Consciousness came slowly. First was her sense of touch, smooth sheets that felt soft under her touch, cool against her skin. Next was hearing, faint and muffled, like someone trying to speak through a gag, growing clearer by the second. Her sense of smell followed; the scent of tonics that she knew would taste bitter filled her nose. She didn’t open her eyes just yet, giving herself time to adjust to her new surroundings through her other senses. Once she felt a bit more grounded, she opened her eyes.
Bright, harsh light pierced her eyes, causing spots to dance across her vision. She was lying in a bed with clean, white linen sheets with a warm blanket drawn up to her chest. There were beds similar to the one she was in on either side of her. Vivian struggled to sit up, feeling tired and weighed down with fatigue. Above, a vaulted ceiling rose high, painted stark white, causing even the slightest noise to echo, something she discovered when her elbow accidently bumped into the water jug on the nightstand. The sound of the shattering jug on the stone floor echoed back and forth through the hall, breaking the harsh silence.
The noise summoned a plump woman with frizzy brown hair tied back in a tight bun. Her kind brown eyes immediately snapped to the only occupant in the room. She strode over to her, her hands already reaching out to check her temperature.
‘So, finally awake, are we?’ She didn’t seem to be looking for an answer, so Vivian stayed quiet and let the woman fuss over her. ‘You’ve been out for almost six hours now, so I hope you had a good rest. You needed it, after that underwater jaunt.’
Vivian glanced outside the nearest window. The vibrant shades of orange and red in the sky indicated that it was close to sunset. ‘I… did, have a good rest that is, Miss…’
‘Madame Reen,’ she corrected. ‘I’m the healer in charge of the academy infirmary.’
‘The academy infirmary?’ Vivian looked around her, at the grand hall and the stained-glass windows. ‘I’m in the school?’
Madame Reen snorted. ‘Well, you did cause that explosive display right beside it.’ She placed two fingers against her inner wrist, reading her pulse. ‘You’re the first student in the academy’s history that has visited the infirmary before the classroom.’
Vivian bit her lip. ‘Sorry.’
Madame Reen waved her apology aside. ‘What do you have to apologise for? If anything, we should be thanking you. I heard that you were the one who contained that fire in the woods. Though, next time, I would appreciate if you didn’t blow up right next to the academy.’
‘Next time?’ Vivian was a bit insulted at the insinuation. ‘What makes you think there will be a next time?’
Madame Reen studied her with a raised eyebrow. ‘Oh, I’m sure there will be a next time. Call it a hunch, but I have a feeling I’ll be seeing a lot more of you in here.’
Vivian pursed her lips but didn’t say anything. She didn’t think it was good idea to argue back and antagonise the healer, not when she was holding a sickly, green potion in her hand. She held it out to her expectantly.
‘Down in one gulp now.’ Madame Reen pushed the vial into her hand. ‘I can’t speak for the taste, but it will get you back on your feet. So, don’t sip, you will throw up.’
Vivian took the vial gingerly. ‘Thank you?’ She popped off the cork and lifted it to her lips. She took a sniff, gagged and looked to Madame Reen for mercy. The woman crossed her arms and stared her down. The message was clear. Get on with it.
Vivian took a deep breath and downed the vile looking potion in one gulp. It immediately tried to make its way back up, but she clamped her mouth shut and forced it down again.
‘That has to be the worst thing I have ever tasted, and I’ve once eaten my brother’s cooking.’ She took a shuddering breath. ‘What was in it?’
‘You don’t want to know,’ Madame Reen whispered gravelly.
Vivian shuddered as the potion started to take effect. Her bones no longer felt like they were being weighed down by mountains and she was gaining strength back in her limbs. She flexed her fingers and curled her toes experimentally, testing her extremities.
‘That feels better. So, can I go home now?’
Madame Reen huffed. ‘As if! You are going to stay right there till you guardian comes to pick you up.’
‘My guardian…?’ Vivian was confused for a bit before she remembered. ‘That’s Peri, I think.’
Madame Reen gave her a pitiful look. ‘You’re going to be here a while then. Make yourself comfortable. Let me know if you need anything.’
The healer left, leaving Vivian alone once more. She groaned and slumped back into her sheets, though her annoyance at being confined quickly dissipated when she realized just how soft the mattress under her was.
Maybe this isn’t so bad… I’m sure a few more hours of sleep won’t hurt.
She was just beginning to drift off when the large double doors at the end of the infirmary slammed open, the sound ringing in the silence and assaulting her recently sensitized hearing. She jumped up at the sudden disturbance, blinking sleep out of her eyes to focus on the quickly approaching figures. Thankfully, the noise had also brought Madame Reen out of her office, rushing swiftly to her side.
‘What is the meaning of this?! You can’t just-’ Madame Reen stopped when she realized who she was speaking to. ‘Oh, Lord Lisht, Lord Adar. What brings you here?’
