Crystal, Marble and Glass
Written for a close friend (on the eve of her moving out) to cheer her up
With heavy sighs, and bored countenance Caroline observed the humble room surrounding her and her trusty laptop. She seemed to be located in the very highest tower of a lavish castle; a small location that had miraculously missed years of elaborate cleanings, and now lay in forgotten oblivion. Around her, in a rather comical slapdash manner, the strangest of objects had been stockpiled, each one, seemingly rejected and forgotten; mirroring her very feelings at one was becoming a fairly depressing moments. Sneezing rapidly at the dust that was quickly filling her nose, an ever crescendo-ing laughter echoed from the downstairs, and it seemed her very room shook around her. Mysterious it was to her that where she was so despondent, only feet below her, her family laughed and danced, basking in the company of her soon to be step-fathers guests, each one also enjoying the shiny decadence that was to be her new home.
The servers had retired hours ago to their quarters down the hall from Caroline’s very location. In fact, she had found them fascinating from the beginning; each one containing an unexpected depth in what otherwise appeared to be a castle filled with nothing more than crystal, marble and glass. Her interest had been peaked by them, and if it were not for the company she so did not want to risk running into, she might have otherwise paid them a visit, if only to be amused by their refreshing diversion from the usual prospect of conversation, containing little more than talk of marriage and housing arrangements as it so frequently did.
But, still she remained, trapped by her own aversions, lying still in her lace white dress, which she had now taken to tying and untying the careful intricacies of. Gazing out the lone window in the room, her eyes sparkled in the light of the moon, and she breathed in deeply the smell of the flowers, wafting from the open window, and the elaborate grounds beneath her. Pleased, she found the spring time aroma a pleasant contrast to the stagnant room behind her. It was in this position, balanced carefully on a suitcase to reach the window that she first heard the quiet knock issuing from the door behind her.
Momentarily confused she turned, and glanced down a long set of stone stairs to see a slight obstruction to the light below the door shifting slightly. Silent, she pondered over who the owners of the obstruction might be, as they were knocking again, and it certainly wasn’t the history of her family to knock first. Deciding instead that her boredom had effectively won over her desire to be left alone, she rose and creaked her way over the dusty floor down the narrow stairs and to the door. Opening the door slowly, she blinked in the light, and when finally adjusted she observed the young girl in front of her. She was her age about, but completely unrecognizable. Blinking stupidly, Caroline took in the girl, and noted her plump figure, blushing skin, and dark rimmed glassed, all blended together by her metallic smile, painful limited by her braces, but still visibly happy. She was wearing, it seemed a maid’s attire, and she realized suddenly she was facing one of the many servers.
“Boo” she started, and Caroline, still not quite transitioning, attempted to respond, stuttering instead. “You bored yet?” the mysterious girl questioned “We’re all waiting for your visit babe.”
“How…how did you know I was thinking of coming?”
The girl laughed again, her eyes twinkling with a smug knowledge, “We just know you I guess.”
“Who’s we?” Caroline questioned.
“All of us, the servers of course. You never do quite see us, but, we’re what make this big place run.”
A silence filled the space between the two, and Caroline observed the hallway behind them, listening to the still powerful giggles from below them, rising over the balcony railing behind the maid.
The maid caught her eye again, smiled, and turned her head. “So are you coming, or are you just going to stick around and play with that nice dress of yours?”
Slightly unsettled, Caroline nodded, and followed the maid as she wove her way through a series of pristine hallways, adorned with archaic paintings and marble columns. Finally she found herself jogging to adjust to an ever descending slope in the now darkening hallway. Overtime, light faded, and each wing became entirely lit by candle; charming, and an unexpected change to the castle painfully bright interior otherwise.
“I’m sorry”, Caroline said, breaking the silence, and watching as the maid, stopped instantly looking at her with and expectant expression. “But where are we going, aren’t the serving quarters just down the hall from the room we just left? I’ve never even seen this part of the castle.”
“Well, yes” she responded. “But have you ever really explored this place? All the opportunities? Everything happens for a reason, my friend. There’s a lot more to this place than you thought.”
