Roleplay in Different Eras! discussion

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Amilia had to hurry. She couldn't be late again. She bumped into so many people she couldn't keep up with the number. She kept going until she came across the orphanage. She ran in front of a stagecoach and almost got ran over but that was a price to pay. She hurried to the front door as fast as she could where Abigail was waiting for her. " Where have you been? You're fifteen minutes late!" Amilia nodded and took off her soaking wet bonnet. " I know. But Mrs. Wellofield is just going to have to deal with it. She told me to go give the package to Miss Brown and that's what I did. I couldn't help that she fell and I had to help her back upstairs and fix her something for the pain." Abigail shook her head. " I don't think she'll believe that." Amilia sighed. " I know. But it's the truth." Abigail led her inside. " Well let's get this over with."

Seamus stepped onto the dock and reached back to help Gwen down the last step. She rolled her eyes at his pampering, but he ignored it. They proceeded up the dock together.
"Where do we go from here?" Gwen asked.
"Don't know, Sis," Seamus replied. "We'll find some work, though."
"Or die of starvation, same as everyone in Ireland," Gwen said, scowling.
"Nah, we've left starvation behind us, darlin'," Seamus told his sister. If only he could keep the promise!

Amilia listened to Mrs. Wellofield scold her for making up stories and telling lies. The same speech she had heard since she was small. Mrs. Wellofield sent her outside to do the men's work like always because she was the strongest out of them all and the only one who liked to do it. Amilia smiled and hurried upstairs to change out of her dress and put on a shirt and pants and braided her hair and ran down the stairs and outside before Mrs. Wellofield could catch what she was wearing.

Gwen and Seamus strolled along the streets, taking in the sights.
"We should have made a plan. We have no place to go. No jobs in sight. Might as well have stayed in Ireland and starved," Gwen muttered.
"Don't be such a pessimist!" Seamus exclaimed. "Look at that sky! Blue as ... blue things. Um ... blue as the sea!"
"The sea is gray," Gwen mumbled.
"Not always! Sometimes it's blue," Seamus replied, grabbing Gwen's elbow and pulling her out of the way of a trolley. "Faith, the traffic's bad!"

Amilia had to go to town and get a new ax. Again. She left the other one out in the rain and it was all rusted that she couldn't even cut through one small log. She headed into town where people stared at her but she didn't care. She was a tomboy. She didn't like fancy things like her friend Abigail. Oh no. She liked being outdoors. Riding, fishing, anything under the sun she would do. She was about to get to the mercantile when a stagecoach was about to run over her and man tackled her out of the way. She fell to the ground and was almost crushed under his weight. She looked up and and found a young girl about her age running up to meet them.

"Sorry, sir, but -" Seamus paused and got a good look at the person he'd just tackled. "I mean, um, ma'am. Sorry. I, um, hope I didn't hurt you or anything, but ... that stagecoach probably would have hurt you worse than I could have."
Gwen coughed.
"Oh, right." He stood, pulling the strange to her feet with him. "I'm Seamus O'Connell; this is my sister, Gwendolyn."
"No one calls me Gwendolyn, though. Always Gwen. Gwendolyn is too long. Three syllables."
"Yep," said Seamus. "And ... who might you be, ma'am?"
"And why are you wearing trousers?" Gwen asked bluntly.

Amilia smiled at Gwen. " The name's Amilia Hartford. It's nice to meet you." She stuck out her hand to shake. They both shook her hand and she looked down at her clothes. " I don't like to wear dresses. That's all. Anyways, I would have gotten my dress all first chopping wood wouldn't I?" She smiled over at Gwen and then back at Seamus. " Thank you again sir. That was very kind of you."

"Glad to meet you," said Seamus.
Gwen mumbled a phrase that might have been something similar to what Seamus said.
"Anyway, it was nothing," Seamus added. "Where are you headed? Perhaps we'd better go with you the rest of the way, if you're going to be darting in and out of traffic like that. You ... might need me - us - again."
Gwen sighed. "Or we might just get in her way, Seamus. We have to find work, remember? We can't waste another moment. We don't even have a place to sleep tonight!"

Amilia smiled. " I think I can help you guys." She watched out this time and made sure she paid attention to the traffic and crossed over to the mercantile. " Mr. Seamus could do odd jobs around the orphanage and if you would like, Miss Gwen, you could help around the orphanage. I could ask Mrs. Wellofield but I'm sure that she would say you guys are a miracle."

"Really?" Seamus asked. "That would be absolutely incredible! We just got off a ship, you see, coming to this country ... and, well, we're not citizens yet, though we hope to be soon ... Do you really think she'd hire us?"
"Oh, you heard what she said, Seamus!" Gwen exclaimed, eyes lighting up. "Don't be so pessimistic!"
"Me, pessimistic?!" Seamus asked incredulously.
"Mmhmm! How soon do you think we could start?"

Amilia shrugged. " I don't know but after I get the supplies I need you guys could follow me back and talk to her about it." Amilia looked over at them and they were so happy. She prayed that Mrs. Wellofield wouldn't crush their optimism.

