Silvius Potion - Chapter 1

Chapter One - Natalie Ana-Bridget Yorkshire III

The coach buggy gave a great lurch as it sped down the muddy road. Rain poured down heavily on the poor little coach as it took a left and started up a long winding road, passing many fields and hills. The coach, pulled by horses, seemed to be the only thing alive in these vast hills and fields. It was as though the whole land was haunted.
Inside however, the coach was decent enough. There were two occupants inside, and of course, the poor middle aged driver outside who was leading the horses. One, a girl about the age of sixteen, and the other an elderly man in his late seventies.
The girl had long thick brown hair curled up into a fancy bun, which was held up by diamand covered hair clips. She wore a small tight brown overcoat lined with tan fur, and a puffy dark brown silk dress underneath. Large opals hung for her ears, a matching necklace graced around her neck. Her nose up in the air, she glared daggers at the man across from her with furious brown eyes.
The man in question had graying short balding hair and many wrinkles from time and age on his face and hands. He was rail thin and looked as though he was about to faint under the girl's deadly stare. He wore a black suit and tie, both of which looked quite shabby. The girl cleared her throat.
The man looked up. "Yes Madam?" he asked.
"Are we almost there? It's almost time for me manicure" she said in disgust as she took off one of her own brown silk gloves and scowled at her finger nails.
"S-So sorry miss. But we are not going to get your manicure" said the man shakily, knowing what was coming next for her.
The girl looked at the man as though he was the foulest living creature to walk the earth, as though someone had just proclaimed that Christmas had been canceled.
"What?" she snapped. The man fumbled with his hands.
"Miss, we are going to Hawkweed M-Manor" he said. Seeing the look of confusion on her face, he continued. "Well miss, your parents have just recently past away." The girl slouched on her seat and growled under her breath in frustration, her arms crossed.
"Since you still not of the age of eighteen, you are now under the guardianship of Lord Septimus Simmers. Your uncle will be taking care of you now."
"I'm bloody sixteen! I can take care of myself thank you very much! What about my manicures twice a week!? Hawkweed Manor is miles away from there! How and when will I get them done!?" screamed the girl.
"I am awfully afraid to tell you this miss, but I do not believe you will be getting your nails done anymore" answered the old man meekly. The girl gave the man a cold hard stare and leaned forward, her voice as cold as death itself.
"I, Natalie Ana-Bridget Yorkshire the Third, do not miss any manicures, hair appiontments,or shopping sprees. Do I make myself clear?"
The man nodded, trembling on the spot. "I-I'm afraid I do not make t-the rules here at Hawkweed, m-miss" he stuttered. "Y-You will have to speak witn Lord Simmers himself Miss."
"Oh don't worry, I will" spat Natalie, arms still crossed over her chest.
The coach buggy went silent for several moments until the old man looked out the window and announced their arrival at Hawkweed Manor.
"We have arrived miss" he said, grabbing a black umbrella that was sitting beside him. The coach stopped and the old man opened the door, and held the umbrella out for Natalie, while he himself got soaked. Her nose back up in the air, she stepped out, and walked with the old man holding the umbrella over her head. They walked up a long line of steps until they came to the front door.
Hawkweed Manor was large and spacious. Five stories high with a North and South tower. The windows all had candles inside of them, making it look eerie. It was made of a fine gray brick, and looked to be centuries old.
The old man knocked on the large wooden doors with a white gloved hand and waited for a reply.
Footsteps could be heard coming from the other side of the door. Natalie hissed with impatience, as the old man only stood there nervously.
The large doors opened a crack, and the two of them peered inside.
"Who's there?" came a deep growling voice.
"I am Natalie Yorkshire! Now move aside old man! I have a bone to pick with my uncle!" Natalie tried budging herself in but vainly.
"Well then, you have a bone to pick with me eh? What about? Missed your manicure perhaps?" replied the man. Natalie only stared at the old man on the other side of the door. He was slightly short, with broad shoulders, and he seemed to be in his late fifties. His head seemed to be going blad in the middle, gray hair emmitting from the blonde around his ears. He had cold black eyes and a squashed looking face, as though he ran into a wall several times in his life.
Natalie, for the first time that night, was at a total loss for words. She opened and closed her mouth several times before saying, "Well, yes! I have missed my manicure! Which is what I want to talk about! I refuse to stay here if my nails and hair don't get done four times a week! So you had better-"
"So I had better what, miss? Perhaps take you where ever it is you wish to go? Spoil you even more than your parents had done? Well, I am certainly not doing any of the like. I am a very busy potions master and I do not have time for your nails and hair! Now get in!" said Septimus. He turned to the old man who rode with Natalie after she walked in. "Thank you Reeves. Here is your pay. Good day." The old man gathered his money and got back into the buggy, which drove away shortly after.
