Night had fallen before the noble awoke with hazy memory of getting her teeth cleaned and put to bed. Tiffaney didn't know what to do, this was a nicer softer bed than any of the ones in her last household. No one woke her and she had no time piece available for her to determine if she should be assisting the other students.
'They must hate me.' The noble thought having abandoned her classmates yet failed to disappear. This was of course before her stomach protested at not having a meal in almost a day. As if to call the maids, Green haired Emerald showed up without pause.
"If it pleases you, next time you can just ask me to bring dinner or snacks." Emerald was a young teen, the youngest in the trio. While the noble had a dozen questions a tray was quickly placed on her lap.
"If were right, you haven't eaten in almost a full day, so we made sure to have hot soup ready." There wasn't much for the stoplight trio to do even when the lady was present. Maid Emerald had gotten lucky being the closest in age and was thus chosen to serve the young lady. She had already prepared clothes, food and a wrench set fit for small hands. The later was not something she was sure if the child needed but the most prevalent request from Lady Dyne had always been tools.
"Could we pretend that never happened." Blushing furiously the noble had covered her head with the covers. Smiling at the lump the maid indulged her new charge.
"I don't understand what the lady is referring to, I just came to serve a meal." Watching the noble peak her head out from the covers almost killed the maid with her soft cuteness.
"Promise?" A small voice squeaked out.
"Sweetheart, you may not have been here long enough to know, but the whole castle is a refuge and were all refugees here. None of us want to go out of our way to hurt others." Reassuring the small child, it was hard to remember that she had only been here three days.
"Lady Dyne wants to meet with you after you've eaten and cleaned up. She mentioned this time that she wants to explain about things rather than just demand." After seeing the trepidation on the smaller girl Emerald added.
"The miss does not have any friends and is used to just telling people what to do. She also is kind of…kind of…She is unique and doesn't always get common sense."
Tiffaney filled that in the category of things that she didn't know how to deal with. Her natural state was to do what she was told, however she wanted to leave so she wouldn't disappear into another dark pit.
Family equals bad. Young noble didn't want family, she just wanted safety and to be left alone. These things didn't seem to run parallel with joining the Dyne family, known to be evil and villainous. It was true that she would have died yesterday had the lady not stepped in.
She wouldn't have been in harm's way had the lady not built her home into a nightmare causing deathtrap.
"Eat first, then I can help you dress." Hunger won out in the end, and the noble picked up the small spoon. Soft savory, with a slightly sticky mouthfeel, her inherent starvation drove her to eat everything that wasn't an onion in the soup.
"I think this will be good for you." Unlike the fancy ballgown she wore yesterday, this one was a lighter pale blue dress. With comfortable shoes and a thin scarf.
"I know we don't have jewelry that fits a noble like you right now, but Lady Dyne never liked most accessories, so I hope it's not an issue."
"Giving me clothes is already luxurious enough, how could I demand more than that?" Smiling at the humility the maids hadn't yet been filled in on the details regarding her previous noble care. There were few people aware of the full story but most of the rumors confirmed that she had been in a bad situation.
"Thank you for your help, maid Emarald." Smiling softly in her new clothes the maid once again realized how dangerous this little cutie was.
"Call me big sister Em." The words left her mouth before the maid realized the implications.
"Very well, big sister Em." There was a moment as the maid completely overloaded.
"Big Sis, why did you fall over? Oh, your nose is bleeding! I'll find someone to help!" Running to the door, the noble almost bumped into the yellow light of the trio.
"Miss Cintron! Maid Emarald fell over, and she is bleeding!" Glancing at her fallen sister, the middle child found her to be fine in short order. Emerald swooning wasn't new, but the blond didn't know what to make of her newest target acquisition.
"Maid Ruby, if you could escort the young lady, Sister Emerald fainted and will need to rest. Miss Tiffaney do not worry I will take care of my sister." Her smile was more wooden than her sisters, but she seemed nice just the same.
"Are you sure she will be all right?" Tiffaney asked full of concern.
"Positive. Now go on. It's not polite to keep the lady Dyne waiting." Gently guiding the girl out, the door, the stop of the trio was waiting to guide her forward. Smiling with a toothy grin the eldest of the three lead the small girl a few doors down to the office of the lord.
Unlike before the lady sat in an almost otherworldly chair. The armrest was wide with buttons and switches, it was large and if one looked closely, it hovered slightly above the floor. It had fine velvet upholstery on the outside with a soft leather seat for comfort. Lady Dyne had changed her blouse into a dark red, with bandages peaking around the arm that was cleaved.
"Still didn't perish, but you did fail to escape." Stepping out of her chair she waved the girl in, tea and snacks were already placed on the short table. Failing to heed the warning of last night the noble sat down oblivious to her fate.
"I realize that you are not thrilled with this idea. However, I don't believe attempting to escape will get you to where you want to go. There's many places in this castle that one cannot return from…ever." Looking directly at the noble she threw her side of the deal.
"I ask that you step into the role as heir as a personal favor to me. In return, all this castle here is yours by right. If you don't want it in return for your current service reparations commensurate with the task given to you will be provide. The truth of your heritage is something only I possess, if you don't agree than it's something that will forever be unknown to you."
Tiffaney hung on the ladies' molasses words, the idea that there was a reason was one of the few things that kept her moving forward. There was more to her than she knew and at this moment she did want to know.
"There isn't any advantage to running and as I said before I am not giving you a choice in this matter. Even if you haven't realized it yet, this is your home now, and it's the place where you truly belong. If your worried about the fact that this castle has some unique living features, they are not as bad as they appear. Though I did warn you the other day, forty-two seconds is the maximum time one can sit and you did just hit that number."
Unable to connect the dots the noble wasted precious's seconds. Something brushed against her calf, a light tap fell on her shoulder. Snapping to look the noble saw a large, mottled shape barrel directly into her lap. Tensing the noble waved her arms and struck something…fluffy?