Chapter Three

The doorknob wiggled just as they broke their kiss. Both of their hearts skipped a beat as the knob twisted and the lock mechanism gave way to open the door. Victor was surprised he hadn’t heard the creaky stair as these people (assuming there was more than one person) as they climbed the stairs. Then again, he reasoned with himself, you weren’t listening very hard, were you? He smiled in spite of himself and shot a fleeting glance at Victoria.

Victoria had wiped away her tears as soon as she heard noise outside the door. She had risen from the bed and picked up a drawing of a humming bird and held it in her hand, gazing intently. This was how their parents found them.

“Goodness,” said Nell as she walked in without bothering to knock. “We’d begun to worry if you’d died, didn’t we William?” She looked at Victor’s astonished face and frowned. Apparently she’d been expecting a slightly different scene.

“Oh, hello Mrs. Van Dort,” said Victoria happily. “Victor and I decided to come back here on account of the cold.” She noticed her mother and father in the hallway both of them looking dazed and disgusted. Apparently, coming here hadn’t been their idea. “Wouldn’t you agree it was a bit chilly in there, mother?” Mrs. Everglot looked a bit startled from being addressed directly, but recovered.

“Yes,” she said, frowning as always, “it was.” She looked at Victor with contempt before speaking again. “The part’s just ended. It’s time to come home,” she said coldly.

Victoria’s smile lost its truth, and she couldn’t think of a retort. “Goodbye Victor,” she said. “I suppose I’ll see you tomorrow.” She put back the drawing and walked out into the hallway.

Nell elbowed her son in the ribs. He rose with inhuman speed and walked quickly to the door. He followed the Everglots and his bride down the stairs, with his father and mother close behind. Just as Mrs. Everglot opened the front door to leave, Victor called to Victoria, “Goodbye Victoria!” with excessive enthusiasm.

She turned around and waved to him, a sad smile on her face. Then she exited and Victor was left in the sitting room with his parents alone again. Seconds after the door closed, his parents hurried over to where he stood and began talking at the same time very loudly.

“WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, LEAVING YOUR OWN WEDDING RECEPTION?” “Did you talk to her much?” “IT’S BAD LUCK TO LEAVE! WHAT WILL THE NEIGHBORS SAY?” “Shut up woman! You’re killing my ears.”

Victor somehow managed to ignore this. Instead of answering their pointless questions, he merely asked, “When do we leave?”

This rather startled his parents, who stopped arguing mid-sentence, which didn’t happen often in the Van Dort household. His mother composed herself first and asked, “What’re you talking about?” She stared at him, waiting for an answer. “Well?” she asked with impatience.

Victor met her gaze, faltering only a bit. “I asked, when do Victoria and I leave for our honeymoon? Where are we going? Where will we live when we come back? And will we get to choose where we live?” He took a steadying breath. “Victoria and I are married now, yet we’ve been told nothing of our future. Please, tell me,” he pleaded.

This time Mr. Van Dort tried to answer, but his wife beat him to it. “You’re so ungrateful. If you must know, you’ll be leaving tomorrow afternoon, to one of our manors. When you return, we’ll let you and Victoria pick a house you like. If the two of you can’t decide, we’ll pick for you. Happy?”

Victor’s face didn’t change, but on the inside he was smiling from head to toe. Soon Victoria, he thought, soon we’ll be rid of our parents, the drunk, senseless townsfolk…it’ll just be the two of us. While he was angry about his mother’s ‘ungrateful’ remark, he was willing to let it pass.

Tired of waiting for a response, Nell threw up her hands and said, “I’m going to bed.” As she climbed in the stairs, she muttered, “Not looking forward to the hangover, but at least I’ll be numb tomorrow…” She continued to gibber incoherently as she went up the stairs.

Victor’s father winked at him and whispered, “You’ve reeled her in, Victor. Top job.” Then he too headed upstairs to join his wife.

Victor looked in the mirror on the wall and saw something in his face he didn’t recognize. After a minute, it hit him; Victoria’s love for him ran both ways, and he was a better man for it. He smiled, finally truly happy, and headed upstairs for bed. He kissed his wedding ring fondly as Victoria’s image flashed into his mind.

