Jade (Chapter One)
Chloe L Batey

 

Imagine for a moment, if you will, that you're an ornament hanging on a tree, pretty in design and pretty in colour, a lovely red maybe or even an exciting purple, but nevertheless beautiful, the type of ornament that children love to look at and the ones that mother's loved to keep behind a glass cage so no one could touch it, no unknown finger print to mark the beauty of it, no child could get the grimy hands on it, drop it, play with it. This ornament was strictly to be looked at and not touched. Imagine for a moment this was a person, that is who I was. I was protected, sheltered like a princess in my tower, no one who displeased me was allowed anywhere near me, this was the legacy of the ornament, to be looked at, to be prided over, to be loved and held dear to one's heart, but not to be touched.

I was young then, as I am young now, it was not so long ago physically, but mentally it was a lifetime ago, how I went from being that ornament to what I have become now was and is a story that can be prided over in it's own right. My family consisted of parents who were concerned about the trials of climbing the social ladder, the world of the rich and the famous. Always setting themselves up for the next rung of the ladder, and that rung would tide them over until the next social event, and up they climbed. I was a princess of the highest spoiling, the highest priced object that my parents could sell. And they tried to sell me heart, soul and body. It is not that they did not love me, for they did more than one could ever imagine. But as all parents do they think they know what is best for us and we are obliged to follow their simple orders: Fall in love with the richest boy you can find.

My room was large, wide windows were graced with deep plum red satin curtains, which the wind loved to tease, a large balcony, which was the ideal place to read and write, looked over the fields of grass and trees, all the different shades of green and yellow blending together to form the most pleasing pictures of beauty. A vanity of old teak wood handed down to me from my grandmother was a prized possession, hair brushes made out of gold and ivory were just some of the many beautiful objects I owned. Looking in the mirror I knew exactly what I would see, pale skin, flushed cheeks, red lips, dark eyelashes and dark hair, and deep green eyes which is where I got my name: Jade.

I didn't have many friends, and whatever friends I did have were usually ones my parents had prescribed, and they were all beautiful. It seemed my parents couldn't stand to be around those who were less fortunate in their appearance. I had two friends, Louise and Mary-Anne, who I grew up with, and over the years we had become close, they were there whenever I needed someone to talk to, to lean on. They were beautiful people, inside and out. Louise was a lively girl, and she loved to be in the sun, her golden curls would shine and gleam, such a contrast to my dark hair, she had a wicked gleam in her blue eyes and whenever her eyes would sparkle Mary-Anne and I knew we were heading for a lot of fun, and maybe some trouble along the way, it was thrilling, I enjoyed the thrill of being caught, it made my heart beat fast and the blood pound in my ears, Mary-Anne was the complete opposite she was the voice of reason, carrying herself properly, hating danger and the thrill, she loved to read her books in the sun and dream her world away.

Another friend I had was my chocolate brown puppy, I had named her Snow, and she made me laugh so much, she suffered my raging tears and my quiet depression. She was there in the quiet of the night, when I was alone, I knew she could never abandoned me, nor could she ever learn to hate me, she was my fondest childhood memory, and I loved her the most.

Back then I had some beautiful jewelery, much of it the same deep green, that same deep Jade embedded in golds and silvers, all elegantly carved to a design of my liking. I had a new dress for every day, in the most beautiful and smooth materials I could get my hands on. I am not saying this to make you feel envious, but to make sure you understand how great this change of mine was, how I could manage to survive even without... I digress.

I remember this one night, I was 17, the age of an adult, almost, and my father was holding this big banquet, just one of many, that year. It was July, cold and dark, yet it was a beautiful night, I had a new dress, it was green, sleeveless and had a slightly lower cut neck line than what was generally approved of by my father, but I was happy. This would be my first banquet as an adult, or at least be treated as such, it was also a chance for my parents to parade me around, show me off like a prized porcelain doll. But that did not worry me, I was content in my state of conjured reality. And like all young girl's I was entranced with the idea of 'Prince Charming', with a great big wedding, the white dress, the flowers, the whole procedure, so this parading was just part of this procedure and I was enthralled.

