She took a few minutes to get to the floor of the east wing, where the children of the Signavit family slept, right next to the library. She arrived in front of the door of the young Désespoir, the smallest of the family. She hesitated for a few moments, arranging her hair behind her ears, before knocking.
She waited a long moment, in the silence of the long corridor, but no one answered her. It was strange for her young mistress not to be there, but she thought she might have gone out and decided to walk along the wall to the second bedroom, which was directly opposite. She repeated the operation and knocked again.
Silence answered her again. She then thought she had to leave empty-handed, but the door suddenly opened with a shrill creak, on a small silhouette camouflaged behind, letting only his head covered with a mask through.
'Young Master Peur.'
The barely ten-year-old boy looked like a frightened little animal to her, with his frail body which almost trembled, before calming down when he saw her. Aina saw his golden pupils – the same as his mother's – widen slightly upon discovering her, as if surprised.
Aina had only been to this part of the mansion two or three times since her arrival here, because Elvan almost always took care of the children and the patriarch. The distribution of tasks was slightly unequal in this place, but the young woman did not worry about it. Obedience without asking questions, had been her motto since she had entered the service of this strange family who had graciously taken her in, even after her amnesia.
"Aina?" ventured the young boy in his thin voice.
'He remembers my first name.'
She was slightly surprised to know he hadn't forgotten her identity, despite the few words they had exchanged since her hiring. Peur was rather fearful by nature, which caused the young woman to bend her legs and lean on her knees forward, to make herself less impressive in his eyes.
"Young master." she greeted him, bowing slightly. "Your mother sent me to help you prepare."
His pupils dilated ever so slightly through his mask.
"Elvan isn't here?" he inquired then, visibly worried not to see his usual servant coming.
Aina knew that her superior spent most of his time taking care of the younger members of the family, so she wasn't surprised to find that Peur had a certain trust and almost affection for him. She was, after all, only his replacement for the day and had no trouble understanding that this was destabilizing for a child as young as him.
Throughout their conversation, the little boy did not move from his meager hiding place, merely clenching and unclenching his hands on the wood of the door, as the conversation between them continued.
"He is busy preparing the banquet." explained the young woman gently, without really understanding why her young master seemed so endearing to her.
"The banquet..." he breathed, "it's true that it's today..."
The interested party nodded delicately, his eyes lost on the floor. He seemed to be thinking about something, even hesitating about what to do with her. Aina waited wisely, so as not to rush him and this moment was so long that she even wondered if he was going to let her into his room.
However, he seemed to finally make up his mind, because he pushed open the door that had served as his shield for several minutes already and dashed at full speed inside the room.
'Alright, I'm making progress.'
The young woman was amused by the attitude of her young master, who made her think of a small, fearful cat, like those she sometimes saw in the garden of the mansion, and rushed in after him, taking care to close the door, behind her.
A large room with navy blue walls greeted her and she was slightly surprised by its layout. Cubes of color closed by doors, like cupboards in a kitchen, were strewn and placed irregularly on the floor. Objects that were piled on top of each other, or just messed up on the floor, gave the place an air of junk where anything no longer needed would have been thrown away. The only thing that confirmed to Aina that she was in a room was the large white bed placed in the corner of the wall and whose turn formed at the level of the head and on the right side a staircase, on which were seated a multitude of stuffed animals – mostly rabbits – whose eyes had been gouged out.
Aina stepped over the furniture, as in an obstacle course and advanced a little further into the room, in which she saw no trace of the young master.
"Young master?" she breathed, scanning the light-filled room, narrowing her eyes.
She saw nothing but the mess and the multitude of pictures that covered the wall just in front of the bed. Frames of all shapes in the center of which were represented open and bulging eyes, which gave the impression to whoever entered this place of being observed... Watched.
The child didn't answer her, but she heard a light knock in the wood, which told her that Peur was there, somewhere... Hidden.
[Young master Peur is adept at hide-and-seek.] She remembered Elvan's words, one day when they had spent the afternoon tidying up the library. [I often spend time looking for him.]
Aina then parted her lips in surprise.
