Oh, Darling Mine [Lady Dimitrescu] [REVIII]

Chapter VI

Lady Dimitrescu sat by her desk, not once attempted to focus on the documents sitting atop the mahogany surface; her thoughts, and this was not new, were once again plagued by a certain maiden, the same one she had grown quite fond of—the one she had a another maid killed for.

This time, her constant thoughts and wonders were justified.

Usually, during breakfast, the Lady would converse with her daughters, and the Cook; their conversations differed from the usually short and dry orders they often command the other maids to follow, as with [N] any topic was interesting to talk about. Alcina definitely adored talking with her—especially on days she had to attend family meetings; talking with [N] made everything easier to handle, before and after the fact.

However, the morning after Stela was fired was different; and so was the one after, and the ones that followed—throughout the following week, the Cook acted as though she was a ghost, expertly avoiding almost every living thing in the castle; the three daughters and the Countess knew she kept working diligently for them, but not once were they capable of catching even a mere glimpse of the [H/C]-haired maiden.

Alcina couldn't listen to her sing whilst she cleaned the wine room anymore, either.

The Cook, as it had come to be often lately, did not show up in the dining room after serving breakfast. She kept to herself and stayed in the Kitchens all morning, effectively avoiding the ladies of the castle, much to their dismay—again. When the four ladies arrived in the dining room, food had already been served, and another maiden remained waiting by the kitchens' door in case they were in need of anything else. Alcina in particular felt it deeper, how the maiden avoided any sort of confrontation with her; she knew it was because she must be scared.

Stela did warn her about what really happened within the castle's walls, after all.

Needless to say, all four ladies stayed quiet during breakfast, all sharing a common concern with short, knowing glances. No-one spoke a word. Not even Cassandra attempted to lighten up the mood with her usual chatter, something odd coming from her.

[N]'s attitude, although justified and somewhat foreseeable, still hurt the ladies—especially Alcina. She loathed it; deep inside she knew, her favorite maiden was, indeed, scared of her.

Without really knowing how to approach the obvious tense situation, the Countess found herself buried in files and books instead, confined within the four walls of her study whilst trying to focus on the new batch of wine bottles ready to sell, and the potential buyers for this year; keyword, trying. Most times, Alcina would tap her fingernails against the desk, no specific rhythm set; her eyes would remain trained on the doors to her private office, all the while her mind kept racing, filled with thousands of thoughts. Those past few days had been pure psychological torture for the Countess; not being able to see or interact with her favorite maiden had definitely taken a toll on her, and it only made her realize just how deep and rooted her appreciation for the woman had come to be.

Not quite an obsession just yet, but the warmth and fast heartbeat she felt every single time she spoke to [N] had the Lady of the castle yearning for more even before she stopped interacting with the beautiful human; like an addiction, Alcina needed [N] in more ways than one, and she was not afraid to admit it. She was not afraid to say she wanted this maiden to be more than just a maiden, a friend.

But first, perhaps a conversation was in order, one that Alcina dreaded, had shivers running up her spine just thinking about it—how was she supposed to talk to this lovely human without scaring her off definitely?

Lady Dimitrescu knew the maiden was afraid, and she had all the right to be. However as much as the Lady wanted to change that and let her understand that no harm would come to her, she still found herself at a loss for words. If she were to tell [N] to not be afraid, she would be immediately admitting to all the secrets and rumors surrounding the castle, she would be confirming all of the maidens' suspicions: that the ladies of the castle were, indeed, making wine with maidens' blood—among other things, all just as atrocious and terrifying.