All Too Well

♚ Chapter Seventeen ♚

Waking up early next morning wasn't any problem, as being a second-string member I was always waking up at the crack of dawn to perform my duties. Changing out of my button-down top and pants into my uniform, I went straight to the kitchen, thinking Black might be there. Freckles and Mey-Rin were also gone by the time I was awake, so i guess I didn't get up as early as I thought I did.

As soon as I entered the kitchen, I spotted Freckles and Snake, eating a slice of bread. I took a slice as well, eating it quickly since it was first decent meal in the last few days.

Black entered the kitchen as soon as I finished my small breakfast. "Good, you three are up," he nodded. "You three are going to help out the other servants today. Snake, you are with Finny, Freckles, you'll be going to Baldory, and Violet you'll be helping Mey-Rin."

We all nodded in acknowledgement and Black left. Turning back to my friends, Freckles asked me, "Do you really believe that atonement stuff Smile was telling us about yesterday?"

"I want to, but..." I trailed, remembering that night in the fire.

"Same, here," Freckles nodded in agreement.

One of Snake's snakes came out and hissed. Snake shifted his eyes towards it, leaning in slightly to listen what it had to say. "'Smile sounded really convincing. He really did sound like he cared,' ...Says Emily," Snake translated.

"No, you don't understand," Freckles shook her head. "You weren't there that night, at Father's mansion. He is ruthless and cruel. Blimey, if it weren't for Violet stopping me, neither of us would be here right now."

We all shivered at the revelation, even Snake looked a tiny bit concern. "'So, what do we do now?' ...That's a good question, Oscar," Snake stated.

"Avoid contact at all possible," I shrugged. "Smile nor Black can be trusted. If any of us make the wrong move, both of them will take us all down at once. Trust no one other than each other."

Freckles and Snake nodded in agreement and I gave them both a quick hug and set off to track down Mey-Rin. I found her by the staircase, rubbing some sort of varnish on the stair railing, most likely to keep it looking new. Hearing me, she turned and gave me a big smile. "Oh, Violet, there you are!" She greeted me.

"Good morning," I said coolly, remembering my words.

Trust no one other than each other.

I decided to our conversation to a minimal as I spotted a bucket filled with soapy water with a rag draped over the edge. I grabbed the rag and dipped it into the cold water, got down on my hands and knees, and began to scrub the stairs. Mey-Rin had a brush and was running it up and down the railing, covering it in varnish. "So, I've heard you, Freckles and Snake came from the circus!" Mey-Rin attempted to break the ice. "What did you do in there?"

"Freckles and I were tightrope walkers while Snake was a snake charmer," I replied as I continued work, wanting to end our talk quickly.

"Really?" Mey-Rin said. "That sounds so cool! Why did you leave the circus?"

"Well..." I started, remembering why we came here in the first place. I couldn't have Mey-Rin know the truth, so I lied. "There were more of us, but they left us there all alone. At first, we waited for a while, but we eventually lost hope. The circus was beginning to fall apart, so we left while we still could."

"Why did the others leave?"

"I don't know why they left. But they were like family to Freckles, Snake and I."

"What were they like?"

"There was our ringleader with the brightest orange hair imaginable. We also had this buff man who was our fire breather, and he may of looked terrifying, but he had a heart of gold. He doted over these two kids, a boy and a girl, who were trapeze artists. They were inseparable, kinda like us. There was also this tiger tamer we had and another bloke who had a crush on her who was good with the knives. It was always funny watching him eye her and her being totally oblivious to it."

Mey-Rin froze when she heard what I just said, holding the brush over the railing. I glanced over at her, knowing what was up. I knew Smile had all of them killed, but Mey-Rin obviously knew more than I originally had thought. "Mey-Rin, what's the matter?" I asked.

"O-Oh, nothing!" She stammered, turning red and squeaking when I spoke to her suddenly.

Glancing at the railing, I noticed the varnish was darker than the railing she was painting it on. "Um...Mey-Rin..." I started, pointing at the railing. "Does varnish do that?"

"Huh?" He head snapped up and she looked at the railing and she squealed. "Oh no! That's not varnish!"

"What is that?" I questioned as Mey-Rin pulled out the bottle she was using. She pushed her cracked, large, round glasses up her nose and squinted behind them, trying to read what the bottle read. I cam up to her and leaned over her shoulder, using my limited reading skills to see what she had used instead.

"Is something wrong?" Black asked, appearing at the top of the stairs. Mey-Rin cried out as she dropped the bottle, reaching her hands out in attempt to grab the bottle. Black reached out and took the bottle gracefully before looking at the railing. He traced a gloved finger over it before looking at the bottle, sighing, "Mey-Rin, this is shoe polish, not varnish."

"I-I'm sorry!" She cried, slapping her cheeks and flushing red. "My glasses are cracked and I couldn't read a thing!"

"No matter," Black shook his head. "I'll clean this up. You two, please wash the utensils the Young Master used this morning and then dust the living room."

"Y-Yes, Sebastian!" Mey-Rin stuttered.

'Yes, Black," I nodded. Mey-Rin shot me a strange look as the two of us left to carry out our duties.