A Feast For The Eyes

The sun had all but faded away, together with the last lights that gave me the opportunity to read all the books. Before it left completely, it peeked one more time, through the darkened clouds, refracting off the windows and dispersing into a brief rainbow.

The dust that danced throughout the day, dissappeared behind the shadows of the library.

I closed my sore eyes tightly and only after a few seconds reopened them again.

Through my blurry vision, I noticed on the table, a little candle disparaged by the many times it melted, solidified and melted again.

For a second, I considered lighting it to help me illuminate the papers in my hand, but decided to spare the small thing from a death with no meaning.

I'm sorry to have wasted everybody's time, I still couldn't read.

But don't blame me.

The language, contrary to my expectations, was harder to comprehend than I originally thought. Not just a simple alphabet with different letters.

From what I gathered, every letter had it's own meaning, similar to the chinese characters.

The only thing I was able to do, was seperate the books into reality and fantasy.

The golden-red book, jugding by the images, was about the last mythical beast, revered by the humans but alone as a species, while the parchment were probably tax reforms and expenses made by a country.

If I wanted to read any further, I would have to ask someone to teach me, and I wasn't ready for the shame yet, so my plans could only be put on hold.

It's not that big of a deal though, since I came to the library not to study, but to rest.

However, I wouldn't give up that easily either, so I took anything I found interesting and made my way towards the entrance.

The moment I opened the door, I was greeted by Vera, who had been patiently waiting for me to return. When she saw me, her eyes lit up again returning to the glistening brown color they had.

Behind her stood the librarian, who had since braided his long, straight hair into two twin tails. Why he did such a thing, I didn't plan on finding out.

"I have returned," I said, one hand risen in the air triumphantly, the other hand holding on to the many things I brought out. I like to think that I looked like a brave warrior who had fought through unknown lands.

I admit, there was no particular reason for my actions.

Vera played along, by covering he mouth and muttering, "yes, you have indeed." She then ran up to me and hugged me. I had to stop her though, otherwise she would damage the books I carried.

"Glory to the mighty," the librarian shouted, while grandiosely throwing his arms into the air. All the while, he remembered to not show any signs of expression, "may your tales of epic spread far and wide."

"Vera carry these for me," I gave her the things I carried, "let's leave afterwards."

"Yes, of course. It has gotten late."

I turned to the librarian again, "you wouldn't mind if I took them, right?"

"If you made sure not to damage them, I don't," he nodded, his head swinging up and down.

"Alright then," I said and left.

Vera, for the first time, followed right behind me, as I marched to my room. I turned my head one more time, only to see the librarian waving goodbye, almost using his whole body as a pendulum.

Couldn't he act normal for once?

It was not hard to find my way. After all, I had walked the path before, and I never forgot what was worth remembering. A left turn here, and another one there, and we soon reached our destination.

The familiar sight was easy on my eyes, which had been strained by looking at letters and symbols the whole day.

Someone, unbeknownst to me, had collected the many dresses that I took out of the wardrobe and cleaned the room. It had returned to its original state as if I was never there.

"Are you hungry," Vera asked.

I stared at my stomach and answered, "a bit."

"Alright, I will have a meal delivered," she said, but did not move.

The only thing she did was look at me with a smile.

"What?"

"Nothing, it is just that preparing and delivering your food was the job of another maid."

Ah, now that she mentioned it, I remember Celestia being the one who had brought the food in, not Vera. It was a minuscule detail and was overshadowed by everything else, so I paid it no heed.

But neither Celestia nor Vera were my personal maids. In fact, I could be glad that anyone was willing to help me at all, since on the surface, I was still the waste of this family.

Vera began fidgeting and wondered why I wasn't saying anything.

In the end I told her, "you can join if you want to."

Her face brightened up, and she replied, "well if you really want to, I guess it couldn't be helped."

"Also, tell Celestia to prepare her own share," I smiled, "let's make it a family dinner."

"Family," she repeated and then skipped away with giddiness.

I waited for the two of them to arrive while I laid on the soft mattress and rearranged my thoughts. I gave it my best to not fall asleep, as my eyes closed and opened again.

After a while, the door flung open, giving me a boost of energy, and I jumped out of the bed.

"We are back," Vera said, while Celestia followed right behind, shoving a cart through the door.

When I looked at Celestia, and she saw me too, the girl bashfully glanced away, avoiding eye contact.

She placed the trays on the table and revealed a diverse assortment of food.

One was a platter of garlic bread served with a creamy tomato brisque soup. The soup had a lovely orange color with a fragrant smell. A hint of basil was hiding behind the aroma of charred tomatoes.

The light scent was however overwhelmed by a more intense one.

At first, I did not know where the thick aroma came from, as it was hiding behind watery salad, embellished with a glimmering sauce, but as I took a closer look, I saw the marinated chicken, honey glazed and grilled until golden brown.

Supporting that was some buttered corn, shining like jewelry on a woman. As if that was not enough, there was a small pie made out of fruits.

All this was placed in front of me.

"Is today someone's birthday," I asked, baffled by the feast before me.

Vera shrugged her shoulders and said, "your grandfather has ordered the kitchen to prepare an unusually sumptuous meal for you," she then laughed, "they misunderstood and made enough food for a group."

I stared at the plates helplessly, "you're not telling me to eat all that, right?"

"Eat as much as you can, the rest can be dealt with later."

"Even if you say that," I muttered.