Seamus nodded. "Of course. We can help you carry the supplies back."
"I'm not carrying anything until I'm getting paid for carrying it," Gwen said loftily.
"You'll do whatever I said because I'm older," Seamus replied, winking. He turned back to Amilia. She was a pretty girl, and he wouldn't mind working with her. "Let's go!"

Amilia smiled. " Thank ya'll. You guys don't have to but you can if you want." Amilia started to open the door when she heard Seamus say something. " Did you say something?" She asked over her shoulder.

"Yes. Let me get that for you," he repeated, opening the door. "There. A lady should never have to open the door for herself."
"Oh, really?" Gwen asked.
Seamus kicked her and smiled at Amilia.

" Thank you." Amilia returned his smile. She walked in and went to the right where the outdoor things were and she picked up an ax and a couple other things and went to go pay for them with her monthly wage. " Thank you Mr. Fields. Have a blessed day." Mr. Fields smiled and she turned to Seamus and Gwen. " You two ready?"

"Definitely," said Seamus, turning towards the door and opening it.
"As ready as we'll ever be, anyway," Gwen amended, stepping quickly through the door.

Amilia knew she would become Gwen's friend even if Gwen opposed. She started on her journey back to the orphanage when a thought crossed her mind. " Didn't you bring anything with ya'll?" She said as she stopped and turned to face them.

"Um, no, actually," Seamus said awkwardly.
"We, um, lost it," Gwen said, dropping her eyes.

Amilia frowned. " Oh....I'm sure I could buy some things or make you some things you need if you would like. They wouldn't be the fanciest things but they would be suffice."

"Well, we have these clothes, and they won't wear out for a while. They're really nice," Seamus said. "And Gwen has a few personal items in her purse."
"Not much, though," Gwen mumbled.
"Enough," Seamus said firmly. "Besides, we wanted to get a fresh start. This really is a fresh start."

Amilia nodded. " Then I hope that you will enjoy your fresh start." She smiled and then turned and walked on for about a half a mile and then stopped at the entrance of the orphanage. " Here we are. Do you want a minute to freshen up or do you want to go ahead and introduce yourselves to Mrs. Wellofield?"

Seamus glanced at Gwen. "Well ... I think we'd better just introduce ourselves now. There's not much we can do to make ourselves better looking."
Seamus wished that weren't so. They were wrinkled and messy and just a bit dusty. He had mud coating the bottom half of his trousers and Gwen's skirt didn't look much better, but neither had a change of clothes or even a comb. It wasn't getting any better anytime soon.

Amilia nodded and opened the door. All the little orphans came running up to her. " Milie! Milie! You're back!" They all cried. Susan pulled on her skirt and gave her a toothy grin. " Did you finally bring a friend home?" Amilia blushed. " He's not a friend. I just met him. Now.." She she shooed them away and turned to Seamus and Gwen. " I'm sorry about that. Mrs. Wellofield is right this way." She led them to Mrs. Wellofield and she told her to leave. Amilia walked to the kitchen to get a sip of water before she went back to work. Abigail was in there washing dishes. " Well, the man is very handsome don't you think?" Amilia blushed and finished her water. " I don't have time to think about such things Abigail. If God brings me the right man I'll know." Abigail nodded but still had a mischevios smile on her face. Amilia sighed and walked out of the house and began chopping wood.

Seamus stepped from one foot to the other as Mrs. Wellofield glared at him and Gwen. "We'd work very hard, ma'am," he repeated.
Mrs. Wellofield shook her head slowly. "How do I know that, young man? You look like a ragamuffin to me. And that accent ... where are you from?"
"Ireland," Gwen said, speaking for the first time. "County Kerry, ma'am."
"Just off the ship, I've no doubt."
"Just today," Gwen said.
Seamus kicked her.
"Well, it's true!" Gwen stepped forward. "Mrs. Wellofield, ma'am, please! We just got off the boat, like you said, and we've no food or clothes or work in sight. Just give us a trial. A week, say. Seamus is great working around the house. He used to be -"
Seamus kicked her again.
"Seamus, stop that! Why can't she know? He used to be a gardener at a grand estate, and I was a maid. We had to leave because ... well, we had to leave, but there wasn't anything really dishonorable about it, trust me, and ... you're are only hope."
Seamus rolled his eyes. Gwen made is sound worse than it was.
"Please?"
Mrs. Wellofield sighed. "Very well. A one week trial. But if you fail, that's it. Back on the street with you."
Seamus and Gwen glanced at each other and grinned.

Amilia continued chopping wood until one of her blisters on her hand popped. " Oh applesticks!" She went inside and got a towel and wrapped it around her hand and was about to head out when she caught sight of Seamus and Gwen. She smiled and walked up to them. " So....did she give you a chance?" Amilia said hopefully.

"She did," Seamus replied with a broad grin. He glanced down. "Oh, what's wrong with your hand?" He took it and removed the towel. "Blisters?" He looked horror-struck. "What have you been doing?"

Amilia shrugged. " Chopping wood. It's my job. I don't like staying indoors. I enjoy nature. It's one of God's beautiful creations. So I love to be out there." She removed her hand and wrapped it back up. " There's no need to worry. It's a usual thing."

