Each day, chores were there to be done in the household and they were split equally amongst us four sisters. The house consisted of two bedrooms, one for my sisters and me, one for our parents, and the kitchen, which was the central room. When I turned seven, Lydia began to teach me how to cook simple dishes. Once I knew how to make a few stews and soups, Diana took me out to the market. I was taught how to look for food that was of good quality and low price. I excelled in this practice rather quickly. From then on, it became my duty to perform this task.
My family was not fortunate enough to own land to farm on, so we had to buy whatever food was needed. This meant we weren't always able to afford a decent meal but settled for what we could have. We were just thankful that we always had something to eat, regardless of the quality or amount. "Phoenix! Elleen needs you to buy some things for dinner", Lydia shouted from inside the house. "I will be right there!". I was in the tiny backyard removing clothing that had been hung to dry on the clothesline. I ran inside and placed the basket of clothing on the kitchen table. I never liked to waste time, so my preference was to get things done quickly and efficiently.
I grabbed my straw bag and briskly walked to the market in the town center. After walking for ten minutes, I stopped at a blue wooden shop. This was owned by Merle the butcher, one of the few friends of our family. "Good day Sir Merle! How have you been?!"I asked, feeling genuinely happy to see the old man. "I have been as good as this life allows, dear child. It is always pleasant to see you. Now, what would you like?" Merle smiled at me. "I would like a small chicken. What is the cost?". "That will be two coins for you dearest. You know that you shall always receive a lesser price as long as I am here" Merle patted me lightly on the head and went to get the chicken. "Thank you, Sir! It is much appreciated".
I was happy as I was only given ten coins to spend for today and meat normally costs the most. Thanks to Merle, I saved quite a bit. "Here you go child" Merle handed me a linen bag. "Thank you!" I reached into my bag and took out two coins along with a large, brightly colored sunflower and gave it to Merle. " Aw thank you for the flower child. You always do such sweet things, even for this old man, that no one notices anymore", Merle said with a genuine smile. "Do not say that Sir, for you are surely still young at heart. I shall now take my leave", I waved to the smiling old man as I walked out the door. Today Elleen was going to make chicken stew, which was a common dish for peasants. It was tasty but most importantly cheap.
I still needed to get some form of vegetable though, so I decided to try and find some cabbage. It was nutritious and cheaper than the other vegetables. I walked to all the different stalls and examined the cabbages they had, while asking the price to see which was the cheapest. The prices varied from three to ten coins. Many of the cabbages had rotten leaves or were noticeably bruised. I did not give up and finally came across a cabbage that had beautiful light green leaves and little to no damage. Hopefully, it would be a reasonable price too.
"Good day, Madam. How much is the cabbage?" I asked the elderly woman that stood behind the stall.
"Four coins, young lady", she replied with an apparent scowl on her face. It seemed that she was not fond of my appearance. I was wearing a tattered sky-blue dress with visible dirt marks from cleaning the house earlier today. I would have changed before coming, but I still had other chores to do at home and no time to waste.
"I would like to buy it, please. Here is the money". I reached into my bag and took out the money holding it to the elderly woman.
"Well, surely you do not expect me to take that from you while you look that filthy. Do you young miss?" she spat at my face. I dropped the coins and stumbled backward feeling stunned.
"I was doing chores madam, surely I mean no disrespect, but I apologize for my appearance. I wiped the small droplets of spit from my face, feeling rather embarrassed.
"I do not care what you were doing. Even if you were clean, I would not sell to the likes of you half breed. You are an abomination to the village!" the woman bellowed, causing everyone to turn and look in our direction.
I could feel tears welling up in her eyes at that moment. Never did I have to deal with someone so blatantly rude. What kind of person does that to a young girl? No matter how I thought about it, I just could not put reason to this woman's actions. The old woman was simply a bad person, someone that judged others because of their appearance. It was then that I felt a surge of heat coursing through my body. The heat felt like fire was burning through my flesh. I was furious and I wanted to let it all out on this despicable woman. I began to growl as I heard a little voice whispering "Do it! She wronged you. Let her feel your pain and suffering". That voice, it was coercing me to listen to it. Anger in its purest form was lurking within me, but this feeling, it was not just anger. It was something much more menacing. Just as I imagined all the ways I could harm this old woman, I heard someone's voice. It was deep but somehow light and airy.
