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A Strange Visitor.

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❝ Hai hai hai Siwmae! ❞

Patience is a virtue, yet one Elly did not have. Already feeling the onset of agitation creeping up her neck, she stifled it with a forced smile as a greeting to the lone stranger who wandered into the quaint apothecary she knew both as work and home, known as the Scarlet Orchard, or Scarlet’s Orchard, she didn’t really know nor care which it was. She hates dealing with customers, or just people in general, as she finds the idea of talking to them a chore and one she holds in great disdain. Alas, the old geezer was out galivanting God knows where and put her in charge of running things. Her role was usually tending to the gardens or brewing in the still room, at least preparing them, since the remnants of her last attempts left a fine dusting of soot that still resists any attempts to clean it off the walls.

Truthfully, Elly preferred being tasked with delivery as it gave her an excuse to get away from the often-suffocating doting of her father. Well, Veld wasn’t her real father, but he had taken her into his care, and it was far better than living on the streets of Lucidor, and the countryside of Llul has a certain charm she fell in love with. It bordered on the territory of both the Cad Goddeu of Wyddel as well as the outskirts of Luria, so they were never left wanting for clients whilst also being remote enough to be out of the way of any stray marauder or plunderer. But not far enough, she lamented – for the all too familiar interruptions that came with the spring thaw.

❛ Hurry up and piss off already ya’ corris. ❜ Elly bit her tongue, almost letting that slip until she reminded herself. Gingerly standing near the counter within the archway that led deeper inside the cottage, the clutter of glass shifted as she let down the crate of empty bottles she planned to take back until her morning was ruined. ❛ Or just take your fucking time then. ❜ 

She groaned, brushing unkept locks of dirty pink over her shoulder as she fastened the spruce flat-cap she wore and patted down the likewise apron, she lazily thrown on earlier and approached the customer. She reached over and shifted one of the vials he looked over a moment prior, back to where it belonged. Making sure they noticed her this time, with a sharper tone, as her guest was clearly ignoring her whilst they perused the medicines.

❝ Can I – Can I help you with anything? ❞

Her so-called best customer-service voice was saturated with an almost sarcastic tact that her strong brogue and slightly pitched stutter hid well. It worked on most people, but her terrible poker face often gave away the poorly hidden contempt, and her blunt attitude compensated for her size.

❝ Oh?! ❞ The stranger turned to face her, somewhat surprised at the girl who greeted him. His eyes caught her off guard, like hers; they had the same jaded haze of one who had come from a hard life, but they were filled with a melancholy she could barely pinpoint beneath the evident cataracts, making them seem an odd shade of grey.

Elly blanched visibly as she felt the hairs on her neck stand on end. It was brief, but she saw something inexplicable that filled her with a bone-deep fear. She shut her eyes and breathed sharply, tensing herself in an attempt to stop the trembling. ❛ Don’t look at me. ❜ It wasn’t real – she knew it wasn’t, but nevertheless, it still terrified her.

❝ My apologies, child – I did not mean to scare you. ❞ He raised a brow with both curiosity and concern; his formal tone and honest chuckle eased her somewhat. His accent was strange, most definitely a foreigner, and certainly one she hadn’t heard before.

Once she was calm, she opened her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief, but dared not meet his gaze. It was hard to tell his age; she knows how stress can affect one’s appearance, and for the most part, his face was unreadable, so telling what he was thinking wasn’t something Elly could parse out. In one hand, he held a cane, though it didn’t appear to be anything more than a set piece, much like the glasses tucked in his collar.

He stunk of chemicals and an odd mix of blood and herbs, perhaps a surgeon of sorts? But his outfit reminded her of a priest, wearing the typical clergyman’s attire of a simple russet cassock and biretta over a head of mildly long, greying black hair; a dark mahogany, careworn face bordered by neatly groomed mutton chops.

She had a strong disdain for the religious types, but he didn’t appear to be among the more fanatical themata of his ilk. If she remembered correctly, the local Monastery was run by a smaller and more local denomination who took reverence in the Prophetess Amberlina, rather than the idolatries of the central church of Luria.

Taking off his hat, he bowed politely with a kind smile. ❝ Are your parents around by any chance? ❞

❝ Just me – Just me. ❞ Elly replied and quickly repeated herself, clearly uncomfortable with social interactions. Returning the bow, she did not meet his gaze, nor wore the forced smile as she had a moment prior. This time she spoke slowly, albeit with visible strain. ❝ Veld is out. Running errands. ❞

He nodded and gave her an amused half-smile, holding out his gloved hand, but retracted once he noticed the dark sunken rings around the girl’s eyes. He did not speak on it; even if the look on his face was enough for her to tell what he was thinking anyway. He did, however, take notice of her prosthetic left arm, an uncommon sight especially in a place such as this.

