I followed Sir Gavin through the streets, making sure to stay one step behind him. When we came to Asher's Ale House, I noticed a sign on the door. "Excuse me, Sir Gavin?" He stopped, turned around and looked at me with annoyed eyes. "Can you please tell me why the Ale House is closed?" Sir Gavin's response was on of tragedy, "Asher, most likely passed out, was asleep when a candle was knocked over. By the time the smoke was noticed, it was too late. If you ask me, it couldn't have happened to a better person, allowing all the drunkards in town to all but live there. It should be no concern to you." I looked at him, a sort of sadness in my eyes, "That is where I was left as a baby, where I was raised." His tone changed, "Ah yes, I forgot. Please forgive my unkind words."
We approached Sir Gavin's home, it was a modest one compared to the rest of the houses in town. His wife Gwendolynn met us at the door. "You told me that you would get me a chambermaid. She is far too young, she will not do. Take her back." I was not too sure of what she meant by 'too young'. I was after all 16 and while I had not had any experience as a chambermaid, I had plenty of experience at serving people. Just how hard could it be?
Gwendolynn herself could not have been more than 19. A pretty lady with a prominent nose, one that was not afraid to hold her head high and tell you exactly what she thought of you. "My Dear, she was rather cheap. Do please try to make it work." Sir Gavin pleaded with his wife. His wife responded with, "Fine. But she isn't careful I will throw her back onto the streets."
Her attitude did not surprise me, after serving drunkards and then serving Barda, this was just the other end of the scale. If I was to go from serving in an ale house to serving people with money, then so be it. It mattered not to me, as long as I was off the streets. While serving Barda, I was mostly left alone in the beginning, but serving Gwendolynn was quite the opposite. I was to help her pick out her clothing, help her to bath, fix her hair, even called into her chamber in the middle of the night because she was cold and wanted the fire stoked.
Gwendolynn had announced to her husband that she wanted to have a small party, consisting of three of her closest friends, whom were also married to knights. It was the morning of the party, I was downstairs helping to get the house ready. I did what was asked, while listening to the other ladies mumble about what a pain Gwendolynn was. To me, it sounded as if they were ready to walk out and live on the streets themselves. I honestly did not blame them. While she wasn't exactly mean, she was extremely demanding.
That evening, I helped her to get dressed, us picking out the dress together. It was beautiful, baby blue in color, with a small train that flowed at her heels. Because she was much shorter than her husband, she insisted on wearing heels. I tried to talk her out of it, telling her that with the length of the train, it would make it very easy to get the heel caught and possibly trip in front of her guests. "What do you know about fashion? You were raised by drunkards!" It was then that I had decided it was better to just keep my mouth shut.
After all of the guests had arrived, Gwendolynn was ready to make her entrance. I was to escort her to the bottom of the stairs, making sure her train stayed perfectly flowing with each step, but staying behind her and to the right as to grab her arm in case she tripped. She stopped at the top of the stairs. I went behind her to fix her train, laying it flat against the floor. Before I could get back to the right side, she had taken two steps down the stairs. The next thing I remember was screaming as she fell down the stairs. When she landed at the bottom, she was gone, her neck had snapped on the way down. And as I had suspected, her heel was caught in the train.
I was not there but a few weeks before I was put out on the street, as Sir Gavin no longer had any use for me.
