Daughter of Azeroth

06 | A NEW LIFE

Idira had only had enough time to find her room all the way up on the top floor and let Blackie out of the chicken crate before two girls no more than twice her age, wearing dark blue dresses covered with crisp white aprons walked into her room each hefting two buckets of hot water. Two lads followed after them, grunting as they wrestled a copper tub through the narrow doorway.

Lanira, Idira's new minder, swept into the room, her arms laden with fluffy, fresh towels. She eyed the labours of the serving girls as they filled the tub, her narrow, pinched face filled with disapproval. Her black hair had been pulled back into a bun so severe not one hair dared lay out of place. Idira guessed her minder was no more than ten years older than Myra, but she seemed a lot older, like an old woman who had never once smiled in her whole life. Lanira set the towels aside and crossed the room, her sharp eyes already betraying her anger about something, although Idira had no idea what. She took hold of Idira's arm and yanked her over so she could pull Idira's tunic up over her head, her movements a little too rough for Idira's liking.

'Nothing here a good scrub and a fresh dress won't fix,' Lanira muttered to herself, as she tossed the tunic into the fireplace. Idira watched it succumb to the flames. That was her only piece of clothing. She wondered what she was supposed to wear now.

Lanira grabbed hold of Idira's chin and took a good long look at Idira's face. 'Those eyes! How horrible. Never seen the like of it before. I suppose there's a hint of blue somewhere in there but still, what a strange, quiet child. For the love of the Light, say something, you have just moved into the second best house in all of Westfall. What's wrong with you, were you dropped on your head when you were a baby?'

'Hello?' Idira ventured, not knowing what else to say.

Lanira's palm slammed against Idira's mouth, hard. Idira blinked back tears. It hurt a lot, she licked her lip and tasted blood.

'Think you're funny, do you?' Lanira scowled, her eyes narrow with dislike. 'Your father told me to keep you on a tight leash. I can see why now, too clever for your own good, you are.' She fell back onto her haunches and rubbed the back of her wrist across her forehead. 'Oh why must I always get the problem cases? Just once, the Light could bless me with a nice normal child to mind.'

Idira didn't say anything, but it appeared Lanira no longer minded her silence. She hustled her into the copper tub and scrubbed a lifetime's worth of grime from Idira's body and hair, complaining all the while, her ministrations rough and painful. When it was over, Idira sat before the fire, wrapped in a towel waiting for her combed out hair to dry while Lanira went to fetch something for Idira to wear. The serving girls came back and emptied the dirty bath water back into their buckets. They never looked at her or spoke to her. It was like she didn't even exist.

Alone once more, Idira got up and looked around her room. It was really nice. It had a big window right under the front gable. From its vantage she could see the whole square and all the way past the town to the surrounding countryside. In the distance, the glittering sparkle of the sea beckoned to her. She sighed, relieved. At least she could still see the sea.

The bed stood beside the window and had a high headboard and footboard. A half-dozen thick cushions stood piled against the headboard. She lay down on the bed, it was so soft, it made her think of floating on a cloud. Urgent voices echoed up the stairwell. Startled, she slipped off the bed and hurried back to her place on the padded bench, afraid of being scolded. No one came. She looked around some more.

At the opposite end of the room a pretty dresser with an oval mirror faced the window. Beside it, a huge wardrobe with double doors. A thick woollen rug covered the polished wooden floorboards. In between the bed and dresser a fire burned in the fireplace before a warming bench. And finally, tucked into the lower part of the gable, facing the footboard of the bed, a pair of padded chairs and a little table filled a nook. And that was it. The walls were painted pale blue, which offset the white door and marble fireplace. The bed cover was also blue as was the upholstery of the bench and chairs. Idira was glad, she liked blue, it reminded her of the sea and the sky. She was pretty sure she had been given the best room in the house. It was perfect. She could stay her for days with Blackie and just look out the window, watching people go about their lives.