“…Uuugh…”
Sierra awoke and groggily raised her head from her prone position on her stomach, taking several moments to acclimate to her surroundings. As her vision cleared and her mind slowly began to gather itself, she recognized with some relief her small bedroom in the servants’ wing of the manor. However, something still felt odd. For one, she was completely naked, sprawled uncovered on her bed as though she had just collapsed on top of it. She also couldn’t remember how exactly she made it back here. Finally, there was that bizarre, very vivid dream.
Finally rising to her feet, she briefly teetered under the sensation of her head feeling like it was several times heavier than normal. What in the world…? What happened last night to lead to this headache? slipping on a nightgown, she started trying to answer this question she had posed to herself, but found it difficult. Her memories seemed to fade after cleaning the Lady Estrel’s chambers.
…and that…huge woman… she recalled, shaking her head, where did she even come from? I’ve never seen anyone like her, so how could she appear in the dream?
Reaching the washroom, she glanced at the mirror and frowned at her disheveled appearance. She dipped her hands into a water basin and splashed some on her face, rubbing it with a cloth.
“It wasn’t a dream, Little Shrimp…”
With a startled gasp, Sierra dropped the cloth and swiveled her head from side to side, trying to find the source of the voice. “Wh—who was that!?” she stammered hoarsely.
“Over heeeere...”
Looking back at the mirror, she nearly stumbled backward as the face and broad shoulders of the woman who called herself Maddy grinned at her. “No…this is…impossible!” Sierra sputtered. “I must be going crazy! How can you be here now!?”
“Now? Oh I was always here,” Maddy scoffed, waving her off. “That ‘wine’ you drank? Somehow it unlocked the door within your consciousness that I was stuck behind. Now I’m free to roam around this boring little head of yours. And who knows…if I get bored enough, I might just wander into the ‘control room’ again.”
“But…who are you!?” Sierra demanded, gaining a bit more of her voice.
“Think of me as who you always wanted to be,” Maddy replied, “the ideal being conjured by your repressed imagination. And believe me, your imagination has some wonderful ideas! I can’t wait to try them all out! ”
Maddy’s laughter seemed to echo between her ears as Sierra clutched her head in a wave of anxiety and confusion. But she was suddenly pulled away from it as another voice came from behind her.
“Sierra?”
She whirled around to see Liza standing in the doorway, her mouth gaping open in surprised. In the same jerky motion, Sierra turned back to the mirror, but only her own reflection gazed back at her.
No sooner had she faced Liza again than the head servant had flung her arms around her in a hug. “Thank goodness! I was so worried when you went missing yesterday! Where have you been!?”
Sierra’s memory was beginning to return—or realign with Maddy’s, as the case may have been—along with fragmented images of Maddy’s various encounters with the townsfolk throughout the day and into the night, most of them either rambunctious, risque, or a mixture of both. However, now was not the time to reveal anything to Liza, who was clearly flustered enough already. “Oh, I uh…took a stroll down to the lake outside of town. You did mention I should be more outgoing.”
“Yes, but…you were gone the entire day and you weren’t in your bedroom last night!” Liza protested, a mixture of anger and worry in her voice. “I tried to get the guards to search for you, but they were too busy investigating the intruder in Lady Estrel’s room. I thought they might have kidnapped or hurt you!”
“No, no! I…decided to stay with my cousin who lives in town,” Sierra answered quickly, appreciative of but still wanting to alleviate Liza’s concern. “I’m fine, really. But, this intruder…do they have any idea who she—I mean, who they are?”
Liza took a deep breath to finally calm herself. “No one recognized them, though the guards were babbling on about some ‘big, naked, sex-crazed woman’. They had a bit too much to drink last night if you ask me, but someone definitely was in Lady Estrel’s room and caused a huge mess, destroying several pieces of furniture and a window. She’s furious, and claims something very valuable of hers was stolen.” Glancing furtively over her shoulder, she moved closer to Sierra and lowered her voice. “You’ll likely be summoned for questioning, but just tell them what you told me. The guards and I both can vouch that you had finished your tidying of the room and had left before the intruder arrived.”
Sierra listened to all this while nodding along, doing her best to mask her true knowledge of the situation. However, she was also inwardly aghast and struggling to process the fact that despite the strong work ethic and dependable reputation she had culminated during her months of service to the Ravenwinds, Maddy threatened to undo it all in a single day. When Liza had finally left, she made her way back to her bedroom to get dressed and start her daily chores. Maddy did mention the potion helped ‘unlock’ her, she considered, trying to salvage some optimism as she began to make her bed. Maybe once it runs its course through my body, she’ll be locked away again and I can forget this ever happened. I know for sure now I should have never drank that infernal—
Her inward monologue was sharply cut off by her heart nearly dropping out of her chest. As she had pulled she sheets away from the mattress, the distinct pink glow of the potion vial was briefly uncovered, before she reflexively covered it back up again.
Shit! Nononono…That’s what you…what I stole from Lady Estrel!? she practically screamed within her mind, as all of her earlier anxiety rushed back. Maddy…what are you trying to do to me!?
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