“Like Hogwarts” she muttered to herself.
“What?” said the maid.
“Nothing.”
Minutes later, they arrived at another staircase, descending deep into darkness, an enchanting music getting closer and closer behind the door at the bottom. Upon opening it a cheer erupted, the source of which became apparent as Caroline’s eyes adjusting again to the vibrant happy light of the large room. In the center people were dancing and drinking, their eyes glued to a couple, dancing skillfully on a table, laughing and smiling at each other.
“Titanic, Jack and Rose.” She muttered in awe.
“What’s that?” the original maid asked.
“No, it’s just those two; they remind me of a movie I saw once.”
“Oh, Leo and Kate, yeah they’re nostalgic tonight.”
“Wait, that’s actually—“ but Caroline never finished her shocked exclamation as the girl had begun to drag her through the dancing crowd.
Passing each face, Caroline smiled, each one smiling brightly back and greeting her by name. They all remained unfamiliar, and yet memorable, as if some she had lived with, others idolized on bigger scale. At one point she passed a Hispanic curly haired man who hugged her strongly and sung something about someone named Maria, and a dance party later. Arriving at a clump of black men, she listened as they hummed and clapped some spiritual hymn, following the lead of Morgan Freeman.
“Dear God is that—?” she choked.
“Yes, yes it is.” her brace faced escort said hurriedly. “But there are people here I want you to see, they should be here somewhere.”
They continued on, passing many more happy facing, including a tiny effeminate man in a sweater vest, who stopped mid way through a conversation relating to linear equations to greet her happily. Further down she also came face to face with an odd looking German man holding a globe who passed her a piece of toast with nothing but ham, cheese, and pineapple, which she then passed to an half masked muscled man who attempted to take her to a boat underground until her original leader, still firmly attached to her hand, dragged her ahead. For what seemed like an eternity she walked through the crowd of familiar-unfamiliar people, until finally, after a run in with a ginger with a sweatband, who paused briefly between licorice pieces to greet her, Caroline arrived at a large round table with several people all laughing around it. Sitting and eating, they greeted her.
First, seated on the left most side of the semi-circle was a visibly taller girl wearing a beret and a scarf, smiling widely under a sharp crop of bangs just above her eyes. Seated next to her was a stout red haired girl wearing a classy dress, with books in Russian around her. Then came a straight haired girl with braces and a blue striped hoodie, who waved coolly at Caroline’s now thoroughly confused expression. Laughing pleasantly next to her, were a boy and a girl; the boy an intelligent looking individual with glasses, and the girl a graceful, friendly looking kid with one curled ponytail and a bow. A dark skinned girl with dark hair also laughed at the table with them, dancing joyously with a blonde girl in braids and a beret. They all urged her to sit, and together, for several minutes they enjoyed each other’s company, sipping fake champagne, and listening to the pleasant sounds of Hispanic music while watching famous friends dance and laugh.
Time passed, and eventually two older British gentlemen appeared before them alongside Caroline’s original server friend, and scooted their way next to her in the crowded booth. The heavy set one, with longer hair, combed neatly, shook her hand and smirked at her, complimenting her in her ability to randomly cite trivia about him. She laughed, and smiled at the other British man, who immediately began a conversation related to badgers and there place in the beginning of time. Several minutes of conversation continued, and Caroline could no longer contain her curiosity.
“Wait, wait” She started. “How are you all here…I mean..This castle, how is there this many cool people in it.”
The badger speaking man, spoke up eventually, leaning forward as he did so, “We’ve been here all along, Caroline, just waiting for you. There’s always great things lurking…you just have to look for them.”
“Cheesy.” The dark skinned girl muttered, and the girl with glasses proceeded to slap her face.
They all laughed momentarily, and then rose suddenly as the music changed, this time faster, and in English. The lights flashed and they all found their way to the dance floor, as a skinny British man in nothing but a fedora and boxers began his lyrics.
“Teenage dreams in a teenage circus, running around like a clown on purpose…”
The song would finish, then it would start again, and Caroline would dance the night away, until finally, come sunrise, she was able to return to the castle. Only this time, she would be able to see the silver lining beneath it all…
