Maria could hear the murmur of voices, the crackling of fires, the stomping of feet. She could smell burning hair, burning wood, hot cocoa, tea and freshly made biscuits. She could taste the ash and the smoky air on her tongue. She could feel her burnt skin, the hard ground, a soft blanket and pillow. And she could see. Nothing. Maria could see nothing. Which was odd for she felt her eyes were open.
As she realized this she also remembered. She remembered a loud explosion. Then a bright flash of light, then the dark, then she was falling, and she hit something. Hard. Then pain, everything hurt and then nothing, absolutely nothing. That's what she remembers, otherwise everything before is blurry.
"Hello? Can you hear me? How many fingers am I holding up? How do you feel?" Someone asks Maria quickly. "Leave the poor child alone, Seagull." A deeper, calmer voice says. "The others need help. I will take care of this one."
"Yes ma'am." She hears the voice walk away.
"What is your name child? My name is Daphne. I am the head healer for The Willow."
"My name is Maria Montere."
"Lovely name. Now I have a few questions for you. Can you smell?"
"Yes."
"Wonderful."
"Can you feel?"
"Unfortunately so."
"Ahh yes I should have expected that. We will have that taken care of soon. Don't worry. Can you hear?l
"….."
"Couldn't hurt to ask. Can you see?"
"Usually I can at the moment I can't."
"That will be a problem to be addressed later. I'm going to get someone to bring you to The Willow.
Well Daphne talked Maria thought to herself.
'What is this person talking about? Shark? Seagull? What kind of names are those? What's The Willow? What's going to be explained? What is there that has to be explained?'
Maria hears Daphne call out to the person called Shark as she walks away. Soon another set of feet approach and Maria feels herself being picked up and it hurts. A lot. Especially her left side, the side pressed against Shark's body. Maria whimpered and Shark's body tenses under the shirt Maria thinks he's wearing. "I'm sorry. That must hurt." Shark said, voice gruffer than expected . To Maria it sounded as if Shark's voice wasn't natural. Maria thought it was magically changed. Maria also thought that she had hit her head very hard. A few minutes ago Maria thought she was dead. All in all Maria was thinking a lot of things. It was making her head hurt.
Soon Maria was laid on a bed or cushion, maybe a couch. It could have been a very soft blanket. She was laid on something soft. Let's put it that way. And before she fell asleep she could feel herself being moved slowly away.
Away from the wreckage of the manor. Away from La Belle, her home. Away from her life, her past. Heading toward her future. Or something like that. You never quite know with these kinds of things.