Spark

{ short }

Collinwood, 1775

Angelique pushed on the wood of the door, causing it to creek

lightly

. Her eyes flooded with light and stung for a moment. She set the silver tray on the small entry table as she entered the vast room. Her eyes glazed over from the intense sunlight. Thousands of books of all varieties lined the walls up to the ceiling, collecting dust that she was expected to get rid of. Couches faced each other in the middle of the room and a fireplace laid behind them on the wall nearest to her.

There was something quite... demeaning about books to her, yet intriguing at the same time.  She coveted the ability to read them and soak up all their knowledge as Barnabas did. But that was never allowed. She was a woman first of all, and they certainly weren't allowed an education. They were expected to stay home to cook, clean and bear children. That had never been what she wanted to do with her life, but she didn’t even have the opportunity to do that. For obvious reasons. Servants weren't allowed to do anything. They couldn't have an education, they couldn’t accomplish their dreams, they couldn’t act as they liked. Or so it was said.

The last thing she wanted to do was to be a servant. She had always hated her life, sometimes a little more than she should have. The idea of living that life peacefully and without question was hard for her to swallow. That your life was just a draw of the hat and you had no say in it. Some people, like Barnabas, had everything and more handed to them on a silver platter while she was a nothing more than a incapable mutt worth what a pig would swallow. The girl scowled at the mere thought of it.

The only way she could get what she wanted would be to cheat, and that was exactly what she had in mind. Deception was a trait most potent for her needs, and she delivered with dignity. In her mind, the only thing between where she was then and where she wanted to be was freedom. Which obviously doesn’t come very easily. But she didn’t need easy.

Angelique was indeed intelligent, even though she wasn’t educated. She learned from example, studying not from books, but from people. She did the best with what she was given, despite it being next to nothing. But she believed she could become everything that she wanted to in time. Angelique didn’t need an opportunity. All she needed was a spark. But she never knew it would be him.

Please tell me what you think by leaving a comment below! BTW, Merry Christmas everyone!