The Nightingale

Alexa reached the wing of the castle where she was staying, carefully watching the entrances and exits, this time, as she would have to leave quietly later when night fell.

The dry morning weather had been replaced by a nasty, gray drizzly afternoon, and surely that was the reason why everything was quiet and still. People probably slept before dinner and any activities that took place after that.

A small noise in one of the beautiful stained glass windows caught her attention. She went closer, and saw a small nightingale huddled on the inner railing. The maiden cautiously reached out to catch it, and the little bird came gently to her finger, accepting her caresses.

"Sweetie, you are such a cutie! How did you get here?"

A brisk trill surprised her, and Alexa cupped her hands to catch it. At first, she had believed the birdie had come in through the window or one of the arrowslits, but now she had some doubts. The docility of the little bird could mean that it was domesticated. Placing her finger as a perch, the bird promptly positioned himself comfortably on her finger, and Alexa whistled at it, and patted its little head,

"Come on? Later I will find your owner, but now you will have to come with me. I saw a lot of cats and dogs in this castle. Not to mention the ghosts. This is no place for a cute little thing like you!"

As she turned the corridor into the studio under the stairs, her bedroom, the maiden came across Lady Duvignes, just coming down the stairs.

The Frenchwoman greeted her, but she wasn't smiling,

"Lady Saskia, there you are."

"Were you looking for me, Lady Duvignes?"

"Oui, I was told you were staying here on this staircase, but…"

"Yes, on the staircase!" Alexa pointed out with her free hand, "Under the stairs."

Lady Duvignes apparently wasn't in a good mood. She didn't really look happy to see her, and the maiden could only think the other lady was happily getting away from really finding Alexa… but got unlucky, hahaha.

"What's the point of the visit?" One of the perks of speaking the language with a strong accent was pretending not to realize that her questions were too straightforward and rude.

"Bien, I… Lady Cordelia is not well all day, and when she received news of your return he asked to see you. But it hasn't been easy to find you…"

"Oh… "

Indeed, the maiden needed to talk to Cordelia. But the fact was that after talking to Cordelia's fiancé earlier, Alexa felt bad and didn't know how she would behave around the Flemish girl. Even if she didn't see the facts as her own fault, something inside her felt embarrassed about the whole situation.

Even if Cordelia was unaware of the facts.

"I… I will see her soon, thank you for coming personally, Lady Duvignes," yet Lady Duvignes was too pompous and important to have personally come after her. Was that really the reason? Alexa doubted.

Wasn't the Frenchwoman the Prince Klaus' lover?

'Ah, what a hateful man!' Alexa thought, suddenly annoyed.

"Is this bird… yours?" the French ambassador's wife asked, in a tone between curiosity and imperious questioning. The maiden, who already had her spirit flammed, pursed her lips to keep from giving a rude response.

"No, Lady Duvignes, I just found it. Isn't that cute?"

"Oui, of course it is! And trained, then! It really looks like the bird Prince Alexander has. Isn't that the same, by any chance?"

Alexa looked at the bird again, and the bird looked back at her, laying its head down to the side. 'He' was so cute!

"Aw, look at this creature! I don't know who he is, but if this nightingale belongs to the Prince, who's taking care of it?"

The lady shook her head, "I couldn't tell. Good to see you, Lady Saskia. You have been quite the court's sensation in recent days! Shaking the routine of the entire royal family! You must be proud of such attention!'

'Is she saying this because she knows that Prince Klaus was with me all morning, or because of my presence, the Duke got hurt? Oh, I don't know if I can like this woman!' the maiden sensed, unsure what to do about it.

While they were there, the water girl, carrying a steamy capped bucket in a kind of wheelbarrow, bowed to them and hurried to Alexa's bedroom door, leaving the bucket on the floor and knocking on the door. Completely absorbed in her routine activity, the maid just did it and went down the hall, trying to be invisible to the nobles.

This was intriguing to Alexa, but Lady Duvignes took advantage of the cue,

"Bien, chérie, I'm not going to disturb your bath. Excusez-Moi, as I will return and prepare for dinner too", and with a bow, matched by the maiden, walked away.

Alexa again petted the bird, still watching the elegant silhouette of the French woman leave her, just a little bothered to have found Lady Duvignes there. Turning, Alexa put her hand on the doorknob, only to feel the cold breath of death pass over her skin like a sheer veil.

The bird fluttered on her finger, and Alexa frowned, knowing she wouldn't like what she would find. She just was sure of something.

Someone had just died.

Slowly the maiden pushed open the door, which squeaked on its hinges until the door was wide open. But Alexa did not enter. The damsel heard the ambassador's wife's voice,

"Is there any problem, Lady Saskia?"

Alexa did not immediately answer, because she did not know what to say to the woman, who returned when she noticed the maiden's reluctance in front of her own room.

It was still early enough that only one oil lamp was lit, hanging from the ceiling, and she saw the chests piled beside the bed, and a tub of bathing water from which warm vapors still condensed in the cold air.

"Nerissa?" she called the maid's name, for the only logical explanation was that the maid they got her was preparing her a bath.

An unrequested bath, by the way.

Taking an anxious step forward, the maiden entered the room, searching.

Then she saw Nerissa, or rather her Shade standing motionless beside the tub. She had wet hair; in fact, she was all dripping on the floor while staring at Alexa with burning feverish eyes.

Alexa, however, did not see the body.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

It was Lady Duvignes screaming, noticing the dripping arm barely emerging under the lid of one of the chests. She pointed out at it and muffled her own voice with the fist, in horror.

The bird flew to the beam on the ceiling with the shrill noise, and Alexa still saw the ghost follow the flight of the little bird with her gaze, and then return her hollow gaze to the maiden.