The Sight Beyond The Haze

Chapter 13: Back in the Mansion

I have to be chauffeured in the main mansion before I arrived.

Mr. Tharraleos' property was incredibly expansive, almost going on for a few miles. I was not certain at first how I would get in since the walls were as great as a mountainside while the gate rose before me, making me feel as though I was not but a speck of dust compared to it.

It was a good thing that someone, maybe a maid or just one of the staffs, was walking by the gates and happen to saw me. She ushered me inside the gates, ordering a buffed guard, who greeted me enthusiastically, to open it for just a fraction. The gates, as they were opening, rumbled noisily with effort.

"Seraphim, yeah?" she asked me with a smile, "you're Miss Amara's daghter, eh? Didn't know you're such a grown up kid," she commented, but I only nodded at her. If she asked a question, I would politely answer but our conversation was limited to that only.

Minutes waiting by the guard house beside the tall front gate, a car drove by and picked me up. It was not the same as the last car I saw when I was transported to the academy. When the driver told me to give my duffle bag, I protectively and instinctively disagreed, holding it tighter and closer to my person.

I felt the butterflies fluttering inside. I was worried at first that they would suffocate, but I also instantly realized that these butterflies must like that of that black creature, the one that the masked person and Zachriel called as mudtrap. Maybe they were not even living things.

Meanwhile, the car that I was riding in was speeding through the paths of the property.

There were two mansions before I was able to arrive at the main one. This property could house maybe a hundred families with its broad lands. The gardens that the vehicle I was riding on drove past by were also abundant of different shades of flowers and treess, there were even hedgegrows standing erect and tall.

It took me at least three or five minutes before we finally came to a halt at the familiar elegant house. Nothing has changed after the past month that I was last here. It still stood tall and proud, but with certain elegance. There was an ambiance of both modernity and of the old.

"We have already informed the main mansion of your arrival," the driver told me, "is there anything you need any assistance for?"

I shook my head and reached for the knob. I was about to step out and say my thanks to him, but he suddenly spoke up.

"Please wait a minute, Miss Seraphim," he abruptly told me and, just as abrupt, he went out of the car's door, out of the driver's seat. Not even a minute passed when he was suddenly at the side of my door, opening it for me.

"You need not to do that, Sir," I said politely, "but thank you." He only nodded once at me, then get inside the driver's seat and drove away.

Was every staffs in this property as nice as them? That was what I wondered about as I watched him speed away with the luxury vehicle. Maybe Amara was an exception of that rule though, I thought drily.

Whe the car has already faded on my sight, I finally turned towards the mighty house. Rather than the desolated space of the enormous front door, there was a girl standing. She was waiting patiently, and there was a small smile on her face as she stared at me.

She was the girl from the first time I visited this place.

The dress she was wearing now was very much like the one she wore from before. A Baroque dress with ruffles and frills. The dress was an odd thing to see being worn by someone, but it suited her just right. Today, it was a blue and white dress. The skirt fell down to the smooth ground, each pleats were precise and defined. The bodice have an intricate embroidered design.

"Good morning," I greeted her politely, "I've come from school, and I hope you don't mind my intrusion."

I was not certain, of course, of her relation with Mr. Tharraleos and, as a consequence, I wasn't also certain how to address her. They did not looked anything alike. The other has a jet black hair with burning red eyes, while this girl, who was still smiling politely at me, has a golden blonde strands and big innocent blue eyes. There were not probably any people out in the world that could get their coloring further from these two.

Could it be she was the girlfriend of the esteemed Leigh Tharraleos?

But then, why should I prod further? It does not concern me, therefore, prodding would be completely inappropriate.

"I don't, not at all," she said in a very timid way, her hand gestured at her back; towards the grandeur of the interior of the mansion, "I'm not the master of the house, but," she chuckled lightly, a slight embarrassment on her tone, "I think since I'm here, I might as well should invite you over."

I nodded and heeded her subtle invitation. I was not certain where she was leading me, but I followed her nonetheless since that seems to be what she wanted as she looked back to me every now and then.

I stepped inside the mansion and, like the first time I stepped a foot here, it was serene and elegant as it can ever be. The atrium of the mansion was up ahead, dazzling and giving another source of light.

"This house," the girl leading me started, "was really skillfully done. I have been here for only just a few months but it still amazes me how such a thing could exist. It isn't stuffy as the other castles I have been frequently on, though it isn't as warm as a home."

I silently agreed with her. There was a peculiar feeling in this mansion; a fine line between warmth and cold. It was too large to be welcoming, but it was too small to be overbearing. It was hard to describe by words.

Meanwhile, we already passed the mezzanine and the glass dome of the atrium when the girl stopped. She slowly turned her body to look at me, who was behind her by a few steps.

"Would you like your fortune be read?" she asked, a topic that was too out of blue. "I just thought that would it be fun to play table tricks while we are waiting for Amara, I mean your mother Amara, and Leigh?"

There was a shining hope on her clear blue eyes and there was a pinch of innocence on them that was hard to distinguish if whether it was caused by naivety by her age or just her pure personality. In all fairness, we were maybe around the same age, maybe she was a yeat or two older than I was, so maybe that was not justified rightfully.

