4 (hallucinations in the palace)
"Go into the Lower City, buy the herbs standing on the list I've given to you and -most importantly- try to recover a bit!"
Those were her orders for the day! Alanna felt like screaming hearing this, for it seemed like they thought her too weak to go on with the healers' business. But she restrained herself except for the clenching and unclenching of her hands. She knew that, if she ever wanted to become some useful element of society -as a healer or a warrior, there was no difference in this department- she had to learn to obey her superiors.
Gritting her teeth Alanna answered with a "Yes, ma'am!" and bowed her head in an attempt to leave. But a tender grip on her shoulder prevented her from doing so.
"Alanna, we really do need the herbs. This is no try to just . busy someone we think too weak to carry on. It's just that at the moment with this special illness actual healing seems near impossible. You know that as well as I do. Your task IS important. We cannot act without any medicine left. Do not forget that."
Alanna nodded her red head in agreement before finally turning to the doors of their meeting room. At the moment she preferred not to think about why Maude had said her last sentences (because they were true or because she knew Alanna to well and wanted to destroy her depressions). So she concentrated on her surroundings.
It was an early Tuesday morning, the sun had just about begun to rise, but all the halls and corridors the girl passed by were already crowded. There were seemingly hundreds of servants, pages, squires and noble men. Alanna knew that most of the Ladies used to spend their days in their chambers these days, in the fear of getting infected. One couldn't possibly imagine what the palace must look like when there weren't half of its inhabitants ill, dead or hiding. It must look like a crazy beehive then, crazier than now anyway.
Alanna shook her head slightly as if to clear it and wondered how people could just go on with their daily life in a time like this. Sure, there had to be meals cooked, kitchenware cleaned, warriors had to do their exercises as always, as the palace had never been more vulnerable than these days. But still, how could people just do their work and feel . normal?
Suddenly a scream reached the girl's ears, interrupting her thoughts.
"Oh Gods! Bring me to the healers, I'm hallucinating! I must have got the fever as well!"
Although hallucinations were a sign of serious illness, the speaker's voice did not sound seriously ill or weak. Alanna knew that if she just acted quickly she might still be able to heal him. Quickly scanning the crowds around her, Alanna identified the boy that had just ejected his cry for help.
He was about thirteen: a blond, burly page that covered his eyes with his left hand while his right wagged in the air as if to scare off some ghost. He was surrounded by a group of four other pages his age and a bit younger, as well as some servants that had stopped when his scream had rung out.
Alanna hastily but still quite slowly made her way through the thick crowd that surged in the corridor. While coming ever nearer the blond page, she listened carefully to what was being said in the group.
"What happened, Douglas? What's up?" he was being asked.
"I've got hallucinations!" an excited voice answered, a bit muffled by the hand that covered Douglas face. "I thought I'd seen that Trebond-guy walking by, all dressed up as a girl!"
Along with the boys surrounding the blond page, Alanna let out a quiet laughter. So this guy had mistaken her for her brother!
Enraged by the reaction his companions paid his 'hallucination', Douglas finally took his hand from his face and glared at everyone: "This is not funny! I really saw Thom and - Argh!" He'd seen her again and pointed at her, making everyone jump whose eyes followed the given direction.
Although Alanna kind of enjoyed this incident, she was eager to get to know something about her brother. In all three or four days in the palace she had never really had time to meet him. She just knew that he was okay and Coram, his servant, had promised to send for her if he should ever fall ill.
"Hello!" she greeted the boys, rolling her eyes as they looked at her as if trying to find out if she was for real.
"Even her eyes are the same colour as his. And she rolls them at us just like he does." a small brown head with big eyes like a teddy bear's whispered. He twitched nervously when she glared at him. She was getting irritated.
"Hello-o? Two people, same age, same look, same characteristics, different gender? Ever heard anything about a phenomenon called 'twins'?" she asked and pushed her chin forward stubbornly.
About thirty seconds later Alanna finally got an answer. It was the little brown head again, with his big brown eyes.
"So you are Alanna? The infamous? The one that can do sorcery and healing and dunks helpless little boys into the fish pond?"
Alanna had to stifle a laughter hearing is. That last sentence sounded exactly like something Thom would've said. But before Alanna could ask any questions about her brother, a loud bell rang through the floor, announcing the begin of the working day.
"I've gotta get to work." Alanna stated and pulled at the little page's arm when he started to get going himself. "Could you please tell Thom to visit me tonight after seventh bell? My rooms are in the healers' quarters."
With that their ways departed.
