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Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

"I have never seen a child respond in such an extreme way. That scream was like nothing I have ever heard."

"She was a little older do you think that might have..."

"No, no I have seen children of her age go through this and not a single one reacted the way that she did."

People were whispering close to Lyndsey. The voices were faint and she couldn't quite work out who was talking. She forced her eyes open and figures started to swim into focus. She blinked hard to try and clear her head. It felt all heavy and full of down.

"Do you think it might be because her moth- Oh Lyndsey you're awake." Oswald broke off in the middle of his sentence as he saw Lyndsey attempting to sit herself up in bed. For a moment, Lyndsey wasn't quite sure where she was but she was soon able to recognise her bedroom. The last thing she remembered collapsing into her uncle's arms. Looking down she saw she was in her night dress and tucked up in bed.

"How did I get back here?" Lyndsey asked sleepily, her head was spinning just a little so she lay back against the headboard.

"You got over tired and fell asleep downstairs." Lilith said from where she was stood on Lyndsey's other side. Looking around, Lyndsey saw Simeon was also in the room and all three of them were watching her.

"I carried you upstairs and we had a maid come in and put you in your nightdress." Oswald explained. "How are you feeling?" He looked slightly concerned. "Are you in pain at all?"

"I am not in pain exactly. I feel a bit... I don't know how to explain how I am feeling." Lyndsey said, rubbing her eyes. "I feel different. It's like I'm full of energy and drained of energy all at once." Oswald nodded slowly, seeming to understand.

"That's not unusual for the morning after an emergence." He reassured her. "Your new power is finding its place in you and your body is working out how to cope with that. It will take a day or so to get acclimated with it and then you will be able to start learning." He took one of her hands between both of his and held it for a few moments. Lyndsey gave a small smile as she felt her head beginning to clear. "Now you rest. You need to stay in bed and we will have some food sent up to you." He squeezed her hand lightly before getting up and leaving the room behind Lilith and Simeon.

Lyndsey had opened her mouth to ask her uncle a question but he was out of the room before she managed to. Sighing a little, she looked around the room. Her drapes were pulled across the windows so she decided to get up and open them. If she couldn't go outside she would at least like to see it. It took a lot of effort for her to force her tired muscles to move. It felt like her bones were suddenly made of lead so each step was a struggle. It took a few minutes for her to reach the window and as long to open the curtains. She had to sit for a while before she even tried to get back to bed.

"Lyndsey what are you doing out of bed." The sharp voice made Lyndsey look around. Her aunt was standing in the doorway, a maid with a tray full of food standing beside her. "You were told you needed to rest." Lilith strode across the room and fastened her hand around Lyndsey's upper arm, all but hauling the girl from the window and back into the bed. "What possessed you to try and get up?" Lilith scolded, as the maid stepped forward to place the tray onto the bed before retreating from the room.

"I only wanted to be able to see the gardens." Lyndsey said a little sadly, looking down at the tray. "What are those?" She asked indicating the bowls of odd looking substances that now lay in front of her.

"It does not matter what they are." Lilith said as she pulled up a chair to sit beside the bed. "You are to eat every morsel and I will not hear a word of complaint do you understand me?" She folded her arms and looked sternly down at Lyndsey as she picked up the spoon on the tray and scooped up a small amount of a burgundy coloured paste.