Lissy

Chapter I

Her room was dark. She liked when all the candles and oil laps have been extinguished. That means no one will come that night. She felt relief for something that no child should experience. She of course, did not know that.

Lissy lives in a Pleasure House, as Ms. Mia calls it, but Lissy hears what some of the patrons call it from time to time; a whore house, a cat house. Pleasure in the name is a lie. How can anyone residing at the house feel pleasure about giving their bodies to be used and handled without care in the world and then thrown money at to forget it ever happened.

When Lissy first came to the house, Ms Mia fed, bathed, and dressed her. Lissy never knew what her age was but Ms. Mia guessed eight summers. When a winter passed and then another Lissy has gained a healthy weight and her hair grew longer. On the streets it was a tangled mess of dark straw but now it was the color of honey and soft to the touch. Ms Mia gained her trust and her loyalty. Lissy worked in the kitchens to help as much as she could. She wanted to keep Ms Mia happy.

One night Lissy was taken to a room with a big bed with silk sheets and furs. Ms Mia said Lissy had a special job tonight to earn her keep. "A man is going to come in tonight and he is going to make himself feel good." Ms Mia said. Lissy, knowing exactly what the job was, shook her head as her eyes filled with tears and fear. "Don't worry child, you are making me happy. Don't you want to keep me happy? It will be over soon." Then she left and Lissy was numb. Living in a pleasure house she has witnessed the act on numerous occasions by accident and she did not know if she could do that. If she ran off now Ms Mia will not allow her to return.

Her thoughts were cut off when a door closed and her head snapped to attention. She backed up until her back hit the far wall. The man was tall and his clothes told her he was a rich man. He walked with confidence and when he reached her he forced her to walk to the bed. Tears streamed her cheeks as he took off her night gown. The rest is almost lost in her mind. She remembers the pain, the weight of him when he collapsed on her with a grunt, whiskey on his breath, brown eyes that will hunt her forever. She lay there in that bed, naked, with blood on the thighs, staring at the ceiling. The man covered her with a fir. Now she was looking at him with hatred! She wanted to yell! She wanted to know why! She stared and stared but he refused to look at her now. "I'm sorry girl." He said. He put a pouch of coins on the nightstand beside the bed and just like that he left never to come back again.

Lissy shook the memory from her mind. Tonight was good. Tonight she was not summoned to another chamber with a strange man in it. Tonight she could sleep in her own small bed chamber. She liked her little brass bed and the nightstand with a candle. She had a little vanity with a water basin on it. Not much else could fit in the room. The box at the foot of the bad held her two dresses and a spare nightgown for her working nights. Ms Mia made sure Lissy had a proper nightgown for that.

After the first time, Ms Mia came into the room and held Lissy as she cried and cried. "It hurt." Lissy managed to squeak out. "It will not after the first time, I promise." Ms Mia said as she rubbed her back. Lissy then realized it will be occurring again so she cried some more until she was exhausted. Ms Mia picked up the pouch. She opened it and smiled. "I'm proud of you and I am going to buy you a new dress, and ribbons, and a doll." She said smiling at Lissy. "It will be easier from now on, yes?" She asked looking her in the eyes. Lissy nodded. She wanted to stay. The streets of Darlosts were not a safe place. Their kingdom was failing. Most were living in poverty. Orphaned children did not have another choice than to wonder the streets until hunger or the fever takes them. Lissy did not want to upset Ms Mia and meet the fate of other homeless children. "I thought men liked women with breasts and long legs." Lissy said with malice. Why was a grown man interested in a child? She thought and could not understand. Ms Mia said, "Some men have special needs that can only be satisfied with a certain kind of person. My house strives to satisfy all."

She needed to be stoic when the next man came. She would not look him in the eye. She will go to a land far away like the painting in the hall and that is exactly what she did. After the first, men blended together. Lissy was summoned from her room or the kitchens during some evenings. She would put on her nightgown and go to the chamber that would hold a man who "craved her" Ms Mia would say. She would flow through the motions. She would let the men do their deed. Some where more aggressive than others and sometimes Lissy would have bruises the next morning. One man even left bruises on her neck. Ms Mia would say some men like to feel powerful and that's why they would hold her down or choke her. She would say it was all part of the job. Lissy wanted a different job but what else could she do?

Tonight there were no customers with special needs. Lissy was thankful for that. Some women in the house worked every night. Lissy was glad it was not the case with her. On night like these she wished she could read but no one would teach her. The other women always looked down on her and Ms Mia says it is because Lissy made her more money than them. Ms Mia did not give Lissy spending money like the other girls received but she did treat her nicer. She bought her dresses and sweets from the bakery. The only other person who talked to her was Sheri, the kitchen maid, and she couldn't read either. She did teach Lissy how to count. Counting was important in baking so Lissy learned. She now knew she was twelve summers according to the age Ms Mia guessed. She has lived at the house  for four summers and three winters. Lissy finally closed her eyes and drifted to sleep without knowing what tomorrow will bring.