‘Good evening, Madame Reen.’ Lord Adar nodded in greeting. ‘Sorry to barge in here so suddenly, but this is a matter of utmost urgency and we need to talk to the girl.’
Madame Reen frowned. ‘Can’t this wait till the morning, my Lord. Vivian is my patient and she needs to rest. She went through quite an ordeal today.’
‘That is what we wish to speak to her about,’ Lord Lisht snapped, his impatience showing. ‘This is council matters. Please step aside.’
Madame Reen pursed her lips in displeasure but took a step back, though she kept a sharp eye on them. Lord Adar gave her a genial smile. ‘We were hoping to have some privacy.’
‘I need to be here to monitor her condition, my lord.’ The title no longer sounded respectful, coming from her lips.
Lord Adar’s smile didn’t falter. ‘If something changes, I’ll call for you at once. You have my word.’
Vivian glanced at her worriedly. She didn’t want to be left alone, especially not with the two men who had most vehemently opposed her acceptance into Mirran. Madame Reen studied her with a pained look, one that was clearly apologising, before she nodded to Lord Adar in compliance and left.
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Vivian swallowed, her heart thundering in her chest as the two men focused their attention on her. At least they can’t kill me… I hope.
Lord Lisht harrumphed. ‘Don’t you know it’s basic etiquette to stand and bow before a noble?’ He sat down with an angry grace in one of the chairs next to the bed. ‘This is why commoners will always remain at the bottom. They can’t, for the life of them, learn how to show proper respect.’
Vivian clenched the sheets in her hands but didn’t respond. She didn’t get up either. She simply stared back at him, hoping he would get to the point of his visit sooner. He surely didn’t stop by just to make sure she was doing alright.
Lord Lisht’s gaze narrowed in anger. ‘Why you arrogant, little-’
Lord Adar cleared his throat. ‘Let’s discuss why we’re here.’ He honestly looked a bit miffed that Lord Lisht had taken the only chair next to the bed, leaving him with no choice but to stand.
Ooh… the tension.
He focused his hostile gaze back on Vivian and she felt the hairs on her arms raise in trepidation. Nothing good was going to come of this conversation. That she was sure of.
‘I’ll be direct.’ He fixed her with an impassive glare. Vivian fidget under the glare. She was hoping they could have a polite conversation, but it didn’t seem that way. At the very least, seeing as how she was the one in a precarious situation, she should try to be respectful. ‘You caused the fire in the Druscan woods, didn’t you?’
‘What?!’ All thoughts of being respectful flew out the window as Vivian stared dumbstruck at Lord Adar. She shot a look at Lord Lisht. Surely this was a joke. He stared back stonily. ‘I’m not- I didn’t- I’m the one who stopped it!’
Lord Adar huffed. ‘Perhaps. But that doesn’t mean you weren’t the one that started it in the first place.’
‘I wasn’t!’ Not the best defence, but Vivian was rightfully shocked at the accusation. ‘I wasn’t even near the woods when it started!’
‘Then you must have used a delayed spell,’ Lord List accused.
‘What even is a delayed spell?!’ she asked exasperatedly.
‘Mind your tone, peasant!’ Lord Lisht snarled. ‘You’re speaking to a noble and one of the highest authorities in this city. You will address me as my Lord. I will have respect!’
Something in Vivian snapped, probably her patience for this entire conversation. ‘I only tend to respect people who don’t throw wild accusations at me for no apparent reason.’
Lord Lisht looked flabbergasted for a moment. He probably had never been spoken to in that manner in his whole life. Vivian felt proud of herself for putting that expression on his face, but it didn’t last long.
‘Miss Wright, please mind your words,’ Lord Adar said sternly. For some reason, he seemed more frightening than Lord Lisht. ‘We are here to get to the bottom of what happened in the woods.’ He was towering over her, looking down with the most condescending look she had ever seen. She now wished that she had stood up when they came in.
Instead, she glared right back at him. ‘I told you what happened, my lord.’
He drew himself up to make himself even more impossibly imposing. ‘The Druscan woods have always stood as a bastion for the city. Not once was it ever in danger of being breached. And yet, just one day after you, a fire mage, started to live next to it, the woods caught fire.’
‘I was not the one who started the fire.’ Her voice was trembling slightly, but she wasn’t going to take this lying down. ‘I was the one who put it out.’
Lord Lisht’s nose wrinkled like he had smelled something particularly nasty. ‘So you say.’
‘I say so as well,’ a familiar voice interrupted. All three of them whipped around towards the new figures that were making their way towards her bed. ‘And so does my friend here. And seeing as the two of us were actually there when the incident took place, our word carries quite the weight, wouldn’t you agree.’
Saying that Lord looked displeased was an understatement. ‘Master Tenebris, Master Redcliffe. This is a private interrogation.’
‘Without her guardian present?’ Felix asked, an innocent yet sharp smile on his face. ‘Doesn’t seem right.’
‘The council is allowed to make drastic decisions under extenuating circumstances if necessary.’ Lord Lisht rose to his feet as the boys approached. ‘This commoner put our entire city at risk when she set those woods on fire.’
