by Auriane Bell
Alfred came a step closer to inspect the kitten.
“I shall do my very best, Sir.”
“Thank you, Alfred.”
“Not at all, Sir, but Master Adrijan, I’m here to tell you that it’s time for you to leave. The car that will take you to the bungalow in the forest is already waiting outside.”
For a moment there was silence in the kitchen and Adrijan realised that he would have preferred to say goodbye to Mairin in a different way. Her reaction to his confession had been too good to be true and there was still a lot to clarify. Since he had missed the opportunity to do so, he took the kitten from her, kissed it on its forehead and returned it to its new owner, hoping that she would understand.
With Adrijan gone her energy seemed to have left all at once and everything that remained was a very exhausted young woman with a very lively kitten in her arms.
On Alfred’s suggestion, she allowed the elderly man to take the furry creature from her and having examined it, he dryly stated that it was male. If that was the case, Mairin already had the perfect name for her little fosterling.
“Miss Muriel, I hope you will forgive me for addressing your fatigue. Of course I wouldn’t if the circumstances…”
Mairin nodded from time to time, unable to really follow his words but trying to give the appearance that she was listening.
“Then I will notify Hilda to take you to your rooms at once, Miss Muriel. Of course I will oversee the well-being of the kitten while you are resting and make preparations for his stay in your quarters.”
In certain moments it really paid off to have capable servants. When Hilda arrived to pick her up, Mairin gently petted the tomcat’s head and left, glad to be able to get some rest.
“Sir? We are here, Sir.”
Adrijan tried to shake off the sleepiness that was clouding his mind. He hadn’t thought it possible that he would doze off during the short trip to the bungalow.
“Alright, alright,” he grumbled to silence the driver and got out of the car. Who was this man anyway? Adrijan rubbed his eyes and went past him towards the bungalow, not bothering to stifle a yawn. He couldn’t rid himself of the feeling that he had forgotten something important by being torn out of his dreams. Why was it, that the harder one tried, the more difficult it was to remember? After sharing his past with Mairin, vivid nightmares had to be expected, but it had definitely been something more than that.
Adrijan swallowed to get rid of the bad taste in his mouth. Luckily there was still enough time to brush his teeth and take a shower before heading on to Traumstadt. Only faintly he perceived the sound of the trunk compartment being closed behind him as he operated the opening mechanism of the door. How long had it been since he had come here with Mairin? Even though so much had happened, it felt to him like he had never left. His eyes were dry and gazing through sticky lids Adrijan almost expected to find the bed sheets ruffled the way he had seen them last. He blinked a few times. Of course the room had been tidied up long ago.
Remembering what the precarious situation had made him do, Adrijan ended up with a smirk on his face. The memories triggered a series of complicated thoughts and desires he tried to repress immediately once he was conscious of them.
“I put down your suitcase near the entrance. Is there anything else you need, Sir?”
Adrijan turned around and almost bumped into the edge of a casket.
“Careful, Sir.”
“Thanks… you can head back,” Adrijan told the man, slightly annoyed. Sleep deprived and worn out after such a taxing night he was involuntarily moody. Mairin’s magic spell hadn’t lasted long enough.
The driver took his leave but Adrijan had already stopped paying heed to him.
Careful. He had told him to be careful.
Adrijan sank down on the bed, trying to understand why such a simple matter refused to leave his head.
Then it hit him. In the dream that had very much resembled his memories, Magdala had not only asked him to take care of Vivian. She had warned him about a certain person as well.
“Winther! Stop that, you naughty boy!”
Mairin weakly pushed him away, but he was persistent and almost without delay started another attempt at crawling under her blanket.
“Won’t you let me sleep a little longer, my love?” she gently tried to persuade him, turned around and felt for his head with her eyes closed. Soon her fingers touched his soft hair and still more asleep than awake she started to caress him. Winther rewarded her skills with loud purring and pressed his head against her hand.
“Aren’t you my sweet little boy?”
The tomcat answered her question by wandering upwards and drilling his head into her armpit.
“And obviously a silly boy as well,” she remarked.
They had merely spent two weeks together and she was already so accustomed to her new companion that she had started talking to him when nobody else was around. Those were also the only times when she allowed herself to call him by the name she had chosen for him. Whenever someone was near, she used the abbreviated version ‘Therry’, fearing that she wasn’t the sole person to know Adrijan’s prior name.
Therry had finally given up on trying to extract milk from her and moved on to her head where he began to nibble on her hair.
“I-di-ot,” Mairin murmured mildly annoyed and picked him up before climbing out of bed. She had been lazing around a lot for the past three days after Vivian had left for what Hilda had called a ‘business trip’. Without Winther she would have been lonely but together they had found ways to keep themselves occupied.
“Bon appétit,” she said and put a spoonful of cat food into Winther’s bowl.
Alfred had adjusted her quarters to the kitten’s needs and even though it was still a little unfamiliar to her she was glad to be able to keep him close.
Mairin squatted next to the tomcat, enjoying the opportunity to watch him devour the chicken meat.
