Mom occupies us while we wait

Mary squirmed anxiously in her seat under the pressuring eyes of her stepmother-in-law as Amelia calmly took a sip of water and stared her down with an unreadable mask of a face.

The redhead was pretty sure she’d broken into a cold sweat by this point, being all alone with the older woman. Well, almost alone, but Holly was no help at all! That darn gremlin of a best friend had beat a hasty retreat to her cage, and had done a fine job of pretending that she was fast asleep!

Brat.

So this is what it’s like, being on the other end of this! Mary had read dozens of mystery novels where the detective backed a culprit into a corner for all to see, but she never thought that she would be faced with such scrutiny herself! Even though she hadn’t done anything wrong (okay, maybe a few things…) she still felt an overwhelming sense of guilt just being in Amelia’s presence!

The fact that she’d asked Nick to leave the room didn’t bode well for her.

“Are you uncomfortable?”

Amelia’s question cut through the cloud of awkward tension like a hot knife through butter. Mary flinched and nearly fell out of her seat- her eyes widened and she choked on her own saliva.

“Uh… I-I…”

“Don’t be uncomfortable.”

Well, that was easy to say! But Amelia had no idea what it was like, being in Mary’s position! It was all she could do to keep from dying here!

Then, a slight blush touched the blonde’s cheeks and she cleared her throat. “…My apologies. What I meant to say was that you don’t need to be uncomfortable,” she clarified. Her tone sounded so much gentler now. “I’m not upset with you, Mary.”

“O-oh…” Mary let out a sigh of relief. “You’re not?”

Amelia shook her head. “No. I’m grateful to you, in fact.”

Mary’s jaw dropped.

Grateful? Grateful for what? Asking a completely humiliating question that she had no business asking!? Why would Amelia be grateful for that?!

But the blonde didn’t seem like the type of person to spare Mary’s feelings like that.

“…You’re grateful to me?” Mary asked cautiously. “Why? After what I said…”

“You may not believe this, but I was actually quite nervous about coming here tonight,” Amelia confessed to the other woman. Again, this came as a complete surprise to Mary. She didn’t even think it was possible for a woman as composed as Amelia to get nervous.

“You… you were? But you’re so…”

“Composed? ‘Cool’ maybe?” Amelia flashed a rueful smirk. “I may not be adept at showing my feelings, but that doesn’t mean they don’t exist. Not only have I been brought to this place by magic forces outside my control, but I’ve also been placed into the harem of a man I consider my own son, to serve at his sexual pleasure. Even if I have no intention of doing so, of course.”

Mary nodded. She could definitely understand how that might make someone nervous. She remembered the terror, fear, and despair she’d felt her first few weeks here, when Sylvia had abused her and exploited her for her own amusement and the joy of the audience.

She still hadn’t fully forgiven the former host for everything she’d done, but she was trying to move past it anyway.

“So when I heard tonight would not only be my night to share a bed with Nicholas, but also a night that I would spend in your company, getting to know you both better… it was quite troubling to me,” Amelia explained calmly. “I can tell you’ve been trying to make a good impression on me, young lady.”

Mary squirmed and her cheeks reddened. She looked bashfully down at her bowl of soup. “Was… was it really that obvious?”

“Not as obvious as that young French lass,” Amelia said with a shake of her head, “but still… I could tell you wanted me to like you. But… I felt the same way.”

Her eyes took on a sorrowful glint to them. “You’re such a significant part of my Nicholas’s life now, Mary. A life I’ve barely had any part of since he became an adult. And while your little outburst tonight may have come as a surprise to you… I am well aware of my own shortcomings when it comes to making personal relationships with others.”

Mary’s eyes widened, and for the first time it felt like she was really getting to know Amelia. Not just the cold woman who held herself apart from other people and treated rulebreakers with contempt, but the **** woman behind the mask who struggled to show her real feelings through it.

Amelia had been trying hard in her own way.

“I… I think I understand what you mean,” Mary said. “And I certainly didn’t make it easier for you, asking a question like that…”

Hence her confusion why Amelia could ever feel gratitude towards Mary for what had happened tonight.

