Glass Slippers and Wicked Sisters

New Friends

Mornings in the manor were always an adventure.

They were made even more interesting by the absence of a certain lord and his ‘dog', as Bonnie liked to call Jackson. However whenever Kol would leave for the day, whether for business or for a hunt, he left Katherine and Caroline in charge.

Or at least they thought they were in charge.

The princess's would get knocked down a peg or two by the commander just below Jackson. His name was Marcel and unlike the second-in-command who was stoic and only listened to his master, this young, African-American vampire would be lovely and courteous to all the servants.

The only caveat was they had to obey every order given to them no matter what, otherwise his pleasant demeanor morphed into something terrifying. Any servant who crossed him found themselves down in the dungeons to be dealt with by Jackson or Kol when they returned.

Katherine and Caroline, having nothing to fear, were still wary of him. Caroline told her sister all that transpired between herself and their father the morning the princess attacked Bonnie.

What she didn’t know was Katherine had heard everything from standing behind the door. The eldest princess simply smiled while nodding her head, not to arouse suspicion.

She hadn't received a conversation from her father, though it made her predict Kol was saving it for when he returned. It was no doubt something important just by the tone of his voice when he spoke to Caroline. Katherine prayed it would be forgotten so the lecture she knew was coming wouldn’t happen.

For now, she had to brush her fears aside and have the confidence she was known for. None of the servants ever dared cross her. They knew she inherited her temper from her father, as well as her penchant for cruelty.

Two servants never seemed to learn that lesson, much to Katherine’s chagrin.

That morning, Bonnie and a blonde servant named Lexi were up, scrubbing the floors of the upstairs where they were right outside Kol's bedroom door. Sunlight streamed through the windows, causing the hardwood to sparkle and shine.

Picking up her brush, Bonnie wiped sweat from her brow while gazing out the windows near the front doors. She sometimes reminisced about running in the gardens or even peering out the windows to watch the rain whenever it stormed. Now they only served to remind her she was in a prison.

However, it wasn’t always lonely for her. Bonnie befriended Lexi on a day Kol commanded the former princess learn what all the other servants knew. This was a day she missed her mother terribly, leaving her scared and confused. While being dismissed by the majority of the maids in the household, there was a tall blonde-haired vampire who, with a smile, offered to help and show her the ropes.

Her name was Lexi and from that moment on, they became best friends. Lexi explained to Bonnie she served Katherine primarily, but would often work on the various chores all the other servants were doing. She tried her best to avoid Kol and Jackson. Luckily the lord had his personal servants handpicked himself as did the werewolf, taking a weight off of Lexi's shoulders as well as stress.

It took a while for Bonnie to trust Lexi. She hadn't told anyone about being the former princess for fear of being ostracized. The witch was already tormented by her stepfather and sisters, no need to make it worse. Bonnie wasn’t aware of Lexi's suspicions until one day where Katherine commanded she clean everything in the princess's room, top to bottom. Lexi walked by the door, which was cracked, about the time her ears picked up Bonnie getting screamed at, all because the witch didn’t know how to do something.

Hearing Katherine slap Bonnie across the face was the last straw for Lexi. Not one to take any abuse from the princess's or their father so lightly, she was usually kept away from the other servants in fear her rebellious ideas might spread. Lexi opened the doors, speeding in to cover Bonnie from the blows that were sure to follow.
 
To her surprise, blows never came. Lexi turned around to see Katherine shaking furiously, making her smirk. She really did take after Kol.