He pointed to my dress, where there was a rip. I sighed, “Oh well.”
He looked down and frowned. I didn’t want to see my new friend sad, so I walked over and kissed him on the cheek. Kendell gasped again and blushed a deep red.
“What time can we play together, Kendell?” I smiled.
“Uh-um, tomorrow after my chores are done, I guess…”
“Okay.” We said our goodbyes and I walked back down the road towards home. I could feel his eyes on me, and faintly hear his laugh before a carriage appeared in front of me. My mother jumped out when it stopped, looking very angry…
“Annabelle Delilah Drevensek! What on Earth has gotten into you? Running off by yourself- and look, your dress is ripped!”
My usually calm mother was seething with rage. I bowed my head, scared, and whispered, “I made a new friend…”
Her face went back to normal really fast and she smiled, “Oh, that’s wonderful. Come on, let’s get home for lunch.”
And that was the day I officially met Kendell. Calvin was Mr. Calsworth’s real son, and he was just like every other man in town. Short haired. Proper. Boring. Calvin had just turned twenty a few months ago. He had tried complimenting me several times these days, but Kendell often shooed him away. He said Calvin was just looking for someone to marry for money. I had appreciated him looking out for me.
My eyelids grew heavy and slipped shut, sending me into a dizzying darkness. The dream I had was anything but normal. The man I had drawn so many times in my pictures always appeared in my dreams, but he was in the distance watching me. I always saw him standing behind something so that he was half concealed. His eyes would flicker from that reddish brown to a ghastly moon colored glow, like a ghost, when he watched me. My dream tonight of course involved Kendell, but something was wrong. My dreams were always happy despite the bone chilling stare the man gave me. Tonight the dream was horrifying.
I was at a masked ball dancing with Kendell. Everyone around us was hazy, like they didn’t exist. Just Kendell and I, spinning through the ballroom to the violins. I was lost in the dancing, in his eyes behind his black mask. I was wearing a deep blue dress and gloves, him a black suit. Everyone else was hazy, but slowly started to disappear completely.
“Annabelle…”
Kendell whispered my name with a smile. I smiled back and leaned against his chest. It was so comfortable with him. I gazed around the room for the man and saw him halfway behind one of the window curtains. Of course. His eyes scared me so much. They weren’t even eyes, just a silver glow. I turned away and tried to forget him. Dancing with Kendell was where I wanted my focus to be.
Then the lights in the room died out. I gazed around the room in confusion. The music died and everyone else that had been in the room was gone. Something else changed. Fear settled in me when I couldn’t find the man behind the curtain.
“Annabelle!”
Kendell’s voice was coming to my right. It sounded like he was in pain. I snapped my head to his voice to see him lying on the floor covered in blood. I tried to scream his name, but I couldn’t find my voice.
“Oh Annabelle… Forget about him, Princess.”
I realized I was still dancing with someone. When my head shot up to the deep, dark voice, my heart leapt in my throat.
The man that had been watching me for so long was dancing with me, his lips dripping with dark red blood.
Kendell’s blood.
It was horrifying to watch the man’s back sprout two enormous black bat wings and spread them above him. I looked back over to Kendell to see that he was turning to ash. It puzzled me that he was surrounded by feathers until I saw the faint skeleton of molting wings that came from his back. Then he disintegrated completely and the remains were blown away.
“Come dear, give yourself to me. Give me your pure white wings.” The man leaned down to whisper in my ear, “I want to taint you…”
Something soft brushed my arm, and I realized there were feathers coming from my back as well. I had wings.
The man’s face remained normal for a few more seconds despite dripping blood, then his mouth stretched open. He looked like a demon with soulless white orbs for eyes and gaping jaws full of sharp bloody teeth.
I woke up with a jolt, sitting upright. An involuntary scream escaped my lips.
The man was hanging upside down from my canopy, smiling ruefully through bloody lips and sharp teeth. Those soulless eyes bore into mine before he disappeared into red smoke.
Katherine rushed into my room, “What’s wrong, Annabelle? Did someone hurt you?”
I covered my face in my hands, “No, no, it was just a bad dream. I’m sorry for waking you up, just go back to bed.”
She rushed over and I felt her hands dragging mine away from her face. Katherine studied my face and glanced down at my bed, gasping, “Annabelle, what is on your bed?”
What was she talking about? Hesitantly, I glanced down at my bed to see feathers and bloodstains all over it. Katherine ripped the covers off to see if I was injured. When she couldn’t find any wounds, she was shaking.
I became dizzy and fell on the floor, my eyelids slipping shut again. Katherine was crying for help and trying to pick me up. My consciousness completely faded away, leading me into nothing but bleak darkness.
I had yet another dream, but this didn’t feel like a dream at all. It was too real. In my dream, my vision was altered as if I was looking through a glass bottle. For some reason I had complete control over my movements. It was as if I had actually stepped outside my body and was trapped in a bottle. I watched my father come into my room and pick up my unconscious body and rush to the door. He called out to Katherine, who came running up beside him. They both ran from the house and into a carriage, which drove quickly down the hill. I watched them go, floating close behind the carriage. It must have been the middle of the night because the moon and stars shone brightly overhead. The carriage continued down the hill into town and stopped in front of the clinic. My father started shouting for the physician, Dr. Richards to open the door. He came outside and stared at my body with shock. His wife had the same reaction and my body was quickly pulled inside the house. What caught my eye in the dream was another carriage pulling up across the street. It seemed so dark and beautiful. The door opened and a short man jumped out, dressed in a suit with a top hat and a pair of bifocals. He was chubby and had virtually no hair except for his bushy handle bar mustache. I was about to look away uninterested until someone else shifted in the cabin. The street lamps and the lamps hanging on the carriage gave me enough light to see who it was.
No.
Long black hair.
Long black coat.
I saw his eyes in the light. They were a deep brownish red.
The short man said something to him and he nodded, then looked right up at me. I was just dreaming, so none of this was real, right?
The man’s eyes glinted and he smirked at me evilly before everything went black.
Gender:
Points: 274
Reviews: 20