~

Back at the Everglot manor, Victoria wasn’t faring quite as well as Victor had. She and her parents had walked home in silence, with only the crows speaking. The three approached the looming palace and entered. Victoria looked at the piano with fond memories of her first encounter with Victor and sighed. She could feel her parents gathering their thoughts, and she knew their explosion of questions was imminent. Alas, she was right, for just as she thought of that, her mother cleared her throat to speak.

“Victoria,” she said with a disappointed sigh. “Victoria, Victoria, Victoria. What demonic force possessed you to follow Victor home? Ah, ah, ah,” she said as Victoria tried to interrupt her. “You will wait for me to finish. While a punishment is in order, it will have to wait, as you need to pack your things tonight. Your honeymoon begins tomorrow evening, with your departure set in the afternoon, and I will not allow you to further disrespect us by being tardy. Now, up to your room. You need to pack and then get a good night’s sleep.” She turned around and headed upstairs.

Mr. Everglot said plainly, “I have nothing to add.” He motioned for her to follow her mother up the stairs.

Victoria’s mind erupted in anger. I am not a child! she wanted to shout. Just a few hours ago, you two did a fine job of disrespecting our family! And I will not be ordered about like a child. But she didn’t wanted to ruin the prospects of her honeymoon, and thus remained silent.

Reaching the top of the stairs, she entered her uninhabited room. She flicked a tear from her eye; just two days ago her servant (and the closest person she had to a friend) had been to preserve her parents’ ever-shrinking funds. She closed the door behind her and sighed heavily. With some difficulty, she managed to slip out of her wedding dress in a few minutes time. However, unlacing her corset proved to be a task in itself. On her first try, she managed to tighten it, soon sputtering and gasping for air. Fortunately, she managed to grasp a string of the bow and pull it open. She then nearly ripped the rest of the strings off by frantically trying to escape the deathtrap that so many women used daily.

She pulled it off, breathing heavily. Exhausted from the effort, she shoved the corset into a drawer and hung her wedding dress on a hanger. She tenderly put it in her closet. I’ll pack tomorrow morning, she thought, stifling a yawn. She slipped on her sleepwear and submerged herself beneath the covers of her bed. Tomorrow will be better, she thought, twisting the ring that held her future. She thought fondly of her new husband and drifted off to dreamless sleep.

~

The sun rose on the horizon as a new day dawned. Victoria’s dark room was filled with light as the sun poured in from two glass doors leading to a small balcony. Victoria’s face glowed in radiance as the sun met her face. She wrinkled her nose at the early hour and opened her eyes. She looked around her room and sat up in bed. She wiped the sleep from her eyes and recalled the events of the previous day. She thought of her beloved husband, Victor, in all his shyness.

Somehow, she thought, he became quite the romantic for me. She smiled and stood up. She had a lot of packing to do before her parents woke in a few hours. She dressed plainly in a dark blue top and skirt, with an extra shift underneath for warmth. Victoria heaved her traveling bags up from beneath her bed, already eager for her trip to begin.

~
“VICTOR! WAKE UP! IT’S ALREADY NINE AND YOU STILL HAVE TO PACK!” Nell’s voice bounded up the stairs and into Victor’s ears. He crumpled his face and opened his eyes. Sitting up fast, he replied as fast as one can after being woken in such a manner.

“I’m awake, mother,” he said, undressing as fast as possible. He pulled on a decent pair of pants standing up. Victor lost his balance and fell prostrate on his bed. He got up and pulled on a shirt and blazer. He ran a comb through his hair and smiled at his reflection in the mirror. In a matter of hours, he and Victoria would be away from their parents alone. Well, he thought, there might be some servants there, but we can always relieve them of their duties.

He pulled his bags from a closet and heaved them to the floor. He opened his closet to begin packing, but realized he had no idea how long the honeymoon would last. Maybe, he thought, I’ll go have a spot of breakfast and ask Father if he knows. Victor wasn’t particularly close to his father, but he decided that his father wouldn’t insult him just because he didn’t know.

Victor left his room and headed downstairs. His first thought upon entering the kitchen was, oddly enough, that his mother was missing from the table. However, his father sat at the far end of the table, eating slowly. “Good morning,” he said without looking up from his meal.

