Dreaming of Another Life

To tell you my name is Maggie would cause me to tell a lie. My name is Margaret. Telling you I condone the current state of the world would also be a lie. There are far too many people then there is space. But alas, I should not complain, for the wealth of my family is such that the space in our home is more than ample for the seven of us; my parents, my four sisters, brother and myself.

It would be wrong of me to deny that I am not privileged. Indeed, I am fortunate enough to belong to one of the most privileged families in England. We may not be part of the royal family’s inner circle, but we are privileged enough for my family to have titles. Even if I am only ever referred to as ‘Lady’ or ‘Miss’.

I must admit, it may be better not to have a life in the palace as a royal. There are far too many protocols and rules one must follow without being a royal. You would not be permitted to make even one miniscule error. As it is, when I do, Mother scolds me to no end. I have enough luxury as Lady Maggie. Perhaps too much. I long for a life of freedom. From the strictness of a life of nobility, from the increasingly crowded streets arising around us. I long for the fresh air and beauty that accompanies a life in the countryside. Or by the sea. By the sea would be wonderful.

Oh, the sea, a world all it’s own! Just think of a life beneath the sea. How wonderful it would be! A whole new world to explore. New creatures to befriend. Perhaps even a tail in place of legs! Now how would that be? To swim rather than walk. To float instead of stand.  I doubt the chill of the water would bother me long. I imagine one would get used to it given time. But the freedom a life beneath the waves would afford would aid me in my plight.

I look out the window now, at the gardens surrounding our home. Sighing heavily, I rise from my chair and set off to seek Mother's permission to explore. 

"Maggie, must you?" she asks. I simply look back at her, unsure of what to say. How to explain it. Then, I nod.
Mother exhales slowly. "Oh..." She looks around her, as if she'll find something to give her the answer. "Oh fine. But... Take one of the staff with you."
I feel my eyebrows rise an inch or two, not quite believing it. I shake my head a moment later, snapping out of my freeze from shock and turning to go. I shan't give Mother the chance to change her mind. I am a few metres away when I hear the sound of Mother's voice flying on the wind into my ear. I freeze and turn back. "Hugo," she says, "take Hugo."
Hugo? Around my age, he serves as our second footman, but hasn't been with us long.
Seeing my expression, Mother speaks again. "Give him a chance, Maggie. He might surprise you. Besides, it is pat of his job. I am sure he will be delighted to accompany you."
"If I must."
Mother places her hands on her hips, her face hardening. "Maggieo5dp," she says. "You told me you 'must' see the sea. This is my 'must'. You take Hugo with you, or you don't go. The decision is yours."
"Fine," I say, sighing.

-O0O-

I look around to see Lady Maggie approaching. I draw a deep breath, doing my best not to let too much of my excitement at her presence bubble through. Her long, regal skirts brush the floor as she walks, concealing her entire lower half from view. I look up to see the garment is fitted from the waist up, ending in a tight, crisp collar around her neck. My eyes reach finally reach her beautiful, porcelain face to find her dark, chocolate eyes staring back at me. Her hair is hidden away, tucked beneath the bonnet tied securely around her neck, the exact same shade of deep purple as her dress. I rise when she stops in front of me. "Hugo," she says. "I wish to see the sea. Would you accompany me."
"Miss Maggie, I would be delighted." She loops her arm through mine and we fall into step quickly and easier on route out of Lady Maggie's family's mansion and toward the sea.

"Why did you want to see the sea, Miss Maggie?" I ask as we stroll through the gardens.
She stops to look at me. "Don't you like the sea?"
I nod. "I quite enjoy the seaside."

"It's so peaceful isn't it?" Miss Maggie asks as the sight of the sand and the ocean stretching out as far as the eye can see appears before us. "I like it here. All we have is the sound of the ocean, a few gulls on occasion..." She stops, closes her eyes and inhales. She sighs with pleasure and begins to spin around, arms outstretched.
"You would make a wonderful dancer, Miss Maggie." I say when she returns.
At this, she sighs. "Mother always tells me the same thing."
"Do you enjoy dancing?" I ask.
"I enjoy ballroom," she says, "but one requires a partner to dance in the ballroom."
 "I'm sure you would have no trouble finding a gentleman to dance with."

