Hidden World

Zinnia- Market

Ma stares at two different tomatoes for what seems like eternity plus one.  Finally she announces her decision by tossing the Chosen One to me. I smile apologetically at the vendor as she counts the coins out of her pocket, one by one. She purses her lips and looks at me.

"Zinnia, dear, do you have an extra Puranote?" she asks. I know the drill all too well. Making by best pained face, I say,

"Ma, I'm sorry, I don't."

She wrings her hands, "oh well, I suppose we don't have enough. I'm sorry, chap." she says to the vendor.

Taking pity on her, the vendor says, "Just for you, Ma'am, I'll give you a fifty percent discount."

Ma gasps, "Oh, thank you so much. May you be recognized in the Heavens!" She puts down the discounted amount and puts the tomato in the basket.

This is how my family has gotten by ever since Pa lost his job seven years ago. You call it stealing, we call it surviving.  

"This, Z, is why it will be wonderful when you leave. We'll get real money, and get out of this dump of a valley." Ma says once we're out of earshot.

I nod, showing her that I understand. Truthfully, I don't. How can they send be away, to be a bloody maid in one of the 'High-and-Mighty' Houses? I'll see them one day a bloody year. And, we're doing fine. I have a job, although little, Ma has a job, even little Charles has a job. So why must I go?

We arrive back at our house. The sun is setting. I suppose one good thing about me getting a real job is that my family won't have to have a view of one of the Houses. Actually, we have a view of the House I'll be working at, the Crosingfert House. Right now, I can see three automobiles driving down, two with darken windows. Darken windows, so that our two worlds can be separated, so that we can't see the 'High-and-Mighty' people. Darken windows into a hidden world.