“but mama, it’s pointless! how is staying with aunt marie going to turn me into a lady?”

those were the last words before your mother and father shipped you off from france to italy. you had gotten into a few…situations back in your home town, so your parents were hoping that staying with your aunt, who was a nun, would straighten you out.

of course, you were just appalled by this. i mean, you? a nun? pfft. no way. so, when you arrived in florence, italy, in your linen vesti and sopravesti, you weren’t particularly… happy. even more so when you walked into the small bedroom where you would be staying for the next few years, in the top tower of the convent. it was nice enough, sure, but you were 80% sure that you saw a rat climb up into your room.

on a particular tuesday, the other nun’s were going out to the town markets to run some errands. and you hadn’t seen the markets yet, so you agreed to come along. so, as you were walking through the markets, looking at the various meat, fruit, bread, and jewellery for purchase, you were more than surprised to see a boy, looking about 16, the same age as you, dressed in a linen tunic and linen pants, barefoot, leaning against a wall ripping off pieces of bread and eating it.

and he was looking directly at you, with a curious expression on his face.