Maddening Dreams

Yavanna stood there, feeling cold. After a few moments she eventually released her cat.

She undressed and dressed herself in a fog.

Why had his majesty been in there? She held her head when the world suddenly whirled.

She grasped her desk, the odd dizziness fading. Had she become ill? She needed to speak to a physician.

She looked down and saw the letter for her mother there. She still needed a seal.

She closed her eyes and stumbled across her room and to her bed. She greedily snatched the covers up to her chin and stared at the top of her canopy bed.

She still felt cold and ill.

Her eyelids drooped and she found herself in a mess of nightmares. Being stuck in the dark, men drinking blood, and her body being cut.

She woke up to the feeling of falling and saw that the maids had begun opening curtains. She hadn't been disturbed by that intruder, only by her obscure dreams.

"Your highness? Are you feeling well?" She looked up and saw Edith watching her with concerned blue eyes.

She placed a hand to her head and sat up slowly, "No, Edith. Not at all. Could you fetch the physician, please?"

She set down the clothes in her hands and rushed out of the room.

"Lorraine?" Yavanna asked and glanced around the room to find the maid pulling open the heavy drapes. She blinked hard at the sudden burst of light.

"Yes, your highness." She appeared at her bedside within seconds.

"Could you please find the wax and stamp I need to seal my letter to my mother?"

"Of course, your highness." She left and Yavanna reclined against the carven headboard of her bed.

She rested her eyes shut and smiled softly when she felt her cat jump onto the bed and rest by her side. She grimaced and parted her eyes open when she felt a dull ache on her thigh. She ran through her memory and searched for why it could possibly hurt.

She recalled how in her dreams she had been cut. It was all such a blur. She placed her head in her hands and tried to process her jumbled emotions and thoughts.

"Your highness."

She jumped from the hand on her shoulder and saw Edith by her side.

"The physician is here." She timidly stated and Yavanna looked past her and saw a weathered old man in long brown robes with a green cap.

"Good morning, your highness. I hear you don't feel well." He said and stepped closer to the bed. Behind him stood a young man, likely Yavanna's age. She nodded.

"May I ask if you have a theory?" He asked and grabbed her wrist, pressing different areas of it.

She swallowed, "I've been having strange dreams."

The physician glanced up to meet her eyes before sitting back. "And they've been disrupting your sleep?"

She nodded, "Yes, and I feel as though I've been seeing things during the day as well."

The man hummed and then ordered his assistant something in Noth. Yavanna thinned her lips when she remembered she still had to learn the language. She wanted to ask the king about it. Vivian arrived in the room and Yavanna smiled at her.

"I will give you this draught, your highness." The physician said, "It pushes away disruptive dreams and should calm the mind during the day."

She nodded and accepted the glass bottle. Inside was a bluish green liquid.

"Take one spoonful for the day and two for the night."

She nodded to him and he stood, "Then I'll take me leave. Please call me if anything else bothers you, your highness."

Yavanna smiled, "Of course."

"Vivian, could you fetch me a spoon, please?"

"Yes, your highness."

Yavanna peeled the blankets off of herself and stood, grabbing her head at the rush of lightheadedness that assaulted her. Edith took a nervous step forward but Yavanna waved her away. She just needed more sleep.

She'd always had a fine temperament; she'd never been sickly. But she had never had reason to be an overly hardy person. Mirella was tough and knew her way around the world. Yavanna knew she didn't, that's why she was always escorted whenever she left the palace in Viland.

"Here you are, your highness." Vivian appeared in front of her and handed her a spoon.

"Thank you." She took it and poured herself the draught. The salty flavour was enough to cause her to gag and it lingered on her tongue. She cleared her throat and sought out water. Vivian soon brought her a goblet and she drank it gratefully.

Walking to the wardrobes she pulled out a dress and Vivian began to help her into it.

While Edith worked on putting her hair into a neat braided bun, Yavanna coughed. She placed a hand to her throat at its sudden itchiness.

"Are you alright, your highness?" She asked and Yavanna nodded. She just needed a glass of water.

Edith finished with the bun and Yavanna stood to drink some more water.

"I'm leaving to go seek an audience with the king, I'll be back in a short time I'm sure."

Vivian nodded, "I'm sorry that Christa isn't back yet, your highness."

Yavanna shook her head, the itchiness increasing in her throat, "No, it's fine. You and Edith have been of much help."

The two women nodded and Yavanna left the room. After asking directions from a maid she found herself walking towards the north wing of the palace. She resided in the west wing.

She began wheezing and found herself supporting her weight on the castle walls. She knocked over a torch stand and caught the wall, apologizing weakly for the disturbance.

"What's wrong with you?"

She looked up and realized her vision was blurred. She tried to speak but all that came out was a hoarse croak.

She fell to the ground and watched as the blue carpet darkened in her vision. Till everything was black.