Things I Almost Remember: A Selection Story

Cousins and Dresses

Kate sat in a chair in front of Elodie's vanity. Elodie's suite was large and luxuriously decorated. A large oak bed with velvet pink curtains stood in the center, and matching oak furniture, the vanity, a desk, a small table between cushy upholstered chairs, was spread throughout the room. The chairs were situated in front of a large marble fireplace. Off of the main room, there was a large closet, a receiving room, a room with a piano, and a sparkling clean bathroom.  Kate had been in there just an hour before. Elodie and her mother had insisted upon a hot bath before she did anything else. They hadn't said anything, but Kate knew they had both been taken aback by her grungy appearance. 

Kate stared at her reflection in the mirror. She couldn't remember a time when she had had a hot bath or even felt clean. She had had nothing but ice-cold showers at the orphanage, and once she had gone out on her own, she had done her best to clean herself in rivers or even the occasional fountain if no one was around. However, she always felt herself in a perpetual state of grime and dirt. The girl who looked back at her from the mirror was still thin and pale, but she was clean and dressed in a soft silk nightgown and furry pink robe. She was comfortable and warm. Her long dark hair was no longer tangled and matted. However, the girl looking back at her still had a haunted look in her navy blue eyes. That was something not even a  hundred hot baths could alieve.  

"Kate?" Elodie called cautiously walking into the main room holding a tray that contained assorted pastries and a teapot and cups.

Kate turned around, and she and her cousin stared at each other. Neither of them knew what to say to one another until Elodie finally spoke. 

"I brought you some tea and food, I thought you might be hungry, I know it is not really substantial, but it was the easiest to bring," Elodie said hurriedly, placing the tray down on a table.

"Thank you, Elodie," Kate said, mustering her best smile. She truly appreciated the kindness of these people, these people who were her family. Yet, they still felt like strangers to her.

"I brought some of the raspberry scones because I remember those were your favorite when we were little girls," Elodie said, trying to make talk and gesturing for Kate to sit down beside her on one of the couches by the fireplace. Kate took one of the scones from the tray and took a small bite. As she chewed, her eyes widened.

"I haven't had anything that tasted so good in such a long time, I can't remember ever even having a raspberry," Kate said, a small smile on her face. 

Elodie returned her smile and took one of the scones for herself. 

"They are the specialty of our pastry chef," Elodie said proudly, biting into her own scone.

There were a few awkward moments of silence between them again, but Kate was the one this time who decided to break it. 

"I am very thankful for how kind you are all being. I know how strange it must be for you. I am sure I am such a different person from whom you remember. You probably know better than I do who I used to be, I can barely remember...Kerttu," Kate said softly, wiping away tears from her eyes. "I am sure you weren't expecting some dirty underfed girl off the streets."

Elodie reached for Kate's hand and smiled.

"We just wanted you back. It doesn't matter what you have been through or how you may have changed, you're still our family. My father has never been the same since the attack," Elodie said sighing. "He has wanted to try to find you since we first heard rumors you had escaped, but with all the years looking and all the imposters who have come claiming to be you, it has been hard on him. He almost had given up hope."

"I almost had given up too," Kate said. "Johnny, General Leger, and even Connor have helped me get some of my hope up again."

"Connor is the kind of obnoxious one, right?" Elodie asked, arching her eyebrow.