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An Hour or so later.
Jennet wanders back to the meager bedroom quarters, a little overwhelmed with everything that just happened. Princeton's offer and her acceptance, followed by a rapid introduction to the kitchen and the immediate staff that Princeton was in charge of. Though, honestly, even hiring up, she was going from below the bottom to the very bottom, she still had to obey anything anyone told her to do still... But Princeton apparently had enough authority for her to be able to prioritize his orders.
Mopping really was nothing but tedious, impossible, busy work, but she still wasn't sure this was any better... Except... Five coins a week... That was a lot of money. To Jennet, at least...
She opened the door, there weren't any locks on the rooms down here, and stepped in, with a lot of weight on her mind.
Olyvia is sitting on the bed, kind of just staring at the wall. The squirrel is only in her underwear, having quickly generated a habit of shedding her work-dress soon as the door is closed behind her. She shakes her head slightly as she blinks up from her stupor. "Mmbh. What kept you?"
Jennet shakes her head, "I... Don't know." She glances down at her own outfit, one which Princeton said they would replace with a more fitting kitchen uniform, "One of the chefs... He... Hired me?"
Olyvia blinks: "Hired you? Like, moving over there to mop the floors or something?"
Jennet shakes her head again, "No... As... A trash girl? Just doing little odds and ends in the kitchen. Little things the bigger folks can't do." She turns to look at Olyvia sadly. "He said no more mopping. I'm to report directly to the kitchen tomorrow morning."
Olyvia smiles: "That sounds great! I'll take anything over doing the floors again!"
Jennet's face drops at Olyvia's words, and she slumps further, "N...not 'us'. Just me... I... I asked him to hire you on too, but he said he could only take one new person on."
Olyvia blinks: "...what? But that can't... I can't just stay..." She trails off, looking aside with a frown.
Jennet sighs, "I... I couldn't say no. But... I tried to tell him about you. To at least hear you out... But..." She shakes her head again. "I'm... I'm sorry. This sort of thing should happen to you, not me."
Olyvia swallows: "Hmmph. I hope your have fun, then." She stares at the foot of her bed, as though a solution to this sudden issue would spring from under the bed any second now.
Jennet swallows, Olyvia's words hitting her like a punch to the gut, "I... I... I wasn't trying to... I'm sorry... I'll talk to Princeton tomorrow about taking you instead of me..."
Olyvia gives Jennet a sideways look that speaks volumes of her disappointment. "You do that." She doesn't actually believe Jennet will, though.
Jennet's cringes at Olyvia's tone, her ears drooping, the mouse entirely unsure what is happening here between the two of them. "It's... It's not exactly glamorous work either... I... I wasn't looking for this."
Olyvia crosses her arms and lifts her legs to her bed, frowning slightly: "Guess we'll see." She swallows, holding back tears of bitter disappointment that want to flood out.
Jennet stares a moment konger in uncertainty, then sighs and turns to their dresser, removing her dress in an uncertain silence.
Olyvia stares at the wall for a long moment, before sighing the deepest sigh she is capable of and settling down for sleep. For some reason she does not feel like saying the usual 'good night' to her friend either.
Jennet finishes stripping down, turning back to the bunk beds and seeing Olyvia already turned away from her. The mouse is more confused and hurt by Olyvia's reaction than she could have thought, but doesn't know what to say or do. She frowns upon hearing that deep sigh, glancing down at the squirrel as she climbs up to her bunk. She stammers out a scared and sad "G-good night..." Before slipping into her bed.
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