Was Adrijan eating properly as well?
She softly petted Therry’s forehead, where he had received the priest’s kiss. Were preparations continuing smoothly? He hadn’t tried to get in contact with her and the more time passed, the more insecure she became.
Vivian groaned. He was still suffering from the headache that had slowly gotten worse during the flight. Helen’s hands were wandering over his back but her massage only slowly helped his muscles to relax.
“Should I stop?”
Vivian declined with a grunt and her fingers skilfully continued to loosen him up.
“I’m already starting to feel better. You must be an ange-” The last word ended in a moan and her light giggling gave away that he wasn’t the only one enjoying the procedure.
Cathy and Isabel however were sitting on the couch pouting and disapprovingly watching them. Vivian reckoned that they would have loved to substitute their companion. Later, he would gladly make it up to them.
The immortal stretched. It was probably best to drain a few years soon. After all, the pain in his shoulders had made him feel old again and he regretted not having taken the hour glass with him. At least there was no reason to complain about his accommodation. He had chosen one of his newest luxury hotels – one he hadn’t stayed at before.
The door opened and Himeko returned to the room, adding more variety to his company. With satisfaction he noticed that he was most likely the first person to reside in the honeymoon suite with four young women instead of only one.
Vivian’s phone drew attention to itself by vibrating on the surface of the table, producing a painful rattling. Cathy wanted to fetch it for him but Isabel beat her to it and handed him the device with the sweetest smile. Women surely were formidable creatures when they chose to be.
“Moshi-moshi,” he murmured, answering the call.
“Don’t tell me you’ve gone to Japan…” Even if he hadn’t heard Adrijan’s voice, the content of what he had said would have been enough to identify him.
“From your grum
piness I can tell that you miss a certain someone.”
Adrijan didn’t reply. Obviously he had hit the bull’s eye. Teasing his brother always did wonders to his own mood.
“How is she?”
“I don’t know.”
“Haven’t you called her?”
“No.”
“Moron.”
“Yes.”
Vivian chuckled.
“Why are you calling anyway? Are you done with the preparations in Traumstadt already?”
“Not quite. I’ve set the date for tomorrow in a fortnight.”
“Hmm… Christmas? Good choice.”
“Will you make it back in time?”
“Mhm, probably. There isn’t much to take care of here.”
His female company bristled loudly at that statement and smirking, he quickly gestured the women to be silent.
“Five?”
Adrijan had almost guessed right.
“Only four.”
“Ah. Well, close enough.”
“Does that call for a reward? Let’s say a young woman, who has been residing at Mondstein castle for a little less than half a year?”
“You really don’t care for her, do you?”
“No, I like her. I think you have chosen well. But maybe, just once in a while, it should be about what you want, dear brother.”
“In reality it’s about what she decides to do.”
Adrijan was right but that didn’t change that his social behaviour left room for improvement.
“Call her. Court her. Sleep with her – or leave her to me.”
His brother answered with a sigh.
“It really is that easy, Adrijan.”
“Anyway… there is something else I wanted to talk to you about. It’s about a dream I had on my way to Traumstadt.”
“A dream?” Vivian frowned. He was old and had seen a lot of the world but he certainly wasn’t Madam One-mystic-name-or-the-other who would act as his brother’s dream reader.
“Tell me about it,” he requested, already regretting it.
“He has neither been eating nor drinking since yesterday, Alfred. Do you think he is going to be alright?”
“I don’t know, Miss.”
“I know you don’t know, but do you think he is going to be alright?”
Mairin was close to being hysteric and continued caressing the small kitten that was resting on its side, breathing fast and heavily. He hadn’t come to her at all today and had been hiding in places that were low to the ground – moreover in places he usually ignored.
“Should I call for the vet, Miss?”
Mairin nodded. “Please do so immediately.”
Therry looked so exhausted. With the utmost care Mairin instilled some water into him.
“Don’t give up little guy. Help will be here soon!”
Even though she had said that, it took another hour Mairin spent restless until the vet arrived. After a thorough examination and with a frown that bode ill he gave her his opinion.
“An infusion might help him to regain some of his strength but…” The physician seemed to be hesitant to continue. Why didn’t he just tell her the truth?
“Is he going to…?” She didn’t even want to put her worst fear into words.
“He is still young. He has a fair chance.”
The doctor’s words did nothing to calm her. Once more Therry was sick and she held him, so his head wouldn’t drop into his own vomit. When it was over she bedded him on a soft blanket and did her best to suppress her tears while cleaning away the slimy substance. She had very little experience with medicine and watched in terror how the vet gave Winther the infusion.
After some of the fluid had vanished into the kitten’s body, the physician removed the needle and put away the bottle.
“Everything else is in God’s hands now,” he said.
“I’m sorry to interrupt you, Father Adrijan, but there is a frivolous girl at the door, demanding to see you.”
He hadn’t heard the charwoman approaching even though he had lived with her long enough to discern her by the sound of her steps. Who could it be?