"There must be other jobs outside, though," Seamus said. "Jobs that don't give you blisters. Or ... you should wear gloves. For now, I'll finish chopping the wood, all right?"

Amilia scowled. " No. I'll wear gloves but don't take away my chores that I do outside." She smirked. " I think I have a few jobs you could do that I can't possibly do."

"I'm ready to start working any time. But at least let Gwen wrap your hands properly ... and you have some gloves she can borrow, don't you, sis?"
Gwen nodded. "Sure, if she wants. I don't like wearing gloves. Though I guess I would if I was chopping wood. You think I'll have to do that, Amilia?"

Amilia smiled and shook her head. "No you don't. If me and Seamus work outside we should have enough wood chopped for the winter. But you could help out teaching the little ones. Most of them don't know how to read."

"That'd be great," said Gwen. "I could use a refresher course myself." She winked.
"She's teasing. Gwen's a big bookworm."
"Am not!"
"Am, too!" Seamus said. "You used to stay up until dawn reading!"
"Sure, I did," Gwen admitted laughingly. "But that was only if the book was particularly good. If it was only pretty good, I'd only stay up until three."
Seamus laughed. "Why don't you run off and see where you can help while Amilia sets me to work?" he suggested.
"All right. Mrs. Wellofield did say I should report to the schoolroom, didn't she?"
Seamus slapped his forehead. "Sorry. Forgot. You'd better hurry."
Gwen nodded and left the room.

Amilia crossed her arms and looked at him sternly. " There's a few rules you have to promise to keep if you want to work here. Are you up for thr challenge?"

Seamus nodded. "Definitely!"

" Well then, here are the rules. Rule number one, you have to always attend church with us. Rule number two, you have to respect the other ladies here. And, rule number three, you have to work hard. Do you accept the rules?" Amilia asked with a smirk. She knew he would. She just wanted to ruffle his feathers.

Seamus rolled his eyes. "Yes. I accept the rules, mostly because I thought the rules were all givens. Now can we start, or do you have to tell me about the breathing and eating policies?" he teased.

Amilia laughed. " Yes we can get to work." She grabbed the gloved Gwen gave her and they headed outside. " Mr. O' Connel, you can pick out the weeds from the garden. I know it's winter but some slip up unnoticed." She smiled and watched him scowl.

"That's hardly what I'd consider 'work,'" Seamus said. "But I'll do it ... if and only if you call me Seamus," he added with a grin.

Amilia smiled. " Okay then Seamus. You can call me Amilia or Milie. Whatever you would like to call me. After you pluck the weeds you can go out in that shack and get a saw and cut down some of these vines growing on the side of the house." Amilia smiled. " How's that for work?"

"That's much better, thanks, Amilia," said Seamus with a grin. He walked over to the garden and knelt down, starting picking the weeds almost before his knees touched the ground.

Amilia smiled and put her gloves on. She stretched her arms before she picked up the ax and in one swing she cut the wood in half. She threw the pieces in a box and then continued in the same order until she finished with the wood. She picked up the box and put it outside the backdoor and walked over to Seamus. " Looking good." She smirked. She had finished before he even got about thirty weeds out of the ground.

Seamus glanced up. In the cold with the ground frozen solid, picking weeds was more of a challenge than he'd expected. He'd ended up getting a little trowel to dig the deep-rooted little demons up, heaping them in a neat little pile which now rested at Amilia's feet. "Uh ... already done?" he asked, turning red.

Amilia smiled. " Yep. Jobs harder than you thought isn't it?" She said with a mischevios smile on her face. That's why she gave him the chore. He probably thought it would he easy. Well, he was wrong. She tried so hard not to laugh at his embarrassment. She could tell that Seamus and her would become good friends in no time.

"Well ... just making sure I do is thoroughly," Seamus explained - or tried to. He threw another weed onto the pile. "These are very evil weeds. They dig in deep and hold on. I think they have it out for me."

Amilia laughed and shook her head. " They have it out for everybody. That was my job when I was younger and I hated it. I'm sorry I gave it to you. I just wanted to see how you worked. And may I say, you do a very fine job working." Amilia smiled and took off her gloves. She sighed. "Looks like I have to trim the bushes around the house. That's fun in the summer. All the hornets love to nest there. And if you're lucky they will go and sting you as a reward for finding their home."

Seamus frowned. "That's not good. Perhaps you could ... you could spray the bushes with ... some sort of chemical compound?" Seamus paused, then shook his head. "That wouldn't work. I can't think of anything that would kill the hornets and not the bushes. But they'd probably be dormant this time of year, anyway, so you can just kill them off now," Seamus reasoned. "Perhaps I could help you? I'm finished now."

Amilia smiled. " There's no need. They're only out in the summer. It's the middle of winter. But, you could trim those vines." She put her hand down to help him up and looked at the garden. " You did a mighty fine job. Better than I could."

"Thank you," said Seamus, "Though I'm sure you could have done as well. But I did work as a gardener for two years, so I have a lot of practice."

" Oh you did?" Amilia crossed her arms against her chest. " What else did you do over there?" She smiled mischievously.