Post by Ze Flying Wraithetti Monstress on May 6, 2009 19:06:32 GMT -5
Morning came aggravatingly quickly. The moment I felt the cold sunlight on my face, I rolled over irritably, twisting in my blankets. This didn’t turn out to be such a fine idea, since Hester, one of my maids, had apparently got it into her head again that some fresh air was good for me and had left the bedside window open. The shock of freezing early winter air hitting me full in the face jarred me from my sleep, and with a gasp I flung myself back into my room, slamming the shutters as I did. Shivering in the cold, I rearranged my blankets and decided to go back to sleep, but something nagged at my mind. It made me sit up and look outside again, opening the window a crack.
The sky was the colour of cat vomit. It was dawn, which, according to several hundred sonnets, epics, and other pieces of literature, was supposedly the most beautiful time of day. The orange clouds sticking to the pink sky could inspire beauty in some, but to me, all I could be reminded of was chunks of fish floating through displaced stomach juices. It was not a pleasant thought to wake up to.
Then, the realization that the sun was up crashed down onto me, and I realized that I was going to be late. For a very important date. I was supposed to meet Lady Aelyn, who’d rather recently become a Rider, to talk battles, invasion, and all things anti-rebellion. I wasn’t looking forward to it, but Galbatorix was probably going to have me killed if I didn’t start actually serving him. I twisted out of my blankets and rolled onto the floor, glaring around my room. I changed it every so often to suit my moods best, and currently, most of it was in dark shades of crimson and purple- at least, what could be seen of it- I’d recently had another reading spasm and had brought nearly half the books and scrolls in my personal library on the second floor up to my room. Every possible space was crammed with them, under the bed, on chairs, on the day couch, and taking up most of the floor. The True Nature of Urgals, which I’d fallen asleep reading, was shoved under one of my pillows.
I heaved myself up, dusting off my grey nightgown, and slipped my feet into the nearest pair of slippers. Then I snatched a vermillion robe from a hook near the door and wrapped it around myself while hurrying to the desk opposite my bed. I sat at it, pushing scrolls out of the way, and positioned the mirror so that I could look at myself in it. The ghastly face that looked back at me nearly made me scream outright with horror. What was this? Sunken cheeks, bleary, baggy eyes, dry and cracked lips? There was no way I was going to go outside like that. I leaped out of the chair and tore out of the room, nearly running over my bodyguard, Lujon. I had a large house, one that required four guards, six house servants of varying genders, one butler, and my three personal maids. All of them were reanimated bodies, which meant I had to load the house with fragrances- I was still working on a spell to get rid of their decaying stinks. Right now I needed Zarina, my hairdresser and make-up artist, and Vesper, who handled my wardrobe. I scrambled down the hall, and down the first flight of stairs- my house had three ascending floors- and shouted their names.
“Vesper! Zarina!”
The two ghoulish menservants on the second floor looked up at me from their cleaning. Realizing my robe was hanging open, I clutched it closed and ran further down the steps, practically crashing to the second floor. I headed through some rooms, including sitting rooms, potion rooms for my spells, and my library, and was about to run down the next flight of stairs when I ran into Vesper.
“Here I am, madam,” she said, her voice cheery despite how it grated across her slowly rotting vocal chords. “Zarina’s already in your chambers.” She had the dress I’d already picked out for today in her arms. I grabbed her by the back of her bodice and shoved her in the direction of the stairs.
“Then go!” I snapped at her. “I’ll be up in a few moments.”
Leaving her to get to my room, I barrelled back into the library. I was acting most unladylike, but I was incredibly antsy. I searched madly for the scrolls Galbatorix had given me two weeks ago when the appointment had first been set, and managed to find them where I’d left them two weeks ago- carelessly dropped on one of the tables. I looked at them to make sure they were the ones I wanted. They were lists of the Empire’s towns and cities with notable Varden activity. I was supposed to have them memorized, but I’d completely ignored them up till now. And now I had no time. Groaning, I shoved them under my arm and raced back down the hall, up the stairs, and into my bedroom.
Zarina and Vesper had already arrived, and set out the make-up I’d previously picked out onto my dresser. They’d both been dead only a short while when I’d reanimated them- Vesper could easily be mistaken for being alive, except for the rotting smell and the fact that only the whites of her eyes showed. Zarina’s skin had turned a very odd bluish-grey colour, and she had lost all her hair, which was rather ironic, considering she was my hairdresser. The moment I arrived in the room, the aggravation of getting properly dressed began.