"Pardon me, but I do not believe in such nonsense," I told her.

Her expression changed from smiling into a shocked one that it clearly stated that she could not believe of what I just said. Her mouth turned slack which became a pout almost immediately.

"That was heartbreakingly straightforward," she commented and sulked. "Would you be so kind as to humor me?" she asked me with a small smile, seemingly shy.

I pursed my lips. Not that I was moved by her act, it was just I was thinking what could I do here while I was waiting. Or what would I do but lie around the room that I will be given. The more I thought of the things that surrounded that bubble, the more I realized that I was clueless about the layout of the whole house.

I was supposed to do laundry, but how would I be able to do that here? I was not about going to roam around this whole mansion to find an appropriate place to do my laundry. I would not ask this person either, if I were honest to myself that would be most certainly awkward. I think I could remember the directions to Amara's room, but that was just about it.

At the end, I just nodded as an answer and the smile she had earlier returned. She gestured with her hand to follow me and we climbed the stairs. The stairs was an architectural piece, a spiral staircase winding around a great column where a carved statue was resting upon on the top of the column. The carved marble statue lifeless eyes stared at me, as white as an alabaster.

Our footsteps on the hard wood echoed in the hall loudly. My hand touched the wooden railings and saw it was carved with intricate designs of complex patterns. It was delicate as though it was just projection on the wood, but when my skin made contact, it was hard and its every line could be felt.

"Where are we going?" I asked the miss who was walking in front of me, and renewed my grip on the sling of my duffle bag.

I secretly winced. My not asking for a name of the person that I just met was becoming a bad habit of mine. Now that we have already exchanged quite a few words, I was uncertain how would I tell a question I should have obviously asked at the very start of this meeting.

"To a drawing room," she, however, answered and gestured around a corner. Her eyes flicked towards my duffle bag where the golden butterflies were hidden. "Do you want me to call a maid or something to take care of your things?" she offered.

Though the offer was nice and the intention was certainly kind, I still declined politely.

"There is no need for that, miss," I told her and pulled my bag closer to my side.

At last, we finally stopped in front of a double door. The miss opened the doors grandiosely with two hands and ushered me inside with a smile then she gently closed them again after we both entered.

The drawing room has a rather homey ambiance to it. Evidences proved that this particular room was often used, by evidences I meant things such as a disarray set of pillows on a grand sofa, worn chaise loungers and ottoman, a rather empty set of tea cups on the coffee table and finger sandwiches on tier-like container. The overall arrangement of the room was not unkempt, but it was not exactly not disheveled too nor was it organized properly.

The miss comfortably sat down on one of the chairs in front of a table near the balcony that was overlooking the horizon and the region of the Tharraleos' estate. With another glance, she motioned for me to sit across her chair and smiled gleefully.

"How will you read my fortune?" I asked her with uncertainty as I sat down from across her. I placed the duffle bag just beside the chair I was sitting on.

We were exactly opposite of each others, her eyes were a bright shade of blue under the sun that was shining from above. It was a great clear day with as equally great weather. The wind contrasted the harshness of the sun's brightness.

"Palm reading," she answered and held out her hands. "Don't worry, I'm a great fortune teller. Not unless if your fortune is not that great to begin with then I wouldn't be able to do something about it."

I hesitated, but she nodded encouragingly at me. Not a moment later, I was already placing my hands on her outstretched pair. Hers were a bit smaller than mine that it made one think she was actually a doll rather than a human being. She only took one of my hands, feeling the lines of my hand's palm, so I let my other hand slide back to my place. I was not an expert on these kinds of things if I wanted to be honest. I thought parlor tricks, such as this, were silly, but I was here to waste time and I thought why not just try when I have nothing else better to do.

"My name is Eris," she said at me, "if you're ever wondering. Call me by that name, and shall I call you... Seraphim? Would that be fine for you?" I nodded as an answer.

She lightly caressed my opened palm. She hummed lowly under her breath, then behind her ridiculously long lashes, she looked at me. "It seemed that something unlocked had been opened just recently," she started with the same mysterious and almost sensuous gaze. "A cloud has been dispersed," she added, "there was a barrier that made you feel you are thinking things when it was just an illusion to trap you..." she paused, her eyes glanced at the ceiling as though she was thinking hard, "or to manipulate you. It says here, that you have to be careful."

I pursed my lips, forcing down a giggle as she continuously caress my hand almost massaging it slowly. I could feel the knots of tension fell away as she proceeded on continuing that. I listened to her, but her words were not as gentle as her touch. My fortune, as read by her, was inauspicious and black.

To trap me? To manipulate me?

"I could see darkness pouring out," she then said to me, "but also flying things, like fireflies, all around you. Hhmm," she hummed lowly again and then added in a overly jubilant tone, "that's it!"

I blinked before acknowledging her last sentence. My shoulders slumped and my ears perked up.

"That sounds rather ominous," I commented in a deadpan voice.

Was it not illegal to stop at the moment such as that? Shouldn't that be illegal? I frowned at my hand that she was holding with hers, her right hand was holding the back of my hand while the other was tracing the lines of my palm.