❝ Ah, I see. I am Reverend Eoin Theodor Arbatel. Father of the Sybil Monastery in Cadwaladr. And I take it you are Elly? ❞

Elly’s face soured, already familiar with the sort of judgmental looks, so it didn’t affect her as much as it used to, but she wouldn’t hesitate to lash out at others for it. Her expression changed to mild unease when he spoke her name; once more to one of recognition when he mentioned Cadwaladr. It was far from local; in fact, it was in an entirely different region, at least a good three-day trip. Moreover, the ongoing civil war in Wyddel would make such a trip highly dangerous, if not outright suicidal, if one were careless.

❝ Yes? ❞ She replied curtly, and somewhat wearily, as she often did around strangers. Still unsure as to how he would have known her since they never met, at least as far as she could remember. She briefly lived at the Monastery, but it had been years ago, and she would have remembered meeting such a striking person as he.

❝ Do you know when Veld will be back? ❞ He added, now scanning the room as his hands leisurely held his cane out before him. ❝ I have an urgent matter I must discuss with him. ❞

❝ Not sure. Fuck knows. ❞

She shrugged; even if she did know, she wouldn’t tell him. But truth be told, she really had no idea; he had never been the sort of person to plan things and sometimes would disappear for days or weeks. ❝ He’s out right now. ❞

❝ That’s no language for a young lady. ❞ His face hardened as he cleared his throat, unimpressed by her language. By his body language, she could tell he was considering reprimanding her, but discarded the idea as they weren’t in the Monastery, and she wasn’t one of the children he was charged with raising.

❝ I see you are an ill-mannered brat, but it’s not my place to discipline. ❞

Elly flinched and instinctively took a step back; she was intimate with such things and had no intention of being reminded of it. She shot him a brief glare and made it clear she wouldn’t hesitate to fight back; she was no stranger to violence. ❛ Just fucking try it, asshole ❜

❝ Ah. Well, I am here to request an urgent consignment for the Monastery. Could you please give this to Veld when he returns? ❞ Eoin rummaged around the small bag on his hip, which she had only noticed just now. It wasn’t all he had; a small medic kit hung on his other hip, right next to a sheathed dagger. He pulled out what appeared to be a rather long laundry list in the form of a neatly rolled parchment and held it out to her. He seemed hesitant to hand it to her, but she snatched it from his hands the moment said thought crossed his mind.

❝ Sure. ❞

Elly took the roll of parchment from him and examined it, but hesitated to open it on account of the wax seal showing the Guild’s official emblem, as well as the mark of Hywel, the capital of Talhaearn, and the entire nation of Wyddel. She passed it between her hands a few times, inspecting it from every angle. It was clearly more than a typical request for supplies. She knew better than to open such things, at least, not when the priest was around; she knew Veld wouldn’t particularly care either way.

❝ I can check – check stock in the meantime. ❞ Her cadence was peculiar, disjointed, trailing off and evident she rarely ever spoke in full sentences. She didn’t mention that she couldn’t read, and often relied on visuals to remember such things. ❝ I can check stock. Let him know what is missing. ❞

❝ Thank you. Be sure to tell him this is urgent, and to let us know if he cannot obtain the supplies, so we may look elsewhere. ❞ Eoin nodded, bowing once more before placing his hat on his head and turning on his heel to leave.

❝ Well. I must be off then. Please send word when the supplies are read so I can have one of our supplicants collect them – unless we could arrange delivery, which would work better for us. ❞

❝ Ok. ❞ Elly nodded, already making her way back to the counter.

❝ One more thing – You haven’t been to Alcofribas as of late, have you? ❞ He added, his tone shifted somewhat to a more serious note.

❝ No, why? ❞ The question caught her off guard; it would have been an odd question to ask if she hadn’t. It wasn’t any of his business to begin with. ❝ Why? ❞

❝ Lady Isobel mentioned she saw you there a few days ago and wanted to let you know she’ll drop by once she is able. ❞ Eoin smiled warmly with a hearty chuckle.

❝ Wait – Iris is back? ❞ Elly snapped back around to catch Eoin waving at her as he stepped out of the apothecary, but rather than walking away, he tapped his cane on the ground as his whole body seemed to fade away as if stepping into a dense fog, leaving the young girl as confused as she was surprised.

❝ Hywlfawr, Little Wren. ❞

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