The Lady of the Manor
©2004 by Sandi Walker
CHAPTER 1
She
lived alone under the bridge. At least
that was where she spent her nights.
Uncle Joseph had told her if there was ever any trouble she would be
safe under the bridge, and that was where she should always go.
She
lived there with her only possessions, a blanket and a little doll shaped like
a cat. She could not remember where she
got them, but they were always with her.
Her
blanket seemed to grow with her, because it was always big enough to cover her
and keep her warm. Her cat doll was
always at her side. Like her blanket, if
she thought about her cat doll, it would appear in her arms. She did not know how that happened, but it
had been happening for so long she just accepted it. Like when she was very lonely and upset, she
would always smell roses. The smell of
the roses helped to calm and relax her.
She could never find the garden where the roses grew, but she knew it
had to be near. Or on nights when she
had nightmares, her dragon was always there to protect her in her dreams. When her protector showed up she always slept
much better muttering in her sleep 'my dragon'.
She
had spent every night for the last 9 years under the bridge. During the day she
would go into the village and the villagers would mistreat her terribly. Why
she never understood. She was always
careful that no one saw her go back to her bridge. She could not be sure that no one saw her, so
she always took a different route and would often double back, listening for
any sound of someone behind her. She did
not want any of the tormentors of the village finding her while she slept. The tormentors were not afraid of anyone
except The Masters. She did not know
exactly who The Masters were, but she was thankful to them because her bridge
was on their land.
The Masters. They were supposed to protect
the world from The Dark Ones but no one had ever actually seen them. The Masters were immortal, so the legends
said.
There
were four of them. Celestial could
teleport anything and anyone wherever he wanted. His robe was covered with stars and planets
and the markings on his face were white and what appeared to be black lightning
bolts. Beast, who talked to the animals,
could transform into a black cat and some said he could also become a black
panther. His robe was covered with
felines and the markings on his face resembled that of a cat. Starchild could read minds, but he could also
influence the minds of others by a strange light that came from his eye. His robe was covered in silvery stars that
shined. The only mark on his white face
was a black star over his right eye.
Demon could become a fire-breathing dragon. His robe was covered with dragons and
flame. His markings consisted of a white
face with black batwings across his eyes
Although
the villagers had never seen The Masters, they still feared them. More than once a villager claimed to see a
dragon flying over the bridge, and so the villagers avoided the
That
night as she lay sleeping under the bridge, the manor house called to her. In the darkness of the night she wandered up
to the manor house, up to the door, the huge front door. She lifted the latch and opened the
door. She went in just as if she had
gone in the manor house every day of her life.
She walked down the corridor to the great hall where there was a roaring
fire. She lay down in front of the fire,
warming herself thinking that this fire had been started just for her.
She
fell asleep and dreamed happy dreams for the first time in many many years. Suddenly
there was a noise that woke her up. She
did not know what the noise was or where it came from, had her tormentors from
the village found her? She had to get
away quickly. She found the wall with
the tapestry, the huge tapestry that covered the wall from ceiling to floor. How did she know this wall had a
tapestry? She did not have time to think
about it, she quickly slid behind the tapestry and followed the wall all the
way back to the door of the great hall.
When she got through the door she ran down the long hallway to the front
door, and ran back down to the bridge where she was safe.
The
Masters entered the great hall. Starchild said, "I know someone was
here."
Celestial
grumbled, "There is no one here, you are just hearing things
again."
Starchild
insisted, "I know I heard something and I can feel fear. I know someone was here. Someone who was very
afraid."
The
Demon marched down the hallway to check the entrance to the manor. Upon Demon’s return to the great hall he
growled, "The front door is open. Someone must have been here. Who could it have been? Who would dare come into the home of The
Masters?"
They decided that they would keep an eye out the next night to see if their intruder came back.
The
next morning she awoke and she went into the village, as was her daily
routine. She wandered the streets
searching for someone who would give her something to eat. There was always someone who would give her
an old piece of bread or scraps that they would not give to the dogs, but it
always cost her too. It appeared that
the villagers believed that since they fed her they got to beat her too. Just so she would remember her place among
the villagers. That was what her days
were like.
She
wandered around the village, trying to be helpful but only getting in the
way. Today it had started to rain, so
she went back to her bridge. She darted in and out of streets so no one could
follow and find out where she went. At her bridge she could feel safe for just
a little while. She lay down covered by
her blanket, with her cat doll in her arms, listening to the storm blowing
around her. Again the manor house called to her. It called her name. Most people did not even know her name
anymore. But the manor house did. And it would call to her, Miranda….Miranda…despite
her fears, once again she had to go. She could not reject the call that came from
the manor house. So she walked up to the
manor house door and again entered as if this was her home. She cautiously inched her way the corridor to
the great hall. Just like the night
before, there was a fire roaring in the fireplace just waiting for her. She sat down in front of the fire to dry
herself.
In
the dark shadows of a room lit only by the fire in the fireplace, The Masters
waited for her. They watched from the
far corner as she walked in the door and sat down.
Starchild
whispered, "I told you someone was coming in here"
Celestial
muttered, "Well, it's the first time you have been right in a long
time".
"Why
couldn't you detect someone here? How
did she get through the protective shield?
Celestial, you did put up the shield didn't you?" Demon snapped.
"Of
course I put it up." Celestial
snapped back defensively.
Demon
marched out of the shadows to stand before Miranda and angrily snarled,
"Who are you and what are you doing in our home?"
Miranda
quickly jumped up. She knew she was in
trouble now. She found the wall with the
huge tapestry and hid behind it. In the
darkness of the, room The Masters could not see where she had gone. She inched her way to the door very
carefully.
