Meet Me in the Hallway

two

two

"What good is the warmth of summer, without the 

cold of winter to give it sweetness."

-John Steinbeck

Briar and I had been walking through the city for what felt, to me at least, like hours, but in reality was no more than a few minutes. Fresh snow started to fall once more across the city and it urged Briar to rush towards wherever she was taking me. My breaths came out in short puffs as I tried my best to keep up with her fast pace. The lack of nutrition I had received in the weeks I had been away from home made it that much harder for me to move in the pace that was required of me.

Eventually we reached the edge of the city, but Briar's pace never slowed even as I lagged a few feet behind her. I stuck as close behind her as I could, watching as her boots left imprints on the new snow. Her footprints being the only thing that interrupted the previously untouched snow. Following her lead, I placed my feet in the imprints of hers, stepping into them as if they were a trail of their own. 

The winds of winter blew around feverishly as we walked along a small trail through the trees. The air nipped at our faces and slapped a bright hue of red across them. I glanced upwards to see the snow falling heavily onto the world, and couldn't help but think of the beauty it possessed. The snow itself blanketed everything below it, as if it were covering the ugly of the world. As elegant as the flakes that fell were, they held a certain degree of danger as well. Too much snow and the people under its hold were forced to be still, wait for it to pass, and hope it wouldn't freeze them to death. 

From the long walk we had I learned a little about Briar. She had told me her and her family were servants of the royal family. Her father was a farmer for the grain which is why they were allowed a small cabin on the outskirts of the land that was occupied by the Palace of Versailles. Her mother was one of the many cooks that helped to feed the occupants of the château. Briar's brother was one of the stable boys who tended to the many horses of the nobles, as well as the other domesticated livestock. And as for Briar, she did a little of everything, she helped her mother cook, but she also cleaned within the walls of the château, from chamber pots to messes the nobles and their flock made. 

"How did you end up in Versailles?" she asked me and I froze trying to think of an answer. 

"My parents passed and I had nowhere to go. I came here to try to find a place for myself." Briar nodded in response and I felt the air shift as the lie slipped through my lips. 

"I am sorry about your parents." She turned around to look at me, to make sure I knew she was being sincere. "I don't even know what I would do without mine. You are very strong." I gave her a small smile and she turned back around, leading the way through the trail.

"We are almost at my home, it's not too much further."

And almost there we were. Not too long after she spoke her family's small cabin was within our sight. Briar turned and smiled, reaching a hand our for me to take. I hesitated before I placed my hand in her own and we walked a little bit faster to our destination. Our feet crunched the snow below us in a monotonous rhythm as we stepped towards her home. I peeked behind us to see the heavy snow already filling the tracks we left on our short journey here, to the outskirts of the castle, home to King Louis XV. I slowed in my distracted state and Briar yanked my arm to snap me back to the present as we arrived at her door.