The house was perfectly set up.

Already the sky was darkening outside the windows, and Kidget was waiting beside them, a serene smile on her face as her hands fidgeting with a tassel from the drapes. The younger girls were still underfoot now, chasing each other about the hallways of the house. Shortly, they would be dismissed to their rooms, or to play under the light of streetlamps outside if the men were not expected to be here for long.

I doubted things would go that way, though. From the way the men had snuck glances at us through the hours we had stood there, making light conversation with each other whenever their tasks drew them closer to the crowd, I suspected they would want to take their own sweet time getting to know all of us.

I had been sent out to the market directly after leaving the docks, to purchase the newly unloaded fresh goods. The last of our coins had hung in my pocket, making small clinking sounds with every stride of mine as I made my way to the edge of the market.

Many things were still in crates when I had arrived, but I had my mind on one thing only. Meat. Pestas was not meant for the rearing of livestock, and so meat was a delicacy usually only enjoyed in the days following at freighter rolling into town. It was purchased fast, and then dried and made to last as long as possible.

Mam Dorce had also requested I pick up fresh fruits as well, to adorn the small cakes she would be making with what little ingredients we had for making desserts. It wasn't often we spent such money on meals, but with the expectation of so many men coming, and for so long, Mam Dorce knew some sort of food would be needed to satisfy them.

Secretly, I was overjoyed. What leftovers remained would be given to the littles, who squaled with delight any time fresh fruit came into their possession, and the variety in reactions made me smile inside. Some treasured it, eating in slowest bites possible to make it last the longest, while others scarfed it down, as if it might be taken from them if not consumed quickly enough. Still others would trade it, until they achieved something they deemed worthy enough for themselves. I had always been one to treasure it, reminding me of days spent with my father on the planet we had lived on before.

But those days were long gone away. Now, I was here in this room, pulling in chairs from the kitchen and helping Reah settle blankets over the backs of them. Fia helped some of the elder Young, those of about sixteen years of age, herd the smaller children back upstairs to the bedrooms, where they could be kept out of sight, and out of the way.

I found myself in the kitchen now, rushing off the small count of dishes we had, my mind turning back to the coin purse. I had found the meat and the fruit, even haggled for a lower deal, and yet it remained so limp when I returned home, only five coins inside of it. That would not last us long enough. Tonight had to go perfectly. There were no other options for us tonight.

The house seemed to freeze, and I heard it now, the knocking sound. A creak, and Kidget's voice.

"Well, hello gentlemen. So glad you could make it, would you like to come inside?"

I let out a sigh, closing my eyes. "Tonight will be better," I whispered. "Tonight will be better." Then, I picked up the tray of sliced fruit and small cakes and carried them into the living room.

We had cleared everything out but some seating, leaving the space feeling much more open than before. Men filed in, tipping their hats to Kidget, who still stood at the door, smiling and fluttering her lashes in response to some of their greetings. I froze in my place, and could hear the clatter of dishes against each other as I stared blankly as the gathering before me.

Reah played it off with a laugh, taking the tray from me. "You'll have to excuse her," she chirped, shifting the tray into an older girl's hands—Jian. "She's young, and this is her first time."

My face flushed from all of the sudden attention, and I looked quickly to Leanor, panicking. She mouthed a word to me and tilted her head. I hesitated a moment, then dropped into a curtly. "It is a pleasure to meet all of you," I said quietly, my voice feeling small in the presence of so many. "Thank you for coming."

One man scoffed. "Why, she ain't nothing but a child! What kinda place is this?"

I stood up straight, eyebrows crashing together as I frowned at him. "I'm eighteen!" I said in protest, putting my hands on my hips. I looked a him a moment. "And besides, by the look of your hairless face, you might as well be a boy."

Kidget gasped in dismay, and Reah shook her head, but many of the men guffawed at my response, one slapping the boy on the back with a laugh.

