Private Tales Bring Your Daughter to Work Day

Today was the day! Today was the day! Today. Was. The. Day!

Charity was up and going before the first slivers of dawn breached the sky. The excitement bubbled out her as she washed her face in a basin. This was it! No more stealing petty trinkets! No more spying on no-name merchants! Today she was to take her first step into learning the secrets to the inner workings of the family business!

She needed to show Gilgamesh that she was serious about this, Charity was sure of that, and what better way to do that than to dress the part? She was the daughter of one of Alliria's most feared crime lords after all, and so she needed to dress like it. It wouldn't do to be introduced to her father's associates wearing rags. Just imagining the repercussions of embarrassing him like that sent shivers down her spine.

Opening her large wooden chest of clothes, she immediately discarded the numerous shirts and pants with mismatching patches. She held up one article after another and shook her head before tossing it onto the growing pile beside her. Charity's nose scrunched up in disgust when she reached the brand new, never worn dresses neatly folded at the bottom of the chest. She was willing to dress the part, but to go that far? Maybe not. But then again, what better way to show her commitment than to wear something she otherwise wouldn't?

Charity selected a dark dress that didn't seem like it would impede her movement too much and a pair of tights. Just as she had gotten dressed, a knock sounded at the door, and it swung open silently. "Oh! Mornin' Cleo!" Charity turned to greet the newcomer with a smile as she pulled on her boots. "Ah, Miss Charity I see you're already-" Cleo paused as she took in Charity's attire. "Are you feeling alright?" She reached out to touch the girl's forehead. Charity snatched the demon's hand and began tugging her down the hallway. "Yes yes! Never better! Now let's go!" Cleo frowned disapprovingly. "Your mother would like to have a word-" Charity shook her head, continuing to pull Cleo along as the walls of the archives shifted and warped around them. "No! No time for that! Daddy wants to meet over breakfast and we can't keep him waiting! Besides, you know Claus makes the best sweet rolls! I wouldn't want to miss it!"

Within moments, they were seated in a gilded carriage pulled by a pair of jet black horses, on their way to the Briarwood estate. Charity hugged Cleo's arm as she bounced excitedly in her seat, much to the demon's annoyance. What would Gilgamesh teach her first, Charity wondered.

"...And keep those those sticky fingers to yourself! You may well be Gilgamesh's daughter, but that doesn't mean you can do whatever you want around these people! Do you understand me?!"

"Yeah yeah... I get ya." Charity rolled her eyes. "No fighting. No swearing. No taking shiny things that don't belong to me. Just be behave, and follow Daddy quietly, because heaven forbid I do anything fun today." she grumbled.

Cleo released an exasperated sigh, and adjusted her glasses. "See? This is why I said you mother wanted to speak to you before we left. She knew exactly how this whole thing would go!" The demon tucked her dark hair behind one ear with another sigh. "Look you imp, I am trying to tell you this for your own good. You do not want to embarrass your father with your antics. The consequences won't be pretty. I remember the last time Faustian did that and she-"

The carriage rolled to a halt, and Charity bounded out before Cleo could finish her sentence. "Yeah yeah. Okay. Whatever. I will try to be a good girl today." Charity responded without turning. And then she was gone, bolting for the front doors. "OH! And tell Mother that I'm staying at Daddy's estate tonight!" Charity called back with a wave.

She was met at the door by a well groomed and handsome young man. "Good morning Lady Briarthorne. Your-" Charity scowled at the man. "Oi! What did I tell you lot about calling me that?" The man seemed taken aback and a bit shocked, but quickly regained his composure. "M-My apologies, Miss Charity. The master prefers that we use proper titles, and it slipped my mind. Your father is awaiting your arrival in the dining room. Shall I escort you?" Charity frowned, more than a little disappointed that there wasn't a cute maid to guide her instead. "Yeah... alright."

"DADDY!" Upon entering the dining room, Charity excitedly rushed to her father's side, putting her arms over his shoulders and hugging him tightly from behind. "Mornin' Daddy! Did you sleep well?" She kissed his cheek before taking her seat across from him. A small plate with sweet rolls and bread, along with a large glass of milk was placed in front of her. Charity's eyes widened and she greedily took a large bite of a roll. The chefs here were almost as skilled as Cleo. Almost.

"Hey! Did ya hear what happened to the twins the other day?" Charity's eyes sparkled mischievously as she spoke around a mouthful of sweet roll and sipped her milk. "Haven't heard about a job going that wrong in ages!"

Cleo's stern warnings echoed through her mind and she cleared her throat, taking a long drink. Charity sat up a bit straighter and wiped her mouth. Gotta show Daddy I'm serious about this! "Um... Anyway... What did you want to discuss Daddy?"