The Abyss Gazes Back… and Purrs

The morning after her birthday passed like many others in the estate. It was silent, still even; Ele’yah’s room was smothered in the weight of shadows that lingered even with the rising daylight. Ele’yah remained buried under her bedsheets, her mind lingering at the presence of the pendant that now rested on her nightstand. The pearl seemed to glimmer in the rays of the rising sunlight, maybe even pulsing, however, she convinced herself it was just her imagination. However, her restless thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock.

“Miss Ele’yah? May I enter?”

She groaned, hiding deeper beneath her bedsheets. “Do as you wish. You will regardless.”

The door opened, and in stepped the maid, her arms holding a basin of water that faintly emitted steam. The faint scent of rosewater drifted into the room, foreign and delicate amidst the estate’s usual brine scent of the sea.

“Good morning, Miss Ele’yah.” The maid slightly bowed while holding the basin.

“What is this intrusion for, maid?” Ele’yah muttered, peering out with those cold eyes of hers.

The maid sets the basin on the nightstand, her movements quiet, deliberate even. “A mistress of the household should not let her hair mat and tangle, allow me to tend to it.”

A flushed expression washes over Ele’yah’s face, more out of irritation than modesty. “My hair is none of your concern.”

“On the contrary,” the maid replied with a calmness that disarmed her. She lifted an ornate brush from her chatelaine, its make was unfamiliar, adorned with flowers and details foreign to the land they now resided in. It looked eastern in origin. “It is entirely my concern, you deserve to shine, Miss Ele’yah.”

Ele’yah scoffed, she did not take too kindly to this flattery from her servant, yet perhaps having her hair brushed would feel nice, and so she reluctantly gave in. She sat rigid on the edge of her bed as the maid positioned herself behind her. The maid set the brush aside for a moment before dipping her fingers into the steaming basin. She rubbed her hands slightly, then smoothed the rosewater over Ele’yah’s dark hair, letting the warmth seep into stubborn knots. Ele’yah stiffened at the touch of damp fingers on her scalp, it was a sensation she hadn’t felt in a very long time.

The first pass of the brush tugged at the stubborn knots, and Ele’yah hissed softly. The maid paused, dipping her fingers into the basin and smoothing the warm rosewater along the strands once more, her touch light but purposeful. The scent of roses bloomed between them, sweet and foreign, disarming in the still air of the estate. When the brush returned to its rhythm, the strokes grew gentler, steady. Each pass smoothed more than hair, it began to smooth the ache in Ele’yah’s chest.

Her eyelids fluttered shut against her will. She nearly relaxed into the touch, entering a state of rest, before catching herself.

“Do you always impose such… familiarity upon your masters?” She asked, sharper than intended.

The maid’s lips curved faintly, her expression a little hazy before returning to that confident look she typically adorns. “Only when they forget when they deserve care.”

Ele’yah blinked, thrown off by the words. Her gaze slid to a mirror on the wall nearby, where she could see the maid’s calm face hovering behind her own.

“You move as though you’ve tended a dozen masters.” Ele’yah murmured.

The maid’s hand stilled for the faintest moment, then resumed its steady rhythm. “I have not.” she said simply.

Ele’yah frowned. “Not even one?”

“No, Miss Ele’yah.” the maid’s voice softened, as though it were meant for the girl alone. “You are the first… and the only.”

The words lingered in the air, more intimate than a caress. Ele’yah’s breath caught in her throat. In the mirror, the maid’s gaze flicked up, just for an instant… before focusing back on the very hair she was brushing.

Something unfamiliar yet warm stirred low in Ele’yah’s chest. She clenched her hands in her lap.

“First and only.” she whispered.

The maid said nothing, but her brush strokes grew gentler, almost tender.

Once again did Ele’yah find herself in a state of rest, starting to even accept it a little. However, this rest would be interrupted as the maid finishes up.

“I’ve finished brushing your hair, Miss Ele’yah.” The maid whispers into Ele’yah’s ear.

Ele’yah’s eyes flutter open, a slight gasp leaves her mouth as she quickly puts her guard up once more. “Thank you, maid. You may leave.”

Without question, the maid dismounts the bed and grabs a handkerchief from her uniform’s pocket, making sure to wipe any wet droplets on her hairbrush and nightstand. She carefully lifts up the basin before giving Ele’yah a warm smile and turning towards the door.

