Serena stirred and then yawned. The moment she opened her eyes, she froze. It was obvious that someone had found themselves in her room. Serena squeezed her eyes shut, less concerned with who it was and more with the fact that somehow this would disrupt her day. She nearly cursed and then slowly relaxed into the bed to feign sleep.
After a few minutes, she heard the soft patter of footsteps. They were barefoot and moved deliberately across the floor. The only person that came to mind who would do such a thing was Charlotte. Of course, it would be her. Who else went out of their way to make life just a bit more difficult?
The woman cracked open her eyelid just a bit to see who it was. Lo and behold, she was right, the curly silhouette of her hair gave her away instantly. Serena contemplated within herself what she was going to do.
"Your breathing is off. Get up," Charlotte murmured.
Serena’s eyes fluttered open and she looked up to see Charlotte standing with her hands on her hips, peering down at her. The moonlight was dimmer now, filtered through the drapes, casting pale blue hues across the room and softening Charlotte’s usual sharpness.
"What are you doing in here?" Serena asked groggily.
Charlotte clicked her tongue. "What, no good morning? No how are you?"
Serena lips tugged down. "You did not answer my question."
The other woman rolled her eyes and stepped back, pacing the room slowly. "I thought I’d pay a visit."
Serena sat up, adjusting the blanket to cover her legs. "It’s the middle of the night."
Charlotte ignored that and walked toward the vanity table, idly toying with the combs and vials of oil. "You weren’t at the banquet long."
Serena narrowed her eyes slightly. The woman pulled the blanket and then sat up. "Neither were you. In fact, you weren’t there at all."
Charlotte didn’t respond right away. She busied herself picking up a glass vial and turning it in the moonlight.
"Why didn’t you come?" Serena asked.
Charlotte shrugged but didn’t meet her gaze. "No reason, I was not feeling up to it."
"You didn’t feel like it," Serena echoed, raising a brow. "You know it was a formal event. The Dawnbreak delegation came. Darius, Cedar, and even Silas were all there. I thought surely you would’ve at least made an appearance."
Charlotte sighed and finally turned toward her. "I don’t do well in large groups."
Serena blinked. "That’s it?"
"Yes." Charlotte looked away again, her voice losing some of its usual sarcasm. "All those people. All the forced smiles and curious stares, it is all so strange... I just... can’t."
Serena tilted her head. "There weren’t many there. Truly."
Charlotte’s shoulders stiffened slightly. "It doesn’t matter. I would not have been comfortable."
There was a brief silence. Serena studied her, watching the way Charlotte’s fingers tightened on the edge of the vanity. It was an odd look, here she was in her room in the middle of the night telling her she did not do well with people. It brought a small smile to her face, Charlotte was a strange person, but she was a person after all.
"I would have sat with you," Serena said gently.
Charlotte gave a small laugh. "You already had someone to sit with, didn’t you?"
Serena flushed faintly. "No, but I did speak to someone from Dawnbreak."
"Exactly, whoever that is." Charlotte dropped the vial back onto the table with a soft clink. "You don’t need to reassure me. I’m not hurt."
"I didn’t say you were," Serena replied, crossing her arms. "I’m only saying you wouldn’t have been alone."
Charlotte finally looked her in the eyes and then scoffed. "I am never alone."
Serena sat up finally and swung her feet to the ground and gave Charlotte a once over. Her words escaped her, she was not sure what to say to her right now that would be appropriate.
Charlotte shrugged again, but this time the motion lacked her usual bravado. "It doesn’t matter. It’s over now."
The moonlight caught the curve of her cheek, and for the first time in a while, Charlotte looked tired, not in the way one feels after a long day, but the tiredness of someone who carries too much within and rarely lets it show.
"Well," Serena began carefully, "since we’re being honest... Livia doesn’t know who you are." Content originally comes from NoveIꜰire.net
Charlotte’s head snapped up so fast that Serena almost flinched.
"I mentioned you to her in passing and she did not seem to know who you are," Serena said and then she trailed off. Why in the world was she telling Charlotte all of this? If anything it was alluding to the fact that she was trying to dig around in trying to find out who she really was.
Charlotte stared at her, stunned. "She... what?"
The wind pulled violently at the window and Serena jerked up and rushed to them and then closed them shut. When she turned around she was startled by the look in Charlotte’s eye. It reminded her of the look Theodore gave her when he announced one of his deers had run away and after days of searching he found the poor animal had been mauled to death.
"She... she had never heard of anyone called Charlotte," Serena said.
Charlotte sank into Serena’s seat and then placed her legs over on the desk casually and reclined. She sighed and then she laughed.
"The look on your face could even make Iris burst into hysterics. Keep your concern, of course no one knows who Charlotte is, I am your second in command. Remember that."
Serena clasped her hands together and remained silent. She heard what Charlotte was not saying, that laugh of hers was not like the others, this felt hollow. The type that someone did when they wanted the attention off of them, even her eyes did not have that spark of mischievousness. All she saw was hurt.