“Not at all,” the other woman replied.

Mary flinched, her guilt only compounded by the woman’s brusque agreement.

Then Amelia clarified what she meant by that.

“My apologies, the meaning of my statement was that your question served as an adequate icebreaker,” she explained. “You quite adeptly took the focus off of my own shortcomings with that remark.”

That took Mary a bit longer to process. As she parsed out the teacher’s words, she gasped in understanding.

“W-wait, you mean… you’re happy that I asked you that, because… I embarrassed myself!?” Mary sputtered.

A flash of guilt crossed Amelia’s face and she gave Mary an apologetic smile. “I wouldn’t put it in such harsh terms,” she answered. “Rather, a direct, awkward question like that helped me relax considerably.”

She took a sip from her cup and set the glass down. “As one who is prone to make an occasional social faux pas, I can comfortably state that it is unlikely for me to ‘top’ asking a question like that so directly, young lady.”

Mary could definitely see where she was coming from with that. She gave Amelia an awkward smile and looked down. “Yeah, uh… you’re probably right,” she admitted.

“There, did that not work just fine?” Amelia inquired. “You and I both held apprehension about tonight. And now, that awkward tension has passed, on account of your brazenly unwarranted inquiry. We can speak to each other without ceremony now, as equals.”

In a roundabout way, Amelia seemed to be telling Mary that they could be friends because of that, which was not at all what the redhead would have expected. She was grateful, though, and made that gratitude known with a wide smile.

“I’m glad,” she said, sighing in relief. “I was really afraid that I’d messed up, and you were going to hate me…”

“Nonsense,” Amelia scoffed, pushing up her glasses and shaking her head. “You have brought Nicholas immense happiness, my dear. The idea that I could ever hate you is frankly absurd. And certainly not over something as mundane as a slightly-too-personal question!”

Now that Mary was hearing Amelia’s words repeated back to her, she had to agree- she might have made a way bigger deal out of this than she ever needed to. She laughed awkwardly and nodded, and then sighed in relief.

“…Thanks for sending Nick away,” she said. “He probably should have heard that, I know, but if he were here I think I would have just felt even more uncomfortable.”

Amelia nodded. “Some things are best kept private,” she agreed. “But keep in mind, you two are married now. A husband and wife should hold no secrets between one another. So I expect you to share the content of the conversation with him when he returns. I’ll be happy to assist.”

Mary nodded. “I couldn’t agree more!”

Keeping secrets was a bad thing.

Of course, Amelia had her own share of secrets. But they were personal. Private. And just like she’d declined to answer Mary’s intrusive question, she would not volunteer those, either.

It wasn’t hypocrisy. While a husband and wife should keep no secrets, the same couldn’t be said for a parent and child.

When Amelia suggested that the time had come to end her stepson’s exile, Holly was more than happy to go into the kitchen and get him.

To Mary’s surprise, he walked out with Rose practically glued to his arm.

“Eh?! Rose?!” Mary gasped, rising from her chair.

“Surprised to see me?” Rose asked with a sarcastic tone in her voice. “Well, don’t be! I’m here to enjoy the night with Nick as well, remember?”

“I-I know,” Mary nodded, calming herself down and returning to her seat. “I said you could stay. I’m just surprised, I didn’t think… well…”

Rose serving them food in a naked apron was one thing. But joining them at the table while almost completely nude?

That was a step too far for Mary’s sensibilities. But she bit back her words of rebuke, and reminded herself that the blonde didn’t have a change of clothes. Well, aside from her maid costume, of course, but that was… yeah.

It is important that Nick spends time with her as well, she admitted to herself. Just because she cleaned our room dressed as a maid, that doesn’t mean she should be treated as one!

Nick treasured Rose, that was a fact Mary accepted wholeheartedly. Rose might have seen Mary as a rival to surpass, but Mary held no such ire for the blonde.

She glanced surreptitiously over to Amelia to see what she thought, and sighed in relief. Nick’s stepmother seemed just as nonchalant about the other woman’s appearance as she did when she first entered the kitchen.

