Challenge 9:4 A Misunderstanding
Title: A Misunderstanding
Author: duskblue
Fandom/Character(s)/Pairing(s): Original (Gorgette Heyer-esque?)
Genre: Romance
Rating: PG
Words: 1190
Challenge/Prompt: Challenge 9: 4 Starting Sentence(s)
Warnings: None
Notes: I kinda tried to write this in the SORT OF style of Georgette Heyer (I could never ACTUALLY write in her style) LOL
Two knocks echoed through the hall. Not the habitual three, but two.
Clarissa sucked in her breath and quickly latched the door to her bedroom. She didn't know anyone else was had come inside the house, but she had a feeling she knew who it was. With her ear against the cool wood, she could hear the sound of someone trying doors down the hallway and getting closer and closer to her own. It would only be a matter of time before he reached her door.
She heard several more knocks and the shuffling of heavy feet before they came to rest in front of her door, and the knob was tried.
She stepped back in alarm.
"Clarissa, I know you're in there," Edmund's voice came, muffled through the door.
She dared not say a word and froze exactly where she stood.
"You had to know that I would return," he said.
With those words, she gained the courage to take a few steps back until she bumped into the side of the dresser. It didn't make much of a noise, but just enough of a bump that she took in a breath and clapped her hand over her mouth.
The knocking on the door became louder and more incessant. "Clarissa... please, open the door. I need to speak with you!"
She stepped around the dresser, this time watching where put her bare feet on the cold wooden floor, and then looked back up at the door. There was nothing he could do with the lock between them, and he already knew she was in there. Speaking would do no harm, would it? "H--how did you get inside?" she asked.
"You're forgetting that Robert has a key to this old place."
Her brows furrowed, and she clenched her fists. Robert... she should have known. She would kill him! "You have no right to be here!" she said in a shaky voice. "Robert didn't have the right to give you the key!"
"It was his key to give!" Edmund said. "You can't fault him for that."
"Robert knew--" She stopped herself when angry tears came to her eyes. It wasn't really about Robert. She had thought he had understood her, but if he gave Edmund the key to the house, he obviously didn't.
"Clarissa, open the door," he said.
She swiped at the tears on her cheeks with the backs of her hands and glared at the door. She couldn't open it... not tonight. Not after everything that had happened. There was no way she could face him.
"It's all a misunderstanding," he said next.
She grit her teeth. He had completely ruined her reputation, and now he was calling it all a misunderstanding? Tell that to everyone watching who and now thought she was some poor simpering girl who had the wool pulled over her eyes. "A misunderstanding? I don't see how anyone could misunderstand!"
"They did!" his voice came back immediately. "And so did you! Trust me, darling, it was all just that."
"I won't see you," she said, but her hands were trembling with the betrayal of her conviction. "You shouldn't have come here."
"You shouldn't be here alone," he said. "You're the one so afraid of what people will think... Did you stop to think what everyone would think of you being all alone in this house?"
"No." She wiped another tear from her cheek. "But I do know what they'll think when they find out you came here. Or what they'll think if I open my door. If you care anything at all for me, you'll leave right now!"
He didn't say anything for a long moment. "No one knows I'm here."
"That's a lie!" she said. "Robert surely knows you're here! He's the one who gave you the key, after all."
"Robert won't tell anyone," he said. "He's on our side."
Their side? Clarissa had to hold on to the edge of the dresser to regain her balance. Edmund thought he had come there for their greater good or something? "Do we even share the same side any more?" she asked.
"Of course!" he said sharply. "I told you..." His voice lowered and was much more gentle. "It was a misunderstanding. You're being so stubborn, Clarissa... if you would just open the door and let me explain..."
"No one's stoping you from talking right where you are now!" she said. "I obviously can't make you leave, so if you're determined to explain yourself, then why don't you just do it from where you are?"
She heard him sigh, and then there was a long pause. "It would be easier if we could see each other."
