Emrickson gently swings the door open, revealing a face I immediately recognize as the black suit by the name of Benny. With his sculpted black hair swooped to one side, a strong pair of eyebrows frame his stern, yet youthful face. He can't be more than a few years older than me, by the look of him. Deep, brown eyes, settled above structured cheek bones, refuse to meet mine. His well defined jaw appears to be clenched. He's quite handsome, but so uptight that his aura makes me uneasy.
"Benjamin, always a pleasure to see you! Take care of her, my boy.", Emrickson says, nudging me forward and patting my shoulder twice.
"Sir, with all due respect, I've told you so many times to call me Benny. We've worked together for years. Must we be so proper?", whines Benny, breaking away from the character of his statuesque facade.
Not meaning to embarrass him, but surprised by the sudden change in personality, I let a small chuckle escape my lips. I quickly catch myself smiling at the two's silly banter, and cover my mouth with my hand. Hopefully, he didn't notice my outburst and take a hit to his pride. For only a moment, it's as if Inspiria is a family home, and not the manor of a tyrannical lord. Unfortunately, the feeling fades abruptly, as Benny turns to me, the sharpness having returned to his facial expressions, and gestures for me to follow him out.
"Alright, Miss. Euroah, Mr. Velucia is waiting for you, and he's not a patient man. We'd better go now."
"Goodbye Emrickson.", I say, with a heavy heart.
"I'll be seeing you around, my dear. Please do enjoy the view on your way back.", he replies, with a shallow bow of his head.
I nod my farewell, and follow Benny to the courtyard doors, now noticing that the sun has already gone. Everything looks different in the absence of sunlight. The gentle wind is cold against me, but the evening air still carries the warmth of the day's sunny disposition. It seems as though the heavens have been in a pleasant mood today. Soft blue lights illuminate the courtyard all around us, and I feel like a fairy, walking through a majestic, efflorescent forest.
There's a certain magic floating along in the breeze, as though the trees are playing a mischievous song, and the trickling of the pond's water is singing along to the playful tune. Beauty that invokes this type of emotion should be enjoyed, should be cherished. Do the people of Inspiria even spend time wandering on the pebble paths, or wiggle their toes in the clover patches? Do they even savor the aroma of the flowers? Everyone here always seems to always be in such a hurry.
I certainly can't imagine how someone wouldn't want to stay out here, and take in every ounce of this wonder, every living day. But just like that, my wonder comes to an end. All too soon, our mystical stroll through the garden is over, and we arrive at the doors. Once again, they open before us, and I turn to take one last look at my imaginary fairy forest. I'll remember this view, and escape to this exact time and place when I can't handle my reality.
Having taken my mental photograph, I catch up to Benny, and we head toward the staircase. Coming into the warmth of the manor is so pleasant. I must not have realized that I was getting such a chill outside. The change in flooring is a relief to the pebble pathways as well, and my senses are heightened by the soft touch of the rug that now cushions my steps.
Instead of taking a left and heading down the hallway, where I had been before, this time, we turn right at the front entrance, and begin to climb the staircase. Looking over the banister on the way up, I can see so much more clearly how beautifully the large room really is laid out. Someone must have gone through a great deal of thought and planning to make things line up this way.
So caught up in the gawking at my surroundings, I miss a step. While admiring all the fixtures, I trip, and catch myself on the next step. Down I go, with all my force, making a loud thud that echoes through the room. The top of the step hits me just under the knee, where another patch of bruises map my leg, already shades of black, purple, green, and blue, from my time on the run, and my attempt to escape from the auction house.
"Hey, now!", says Benny. "Let's not have a repeat of last night, shall we?
I shake my head, apologetically, rubbing my knee. Thoroughly embarrassed, I stand back up to continue following him. I'll try to focus more on my steps from now on! Reaching the top of the staircase, it opens up into a loft with a hallway on each the left side, and the right. A wide door is situated on either side of each of those two hallways. A half wall with a banister on top closes in the loft, and the fireplace along with much of the downstairs, can be seen from up here.
