My feet abruptly found the ground, and I stumbled to maintain my footing on rock solid marble tiles. The change of scenery from my dark office was jarring. It had been the middle of the night in New York, but the sun was just beginning to rise in this part of the world. The portkey had delivered me into the center of a grand foyer, with lofty ceilings and checkered tiles- it was obviously a newly built house that was designed to look old. Directly in front of me was a sweeping stone staircase illuminated by the golden light of daybreak that pierced through gilded floor-to-ceiling windows. Multiple hallways stretched out in all directions, adorned with spotless white rugs that matched pearly chiffon curtains.
I turned around in place to look for the patient, or perhaps someone who was expecting me, but I was alone.
"Hello?"
My voice carried through the empty halls and was sent back to me with an echoing "oh, oh, oh". An unsettling feeling grew within the pit of my stomach. On the cream colored walls there were no portraits, or paintings, or anything that could be used to identify the owner of the Chateau. I procured my wand. I may have just transported myself into a trap.
"Revelio." I whispered the revealing spell, and was surprised to discover layers upon layers of protection charms on the house. The owner was clearly picky about who they allowed in.
"Hello!" I called again into the empty halls. "I'm the Healer that was summoned!"
"Hello, miss."
I whirled around to face the source of the small voice. I had to stifle a gasp when I laid eyes upon a House Elf wearing nothing but a faded paisley-patterned pillowcase. House Elves were not common in America, and it had been almost 8 years since I'd seen one.
The House Elf took my hand, but only a few of my fingers could fit in her tiny grasp. She pulled me along with urgency. "Paisley will take The Healer to the Madame."
I had no opportunity to ask questions as the House Elf pulled me up the stairs and through the halls. Everywhere I looked, the walls were blank; the doors to rooms were closed; and there was no sound, no chatter, no signs of other people. Just who summoned me here? And why?
The House Elf, Paisley, led me to a set of double doors.
"Madame is in very bad condition," Paisley whimpered. "Please do what you can."
Paisley opened the door to one of the finest bedrooms I had ever seen; but I was unable to take in its beauty, as my ears were immediately assaulted by an animalistic scream. My nose picked up on the heavy stench of blood.
Four older mediwitches dressed in lime green robes surrounded a massive bed. Two were at the base on their knees, and the other two were on either side of a deathly pale young woman. She appeared to be in agonized labor.
I looked down at the House Elf. "There must be a mistake," I said, my voice drowned out slightly by the woman caterwauling. "I do not deliver babies."
"Madame has a blood curse," Paisley replied worriedly. "Madame requires the Dark Magic healing."
My eyes widened. A pregnant woman with a blood curse? Blood curses were extremely rare, and notoriously difficult to treat. Most people with blood curses died before they reached middle age. For someone with a blood curse to become pregnant... I had never heard of such a thing.
I immediately set to work. I shed my overcoat and rolled up the sleeves of my white robes to perform a sanitizing spell over my hands.
"Miss?" I attempted to speak to the mother- but she was unresponsive.
"You are ze Dark Magic Healer?" One of the older mediwitches asked me in a heavy French accent.
"Yes," I replied. "This woman- how long has she been in labor?"
"Six days," Another mediwitch replied, also in a European accent. "We 'ave been giving her blood replenishing potions... and stamina charms to keep her awake... but we do not know what to do about ze blood curse. It iz preventing 'er from delivery."
I cast a diagnostic spell, and found abnormally large amounts of Dark Magic residing in her bloodstream.
"Ze baby is due any minute," The oldest mediwitch said to me. "But ze mother is just not strong enough."
"She needs an infusion of hedera alba," I said, readying the vial and my wand. Hedera alba, or white ivy, was a newly discovered rehabilitation medicine used to cleanse the body of moderate effects of dark magic. It certainly would not cure the mother of her blood curse, but it would help fight against the dark magic threatening to kill her before she delivers her baby.
I administered a drop of hedera alba directly into the mother's chocolate brown eyes.
I was not expecting the drops to work quite so quickly- but within seconds, the mother gasped, and jolted back into consciousness. She blinked furiously, more alert than before thanks to the medicine.
I cast another diagnostic spell. The mother was more stable now- but the Dark Magic was still encroaching on the womb, barely kept at bay by the medicine.
"Madame, the final push!" With the mediwitches' encouragement, the mother began mounting the final contraction. But I could see it in her face that she was nearing complete exhaustion.