After stripping off the robe and the nightgown, I had to be squeezed into a corset and the whalebone frame of my dress. Then came the heavy underskirt, the gossamer overskirt, both with a full train, and then the heavy velvet full-sleeved bodice. Everything was entirely black, suiting my current mood, trimmed with silver cords and lacy white designs at the sleeves, skirt, and bosom. Normally I didn’t wear such heavy outfits, but I wasn’t taking any chances in this weather. I even put on a trench coat over the dress as extra insulation. Then, after Zarina brushed and pulled up my hair in a tight up-do, I put on a feathered hat that covered the front of my face with a fine net. It rather looked like an exploding crow, but it fit the rest of the outfit. I pulled the net back so Zarina could do my makeup- white powder for my face to hide the blemishes, kohl to outline my eyes, ground silver for my eyelids, oil to lengthen my eyelashes, and finally red berry pigment for my lips and cheeks. Once Vesper and Zarina were done, I shooed them out and hurried to inspect myself in the full-length mirror at the end of my room, kicking books out of the way as I did. I peered carefully at the mirror, groomed my eyebrows with my fingertips, and then shouted in the Ancient Language.
“Back!” The mirror promptly showed me how I looked from the back. “Sides!” It showed my left and my right. After preening a little to make sure I looked decent, I slipped my feet into a pair of fur heeled boots. They were completely hidden due to the fact that my skirts were to the floor. Then, after stuffing the scrolls into a black purse, hauling it onto my shoulder, and then yanking on a pair of black leather gloves, I went looking for Lujon.
He’d left his guard duty at my door. I hunted for him until I found him in the kitchen on the first floor, stuffing his face with raw pork, which had probably been meant for me. I cleared my throat, and he looked up from his meal. Reanimating Lujon had… changed him, to put it mildly. His skin was so dark blue it was practically black, and his eyes had turned into empty black pits. Besides that, he’d grown teeth so huge and sharp that he couldn’t close his mouth properly, and had to keep the whole thing hidden under a mask. I’d never seen the rest of his body, since he wore a heavy steel Imperial uniform day and night, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d grown a pair of wings at this point. I really wondered what race his souls had been in life.
Lujon followed me to the heavy oak double doors at the front of my house, holding one open for me. I grabbed a parasol on the way out, one that matched my outfit, and opened it up. It was snowing hard. Outside, a suitably decorative carriage, chartered by the palace, waited to take me to the citadel. It was dark grey, drawn by two impatient white horses and a shivering driver. The driver, a small, pale, nondescript man, yanked the door open. Lujon climbed in first, followed by me after I closed my parasol. After settling myself in the seat and shutting the door, I rapped on the side of the carriage, and we were off.
The ride to the palace was uneventful. I lived in the richest part of the city, where some elf structures still survived, right by the castle. The only people we passed were nobles out for a cold stroll and royal guards. Then we trundled up a path leading to the courtyard, where the carriage pulled to a halt. The entire trip took ten minutes, due to the fact that the wheels hardly moved in the snow.
I slid out of the carriage with Lujon in tow. The sun was already up over the horizon, and yet it was freezing. Eager to not be late and to get out of the cold, I hurried to the black doors of the citadel, which were wide open for the passing nobles and guards. I slowed down when I walked through them, determined not to look like a fool. Only slaves ran around. I was supposed to meet Lady Aelyn up in the towers, in one of Galbatorix’s private meeting rooms. Without further ado, I made for the nearest staircase and went up.
By the time I had scaled all the necessary stairs, I was exhausted, but Lujon appeared unruffled by the exercise. The entire palace was completely black, and completely unfurnished. Galbatorix didn’t much care for aesthetics, apparently. The stairs were no different. Right now, I faced a hall with several doors on either side. The room I was meeting Aelyn in was supposed to have some kind of suit of armour beside the door, apparently the armour Vrael had been wearing when Galbatorix slew him. I strode forward, and spotted the armour- now corroded and rusty from lack of care- and tried the door on its left. The room was completely empty. I went for the one on the right, slapping it open with my palms.
The room was completely black, like the rest of the palace, and entirely unfurnished except for the long table that took up most of the room’s space and the surrounding chairs, which were cushion-backed and oddly comfortable-looking. At the very end of the room, sitting at the head of the table, sat an elegant, very young woman. She had a very refined, polished appearance, which made me relax. I wasn’t stuck with some unhygienic mongrel, at least. She looked up when I opened the door, her expression placid and her blue eyes calm. But my attention was then drawn to the dark blue creature sitting beside her. The dragon was a little bigger than I’d expected it to be, about the size of a pony and looking nothing less than an oversized lizard with wings, like all dragons did. I took my eyes away, though, as it was impolite to stare, and I wanted to make a decent first impression. I cleared my throat and curtsied deeply, not speaking until I stood to full height again.
“Lady Aelyn,” I said politely. I had a very sharp voice, like glass, but it wasn’t the type that easily boomed across a room, so I spoke loudly. “I must apologize for my tardiness. I hope you weren’t waiting long?”
Words;; 2068
Muse;; Crapola.
Thoughts;; GYAAAAAAAAAAA it sucks, sorreh. Exams and summatives are killing mah muse. T_T[/size]