Natalie, now inside the manor, took off her overcoat and gloves and expected Septimus to come and put them away, holding them out.
After moments of waiting, she gave Septimus a disapproving look.
He smiled a toothy grin. "No one's going to wait on you here miss. Best get used to it."
Natalie sighed, rolling her eyes, and held on tightly to her coat and gloves, looking around at the large guest room with distaste. That was when she heard it. Clang!
It sounded as though something made of glass had just fallen onto the floor from the inside of a door on the other side of the room. The door was in the corner. Two small stairs took you down to the door for it was not on the same level. She heard Septimus growl under his breath.
"What was that?" asked Natalie, turning to Septimus.
"Rats" he muttered. Natalie made a disgusted look of horror, yet deep down, she didn't believe him.
"Ew!" she whispered, shivering.
"This way to your chambers" called Septimus, who had started going up a long circular stairway. She followed, still staring at the door where the crash had come from. 'What was inside of there?' she pondered. Following Septimus up the stairs, the curious door left her view of sight. That was when she noticed that Septimus had been talking to her. She looked up along the staircase and stared hard at the back of his head.
"I don't want you snooping around here in the manor. You are to stay in your room at all times excpet during meals, where you will be eating in the dining room" he said in a monotone voice.
"I do as I please" hissed Natalie under her breath. Septimus either didn't hear her or just didn't say anything back, but Natalie noticed he seemed to be very angry about something, and something told her it had something to do with whatever was behind that dungeon door downstairs.
'What could be down there?' Natalie continued to wonder. She continued staring down the stairway as she followed Septmius up the stairs. She wanted to know what that sound was. Septimus had said it was rats, but something deep down told her that, that was not what it was. It had sounded as though something made of glass had fallen and shattered onto the floor. That was not rats. Rats didn't make that sound.
Septimus seemed to have sensed what Natalie was thinking for he said, "It was only rats that made the sound downstairs girl. Do let it go."
Natalie didn't say another word. Inddeed, she started to look about the place around her.
They were now on the second floor of the manor and Natalie saw that Septimus was leading her to a room. A bedroom. It was the only room on this side of the hallway. Natalie looked behind her and saw several other doors down there.
Septimus stopped in front of the door and turned aorund to face a now impatient Natalie. Her interest in this place was dwindling quickly, and all she wanted to do was figure out what had made that sound. She sighed, knowing that for the first time in her life, she was not going to get her way. Septimus stared hard at Natalie, who ignored him completely, waiting for the door to be opened. After several moments, Septimus stopped staring at her and turned around to open the door.
For the first time, Natalie noticed that Septmius was wearing three simple chains around his neck. Two of them were gold. One was silver. Each of them had a single key on them. Again, the ones on the gold chains were gold. The other was silver. Natalie wondered why that was. Most keys were gold. Why did he have a silver one?
Septimus, who was ignoring Natalie's impatience, took a gold chain from around his neck, put the key into the lock, and opened up the door at last. Whatever Natalie had been expecting before this, it was nothing as she had imagined. She had expected the room to be like the rest of the manor she had seen so far. Old, dusty, and filthy. Natalie actaully liked the room very much. The room had light red carpeting, and gray painted walls. There was a bed with red sheets on it, and a night table with a mirror. There was a single mirror clear across the room from the door, where you could over look the moor outside. Natalie walked in, looking around.
"You're belongings were sent ahead of you. I will bring them up later. In the meantime miss, there are some night clothes for you to change into for bed. Remember, no snooping. There's a monster inside this manor. Wouldn't want you to get kidnapped by it. It just loves company" snickered Septimus at the door. Before Natalie could even reply, let alone turn around, Septimus had shut the door with the turn of the key, proving to Natalie that he had locked her in.
She shrugged. It didn't bother her. She looked over at the bed and just as he had told her, there lay a blue frilly nigtdress for her to wear. Taking off her gloves and overcoat that she had stuck back on so she didn't need to carry them, she picked up the nightdress from off the bed and sized it up on herself. It seemed to be the right size for her.
She was about to undress when she heard something. It sounded like wailing. Someone being attacked or hurt by something else. Like a little boy crying for someone to stop hurting or bothering him. That was when she heard the distressed little voice say two, very distinct words. "I'm sorry!!" It wailed miserably. Natalie figured that whoever it was had said it wasn't Septimus and must have screamed in order for her to have heard it. The voice seemed like a boy's definitely. But to a boy's voice that hadn't yet hit puberty. It was still high and squeaky. The crying and wailing continued for several minutes until it finally stopped. that was when Natalie made her final decision. She was going into that dungeon room.