Demon
shouted, "I
can't find her. Where did she
go?"
Starchild
said, "The shield is up so she should not be able to get out"
“She
got in with the shield up. Why shouldn’t
she be able to get out?” Beast questioned.
And
Miranda did get out. She ran down the
long hallway to the front door and away she ran back to her bridge.
Not
knowing exactly where she was or where she had gone, Celestial teleported them
to the roof of the manor house and they watched as she ran, stumbling back to
her bridge.
Celestial
was astonished. "How did she do that?
How did she get out?"
Nobody
knew. She should not have been able to get through the protective shield but
she did. Not just once, but twice, now
she had escaped from them.
Starchild
sighed, "Well now at least we know where she goes"
Beast
frowned. "That's a horrible place
for anyone to live. We need to bring her
here. We need to bring her back here,
where she will be warm and safe."
Demon
grumbled, "I don't trust her, she wants something"
Starchild
replied, "Demon, not everyone wants something."
The
Masters started working on a plan for their next meeting with this strange
girl, for they knew they would meet her again.
The
next day was the same as any other day in her life. Miranda got up, still a
little shaky from the night before when she had almost been caught, but again
she went into the village, hoping someone would give her something to eat.
It
was quiet in the village, almost too quiet.
Suddenly something hit her from behind, and she fell in a puddle of mud.
"Oh
look, the girl got dirty, she needs a bath."
Her
tormentors dragged her down to the river and threw her in. Miranda surfaced, sputtering while her
attackers just laughed. She heard them
leaving, she heard them laughing, as they headed back to the village, at the
sight of her in the water.
Miranda
pulled herself out of the river. She was
so cold and tired. She lay there for a
little while listening to them laugh at her, and all she could do was cry.
‘Why
did you have to leave me Uncle Joseph?
Why couldn't I have gone too?’
That was all she could think of.
Why had her mother and father left?
She wondered miserably while the tears fell down her face. Why had they left her to this horrible
existence?
She
made her way back to her bridge, the only safe place she knew, and the only
place where she felt secure. She cuddled
up with her blanket and the cat doll trying to forget what had happened.
Again
the manor house called out to her, Miranda…Miranda…. She fought the urge to go. She was too tired
from the day's humiliating events and did not want to get caught. For she knew that tonight they would catch
her.
The
manor house was insistent, it kept calling to her, beckoning her to it Miranda…Miranda…. It would not stop and she could not ignore
the lure of its call. Finally unable to
resist, she found herself slowly heading toward the manor house. She promised herself this would be the last
time she would go.
She
quietly lifted the latch, walked through the front door, and very cautiously
listened for any sound. Hearing nothing,
she made her way down the corridor to the great hall. As she pushed on the half opened door, she
listened. Were they waiting for
her? Were they there? She heard nothing, but she could feel the
warmth from the fireplace, and still being wet from being pushed in the river,
she walked toward the warmth to dry herself.
As
she sat in front of the fireplace she discovered something on the hearth. She reached out to touch it and discovered a
bowl of soup and bread and something to drink waiting for her by the
fireplace. ‘This is a trick.’ she
thought. But the soup smelled so good
and she was so very hungry, not being able to get any food from the village
that day. Had the manor house left her
food? It called her name so Miranda
reasoned if a manor house could talk it could leave her food too.
As
she sat there eating her soup a cat jumped into her lap. At first she was startled, but managed not to
gasp aloud. Sensing the cat was safe she
petted the cat. She discovered she had no fear of him. After all, he was just like her cat
doll. She finished her soup and held the
cat in her arms. He nuzzled up next to her cheek. She lay down with the cat in her arms and
fell asleep, now covered by her blanket, which had suddenly appeared from
nowhere. Her blanket was always there
when she needed it. How long she slept,
she did not know but when she woke up she knew something was different.
The
Masters watched as this little girl, obviously cold and hungry,
ate the food they had left for her.
There was something about this girl that reached out to Demon’s
heart. How could he have thought she
wanted something? All she had ever done
was sit by the fire to get warm. Was his heart going soft? What was it about this girl that intrigued
him?
Something
had happened. Was it a noise she had
heard? She was not sure. She got up and she heard a voice.
"Don't
leave little girl. It has started
raining outside and it's too cold out there.
Stay here by the fire."
Demon was trying very hard to keep the deep growl out of his voice. He did not want to upset her unnecessarily.
Frozen
in the spot with building panic Miranda waited.
She did not know where the voice came from. She did not know whom it belonged to and she
most certainly did not know what to do.
Someone was trying to be nice to her.
It had been so long since anyone had been nice to her. Carefully Miranda got up, thinking, ‘I
have to get out of here. They are only
going to tease me, they are going to hurt me. I can't trust these people.’ Quietly as she could, crawling
low along the floor so as to not be seen, she made her way to the wall and
again behind the tapestry.
That
same deep voice came out of the darkness, "No one is going to hurt
you. Stay here, little
girl. It's cold and wet
outside. You will be safer
here."
Miranda
froze. She needed to get out; she just
knew she needed to get out. She tried to
continue along the wall hidden by the tapestry.
As she felt her way along the wall, which had always been her safe route
out, she found him. She let out a
terrified gasp.
He
was standing there, blocking her path.
He had discovered the path behind the tapestry. "Don't be afraid, little girl. It's alright, no one
is going to hurt you."
Miranda
panicked and she tried to run. She had
to get out. Someone grabbed her from
behind, and she fought with him. He held
her close to him and in his deep voice softly assured her, "It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you."
Miranda
was too tired and too cold. She did not
have much strength, so it did not take much time for her to wear herself out
fighting with the Demon.