Chapter 6: Chapter 6

Copper

I now regret nothing.

The light from the chandelier reflected off the black floor. Jasmine white walls surrounded us and made up most of the interior. The windows closest to the door extended to the ceiling. To the left, there was a staircase with a banister made up of a dark type of wood.

Sylvester walked beside me, allowing me to take it all in with a smile. "Aran will bring your bags up and show you your room." Sylvester motioned to the butler who bowed his head. "When you're done changing into something more comfortable, please feel free to join us for dinner." I turned to him.

"Is this all yours or do you like, rent out the place to tenants?" I asked. He waved a finger instead of shaking his head. "Never. No one without Harmony blood has been allowed to stay on the property. Ever. There is a guesthouse not far from here that's still on our land, but not considered a part of the estate."

I nodded.

"Go on. Dinner will be ready soon."

"Okay."

The butler, or Aran, began to lead me up the stairs. I slid my hand along the wooden railing, taking note of the intricate details with each step. When we arrived at the second level, I decided to ask him a question. "Does anyone else live here that I need to know about?"

The imprint of his shoulder blades could be seen through his uniform as he carried my suitcase. I had to look up to see his curly grey hair. For a man his age he didn't slouch one bit. "No one resides here except for the master. And now you, Miss. However, he has family members that do come to visit at times."

Hm. I wondered what their reactions would be. Do they know that I'm being married to Kenny?

"What are they like? The rest of my family?"

"Would you like to know about your aunt and uncle, Miss?" We passed one purple door and continued walking. I took in the brass doorknob.

"Yeah, that's fine. You can go ahead."

"Now, let's see. You, Miss, have an aunt named Rebecca. She's the one who comes over often. In fact, I recon you might see her sometime this week. She is not your biological aunt as she is married to your uncle, Richardson, Mr. Sylvester's oldest son. However, I recommend that you stay away from Rebecca as much as you can."

Stay away from her? "Why?"

"She is known to be jealous of whoever obtains the master's attention. And when that happens...there is nothing I can do."

I raised my eyebrows. That's odd. Doesn't she have a husband to get jealous over?

"Okay. Weird." I placed my hand inside my skirt pocket as we took a turn. "So, are Richardson and Sylvester on bad terms? Why doesn't he come with her when she visits?"

At the end of the hallway there was a window that showed just how dark the outside was. Thanks to the lighten, I could make out the tree right next to it. Aran stopped at a door, a white one this time, and placed a key into the knob.

"They share a complicated relationship, one the master is trying to rectify. And this is your room, miss."

He headed inside first and turned on the lights.

I pushed the door open further. "What about the others?"

"I would recommend discussing it with your grandfather. I will come back and escort you to dinner," Aran stepped out the room. He took a bow. "Call if you need anything, Miss." Then he left.

I walked inside and locked the door beside me as I took a look around. To the right, I could see inside the bathroom. This place was painted in warm autumn colours, a theme that went well with the brown quilt on the bed.

I took off my shoes and touched it. After touching it, I relaxed fully and dived right in.

Warm. So warm and soft! But I couldn't stay here all night without doing anything. I needed to change my clothes before they called me down.

_________

"No friends?" I rolled my eyes. "Who am I supposed to talk to? My girls need me, or else who's gonna keep things chill in school?"

"I didn't say you couldn't have them," Sylvester replied, squeezing the bridge of his nose. "I said they couldn't come here.

"I didn't say you couldn't have them," Sylvester replied, squeezing the bridge of his nose. "I said they couldn't come here. Enemies are around every corner who would be happy to take advantage of the people close to you in order to reach their goal."

A pretty lady in one of the maid outfits placed a plate of fish before me. I complimented her and thanked her for the meal. She blushed slightly before bowing her head, choosing to walk away and stand next to the other servants. I'm happy that my words had a positive effect on her. We girls need to bring each other up more often is what I think.

"So, will I never be able to have a normal life again?" I ask as I swept some hair out of my eyes. It kept falling so I gathered it all into a high ponytail. Sylvester had a expression of his face as if he was disturbed by something. "Not per se, since you're no longer an average person. But before anything else," he placed a napkin on his lap. "We need to work on your mannerisms."

"My manners?" I say with a mouthful of fish. "What's wrong with my manners?"

_________

The instructor tapped on each part of my body that I needed to adjust. That old man walked around me as he observed my stance. "You need to show the Greenlands that you're not someone to mess with," he said. A light tap in the midst of my back made me straighten it. "Contrary to what you may believe about high society, people won't be afraid to ask you personal questions about your life. Or nitpick your every move to amuse themselves."

"There's nothing I can do about that," I stretched my arms into the air, earning me another tap, this time on the elbow. "And it's not like I can cuss them out. Shouldn't I just ignore it?"

"Quite the opposite." He paused in front of me and smiled. "I'll teach you how to respond to people who have nothing better to do with their time."

___________

"Murry Park's mother has died so don't mention anything about her," Sylvester turned to another page. "As for Mrs. Grace, she had new dentures installed recently so be sure to compliment them. And Rogers--"

"Hold on, hold on," I tried to write down everything he listed but it proved difficult. "Urgh, do I really have to write this down?"

He replied without hesitation. "Yes, and commit it to memory."

"Urgh!" I slammed my head into the book, but that didn't seem to phase him.

"Rise your head. We have more to go over." I did as I was told, however my eyes drifted to the windows, mesmorized by the pink sunset.

________

I held the dance instructor's hand and allowed her to lead me across the hall. "Kenny likes someone who isn't afraid to speak his mind, but who also knows how to measure their words."

"He told you that?" She placed one foot before the other then rose one hand to spin me around. I managed to keep twirling three times without screwing it up. "Or did you just guess?"

"It's something I've observed," he shrugged. "In some way you could say I guessed it. However I doubt my observation is incorrect. He is my student after all."

"Right." I rolled my eyes. "So all I have to do is be the girl he wants me to be. Well mannered and all."

"Not just what he wants. You also need to feed him a perspective he never thought he needed to know."

My eyebrows scrunched together. How the hell was I supposed to do that?

"Now, keep focused, my granddaughter," he smiled at me as if he knew I was about to ask. "You don't want to fall."

"Ain't no way I will-" Just then my foot got caught between the instructor's. If he wasn't holding me I would have fallen. I glared at Mr. Harmony, but he only looked away.

"Also," he added. "Kenny hates seafood."

_________

It was Thursday evening and as that old man droned on and on all I could think about was what we were going to have for dinner.

"That's it for it today."

"Thank goodness," I closed my book and stood up, ready to return to my room.

"Wait," he walked around his desk.

My eyes darted around his desk as my mind scrambled looking for reasons why he would stop me. Then it clicked. "Oh, my bad." I smiled and held out my arm. "Thank you for your time, Mr Harmony."

"Very good, but that's not what I meant."

Confused, I stayed and waited until he was ready to speak. Suddenly he sighed.

"Come. Walk with me, child."