Chapter Two: Delia

We are introduced to the ward, Delia.

Nightmares were a thing that frequented the Lady Delia’s life, and sometimes they were nonsensical. This only seemed to strengthen after the death of her childhood maid, Magdalene. She would dream of being tied to her bed, blood dripping onto her night robes from a source that she couldn’t see before her death, but after it got more vivid. She would see things besides that nightmare, and she would remember it well into the day after.

Today�"today was no different. This time she saw a girl, someone she’d never seen before in her life, standing over her bed, clad in black. She couldn’t exactly make out her face but she just stood there, staring at her as Delia screamed, asking her why she was in her room and asking her who she was. The girl was silent. She never answered anything that Delia would ask her.

Today Delia went to the physician herself for a sleeping potion, her mind out of it as she made her way to the other end of the castle. Delia opened the door without knocking, forgetting that she might be interrupting the physician in some experiment that she was conducting. “Brenha?” She called. The physician was an older lady, with grey hair tied back in and a strong jaw and hands.

“Yes, my lady?”

“I came here for my sleeping potion.”

“You didn’t have to come all this way to get it my dear,” She said. “I would have had someone send it to you, especially after all the stress you’ve been through this week.”

“I know.” The girl said, “I just couldn’t wait any longer.”

“Then sit down, my dear. It’s almost done.”

“Thank you, Brenha. Really.” She sat and waited for the sleeping potion, looking around her at all the books that she had laying about her office. There were so many things there that Delia couldn’t identify, potions and tonics that she couldn’t name, poisons, and cures and trinkets that she’d never seen. They were all so wondrous looking. Right when Brenha was about to give her the potion, someone knocked on the door.

“Come in!” Brenha called. Delia watched as a girl walked through the door, her hair was long, black, and set in waves. Her skin like honey. She could tell that this girl was a foreigner. No one around here looked like her.

“Sorry, am I interrupting something?” She looked shy.

“No,” Brenha said. “What do you need?”

“The employment office said that you needed an assistant. I’m quite good with medicine and was wondering if you would consider me for the position.” Delia looked back at Brenha, watching as she took the sleeping potion off her hot plate and moved around her desk to give it to her. The girl that just come in looked at Delia, and smiled, but didn’t say anything.

“Your potion my lady,” The physician said.

“Oh�"yes.”  The Lady took it and got up. Something about this girl was different, like she could sense something about her that was familiar and at the same time, new. “Sorry, erh�"I’ll just be going.” She left then, giving the girl a small smile as she left the room.

It was an inconsequential meeting, one that shouldn’t have stuck with her, but it did.