The Seahorse and the Spice 🪼🎩✔

4: Sense and Sensitivity

I walked into my house and closed the door. Bastion looked up and frowned at me.
"Why are you home so early?"
I sighed. "I got fired."
"What?! How are we going to pay the taxes for the rent?"
"I don't know, Bastion... I've been thinking about it too but I can't help that I got fired."
"What did you say?" he asked, making a face to me.
I made a face back to the ginger, knowing that look. He was disappointed in me and I was of myself but seeing the same look my sister used to give me squeezed my heart a little.
"I said nothing. The duke has been very sensitive as of late in all things. Anyone who mentions something about what he does or the way he looks makes him go into strange hysterics and he's just firing people left and right. All I did was mention how he had a whole tray of sweets that he was definitely going to eat by himself and he fired me."
"Over a tray of sweets?" Bastion said, lifting an eyebrow.
"Yes. Over a tray of sweets. He's been odd... Oh well, I'll just have to find another place to work."
"And who will take you?!" he yelled at me, taking me aback. "You worked for Duke Barma, the most notoriously rakish man in all of England! No respectable noble will want you because they'll think you've been defile by the duke!"
"Bastion!"
"It's true, Mum." Eadric said, walking in with Xerxes on his hip. "I heard some people in the market talking about him and there is rumor going around that he sleeps with almost every member of his help and that includes you."
"No one will know."
"Then when they call on you for a position who are you going to say you have worked for?" Bastion growled. "If you lie they will ask the person you said and when they find out you haven't they will not hire you because you're a liar as well."
I moaned and sat in the chair with my face in my hands.
"I guess I'll just go sell flowers on the street if I have to... If things get too desperate I can... prostitute myself."
"Mum!" Eadric yelled.
"Mummy, what's popsicle?"
"Don't tell him, Eadric." Bastion hissed to his brother. "Mum, there are other ways to get what you want. If you wish it, I can-"
"No. I'm not going to use a wish for personal gain. We saw how that worked out for some... your abilities tend to go toward the macabre and distasteful."
"That's because they were selfish wishes that had to be taught a lesson. I can't help how they get fulfilled, I just have to make it happen somehow and I guess we learned that selfish people only get heartache when they get what they want. I know that you are not like that, Mum."
I touched his face lovingly and squeezed his cheeks.
"You're a sweet boy, Bastion, but I can't do that."
"I'll find someone to apprentice me."
"And I can make money off of X by having people pay to try and find him when he goes invisible!" Eadric said.
"Mummy!" X cried, running away from him and into my arms.
"Eadric." I chastised. I pulled X into my lap and pushed his own ginger hair from his freckled face. "We'll figure it out, boys. No one is taking you from me and I won't let you all starve. Aunt Minerva will make sure you're taken care of."
"You've never been an aunt to us, Mum." Bastion said with a smile.
I smiled at him too.

