The Kindreds, Volume 1

The Third, Pt. 1

Sada

Some people were woken by their nightmares, or perhaps because they had to use the restroom, but Sada was woken by shivers. She hugged her goosebump-covered body tightly as she stood, but her icy fingertips only summoned more of the bumps in their wake. The meek dawn light did nothing to warm her either; its yellow rays provided only the illusion of heat, and when she stood in them, they just blinded her rather than heat her face.

Shivering, Sada mustered up the courage to slip out of her nightshift, her only shield from the cold, and step into a long and loose dressing gown. She was always cold, but after much contemplation—something Jezi called 'soul digging' and which Sada did a lot of—she'd realized it wasn't really the cold she minded. She simply didn't like the feeling of air on her skin, and for some reason, she on ly felt it when it was cold. She always liked to have something between herself and the air, whether it was a blanket or a gown or a robe. Today it was both a gown and a robe.

She then covered the birth marks beside her eyes with a layer o f powder, and then several more layers to be safe. Her father had just hired her a new lady's maid (after dismissing her previous one, Ana, for reasons Sada had not been privy to), and Sada called her in to be helped into her morning gown and have her hair pinned up.

She brushed her hair herself, though—she liked doing it when it wasn't tangled; it wasn't a chore then. Instead of being work, it reminded her of her father's love for her. Your hair is like spun silk, he would sometimes say to her when she looked especially beautiful. Any words from her father's mouth were true, and she treasured the good ones because they told her who she was. The good ones were special, and brushing her hair when it was pretty and she saw the spun silk in it reminded her of her father when his eyes were the warm blue of a summer lake instead of the cold blue of fresh ice.

Sada put down the brush, her hair shining, and let the new maid, Sofia, braid it and twist it into an updo that was simple enough for staying in, but elegant enough that she would be presentable for any company who might call on her uncle. Though with her father away, visitors were few and far between.

"How was your night, Sofia?" Sada asked her lady's maid as she pinned the final strands of hair into place. She had been rough with the comb and pins, but it did look lovely.

"Well. And yours?"

"It was just dandy, thank you. Did you have any dreams?"

For a moment Sofia was silent, and Sada thought she wouldn't answer. Then she said, "None fit for a lady's ears."

"Sofia!" Sada gasped, grinning. But her maid did not return the smile, and she finished her hair with her lips pursed tightly.

The morning gown Sofia chose for her was of a thin, pastel silk, suitable for breaking her fast or brunching in the confines of her own manor. The fabric was too flimsy to offer her much warmth, and even beneath the rich robe from Ettedon's markets she still shivered, so she stole the big silken comforter off her bed and wrapped it around her shoulders (it seemed it was a morning for a gown and robe and blanket). The housemaids would replace it for her before she had time to ask.

Jezebel's voice was in her head before she could stop it: Of course. Ladies need their sheets to be replaced daily. Pretty rich girls can't get mucky like us peasants, can they? Sada's teeth found her lip, still raw in the places where she'd chewed it days before. The voice of the memory was a harsh cycle in her head, just fragments repeating nonsensically, but painful all the same.

She made herself listen to the voices of the servants instead as she stepped into the hall. It was always hushed tones and murmurs with them. Sada learned early on that the servants saw, heard, and knew everything, but no information could be gleaned from them through spying. They'd learned to keep their voices indecipherable and their faces in the shadows the way their gossiping masters hadn't, and now no secrets were stolen back from them. Sada wondered what secrets they had to talk about.