It's You And Me ~ Karl Heisenberg

{A talk}



"Send for Patrice." Elizabeth called upon entering her estate, "and take those treats to the kitchens and tell all of the staff it's a thank you present." Her tone was fast-paced, almost breathless as she hopped off the horse, handing him off to a gardener or whoever it was that was closest to her.

The flooded memories of her past and her family didn't fade, instead, it festered in her mind and she needed to get them out, dark storm clouds started to loom overhead, and the entirety of the household knew exactly what was going to go down and quickly ran inside to shelter themselves from the oncoming storm.
"Patrice!" Elizabeth called out in desperation, she was the closest thing she had to family, and right now she needed her more than ever. To her relief, Patrice came round a corner in a frantic state looking for the girl.

"Oh, my sweet child." The woman cooed, opening her arms, which Elizabeth ran into almost instantly, clutching the smaller figure tight into her chest. Small sobs started to come from the girl, Patrice didn't say anything, she just held the girl tightly, that was all she needed. After a few moments, the two pulled away, Patrice lightly wiped a single tear from the girl's cheek, taking note that raindrops had started to pound on the windows, she wasn't fully showing her emotions physically so it seemed that the weather did it for her.

"Let's get you in bed with some tea yes?" It was more of a statement than a question as she led Elizabeth back to her Chambers.

Only Patrice had ever seen her so vulnerable, Elizabeth didn't exactly like showing her weak side but eventually everything you have built up inside is going to burst and believe me, it's not pretty. You could hear the wind howling outside as the storm grew more intense, Elizabeth wasn't crying anymore but you could still see that she wasn't entirely okay, she climbed into bed fully clothed while Patrice went to fetch her some form of herbal tea, she hated feeling like this, she felt weak, because no matter how hard she tried to suppress the memories of her past, they were always going to be there, and they were always going to hurt.

It wasn't long before the maid returned with a small porcelain tea cup placed on a saucer, Elizabeth felt elegant using her grandmother's utensils so Patrice used that knowledge to try and cheer the woman up a bit. She steadily took the cup and saucer and raised it to her lips, blowing slightly before sipping.

"I hate feeling like this."

A crack of lighting.

"I just feel so weak and pathetic."

Thunder growled.

Patrice knew that this was going to go very south very quickly if she didn't help Elizabeth quickly.

"Now, now miss, let's acknowledge that those are your feelings, and realise that the past is the past, you are well within reason to feel this way my love, but just know that all this pain, all this torment, is what makes you strong, and I know they'd be so proud of you."
Elizabeth looked at the approaching woman and leant her head forward and Patrice kissed it, almost like a mother's touch.

"Get some rest, my lady, I'll be back to check on you later."

Patrice kept her word of course, returning a few hours later to see the Lord sprawled out on her bed, finally a restful look on her face, the night was calm now, she was just thankful that her mood didn't get any worse, the last time that happened the crops ended up being flooded and Elizabeth felt guilty about it for weeks.
Once satisfied that the woman was okay, Patrice left the room and scurried down to the servants' area, a hang-out place if you will, for all of the help that lived in the castle.

"How is she?" A concerned voice asked, it was one of the cooks, Alicia.

"She's doing better than before, fast asleep when I looked in," Patrice informed.

"Thank Miranda she is I couldn't sit through another hurricane." This time it was one of the male servants, Dimitri

"You'd sit through anything for Lady Claydon Dimitri don't lie." Another voice popped up howling with laughter, Patrice furrowed her brows at the inappropriate behaviour and went to get a snack from the cupboards.

"Show some respect." Alicia hissed at the men, it was without a doubt that Lady Claydon was beautiful, both envied and admired for that fact, but it had been observed over the years that she had no interest for a partner, Elizabeth just saw romantic attachments as a way to lose someone.

"On a brighter note." Patrice began gaining everyone's attention once more.

"A letter came not long ago, a confirmation that for the Dimestrescu's daughter's birthday, all of Castle Claydon are invited to attend in 2 weeks' time."

A bustle of excited chatter filled the room, Elizabeth herself was never one for parties so the castle lacked in the socialising department, to be invited to one at a Castle Dimestrescu (which was indeed a lot bigger than Castle Claydon) was truly an exciting event. However, not all were as ecstatic about the event, muttering about how a few women who had worked under Lady Dimestrescu mysteriously went missing, no bodies were found so it was almost unexplainable really, a reason why most people steered clear of the castle and its grounds.

"I'm sure Lady Elizabeth wouldn't let anything happen to us, you know how much she cares for us," Alicia reassured she had faith in her mistresses' power to protect them and also had faith in what a good person she was.

"I suppose we better make sure all our best attire is ironed and prepped." The ladies laughed.