Miss Maggie sighs again, turning her gaze toward the ocean. "I wish I could explore more under there. Could you imagine? A whole different world. How I would love a tail instead of legs."
"But Miss Maggie, how would you dance?"
"Hugo," she says, turning her gaze back to me. "Though it does make it considerably easier, one doesn't need legs in order to dance." Without hesitation, she takes my hands in hers and begins swinging them from side to side.
"Under the sea, one could sway, move, spin, dance. The possibilities are endless. "
Before I realise what I am saying, I open my mouth. "But up here, on the surface, you have me." I offer my hand. "I would be honoured to dance with you, my lady."
Miss Maggie hesitates. "Hugo, we mustn't."
"Why not Miss Maggie? We've nothing to loose. It's just you, me and the sea."
"No one to hear us but the gulls I suppose," she says in a whisper. I nod, a small smile stretching across my lips. I uncurl my fingers and meet her chocolate eyes with mine. "Miss Maggie, will you dance with me?" 

Brave

Alone, in the darkness of his quiet room, Joshua Keating was fine. There was nothing unusual or unexpected. No surprises or scary things to give his heart an unpleasant jolt. Inside was familiar, comforting and safe.

Until the outside started to creep into his peaceful safe haven. Suddenly, he could hear yelling outside his room. Muffled somewhat, because of the door, but yelling all the same. It grew louder and louder until it was all he could hear. Outside the door, he could hear the yelling and screaming, and then his dog, who was standing guard at the door, began to bark in response. The dog meant well. He was trying to tell them to stop, that the noise was upsetting his boy, but all he was doing was adding to the cacophony of noise assaulting Joshua's ears.

The one good thing was that the darkness of the room meant that Joshua could see little, cutting out another source of potential overload. But, he could still hear the yelling and the screaming. To a certain extent, he could feel the tension the yelling brought with it, and it made him feel rather uneasy. Joshua clasped his hands so hard against his ears that it caused him pain and began moaning, louder and louder until it drowned out the yelling and the screaming and the barking. Until it was all he could hear, but he kept going. It was an endless, vicious cycle. Noise to cover noise to cover noise that never seemed to stop.

Joshua did not know when he fell asleep. He did not have a great recollection of the night before. He just knew that he was glad to have awoken from the nightmare that was too much. Too much noise. Too many thoughts racing around and battling each other inside his mind. Too much stimulation. When he opened his eyes, he saw the sleeping form of his dog laying atop his feet. He saw this before he felt the warmth of the dog's body on top of him, and smiled. This, he could handle. This was all pleasant. Not overwhelming, overstimulating or overloading. This was nice. The yelling had stopped. Everything was quiet and calm. Just how he liked it.

In his room, everything was safe and quiet and calm. Outside, there was noise and light. Tension and emotions he could not understand nor name. But, Joshua remembered his mother telling him that he could not stay in the nest forever. This had confused him. But, she had explained, he was like a bird. A bird that needed to be brave and learn how to fly. "Venture outside your room," she'd said when he'd looked back at her blankly.  "Take a big breath, reach out, open that door and step outside," she'd said. "Your dog can come with you." As if to agree, Joshua's dog had suddenly appeared beside him, under his outstretched hand. He looked down, smiled at him and ruffled his chocolate coloured fur.

Joshua rose from his bed, clipped on his dog's leash, holding it tightly in his right hand. His dog stood obediently beside him as he stood, staring silently at the door. He took a big breath. Then, like the brave baby bird his mother had said he was, he reached out and turned the doorknob, opening it, and himself, to the outside world. Again, he paused for breath before taking a step. Like the baby blue bird, spreading it's wings and starting to learn how to fly.