"She got you there, Phipps. She might even be older than you, kid."

Phipps made a face at the older man, the scowl helping to soften some of the youth on his face. "I am older than her, Lorsten. I just don't get why you had to drag me here to this place. They're nothing but prostitutes anyways."

Kidget turned towards him, slowly, her eyes eyes burning with barely controlled anger. "What, pray tell, did you just say, sir?" Her voice trembled a little, and the other men in the room all backed away from Phipps, who seemed to grow nervous now.

He looked Kidget up and down, then his jaw set. "I have nothing to say to you, wench."

Kidget looked ready to slap him, and Reah stepped forward, grabbing her by the elbow. "No," she said softly, shaking his head. "He's young, he doesn't know any better."

One man stepped forward and folded his arms in front of himself. "He should know better than to speak of a lady that way." He jerked his head toward the door. "Get out of here, Phipps. Run back to the ship and know you have brought shame on you, and us this night. Now leave."

Phipps hesitated a moment, then ducked his head and stode for the door, his shoulders curled in as he walked. The moment he left, the tension in the air seemed to ease itself.

"Well," Kidget said, her voice still breathy. "Would any of you gentlemen like some refreshments?"

The man stepped forward from the door, taking off his hat. "I would like," he said slowly, "to apologize for his behavior, madam." He offered out his hand. "I do hope we can find a way to make up for him."

Kidget held out her hand, and he took it, pressing a light kiss to the back of it, bowing. "My name is Dawson. It is a pleasure to be in such fine company as yours."

Kidget dropped into a curtly. "I am Kidget. I am the Eldest here, and you have seen Enori, the youngest. I would you to meet the others, though." Kidget moved about the room, with the men setlling into the chairs and couches provided, a few taking the food offered unto them as Kidget spoke.

Veda was first, followed by Kinsey, Ashta, Nurwa, and Genoria. Then came Reah, the Eldest in our room, with Melle, Dorcas, and Presa. Then it was Triste, Fia, Wilomi, Leanor and I. There men also gave out their names, but all their appearances seemed to blur together, and I could no longer keep track of which men had introduced themselves to me, which name belonged to who, and even what i was meant to be doing in this moment.

Everyone seemed to be talking so loudly, their voices crowding up against my, pressing into my chest and making it jard to breathe. My hands hadn't stopped trembling from before, and I tucked them into my skirt in an attempt to hide them from the others.

The room simple felt too full, with not enough room to the move, to breathe, as if I hadn't enough space to draw air into my lungs. Closing my eyes, I turned on my heel and disappeared into the kitchen, past Mam Dorce still in there preparing another platter full of meat, out the back door and into the great wide space of night.

The door clicked behind me, and I drew in my first full breath since the men had arrived to the Hents House. I had thought I would want to stay here forever, to not ever leave this life, but to look at me now, that was a foolish thought. Here I was, holding back tears in the tiny slip of alleyway behind our home, instead of doing the one thing I had been raised to do. None of the other girls seemed to have any difficulties with this, so why was it troubling me so? Why was I incapable of standing before these men and following the simple steps I had learned for years?

A light laugh tossed in during conversation, knowing smiles, little glances. A small touch here, a tap on the shoulder there, a leaning in of the body toward a man, and he could, and would, fall for it. Fall for me, if only I would just do it! I knew what must be done, if only I could go about accomplishing it!

"Hey purty girl."

My heart seemed to stop within my chest, my breathing choked at the sound of that man's voice. My head swiveled ever so slightly to see him, an eerie smile stretched across his face as he stepped closer to me, down the cramped alleyway between the buildings. I spun, pulling at the doorknob, a small sob catching in my throat when it didn't open. No! It was only unlocked from the inside, and now I couldn't get in and he was coming closer and—

"Please!" I sobbed, slamming my hands agaisnr the door, rattling it in its frame. He started go run now, and I could see the glint of a knife in his hand. "Please!"
-
He reached out to grab me and I ducked, screaming. There was a sharp pain in the back of my head as grabbed the tail of my braid and yanked me back. My body slammed into the wall of the house, and I gasped, lungs spasming as he stood over me, the glint of light on the knife, a pale streak of a smile in the darkness.