She folded her arms over her chest. "I don't plan on making this easier on you."
"Okay, have it your way." He paused for a few moments. "It just makes it a bit awkward having to tell you this with a door between us."
"I suspect it would be awkward either way," she said.
"You may be right." He cleared his throat. "Let me start off by telling you that what you and everyone else saw at the Chapman's party, was not what it seemed. Miss Hill had fallen, and I had merely caught her when you and the others had walked in."
"Fallen?!" Clarissa said, trying to picture the event and shoving it out of her mind at almost the same time. "What do you take me for? The same fool that everyone else does? It looked to me like you were about to--" She was so angry that she couldn't even finish the sentence.
"Never!" came Edmund's reply. "I would never betray you, or do the least to tarnish your name, Clarissa. If you think I would, then you must think very low of me..."
"I..." She was taken aback. He was right. Trust went both ways.
"And if you think," he went on, "that I would be at all interested in Mary Hill, you must have completely lost your senses."
She took in a sharp breath. Mary Hill had beautiful dark curls, a perfect figure, and not to mention she was an heiress. Clarissa, on the other hand, had unfashionable brown hair, a nose that was slightly too large for her face, a stature that most would consider much too short, and only a reasonable fortune. Why any man would prefer her over Mary Hill was unfathomable.
But why was Edmond professing that he did?
"Is... is this true?" she asked, a little breathlessly.
"I swear it," he said.
With a shaking legs she stepped forward, reached out a trembling hand to the lock and twisted it. It made a loud clicking noise, and the next thing she knew, the door was slowly opening. The candlelight from her bedroom slowly revealed Edmund's face, and it was then that she realized how much this had taken a toll on him, as well.
He held his hand out to her, and she slowly reached out to him. The second he took her hand in his, he pulled her in closer and grabbed her with his other hand around the waist until she was cradled in his arms. "I swear to you, Clarissa... I would never betray you."
She looked up at his face, and when he leaned down to kiss her, she believed him.
Author: duskblue
Fandom/Character(s)/Pairing(s): Original (Gorgette Heyer-esque?)
Genre: Romance
Rating: PG
Words: 1190
Challenge/Prompt: Challenge 9: 4 Starting Sentence(s)
Warnings: None
Notes: I kinda tried to write this in the SORT OF style of Georgette Heyer (I could never ACTUALLY write in her style) LOL
Two knocks echoed through the hall. Not the habitual three, but two.
Clarissa sucked in her breath and quickly latched the door to her bedroom. She didn't know anyone else was had come inside the house, but she had a feeling she knew who it was. With her ear against the cool wood, she could hear the sound of someone trying doors down the hallway and getting closer and closer to her own. It would only be a matter of time before he reached her door.
She heard several more knocks and the shuffling of heavy feet before they came to rest in front of her door, and the knob was tried.
She stepped back in alarm.
"Clarissa, I know you're in there," Edmund's voice came, muffled through the door.
She dared not say a word and froze exactly where she stood.
"You had to know that I would return," he said.
With those words, she gained the courage to take a few steps back until she bumped into the side of the dresser. It didn't make much of a noise, but just enough of a bump that she took in a breath and clapped her hand over her mouth.
The knocking on the door became louder and more incessant. "Clarissa... please, open the door. I need to speak with you!"
She stepped around the dresser, this time watching where put her bare feet on the cold wooden floor, and then looked back up at the door. There was nothing he could do with the lock between them, and he already knew she was in there. Speaking would do no harm, would it? "H--how did you get inside?" she asked.
"You're forgetting that Robert has a key to this old place."
Her brows furrowed, and she clenched her fists. Robert... she should have known. She would kill him! "You have no right to be here!" she said in a shaky voice. "Robert didn't have the right to give you the key!"
"It was his key to give!" Edmund said. "You can't fault him for that."
