Dullahan

6 - Court - 5

The path Gildas took was winding and complicated. Eldred was certain they had doubled back on themselves at least twice. They had left the hallway and travelled through the courtyard, moving through a covered passageway into a smaller courtyard. Eldred had seen more of the castle's working folk engaged in their tasks for the day, a small group of women washing at the well in the courtyard's centre, and a few children a little older than himself chasing one another around. They had paused to watch him pass, one boy whispering something to the rest that resulted in a fit of laughter. Eldred had quickly turned his attention back to where they were going, suddenly very self conscious.

It seemed like they climbed just as many staircases as they descended, winding around the twin trunks of the tree until Gildas led him down a final few steps to what Eldred thought might have been basement level. A door was set into a wall a level beneath one of the many courtyards they had passed through, its construction simple, its wood old and greyed. Gildas reached to its handle, having to give it a gentle shove as it scraped across a plain tiled floor.

It opened into a dark hall, the only light coming from small slivers of window just below the ceiling. It was sparsely decorated, a few old wall hangings giving a minimal amount of warmth to otherwise bare stone walls. One side was lined with similarly aged wooden doors, only slightly better for wear than the one they had entered through. Gildas didn't bother shutting the door behind him, the man's expression telling Eldred all he needed to know about what he thought about needing to come to this place.

He led the boy five doors down, stopping before a door identical to all of the others as far as Eldred could tell. The door did not unlock, the man only needing to push the door open. Within was a small room, barely large enough to fit a single narrow bed and a simple desk and chair on the opposite wall. A small fire nestled in the corner furthest from the door at the foot of the bed, and a rough set of drawers filled the space between the desk and the wall. The space left between was narrow, just wide enough for an adult to walk through comfortably.

Gildas gestured for Eldred to enter, and Eldred did so. "Do not leave this room," the man said, words carrying the weight of a threat.

The boy nodded, but the door was already closing. The latch clicked as it shut, and Gildas's footsteps retreated back down the hall.

Eldred glanced behind him, the back of the door as plain as the front. The room felt cold, and dust floated in the air. He noticed now that every surface was coated in a thick layer of grey, and he sneezed.

The light from the sole window on the far wall was dim despite the afternoon outside, looking out onto the shadowed side of the castle. He stepped toward it, peering through at the city below. There was a clunk as the door that led to the courtyard closed, and Eldred was left in silence.

Unsure of what else to do, the boy climbed onto the bed, back resting against the wall, knees pulled in so that he could rest his head atop them. Then, he waited.