Victor took a bowl from a cabinet and asked, “Where’s mother?” He took some oatmeal from the box on the table and mixed it with some water in his bowl. He put it on the stove and sat down next to his father.

Victor’s father sighed. “She just left a few minutes ago. Said something about finding a carriage driver for your trip.” He finished his oatmeal and got up to wash the bowl and spoon in the sink. “Why do you ask?”

“Oh, no reason. But I do have a question for you; how long will the honeymoon last? I have no idea myself, and I need to know so I’ll know how much to pack.” Victor nervously scratched the back of his neck.

His father looked up and smiled toothily. “Well,” he said putting away the bowl, “I believe your mother said a week. Although I don’t know what you two can do in an old manor in the winter for a week.” He put away the spoon and moved to the door frame that led to the sitting room. “By the way,” he said, startling Victor, “I think your oatmeal’s ready.” He waved Victor goodbye and headed into the sitting room.

Victor glanced at the stove, surprised to find that his father was right. The oatmeal was bubbling impatiently. Victor was oddly reminded of his mother and laughed, imagining her as oatmeal. He took the bowl from the stove with a towel wrapped around his hand to protect himself from the heat of the stove. He placed the bowl on the table and the towel back on its rack. Remembering the stove, he turned off the burner and sighed from exhaustion; the previous day had dragged on for a fair amount of time. He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and yawned sleepily.

His stomach growled, eager or food. Victor got a spoon from a drawer and sat down at the table. Victoria entered his mind as he recalled her wave of emotion in his bedroom. A part of him said, I doubt that’ll be the only wave of emotion she will have in a bedroom with you. Embarrassed, Victor’s cheeks colored and he looked around to make sure no one was around. He shook his head and put his spoon in the oatmeal. You can be so paranoid sometimes, you know that? he scolded himself. He tried thinking more appropriate thoughts as he ate the warm oatmeal. He began to consider his father’s question. What will we do in the manor indeed? He then began considering possibilities, from teaching Victoria how to play the piano (if there even was one there) to reading from a book to her in the sun. He grimaced, upset that he and Victoria hadn’t got to spend much time together. And yet, he thought, she worried about me while I was trapped in the Land of the Dead. With this thought, he was contented.

~

Victoria wiped the glistening sweat from her brow after finally getting her last suitcase to close. She sighed with minor fatigue and heard her parents stir in their sleep across the hall. She flattened her skirt to eliminate the wrinkles and left her room for the dining hall, where the table sat, unset. Victoria groaned; all the servants had been let go, the same servants who set the table and cooked breakfast every morning. Shaking her head, she left the dining hall for the kitchen. The curtains were opened to let in some light, and Victoria began searching for bowls and plates.

One cabinet held spices, another teacups. Finally, after many more tries, Victoria came upon the bowls and plates in the last cabinet. She put three of each on the counter and returned to a drawer where she had spotted some spoons and knives. She took them over to the bowls and plates. Being careful not to make excessive noise, she put the bowls on the plates, and the silverware in the bowl on top. Face wrought with worry, she put her hands under the bottom plate and headed toward the dining room. Being mindful of the door, she opened it by backing up into it and then carefully maneuvering around it as it closed fearful it would break the dishes.

Victoria approached the table and put the dished down with care. She sighed in relief and separated everything: one plate, bowl, knife, and spoon fro each setting. She placed them on the placemats and smiled at her effort.

See, retorted her mind to her parents, we can get along without servants. Now…what’s for breakfast? She recalled the pancakes she had barely touched the day before, and her stomach grumbled in withdrawal. Toast and eggs it is, she thought. She gathered the bowls and spoons and returned to the kitchen. She put the bowls and spoons back in their proper places and got out the forks.

Victoria realized that it was quite pitiful that she knew nothing about her kitchen and had been living in the house her whole life. How can I expect to make breakfast for my parents and myself when I don’t even know where a frying pan is? She mulled this over and came upon an idea. Hmm…I’ll need to make sure they stay asleep for another half an hour or so… She smiled at the potential success of this plan, recalling the alcohol they had consumed the previous night and the effect it would have on their eagerness to awaken. She headed to the coat rack, eager to initiate her plan.