My eyes fell upon the other dishes, the ones served for Vera and Celestia, and I saw that they were less grandiose.

Celestia was holding the plates in her hands, unsure of where to place them, as she did not think I was planning on eating at the same table with them.

In one hand, she had some herb basted potatoes with slices of bacon. In the other, there was even less, only a porridge and some beans.

I clapped my hands, "I know, let's all share our meals," I said to them.

Vera tilted her head, and Celestia stood still, both unsure of the meaning behind my sentence.

"I mean, a family shares their food, so let's all eat together too," I pointed at the table, "Celestia, would you place down the remaining plates."

Although stunned, she did not disobey my orders and placed the plates without thinking too much. Her eyes however were unfocused, indicating that her mind was still unsure of what I meant.

Vera meanwhile, was a lot more free spirited, as she shouted, "is that alright, it's been a long time, since I have eaten such a sumptuous meal," she couldn't contain her smile, "is it really alright?"

"Calm- and sit down, I'm hungry," I told her.

She nodded seriously, and then sat down without great ceremony. Celestia was still stuck in her stupor, unable to comprehend what exactly she should do.

"Celestia, you too should sit down. A meal tastes sweeter with company."

"I don't think I should," was all she managed to say.

"Relax," I requested of her, "come on now, the food will chill, if you do not hurry."

I urged her a bit more, and only after I assured her that it was alright for her to join us, did she take a seat with utmost courtesy. Just like in the morning, she sat without any unnecessary motions, her body stiff as a board.

As everyone claimed one side of the table, I began preparing the food that lay before me. The maids tried interrupting me, but I insisted.

With a knife and my hand, I separated the chicken, pulling the meat into strings. The soup and bread too, I placed in the middle with a spoon sticking out. I tried my best to divide the food into equal parts and placed them on Celestia barley porrigde.

Seeing the chicken on her plate, her eyes widened, "miss, you shouldn't," she exclaimed.

"Most people just call me Agnes," I said, "and you should eat some meat, you are barely skin and bones."

Vera too agreed, as she said, "don't mind it, if the girl says it's alright then you should just accept it," while I was cutting the pie into big sized pieces.

The pie felt soft like a pillow, and puffs of hot steam escaped as I revealed its interior. It reminded me of treasure chest full of gold, only that the gold were different dried fruits, stuck between the dough. Every time I broke through the crust and hit the porcelain plate, a short but high ringing sound was played.

"Even so," Celestia stared fixedly at the food I offered her, "I've never eaten a chicken before," she mumbled, a bit guiltily.

Both me and Vera reacted simultaneously, surprised by her statement.

"Eh," I exclaimed, "not even once," and placed a buttered corn next to her beans.

She shook her head.

"Then this will be your first time," Vera said and bit into her potato.

"Hey, why have you already started eating," I shouted.

"You are taking too long. How could I wait, seeing all this food in front of me?"

I sighed and announced, "you're right, let's begin," and tasted the soup. It had a very distinct flavor, and felt very comfortable in my mouth.

My focus was on Celestia and how she was observing the meat in front of her. expecting it to suddenly move.

Maybe her courage was not big enough but she first ate the porrigde and some beans. When she tried the tomato brisque, her eyes lit up and she savored each spoonful, swallowing only after several seconds.

Like a curious cat, she began eyeing the stringed chicken for a while.

By the time she did, Vera too focused on what she would do next.

Celestia gulped once, and meekly looked at me for confirmation, which she naturally got, and then carefully placed the white, flaky flesh surrounded by charred honey into her mouth. She chewed once or twice, and then hid her mouth behind her hands.

"It's delicious," she said, much to Vera and my satisfaction.

The rest of the meal went on without any problems.

While Celestia was bombarded with all the new flavors she had learned, we talked about various topics.

Interesting things such as the state of the country, but also lighthearted rumors about the servants and the household. It was the most relaxing dinner I had since a long time. Celestia who got more comfortable with me and Vera, also opened up a bit.

The whole time, the pearly moon was silently looking over us.

"So, how are you two connected," Vera asked after we were were done eating.

Celestia, who was still basking in the euphoria of eating delicious food, began to tense up, "it is not as you think," she began denying, even though nothing was mentioned.

"Vera, don't tease her like that," I said.

"Excuse me, it's in my nature," she laughed and then jumped at me, "but Celestia, if you want her you need to gain my approval first," she stroked my head.

"Are you my mother," I rebutted and pushed her away, while Celestia was at a loss for words.

The dinner was concluded like that.

After they cleared the table, the maids excused themselves, as it had long been night time.

I then jumped into the bed, and without waiting for my food to digest, fell asleep due to how tired I was.

The serenity did not last long though.

It had been a while, but I had a dream. The dream was about myself. No, it was about Agnes, the black haired, blue eyed girl, who was beautiful and malicious.

I had dreamt of her before, just before the tragedy that befalled me and Estella, so I remembered it well.

Again, she approached me, but this time, the dream continued. Without any words, she began to grasp my neck with her cold fingers, and choked me. I tried resisting, but my body wouldn't move. All I could do was watch her as she placed her hatred on me.

By the time I woke up, My vision had already faded.

A big gasp was what I did first, longing for air. Afterwards I checked if the sun had risen, only to realize it was still night time.

"Shit," I mumbled and clicked my tongue.

A lovely but crisp voice resounded in my head.

ɢᴇᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ғᴜᴄᴋ ᴏᴜᴛ ᴏғ ᴍʏ ʙᴏᴅʏ.