Story: Maid Jenny and Her Mistress. Chapter 7.

by Jackie J

Bundled into the rear compartment of Sister Agnes’s carriage, Lucy was in a state of shock and panic. Looking out the small window, she watched Long Lawns disappear behind the tall fir trees that bordered the grounds of what was her home. It all happened so quickly. Why didn’t she shake free of Sister Agnes’s firm grip of her arm? In truth she had tried but to no avail. Why didn’t she scream out her true identity to stop this madness before being locked in the back of this carriage? Why did Mrs Sunderland not stop the woman, say anything, do anything to prevent what amounts to no less than her abduction? And that sly grim behind the look of concern that she saw on her Mistress's face when she agreed for the nun to take her away to the convent! What was she thinking? And why, like Mrs Sunderland, did she do nothing when matters escalated and she was being dragged from Long Lawns?

The compartment in the carriage was cramped and Lucy sat on the small wooden bench and put her head in her hands. Possessed? What madness! She could not help those feelings. She told the nun how she felt and thought she could trust her! Perhaps more in desperation than hope Lucy looked out through the grill on the door at the rear of the carriage. Was her Mistress's carriage following to explain everything to Sister Agnes and take her back to Long Lawns? However, there was no sign of a pursuit, just a dusty empty roadway with the carriage rattling its way to the seclusion St Catherine’s convent.

Story: Maid Jenny and Her Mistress. Chapter 6.

by Jackie J

Having been served breakfast then attended during her morning bath and helped to dress by her maid, without a word of what had occurred in the kitchens following her return from Meadow Hall, Jenny smiled at Marianne whilst she read through the letter she had composed to be sent to Mrs Catherine Wilberforce accepting her invitation to attend her annual garden festival.

“Perfect Jenny. Just perfect. We must get this in the post without delay.”

Marianne watched an extremely meek maid Lucy enter the parlour to serve tea, curtsy, and then retreat back to the kitchens.

Marianne chuckled.

“Your maid looks rather glum this morning. What is wrong with her?”

Marianne laughed but not without a degree of veiled concern, when Jenny explained about the previous evening when she returned to Long Lawns.

“In front of you? My goodness! What is happening to this woman? We may have to seek help for her when this is over. Don’t worry about the ball gown. I appreciate the gesture, but trust me, you would look good in sack cloth."

Almost back in the game!

Dear readers,

just wanted to drop a quick note to apologise for the recent lack of updates. Some of you wrote to me in the past weeks asking what was going on. Thank your for your interest. All is good, it's been a rather peculiar combination of work, travel, extended (make it very extended) home renovation and laziness. There is no need to worry and regular service will soon resume. I might as well party like it's 2017 and start updating three-four times a week again, but no promises there. It will definitely be a lot more frequent than this summer though.

Jackie J's Jenny story has three more chapter left that I hope to publish over the coming days after I am done editing them, followed by a very interesting  lady-to-maid story by a completely new author. A couple of my books are on the backburner but again no hard promises. I will do my best to overcome a pretty severe case of writer's block, this I can promise.

Please watch this space. 

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Story: Maid Jenny and Her Mistress. Chapter 5.

by Jackie J

Before Lucinda Lancaster sought to transform her into a lady to embarrass Lady Southward, Jenny had only spent time in the library at Long Lawns to clean and dust. Now she was an avid reader, spending much of her time there. She found this window to another world fascinating. Jenny had read extensively on the continent of Africa and the work of missionaries there. Marianne had encouraged her to study this subject and with her acquired depth of knowledge Jenny had become quite an informed expert. Should Jenny ever be questioned concerning her time in Africa, before returning to stay at her cousin’s home at Long Lawns, Marianne was confident that her pupil would be able to wax lyrical on the subject to the point of boredom.

Jenny’s struggle with words saw her flicking the now well-worn pages of the library dictionary to establish their meaning and rejoiced in perfecting the pronunciation of each new addition to her vocabulary. No longer seen walking around Long Lawns or sitting at her studies with books tottering on her head, Jenny sat with her back ramrod straight and strode purposely through the rooms of Long Lawns with her head held confidently high. Even when brought to anger chastising her maid, Jenny’s new found sophisticated accent never broke her calm authoritarian tone of rebuke, amusing Marianne immensely. 

