Evergreen Everleigh - The Wattys 2020

Chapter Six - Duck Egg Blue

Chapter Six

Duck Egg Blue

It transpires that the section of the manor house I saw upon first entering was simply

the uninhabited front of house. Up several flights of stairs and along a single long corridor, an

extension of much more modern features seem to expand backwards into a much more lived-

in environment.

"I'm sorry it was just me to greet you. To be honest, we kind of forgot you were coming

what with everything."

"Everything?" I ask, watching how Yarrow is precariously swinging my suitcase as he

turns back to look at me.

The long, non-descript corridor was ending now. Wood panelled every inch of the place

and only broke pattern for three, small single-glazed windows that overlooked a thicket of trees.

"It's one of the kid's birthdays today." He explains, gesturing to the chocolate smear

on his shirt. I try not to remember my general anxiety towards birthdays or the word kids.

Perhaps I had been wrong to assume that this facility was another teenage centre, even though

Yarrow looked no more than a year or two older than me.

Yarrow had to kick the door at the end of the corridor as it scraped along the floor. For

a moment, I could see nothing but his shoulder blades. Yet when I stepped through the door,

colour erupted into sight. This corridor was much narrower and slightly windy; however, it had

almost triple the number of windows.

"Welcome to our living quarters," Yarrow beams, "As you can see, we're pretty into

decorating here."

The walls and ceiling are a speckled shade of duck-egg blue, yet here and there flecks

of butter yellow could be seen peering through, hinting at a past shade. Every few steps odd,

mismatched rugs are placed on the floor representing nearly every colour of the rainbow.

Bunting is hanging along the hall in a zig-zag pattern displaying more shades of purple that I

had known to exist. Yet what draws my attention more than anything is the cat sitting on the

rug at the end of the corridor, priming himself.

"Mr. Flurry." I whisper. Yarrow does not miss this and looks between myself and the

cat.

"How do you know him?"

I cannot explain that day in the hospital or the woman who knew my name. I was at a

loss for words at the impossibility of the whole situation. Mr. Flurry's colour jingles as the cat

stands upon my approach, his traffic light eyes meeting my gaze. Not for the first time, I have

the feeling that the cat is taking in my appearance almost broodingly, as though trying to get

the measure of me. What bothers me most about the sight of the animal is that up until now I

had successfully told myself that my encounter with the purple-clad woman at the hospital and

her impertinent cat had been a hallucination brought on by my pain medication.

Yarrow accepts my lack of an answer with a shrug.

At the end of the corridor a spiral stair case that has been roughly carved from wood

twists up another level. Upon closer inspection, I can see small drawings adorn the bannister

and steps in pastel chalks.

From the top of the stairs, I look back to see that the cat has disappeared once more.

Noise erupts upon this level as colour did on the last. There are shouts of chatter and

laughter coming from a room down the hallway. At this, my heartbeat races slightly as it always does at the thought of meeting more than one new person at a time. My knees begin to shake

and I am no longer able to take in the ludicrous décor of the house, though some small portion

of my mind does register the outlines of humans that are drawn onto the walls and are painted

in to give the appearance of jumping children lining the walls. They remind me of some of

Henry and Harmony's drawings.

"Where are we going now?" I ask, not leaving the stairwell. If I am not mistaken, voices

hush in the nearby rooms at the sound of my voice and whispers follow. I want nothing more

than to melt into the very walls of the house and disappear.

"Well, as intelligent and utterly talented as I am as a host Everleigh, I am not the curator

of this fine establishment. I'm taking you to meet with the Big Lady."

Quickly, I count the number of rooms I can see. There are four on this corridor alone.

The one at the end of the corridor looks most ornate as the door has a marble knocker and a

golden handle. A small peephole on the centre of the door is hidden under a black stone flap in

the shape of a poppy flower. Is that where the owner's office is? Another small staircase is at

the right of this door

"We're actually going up one more story." Yarrow says, apologetically whilst running

a hand through his hair and mussing up his fringe. "I would say ladies first, but you look a little

green and I don't want to have to catch you if you fall backwards on me."

I think perhaps that Yarrow is trying to make me laugh or put me at ease, but a deep

ringing in my ears is building with every passing moment.

Up another flight of stairs, I receive another shock. Many more rooms spur off this

hallway. However, in direct contrast to the explosions of colour seen below, the walls, floor

and ceiling are painted black. The only source of light is a small window no larger than a couch
cushion. This time, we do approach the door at the end of the corridor. Yarrow knocks once and a high, sing-song voice answers;

"Come in."

For the second time, our eyes lock, and this time I notice that he has a small smattering

of freckles over his eyebrows and above his lips.

"I'll put this in your room." He says, gesturing to the suitcase. I have only been here a

few minutes and already the expensive tartan print of the suitcase looks distinctly out of place.

Yarrow turns to walk away, but after several moments he looks back to see me staring

at the door.

He cocks one eyebrow and grins.

"You do know how a door handle works, right?"

And just like that, as though he and the cat were one in the same, he vanishes.

A/N

Merry Christmas/holidays readers! I hope it has been the most lovely time for you all, and if not, as this time of year is often hard for people, it's only a day. I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Jen xx