A Beast Sees No Beauty

Chapter Three

"Miss Juliet?" The voice of the older woman flooded through the door as it slowly creaked open. Juliet jumped up, more than ready to be released from the dreary room she had inhabited for the past hour or so.

"I'm right here," Juliet grabbed the brass handle and opened the door completely. On the other side was the older woman who lead her here earlier. She was someone Juliet already looked forward to seeing. "Is it time for supper? I do hope everything is alright and no plans have changed."

LuLu couldn't help but admire the girl. Half of her hair was pinned up by her scalp, while the rest flooded over her shoulder in beautiful blonde curls. Her greens eyes were bright and cheerful, and the grin on her cheeks made them seem all the more... happy. It took LuLu several seconds to realize the girl was happy.

She had almost forgotten that such an emotion existed. There had been no happiness in the McCoy household since before the late master had married. Times weren't all that great even back then, but it was better than everything that followed that cursed marriage. 

Before her thoughts could derail any further, Viola came running down the hall out-of-breath.

"LuLu! You know I hate runnin'!" Viola was LuLu's younger counterpart, the one who commonly put LuLu in her place and knew better than to break any rules. 

"LuLu? I never did ask for your names earlier." Juliet held out her hand, her smile never faltering. Slowly, the dark-skinned woman did the same, her eyes wide as they shook hands with one another.

"I've only ever seen other people do this, and men too! I ain't never done it myself..." The older woman continued moving their hands up and down, afraid that once she removed her hand from Juliet's grasp she'll forget what it was like.

"I'm Viola, Viola Green!" Viola held out her hand eagerly, wanting to see what it was like to shake hands with someone. As gracefully as possible, Juliet broke her hold with LuLu and shook hands with Viola. LuLu leaned towards their linked hands as if she was trying to find some sort of science behind the act.

"How about we shake hands every morning? I hear that it's the best form of greeting among business partners - and we women are like partners ourselves. We must stick together in our times of need and fight together in times of trouble."

Viola and LuLu looked at the woman with knit brows but made no comment on her strange declaration. Wordlessly, they began to lead her to the dining hall, letting her talk. After all, they hadn't had a guest in years. The proper behavior for how to treat Juliet had long since left their memories.

"Times are changing, and with it comes the empowerment of women. No longer are we required to stay in households, we can have jobs! I heard that up North, women work in factories! Can you imagine?" A dreamy sigh escaped Juliet as she fantasized about the lives of other women in places far away from her. "Not only that, but schools are being opened. We can get an education, and soon we'll hold the same jobs as the men. Just you wait and see-"

"We're here ma'am," Viola's voice broke through Juliet's ramblings, bringing silence back to the hall once more. For a moment, the ex-slave girl thought she had been rude, but the smile Juliet gave had instead been one of embarrassment. 

Viola couldn't remember the last time she's heard someone talk so much. The halls had been filled with silence for years - and now there was someone new - someone who didn't know better. She wasn't sure if Juliet was going to change the household, or ruin the tense peace that had existed for decades.

"Thank you so much. Will you escort me back to my room later? I didn't pay attention to the route..." Juliet smiled warmly at the two women, who both seemed unsure of her. Perhaps she had talked too much and scared them. She must have come on too strongly. It wasn't uncommon for Juliet to scare young ladies off with her proud ideas and long ramblings.