Story: Maid in Oaxaca.

Monica Graz is back with another instant classic of the TG maid genre. She's kindly allowed me to repost this story here (this is complete part 1 and beginning of part 2; the full version is to appear on Mags Inc as usual). Excellent research on her part and a great read, as always. 

by Monica Graz

PROLOGUE

Patricia Martinez Torres is a pretty and highly intelligent Mexican girl in her mid twenties living in New York. Her father Diego Martinez Torres is a high-ranking diplomat serving at the UN Mexican delegation. Her mother Alicia Martinez Torres is ‘old money’.  She is the sole inheritor of vast pieces of land and properties in the southern state of Oaxaca at the vicinity of the town of Juchitan.

In the district of Juchitan is the land on the ancient Zapotec people whose language and culture still thrive there. One of the many distinguishing characteristics of Juchitan is its population of muxes (pronounced moo-shays) which means women in Zatopecan dialect, clearly influenced by the Spanish word mujer for woman.

But the muxes are not biological women, they are people who were born biologically male and were encouraged to dress from an early age in female clothes either because they manifested some inclination towards that or because the family had too many sons and needed a substitute daughter to take up female duties within the family, usually with the blessings and the complete tolerance of the society.

Some have their breasts enhanced, others have nose jobs. Quite a number of then are permanently dressed as females wearing the colorful dresses, so popular within their culture. The majority of muxes start very young, before their teens and are trained in womanly ways by family and friends, taking their place in Zapotec cultural tradition that predates the Spanish colonizers.  

Story: Maid Jenny and Her Mistress. Chapter 4.

by Jackie J

Lucy sat at the kitchen table for quite some time staring at her mug of cold tea. The only thing disturbing her thoughts was the risk of the potatoes boiling dry.

Her friend Marianne had truly worked wonders with Jenny in the three weeks she had been away and now she was talking of calling the whole thing off? She had written the condition of the maid’s hair in the contract herself and with good reason. Fussy long hair on a maid look untidy and unhygienic. A neat black bob is perfect for a domestic servant after all. 

She couldn’t risk all the efforts to date going to waste. Yes, Jenny was a new mistress and she had taken advantage picking and choosing like she had with the conditions stipulated in the contact. But hacking her lovely hair... Would it really matter? Marianne was right. It was only vanity and it would grow back. Vanity? Here she was dressed in a baggy maid’s uniform, her hair scrapped back into a tight bun anyway. Vanity? Her hands were becoming chafed already and here nails were a joke. Could she really look any less than a lady than she already did? 

Lucy sighed. The punishment thing though… Good grief! She would never invoke that, never. If she did cut her hair Jenny will waiver that surely!  Marianne said she was confident that Jemmy would be able to fool Lady Southward and that is what this is all about. All she needed was to play her part. Jenny needed to know she truly was the mistress at Long Lawns. And Lucy needed to show her she was her obedient maid.

Story: Maid Jenny and Her Mistress. Chapter 3.

by Jackie J

The same clock that had offered its lulling rhythmic ticking rattled into life. The hand of a disoriented Lucy pawed forlornly to seek the silence of the bells ringing. She stretched and pulled herself onto the pillar, her bleary eyes seeing the time to be five thirty!

The wash basin offered some further awakening and, staring at the shears and comb, Lucy scraped back her hair into the tightest bun before concealing it under her cap. She put on clean underwear, drew up her coarse stockings to the broad garter straps and then pulled on her clumpy shoes before tightening the laces. The lace apron gave some feminine definition to her shapeless heavy woollen dress and she was ready.

Menus were pinned by the rota sheet and Lucy got busy with her Mistress's poached eggs and toast whilst brewing a pot of tea, an early morning routine that would be repeated each day.

Her Mistress's tray prepared and noting the time was six fifteen Lucy made her way up to the  bedroom to serve breakfast. The irony of this task was not lost on Lucy. The very same breakfast served at the very same time to when she herself would awake to her maid Jenny serving her. How different she felt now!

Two knocks on the bedroom door and a call to enter followed from within.

Lucy curtsied and presented the tray to her mistress who was wearing a beautiful nightdress and a peignoir.

“Your Breakfast, Mistress.”