Seri finally understood why life wasn't so bad. Even if her love with Mary would never be returned, she could still enjoy what they had now. She wasn't a greedy person. She was happy just to be able to be by Mary's side.

I watched the two of them continue to flirt with each other as the plot moved on around them. Seri was gradually becoming more and more accustomed to Mary. However, the bullying Mary faced was becoming worse. Now, even Seri was being bullied for being friends with Mary. However, Seri didn't seem to mind as much.

It was just like she said. These kinds of things meant nothing to her.

Mary pouted next to Seri while Seri flipped through the book she was reading in the library. Someone noticed the two and walked over. Seri flinched when she saw the feet in her vision.

William looked at the two before turning to Mary, "Why are you pouting?"

Mary sighed, "I want to go to the end of the year ball, but all of my dresses aren't formal enough... Ilene said I would be laughed at if I went..."

William crossed his arms in annoyance, "Ilene's always causing trouble. Mary, you don't have to worry about that. No one will laugh at you."

Mary pouted, "No... I think they will..."

William glanced at Seri, "Why don't you just give her one of your dresses? I'm sure they can be altered as needed."

Seri flinched at this and tried to hide, "M-My dresses a-are b-b-bad..."

William glanced at her outfit, "Good point. You're supposed to be a noble yet you wear such worn out clothes."

Seri visibly deflated. Mary frowned, "William. Don't be mean to Seri."

He looked away indifferently, "If you need a dress Mary, I can just buy you one."

Mary shook her head, "No! I could never pay you back for it."

"Who said you would have to pay me back? Just take it as a gift for your near perfect score on the exam."

Mary beamed, "You are too kind!" Her eyes trailed towards Seri, "But..."

William followed her look and understood immediately. "Since you even beat me in a few categories, I can buy you two dresses. We can have one altered to fit someone of a smaller build. However, since it won't fit, you will have to give it to someone who could fit into it. Like Seri."

Seri heard her name and flinched. She put her book down in a panic, "N-No! Y-You can't! M-My mother w-will be f-furious!"

William grinned, "Even more the reason to do it."

Seri was unable to argue and was reluctantly dragged with the two to go shopping. In the original novel, it had only mentioned that William took Mary shopping in order to buy her a dress. It never went into detail about the event itself. I was surprised to see that Seri was also tagging along and that he even bought her a dress as well. She was unwilling, but because of her nature she couldn't firmly refuse.

The night of the ball had arrived. Just like in the novel, Mary was dressed in a beautiful dress which shined as she moved. If one saw her, they wouldn't think that she was a commoner. Even Seri wore a beautiful dress, however she still hid her face and hair under that bonnet and veil.

While the ball itself wasn't a terrible event, I recognized it from the novel. William was getting more and more interested in Mary, but tonight was the night he fell in love. I looked towards the original Seri trying to see her reaction. However, she just watched the scene play out in front of her without moving an inch.

I looked back and saw Seri pulled towards an adjacent empty room by her mother. I immediately had a bad feeling about it. We followed the two and watched as her mother tossed Seri into the wall with a terrifying expression. Seri gasped from the pain, but didn't say a thing.

Her mother glared at her, "You little whore. Who bought you that dress?! HUH? ANSWER ME!"

"P-P-Prince-"

*SMACK*

Seri's bonnet was thrown off as she cowered from her furious mother.

Her mother shrieked, "THE PRINCE?! How did you manage to get him to buy you this?! Huh? You slept with him! Didn't you!?"

"N-No..."

*SMACK*

She glared at the trembling Seri, "You are such a worthless daughter. How disgusting. No wonder your father never wants to see you. He is just as disgusted as I am by that d*mned stutter and ugly face of yours."

Seri bit her lip trying not to cry. However, she couldn't contain her sobs. Her mother knew exactly what to say to hurt her.

Her mother clenched her jaws, "Stop that annoying noise this instant!"

However, Seri couldn't stop.

Her mother grabbed a nearby glass vase and threw it towards Seri. It shattered against the wall causing Seri to shriek in fear. This only seemed to anger her mother more. She picked up a shard with a threatening expression, "You want to cry? Fine. I will give you something to cry about."

Seri put up her hands defensively and felt something sharp glide along her palm. She winced from the pain and fell to the ground to cower. Blood poured out of the wound and dripped to the ground. Her mother looked at her cowering figure triumphantly. Before she left the room, she looked at Seri coldly, "Worthless whore."

Seri sobbed while she lay there. When she forced herself to sit up, she heard something stir in the corner. She looked towards the noise in a panic. Her eyes dilated in fear when she caught sight of Dante glaring down at her with his sharp golden eyes. He had seen the entire thing. When they walked into the room, they didn't check to see if they were alone. They completely overlooked Dante who was hiding from the party in this very room.

Her body shook, but he continued to stare at her with apathetic eyes. Their intent was clear. He didn't care one bit about what he had seen. To him, she was just a worthless waste of air. If she had died, he wouldn't have cared.

