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Though hardly noticed by most, the truly most important member of a household is the servant. Who else would there be to keep the dishes clean and the floors mopped, the papers stacked neatly and letters delivered on time to pages? Rarely were they noticed saved when called upon to fill a brief task, but regardless they saw everything.
The Harhold maid was just as any others, hardly noticed by her employers, but it was no issue. She dusted the tables and occasionally fed the dogs, fixed the tapestries of red or polished the jewelry of the house ladies. Of course, there are the daily things that distract from exact schedule, and today was no different.
There came a light knocking at the estate door as the maid was sweep out the foyer. She tucked back a strand of hair and stepped over to the door, smoothing her apron before opening it to see who was arriving so late in the day.
A young man dressed in simple clothing stood outside the door, stepping back some at the abrupt door-swinging. He was certainly no page, perhaps an establishment cleaner, but definitely no one hired by anyone of wealth. The man hesitated before sticking his hands out towards the maid, a small and beaten up box held in them that he awkwardly offered out.
"What… is this?" She asked, lifting her dark brows towards the stranger. He gave a self-conscious clear of his throat, still offering the box out before speaking.
"Ah… a young lady told me to take this to the Harhold estate, it took me an awfully long time to find my way here. She said her name was Madame Haeddi." He offered, the box somewhat lowered as if he wasn't quite as sure anymore. "This is the right house, isn't it, miss?"
The maid only looked more puzzled before taking the box into her hands, though she didn't open it.
"Well… Yes, sir, I would say this is the right house. Madame Haeddi lives here, did she say why to bring it?" The man just quickly shook his head as a reply to the servant's question.
"No- ah. She was with another pretty dressed girl. I think she just wanted it sent home before she went somewhere with her."
"Oh, well that sounds just like her." A laugh escaped the maid before she paid a glance behind herself towards the empty foyer, then to the broom against the wall, leaning and waiting impatiently for the sweeping to be finished. Her laughter drifted off and the woman cleared her own throat then, tucking the little box under her arm. "My apologizes. Thank you for bringing this, sir."
The deliverer flashed a smile to the maid before stepping back some. "Of course, miss. See you again!" He offered a wave as he turned about to walk off, earning one in return from the woman in the estate doorway.
"Spirit guide you!' The maid called back, hesitating to watch him go before returning into the foyer and closing the door behind her. She lifted the box in her hands to glance over the lid, nothing truly spectacular about it. The broom continue its leaning, waiting for the servant, but instead she walked right past it towards the stairs.
The woman walked silently through the halls, mouse quiet as usual as the rest of the estate continue its undisturbed nightly activities- whether that be nightly cleaning up or slumbering away in locked rooms. She carried into the empty bedroom of Madame Haeddi, eyeing the bed and then the dark window- the moon shining brightly in.
She rested the box down onto the desk, pausing before she left again. Filled with curiosity on what was inside, she clicked open the lid of the box to find what was inside such a late night delivery…
Coins. Dirty old coins and shiny new ones.
The maid gave a perplexed look into it before lifting one of them, leaning close to the dimly lit window to examine it. The coin was etched, nothing like an average regal. Instead, a picture was carved into the coin's face. A soft sigh escaped the woman, amused by the odd little thing that Madame Haeddi got brought home and relieved that it was no dangerous gift from someone that had not been the girl.
Comforted by the fact that the man had not been lying about the contents of the box, she set the coin carefully back into the little chest and shut it back closed, leaving it atop of Haeddi's desk. The maid stepped back out of the room, quietly shutting the door before carrying back down the steps to the front door.
Another woman had taken up her broom and sweeping in the foyer by the time she returned. Her moment of curiosity was now over and her conversation with the kind stranger no longer the focus.
The maid remembered her duties and took a moment to release a sigh. Then she turned to enter the kitchen, returning to her nightly cleaning. Servants are hardly noticed and always needed, after all.
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I thought it might be fun to write a lore story from the perspective of just a simple background servant character. This story has no affect on anyone, including myself, save for just some writing practice. Idk, hope it was worth reading lol.
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