It had been some time since Rose had invited Pearl for dinner. Life had been busy and stressful in between trying to keep a sulky Mr. Meijer and his witch sister happy, her sisters going missing, and all the trouble with Alice, and Rose hadn’t seen her friend since - much to her father’s satisfaction, probably. For after Pearl had left that evening, Rose's joy had soon been tempered when father had given her some painful ‘advice’. Father’s advice tended to take the form of a command, but Rose reasoned that she did not live under his roof anymore.
 
And so, on this bright and sunny afternoon on her day off, Rose set out from home with a basket in her hand, and a checked shawl tied around her head and body, to visit ‘an old school friend’. She stopped at Pearl’s modest dwelling – once again reflecting on the girl’s strange preferences, for Rose would put up with the most awful siblings to live in a mansion and not have to work – and knocked on the door.

Pearl had been busy with her work as of late and staying out of trouble since it seemed that her name was on the lips of others. Her father had paid her a visit with a stern talking to and chastised the young eccentric for this with a warning that she would have to move back to the manse if things continued in the direction they were going.

When she heard the knock, she wondered who it was and was delighted to see her friend upon opening the door. "Hello, come in, come in. Save me from my boredom." She laughed softly.

"Boredom?" Rose said with a grin, entering the house. "Isn't that was Sundays are for?" In truth, Rose had never felt very bored on Sundays. She used to enjoy not working, and their Sunday meal, and their Sunday school meetings in the afternoon, and having more time for play. Now that she was a maid, she often had to work on Sundays and she missed the good old days.

"Well, I hope you like eating for an activity, because I've brought oatcakes." She put the basked on the table, and took away the cloth that covered it. The smell of freshly bakes oatcakes filled the air.

"I've been cooped up for a while now," she admitted with a wry grin. She let her friend in and closed the door, perking with the mention of oatcakes. "Mmm, oatcakes," said Pearl with a lick to her lips. The smell of them reminded her that she hadn't eaten in a while, and after Rose pulled the cloth off, Pearl took a cake and bit into it with relish. "So good," she said when her mouth wasn't full. "What brings you to my humble abode today?" she asked cheerfully.

For a moment, Rose wondered if she had taken too much liberty, visiting her friend without an invitation. They were friends, right? Or was father right? She put her hands in her hips. "Why, to see you, of course. And to share me sister's oatcakes." If they had been Rose's, Pearl would probably have lost half her teeth by now. She tilted her head a little as she tried to read the other girl. "Why 'ave ye been cooped up?"

"Well, it's always nice to see you," she said cheerfully. "I just wasn't expecting company, I would have gotten refreshments around. Why don't I have Tilly make some tea now to go with the oat cakes?" she asked and went for the bell pull. She pulled he rope and then looked over at Rose with a blush across her cheeks. "You... haven't heard any rumors circulating?"

Rose loved being on the other end of that relationship, and she straightened her back for when the maid came, to look more lady like and above her. It would be wonderful to have a servant to bully around, rather than be the bullied servant.

But she forgot her attitude when Pearl mentioned the rumours, and a little frown appeared between her eyebrows. "I heard t' papers wrote about your kidnappin'..." she admitted. "If that's what ye'r referrin' to."

"Yes... Why can't they leave it?" she was genuinely distressed by such a story circulating in the press... especially when it wasn't all true. It was mortifying! She sighed and Tilly came in the room, "Tea please, lots of it, Tilly. Thank you." The maid bobbed a curtsy and then took off to the kitchen to prepare the brew.

Pearl began to pace and said, "I just want to be left alone about it but it's coming back to haunt me, as if they don't think I have feelings about it. They only care about what the readers think."

Rose walked over and put her hands on her friends shoulders to comfort her. She knew what it was to have people talking about you or your loved ones, and to see an awful true story become even worse in people's gossip. "I ain't read t' paper, so I don't know what they said, but... maybe the extra attention will help the kidnapper be caught sooner?" she tried to help her friend see the positive side.

"Maybe, but it still ruins my good name. What if someone thinks he did more than just that? What if people think he ravished me? It isn't true. Nobody will want to associate with me if I am ruined." She put her hands on her face and sighed. "If I had been born into a family with no fortune, this wouldn't be in the news at all. I would not have a reputation to uphold for the sake of society. It isn't just about me either, what if this affects my family?" In fact, she could very well picture Magnus on a rampage after this, but not for her sake.