20 - Nature

Ailsa

The ache in my chest will not go away, never dissolving even the slightest bit, and it has absolutely nothing to due to my ailment.

Fraser. I couldn't stop thinking of him.

Even when my suitor is discussed, even when my father spits foul words at me about what a disappointment I am.  None of it is enough to dissuade my agony. If anything, it fuels it.

Visiting Fraser had been a sort of balm that eased my suffering day to day. And now, that pain dulling, nightly event is gone.

It makes my life harder. How selfish is that?

He's the one imprisoned, he's the one who is in pain, he's the one who feels betrayed.

I make my way outside, sneaking away to try to have a stolen moment to myself in nature's comforting embrace. It's raining today, the dreary weather not at all uncommon for Scotland's highland countryside.

The clouds are thick and gray, flat and stretched over the horizon as they hide the sky from me. I guess that the sky would be white if I could see it.

I trudge through the rain, hiking my skirts up around my knees to try to dissuade the mud, but it will always persist, so my efforts are for nothing but my own comfort. I enjoy the breeze going under my dress, the skirts and layers of fabric tend to trap the heat in.

It's refreshing, this rain, and I let it hit my face as if it will wash away all of my worries.

Fraser. Impending marriage. Broken lungs. Hateful parents, giddy to be rid of me.

I find a fallen tree in the woods, the trunk so broad that my feet swing above the slick ground. I consider everything going on in my life and compare it to the forest around me. Too many things buzzing around, too many happenings to focus on just one.

My life is much like this nature filled space. There is no humanity in nature, no room for mercy. It is simply a circle of life. Death, pain, obstruction, its all part of the circle. Much like my life, there is nothing you can do to stop natures cruel plans. It is how things are meant to be.

I sigh, realizing that I must not fight this fate, but let it take a hold of me.

Traveling back the way I came, I look around at all the buildings surrounding the castle. Small huts and houses that lay around the property, each with a family or a purpose.

One home in particular catches my eye as smoke billows into the windy air from the chimney. Everyone in our tiny town stays away from this particular place. The woman who lives there is considered suspicious.

Some say she is a witch, but the old lady, Ella, says she is simply a healer with qualities that set her apart. It is not disputed that the woman is a talented doctor, but the suspicions of her supernatural qualities are what keep her from the castle.

My father allows her to have sanctuary here, apparently she saved a number of men on a hunt years ago, keeping them from death. The men and their families demanded that the woman be rewarded in some way, despite her odd ways.

This tiny cottage on the edge of the woods was what was settled on.

I've never been here before, never met Ella in person, although I've seen her from afar.

I grab any bravery left inside of me, pulling it to the surface as I knock on the door.

I'm not standing for even half a second before a scratchy voice calls out.

"Come in!" The voice says, full of joy and excitement and getting closer to the door by the end of the short sentence.

Grabbing the brass doorknob and turning it, I nearly gasp at the interior behind the wooden door.

A roaring fire in the fireplace, and a little old woman squatting in front of it, that is the only normal part. Herbs and plants of all kinds decorate each and every surface. Some in pots and loads hanging from the ceiling. Large, leafy plants seem to be bursting out of the floorboards, their stems growing from under the house.

There isn't much furniture in the crowded house, but the furniture that there is covered in bottles of varying shapes and sizes. I look in wonder at a platter by the door, covered in gemstones that shimmer in the candlelight.

"What can I help you with dearie?" Ella asks, all chipper with no sign of self consciousness at my gaping gaze at her odd home.

"I'm... not sure?" I try, the statement somehow forming into a question as it leaves my mouth.

Ella shuffles towards me, closing the door behind me. I still at her nearness, noticing how short she is compared to me.

Her hair is gray and long, tangled and unruly, much like her cluttered house.

"You were led here, I presume. For what, well I suppose that's for me to find out, young one. Come. Sit." She waddles past me, sitting in a large, cushiony chair and pulling up a small wooden stool, patting the top of it with her wrinkled hand.

I gulp. The old woman does have a point. Maybe I was led here.

I sit as I was told to do, too used to being ordered around.

As soon as my bum connects with the stool, Ella takes my hand in both of hers, flipping it over and staring at my palm.