So that's it... A hide-and-seek.
"I guess I have to find you..." she breathed before hearing a slight hiss, which she interpreted as confirmation.
She observed the maze created by the furniture and restrained herself from sighing when she saw the multitude of hiding places available. Everything seemed to be done to be able to hide a human, whether it was the large wooden cupboards, the cardboard boxes or the small hiding places closed by doors without handles. It was as if the room had been designed especially for this. How to find a small child in such a large expanse...?
Yet she had no choice.
She had to get Peur ready for the banquet and she was sure she would incur the family's wrath if she didn't follow orders. So she had no choice but to play the game of the young master, even if it did not delight her.
She heaved a sigh and made her way between the furniture, opening one by one the doors that were in her path. She found nothing but empty spaces, at the bottom of which were sometimes placed books, paper, a pencil and a few crumbs, as if the young child had spent a lot of time inside. It wasn't a good place for such a young person, though, so... Why?
'What a special child.'
Perhaps it was part of the many originalities that appealed to members of the Signavit family. These people weren't quite normal after all. Or was it the others who were weird? She wasn't sure. After all, she hadn't seen the outside world enough to form an opinion.
Still, she had to find the young master, although the task looked particularly difficult. It was indeed about ten minutes that she opened, visited and scrutinized everything she could, without result.
'No trace of him.'
Faced with the situation, she grimaced, massaging her temples with her fingertips. How come she couldn't find a mere child in a twenty square meter room?
The cupboards weren't giving anything and Aina couldn't see the young man slipping under the bed to hide. No... She had to miss something... But what?
She was beginning to despair, when she saw a painting slightly offset from the line of the ground. This one was distinguished from the others by its rectangular shape and its pattern of a window opening onto what looked like a wooden staircase , which would descend in the dark.
'Odd.'
The object was special in her eyes for its aura and its atmosphere that made her almost feel uneasy, rather than for the fact that it contrasted greatly with the rest of the room. So she approached it cautiously, not really knowing if her intuition was correct.
'Nothing ventured, nothing gained.'
"Young master...?" she tried again.
A slight noise confirmed her idea and she continued to move forward delicately, until she reached the work, on which she placed her palm. She brushed the raised paint with her fingers and slid her hand along the frame before pulling it towards her. The painting swung almost immediately towards her and opened like a door, on a small recess in the wall, hardly larger than the surface of a window and at the bottom of which she found the young boy, seated, his knees brought back against his body and his head in his arms. Aina found his appearance strangely pitiful, with his mask whose teary eyes were covered by two drawn hands and which gave her the impression that the young boy was crying.
"Ah..." she sighed in relief. " You are there."
The child looked surprised to see her, so much so that his hands shook, but his calm returned to him when he realized that it was she who had found him.
"Aina..."
The young woman gave him a vague smile, before holding out her hand.
"Let's go, shall we?"
She hoped that he would finally agree to listen to her advice and that's what he did without flinching, placing his small palm on hers. Without saying a word, she dragged him out of his hiding place and to one of the wardrobes, from which she picked out some black ceremonial clothes, the only color besides the gray he had.
'Those are unusual clothes for a child...'
His clothes were similar to those of the patriarch, which hardly surprised the young woman and his dark hair further accentuated his resemblance to his father. Rage Signavit was an important man, who required all those who were dear to him or at his service not to disgrace the prestigious name of Signavit. So, she wasn't surprised to learn that he also controlled his youngest son's physical appearance.
'Like a child with his dolls.'
Peur was almost a carbon copy of the patriarch, if not for his personality which was diametrically opposed to that of the man. Envie, on the other hand, only seemed to have inherited his intense light eyes from his father, while the rest of his appearance was totally different. The latter did not share most of his physical features with any other member of the family, resulting in the fact that the vassals of the empire had always doubted his legitimacy.
For a while, there were even rumors that the eldest son of the Signavit was in fact the fruit of an adultery between the patriarch and a woman other than his wife, which had never been confirmed.
'Or refuted.'