Ele’yah watched the maid retreat to the door, the maid’s tail softly swishing to the sway of her hips. She hugged her blanket tightly; part of her wanted to call the maid back, to ask her to stay just a moment longer, but her pride held her tongue. Ele’yah took a look at her hair through the mirror, tracing the smooth, silky strands of her hair with her delicate fingers. The sensation of being cared for was unsettlingly pleasant.

Before she could push that thought away, a soft scrape came from the door as the maid was about to depart, her voice, quiet but deliberate, had asked. “Miss Ele’yah… may I bring you some tea?”

Ele’yah’s brows furrowed. “I don’t need it.”

“Tea is good to have in the meantime as I prepare your breakfast for you.” the maid replied, gently.

There was a pause. Slowly, however, she sighed and relented. “Very well, bring it in.”

The maid had given Ele’yah that warm, yet enigmatic look that allured her. It was mystifying, like the melody of a siren had been translated to a face. The maid quickly departed and closed the door gently, her steps fading into the halls of the estate as she went to prepare the tea.

Ele’yah was alone in her room once again, and she had felt the absence of the maid more keenly than she cared to admit. She looked over at her nightstand, which still held the calling-bell given to her on the first day of their acquaintance, and the pearl pendant given to her on her birthday; it caught the sunlight streaming through the window, its dark shimmer reflecting the faint golden hues of the room at sunrise. Ele’yah was once again reflecting, the walls she had put up around herself for so much of her life were beginning to show their cracks, and they were continuing to chip away as she grew closer to her servant.

The maid gently knocks on the door. “May I come in?”

“Enter.” replies Ele’yah, anticipating the tea.

The maid stepped in carefully, holding a delicate tray with a steaming cup, the fragrance mingling faintly with the lingering rosewater. She set it on the nightstand beside the pendant, bowing slightly once more.

“I thought you might enjoy this one I picked out for you.” she said softly, her eyes flicking towards Ele’yah with a subtle intensity, “and perhaps… a moment of peace.”

Ele’yah looked away, her cheeks tinged with heat. She lifted up the cup cautiously, feeling the steam graze her fingers. The silence stretched between them, thick and intimate, until the maid’s tail brushed lightly against Ele’yah’s arm as she stepped closer to tidy the blanket around the girl.

A shiver ran through Ele’yah, drawing in a breath she did not know she had been holding. The world outside her window continued its still rhythm, but in her room, time seemed to pause. She could not look at the maid directly, but the warmth of her presence, the lingering scent of rosewater, the gentle care in every movement, it charmed Ele’yah in a way that frightened yet soothed her.

The maid stepped back, bowing her head. “I will leave you to enjoy your tea, Miss Ele’yah.”

“Thank you Ch-” Ele’yah paused, withholding herself. “Maid.”

The maid’s eyes widened, her lips curving once more into that slight, confident smile. “It is my pleasure.”

As the maid quietly retreated, Ele’yah continued to sip her tea and sat on her bed, basking in the soft morning glow that peered through her window.

She cupped the teacup between her hands, watching the faint curl of steam rise and disperse into the air. The tea was mild, soothing even, yet she hardly noticed the taste on her tongue. What lingered was not the drink, but the absence of her maid.

Her thoughts circled around relentlessly. “The only.” The maid’s words echoed in her mind with a weight she was not prepared to carry. It shouldn’t matter, for the maid was just a servant, bound by her duties; yet… to be the first and only one that she has served, it felt… different.

That stirring ache in Ele’yah’s chest had seemed to emerge once more, but softer now, as though it were also different. Comfort, perhaps? Or something close to it.

She rose from the bed for the first time since she’s woken up, her gaze heading for the pendant on the nightstand. She places the cup of tea down beside it and picks it up. Once more did it shine in the glow of the morning rays, its reflection unsettling. The pendant was a gift, the first step that the maid took to become familiar with her master. The maid’s presence seemed to pierce the walls of her solitude in ways that even the sea above’s endless roar could not. Why did the arrival of her servant weigh heavier on her thoughts than anything else she had pondered since taking on her life of isolation?

She hated the question; she hated the fact that she could not dismiss it.

For a moment, Ele’yah glimpsed at her own reflection in the mirror; her dark eyes, hair smooth and shining from the maid’s service, the faintest hint of blush in her cheeks. She looked different. Not the untouchable, lonely mistress she had grown to be, but a girl who had allowed herself to be seen, even for just a moment.

And she despised how much she didn’t despise it.