The Scot

Chapter 5

Standing on the top of the staircase she looked down at the hustle and bustle in the great hall. There were just so many people cramped in the area. Men were sitting down and eating whereas women were serving the food. There was a horde of women servers coming and leaving the great hall through what she assumed were the kitchen doors. A sudden hush fell in the crowd. Noticing that every was trained on her she gathered her courage and skirts and walked down the steps. Wobbling would be the correct word for it. The skirts were so many that she could not even walk properly. How other women were wearing it was mind boggling for her. 

At last reaching the last step she let go of her skirts that she had hitched up to her mid calves. Everyone was still staring. Giving a tremulous smile she waved at the crowd and saw Aiden coming towards her. 

"Come break you fast." he said and extended his hand. But rather than wait for her to give him her hand he took her hand and took her to the main table where there was a chair that was placed on a raised platform which she immediately knew belonged to him. He made space for her on the bench table. The crowdd was still silent. Not a single peep from them. "Continue." As soon as Aiden said this, it was like  a spell was lifted off and the great hall was again filled with noise.  

Taking a piece from the loaf of bread in front of her she started nibbling at it. Her stomach was still in knots and she didn't want to eat hurriedly and then end up being sick. While eating she remembered her morning. She hadn't been able to sleep last night. Tossing and turning the whole night. She could blame the animal fur lying beneath her or the clothes or the environment but it was none of it. And she knew it.

Her head had been filled with thoughts and she had tried to wrap her head around things but it was simply impossible to get a hold of reality when everything in itself felt surreal. In the morning she had reached to a simple conclusion. After removing the impossible the only thing remaining was the improbable. And this was her reality now. All she had to do was try to go back in her time. But the question was how? 

She had just closed her eyes when the sky was filling with the predawn light. She was up the second the door to her room was opened. Disoriented she looked around and saw that sky was still an orange color which meant she hadn't slept long. Only a few minutes. Ava had come barreling through the door, her rotund form and gay smile filling the room. Following her had been maids and servants bringing pails of steaming hot water. 

"Good! You are awake lass. Come on your bath is ready. We'll dress you and then you come and break your fast." Ava said as soon as she saw that Ariel was awake.

"I can bathe myself well, thank you. You needn't concern yourself over it."

"Oh lass you shouldna worry. I'll make you pretty in a matter of moments." Ava replied laughingly all the while drying her long hair with a linen cloth. She had been dressed in a thin cotton chemise and then she had to wear the corset. Her lungs squeezed painfully and it felt like her ribs had been bruised. But she dared not utter a word. The corset pushed her breasts upward. Her already large breasts were now even more pronounced. 

"Ah lass you'd give men a delightful view and a difficult time."

"I'm glad I could be of entertainment to the men." She replied dryly. Ava chuckled at her reply and picked a muted skirt from the bed. Ariel pushed her head through the clothing. As there were no mirrors she really didn't know how she looked. She just knew that the corset was too tight, she couldn't breathe and most importantly her breasts were pushed up so much it felt as if they were obstructing her vision. 

"Here this is your satchel that was found along with you." Ava handed Ariel a hand bag. Ariel grabbed it the second she set her eyes on it. It was a simple handbag that she used for everyday use. It was nothing fancy nor was it flashy. It was useful. She opened it and saw all the essentials were in it. She felt like crying with relief. At least she still had something from her time. The essentials were nothing fancy. As an ER doctor she always kept a mini first aid kit along with her surgical kit. 

Now, sitting at the breakfast table she remained quiet and just observed her surroundings. She knew everyone around her was doing the same. In the short span of time she had been here she had seen suspicion and distrust marring the faces of maids and some of the soldiers that she had encountered. She was an oddity here and she knew that it was not going to be easy for them to trust her. And she could not explain time travel to them when she hardly understood them herself. They would definitely think of her as a possessed demon as was the custom in the era she was in where science had not advanced at all. Explaining them would just lead to more confusion and chaos. 

"......we have searched the eastern mountains and the northwest terrain but no sign of him has been found." Ariel picked up the strains of conversation going around her. 

"What about the western borders?" She heard Aiden ask. 

"Conan and Brody have gone and there has been news from them either." A man with thick red beard replied. 

Just then there were voices heard from the courtyard and everyone present on the table ran outside. Ariel also stood up and went outside to see what the commotion was all about. Standing on keep stairs she saw two men, atop two beasts of horses, charging towards the keep. Women around her looked shocked and loud gasps were heard. Whereas the men stood still like statues. Finally the two men stopped and that was when she saw they were carrying another man with them. He looked badly bruised and wounded. His abdomen was bleeding profusely and the cloth tied around it showed that the man had bled heavily. When the two men held the injured man she saw that his leg was twisted at an odd angle which looked as if the bone had been displaced. Ariel observed silently but did not say anything. Just silently observed them.

A woman's scream pierced the silence that had settled in the courtyard. She moved through the crowd and came to a stand still in front of the injured man and then she cried.    

(A/N) Sorry for such long delay. Hope you like this chapter. Peace out.