If the rumor had been true, the wife had never said anything about it. It was for this reason that it disappeared as quickly as it was created. Because no one could imagine that the worthy wife of a duke could welcome under her roof the child of another and without flinching.
This wouldn't have surprised Aina though, who knew Madam much better than the nobles of the empire. Lady Chagrin was a discreet woman who, although full of nobility, could not go against her husband, except on rare occasions. It was therefore highly unlikely that she would turn against him and reject the child, if it was proven that she had been deceived.
'Madam is far too docile for that.'
On the other hand, it was much more plausible that she had replied that it was nothing with a smile, before forgiving him, even if that was not really true. Aina thought the patriarch was a lucky man, who didn't realize how much others envied him for having such a wife. A blind man who only swore by the wealth of the mind and gold, without seeing the treasures he possessed.
"A preference, master?" she asked the young boy, handing him two or three tailored suits.
The latter scrutinized it for a few moments in silence, before shrugging his shoulders.
"I'll let you choose..." he answered in a small voice, waddling in place, as if he was embarrassed.
The young servant, who did not define herself as a woman of taste, selected the suit that seemed to her the most elegant and put it on her master's arms and legs, taking care not to hurt him. As she slipped the suit jacket over his shoulders, she noticed how thin the child was. She could feel the bones of his collar bones and his back through his clothes.
She wondered with concern how the child of such a prestigious family could look so puny. His body was such that he seemed to be able to fly away at the slightest gust of wind. He seemed so weak and fragile, compared to the strong and violent personality of the other men in the family...
"What is wrong?" asked the child, who seemed to notice her confusion.
Despite her insecurities, she pretended like nothing happened and continued to prepare her master for the banquet. In the silence of the small room she hummed an indiscernible tune, her eyes unfocused. His irises lit up like the sea kissing the sunlight, with a dazzling, almost ethereal glow. This moment with the child created in her a strange warmth, which spread from her belly to her heart, like a distant and nostalgic memory recalled in the morning light. Young master Peur was very obedient and gentle, just like his mother, so he didn't make any difficulty. In a few minutes, she finished her task and gently stepped back to admire the result.
'Not bad.'
Peur was very elegant and his black suit complimented the lightness of his locks, the same color as his mother's. Aina was certain that he would become a handsome boy when he reached puberty and this fact made her slightly happy. Now that he was ready, all that remained for the young governess was to return to the large living room, to help Elvan. She rose in silence, strangely reluctant to leave upon realizing she was surprisingly enjoying the young master's company.
" It's time." she explained to the child, who just nodded, before turning on his heels to go back to sit on the edge of her bed, without even expressing the slightest emotion to see her go.
A pang of sadness pierced her heart at the sight of this, but she ignored it, pursing her lips, turning away on her heels. As she made her way to the door, she saw Peur pull out a piece of paper from under his pillow. From a distance, it reminded her of a drawing, but she saw nothing more than two large rectangles resembling houses from where she was. Two identical buildings looking diametrically opposed to each other, one as white as snow and the other as black as night.
'Funny drawing for a child...'
She ignored this detail, closed the door behind her, and stood in the hallway, frozen like a statue. Outside the door, she noticed a small piece of paper on the floor, which she scrutinized carefully. It was no bigger than a business card and looked particularly new, as if it had never been used or handled before.
'What is... ?'
She bent down curiously and picked up what looked like a small card, slipping it between her fingers. For a few moments, she thought it was empty, so she turned it around and saw a sentence appear written in red ink.
"Nothing is what it seems in this place. »
A vague shiver shook her spine. She wondered who had left this here and for whom? It couldn't have been her, since no one but the wife knew she was working in that wing of the manor today, but she couldn't see anyone doing that to the young master. The words written on the piece of paper seemed strange and almost... Disturbing to her without her being able to explain why, but she convinced herself to ignore them, telling herself that it must have been only a mistake, or simply a bad joke.
Still, she found it hard to shake off the strange feeling in her that all of this was a bad omen.
'I have a bad feeling.'
The noise of the dishes which intensified as she approached the living room pulled her from her reverie and she rushed into the large room, obscuring from her mind the worry that had shaken her a little earlier.