Kindness Among Greed

TW: Domestic Violence

THE DAYLIGHT WAS going down quicker than I had hoped, and I could tell the city was already getting restless to resume the festivities, which meant that Sera was going to go back to the palace tonight.

I needed some way to keep Sera here tonight and tomorrow, and I finally had an idea that just might work.

I returned to the dancer house with my supplies in hand, distributing them to the women who had requested the items in a rush. According to Auna, Seralind was out in the city, so I had to get my tasks done as quickly as possible to execute my plan.

I crept into the vanity room where all the women would get ready throughout the day. It was mostly littered with feathered accessories, sewing supplies, and cheap fabric just in case any clothes needed repair. Various mirrors collected from over the years were lined up about the room. It was stuffy, as dresses in repair and old dresses no one wore anymore hung on old mannequins or folded on the ground in piles.

I’d always thought it was much creepier when it wasn’t filled with women.

There was a small wardrobe where clothes were stored away, and upon opening it, I saw Seralind’s costume.

It was nothing I had ever seen before, and it practically glowed like treasure in my eyes. If I were the old me, I would have pulled it out to study it in its glory. Maybe even run my hands along the fabric and imagine myself as Seralind’s age, dancing among courtiers to music sung by angels.

But this wasn’t what I was looking for, and I didn’t have the luxury to daydream anymore.

I look down and see the satin slippers that Miss Berraultier had been talking about perched right underneath the skirts.

There it is! I think happily to myself, scooping them up in my hands.

The material was so delicately soft; they practically bent in my fingers. I hated myself for what I was about to do with such a meticulous piece of art like this, but it had to be done.

Clutching the slippers, I had to open a few drawers in the vanities to find a small pair of scissors that fit my hands well enough to use.

I displayed the slippers on the floor to take in their form before destroying them completely.

I thought that the shoes would be better than her costume, because it is a small enough expense to wear that we could still work to pay back for the damage. I just had to make enough snips so that Seralind couldn’t wear them.

I’m sorry, Seralind! I apologize in my mind. This is for your own good!

I clumsily snip away at the fabric of the slippers, watching the embroidery come undone in my hands. I made sure they were shredded enough before tossing them back into the closet, so Seralind could see exactly what had become of them.

***

After exiting the room, the first thing I hear is Madame Whispet’s shrill voice.

“Where had you been all night, then? Eating pastries with the emperor?!” She hisses at a woman. It seems one of the ladies must have come up short, or at least not had Madame's approval. Hushed whispers were echoing throughout the house, as many understood that there is nothing more treasured to the Madame than money.

I clutch the apron of my skirt tightly, remembering how the echoes of pain could often be heard in these halls because of the Madame’s cruelty. Even some of the other ladies still had fresh bruises, which they rubbed passively as they listened in on the altercation.

“I-I’m sorry, Madame-” The woman begged, but a crisp sound of Madame Whispet’s hand across her cheek made her cry out before she collapsed to the ground.

I recognized her to be part of the troupe sent off to the palace, a fellow costumed dancer with Seralind named Grace. Perhaps not everyone was as fruitful as Seralind had been last night.

“Am I to believe you came up short-handed on the most busy night of the year? Where’s the rest of my money, you little-!”

Before the Madame could lay another hand on Grace, someone had swiftly stepped between the two, her arms outstretched in a halting gesture.

“Madame, please!” Seralind said, her eyes wide with fright. Seralind crouched next to Grace, who had been sobbing quietly to herself.

“How dare you? You think raking in some extra coin gives you the ability to defy me?!” She howled at Seralind angrily, her eyes blazing with fury. My hands were shaking as I watched the scene unfold.

“How is she to make you more money with a bruised face, Madame?” Seralind asked steadily.

She only cackled ruefully at Seralind, twisting a ringlet of her hair around her long finger.

“You think you’re the prettiest cupcake in the bakery because a drunk rich man thought you were worth more than you are? Don’t forget you’re the least profitable woman that I have. Just because you’d finally learn to be somewhat engaging doesn’t mean you’ll be just as lucky tonight. You’re still a good-for-nothing woman who can’t even keep a consistent customer with the body that has been so sadly wasted on you.”

I clench my tiny fists in anger at Madame Whispet’s words. Being in such a small body made my emotions feel ten times bigger, as I wanted to do nothing more than just kick Madame Whispet right in her leg for speaking to Seralind like that.

She’s much better than you, even if she was a frog! I wanted to shout.

Seralind is quiet only for a moment, an expression of distress over her face before speaking up again.

“Why don’t I use my earnings from last night to cover her expenses? The brooch I brought to you- I’m sure it’s very expensive. It is more than enough, isn’t it?”

Both Grace and I look at Seralind in shock. I recalled the ruby brooch that Seralind had brought home with her the first night. It certainly looked expensive, and the Madame had accepted it as adequate payment.

But Madame Whispet seemed to ponder over the idea, a scheme cooking within her mind.

“Alright, then,” She says, a smirk playing on her face. “But that would cut back from your own earnings, wouldn’t it?”

“W-What?”

“If you wish to forfeit some of your own earnings to cover hers, that would make you short. You’d end up more indebted to me. So I trust that you plan on making up for it, don’t you?”

Seralind seemed heartbroken by the proposition, but I saw how she looked at Grace, clutching her cheek in pain with glassy eyes.

“But she got more than enough last night!” I defended her, finally speaking up. I’ve had enough of Madame Whispet’s unfair treatment of my sister.

The Madame whips around to glare at me, and I thought she was going to storm over and pull at my hair, but she only rolls her eyes and scoffs.

“This isn’t a charity; it’s a business,” Madame Whispet informs me with venom in her voice.

I open my mouth to say something else to her, but Seralind interrupts me.

“Yes, Madame. Of course.” Seralind obliges, bowing her head.

Madame Whispet won, and she hummed to herself in satisfaction.

“Then I expect your quota to be made tonight, along with the amount you still have left to me.” The Madame says wickedly, happy to exploit Seralind at the palace so she can line her own pockets.

“I suggest you go tighten your corset, Seralind.” Madame Whispet cackles before sauntering away from us all. When she was gone, I hurried over to Seralind and Grace’s side.

“You didn’t have to do that; it was my own fault.” The woman says, wiping her face. Seralind only looks down at her with a kind smile, as though it didn’t faze her at all.

“I know you haven’t been feeling well,” Seralind explains. “I have some extra herbs for tea in my room that you can use for the pain. Just get some rest, alright?”

Grace almost choked back a sob before clutching Seralind’s shoulders in a hug.

“I’ll make it for you!” I speak up. Grace sniffles before giving me a weak smile.

“T-Thank you, Esmeline.”

Marionne came over to us to help Grace to her feet, taking her away from the commotion. Seralind watched them leave, and I couldn’t see the expression on her face. I held her hand, which was shaking slightly next to her skirt.

This wasn’t the first time we’d been subjected to Madame Whipset’s wrath. Although she never told me, I knew how deeply she felt when others were in pain.

“This isn’t fair,” I grumble. None of it was. Seralind’s treatment, our situation, or even our future deaths.

Seralind looks down at me before smiling warmly and patting the top of my head without a word. I put on a brave face to show her that she doesn’t have to hide when she’s frightened.

I won’t let our bad luck deter me. I can, and will, be strong enough for us too.