The Beginning of the end (WIP)

Chapter 4

Lorena woke to the chirping of birds, the sounds coming from her open bedroom window, her curtain fluttering lightly in the warm summer breeze, the smells of the country floating around her. She was in her own house, in her own bed. She sighed contentedly and pulled her shoulders up to her ears.

The house had not yet woken up, her family at least.

She thought she might as well get up and read or do something productive instead of wasting the day laying in bed, it was such a beautiful one too.

On returning to Andover after a long three months in London Lorena had been trying her skills in working in the kitchen and the garden with Mary and helping around the house, she had helped to put in the garden, and she helped prepare dinner with Mary regularly. When she had told her parents of her plans on becoming more independent her mother didn't like it too much, and strongly encouraged Lorena to maybe take up a hobby, such as writing, or painting. But her father allowed her to do small tasks, he said something about how a lady should never have her hands in the dirt too long.

But after long mornings and afternoons pulling weeds in the kitchen garden her hair had taken a significantly lighter color, and her freckles and tanned hands were now very noticeable much to her mother's disappointment. When she had to said something about helping on the stables, she thought her mother would burst a blood vessel right then and there, so she decided against it.

Her bedroom was quaint and pretty, she thought. Nora would always say things that would look much better in it. Perhaps some gaudy wallpaper, a new bedspread, or an elaborate rug to 'warm up the place a bit', those things seemed nice but unnecessary. Maybe they were Nora's taste but all Lorena dreamed of was a small cottage with enough space for her to garden and a cozy fireplace, a kitchen, and trees in the front.

When Lorena had dressed she came down to the kitchen to see if Mary was already outside, maybe settling for a small breakfast of tea and a scone. Mary was in the kitchen though, smiling and chatting away to Mrs. Leery.

"Good morning!" Said Lorena and both looked up to her smiling.

"Good morning, miss Lore," said Mrs. Leery, "are you here to help miss Mary in the garden again today?" She asked, Mrs. Leery was a well tempered woman, normally smiling, unless it was an unusually warm day and the kitchen struggled to stay cool enough. But the day was so lovely that Lorena wondered if anyone would not be smiling today, the sun was warm but it wasn't stifling, and there was a beautiful breeze blowing, the poplar tree leaves brushing together, and the singing of the birds. It was as if the whole world could just stop and listen for hours on end.

"Yes! If she wants me to help that is." Lorena said, making sure that Mary was fine with her invading on her chores.

"That would be just fine!" Mary smiled at her went back to cutting up the fruit.

Mrs. Leery set a cup of tea and a scone on the back table and told Lorena to come and eat or that she wouldn't be any help to her, Lorena thanked Mrs. Leery and ate quickly. By the time she was finished Mary was ready to go and work outside.

"Do you know anything about the dinner tonight?" Mary asked Lorena when they were well into the morning.

"We're having one?" Lorena asked, lifting the braid she had down the back of her neck to over her shoulder, she was just hearing of it now.

"Yes I think so, your mother said it was going to be one of your father's old friends from when he was just young. Saying that everything had to go perfect." Mary said smiling, things rarely ever went 'perfect' but Mrs. Pills never heard of anything too drastic happening.

"Well I'm sure that means that she doesn't want me working on dinner tonight," Lorena said, finding a small piece of grass and pulling it out at the root, "but I don't think that that will happen." Lorena smiled at Mary, who just giggled.