Challenging A Fool

"Did you get it?" Nora feigned fear in her eyes but in her heart she was smirking. In the past they both were fools. She suffered because she feared Penny. She had thought if she behaved, they would love her perhaps. Those emotions had made her fool.

In the past, her aunt had told her the same words. That Withermore was rich. They were the boss of her uncle and if she won their attention she could help them. And how she had given up on herself easily.

"Have you gone mute suddenly? Forget it, I do not need your acceptance. Your face said it all." she smirked and walked away only for Nora to curl her lips into a sinister smile.

"No," the single word paused the girl. Penny turned to glare at Nora when she found her fidgeting with her barely clad dress "aunt would be angry if i will not listen to her" 

Ha! Penny gritted her teeth. But even she feared her mother so she could not challenge Nora. 

"Since you dare to go against me, be prepared for punishment in the school tomorrow." Penny threatened in a loud and cold voice afraid that her position would weaken and stomped out of the room.

Nora rolled her eyes and then grinned. One would think that Penny had given up for the fear of her mother. But she knew well, Penny could never let go of her hunger for power and wealth. Her eyes fall on the clock. Only ten minutes were left until Nine. her eyes narrowed and she found the maids bringing glasses of alcohol. 

"Let me help you." She walked to the maid and pulled the tray from her hands. The maid was not prepared for the pressure. She let go of the tray but Nora pulled her hands away at the same moment. The bottle fell on the floor and shattered, staining their clothes. A small shard hit her leg and it started bleeding too.

Her aunt, who had changed her clothes into an elegant blue dress that matched her eyes and made her look younger, came running when she heard the noise. Her face red with anger and frustration.

"What have I told you? I want no mistake for the night. If my husband did not get this promotion, I will fire all of you and you.." she pointed at Nora with a glare she could not hide anymore, "you will be thrown out of this house so that you learn discipline." her chilly voice left the maids shuddering and Nora bowed her head. 

"It is her fault. She came suddenly and asked me to give her the tray. But she did not hold it properly when I let it go. I swear.."

"Enough! I do not have time for your blabber. Clean this at once." The chilly voice made the young maid mutter a curse. She gave a look of hatred to Nora and started picking the shards. 

Nora looked at the splashed wine on the ground. It was the vintage bottle her uncle had kept hidden for a long time. Withermore had loved its taste and asked her to refill that glass again and again. She even knew that there was no good bottle of wine left in the house that could attract that beast. 

She feigned sobs and bit her lips. Before her aunt could refuse, she sat on the wine and rubbed her dress on it slowly in the name of picking up shards with the maid.

"I will pick the shards, you shall go and bring the mop." The maid felt indigenous. She had never taken Nora as her boss. How dare she order her with her status.

"Are you both taking me and my threat as invisible?" her aunt gritted her teeth but she did not take a step forward to teach Nora a lesson. For some reason she felt that Nora was behaving differently. Even if it was for help, the girl had taken the decision on her own which had never happened in the past.

She would have stood there like a statue unless told otherwise. Her eyes narrowed on her face which looked so calm. There was no trace of fear there. But as she kept staring, Nora's lips quivered and more sobs escaped her. Nora bit her lips to make sure that she did not wail.

The bell rang, breaking her from her thoughts at the same time. She was aghast to see Nora's dress full of stains and blood mixing the wine on the floor.

"Nora!!!" The voice was enough to shake the whole room. "Go and change your clothes right now. Your role is too important for the night. So you are not going to do anything to ruin it. The guests are already here but look at yourself. You look pathetic." Nora flinched and stood up with her body shaking with fear.

The dress was a mess. She looked like a ghost with her make up washed by her tears and her dress soaking in the wine.

"Nora!!!" she shook startled and then ran to her room and closed the door at once. The fear vanished from her eyes instantly and her eyes became clear with a layer of frost covering them. 

Her face had no hint of innocence anymore but full of contempt and sinister look. She walked to the attached washroom and soaked herself in the bathtub without caring about the bleeding wound when she heard steps from the other side.

"What are you doing in my bathroom, you pest!" Nora tilted her head slowly only to see Penny had changed into the black dress she was gifted on her last birthday. Her mother had warned her to not wear it and gift it to Nora. but she was too reluctant to share anything from her cousin who was nothing but a pest in her eyes. 

The dress was made of sheer cloth. One can see a lot but at the same time they can not. The dress would ignite the passion of any man toward a young girl.