Sage in the Sea

Get Out

"I have limitations placed on myself as well," Piers told her. "And you must be careful of what you say. People have been hanged for much less than the words that have come from your mouth."

"I am nearly eighty years old, Piers. I do not care much about minding my words any longer," Miss. Dolloway told him. "I am here to help Adelaide become the best princess that she can be as well as to fulfill the role that you wish for her to fulfill. This is why I did not want you to be witness to our lessons."

"Perhaps I should be," Piers replied as he stood up. "If this is the type of lesson that you are going to teach her, then perhaps I need to find a different teacher."

"The type of lesson I am teaching her?" Miss. Dolloway questioned, arching an eyebrow. "I once taught you the same lesson."

"That is different."

"Why? Because you are a male?" She shook her head. "That should not matter. Women were once respected in this kingdom and they once held positions of power. Now we are not able to do anything without a man giving us permission. We are creating a weak and controlling society, Prince Piers. Do you want to have a weak wife? Do you want to be the puppeteer of your puppet wife?"

Piers walked over and stood next to me. "No, that is not what I want, but I also have to keep her safe. If she begins breaking laws, then she will be removed from the house and sent to the fields. I do not want to see her suffer that fate."

Miss. Dolloway shook her head, casting her eyes to the ceiling before she looked back at Piers. "I thought I had taught you better than that."

Piers cast his eyes to the floor, a guilty look on his face. I had remained silent during the entire exchange because I had nothing to say in Piers' defense. The teacher was telling the student everything that I believed, everything that I had thought about during the past ten years at the facility. I had lost the ability to stand up for myself within the first year of being at the facility. I went from resisting to giving in because that was what was better; that was what had enabled me to survive.

Had it been worth it? To lose the part of me that was important in order to save myself? I should have taken the pain and suffering, should have started my rebellion in the facility. Perhaps I would have had more support, caused the other girls to assist me. I could have shown the king that we were not beaten down yet; we were not out of the fight. There was a fire raging within each of us, waiting to burst out of control.

"What you taught is not applicable to my current situation," Piers said in a low voice. "Sometimes we must do things that we do not like because it is what it takes to survive."

"But in the process a part of us dies," I murmured. Miss. Dolloway's eyes snapped to me. I looked at her, watching as a small smile spread across her face.

"Precisely."

"I truly do not have time for this," Piers said with a sigh. "I must leave or I will be late for my meeting. We shall continue this at another time." He kissed me softly on the side of my head before he turned and left, neither Miss. Dolloway or myself saying a word until he had gone.

"He will come around," she said with a firm nod. "Come, we have work to do."

x.x.x

I spent the next several days with Miss. Dolloway, working on all of the imperfections she had found in me. The imperfections were ones that I hadn't even been aware of. We would meet shortly after breakfast, work until lunch, and then continue until dinner. She would watch me throughout the evening, looking to see if I were following the lessons that she had taught me, and what we would need to work on the following day.