Dark Halls, Stone Walls

Chapter Six

I awoke with tears stinging my eyes.

The room was just the same as before, but unlike my dream, I was alone.

I stretched my back while laying down with a groan. As weird as the dream was, I decided to call it a good one, since I didn't feel uncomfortable or filled with a sense of dread.

The floor creaked.

"Laura, is that you?" I impulsively called out.

"No my lady," A middle aged woman spoke. "It's Noreen."

"Oh," I frowned. "My apologies, Noreen."

"Please don't apologize, my lady." She said simply. "You can't see me, so how could you possibly tell?" A match started. A long candle was lit on my bedside table, illuminating the room once again.

I hesitated. "Thank you."

I shuffled out of bed and reached for my outfit that I'd laid out the night before. It was the same as it had been, but I didn't mind. It was the only thing that made me feel like myself, even if I didn't completely understand who "myself" was.

As I went to grab it, she shuffled around the room to clean up what little there had to be cleaned. Sounds of a feather duster, a spritz of lemon and baking soda, and a bristle brush cleaning the dirt out of the crevices of stone. She worked fast and efficiently, so much so that I was certain that she had much of it done by the time I used the washroom and came back, dressed, showered, and ready to go.

An awkward silence filled the air.

"So, Noreen."

"Yes, my lady?"

"Where is Laura?"

"She's on wash duty."

"I see. Did she do something wrong-?"

"Even if she did, it isn't my business to know."

"Very well." I might as well talk to a wall. "Then, may I ask you a few questions? It's not about your master." She was quiet. I presumed it was because she was listening. "This goes back about when I lost my memories. Aside from when Laura visited me in the library, I was alone, right?"

"Yes, my lady."

"And Laura knew that I was asleep by checking where I was in the room, correct?"

"Yes, my lady, as far as I know."

"But there were no windows, even going from the hallway into the library. She would have to open the door in order to see if I was awake or not, right?"

"That's one way, my lady." To my surprise, she continued. "The other way is using sound cues."

My frown deepened. "What do you mean?"

A pause. "Before I say this, what do you know about our staff?"

"Um," I hesitated. "I've accidentally cut you all off from the outside world, you're all invisible because of me, and your master is angry at me for all the above?"

"Aside from that."

"Laura said she couldn't tell me anything I didn't already figure out, so I assume it's the same with you all under the orders of your master."

"You assume correctly."

Meaning if I don't guess what you mean correctly, you will not answer my question. "And um, she's really attentive to me. I assume you all are the same," I hesitated. "I think I knew her in the past, but I don't know if she was serving me specifically or elsewhere. The name Noreen seems a bit familiar, though Laura's name wasn't." A pause. "You two must work together a lot."