The cold tip of the knife scraped across my skin, tracing the curve of my cheek, and I stilled, afraid that any movement would spur him into action. He was laughing to himself now, and I closed my eyes, trying to block out that terrible image of the man before me.

The door slammed open. The knife jerked across my face and I screamed. There was a shout, a scuffle, the sound of fist and bone colliding. Muffled curses and the door opened once more and there were hands on me, grabbing me and lifting me and I could hear that man, laughing. Laughing as he fought, as he spun the knife around and swung—

"Look out!" I lurched in the hold of the men who had been trying to bring me into the house, heart leaping into my throat.

My warning sent my protector flinching backwards, the sweep of the knife barely cutting through the fabric of his shirt. He hit the wall on the other side of the alley, and the smiling man was running, running so very far away.

My body lost its strength, my legs going limp beneath me, and I let the men bring me into the house, realizing vaguely that hot blood was rolling down my cheek and dripping off my chin onto the fabric of my white blouse.

Mam Dorce let out an anxious sound when she saw me, her hands fluttering about her as she directed the men to bring a chair in for me.

I could see the other girls crowding in the doorway to the kitchen, but the world seemed to be fuzzing at the edges, the details smearing together. Nameless, faceless men spoke with each other, anger in their muddled words, and I closed my eyes against the heat of it, building up in this little room.

Heavy boosteps, and I cracked one eye open to see my protector come in through the back door, a scowl on his face as he shook his arms out. "He got away," he spat, rubbing at his jaw. "That son of a motherless toad got away."

My eyes dropped to a small bloom of scarlet across his chest, and I struggled to string to words together in my head, my voice wavering as I said, "You got cut."

He looked down at his chest, blinked once. "Huh. So I did."

It took a moment for my brain to connect this man, this voice, with one of the many names that had been tossed about the room not even five minutes earlier, when I had been so desperate to escape.

"Dawson." The word felt foreign to me, clumsy on my lips but it caught his attention. I tried to pull away from Mam Dorce as she tried to smother my face with a wet cloth. "You need to get that fixed."

His lips twitched. "I'll be alright, little lady."

The other men were growing restless now, I could feel it. The desire to talk with the girls, but also pressured with with reluctance to leave them room.

I nodded, suddenly aware of the attention, once more, all on me. "Thank you." I hesitated. "Please enjoy the rest of your evening, gentlemen. I assure you I will be fine."

I turned away from them, away from the watchful eyes and towards Mam Dorce, who was kneeling on the ground before me. "I'm sorry," I whispered to her. "I couldn't breathe."

She gave me a barely imperceptible nod, before her attention shifted to somewhere behind me. "Kidget, dear, why don't you bring some more refreshments out for the gentlemen. We'll see if this evening can run smoother now."

Her voice was barely a whisper when she spoke to me again. "Was it him? That... that man?" Her voice trembled, eyes dark as they searched my own. "Did he hurt you?"

A dry laugh escaped my lips, and I dug my hands into my hair. "Oh of course he didn't," I replied, my chest heaving somewhere between a laugh and a sob. "No, no I just started bleeding out of nowhere, Mam Dorce."

Her eyebrows furrowed, wiping at my cheek. I winced at the pressure. "Insolent child," she muttered. "You know what I meant, Enori. You mustn't behave so flippantly."

I sighed, fidgeting with the cuffs of my sleeves. The stinging pain from before had shifted into a dull throbbing, reverberating heat through my skin. "It's not like I didn't try to get away." She pulled out an ointment from the small medical pack we kept stored under the kitchen table. "Will it scar?"