“Rose, play nice,” Nick gently reminded her as they joined Mary and Amelia at the table. Rose was all too quick to seize the spot on his other side, directly opposite his redheaded wife. Mary felt the girl’s blue eyes flash in her direction, but avoided saying anything.

Of course, it wasn’t enough for Rose to earn a spot at the table. No, she had to make sure to press her moment of triumph.

“Have you tried my soup?” Rose asked, taking the initiative to raise Nick’s spoon to his lips. “It’s an old recipe I put my heart into!”

Nick tasted it and hummed in approval. “This really is good!” He said, nodding. “Nicely done, Rose!”

The blonde sat a little taller in her seat, and craned her head with a proud smile. She shot a look of smug victory towards Mary, but if Rose thought her “rival” would be anything but happy for her, she didn’t know Mary at all.

“You’ve really branched out on your cooking, Rose,” Mary said, taking a sip for herself. “This is delicious!”

“Indeed,” Amelia agreed, her tone as frosty as ever. “I can taste the time and effort you put into preparing this dish.”

Rose nearly burst into tears at the older woman’s praise. It almost meant as much as Nick’s did, at this point.

“This… this is just the start, don’t worry!” She assured the table. “I also cooked up some steaks that are nice and ready! Just say the word!”

She didn’t even wait for them to say the word. She was practically out of her seat by that point, and rushed into the kitchen to get them, leaving Nick alone with his wife and stepmother.

When Rose returned, it was to a conversation about what they’d discussed in Nick’s absence. She waited, fighting back her impatience, as Mary and Amelia explained to him how they’d been feeling nervous about tonight, but that Mary’s blunt question had actually eased the tension considerably.

By the time everything finished, she really hoped the steaks hadn’t gone cold.

Rose cleared her throat after the conversation ended, **** to be the center of attention again. Nick barely had time to get out a thank-you to the other women over having resolved their differences and sharing that fact with him.

“I’ve prepared petit filet mignon,” Rose said, presenting each dish with a flourish and saving a cut for herself, as well. “Only the finest for my beloved compagnon and his precious belle-mère. …And Mary, I guess,” she added, earning her an eye-roll from the redhead and a strange half-sigh, half-laugh from Nick himself.

He knew he shouldn’t be encouraging the tiny digs Rose made towards his wife, but Mary didn’t seem to care about them much, and besides… it was honestly adorable how hard she tried to one-up Mary sometimes, he couldn’t help himself!

“Young lady, could I ask you something?” Rose flinched at Amelia’s voice, and turned to her with a big smile frozen to her face.

“Ou- err, yes?” She stammered, straightening out her apron and sitting down. “There isn’t something wrong with your steak, is there?” She mentally kicked herself. Obviously they would have gone cold after that long conversation! How could she have been such a careless hostess!?

…Never mind that Mary was the actual woman of the house- err, suite. Rose had cooked and served the food, so that’s what mattered.

“Not at all. Your choice of cut is impeccable, of course,” Amelia said, daintily severing a piece so small it was practically a crumb, and popping it into her mouth. She swallowed and dabbed at her lips with a napkin, displaying perfect etiquette before she addressed the anxious Frenchwoman.

“You are going to considerable length to impress tonight, both myself, and Nicholas as well,” Amelia stated, adjusting her glasses. “Are you trying to make a good impression on me?”

It was the kind of blunt question Amelia was known for, and the kind of question Rose didn’t appreciate in the slightest. While Rose could be honest to a fault, she didn’t like being put on the spot like this.

There’s such a thing as leaving things unspoken, you know! I thought it could go without saying! The irony of Rose feeling this way was lost on her- after all, she seldom left anything unspoken.

“I… I…” She desperately fumbled for words to explain herself, but couldn’t come up with anything that wouldn’t feel like a blatant lie. So finally, she hung her head and nodded in resignation. “You’re right,” she admitted. “I… I was trying to show off, so you’d think well of me.”

Nick was amazed. Rose’s drive to please Amelia and her fear of getting on her bad side had actually spurred the blonde to do something she very rarely did:

Show her **** side.

