Drops of Life

"I didn't want to get married. And I was never happy. But when he wasn't here anymore, life sure got sad all of a sudden. I wonder why that is. Why am I so sad?"

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Deli and I went to the orphanage which was in a secluded and more peaceful area than all of Versailles. In fact, it was on the outskirts of Versailles and there weren't a lot of convenient ways to get there. We practically had to cross a whole forest before we got to that place. I was surprised to see that it wasn't a run-down place like I had been imagining. The orphanage was called Gouttes de Vie and it was breathtakingly beautiful. I haven't been mesmerized by any building in all of Versailles as much as I was taken aback by Gouttes.

Deli and I stepped out of our car which we had rented earlier this morning and stood facing the magnificent, moderately-sized orphanage. Unlike me, Deli wasn't surprised at all. I concluded she had seen this place before as she seemed to know her way around. Instead of walking straight through the steel arch, she led us towards the back side where a white wooden fence door opened into the backyard. The backyard was smaller but more beautiful than the spacious front one.

"No kids around the back", she smiled at me as she opened the fence door and entered the place. There was a chamber whose window opened towards the backyard and though, I doubted anyone was inhabiting that quite a place, Deli waved towards the window. In a matter of minutes, three ladies came running toward us.

"Deli", I looked at her, perplexed but she was calm and composed.

The ladies wore a very soft shade of white aprons on their black dresses that extended below their knees. They all wore classic maid guises, an unexpected turn of events for me. The three of them were not young by any means and they looked at us with bewildered, investigating eyes. We simply stood in silence watching their confused faces.

Then one of them whispered something to the other two after which the three practically dug their stares into Deli's face. She looked back at them, completely unfazed.

"Isn't Tête in?"

Something in her voice must have woken something inside the three maids as they dropped to their knees, taking Deli's hands and kissing it with tears running down their cheeks. Deli looked stone cold, unshaken by their actions.

"My Lady!", they were all saying as they groveled before her with tear-filled eyes. They looked up, again and again, to confirm it was her.

"Tête!!!", her voice almost pierced through my eardrums and split my brain in two.

Followed by this voice, the stirring was surprisingly minute. I really felt like I had left my domain far behind now.

An old woman, dressed in a heavier attire of the same sort, except with her head covered with something like a nun's veil. She hurried towards us and the other maids finally got up too.

The woman stood bewildered as she approached us. She looked at Deli as if she'd seen a ghost.

"You are looking old as ever...Tête", Deli said coldly.

"If the sun refused to come up, that wouldn't be surprising. But you can't be alive, I refuse to believe!", the hag said before dropping to her knees, and bowing to Deli.

"It is good to see you still don't believe in God, Tête"

"Of course, I don't! I've seen too much...even before you were born. I've been watching a long time", she replied as she got up from the ground.

"Mistress, it's really her, isn't it?", one of the other three maids asked the hag.

"She looks nothing like her. But is she really her?", another asked.

"Of course, she is! I hate to believe she is even real! She must be an impostor, what a fiend! Now go and get a room ready for our lady, you fools!"

The old woman sure was loud. Deli smiled faintly as the three women, chattering among themselves hurried inside.

"Come", Tête bowed as she invited Deli in with a wave of her hand.

Deli started and I followed.

"Not you! Know your place, dog! That's where you'll wait!", Tête pointed me towards a pen in the distance some distance away from the backyard.

That was rather rude...and embarrassing.

"Give him a break Tête. This dog goes where I go. I don't suppose your Aelian carpets would mind if he set his filthy paws on them, would they? I wouldn't want him to catch flees in that little hen house over there", Deli smiled at me cheekily, but only for a brief moment before moving forward.

Tête grumbled and gave me a disgruntled look before following Deli. I joined behind them.

"You did great sneaking up on us like that", Tête spoke after Deli had settled down in one of the comforting velvet sofas and I stood against the wall. Tête herself sat in her chair behind her worktable.

"But I have to ask, what do you want?"

"Tête, do I need a reason?"

Tête looked at her suggestively as if saying "You know you do".

After a pause, Deli spoke, "I'm here to see my children".

"Never known 'em"

"Tête"

"NEVER KNOWN 'EM", Tête crunched her words.

Deli remained silent, glaring at Tête who returned her glare with a persisting stare.

"Tête, don't forget your place. I won't ask again."

"My Lady, please don't waste our efforts. After all these years, why have you come back? You should have stayed back. All our struggles and everything we've endured and also...of your father-"

Deli flipped her worktable and smashed it into her window which shattered into the garden outside. This looked like something I'd seen before and I thought of Chopper as I sighed.

"That's enough, Tête", Deli grinned with her eyes wide open and a sinister look on her face as she held Tête by her collar, "Don't make your final days any harder on yourself".

Before the hag could reply, the door swung open and the three maids appeared, panting.

"What do you want?", Tête asked.

"Well, this...we came to see if Lady Faye was-"

"Get out", Deli sneered at them which led to their hurried departure.

Deli had released Tête from her grasp now and she stood tall, looking down at her as she remained frozen in her place.

"Kill me if you want. My dried bones have nothing more to lift. But I will not tarnish my loyalty to your family that I've held for over 70 years. It was a sore on my heart when I deliberately committed that crime against you. I should have spoken up against your father and saved the dignity of your family. But you were sent away and I watched you go silently. I awaited your voice. But you never made a noise, not even when you were alone. Your suffering was born mute and now...why have you come back? Here...there is nothing for you anymore. Your children...they are gone. They were taken away."

That news triggered a hell inside Deli, she looked like she was on fire. Her eyes open wildly, her hair dancing like the flame and nerves popping out on her forehead as she gritted her teeth, the floor beneath her feet began to crack and she looked no less than a beast overall.

"Deli...?", this looked troubling, I could sense she was about to get out of hand.

"Where...?"

"Somewhere"

I think I saw Deli's eyes rolling up inside her head as she tore the rest of the window down and made her way out. I didn't know anyone could be as fast on their feet as she was. She disappeared before I knew it. But I knew she was headed to the car. I had no time to waste. I needed to get out there as soon as I could.

"She will never have her peace...oh that poor girl...what a failure of a life I lived!", I heard Tête wailing on the ground as I hurried towards the front yard. That route was shorter and I could get to the car faster. However soon as I got there, I noticed Deli had already warmed the engine and regardless of how many times I called out her name, she wouldn't stop for me. Soon, the car disappeared. A group of sullen-looking kids gathered in the front yard upon hearing my voice.

"You can take the donkey!", one of them pointed to a lone horse in the small stable outside the orphanage.

I had no other choice. I could tell, even from a distance that the horse was a great breed and it was well trained. I knew I could fly on it for a long time. I hurried towards the stable and grabbed the horse's reins. He resisted initially but eventually caved in. I got up on it and was about to leave when one of the three maids appeared, perhaps frantic over getting their horse stolen.

"Please, bring him back safe. He belongs to the family", she said as I went flying in the car tracks.