White Iris: Instability

Chapter 2

September 17, 3876. Castle
12:27 AM
The ladies and I reached a tall, silver door, blending in effortlessly with the pale walls and gilded linings and decor. They pushed it open with ease, allowing me to step inside. I hesitated. The room was warm and humid, black marble tile lining the floor and a large bath sat at one end, a shower drain and bench at the other. The floor looked slick with water already, and the mirrors, etched into the walls surrounding the room, were fogged from steam. The bath was full of clear water and pink petals from some flower. It smelled like soap, a stale smell that stung my nose and eyes.

One of the pastel women, her skin a deep green, grabbed my small, dirty hand. Dirt, dried up and rubbing off, from the crate, from mother. She led me to the bath, sticking her free hand in, appearing to check the temperature.

"Stand still, my lady. Allow us to bathe you, hm?"

The woman spoke with a surprisingly soft voice. I finally looked up at her face, having been staring straight ahead of me the whole time. She had a soft face, round and plump, her hair a deep emerald green, almost black against her pastel skin. A single, curly strand stuck out from the front, and she had a small mole under her right eye.

She noticed my obvious stare and sighed, her plump lips curling into a smile. She began to undress me. I had been wearing a short, thin dress made from old fabric. It was slightly torn at the bottom and looked almost brown from how dirty it had gotten. The sleeves were torn at the stitches, and the pattern detailing them had faded away into nothing but a few dark spots. The dress was gone now, the green lady having handed it to a different pastel woman, who had cyan skin. She reminded me of the man who dragged me, not just her color, but her features. I couldn't get a good look at the man who found me in the crate, all I could remember was a faint birthmark under his eye. She share the same one. The birthmark looked odd, almost like a paw print.

My thoughts were interrupted as I felt my exposed body leave the ground. The green lady held me up with ease, and softly set me down on the short chair near the drain. Water dripped from a wide faucet above me, it had a thick, long metallic wire protruding from it and into the wall just below it.

The green lady turned a lever in front of me, and I flinched, my heart racing as the faucet suddenly started spraying water right beside me. The lady, having rolled up her sleeves, kept her hand under the water, making sure it was the right temperature before moving it towards me. The water was warm against my skin, clumps of dirt and blood spilling off my small figure. Bright pastel orange skin hid underneath. She moved it up above my head, once a soot covered mess, began to turn into white, thick locks of hair. My horns tingled with the warm sensation, my small, sensitive tail came to life under the warm stream of water. It was wagging.

The green lady must've noticed, considering I heard a faint chuckle just behind me.

I then felt a cold substance get slathered onto my back, arms, neck. It smelled sweet, unlike the stale soapy smell of the room. The lady then walked around and covered my entire body with soap, switching to a puffy, scratchy thing partway through. The puff was hard against my skin, and kind of stung, but I let the lady work, only freaking out once she reached my tail. The lady noticed, and switched back to her hands to rub the dirt off, following the curve of my scales. I felt safe with her. Her scent was unlike the rest of the ladies, reminding me of spring, flowers blooming and rain pouring. I loved spring.

The faucet turned off, causing me to shiver from the lack of heat, and I stood, the lady grabbing my hand to lead me towards the tub. She walked behind me, her dress now soaked from the water. She lifted me by my armpits, lowering me into the tub. The water scolded my skin, and I began to fight against her grip.

"Wait- what's wrong?"

The woman almost immediately lifted me up and held me in her arms, staring at me. "Hmm.." She looked up and down my body. My skin stung with the heat from the tub, my toes curling as it began to cool. She set me down, looking between me and the bath. "What's the issue, dear?" The other maids suddenly walked up, checking the water with their hands. One of the women had pink skin, her face much younger than the rest. "Mallory, the water is all too hot for a child! Even one of it's descent." The pink woman said, her voice scratchy and deep. Mallory, the green woman, said, "Oh, it's how the Madam likes her baths, I guess I assumed-" She was cut off by the sound of the horned maid clapping her hands. "Ladies, now is not the time for talking, fix the temperature and hurry the child to bed, it needs to be up early tomorrow."

The women listened to her, draining the tub slightly before adding cold water. Once again Mallory placed me inside the tub, this time much cooler on my adolescent skin. After soaking in the bath for a short while, Mallory lifted me out again and dried my body for me. "Daliah, you have the clothes right?" The cyan woman nodded, handing Mallory a folded piece of sky blue cloth. Mallory let it unfold in her hands, revealing a simple, long nightgown with long sleeves and a wide collar. The gown fit easily over my head and horns, the back sitting on top of my tail.

The pink woman handed Mallory some slippers to match, fluff sticking out from the tops of them. After putting those on for me as well, the cyan woman, Daliah, took my hand and walked me out of the bathroom, the horned woman leading as Mallory and the pink woman followed behind.

The corridors were long, the trip there felt long. The wall scones kept my eyes entertained, what looked to be faux fire flickered from the tops of them, casting shadows on the women's faces. My ears flicked as I heard a woman behind me mumble something to herself. "Wow," she had said. I looked forward again, lowering my eyes to the carpet under the slippers, the blue against the red contrasting drastically.

After what felt like 5 whole minutes of just walking down the halls, we reached a door with two suited men on either side. Their suits were a deep brown, matching the women's uniforms. They opened the doors, and we walked inside. It was a busy room, detailed with a large bed, a vanity with a short bench, and a large window that stuck out so you could sit on the sill that held pillows. The colors matched the outside halls, the patterns etched into the walls much more tame however, with simply curves up and down.

The three pastel women nodded before leaving the deep red horned woman with me in the room. "This will be your room, child." She glanced at a device on her wrist, clicking her tongue. "And I will be your personal-" she hesitated before continuing, "caretaker. You may call me Miss Keltir, is that understood?" She looked down at me, her eyes staring straight into mine. I stared back, my teeth pressed together. "Hm.. we'll have to work on that tomorrow then, off to bed with you, child." She pushed on my back, forcing me to walk forward towards the large bed. Miss Keltir lifted me up and onto the bed, tucking me under the covers. I gripped the blanket, staring at her as she turned off the light and left.

The only light entering my room was from the window, the moon bright and full in the sky. I laid on my side, thinking about what had happened. About my mother.
My home.

"Nh-"

I looked around, my breathing heavy. No one was there. My throat stung as salty water dripped from my cheeks. I lowered my head back onto the pillow.

"Mommy..."