My mother sent for me at six-thirty sharp, and I was chaperoned down to the banquet hall where I was greeted by many foreign faces, hardly anyone here was familiar, except for my father who was beaming at me from the head of the table. Some light music was being played by the violin quartet, who were set up in the corner, I did not even look their way as I walked past, they were beneath me and my family, regardless of the way that their music made me feel. The slow rhythm of the music pulsating through my body. I had always been a music enthusiast, just hearing a simple four crotchet beat was enough to hook me and take me on an emotional journey, but restraining myself I walked by, without a glance, without a sound, and quietly I took my seat beside my father, now specifically on display, once more the ornament.

Dinner was fairly uneventful, sometimes I wished that something exciting would happen during all of the small talk, but I sat quietly, watching the men and their wives working away at bettering themselves, �well my estate has brought in many young calves, we'll be selling them for 300 gold pieces...� and then the man opposite would chuckle, his fat stomach wobbling, and he'd shake his head and proclaim loudly �Well my estate has brought in many lambs, their wool is sold for...� and this exchange would pass down the table each person boasting how much their estate has brought them.

I tuned the talk out until my father called my name, bringing my thoughts back to the table, looking at him questioningly, I noticed dinner was being cleared away, which meant it was time for the quartet to play something lively so that we could dance. Father asked me to lead the dance, and to choose a partner from the table, I quickly scanned the table trying to find someone who was closer to my age, so I looked for a smile, the older men never smiled, they only looked disdainfully at you from behind squinted eyelids. I found a smile, it belonged to a brown, curly haired boy, I curtsied at him and he stood to bow, then gracefully moved to my side, taking my hand and leading me in the dance. The other guests followed our example and made their way over to where we were to dance.

I looked at the boy who was undoubtedly handsome, he had a firm hold on my hand and my waist, making me squirm uncomfortably, the music spurring the dance on suddenly changed tempo, a slow dance, I did not want to dance so closely with this boy, there was something about him that I could not trust completely, and so I went to pull away from him, but his relentless grip on me allowed him to bring me closer to him and we continued to dance, my previous graceful dancing now turned into a stumbling and jilted rhythm which I know displeased my parents, and my guests would surely have been embarrassed by the ordeal, �let me go� I whispered softly to him, not wanting to alarm the adults that something was wrong, as I got myself back into the graceful rhythm. �Why?� he asked and raised an eyebrow �I have not finished dancing� I sighed, the man was always right even when he was wrong, this was the rules of the society we lived in.

The music sped up again and the boy allowed me some breathing space again, and this time I looked him in the eye, I did not even know this boy's name, and yet I did not find his company all that pleasing, in that time I would have said I hated him, although that hate was superficial and a child's hatred, my mind and those words of hatred would disagree with each other, it is not that I hated him, it was more the fact that things weren't going my way, a spoiled little girl's reaction. I gave in to him, and we continued to dance, he started up some small talk to which I pointlessly joined in, he loved the sound of his own voice too much to care what I had to say, finally I got tired of mentally calling him boy, �What is your name, sir?� and to which he grinned, �ahh dear, so finally you ask, It is Brian� and then he continued to talk some nonsense about cattle and sheep, so once again I tuned out, instead tuning into the music once more lively once more so inviting, I noticed we were getting closer to the quartet, and I allowed myself to peek at them.

The four were uniformed brightly in a deep royal purple, they were younger than I expected, all in their early twenties, they should have been married by now, living freely from the land, that sounded so enticing, that freedom, I took in their faces, they were quite handsome of course, being unattractive would just not do for such a high class audience, and they were all informed, I'm sure to avert their eyes whenever I came near, allowing me to watch them unnoticed, Brian spun me around and I followed his lead, but as I left I looked over my shoulder, one of them winked at me, and my heart skipped a beat, he had broken the rules, I smiled at him, but my heart was beating so fast, if that man was caught he'd surely be sent away, hurt, I didn't know. My father was very strict when he needed, nay, wanted to be.