She gently laid my hand on the surface of the table and smiled gently at me. My brows knitted, my frown at my hand deepening gently.

"I thought you don't believe though?" she asked, but there was not a sarcastic sense on her tone.

The question was rather candid, to be quite honest, almost as though she was caught off guard on my remark. Her eyes finally settled on me and she noticed that I was not moving my hand in any way towards my side when she just said she was finished already and remained placed at the surface of the table.

"I do not," I replied sonorously, my voice never implied neither displeasure nor curiosity.

"Okay then!" she exclaimed again in the jubilant tone as before.

I waited.

I pursed my lips.

And I never removed my hand that was still placed on the surface of the table where a soft tablecloth covered it.

Finally, Miss Eris put a macaron on her mouth, she leisurely chewed it then smacked each of the fingers that she used touching it.

I waited more.

Then I waited some more if she was ever going to address my intense gaze at her. She was not really going to remark how I wanted her to continue? Five minutes passed, she finally, and mercifully, looked up to meet my intense gaze and smiled as candidly.

"You could just ask me, you know?" she pointed out and gave me a small lopsided smile. "Simple as that."

On the tiers of the pastries, she once again plucked another macaron using that small hand of hers. She held it out close to my lips and nodded in encouragement. I opened my lips and she popped it right in. I chewed, finding it too sweet for my liking, and winced slightly, almost it was nothing, as it attacked my taste buds.

I heard Miss Eris chuckled lightly, she popped another macaron on her mouth.

"You are brave, but cold," she stated after she chewed on the macaron. On a napkin close to her, she wiped her fingers clean. "But that was what someone made you be. I could also see confusion on your path. In any way, you shouldn't rely too much on the way I read your fortune. It would be better to guide yourself to the way you want to trek, instead of being guided to a path someone made you think you want."

I looked outside, where the horizon was endless and seemed to have an intimate relationship with the sky. It was rather tranquil and peaceful. For a moment, I thought my inside was just like that scenery.

I still get overwhelmed.

With Zachriel's eyes, that familiarity, and my questions I have to the masked person.

I tore my eyes away from that scenery, directing it to Miss Eris' face whose eyes were as blue as the sky I just witnessed.

"That was nice," I finally commented.

I leaned backwards to my seat, closing my eyes for a moment. I savored the gentle wind softly slapping my face.

"Hhmm," Miss Eris relied her agreement on a silent hum, "the wind is certainly nice. Even the view is spectacular by itself. I wonder what they cooked for luncheon though? I'm starving, aren't you?" she asked me.

I nodded, though I was really not.

I understood immediately that it was her way not of making the ambiance between us light and unhurried, unlike to the direction it was originally going— an intense awkward one. I'd say it was rather effective actually.

Miss Eris rang the intercom that was connected to the different stations of the house. She requested all sorts of things that I was not sure we would be able to finish. I was not even that hungry, but when the ensemble of the food came, I thought I saw a storm.

There was various foods on the cart that was driven up for us; different roasted meats that ranged from pork, turkey, chicken, and lamb, some fish, there was even stews and soups. It was truly a festive table and I was starting to get worried how in the world we would be able to finish it. If I did not even touch any of the foods, an abrupt idea came to my mind; would Mr. Tharraleos think that I was wasting his money on this?

"Let's dig in?" Miss Eris asked me and helped herself to a big heapings of mashed potates and roasted turkey while I munched on a crispy brown skin of a roasted pork.

I think, somewhere between her fourth or sixth helpings, I became a ghost on Miss Eris' eyes. Those clear blue eyes were only trained on the food on her plate. She actually managed to eat at least or more than the half of the food that was brought up by the servants.

Skinny arms and a slender waist, one would think that Miss Eris would be a picky eater, but she tore through the foods like a starving person that hasn't eaten for hundreds of years.

After the luncheon, which has mercifully ended, Miss Eris and I walked around one of the gardens of the property. We talked little, and only looked at the scenery and the flowers. When the sun has become too heated for us to endure, we made our way back to the main mansion and ate shaved ice.

"Why are you always carrying that duffle bag?" Miss Eris suddenly blurted when I rearranged the bag that was placed on my feet.

"Personal things should not be left just anywhere," I answered plainly though that was not my reason and she only nodded her head.

She finally let one of the maids lead me to the room I would be staying the night at. As soon as I gave my thanks to the maid, I closed the doors and unzipped my duffle bag to let the trapped butterflies out.

"I apologize if it was too crowded for you three," I said to the pairs of fluttering wings inside the room and placed the sealed creature inside the plastic bottle on the side table.

It was only a few rooms away from Amara, but I specifically requested not to be placed on a room beside her. She would only complain to me by having a neighbor or worse she would have me come over to her room and tell me stories about herself.

I slowly lie on my bed, the fresh cloth beneath me was soft and has the faint scent of soft detergent.

I looked up to the white ceiling of my room. The butterflies provided a great luminance inside the room; twinkling and glittering. Not a moment later, one of them dropped on the tip of my nose. The warmth it provided lulled me to sleep slowly.