~SebasChan and TheBouquineuse~

Claire disliked getting up before the sun. She understood the necessity of it; that if she didn't do so it could easily mean her job. She still disliked it. The sun was definitely up now, but before it had reached its current spot in the sky she had brought in sheets left out to dry over night, brought buckets of firewood to the guest rooms, and aided in getting the ingredients ready for breakfast. With a huff, she tucked a loose strand of her hair under her frilled cap then picked up the woven basket of sheets she had set down a moment beforehand. Having her hair in her eyes had made going up the stairs near nerve-wracking, and something she didn't want to ever repeat. As she walked down the corridor toward the Young Miss's room, she heard a crash of crockery in the opposite direction. She froze on the stairs, hearing distant shouts. It was far too early in the morning for this, and someone was going to get in trouble for it.

Once she had scurried down the hall and rapped her knuckles against the hard wood of the door, she let herself in. Before she went to open the large curtains, keeping all but the faintest shard of light out of the bedroom, she stoked the fire. "Good morning." She said, her voice lilting upward to feign happiness. With the softest clack of her hard-heeled shoes, she crossed the room to throw open the curtains. "Did the Young Miss sleep well? There is a hearty breakfast waiting for you downstairs, when you are ready to join your parents." Needless to say, Claire was not invited to this breakfast. Hers would commence only once the Young Miss had finished and moved on to a part of her day that Claire was not essential for. It could very well be two or three hours from now, although she hoped not.

Evalise rolled over lazily and buried her head into the pillows, in a desperate attempt to block the sunlight. “Leave me alone,” she mumbled. If there was one thing she hated more then almost anything, it was waking up. She didn't mind the morning per-say, just the act of regaining consciousness. Sometimes she was convinced that if she didn't have Claire to wake her, she would just sleep forever. She closed her eyes tightly and loosened her body, but it was to no avail. Falling back into her dreams was impossible now that Claire was in the room. And so she rolled over to face the ceiling. What time was it? Her parents were such prats that she could only assume that it was somewhere around six o clock. They seemed to love torturing her; making her wake up, hiring someone to treat her like a baby, forcing her to take classes on etiquette (while refusing her a real tutor), and her favorite, trying to find her a husband. It wasn't a kind thought, but sometimes she wished that they would disappear... forever.

“Are you allowed to tell them to...” She trailed off, somehow having actually absorbed that it was crass for a lady to swear. Not that she cared much, she just couldn't risk having her mother or father learn that she even used rude language. She looked over towards Claire and smirked. “Get me my proper clothing,” she ordered, disrobing right there, without even bothering to close the door. She was a fairly attractive young lady and so had never bothered with modesty, even in it's most simple forms. “ And I know that as a simple servant you may not understand these matters, but please try not to make them too hideous.”

Claire turned her head toward the young mistress as she caught her voice, and a faint blush crossed her cheeks as she realized what she would probably have been asked to do. While Evalise rolled around in bed, she herself knelt down to take care of the fire and breathe life into some of the more feeble embers. She was glad that she could so these jobs if nothig else, and grinned when the young mistress went to address her again. Lifting her head from the hearth, she nodded and immediately rose, brushing some of the soot from her skirts. "Yes ma'am"

Before she could even get to the closet, she heard the snide remark, and turned to ask the lady to try and refrain from saying such things. Instead, she squeaked seeing Evalise's state of dress, or rather lack there of, then hurried into the large closet. "Yes Young Mistress!" She called out from the belly of the beast, and emerged not even a minute later carrying a scarlet dress with black lace details, along with undergarments. "Young Mistress, you have to learn proper timing for such a thing as changing from your bed clothes to anything else. What would your husband say, once you have one? Or, heaven forbid, your mother? I would never dare stir her wrath more than once!" She paused then offered Evalise the undergarments. "I shall pull and tie the stays once you have at the least your stockings and bloomers on."

At Claire's words, Evalise couldn't help but bristle. She already had her own mother and father. She certainly didn't need a servant telling her what to do as well. Especially not a servant her own age. At times, she wanted to ask the other girl why she had chosen to live such a dull life. Even a poor girl could receive a proper life if she was beautiful enough. And Claire was very beautiful indeed. Sometimes, much to her embarrassment, Evalise found herself facing the other and envied her. And at other times, much to her discomfort, she found her father gazing upon the servant as he should have only looked upon his wife, never someone young enough to be his own daughter. Claire could have very easily found a husband of her own, and yet she was still working for a family who treated her horribly.
.
“My mother,” Evalise said, placing special emphasis on the word mother, “Should sod off.” She took the undergarments and began dressing. She didn't bother to check her tongue, or to apologize for her language. Sod was not a curse, and though her mother considered it to be vulgarity, she would not filter herself around her maid. “As should you. I am a young lady, not a child, and you are my servant, not my mother.” Once her undergarments were on, Evalise sat down on her bed. “And Claire... do you not think that my future husband will wish to see me undressed? That is what proper husbands and wives do.”

"Yes, Young Mistress." She replied at first, waiting for Evalise to rise from her bed to be tied into her dress. Claire considered holding it up to herself, to imagine what she would look like in a such a fine gown. She only refrained from it as she knew that if Evalise saw her, and was in foul enough a mood, she'd be scolded for it. "Young Mistress, I would like to think that your husband will..." she paused then merely shrugged, her shoulders slightly hunched in, "I would like to think that you and your future husband will get along very nicely no matter the circumstances. My apologies, for both almost rising above my given role and for commented inappropriately on what is not my own life in any way shape or form."

Kneeling down before the slightly older girl, she began to slide the dress first over the girl's feet and calves. "Please stand, Miss Evalise." She requested, looking up at the heiress with a kind smile. It was no good to start a morning so bitterly, especially not when Claire hadn't even faced the Master of the house yet. His gaze was always unsettling; so she preferred to avoid it as much as she could. Some things were unavoidable though, like Evalise's use of foul language and rising before the sun. Choking back a smirk and a giggle, she instead cleared her throat and looked up at Evalise meaningfully. "Your parents are waiting for you, and if you are late I shall be punished for it. I know that probably means very little to you, but I would hope you would at least try and help me avoid such unpleasantries nonetheless."