�What are you smiling at, Jade?� Brian's question snapped me back into focus, I looked up at him, hoping that my eyes would not betray my answer �You, my Lord.� I fluttered my eyelashes and he smiled back at me, seemingly pleased at my answer, I quickly glanced back at the winking musician, noticing that his hand was clasped around his mouth and not playing his instrument, and my smile widened at his laughter, and Brian grinned wider at me, he was charming I gathered that but still, behind that charm was a social ladder climber, he was most likely following his parents rules: find the richest girl and make her fall in love with you.

Oh to be poor like those musicians, when you didn't have so many social barriers, where forced love was a dream-like idea, that only happened to those in stories. But my lot wasn't so bad, I enjoyed being doted on, dancing, the music, the food, the jewels, the fact that I could pretend that dancing with this charming boy was the greatest privilege that could ever be bestowed on me, and watching him I could tell he thought I was having the greatest time because of him, but it was because of the music. The violinist could tell that.

My father pranced over to Brian and myself, and asked me to dance, I obediently ended my dance with Brian, curtsying towards him giving him my hand, which he took and planted a kiss on it, that same firm grip holding my hand, and his eyes holding my own, I never noticed before how beautiful his eyes were, a brilliant grey which took in the colours surrounding him. It made him seem intelligent, which I'm sure he was, and then after a moment, he released my hand surrendering it to my father, the quartet played a lively jig and father had me laughing throughout the whole dance, making faces and making fun of the rest of the guests, and all the while I had the sensation of someone staring at me, and through my resistance, I did not look for whoever that was.

My father handed me over to an older man, with a white fluffy beard and a big friendly smile, his name was John O'Grandy, owner of a large estate, and he was a light hearted old fellow, and he enjoyed making me smile, and I enjoyed his company. Throughout my years of dancing at banquets he would become one of my favourite dancing partners, he brightened up the dimmest moods. From John I was passed onto another young man, James. He was a sweet kid, shy and timid, and not very good at dancing, after two dances, a flash of royal purple swept me away from James and I was in the arms of the winking musician. I gasped and tried to move away from him, to stop him from the fury of my father, but secretly my admiration for his courage was coursing through me.

�So miss Jade, shall we start dancing?� he asked me, his deep voice quite pleasant to the ear, and his question made me noticed that I had stopped moving, �we can't� I whispered, I was not appalled that this man was touching me, I was scared for his safety and then for mine, but his hands coaxed me into a slow swaying dance, �and why not? There is music playing, there is a space to dance, so why don't we enjoy it?� I did not reply, but looked around for my father who was standing over near the table, talking with who I assumed was Brian's father. The violinist looked at me, his eyes finally resting on the jade pendant hanging around my neck, and suddenly I wished my neckline was higher like usual. �That's a beautiful necklace, matches your eyes, your dress, your earrings, your shoes, your everything... don't you wear any other colour?� I looked down at my shoes his hand slid under my chin and brought my face up to his, and then his hand returned to mine.

�I don't think you should be dancing here� I told him, he just smiled and asked me with pretense of confusion �Where would you like me to dance? Outside?� he laughed at himself, and I looked at him, appalled, my opinion of him slowly diminished with each little stupidity. I pushed myself away from him, and even though his grip was still on my hand I moved towards the table, trying to get away from him. He pulled my hand and I spun around and fell into his chest, and he continued the charade of dancing pleasantly. �What do you want?� I grumbled, he merely laughed at my discomfort �nothing but to dance, little girl� I pulled my head away from his chest and restrained myself from yelling at him �I should have your tongue cut out, then you would not lie� he looked down at me and whispered �Yes, but then you would never be able to hear the truth of how beautiful you really are either� his face was close to mine now and he moved closer even still, �you lie� I whispered and ripped myself away from him.

I walked to the table and sat next to my waiting father, who seemed to be beaming at me, �Ahh Lord Thornton, you have decided to grace us with your presence after all, and I see you've met my daughter� I opened my mouth in shock and my father continued to compliment Lord Thornton �you're quite the dancer, and quite the violinist� I turned around to face Lord Thornton,nand I wanted to hit him. My admiration for him had died, he was not being dangerous, he was not as courageous and brilliant as I thought he was and yet he smiled cheekily at me, greedily taking in my discomfort. I excused myself, at my father's bidding and I was chaperoned up to my room, where Snow was waiting for me with a wag of her little tail.