"Robert knew--" She stopped herself when angry tears came to her eyes. It wasn't really about Robert. She had thought he had understood her, but if he gave Edmund the key to the house, he obviously didn't.
"Clarissa, open the door," he said.
She swiped at the tears on her cheeks with the backs of her hands and glared at the door. She couldn't open it... not tonight. Not after everything that had happened. There was no way she could face him.
"It's all a misunderstanding," he said next.
She grit her teeth. He had completely ruined her reputation, and now he was calling it all a misunderstanding? Tell that to everyone watching who and now thought she was some poor simpering girl who had the wool pulled over her eyes. "A misunderstanding? I don't see how anyone could misunderstand!"
"They did!" his voice came back immediately. "And so did you! Trust me, darling, it was all just that."
"I won't see you," she said, but her hands were trembling with the betrayal of her conviction. "You shouldn't have come here."
"You shouldn't be here alone," he said. "You're the one so afraid of what people will think... Did you stop to think what everyone would think of you being all alone in this house?"
"No." She wiped another tear from her cheek. "But I do know what they'll think when they find out you came here. Or what they'll think if I open my door. If you care anything at all for me, you'll leave right now!"
He didn't say anything for a long moment. "No one knows I'm here."
"That's a lie!" she said. "Robert surely knows you're here! He's the one who gave you the key, after all."
"Robert won't tell anyone," he said. "He's on our side."
Their side? Clarissa had to hold on to the edge of the dresser to regain her balance. Edmund thought he had come there for their greater good or something? "Do we even share the same side any more?" she asked.
"Of course!" he said sharply. "I told you..." His voice lowered and was much more gentle. "It was a misunderstanding. You're being so stubborn, Clarissa... if you would just open the door and let me explain..."
"No one's stoping you from talking right where you are now!" she said. "I obviously can't make you leave, so if you're determined to explain yourself, then why don't you just do it from where you are?"
She heard him sigh, and then there was a long pause. "It would be easier if we could see each other."
She folded her arms over her chest. "I don't plan on making this easier on you."
"Okay, have it your way." He paused for a few moments. "It just makes it a bit awkward having to tell you this with a door between us."
"I suspect it would be awkward either way," she said.
"You may be right." He cleared his throat. "Let me start off by telling you that what you and everyone else saw at the Chapman's party, was not what it seemed. Miss Hill had fallen, and I had merely caught her when you and the others had walked in."
"Fallen?!" Clarissa said, trying to picture the event and shoving it out of her mind at almost the same time. "What do you take me for? The same fool that everyone else does? It looked to me like you were about to--" She was so angry that she couldn't even finish the sentence.
"Never!" came Edmund's reply. "I would never betray you, or do the least to tarnish your name, Clarissa. If you think I would, then you must think very low of me..."
"I..." She was taken aback. He was right. Trust went both ways.
"And if you think," he went on, "that I would be at all interested in Mary Hill, you must have completely lost your senses."
She took in a sharp breath. Mary Hill had beautiful dark curls, a perfect figure, and not to mention she was an heiress. Clarissa, on the other hand, had unfashionable brown hair, a nose that was slightly too large for her face, a stature that most would consider much too short, and only a reasonable fortune. Why any man would prefer her over Mary Hill was unfathomable.
But why was Edmond professing that he did?
"Is... is this true?" she asked, a little breathlessly.
"I swear it," he said.
With a shaking legs she stepped forward, reached out a trembling hand to the lock and twisted it. It made a loud clicking noise, and the next thing she knew, the door was slowly opening. The candlelight from her bedroom slowly revealed Edmund's face, and it was then that she realized how much this had taken a toll on him, as well.
He held his hand out to her, and she slowly reached out to him. The second he took her hand in his, he pulled her in closer and grabbed her with his other hand around the waist until she was cradled in his arms. "I swear to you, Clarissa... I would never betray you."
She looked up at his face, and when he leaned down to kiss her, she believed him.