The Butterfly Caught in the Spider's Web (Alois Trancy x OC)

Deeper into the House

"I am not going back to that dining room. I do not need to handle Father's scorn at that moment..." Arabella muttered underneath her breath as she made her way through the winding hallways. As her eyes drifted along her surroundings, Arabella could not help but feel impressed by the overall grandeur of the mansion's architecture and furniture. 

Ever since the incident, her family was forced to cut down on costs as much as possible. A good many servants were let off work, their furniture grew ratty, and the Whitley children had to content themselves with their older toys and clothes.

As she ventured further into the mansion, she began to notice that the furniture and decorations took on a much older style. There was also an abrupt color change in her surroundings. Everything was splashed in some shade of red instead of the usual purple. 

As the light began to fade, Arabella grabbed a tallow candle from a nearby table. The girl fished a matchstick out of her pouch, struck it against her wrist, and succeeded in lighting the wick of the candle. Eyes squinting into the meager pool of light that the wavering flame gave off, she took a closer look at her surroundings. She lifted a cover off of a scarlet red settee, sending a torrent of dust floating through the air. Cobwebs clung to the corners of the room, which Arabella found to be quite strange.

"So, the Trancy servants keep one section of the mansion clean while the other is left in Mother Nature's hands. I wonder why that is..." Arabella mumbled to herself as she stepped further through the hallways. She finally found her way toward a door, and she reached forward to open it up.  However, she was immediately startled by a man behind her clearing his throat. Letting out a strangled cry of shock, the girl whipped around to spot the butler, Claude, standing over her.

"Excuse me for frightening you, Lady Whitley," Claude said, his face a mask of indifference.

"No need to excuse yourself." Arabella could not help but believe that the man did not feel any bit sorry for scaring her.

"Of course," Claude replied, leaving a few seconds of silence for her to say something back. Once she did not offer him any sort of response, he continued, "I was ordered to keep people out of this sector, more particularly that very room."

"Oh? And why is that?"

"I regret to inform you that I have also been told to keep that information a secret."

Arabella's eyebrow quirked up as she countered, "I am your master's fiancee. Surely, I should know of certain things pertaining to the manor that I will call my home soon enough."

"Regardless of your status or relation to Earl Trancy, it is not needed for you to know."

"That sounds so droll... Can you not just let me take a peek inside?" Arabella replied, her lips pulling into a playful smirk. When the butler's facial expression remained stoic, she added, "Alright, then. You could simply stand back and watch over me while I take a look around the room. I swear to you that I will not touch a single thing in the room."

"That cannot be done," Claude said as he took off his glasses and cleaned the lenses with a handkerchief. 

Arabella sighed as she turned to look back at the door sullenly. 

"Oh, alright then..." Arabella murmured as she turned back around. She jumped in fright when she realized that the hallway was completely empty, devoid of any people. Her heart beat against her chest as she looked down the surrounding passages for Claude. When she found that there was no place that the butler could slip away in, she sighed and tried to steady her hands. "Oh, relax yourself... He is probably just abnormally fast." 

Her lips pursed together as she moved to look back at the door. Once again ensuring that Claude had left, Arabella's hand reached out and settled around the doorknob. In the blink of an eye, she swiftly opened the door and peeked inside. Her eyes were met with the sight of an ornate bedroom. Heavy drapes hung from the window, and the floor was made up of elaborately-designed tiles. The entirety of the room was covered with a film of dust, something that made Arabella's nose wrinkle in disgust. 

Before she could move further into the room, a finger tapped against her shoulder. Whirling around, Arabella found herself face-to-face with Claude. A guilty smile tugged at her lips as he stared at her sternly from behind his lenses. 

"Come now, let's get back to the dining room," Claude said as he ushered Arabella out of the general vicinity of the room. He took one last look at the room before closing the door, taking a key out of his pocket, and promptly locking it. 

"Why did you not lock it beforehand if it was such an important matter?" Arabella asked, her eyebrows creasing together when the butler did not answer her. "Hello?" 

The walk back to the dining room was silent, and she was soon deposited back into the dining room. Arabella let out a swift sigh once she realized that an irritated look crossed Alois' face once he noticed that she had come back. 

If out of spite he does agree to the arrangement that my parents are offering, I will make his life a living hell, Arabella thought to herself as she sat back down at the table. She was given a sour look by her father for her lack of manners, which she ignored and moved to pick up her utensils. She took a big bite out of her food. I might as well enjoy the food before my fate is decided.