The Heart of Woodbury

Chapter 2

When I woke up the next morning, something had changed. I no longer felt the need to lay in bed for 20 minutes before getting up. I saw the morning rays of light coming in through my blinds and I immediately sat up. My eyes darted towards the door as I got up. I had the urge to dress up in one of my better outfits. It was a grey button-up with my normal black apron and black slacks. I paid extra attention to my hair, making sure it was nice and brushed before getting out of the house. I had even forgotten my daily cup of tea, which usually brought me the energy I needed for at least the morning. And once again, the Moonlight Masquerade was out in the town square. But instead of the 15 or so women I had counted from yesterday...only three remained.

"Must be callbacks...damn..." I muttered to myself, making my way towards the time square. I had woken up in record time today, having at least an hour and a half to spare before I opened up shop. The girls were chatting, expressing how nervous they were I assumed. Then a posh man walked up from the side. He wore a maroon red with a black button-up and nice black pants. I huffed, just seeing the amount of money that went into that outfit. He walked up to the girls and loudly clapped, getting their attention.

"Attention! I am Monsieur Vanderburg! I am here to thoroughly judge your final dance and only one of you women will be able to make it into the Moonlight Masquerade! Now, first up, miss Whitewood! You're up! Chop, chop!" He announced rather loudly, clapping again. To my surprise, the same blonde-haired lady stood up. She seemed to look nervous because she flinched when the man clapped, and she hurriedly made it to the middle.

"Now, begin." Monsieur Vanderburg sat down on a nearby chair and watched with his arms crossed, staring down the girl. She danced along to the song, beads of sweat forming on her forehead as she danced. But something felt off. She wasn't wearing that smile like she did the day previous. Her skin was pale, but her cheeks were bright red. I walked closer, getting concerned for the girl. Suddenly she stopped moving, as her eyes dully stared at Monsieur Vanderburg. Something isn't right.

I watched as the scene played in slow motion. The music had stopped, and Monsieur Vanderburg stood up, about to chastise the girl. She swayed and her legs started to give way under her. I didn't know what came over me, as I suddenly dashed towards her, barely being able to catch her in time before she hit the ground. There, several feet away from me, Monsieur Vanderburg stood with his arms crossed still, having not made an attempt to help the fainted girl. His eyes bore into me as he scoffed. "The audience isn't allowed to interfere with the callback process. Let her go at once." He spoke with a cold and dead serious voice. I raised an eyebrow before picking the girl up and started carrying her. "Are you blind? She just fainted for god's sake, and you expect her to stand up and start dancing again?" I barked back.

I never had the best temper. Over the years it mellowed out, but it never went away. I find myself often writing about my fits of anger now instead of throwing things or hitting people. And in this instance, there was nothing I could do except choke it back. Yet his tone of voice made it exceedingly hard to do so. "Competent dancers don't let how they feel affect their dancing." He walked closer to me, now only inches from each other. We stared at each other before he stepped back, clapping again.

"I hereby announce that Marie Whitewood is now...disqualified!" All the while he stared at me. "Take this sorry excuse for a dancer where she lives." He ripped off a page with her details and handed it to me before angrily walking toward the two other girls who looked on with concern and sadness. I sighed and looked at the address. That's not too far from my own home... I thought as I carried Marie home. "'A sorry excuse for a dancer' my ass..." I muttered, still angry at the man for what he said. But that anger was quickly clouded with an overwhelming worry for Marie. Her eyes squinted as if she was experiencing a nightmare. Her lips quivered and sweat rolled down her soft and pale face. I reached her home and tried to open the door.

"Fuck... it's locked...ugh, I'm so sorry..." I apologized as I fumbled in her pockets, searching for a set of keys. I heard a jingle and pulled out a set of two keys. One more elaborate than the other. I stuck the elaborate one into the lock and it turned with a click. I opened the door and slowly walked inside. There, I walked inside to a very small, inn-like house. It was probably half the size of mine, but it looked very clean...all except the crumpled-up handkerchief beside her bed. The bed itself was poorly made, probably due to how she was feeling. I laid her down on her bed and tucked her in. She instinctively held onto the covers of her bed and seemed to calm down some. I sighed and rubbed my arms. I was nowhere near strong, but I only assumed my anger was the only reason I was able to carry her all the way here.

I knew how to treat fevers. When I was younger, I had always wanted to be a doctor, so I always kept a subconscious mind about how my mother would treat me when I was sick. I found a rag and searched for some cold water. Most houses now had an inside well system, and this house was no different. I got some cold water and squeezed out the rag so it was only damp. Then I folded it and placed it on her forehead. She seemed to appreciate that, because her face relaxed, and she looked surprisingly peaceful. I looked at the time and sighed. "Only 15 minutes until the shop opens..." I looked at Marie and then at the door.

"I'll be right back," I said, facing towards her and then walking out, making sure to lock it so nobody can get in and steal her. I rush over to my shop and grab a paper and pen from my pocket. I wrote a note on the door.

'Not open for shop today due to personal circumstances. Thank you for your understanding.

Signed, Jonathan D.'

I hung it up and rushed back to the girl's home and sighed in relief when I saw her asleep. There was a single chair in her living room and I sat down on it, making sure I had a good view of Marie. For some reason, it was hard for me to just leave her after the events of today. But I also knew I had to tell her the most likely upsetting news. How she got disqualified due to her fainting. I get Moonlight Masquerade is strict, but I think that man was more overtaken by power rather than being an actual judge. The man that was there yesterday was a completely different man. He had dirty blonde hair and was rather tall and lanky. Probably a dancer himself from the looks of it. There was a pit in my stomach the entire time while I stayed in her home. But I decided to do some maintenance to her home. Clean her handkerchief, clean up her kitchen, and so on. I was preparing to make some soup when I heard her stir. I looked over my shoulder and I saw her open her eyes and sit up. By the looks of it, she seemed dazed and confused. Putting on a smile, I walked over to her and knelt beside her.

"Hey, are you feeling okay?"