"Miss Ashfury?"
The voice greeted her once the wide doors of the estate closed, blocking out the largest part of sunlight. There was a cool atmosphere in the main hall, for which the apprentice was grateful. Without warmth, she indeed suffered, but the memory it offered was foul. Turning to the left of the grand chamber, she found him in the shadows. A slender man at the age of her father, if not older, was waiting not far from the swirling staircase. His face was somewhat gaunt, though kind, and his eyes green, which was becoming a rarity as more elves took an interest in the Light.
With a step, the stranger stepped under the morning rays. An undertone of gold was highlighted into his mane of long, yet thin brown hair. Placing his hand on his chest, he gently bowed, which caused the shuffling of his robe's ivory and moss green fabrics. Even if the man's identity was a mystery, Celysiel returned the bow, having to show nothing but black and crimson in return.
"May I help you?" she asked politely, her manner reserved. The other elf's kind smile widened.
"I merely wished to introduce myself." he explained and stretched his right hand; the index finger decorated with a golden ring, bearing very clearly the crest of house Ravenfall. "My name is Kelieren Alendis." he explained. "I am the estate's caretaker and chief of staff."
"And far more, surely." Celysiel commented. Aware of proper manners demanding such touch, she took Kelieren's hand. There was no handshake, since it soon became clear that they both either lacked strength, or wished to end physical contact soon. In returning however, the apprentice's fingers purposely brushed against the ring. "You bear the house's favour."
"The Lady's." he replied, without ever losing the warmth of his smile, nor minding the observations of the young elf. "My service for house Ravenfall has been long. I am also the archivist and advisor of the Lady Xoriana. It is a rare honour, one I carry with pride." He paused for a moment, stepping back. A wide gesture of his hand pointed towards the stairway, where the newest employee was heading. "May I show you where you will be working?"
Following the gesture, Celysiel stepped towards the stairs hesitantly. "I was under the impression that I would be working in the library."
"Your office will not be far from there." Kelieren assured her, taking the first step to lead the way. "It is of course my domain. Any assistance you may need, I am expected to and will instantly provide."
It may have been a trick of the Light as they ascended among wide windows full of shining daylight, though Celysiel could swear that she had traced a golden hint within the green of Kelieren's eyes, thus proving her initial thoughts. Her ears twitched, but never did her hand rise to meet the locket.
"Tell me," she gently uttered. "is it common for Lady Ravenfall to keep those who wield holy magic close to her?"
He smiled, his manner kind. "You are concerned, Miss Ashfury, though you ought not be. I only practice the arcane anymore. My practice of the Light has been long forgotten, now only limited to rare spells of mending should the Lady request it. Yet she does not. Lady Ravenfall has no love for the Light. Not anymore."
"Is it because of the path her brother chose?" the young elf asked as the archivist as he pushed open the same door which had been crossed during the elf's first visit, leading into a hallway. Just as she remembered, the sunlight there was less. "And perhaps due to all the suspicion and interrogations she may have suffered?"
"Pain need not be the only factor to push away from brightness and warmth." Kelieren explained as he closed the door behind them. "My Lady became aware of that before treason and Void were rooted in the High Kingdom."
His words brought back to memory her employer, the dreaded, pale mask which covered half of her face. She shuddered and briefly closed her eyes. A distant, mocking laughter ringed into her ears, into her mind, but Celysiel did her best to dismiss it.
"Is it shadow which has inevitably embraced house Ravenfall then?"
Kelieren's smile was smaller now, bitter. He stopped in front of a large door, though smaller in comparison to that of the library, which was the last to be found in the hallway. It was however richer; layers of silver spiralled on the golden door, encasing two eyes of amethyst stones at each leaf of the door. He set his hand on the ornated knob and looked at Celysiel in the eyes.
"Flame."
With a silent click, the door opened, revealing the wide room within. Darkness was the first impression one could gather, for the eternal black was spreading within the walls. It was only after a few seconds during which errant rays of vague brightness broke through the corners of the thick, crimson drapes when one could see that a large window was hidden on the wall at the opposite side of the room. Celysiel remained at the threshold, trying to tell what details were veiled.
"Lady Ravenfall suspected you may prefer shade, thus had you placed to the part of the estate which the sun does not easily reach." the man explained as he slithered into the chamber. His steps echoed in the silence of the hallway behind the open door, until he reached the curtains, which he grabbed. "She also had us install these, in case you wish lack of light to be absolute."
As he pulled the thick fabrics, light rushed into the room, though not in the form of rays and shine. Indeed, the sun's reach could not stretch there. Now the room was fully revealed. It was not too different from that of Maridren Ravenfall back in the Spire when style was concerned, though it was larger, even if not circular. Shelves burdened with scrolls and tomes spread across the walls, leaving only a significant gap on the left wall. Black curtains fell over what could not be a window, but most likely of the exiled Magister. At that, Celysiel felt a knot at her chest, for it made her fully aware of whose study she would inherit.
Slowly did she step towards the middle of the room, where the sizeable, crescent desk embraced a seat of silver and ruby velvet, its size slightly smaller than that of a throne. Two less grand seats, though still quite comfortable and expensive, were placed at the other side. Drawers with their keys left on the lock covered the entirety of the large desk, leaving however a large open size at the middle, visible only to the one seated behind it.
Covered by the onyx glove, Celysiel's index finger brushed against the polished surface of Maridren's desk. Grey dust stained the fabric. Its veil had fallen over every single item, betraying the passage of time ever since the event of the exile. For once more, the apprentice was left feeling haunted, like when she had first entered the former Magister's office in the Spire. It was ironic how she had been expected to remove the Lord's belongings back then, only to now have them boxed and blocking the shelves by the door of his personal study in the Ravenfall estate.
"Everything has remained untouched, as the Lady has commanded. No one else is permitted within the chamber at times you are not present." Kelieren explained. "Wards will be set in place to assure that and a key will be offered to you upon your departure tonight. For anything you may desire, you may contact me." He gestured towards the library. "I will not be far."
Numb, the woman did not offer more than a nod. Her eyes were still inspecting the dust clinging on her glove, a gathering of specks which would irritate her skin if it came in direct contact with it. For the itch that was already coming to her neck and cheeks however, she did not care. Heavier thoughts weighed her down.
"Your aid is most appreciated, Archivist Alendis. You may go."
With a bow of his head, the man indeed stepped past her, leaving the curtains open. The sense of sound alone notified her about the pause of his steps and for a moment, the apprentice could have sworn that his eyes were targetting her, set on her back intensely.
"Ancestry brings a heavy burden, Miss Ashfury."
She did not understand his words, not gave too much thought to the meaning which Kelieren may have wished them to bear. Feeling heavy and somewhat swollen, her eyelids fell over the brightness of fel's damnation. In the vague blackness, two smiling faces greeted her. The mother she so much missed and the father whose appearance she had inherited, along with the name, a name destined to end.
As her fingers fell back on the desk, they began to brush against it for once more with every step that the young elf took around it, moving along the left side of the crescent. Three paths were etched on the wood, free of dust were the glove had made contact. Once at the inner side and embraced by the desk around her, Celysiel set her wide sleeves aside and slowly seated herself on the grand chair.
The room was cold and silent. Only its new owner remained within, sat in the middle, plagued by the ghosts of the living, of the dead and the dreaded laughter which belonged beyond the mirror, every time Celysiel dared acknowledge the fact that it was irony, if not something more, which had brought her to claim the throne of Maridren Ravenfall.
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