Three benches, topped with red and gold cushions line the half wall, and a coffee table sits in front of the bench in the center. This must be a lovely place to sip coffee or tea in the morning, while looking out the windows to the courtyard below. We head down the hallway on the left, and pass three wooden doors, before stopping in front of another.
Benny touches his ear and mumbles something to himself. How peculiar that he's got the same strange habit as the driver! Akida really ought to have a conversation with them about talking to themselves. Maybe they're related. Something like that could run in the family. A moment later, he opens the door, and motions for me to go in. Taking a deep breath, I walk into the room with my hands held in front of me. A huge rug completely covers this area of the wooden floor, greeting my weary feet, like soft, fur socks.
I look up and see the back of my master's head and shoulders. He's sitting on a large, black leather sofa, staring into some kind of magical window, hanging on the wall. What kind of sorcery is this? Does magic truly exist? There are pictures moving across the window, in tandem with voices, sounds, and music! Is there no end to the wonder that this place holds?
"I'm here, Master.", I call out, my eyes still drawn to the moving picture window.
Without even the slightest turn of his head or change in emotion upon my arrival, he simply raises a hand, and with two fingers, motions for me to go to him. Finally, taking my eyes off the magic window, I walk around to the front of the sofa, where he sits. Staring intently into the bewitching picture window, he doesn't seem to acknowledge my presence. Has the window put him under a spell of some sort?
"Master, are you hypnotized?", I ask, quietly.
My question seems to puzzle him, breaking his attention away from the window. He blinks a few times, as the spell seems to be wearing off, and his brows furrow for a moment, seemingly confused by my question. He finally shifts his head to look at me once again, his neck tilted in bewilderment. Gazing upon me with intent for an awkward amount of time, he seems to be searching for answers that now, I'm convinced I don't even have the answers to.
"Who could hypnotize me?"
"The picture window... You were concentrating on it so deeply. I thought you may have been entranced by its magic.", I reply, hanging my head in embarrassment.
Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Anna standing behind him, and she has to cover her mouth to prevent herself from laughing aloud. Maybe he notices her as well, because he immediately lifts up a glass with ice cubes in it. Quickly regaining her composure, she rushes to take the glass from him, and takes it to a table to fill it with more of an amber colored liquid, in a delicate crystal bottle.
"This is called a television. It's nothing but a bunch of tiny lights that create pictures on the screen. The pictures you see are recorded with cameras, much like a photograph, only it moves. It has nothing to do with magic.", he explains, in his usual monotone.
I turn to look at it again, and it truly does feel as though I'm watching the people through a real window. Can these really just be lights making pictures behind a screen? This new world is cruel, but fascinating at the same time. Very interesting indeed, this thing called 'television'. I never would have thought about it, but it's actually rather enjoyable to just view the actions of others through a screen.
"My company makes these and many other things like them. Right now, we're the best. We're constantly finding new ways to innovate, and make things clearer, last longer, use less energy. It's never enough though. It never ends. There's always a drive to go further, push harder, work longer.", he solemnly states.
After handing the glass back to him, Anna steps back to her original place, behind the sofa. How obedient she is. I wonder if it's fear that keeps her so eager to please him, or something else. I can't picture myself being so pleased to serve such a calloused master in quite the same manner that she does. Of course, I can obey. But something about Anna's demeanor says that she's more than happy to be here.
"Leave us."
Master waves his hand in the air, a gesture for Anna to go, and takes another sip from his glass, before resting his arm on the back of the sofa. Biting her lip, she bows and exits the room without a word. As soon as the door closes, my master turns his attention back to the television. After a few minutes of listening to the voices on the screen, he inhales deeply, and releases the breath over a long hum. Without turning to me or batting an eye, he says only one word.
"Sit."