After Humanity

Chapter Twenty-Two

Back to the present... Rachel and Kathryn were at the lake when we left them last ;-)

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Rachel

Rachel remained quite through the walk back to the main house, obediently following after Kathryn. Dinner was nearly ready by the time that they came back to the kitchen but Kathryn immediately set about helping the other girls lay the table for the dinner shifts. Magnus's humans ate ten at a time Kathryn explained. The kitchen helpers would eat with the second set. Kathryn agreed to let Rachel wait to eat when she requested to sit at her new friend's side, offering her a stool to rest on until it was time for their meal.

Though none of the other girls who began to trickle in seemed willing to engage with her as Kathryn had, Rachel was relieved to find they were all far less cold than they had been the day before. All except for the woman she now knew to be Sarah. When she saw Rachel sitting on her stool, the girl had quickly grabbed her friend Judith's hand and cast her a nasty glare.

Rachel's stomach sunk. She could hardly blame the girl for continuing to hate her. After all, she might be the death of both of them now that Sarah had made her plea to Alice. She had every reason to be resentful.

Luckily the remainder of the first group came and ate in relative silence, merely thanking Kathryn and her friends for their meal. Rachel sipped the tea Kathryn had made for her, watching them eat and engage in small chatter. She wished she could talk to the others. To Sarah and Judith. That she could tell them how sorry she was to have caused them any trouble. But it seemed best to just avoid talking to them altogether.

When the first group had gone, leaving their dishes in the sink and filing out, the kitchen crew finally came to sit at the table along side a few others who had come for the second dinner shift. Rachel hesitated to join them but Kathryn came behind her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, guiding her to sit with the others.

"Just wait one moment and I'll make us both a plate," Kathryn said, grabbing two dishes and scooping out generous portions of potatoes and meat and vegetables. Rachel nodded, though she felt awkward sitting with the other girls, none of who she really recognized aside from Olivia, who came to sit across from her. But she was happily surprised when Kathryn's friend caught her eye and gave her a broad smile.

"I'm so glad you felt well enough to join us," Olivia said. Rachel couldn't help but offer a small shy smile in return

"Thank you for finishing up," Kathryn said to Olivia and the others as she came to sit by Rachel's side. "I will stay back and clean up. You can all go to the hall and relax after dinner."

"We were happy to do it," Olivia answered. The others seemed to echo the sentiment.

Rachel had not been certain of her hunger until the sumptuous feast was set before her. One whiff from the plate and her stomach growled, mouth salivating. Olivia laughed at her expression as she bit into her own meal.

"No need to wait for us Rachel," she commented. "I'm certain you must be hungry and lamb chops are one of Alice's specialty dishes."

"Always been my personal favorite," One of the other girls commented, offering Rachel a smile as genuine as Olivia's. "Though of course all of Alice's recipes are impressive."

Rachel lifted a bite of meat to her mouth and could not help but be overwhelmed with how good it really was. Mamma and Papa had never been able to afford to put much meat on the table at all. Certainly not anything as tender and juicy as the lamb that seemed to melt in her mouth. She knew Mamma had always done her best with what they had, but her bland meals were nothing compared to Alice's delicacies.