To Love, Once Again

Chapter 47

"I will not kneel. Good day to you"

Sera turns on her heel, with Leo still in her arms, and marches away. Hopefully some of her words would sink into the gaggle of women there.

She wasn't back to play games with them like she had before. That Sera was long gone. For the first time, she was thankful to Lucien for making her his mistress/maid. Because of it, she had the freedom to do what she wanted, how she wanted, when she wanted it. The rules no longer applied to her.

There were no governesses to encroach on her speech and mannerisms, no ladies-in-waiting that judged her every move. Sera was free.

Leo claps his hands in delight. Not sure exactly what happened, but only knowing that his Mama had won, he was proud.

Another round of gasps fly out when Leo sticks his tongue out at them over Sera's shoulder.

"Stop right there!"

Thud. Thud.

Again with the cane tapping. That held no power over her. Sera keeps going, ignoring Dame Gertrude calls for her to stop.

Fwiip.

The sounds of multiple fans flapping open at once. Sera knew the ladies were flapping away in outrage. But it wasn't like they could do anything to her right now.

They march away until the sounds of the women speaking over each other fade into the sound of bird calls and rustling leaves.

Finally they reach the entrance out of the gardens, towards the cottage where a beautiful path lined with wisteria trees shiver in the wind.

"Mama?"

"I'm a bwad animwal?"

"No baby."

"You're Mama's precious son" Taking the corner of the hem of her dress, she wipes at the snot that's started to drip out of Leo's nose again.

"Mama?"

"Yes, Leo?"

"I hwave a pwesent for you Mama!"

Something soft brushes against her neck.

Looking down at what her son's holding up for her, Sera sees a soft white velveteen rabbit, with pink sateen inner ears and button eyes. The detail the bunny had was astounding, down to the whiskers made out of real thread.

As she walks forward, her arms cradling Leo and Leo in turn, cradling the bunny to his chest, Leo strokes it, holding the soft white sateen fur up for his Mama to feel with her cheek.

"So soooowft" Leo giggles.

"Oh honey, for me?"

"Uh-huh!"

"Bunny hewlps me slweep at night. Mama need to sleep too"

Were her dark under-eye circles that obvious?

Touching the skin under her eyes, Sera realizes that the concealer she'd applied to herself this morning had worn off. It wasn't like she was truly sleep deprived. The dark circles came out easily when she was the tiniest bit tired. There had been so much going on recently, as well as the way Lucien desired her every night, was using up most of her stamina.

Giving him a kiss on the cheek "Thank you honey!"

Leo giggles to himself, face beaming with unadulterated happiness. Mama thinks he's honey. Honey was sweet, and he liked honey too.

The two don't realize the pair of eyes that watch them, shoulders sagging with sadness and loneliness. It was Lucien, watching the interaction between mother and son from the window, high up in the castle. The study where he worked had a window facing out into the Royal Gardens too, with a view right into the purple wisteria path that Sera was walking out of, headed towards Leo's cottage. A gust of wind blew the heavy blossoms to scatter around the pair, hiding the messy hair and stained dress, creating a vision of motherly love.