***********************

Salem
Some days after I fired that feisty maid, I made a trip over to Andrew's house; though it was a long and arduous journey to get there. It usually doesn't effect me like this but once we got to his house, I ran to the grass and wretched into one of the rose bushes. I have never gotten sick on a carriage ride, especially to Andrew's place.
Once I recovered from my humiliating display, I walked to the front of the carriage and to the door where the butler led me to his drawing room.
"Shall I have the maid bring you tea, milord?"
"Please do... and while you're at it, have her bring some tomatoes as well."
"Sliced?"
"Yeah..."
The butler gave me a look but went away and I sat on the couch, waiting for Andrew. The past couple of days have been a little strange to me. I'm starting to notice that my pants are fitting in the right way and despite the weird combinations of food I've been asking for, I've noticed that I feel a bit on the full side all the time. There's something settling down on the bottom of stomach. And don't get me started on all the god damned peeing! I don't think I can get to a chamber pot quick enough sometimes.
The door opened and Andrew walked in.
"Hello, Salem, what brings you to my house?"
"I was wondering if you were going to attend Lady Althea's ball tonight?"
"I hadn't really thought about it but I guess I might... Why?"
"Well, I know that Lady Sophia will be there and I also need you to help me out a little."
"What for?"
The maid came in and placed the tray of tea on the table.
"Tea and... slice tomatoes." She said with a look.
Andrew looked at her for a moment.
"Tomatoes?"
"Lord Barma asked for them, sir."
"I did, Andrew, don't scare the girl..." I said, reaching for a tomato slice and popping it into my mouth. "You can get now."
She bobbed up and down and then walked out. Andrew looked at me with confusion as I popped another slice into my mouth.
"Why in all that is holy are you eating tomatoes with your tea? Isn't that a bad taste combination?"
"No..."
"Oh well... either way, what is it you need me to help you with?"
"I don't know what's been wrong with me but for some reason, things have made me... well... unstable."
"What do you mean?"
"Things people say or do have, for some reason, made me actually... cry."
Andrew lifted an eyebrow. "Cry?"
"It's the strangest thing I've ever seen. I've taken offense to things I would have never taken offense to before and just strange things. I don't want to make people think that something is wrong with me so I need you to stay with me at all times to keep my sanity."
Andrew leaned back in his chair.
"So you want me to be your bodyguard from mean people?" he said with a smirk.
I glared at him and felt tears touch the brims of my eyes but I blinked back the tears. Andrew suddenly became serious.
"My god, you weren't joking."
"Oh great, it's easily readable. I'm just a complete open book!" I said, bursting into tears. "What a complete sap I am!"
Andrew got up and patted me on the back.
"Um... there, there? I don't know what you want me to do."
"I'll be fine in a moment. This is what I don't want to happen at the ball."
Andrew nodded. "Well, I can try but if a lovely lady wants me to dance..."
"I know... Thanks. Sorry for this blubbering display."
"Maybe you should have a doctor call on you to see if there is something wrong."
"There's nothing he can do..."
We talked discursively for a while and I then left to go back to my home.

*********************

I arrived at Lady Althea's home and Andrew walked up to me.
"You're not going to get all emotional at any moment are you?"
"No..."
"Good. Because Lady Sophia is over there and her father is over there. I suggest if you're planning on have a second helping of the fair maid, you do it quick and out of sight."
I looked at Andrew. "Of course it would be out of sight."
He gave me a look and I made my way to Sophia.
"My, your hair is beautiful in this style."
Sophia stopped and turned to me, her smile wide.
"Salem!" she whispered. "I thought my father had hurt you."
"Nah, he can't hurt me."
"You look different, milord... Have you changed your bathing oils?"
"No... why?"
"You have a certain glow to you that I can't quite describe..."
"Everyone seems to be taking you well." I said, looking around the hall.
"No one knows about it. I am prepared to take the fall if it's for you, my love."
"Then would you care for a dance, Lady Sophia?"
She smiled wide, her beautiful hazel eyes looking into mine. The music started and we took our places amongst the crowd. All the twirling was making me quite dizzy and I know I almost fell a couple of times but I made it through the dance and decided that it was not the best of things to do in my present state. I went over to the chair and sat down, fanning myself.
"Milord, are you alright?"
"I fear I have not been well these past weeks and so the twirling has me a little light headed."
"Oh! Please don't do it then."
"I don't think I will."
"You." I looked up. Damn... "Sophia, come with me. You stay away from my daughter you despicable man."
I laughed. "Well, I thought we were on good terms when you brought over the wine offering. Which, by the way, was superb."
A strange smile came across Lord Jacoby's face.
"You liked it, did you?"
"Yes."
"I'm so very glad."
"Though, I think you may have gotten a bad bottle because it has made me feel very unlike myself."
"I assure you, Duke Barma, the bottle was good. In that being said, I would like it if you didn't touch, talk, or look at my Sophia again. Unless... you plan to wed her?"
"Not at the moment."
"As I thought. Good night to you, Lord Barma."
I watched him walk away and frowned. What does this old man have up his sleeve?