Seri bit her lip as new tears threatened to spill out. She grabbed her bonnet and sprinted out of the room. She left the building and appeared at a fountain which was bathed in moonlight. She looked at the fountain and shuffled towards it. She sat down on the side of the fountain and stuck her feet into the water. She didn't care that it was cold. She didn't care if it would ruin her shoes. She just stared ahead with despondent eyes.

Mary rushed out of the building sobbing. She stopped when she saw Seri bathing in moonlight sitting at the fountain. She ran towards her, "Seri! It was awful! Ilene dumped an entire glass of wine on my new dress! It's completely ruined!"

Once Mary got close to Seri, she immediately stopped her sobbing. She noticed Seri's bleeding palm and grabbed it, "What happened?!"

"Nothing..." Seri responded in an apathetic tone. Mary bit her lip and ripped off a piece of her dress. Seri was shocked, "What are you doing?"

Mary gave a slight smile, "I'm wrapping your cut up. Now don't move."

"B-But... Your dress..."

Mary chuckled, "Did you miss what I said? It's already ruined."

As Mary wrapped Seri's hand, she was surprised by how soft Mary's hand was. Her fingers itched to touch it more. When Mary finished, Seri was a bit disappointed. Mary sat down next to her and looked at her closely, "Can I... Take your bonnet off?"

Seri didn't speak and only lowered her head. Mary was accustomed to Seri so she knew this was her way of giving her approval. Mary reached over and gently removed the hat which always hid her. Mary saw the red swollen cheek and gently reached out to touch it.

Seri's eyes dared to look at Mary's face. Seri's breath caught in her throat as she stared at Mary's gorgeous face. Her skin was flawless as it shone in the moonlight. In her shimmering purple eyes, Seri could see herself in them. Seri's eyes trailed downwards before resting on Mary's plump lips. Seri forced herself to look away.

Mary spoke, "Does it hurt?"

"No..."

Mary looked down and pulled her hand from Seri's face. She spoke hesitantly, "Seri... You know... You can talk to me about anything... We are friends after all..."

"Friends?"

Mary glanced at her. Her voice seemed a bit disappointed, "Maybe I only thought so..."

Seri reached out to hold Mary's hand. Mary didn't pull away, instead her fingers interlaced with Seri's. Seri's thumb gently traced Mary's hand in a soothing fashion. Seri pinched her lips together, "I don't want to be friends..."

"You-You don't?"

Seri's eyes moved back towards Mary's, "I want... To be more..."

Her eyes stared hungrily at Mary's lips. Seri didn't want to stay like this. She wanted to taste the forbidden fruit. She didn't want to just stay next to Mary. She wanted to hold Mary. She wanted to kiss Mary. She wanted to live the rest of her life with Mary.

"More?" Mary asked confused, "Like... Best friends?"

Seri's face slowly leaned towards Mary. She was overwhelmed by her urges. When she glanced up, she recognized the confusion in Mary's eyes. She snapped herself out and pulled back before she could taste those plump lips. Seri stood up, "I... I have to go.."

"Wait!" Mary shouted, but Seri had already ran away.

Seri sprinted into the woods and crashed into someone hiding in the bushes. She blinked in confusion as she picked herself off the ground. She turned to see who she had ran into and frowned, "You..."

Artie rubbed his backside from where he had fallen, "Ow ow ow..."

Seri glared at him, "Were you spying on us again? You creep."

He frowned at her, "Why didn't you kiss her? That was the perfect moment."

"You of all people should know why I didn't."

Mary went to step out of the fountain, but William appeared in her way. Seri and Artie shut up from their hiding place when they saw him appear. William spoke apologetically, "I'm sorry Mary... I can't believe Ilene got jealous because we danced. I will buy you another dress to replace the one that got ruined."

Seri looked over in disbelief, "Danced?"

Mary smiled at him, "It's okay. I'm over it."

William looked at her closely, "Then..." He held out a hand with a dashing smile, "Shall we resume where we left off?"

Mary giggled, "We can't dance without music."

"Are you sure?"

Mary beamed at him and took his hand. As they danced without music, Seri watched from the bushes with Artie. She was overwhelmed with stomach churning jealously. However, it was soon replaced with self loathing. She whispered out in a strained voice, "See? Don't you see how perfect the two of them are together?... People like us... We never have a chance..."

Seri turned and ran away. Artie watched her run off in a panic, "Wait! Seri!" As she disappeared he sighed, "You're wrong..."

The moment where William had fallen in love with Mary was also the moment where Seri had realized her desire. It also made her realize that she didn't have a chance to be with Mary.

I frowned, "In the original novel, Ilene came out and pushed Mary into the fountain. William was so furious he told Ilene that he would be rethinking their engagement."

"Mmn." The original Seri hummed next to me. She turned to me, "What happens after this... Well I hate to admit it may not be pleasant... I... I did not handle the situation well..."

I took her hand, "At least this time, you won't be alone."

The original Seri looked forward as the scene changed to her bedroom. She wasn't necessarily showing me all of this to help me. Instead, she just wanted someone to understand her pain and sorrow.