“Thank you, Ms Sophie. I’ll talk to her.”
Adrijan had been busy planning for the past three weeks, but now that most of the arrangements were made, he had regularly ended up pondering.
The door wasn’t far and when he bent around the corner he was surprised to find Hilda standing in the entrance, wearing her maid uniform under a coat she hadn’t even bothered to button up.
“Father Adrijan! It’s horrible, Therry is dying and Miss Muriel is so upset! We haven’t been able to get in contact with Master Vivian and I’ve been calling you to no avail for the past three hours!”
“Therry?” Adrijan wasn’t able to cope with Hilda’s blabbering and indicated her to follow him to his study. There he was finally able to pull out his phone. The message on the display notified him about thirty-six unanswered calls.
“Oh you must come back with me, maybe you can speak a prayer! After all, the vet said, it’s in God’s hands now.”
Trying to make sense of Hilda’s words, Adrijan realised that Therry had to be the cat he had entrusted to Mairin. The kitten… dying? How could that be possible? Horrified he went for the door.
“Stay here Hilda and don’t talk to Ms Sophie unless you have to.”
“Therry, stay with me. Don’t give up!”
The vet had left and Mairin was alone with the kitten. She had done her best but now she was unable to hold back her tears. She felt so helpless watching him fight. What kind of God was it, that could take the life of a creature that was still so young?
“Adrijan has survived too. Aren’t you carrying his name? You will get through this, do you hear me?”
Mairin was wondering if any of her words truly reached the kitten. It was so difficult to maintain a certain level of calmness yet she didn’t want to make things worse for Winther by fully giving in to her fears.
“Fight!” she whimpered gazing at the kitten’s eyes that looked far too empty.
Adrijan flew up the stairs.
“Viv? Where is it? Tell me you’ve left it at the castle!”
“What’s wrong?” The immortal sounded sleepy and bored.
“The kitten is dying and nobody has been able to reach you.”
“I-“
“At the moment I do not care what you’ve been doing. Just tell me where the hour glass is!”
“At its usual place. Calm down, Adrijan. If you’re planning on doing what I think, then there’s something you should know.”
“Hm?” Adrijan continued to run, pressing the mobile phone to his ear.
“It’s a little different with animals, you’ll have to be careful. I know because of Nebel. Transfer it very slowly, and be ready to give up a great amount.”
Adrijan frowned. He hadn’t really thought about it, all that had mattered to him had been to allow the kitten to live and to spare Mairin the pain of losing someone precious. Had Magdala’s motivation been the same?
Perhaps he had been wrong and she had never intended to die.
Mairin was startled by the sound of heavy foot-steps on the stairs. Astonished she turned away from Winther to find out who it was, who was in such a hurry to get to her. Had Alfred finally been able to get in touch with Adrijan or Vivian and was coming to tell her the good news? It was very unlikely for the old man to fly up the stairs.
“Mairin, I’m here now.”
Adrijan came running towards her, panting for air and sank down beside the bed, where Winther was resting.
“Everything is going to be alright now, I promise.”
Mairin was overwhelmed with emotion at his sight. Wasn’t he in Traumstadt? When had he come back? There was a worried look on his face but she couldn’t tell whether it was because of the kitten or her.
“He’s been like this all day,” she tried to explain. “The vet said…”
“Nevermind all that,” he interrup
ted her. “Relax, there’s no more need for you to be upset. The kitten… Therry will be just fine.”
Therry? Had he found out whose name she had given him?
“Alfred?”
“Yes, Sir.”
Mairin turned around again. The elderly servant had silently joined them in her room.
“Please take Miss Muriel downstairs.”
“Very well, Sir.”
“But…” she tried to resist.
“There’s no time for this, Mairin. Please go.”
Why was he trying to get rid of her? If the kitten had to die, she wanted to stay with him until his last breath.
“Please.”
He had kept his promise when he had saved her from Sunflower Garden and she hoped that he would do so again. Too tired to argue and trying not to make matters more complicated, she decided to let Alfred take her downstairs and nodded in agreement. The old man offered her his arm and she gratefully accepted it, noticing that her legs were rigid from crouching next to the bed for so long. She resisted turning around as the servant led her away.
Downstairs Alfred tried to persuade her to come with him to the dining room, but she insisted on staying close.
“Did you manage to contact him?” Mairin wasn’t really curious but after a short while the silence already lay heavy on her.
“No, Miss. Hilda went to Traumstadt to notify the Master Adrijan.”
Mairin was surprised to hear that.
“I’ll make sure to thank her properly,” she said.
“I’m certain that won’t be necessary, Miss,” Alfred politely replied without changing her mind in the least.
Mairin impatiently walked up and down in the bathroom, now and then letting her fingers slide over one of the pillars. Adrijan had seemed to be trying hard to sound calm. Had he been nervous about something?
“Won’t you calm down, Miss? Remember, Master Adrijan said there was no reason to-“
A thud, coming from upstairs, made both of them turn their heads.