"Perhaps." She dabbed ointment onto the cut, and I hissed from the sting of it. "Hold still girl," she reprimanded. "Tis only a small cut, you'll heal quickly if you keep it clean."

Mam Dorce pulled out a bandage and secured it over my cheek, patting it down with one finger. "You can go rejoin the gathering now, if you wish. I believe many of the men will want to check on your welfare."

I closed my eyes, leaning back in my chair. "Must I?"

"You must."

I sighed, and pushed myself up to standing, flaring out my skirt. "I got blood on my blouse. I can't go back in there like this." It was a feeble excuse, an attempt to simply run away, to hide beneath the covers in my room and let myself become calm, to the point where I could breathe without feeling that pinch in my chest.

"Go change then." Mam Dorce's concern had ebbed away, the calamity having since passed, and no more reasoning for affection. "You have other attire."

I didn't really. Perhaps she had forgotten that I was the Youngest, and that we were not given skirts and dresses until we came of age. The only other dress I owned was my silvery one, but to wear that now would be to surely upstage the other girls.

There was no way I wanted that.

"Ok," I said. There was no matter of argument with Mam Dorce. What she said, I would do.

The stairs creaked beneath my weight as I went up them. There was a shuffling of feet and the slamming of doors as I drew closer to the top. No doubt it was the youngers, crowding at the edges of the stairs to hear what was going on. Sighing as I reached the top landing, I opened the up the closest door, trying to paint a cheerful smile across my face. "Hey girlies."

These were the six-through-twelves, huddled about in their pajamas with wide eyes staring up at me. Jordyn plastered herself to my leg. "You're hurt," she whispered, her face buried in my skirts.

I patted her head indulgently. "I'll be ok honey. No need to worry." I looked at the rest of the girls. "It's gettin late. Y'all should be gettin into bed soon."

Lynne, one of the twelves, shook her head. "Mam Dorce's gotta come tuck the little ones in."

"Ok." I slowly peeled Jordyn away from my leg. "I'll send her up when I can. You get ready while you wait then." They continued to stare at me, and I backed away, closing the door behind me.

It wasn't like I disliked the kids it was just... I always felt like they were in want of something I wasn't capable of giving. That they had expectations I couldn't fulfill.

I figured Mam Dorce wouldn't approve if I went back downstairs in my softest sweater and a pair of pants, so I stood in front of the wardrobe, eyes scanning through the dresses there.

The biggest problem was, most of these were claimed, and take another's clothing without their permission would deal to a fight, especially with me being so new to this group. I knelt and pulled out the drawer at the bottom of the wardrobe, where old and unwanted clothing was stashed away. A glimpse of fabric and cloth. I dug down to the bottom of the drawer and pulled out a pale, lavender dress.

The style was older, so very different from our normal wear that I almost shoved it back in. I would stand out too much, and that was the last thing I wanted in this situation. But the fabric was smooth, with layers of something sheer and light, and it felt like I was holding some hidden treasure. I patted it, then tucked it back into the bottom. Now was not the time for distractions. I pulled out the first dress on top, a simple grey-ish green, and held it up. It had to suffice.

It fit too loose at the top, the straps slipping down my shoulders. I grabbed the shawl off my bed and wrapped it around my shoulders once more. I had been away from the gathering for too long now, Mam Dorce would be upset.

I tried not too trip going down the stairs, the was skirt longer than I was used to and I kept catching the hem as I stepped. And then I was in the kitchen, hiding my trembling hands behind my back, stepping into the gathering room.

The room was lit with light and life, candles hanging about and throwing shadows across the walls. One of the men had brought a small, handheld music rod, and was playing a dancing tune. The girls danced about in the center of the room, eyes glittering and wide smiles flashing as the spun and flared out their skirts. The men clapped to keep time, and a few of the girls who were not dancing sat in laps of these men, or huddled in shadowed corners, heads ducked low as they spoke to each other.

Between the darkness and the excitement here, I could enjoy the night, unnoticed and unbothered.