She gawks at the lines in my hand.

"Well, now I know." She murmurs, eyes racing across my palm. "This is strange, very strange indeed."

"What?" I demand, and she simply looks up at me with wide eyes. She seems to be searching for something in my face, looking for an answer to her own questions.

"Your life line." She points out, tracing a deep groove in the meat of my palm, diagonal from my thumb. "I've never seen anything like it."

I raise my eyebrows, nodding my head once, urging her on.

"It goes past your racettes. It trails all the way to your wrist." Ella sounds breathless, like me when I have a lung attack. "It doesn't seem to end."

She looks back up at me then, suspicion heavy in her gaze.

"I must get going. Need to be back to the castle before sundown and all." I ramble, ripping my hand away from her grip, standing in one, jerky motion.

Her eyes never leave me as I back away.

"You'll be back, lass." I struggle with the door behind my back, swinging it forward as it hits my shoulders. "Aye, you'll be back. And I'll be waiting."

The light fades but the rain continues on. I pace my room, chewing on my fingernails and glancing anxiously out the window.

The woman's words echo in my mind, bounding around my brain like an infection. It's been this way for hours. The building tension is winding me up, making me miserable.

I need my medicine. I need my balm. I need to see Fraser.

The waiting in agony. Its hours of pacing before the castle goes quiet. The lights in the village below flicker out as minutes pass.

Finally , it is my chance. I grapple with the door, leaving my lamp in my haste. I wonder if I should stop by the kitchens to get some food, maybe even the library for a book. I would feel better with something in my hand, an offering of peace for Fraser.

Will he still hate me? Will he glare at me like some filth he stepped in, or will he understand when I explain myself?

I don't know, but I have a feeling that either way, his presence alone will be a comfort.

I move a bit too quickly down the stairs, nearly tripping in my haste. I grin. My veins are alive with joy thrumming through me.

Before I get to the dungeons, a voice catches my attention.

"See how the monster likes this."

Father?

I peek around the dark corner. It is my father, lifting a lantern high in the air, and he's holding something else in his other hand. A bowl of some kind, the metal flickering from the torches still alight in the hallways.

The noise of sloshing reaches my ears, and then the dripping of some sort of liquid. I watch helplessly as Father sneaks down the stairs and down into the dungeons.

As soon as he has disappears down into the underbelly of the castle, I sneak forward. The dark droplets covering the stone ground greet me. I cock my head at the drops, crouching and staring at the odd flecks of red.

I dip my finger in one of the small puddles, smearing it. Its cold and thick.

Is this... blood?

I lift it to my face, taking one small whiff to confirm.

If the salty, metallic scent is any indication, it is indeed blood.

My eyes grow wide. My heart speeds up.

What is going on here?

I hear my father's deep voice through the floor, but I am unable to decipher the words.

I gulp, knowing what I am about to do is dangerous, but doing it anyway. I sneak into the basement floor with slow, careful steps.

The sound of guzzling is odd, and I don't believe my eyes when I see Fraser drinking feverishly from the copper bowl.

I swallow a gulp. But no, it can't be. Fraser... drinking blood? Like the monsters I've heard so many stories about?

No. My mind must be playing tricks on me.

And then, he's done. He finishes drinking and drops the bowl. His brown eyes are glazed over, his breath coming in ragged, sharp pants.

And his lips, they're covered in shining crimson. Blood. He just drank blood.

My father says something as he turns away from his prisoner. He is coming straight towards me. I dart into one of the unlocked prison cells, holding my breath as my laughing father leaves up the stairs.

I wait until the door thumps closed, hearing the lock clink and his heavy, thudding footsteps walking away.

My heart racing, lungs aching, I cautiously take a step out of the darkness. One step, and then another. I put a hand to the wall, balancing my weight to keep from falling over. Shock touches every part of me.

And when  my name is called through the complete, pitch darkness, I know that Fraser can't possibly be human, and I know that I am trapped in here with him.

I worked so hard on this chapter and suddenly it got deleted, I was panicking lol. Luckily I found a  way to recover it!!

Have an awesome week, everyone ❤️