‘Allegedly set them on fire, you mean.’ A thirteen-year-old boy shouldn’t be able to look threatening in front of an adult, yet Aiden managed to pull it off. ‘I find it hard to believe she managed to do that, seeing as she was with us the whole day.’
‘Unless you’re suggesting that a commoner is somehow able to create a delayed spell,’ Felix added. ‘Which is something even most adult mages struggle with. Do you really think that she is such a talented mage, to be able to do something that complex without any form of training or guidance?’
Lord Adar gritted his teeth. ‘The fact remains that the timing is too suspicious. The fire happened just after she arrived.’
‘Do you want to know what else is suspicious?’ Aiden had his arms folded in front of his chest. ‘Two adult men trying to interrogate a girl who is a minor without the presence of her guardian. It’s almost like you want to coerce her into an admission of guilt.’
Lord Lisht was turning an interesting shade of red throughout the conversation. ‘Now see here-’
‘Perhaps you should be looking into whether someone wants to frame her for the crime.’ Felix suggested. ‘After all, I’m sure that the two of you aren’t the only ones unhappy with letting one of the commonfolk into the city.’
Lord Adar took a deep breath, his face turning back into an impassive mask. The interrogation had spiralled out of his control, and he knew it. ‘Very well. We shall leave it here… for now.’ He turned to fix a cold glare on Vivian. ‘We’ll send a scribe to get a detailed account from you as well as any other witnesses.’ He crossed his hands behind his back. ‘Good evening.’
He swept out of the infirmary just as quickly as he had entered. Lord Lisht stood baffled for a moment before gathering his wits and following suit without so much as a farewell. The door slammed shut behind him just as loudly as it has opened. The moment it was closed, Madame Reen came striding out of her office, a look of clear displeasure on her face. She glared at the closed door before turning towards Vivian, her gaze immediately turning kind.
‘Are you alright, dear?’
Vivian nodded, still a little shaken. ‘What was that about?’
‘That would be a couple of nobles trying to frame you for something you didn’t do.’ Felix plopped himself down near the foot of her bed. ‘But if you’re inquiring as to why they did it, I have no clue.’
‘That was completely unethical!’ Madame Reen busied herself checking Vivian’s temperature and pulse, even though she had just done a few minutes ago. ‘Two grown men bullying a young girl! Doesn’t matter if they’re members of the council, they should be ashamed of themselves!’
Vivian smiled in spite of the situation. It felt nice to have someone indignant on her behalf. ‘Thank you, Madame Reen. But I’ll live.’
The healer gave her one last look over before leaving once again, giving her patient strict instructions to go to sleep soon.
‘Why were they pushing so hard?’ Aiden leaned against the night stand beside the bed. ‘Why go through all this trouble to frame you?’
Vivian shrugged. ‘Maybe because I’m a commoner. Cyrus did mention that they expel anyone who is considered a danger to others. Perhaps they want me out of Mirran.’
Aiden shook his head. ‘Perhaps that is the case with Lord Lisht. But Lord Adar never seemed prejudiced to me. And yet he seemed more dead set on expelling you than Lord Lisht.’ He frowned. ‘Something doesn’t add up.’
Vivian let out a deep sigh. ‘Well, whatever the reason, thank you for helping me.’ She smiled at the Aiden and Felix. ‘If you hadn’t come along, I don’t know what I would’ve done.’
Aiden bristled, as if gratitude was the most uncomfortable sensation he had ever encountered. ‘I only told the truth. Them accusing you of lying, means that I, in turn, am also being accused of lying. I was merely defending myself.’
Felix shook his head in exasperation. ‘What His Royal Stuffiness means to say is, you’re welcome.’
Vivian chuckled. ‘Yes, I think I’m starting to understand his language. No means yes, and go away means don’t leave me alone.’
‘I see you’re a fast learner of Aiden-ic,’ Felix snorted. ‘Took me a while to learn myself.’
Both Vivian and Felix laughed as Aiden lips thinned in displeasure of being mocked. Still, he didn’t leave in frustration, settling himself more comfortably on bed beside hers. They soon delved into a more relaxed conversation about Mirran. Felix and Aiden had been there for a few months now, so they knew the city better than Vivian. They talked about a few interesting places they could visit together once she was discharged. It wasn’t until late in the evening, long after the sun had set that Madame Reen came back to shoo them out of the infirmary.
‘She needs to rest.’ She stood with her hands on her hips, a human sized barrier between the boys and Vivian. ‘You can talk again in the morning.’
Saying their farewells, Aiden and Felix left, promising to come back the next day. Madame Reen pushed Vivian back under the covers, pulling the blanket up to her chin and tucking her in. Vivian protested at the coddling but Madame Reen silenced her with a single look. She let out a long yawn and realised that her rest earlier had been interrupted by the unwelcome visitors. Her exhaustion was coming back full force now. She fell asleep before the healer even left the room.