- - - - - - - - -
"Go into the Lower City, buy the herbs standing on the list I've given to you and -most importantly- try to recover a bit!"
Those were her orders for the day! Alanna felt like screaming hearing this, for it seemed like they thought her too weak to go on with the healers' business. But she restrained herself except for the clenching and unclenching of her hands. She knew that, if she ever wanted to become some useful element of society -as a healer or a warrior, there was no difference in this department- she had to learn to obey her superiors.
Gritting her teeth Alanna answered with a "Yes, ma'am!" and bowed her head in an attempt to leave. But a tender grip on her shoulder prevented her from doing so.
"Alanna, we really do need the herbs. This is no try to just . busy someone we think too weak to carry on. It's just that at the moment with this special illness actual healing seems near impossible. You know that as well as I do. Your task IS important. We cannot act without any medicine left. Do not forget that."
Alanna nodded her red head in agreement before finally turning to the doors of their meeting room. At the moment she preferred not to think about why Maude had said her last sentences (because they were true or because she knew Alanna to well and wanted to destroy her depressions). So she concentrated on her surroundings.
It was an early Tuesday morning, the sun had just about begun to rise, but all the halls and corridors the girl passed by were already crowded. There were seemingly hundreds of servants, pages, squires and noble men. Alanna knew that most of the Ladies used to spend their days in their chambers these days, in the fear of getting infected. One couldn't possibly imagine what the palace must look like when there weren't half of its inhabitants ill, dead or hiding. It must look like a crazy beehive then, crazier than now anyway.
Alanna shook her head slightly as if to clear it and wondered how people could just go on with their daily life in a time like this. Sure, there had to be meals cooked, kitchenware cleaned, warriors had to do their exercises as always, as the palace had never been more vulnerable than these days. But still, how could people just do their work and feel . normal?
Suddenly a scream reached the girl's ears, interrupting her thoughts.
"Oh Gods! Bring me to the healers, I'm hallucinating! I must have got the fever as well!"
Although hallucinations were a sign of serious illness, the speaker's voice did not sound seriously ill or weak. Alanna knew that if she just acted quickly she might still be able to heal him. Quickly scanning the crowds around her, Alanna identified the boy that had just ejected his cry for help.
He was about thirteen: a blond, burly page that covered his eyes with his left hand while his right wagged in the air as if to scare off some ghost. He was surrounded by a group of four other pages his age and a bit younger, as well as some servants that had stopped when his scream had rung out.
Alanna hastily but still quite slowly made her way through the thick crowd that surged in the corridor. While coming ever nearer the blond page, she listened carefully to what was being said in the group.
"What happened, Douglas? What's up?" he was being asked.
"I've got hallucinations!" an excited voice answered, a bit muffled by the hand that covered Douglas face. "I thought I'd seen that Trebond-guy walking by, all dressed up as a girl!"
Along with the boys surrounding the blond page, Alanna let out a quiet laughter. So this guy had mistaken her for her brother!
Enraged by the reaction his companions paid his 'hallucination', Douglas finally took his hand from his face and glared at everyone: "This is not funny! I really saw Thom and - Argh!" He'd seen her again and pointed at her, making everyone jump whose eyes followed the given direction.
Although Alanna kind of enjoyed this incident, she was eager to get to know something about her brother. In all three or four days in the palace she had never really had time to meet him. She just knew that he was okay and Coram, his servant, had promised to send for her if he should ever fall ill.
"Hello!" she greeted the boys, rolling her eyes as they looked at her as if trying to find out if she was for real.
"Even her eyes are the same colour as his. And she rolls them at us just like he does." a small brown head with big eyes like a teddy bear's whispered. He twitched nervously when she glared at him. She was getting irritated.
"Hello-o? Two people, same age, same look, same characteristics, different gender? Ever heard anything about a phenomenon called 'twins'?" she asked and pushed her chin forward stubbornly.
About thirty seconds later Alanna finally got an answer. It was the little brown head again, with his big brown eyes.
"So you are Alanna? The infamous? The one that can do sorcery and healing and dunks helpless little boys into the fish pond?"
Alanna had to stifle a laughter hearing is. That last sentence sounded exactly like something Thom would've said. But before Alanna could ask any questions about her brother, a loud bell rang through the floor, announcing the begin of the working day.
"I've gotta get to work." Alanna stated and pulled at the little page's arm when he started to get going himself. "Could you please tell Thom to visit me tonight after seventh bell? My rooms are in the healers' quarters."
With that their ways departed.
- - - - - - - - -