Consciousness dawned slowly and clumsily for Askatla, the gentle fragrance of rose and elderflower helping lift the mental fog that lingered as she opened her eyes to take in the hospital room. The meticulously blended Gothic-revival architecture and state of the art medical equipment in her surroundings informed her that this was the recovery room where she had awakened in the wake of the last incident to end with Oeuf carrying her prone form away from danger. Sitting up in the wide bed, she moved to clear the loose hairs from her face but was struck with a bout of dizziness. As her vision cleared, the source of her disorientation revealed itself in the form of a tiny plaster on her left arm as the bell sleeves of her lavender silk nightgown slid away from her wrist, around which a patient ID bracelet was fastened; a little green dot indicated it was active. 

“Iris, open the shades please,” Askatla croaked, her voice still struggling to crack through the stiffness of long sleep.  

The curtains slid open and curled at the edges, uncovering tinted HenbouGlass which cleared to reveal a grassy knoll ringing a rippling pond on which a graceful pair…