Sweet Songbird (G/T)

Chapter Seven

"I figure I should introduce you to everyone, hmm?" Thompson said with a smile, his rough, calloused hands holding Sera's soft ones. "Oh, your hands. Most of the servant's hands are blistered almost right away. And yours feel like you haven't done a day's work...ever." One of his eyebrows arched and he turned his eyes, meeting Sera's blue ones.

"Oh...well in all honesty I haven't," Seraphina said with a soft laugh. "Before I came here my brother and father took care of that. I was the one to cook and clean."  She kept her voice calm and quiet, but her heart was now aching. Even though they had been cruel to her, it was the only family she had alive and she was beginning to miss them dearly.

Her attention was drawn from her thoughts to a maid sitting high above her on the edge of the kitchen counter. "Yeah, lucky you. We have to climb around and hope to never fall. When we use these knives, we have to hope we won't kill ourselves trying to make the giant's stupid meals." Her voice was bitter and angry, and it made the black haired woman's hand tighten around Thompson's in a slightly scared fashion.

"Calm down Jessica, she's still new. If the master becomes bored of her she'll just wind up like one of us." Thompson rolled his eyes and once again met Sera's blue pools. "Now, that's Jessica. Over there is Karen. And up along the counters are Matthew, Kenneth, and possibly Maddie. Maddie however...she's unstable. Scared, shaky. She's been like that since..." He purposefully trailed off, knowing it would strike the new servant's curiosity and possibly pity.

"Since what?" Sera asked gently, giving his hand a small, comforting squeeze. She, of course, doesn't know she's being played, so her first instinct is to comfort or care.

"She was in charge of cooking the master's steak one evening. But when it got out to him, the inside wasn't fully done and he became very angry. He put Maddie in a jar, making sure it was sealed tightly before burying it in the front yard. We all had to stand there and watch for only a minute, but it felt like hours. He wouldn't let us help. And when he dug her back up, she was unconscious from lack of air. When she woke up...she wasn't the same. We've been taking turns completing her tasks to make sure it doesn't happen to her again." Thompson kept his voice low, only to add to the horror of the story he was telling.

"Oh, the poor dear!" Sera's hands clasped over her mouth as she pictured a young girl suffocating in a glass jar underground, most likely thinking she wasn't going to live only to wake up and be forced to worry if she'd ever have to relive that nightmare. 

"P-Please...don't pity me." A quiet voice came from a corner of the room and Seraphina turned her blue orbs over to meet a pair of sad silver ones. The girl they belonged to looked frail, with a thin body and pale skin, huddled against the walls with her knees wrapped tightly to her chest. 

Seraphina approached the girl with a soft smile. "You are Maddie, yes? My name is Seraphina. I'm very sorry for what happened to you. I...I can't imagine. And I know you've probably heard it a million times before but I truly mean it. And if you ever wish to talk, or need anything, please come to me." 

For a brief moment, everyone saw something in Maddie's eyes that hadn't been there for months. Happiness. But her silver eyes instantly dulled and turned sad right after. But her tone had changed. She sounded almost grateful when she spoke. "I-I'll keep that in mind." 

The only thing is, Maddie hadn't been in the room when the plan was made to get rid of Seraphina. So she's struck by the woman's genuine kindness. None of the servants had ever spoken to her like that. They all either avoided her or treated her like a sick child. Never like an actual person who needed real help.

From behind her, Thompson's voice spoke up. "Wow. Not only are you a beautiful woman, but your soul and heart seem just as lovely." 

A dark red blush crept across her face which she chose to ignore. She was often complimented, but usually only by drunks or men that wanted something else from her. So this time it was certainly different.

Smiling, Seraphina turned around to talk to Thompson again but was cut off when the ground began to vibrate beneath her feet. The other servants scrambled to their feet and busied themselves with work, and Maddie ran underneath a shelf. Sera's smile faded when a pair of dark eyes stared at her from the doorway and a deep voice rumbled angrily. "You're late."

"S-Sir, I-I'm terribly sorry." She spoke quickly, fighting the urge to run from him and took a deep breath through her nose, running to him.

Eric was most certainly surprised when the human ran towards him instead of running away. His anger only slightly dissipated as he lifted her into a fist. "I'm sure you are. What were you doing?" his eyes turned to Thompson, who had returned to cleaning the floor with another servant. 

"H-He was introducing me to the other servants." Keeping her voice calm and hopefully unwavering, she placed both her hands on the giants. "D-Do what you wish to me, please. But don't do anything to them."

"Hm. Very well." His grip tightened slightly around her body as he walked from the kitchen. She was unable to tell where they were going, as he was moving at a fast pace and the world was but a blur around her. 

It wasn't until she hit a hard surface that she finally was able to look around but couldn't believe her eyes. She was standing in what appeared to be a drawer, with some small items that you'd keep. A comb, a pen carved from a tree trunk. "Y-You're not going to hurt me?" She asked in a soft, scared, and confused tone.

"No. You can come out in about an hour. I'll fetch you, and then you will join me in a meeting that I have about my company with another human." His deep voice rang above her and before she had a chance to respond she was lurched forward. Using her arms to catch herself, she couldn't see her own hand in front of her face.

"This is going to be a very long hour," Sera mumbled and took a seat against the side of one of the walls. But during this hour, it gives her a chance to think about what to do about the giant, the meeting, and what she believes to be a little crush on the butler, Thompson.