It was hard enough to see the more sensitive side of Rose when it was just the two of them- but with Mary in the room? He never would have expected that.

But when the alternative was lying to Amelia, it seemed Rose didn’t have much of a choice.

It only lasted for a few moments, though.

“…B-but there’s a reason for it!” Rose hastily pivoted, her face scrunching up into a maelstrom of redness and shame. “I just, I wanted… I wanted you to see how great Nick and I go together, and how good I am for him! I’m not trying to manipulate you or gaslight you or anything like that, I promise! I would never do that!”

Her desperation certainly made her look cuter to Nick’s eyes, but that didn’t mean he should sit back and let her work herself up like this.

“Rose, it’s fine,” he urged her, taking her by the hand. “Amelia doesn’t think that, none of us do,” he assured her.

He turned to his stepmother and really hoped she wasn’t about to make a liar out of him.

“Nicholas is correct, of course,” Amelia said, sending a wave of relief through Rose and Nick both. “I did not mean to upset you. I apologize.”

“N-no, no, it’s fine,” Rose stammered, sitting back down and reaching up to play with her hair, only then realizing her bangs still weren’t as long as she would like. “I just… I got a little worried, that’s all…”

“Rose has had some bad experiences before,” Mary offered sympathetically, trying to aid the other girl. “People sometimes think the worst of her- especially the audience.”

“Mary…” Rose bit back the wave of venom that shot through her and **** herself not to glare at the other girl. That wasn’t something she wanted brought up!

“Again, please forgive me,” Amelia continued, her voice softening. “I sincerely didn’t mean anything untoward with my question. It seems that just as Mary here can ask a rude question, so can I.”

“N-no, it wasn’t rude or anything!” Rose said, shaking her head and waving her hands frantically. “I, um… I just wasn’t expecting it…”

As someone who worked in the subtle areas of life, even while being as blatant and brazen as she could be, Rose hadn’t expected Amelia to just flip over the board like that and bring her deeper motivations to light so suddenly.

She turned to her steak, practically cooking it all over again with the intensity of her stare, **** to move past this awkwardness and onto enjoying the dinner she’d worked so hard to prepare tonight.

But Amelia wasn’t finished with sharing her feelings.

“The only reason I asked you that, young lady, is because I didn’t want you to feel like you had anything to live up to,” Amelia tried to explain herself.

Rose perked up at that and raised her head.

“Eh?”

Nick also looked confused. “Amelia?”

The older woman cleared her throat.

“This may not be my place to speak,” she prefaced her statement, “because I do not know you well enough. But given your behavior around me these last few days, it’s clear you place a lot of weight on my opinion of you. Would that be correct?”

Rose squirmed in her seat, unable to confirm Amelia’s scathing inquiry with anything more specific than a meek nod.

“Amelia, I really think we should just drop this,” Nick pleaded, seeing the discomfort on Rose’s face. His stepmother may not be good at sharing her feelings, but at least she had the awareness to pick up on the feeling of others, right?!

But Amelia was determined to be heard.

“You do not need to bother with that,” she stated. “If I am to get to know you, I want it to be the real you. Not someone forcing themselves to be perfect and amazing in an attempt to earn my favor.”

Rose’s jaw dropped.

“I can tell by your efforts that you sincerely care for my stepson,” Amelia continued, her voice softening. “And that matters far more than how well you can cook a steak. I like you just fine, Rose. You don’t need to put such unnecessary pressure on yourself this way.”

Nick sighed in relief. Rose could be an acquired taste on her best days, and it sure set his mind at ease that Amelia seemed to have a positive perception of her, even if she’d nearly given them both a heart attack trying to express it.

As for Rose, the way she practically melted with relief in front of him made him question for a moment if she’d copied one of Marley’s transformations for the night.

“Oh, thank you…” she groaned, nearly melting out of her chair. “You don’t know how much that means to me.”

Rose had been pushing herself to show off for Amelia, and try to one-up Mary. But the older woman had finally set her mind at ease. She wanted Rose to be herself, the person Nick had fallen in love with.

That meant the world to her.