"Good morning, Mr. Cassian."
Cassian sighed, and turned his attention away from his breakfast to the maid next to him. "Can I help you?"
"I have been instructed to lead you to your station when you are finished eating, sir."
To Cassian, the maid was far too chipper than anyone in the morning had a right to be. He glared at her.
"Does it look like I'm finished eating?"
The maid's smile faltered, and a brief look of mingled shock and confusion crossed her face. "Y-yes sir... I-I mean no sir... Excuse me sir..." The poor woman bowed meekly and quickly exited the dining hall, obviously distraught.
Cassian sighed heavily this time, putting his elbows up on the table so his hands could cradle his aching head. 'What is with this place?' he thought.Ever since he had joined Delilah, he had done nothing but think of how to back out of it. However, since the night before, he had found that the window in which to escape had deliberatrly become smaller. He lifted his head. Being assigned to the organization's only doctor was obviously the Cardmaster's way of saying there was no turning back now, that he could never escape. Now all he could do was hope that this doctor wasn't the typical crazed scientist that he had been picturing since last night.
The doctor's name was Jizabel Disraeli. Honestly, Jizabel? What kind of self respecting man would allow himself to have such a ... girly name? Hell, it was a girl's name!! Ah, well, he couldn't be picky, especially when he hadn't even met the man yet. Cassian rose, frustrated, from his seat, and stormed to where the maid had escaped to. Yes... he still had to meet the man.
Cassian followed the maid down a long hallway. As he walked he tried to sort out his thoughts.
Before he was able to do that, however, the maid ubruptly stopped. "Ah! High...High Priest Cassandra!"
Cassian watched as the maid bowed low to the approaching man. He had shoulder length sandy brown hair and a menacing, but somehow still almost cheerful look in his eyes. Cassian shuddered. There was absolutely nothing at all good about this man. The man(Cassandra, he supposed; what was with all the guys having girl names around here?!)then turned his gaze from the maid to him. And he smiled one of the most chilling smiles Cassian had ever seen. "You must be the doctor's new helper," he said slowly, with an air of superiority. "What was your name again?"
Cassian decided not to make enemies so soon. "Cassian."
Cassandra seemed to regard him thouhtfully for a moment, and then he broke into a large grin, chuckling. "Well, good luck to you, Cassian. You're going to need it dealing with Jizabel.That doctor is certainly a run for your money..."
And with that, he moved swiftly past him and continued down the hall, still chuckling softly.
Cassian stared after him, sickened, then looked back at the maid. "Well? Are we going or what?"
The woman broke out of her stupor with a start, and gushed her apologies, hurrying down the corridor once more. Cassian hung back for a little while, then followed, still fighting back the sickening feeling his stomach was sending up.
Soon the pair came to the entrance of a large open courtyard. The maid stood to the side of the entrance. "The doctor should be in here, sir," she said, bowing and holding out an arm for him to enter.
Cassian hesitated, then finally gave in, walking into the heavily overgrown courtyard. He jumped a little when the maid closed the thin wood framed door behind him. He turned and stared out into the tall hedges and flowers. Deciding that he was accomplishing nothing by standing and staring, he began to walk the narrowed path a little. After awhile, he grew tired of this and simply began to call out to the doctor. Still not finding anything or hearing a response,Cassian began to wonder if all of this was some kind initiation prank. Infuriated by the thought, he violently kicked at a nearby tree.
Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!Chirp! Chirp!
Cassian turned at the sound, and found that it was a nest of birds on the ground near the tree he had just kicked. He was just about to inspect it when he heard a rustle behind him. Cassian whipped around to see an out of breath young man with long(was the color actually gray?) hair and glasses.
"Are you alright? I heard a noise and then-"
The man rushed toward Cassian and he stiffened, a bit surprised by the stranger's definite concern. "Oh, um, yes I..." he stumbled, completely caught off guard. The man approached, and then completely brushed past him. Cassian ceased his incoherent babbling, stunned for the second tim in the last 5 seconds. What exactly was going on?
Cassian faced where the man had gone to see him bent over the nest, cooing to the birds sweetly. He had been so preoccupied with the man himself, he had already forgotten about the birds. He watched the man as he picked up the whole nest gently, and replaced it on the tree limb it had probably fallen from. He cleared his throat after a few minutes. "Um, sir?"
The man turned quickly around as if he had thought he was alone, staring at him, then he seemed to regain his composure and he straightened himself. Cassian was a bit shocked when he realized that the man's fixed gaze on him was now angry. "You shouldn't go around knocking birds from their homes," he said bluntly. Cassian sputtered, at a loss for words. "And you should be ashamed. You could have killed them!"
"Um, I, I mean that, uh, aw crap..." Cassian was caught completely off guard. He had not been expecting a verbal attack. The man had not looked the type; in fact, he had even looked somewhat... sweet. He was not prepared regardless, and words would not come to him, no matter how hard he tried to search for a response.
Then the man sighed. "However I suppose it cannot be helped now. At least you did not end up harming them in the end," he said softly, looking back up at the limb where the birds were in an almost wistful fashion. Cassian just stared at him. This man was very strange, he could just feel it. Why did he care so much about what happened to those birds? Oh well, it didn't matter at this point. He was forgetting his real mission.
"Um, sir?"
The man glanced at him, still facing the tree. "Yes? What is it?"
"Have you seen the doctor in this courtyard? I'm supposed to meet with him today, and the maid said that he was here..." Cassian trailed off, turning his head in the direction he'd come, where he was sure that the woman who'd lead him here was still standing.
The man moved to face him completely, then held out his hand. "Yes, that would be me," he smiled and held out his hand. "I'm Doctor Jizabel Disraeli. You would be my new subordinate, correct?"