"Madam, how dare you speak to a young lady in such a manner? and in a crowd too. Have you no respect for other people or the rules of our village?" It was a man who spoke in a calm but threatening tone.
I felt too shocked to look at the stranger that came to my defense. Instead, I hung my head calmly and listened to the old woman's reply.
"Oh, my word! I had not realized that you would be here, Lord Bellamy. I sincerely apologize for my loudness", the woman spoke in a gasp of surprise.
"That is what you choose to apologize for? Can you not see how you have embarrassed this young lady? I suggest you apologize to her immediately before I become more disgusted with your actions", he said.
This man had spoken up for me like no one ever had. The question though, is why would he? The old woman referred to him as Lord, meaning that he had been someone from a noble family. What is he even doing in the market filled with commoners and peasants? I still did not dare to look up, for this man was of high status and I was just a lowly peasant. The noble crowd did not take kindly to stares from peasants.
Suddenly, I felt an ice-cold hand touch my chin, gently pulling my face upwards. I was met with a pair of sparkling eyes that posed dark red irises. His eyes were both breathtaking and frightening. My eyes trailed over this man's tall figure, allowing me to notice skin as pale as the winter snow and silky long black hair. He stood out in a wine-red tailcoat that boasted gold trimmings, a visible white shirt with ruffles at the neck poking out underneath and black breeches that emphasized his long, muscular legs. This man was unlike anyone I had ever seen before. No noble I have come across had ever looked quite as astonishing or carried an aura as powerful as this man. I wanted to look away, but I simply could not break away from his hypnotic gaze. I felt uneasy but somehow safe.
"You need not be ashamed, my dear just hold your head up. She will apologize for what she has said," the Lord gave me a reassuring smile and stood beside me. He then held my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze which led me to look right into the eyes of the woman before me.
"I am so-sorry for what I said young lady, I was being biased. Please forgive my actions," the woman said shakily, as if wanting to bawl her eyes out. It seemed she was very scared of the man before her. She looked as if she had seen a ghost. The other villagers around them began to whisper. However, they kept their heads hung lowly as a sign of respect for the man that stood beside me.
Still feeling angry, I turned away from the woman. Letting go of Lord Bellamy's hand, I began to crouch to the ground to pick up the coins that had fallen. However, the man beat me to it with impossibly quick speed and tossed the coins into my bag. I met his eyes once more, but this time my body began to draw closer to him, as if it was trying to bring me closer to this man. Lord Bellamy held out his hand and helped me up. He let me go as soon as I was standing. His touch left me with a quickened pulse and a feeling of breathlessness.
"Thank you for helping me, my Lord. Please forgive my attire and my appearance," I hung my head low once again, feeling slightly ashamed of how I looked in the presence of this man. I waited for his reply, but he remained silent. The man stood completely still, and I could not help but wonder if I had offended him somehow.
My eyes then caught sight of the stranger's hand that I had held less than a minute ago. It was smudged with dirt from mine. What have I done? Had I really just placed filth on a nobleman?
Instantly, I began to kneel to the ground about to give a deep bow. "I am so sorry for dirtying your hand my Lord, it was not within my intenti-" I got cut off by the man who lifted me into his arms, shocking me to my core. I could not bring myself to meet his gaze.
"Why must you apologize for how you look, my dear? There is nothing wrong with your appearance and as for my hand, I was the one that touched you. I only wish to talk about you, not the dirt. In fact, I think you are an absolutely radiant young lady. Now would you do me the honor of looking at me? I would like to see your face once more."
Slowly, I craned my neck upwards to look at the man. He was wearing a bright smile of amusement. "At last," I heard him whisper to himself. What does he mean?