"I can't," the mother cried. "I can't do it anymore..."
I knelt beside the mother and clutched her hand.
"Miss, you need to push that baby out," I said, my tone very serious yet gentle. "The longer you keep that baby in there, the more likely they are to inherit your blood curse."
The mother turned her head to look at me with an indiscernible expression. Tendrils of dark brown hair were plastered to her cheeks by cold sweat.
"... Erica Thorncroft," She breathed. "You came..."
I put my confusion aside and gripped her hand harder. "Push!" I commanded.
The mother's hand gripped mine back, weak but determined. The mediwitches gasped with joy when finally, a child's cry was heard- but the happiness was short-lived. Blackness was creeping up the umbilical cord from mother to child.
In less than a second, my wand was out.
"Diffindo!"
With a sharp and precise severing charm, I cut the umbilical cord before the curse could reach the newborn. The mediwitches looked horrified. I didn't bother explaining myself to them; there had been no time for them to take out cute little cord-cutting scissors when the child was seconds away from forever being infected by a blood curse.
The mother was unresponsive once again. Three of the mediwitches and I attempted to manage her hemorrhaging, while the fourth mediwitch cleaned the child, saying a soft "it's a boy".
After almost an hour of blood thickening spells and more of my curated medicine, the mother was finally stable. There were many times when her body almost succumbed to the curse, and I managed to bring her back every time. But just barely. This woman was hanging onto life by a thread.
Her blood curse was one of the nastiest I had ever seen. This woman would live to see another day, but she would be living with this toxic magic in her blood for the rest of her life.
I collapsed onto a stool, watching the mother's chest rise and fall with shallow breaths. The other Healers were surrounding the newborn boy, checking vitals and giving him his first bottle. He had an easy temperament, and didn't cry.
Where is the father? I wondered. In a house this big... there has to be more than just a woman and a house elf.
"Which one of you is her primary physician?" I asked the French witches. They exchanged looks.
The oldest one, who was probably older than my mother, replied to me in a lilting French accent, "We were summoned only six days ago. We do not even know her name."
I thought that was extremely strange. I asked, "Is there anyone at all that I can speak to about her blood curse?"
The mediwitch gave me a helpless look. "We have seen only the House Elf."
The second oldest witch scanned me from head to toe. "Where do you come from? Your accent is British, but your robes are American."
I ignored her question. I was not in the mood to talk about myself when there were still bigger issues at hand. I needed to find out who would be responsible for taking care of this frail young woman.
The House Elf from earlier suddenly appeared in the middle of the room. "Paisley thanks the Healers. Paisley will provide the payment."
The House Elf procured five pouches of coins and set them on the mother's bedside table. "Paisley will take the little master."
And with that, the French mediwitches handed the newborn to the House Elf, took their payment, and left. I was absolutely stunned.
"The American Healer has a portkey in the foyer to take her back to America," Paisley said to me as the newborn grabbed her thin waxy fingers. "Paisley thanks the Healer for saving Madame's life."
"Hang on," I objected. "I cannot leave until I speak with someone about this young woman's care. She is inches away from death."
Paisley's big eyes blinked up at me. "M-Master told Paisley to send the Healers away."
A-ha. So there is a Master. I shakily rose from the stool. I had been awake for over 20 hours now, but I wasn't going to leave without making sure this woman and her child were taken care of.
"Take me to the Master of this Chateau," I commanded.
The House Elf looked very nervous. "P-P-Paisley cannot."
I pursed my lips, and lowered myself to Paisley's height. "Paisley," I said sweetly, "You care for your Madame, do you not?"
"P-Paisley does."
"Then, like me, you do not want her to die. But- this is very important that you and your Master understand this- she most certainly will perish from the blood curse without a trained Healer looking after her and providing her medicine. I can help. But only if you tell me where your Master is."
Paisley's wide, watery eyes shifted around the room, glancing between the child in her arms and her Madame, silent and stiff in the bed. Finally, she gave in.
"....Master is in his study in the west wing."
I straightened myself with a forced smile. "Thank you, Paisley."
I gathered my medical bag and exited the room, leaving the payment on the table. Those French Healers may have had no problem taking money and leaving as soon as their job was done, but I could not in good conscience leave unless I knew the young woman's blood curse would be properly taken care of.
Now, to find the Master of the mysterious Chateau.