The throbbing of my cheek had faded now, though it stung a little as I smiled, slipping my way into the room, keeping to the edges and walls as I traveled it. If all went well, tonight our numbers would grow smaller, and girls would go off to fulfil what we had always trained for. Wives... homemakers... happy little women for the men to return to. Was it so wrong if that was not my desire? To want to see the world beyond this house, this city, this moon, that was what I wanted. I wanted that freedom desperately, just like so many of these other girls.

But I would trade all that freedom if it meant I could stay here, instead of shackled off to some stranger I didn't even know.

I had made it across the room, and I exhaled, letting myself take in the scene once more, the joy. Tonight couldn't last forever, but I would cling to it as long as I could.

"They look happy, don't they?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sound of the voice, and the man grabbed my arm to steady me. "Careful there, little lady."

He posture shifted, looking at me, and he dropped his hand. "Sorry, girly. I wasn't thinking. You'd probably like it if we all just let you be."

I shook my head, touching my hand to the door to steady myself. "No I—" my mouth worked without sound, and I closed my eyes. "I'll be fine, sir. Please stay." I tilted my head to glance up at the man. "Dawson."

He smiled at the use of his name, and he settled, leaning against the door. "Some shindig y'all got here."

My insides tumbled about, as if not sure how to work properly. "You mean it? We prepared it special for wall?" My lips twitched into something almost like a smile. "Except for the music. We didn't plan that one."

Dawson made a small gesture. "That would be Grent. He's a good one, I'm glad he brought that." His eyes looked out at the same scene as I, but looking at him now, je seemed so far away, as if he was not truly here in this place. "I'm glad," he echoed.

"Thank you," I whispered, at least, it felt like a whisper, wirh the rest of the room so loud it pressed against my chest. "For helping me."

He shook his head, his green eyes finally focusing into the moment, looking down at me. "No problem, little lady. I'm sorry I couldn't have come around any sooner." He rubbed at his jaw, and I saw the scuff of bruises and broken skin on his knuckles. "More sorry he got away."

I reached up and grabbed his hand, interrupting whatever thought he had been following before, studying it. "You're hurt." I looked up at him. "You really should get something like this taken care of. People get sick easy here in Pestas."

"Don't bother. Ain't no worse than what I get on the job."

I sighed, letting down his hand. "I suppose you wouldn't want me to take care of that cut across your chest neither?"

He shook his head, and though his tone was serious, I could almost see a twinkle of mischief in those eyes. "Course not. Don't think it would be appropriate to be shirtless on front of a decent woman such as yourself."

I flushed, red-hot heat rushing to my face and turning it what was sure to be an unflattering shade of red. "That's not what I meant! I mean—" I exhaled sharply, then knotted my hands together in front of myself, bowing my head. "Please excuse my rudeness, I hope that I did not offend."

Dawson scoffed. "It ain't rude, miss. You were just concerned and I was the fool who made a joke of your pure intentions. I should be the one to apologize, Enori."

I looked up, the name feeling like something delicate when he said it. Like I was a thing worth protecting. Just like how my father would say it, all those years ago. Dawson took my hand and lifted it up, his green eyes piercing into mine as he bowed to press a kiss to the knuckles there. The flush of my cheeks deepened, and for one dizzying moment the rest of the night faded away. I didn't know why I was reacting so irrationally, though. This was nothing more than an apology, just as je jad given to Kidget earlier. It was the same actions and everything.

I pulled my hand back, hiding it behind my skirt. "Thank you, sir. If you don't mind, I believe I have to go now. Thank you for your company."

I turned and all but ran, making no attempts to blend into the shadows as I left the room, I only wanted out of there, and I didn't care who saw me.

~
Word Count: 4285
Note: this chapter has not been edited at all. It will probably be broken into two separate chapters post edit
Question: how would you describe the character of Dawson? What sort of personality do you read?