Night of Eden 20

 Chapter 20

***

"I don't know what's wrong with him. I mean, he's always been moody and short temper, but... he's never been one to do this to someone under him...." 

Celeste glanced down at Dana. Her bloodless face looked like a ghost.

 "No matter how you look at it, you've been through too much today,  first Mr. Richter, and then….”

With that, Celeste opened the front door. It was past midnight, and it was pitch black outside. Celeste turned the dial to maximize the lamp's light. 

"I hate to say it, but... the Duchess would be surprised to know what happened today."

 "......."

"I hope she doesn't mind too much. The master is just the way he is, and he'll move on." 

"...Yeah." Dana nodded her head in agreement. But Celeste's eyes still looked dull and weak. Dana felt a pang of sadness, but also worry. 'So gentle, so vulnerable.' Could such a child be Lady Liana's personal maid? Peron's social circles were filled with men worse than Master Theodore. One must be much stronger and more cunning to serve one's master well in this jungle-like place. Celeste wanted Dana to be more venomous and stronger. 

"You're at the mercy of your master, and you'd better accept that sooner rather than later. It'll be less painful and more successful." 

"......."

 "I mean, as long as you put up with a lot of what's raging inside you right now, you'll be able to get what you want from your master." 

"......." 

"But you’re learning to read, aren't you? If you asked any of the maids here if they'd rather be a maid for the rest of their lives or learn to read and become a personal maid, they'd choose the latter. Isn't that right?" 

"Yes...." 

Dana replied softly, her hair shining a light gold in the moonlight. The sound of rustling grass continued for a long time. Celeste stared down at Dana's slender shoulders for a long moment before speaking again.

 "You're a maid, not a princess, and there's nothing to be ashamed of if you can't read." 

Her tone was a little harsh.

 "If I summoned all the maids here right now and asked them, 'Who can read?' I doubt half of them would raise their hands."

 A flicker of light marked the entrance to the maids' quarters. Celeste turned the dial to dim the light again. 

"I didn't learn to write until after I was chosen as a personal maid, and I was able to write a letter within ten days of learning." 

"......." 

"By the time your training is complete and you return to Belvida, you will be too." 

She said this to comfort Dana, but as she thought about it, she realized that she hadn't kept her promise. The child would not be going to Belvida tomorrow after all. The heir to House MacMillan was acting strangely grumpy…

 "You know....," she whispered, looking around carefully. "Just hang in there for a few days and learn to read as the Master has told you. Then I'll know when the time is right and I'll let you go to Belvida." 

Dana lifted her drooping head to face Celeste. "...Yes, thank you very much." 

It wasn't really a cheerful gesture, just an expression of gratitude to the other person for comforting her. Even though she knew it, Celeste felt flattered.

 "Yeah, you've had a rough day." Celeste patted Dana gently on the shoulder. "Then come to the study as soon as you wake up tomorrow, okay?" 

"...Okay." 

"Get some rest." 

Celeste held the door open for Dana. Dana bowed and walked inside. The door closed again, and she was alone, just as she'd always wanted to be. 

"I hope you don't mind too much, it's nothing to be ashamed of." 

Celeste was right. 

It's nothing to be ashamed of. She had never been ashamed of her inability to read before. Maid Rosi had promised to teach her to read sooner or later, as she was quite intelligent, but Dana could hardly escape the feeling of abject humiliation. 

“Is that bad enough, you can't even read?”

Theodore's face was filled with contempt and disgust as he said it. It was like looking down on a disgusting bug. What a terrible human being. So vicious, cruel, and despicable. Her heart pounded in her chest, her nose ran, and her eyes burned. Dana quickly threw open the window. The cool night breeze carried the sound of grasshoppers in.

 'I thought I'd see you tomorrow, Noah, and we'd talk about all sorts of things...' 

The image of the young man with his hat tucked down low and singing a silly song filled her mind's eye. 'Hillbilly Dinah!' 'If anyone treats you badly, tell me. If you get the slightest hint of something wrong, you tell me, okay?" "Hey, ugly girl, can't you take the ring for me?"

 

She couldn't help but gasp and laugh. At the same time, her chest started to feel frighteningly hot again. She bit the inside of her cheek until she tasted blood, but it didn't help. The lump in her throat rose like lava. Her jaw trembled uncontrollably. With a gasp, hollow sob, Dana let out another round of hot tears.

**** 

...three, four, five, six... 

"Six in all." 

A muffled voice echoed through the barn in the foggy dawn.

 "Dana would have loved to see that." 

Noah muttered and leaned against the fence. Six piglets were clinging to their mother's belly. Only a day old, they were competitively thrusting their snouts in search of their mother's milk. Grunting. Another pitiful squeal. Out of the corner of his eye, Noah spotted a tiny figure struggling alone in the corner.

 "Huh?"

 It was the seventh pig he hadn't noticed. Noah reached out and gently lifted the unusually small and skinny spotted pig. 

"Were you... bullied... as soon as you were born?" 

Noah's face was filled with sadness. He nudged the pig on the far end of the line and placed the spotted one between them. Even though they were brothers from the same belly, there was no way they would welcome this new competition. The ousted pig huffed and pushed the spotted one away. 

"You'll have to do it yourself." 

Even as he spoke, Noah continued to help the spotted one, making room for each push. Spotted struggled to stay on her feet, eager to take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself.

 "Well, how can you do everything yourself? You have to get lucky, sometimes you have to get help, that's life." 

Noah continued to help Spotted as often as he felt like it, and Spotted didn't give up, slipping in between her siblings. Finally, an opportunity presented itself. As the two larger piglets growled and fought amongst themselves, a gap opened up, revealing the mother's beasts. ...Now, now! 

Noah called out to her, and Spotted pushed herself up with all her might. And then she succeeded in biting the teat. That's it! Noah cheered and pumped his fist in triumph. Of course, Spotted's luck didn't last long. The first one to win the fight pushed her back down and took her place. But Spotted didn't just whimper like before. She wriggled her tiny body around, pecking, pushing, and fighting her opponent, and managed to get a few more bites at her mother's teat. 

Noah looked down at her for a long moment, and then a slow smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

 "Diggie," he whispered to himself. "From now on, your name is Diggie.”

 

 Whether it realized it or not, Diggie concentrated on sucking on his mother's breast. 

"I'd call you 'Dinah,' but I can't give a cute, pretty girl like you that ugly hillbilly name." 

Noah giggled to himself, not sure what was so funny. "How is she doing, by the way... I hear the maids of the Shore aren't usually nice...." 

A pair of wistful eyes turned to the window. It was toward the Shore cottage.

***

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