I don't know why, but I felt slightly betrayed by Lord Thornton, putting him from my mind I went to change into my night gown, a purple this time, I was getting sick of the colour green. My nurse came in and helped me finish changing and brushed my hair back into a braid, finally handing me a toothbrush, I looked in the mirror and wanted to throw it out of the window, the girl staring back at me was not someone I necessarily wanted to be known as, the princess, the spoiled young girl, the beautiful one. I wanted to be known for who I am, who I thought I was, Jade.

Nurse left me alone then, leaving me at the vanity, I stood up, creating a beat to which I could dance towards my bed, spinning and twirling, stepping forwards and backwards, clapping and humming lightly. I threw myself onto the bed laughing as Snow tried to play with my hair, a knocking sound came from my balcony window, Snow jumped off my bed growling, I followed her, picking her up as I got near the window, I opened it, and their stood Lord Thornton, I closed it again quickly before he could say a thing, my heart beating once again, he was once more being dangerous, and I put the squirming Snow down so she could go snuggle into my bed.

�What do you want?� I asked him, I heard his laughter ring out �Will you be quiet please? I am not getting in trouble for another one of your stupidities!� I almost stamped my foot in frustration, I was not usually one for tantrums so this gesture of mine was one that surprised me, �To talk little girl, just to talk�
�Well you can do it from there Lord Thornton�
�William�
�Pardon?�
�My name, it's William�
�Oh...William. What is it you need from me?�
�Your father is setting plans to marry you off to someone�
�You make it sound so horrible, but yes I know, Brian I assume�
�I ask that you put forward my name�
I opened the window again, �and why would I want to do that William Thornton?� I stepped through the window and onto the balcony pushing him backwards until he was pressed against the stone wall, the dark sky and wind helping the stone to become cold against his back. �Why?�
he smiled �because my dear, no one can know you like me, you like the pretty things in life, the materials, the jewels, the everything� I fumed at the suggestion that all I was was a pretty face, there we go that ornament in the glass box I was once more presumed to be. �get out� I said quietly venom dripping with each little word I uttered. He reached down for my hand, kissed it and said �I can see you changed from green, so you do own more than one colour� I looked back up at him and he stole a kiss, I slapped him hard, a hand print sprung up almost straight away, and I pushed him, he laughed at me �you're kind of beautiful when you get angry� I stormed off leaving him alone on the balcony.

I stood with my back against the window, half hoping he would knock again, shaking the pain from my hands I listened for any movement, I hoped that I did not hit him too hard, and I secretly hoped he would try to steal a kiss again. I heard a whispered good night, and I opened the window quickly and peeked out, there was no sign of him, and I frowned slightly, I did not mean for him to leave, I did not mean to act the way I did. I closed the window and locked it behind me, making sure there was no way that William could get in. I could still see his silhouette through the window, but I dimmed the lights and tried to sleep. I reached the point where I was not quite asleep and yet not quite awake, left in limbo between sleep and consciousness, I heard a sweet voice singing, I was not sure if it was dream or real and so I did not move, but my ears pricked up to the sound and took in the lyrics:

�Little girl, close your eyes,
Let your dreams fill the skies
And while you sleep
I'll watch over you
Your guardian angel
Of dreams come true

Little girl, sleeping so quiet
You have your angels in sight
And while you sleep
I'll be here with you
Your guardian angel
Of dreams come true�

A growl from Snow told me that this singing was not a dream, I sighed and tried to ignore it, but it seemed to get louder and louder until I thought my father would awake and storm into my room furious, I jumped out of bed at that thought and opened the window again, getting ready to yell at the singer. I slipped out onto the balcony and there was no one in sight, a note lay on the edge with a rose, I picked both up once again looking for whoever left the note, I lifted the rose to my nose and took in the smell of it, intoxicating as it was I put it down, opening the folded parchment, in scrawled ink the note read something quite beautiful, and my cheeks blushed as they still do when I read the letter, I walked inside and hid the letter under my pillow leaving the rose on the vanity, smiling I fell asleep, with no more disturbances.

      

 

 

Copyright © 2009 Chloe L Batey
Published on the World Wide Web by "www.storymania.com"