A Touch of Death

Chapter 9

Aoife stood with a robe wrapped around her body as water dripped off her skin, staring at the contents of the wardrobe. The Enchanter hadn't lied when he said there was a selection of dresses— there must have been fifteen gowns packed into the tall wardrobe, all of different colors and patterns, and none of which actually belonged to her. However, she couldn't very well stay in her traveling dress. Among other things, it didn't smell very nice after spending a day in the carriage, and it was dusty around the hem just from the walk up to the castle doors.

She reluctantly looked through the dresses until she found one that looked like it could feasibly be put on without help. It was a spring green court dress with a pattern of yellow flowers on the bodice and full skirt. The top was unfortunately sleeveless, but it was the only one with a bodice that clasped in the front.

She found a shawl in one of the wardrobe drawers to ward off the chill, wrapping it around her shoulders like armor. Her tall leather gloves hid what part of the vines twisted down and around her forearm, and the tangle of thorns and unopened flower buds at her shoulders were concealed by the soft shawl.

Looking in the mirror, Aoife could see it wasn't the most fashionable ensemble: her gloves were worn and dirty, her shawl didn't match the color of the dress at all, and her hair was a mess after the bath, but she was warm and hungry and didn't care to dwell on fashion when the only person looking at her would be a grumpy Enchanter. She took off down the hallway without too much extra thought, combing through her damp hair with her fingers as she followed the directions to the dining room.

As she retraced their steps down the hallway, Aoife had the sudden realization that it would be absolutely impossible to find her way around here, at least for a few days. The first one of the Enchanter's rules to be broken would undoubtedly be "don't get lost." The only indicators of direction or location marking the bleak stone walls were the tapestries, and there hadn't been enough time for her to study them to use them as a map yet, though her gaze lingered on them as she walked towards the dining room.

The tapestries were grand, ornate things hanging on every wall, all depicting some kind of scene. One was a snowy mountain pass with bear tracks heading through the canyon, another was a lush lagoon with a flock of mermaids sunning themselves on the shore, and yet another was a battle scene so bloody that Aoife had to turn away. She'd heard plenty of battle stories and seen her fair share of generally wounded people as a healer, but something about that particular scene gave her chills.

As she walked through the castle, Aoife could clearly tell that while the inner workings may have been built for hospitality, its chief purpose had been for defense. The walls were thick, and the windows were high. The complicated system of passages allowed one to make their way virtually anywhere by any means. It would trap any intruders who didn't know their way around. Whoever had designed the place was a genius...

Unless it was built by magic, of course.

She might have to ask about that later.

Eventually, she did find her way to the correct room. The double doors opened without a single squeak of protest, swinging out into a large dining hall. She would have entered quietly, except that she tripped on the hem of her dress and crashed to the floor with a sickening smack. The Enchanter looked over, eyebrows raised, and Aoife blushed furiously as she picked herself up from the floor. He smirked slightly, but made no comment about the fall.

"I see you had no trouble finding your way here."

"The directions you gave were straightforward." Aoife said, shrugging.

In front of her was an almost comically long dining table with two places already set, the Enchanter facing one empty chair across from him in the center of the table— the only other chair in the room. Aoife reluctantly walked forward and took a seat in front of the steaming meal already set out for them. The chairs were placed directly across from each other in the middle of the long sides, in order to have the least possible distance between conversing parties while still facing one another.