The girl with the matches

She was freezing. It was mid december and she was shivering in the streets of London trying to sell matches wich even she wouldn't buy, if she had the money to spend. They were around a pence per stick, nowhere near affordable for the normal working crowd, especially for something they wouldn't use. But times were tough and she knew she couldn't return 'home' if she hadn't sold them all.

No.. The lady would never let her in and wether she liked it or not, that lady was the only place she could go to. Her mother died giving birth to her and her father perished in a mine accident a few years back. She was sent to live with the lady, since kids could never make it on their own. She was fifteen back then, she turned eighteen a few days ago.

The lady never really liked her. She usually outwitted the rest and the lady as well. Only to get put back in place with the comment that no man would ever marry a girl, that didnt know when to keep her mouth shut. In the evening after dinner the lady would call her sometimes to share her concerns, How was she going to find a man for her. She couldn't stay here forever. The lady didn't have the money for her.

Maybe this was just a way to let her freeze to . She had to shake her head to make the thoughts go away. She wouldn't do that, would she?

The shivering became uncontrollable. She looked inside the houses around the square. They looked so warm and pleasant. Not freezing like the cold ground she was sitting on. All she wanted was a little warmth. She looked at the matches. She could light one, if only for a little warmth. The lady wouldn't miss one. She held the matchstick in her hand and scraped it for a flame to ignite. She held her other hand around it and saw in the smoke a beautifull fireplace. Oh how she wished she could be there, anywhere but here. The flame ended quickly and she was met with nothing but darkness and cold. Unable to handle this she quickly lit another one. This time she saw a turkey it looked delicious and she could hear her tummy rumbling through the shivering.

It was at that time that a carriage came to a stop in front of her. Someone must have seen the light from the matches. The door opened and a lady walked through it.

"hello girl. What are you doing here on your own? In this cold."

"do you want to buy some matches m'lady. They are only a pence per stick."

The lady laughed. "that seems rather expensive for a matchstick. What do they do? Grand wishes?" the lady said with a smirk on her face.

She looked to the ground dissapointed. First of all she knew for sure now that the lady's plan was to let her freeze. Second she was probably going to succeed. "please m'lady" she pleaded. "i can't go home untill I've sold them all, no normal working man is going to buy them. You seem like someone who has enough to spare. Please, I'm freezing."

The Lady raised an eyebrow. "you sure got a mouth on ya. What is your name?" "mary m'lady. My name is Mary." "who sent you here Mary?" "the Lady of the orphanage ma'am. She said she was done trying to look for a man to support me. I am eighteen now and since I haven't got a man, I need to get bread on the table myself." The lady smiled a little. "well Mary. It is freezing out here. Come with me to my castle. You can warm up a little and we can talk from there."

Mary doubted. The lady probably wasn't going to miss her. But did she trust this lady? Anyhow it couldn't get any worse than this.