Forget-Me-Not

When has God ever clapped for a murderer?

"Put a smile on your face, you wouldn't want people to think you don't want to be here, do you?"

You have to almost physically stop yourself from rolling your eyes. So you instead bite your tongue, quite literally as you mumble, "Of course not, Maman."

"Then like I said, put a smile on your face, Y/n. I expect to see those pretty teeth all night long. Or did you forget what we spoke about before we left?"

This time she side-eyes you, and with practiced grace, she smiles at the duke of...who knows where as he walks by.

"Of course not, Maman."

You bite your tongue once more tonight.

"Well then-"

"Darling, I have to hear your opinion on this!"

Your savior from your mother's badgering takes the form of a thin pale woman in a pink dress, Claire of the who knows household to be exact. She was an older woman who married an even older man, and right now she had your mother's utter attention.

"Do you believe that the La Resistance is a real group? Because Charles says he firmly believes in them."

Claire smiles at your mother, her teeth shining through as she laughs, you play with your fork as you listen.

"Of course not Claire, those are nothing but rumors spread by children. Even if they are real, they're nothing but fools who deserve to have their heads chopped off. Letting the Germans do what they want is a smart financial move for France as a whole."

The table erupts into laughter and applauds for your mother's standing ovation on why the rich of France should support a country that was taking part in the mass slaughtering of multiple groups of people.

You squinted your eyes at your mother, and you wondered if this was how she truly felt. Or was this just because she wanted to keep her rich ties?

You didn't know, and as time went on, both reasons soon started to blend into one another.

"Excuse me Maman, I have to use the bathroom, I'll be right back."

You stand, getting a nonchalant wave from your mother as she mutters, "Don't take long."

You nod, and you make your way toward the bathroom. You walked through the mingling people who had different colors of wine in their hands as they talked.

You hated these kinds of parties, your mother normally held something at your residence, but lately, the two of you had only been attending other's celebrations. The only reason you even attended these kinds of parties was because of your mother's repetitive guilt-tripping. Every time you would protest, she would say the same, 'Do you want your family to prosper Y/n?' and you would go.

You rolled your eyes for the first time tonight, the fear of someone seeing such an unladylike act leaving your body as you made your way inside the bathroom, you took care of your business and then some as you weren't in a rush to get back to that damn chair with the other aristocrats of France.

You looked at yourself in the mirror, noticing the deep frown on your face.

You did as your mother did to you for years, taking both of your pointer fingers and dragging the points of both of your cheeks upwards into your best smile.

Show everyone that you want to be here darling

Your mother's words ring through your head as you return to the table. From an outward view, you watch as the aristocrats laugh and eat amongst one another. There was enough food and wine on the long table to make all of southern France drunk.