Why wasI alive? I’d been hit by aetheric poison; I’d seen my blood turnpurple. What had happened?
A slowrhythmic breathing came to my ears.
A clockticked.
Carefully I opened my eyes a crack. Flickering gaslight camefrom my left. I was in a plain room with whitewashed walls. Was Iin a morgue? Would my waking up give someone a case ofhysteria?
With myeyes adjusted to the light I fully opened them. To one side SirPercival slept, slumped in a chair. His profusion of hair seemedmore unkempt than usual and his lab coat was in desperate need ofironing.
He had saved me. For the second time. I had no illusions asto why he’d carried me away from being killed by Mr Tok – I kepthim out of prison. By pretending to be his amour I gave the Department noreason to suspect and charge him for being a homosexual. Without mehe’d die in a squalid cell in Newgate. Without him I’d be stuck asa lowly domestic servant or tutor to some rich snotty-nosedoffspring. Whereas with him I’d immeasurably expanded my horizons,and helped pushed back the boundaries of aetheric knowledge. Notforgetting the nice dresses, of course.
Irecognised the room as one we used in case an experiment extendedovernight and we needed to stay close to it by taking turnssleeping.
Turningmy head I saw the clock on the little side table. It said the timewas One o’clock. Whether this was in the AM or PM was unknown to meas the room had no windows.
Mythroat was dry and I cleared it hoping to wake Sir Percival up sohe could get me some water.
Hedidn’t move.
I triedlouder and he mumbled something about high boots. Oh dear, he washaving another Cossack dream. Nothing else for it. I slowly triedto roll onto my side and found that I was weaker than akitten.
I rolledback into my warm, damp, body-shaped patch and croaked, “SirPercival.”
Nothing.
Imanaged to get more saliva in my throat and tried again.
“Sir Percival!”
Hestruggled awake like he was in the midst of doing something my mindshied away from with a muscular (and probably naked) Cossackhorserider.
His eyesblinked and he looked wildly round the room as if hoping to see astrapping young gentleman. His eyes eventually settled on me and hesmiled. Apparently I would do.
“Good. I didn’t know if it would work.”
“Water.”
“Hmm? Oh, water. Yes.”
He gotup groaning as his muscles seemed not to have moved for a while,and headed out of the door.
“Stay there,” he unnecessarily advised me.
While Iwaited for his return I tried moving my limbs. They wereserviceable but very weak. What was wrong with me? Then I chidedmyself for complaining that I wasn’t dead.
Thesound of footsteps returned and Sir Percival entered with a glassof water.
He pulled his chair closer to me and sat in it, letting hisarms rest on the bed while gently tippingthe glass so I could sip from it.
Curiosity was burning a fire in my mind.
“What happened?” I asked between sips.
“We got you out of there. You owe me for suit by the way.Disgusting side-effect. I’m afraid your dress can never be wornever again. I’ve put it out to be incinerated.”
“I meant, why aren’t I dead?”
Helooked away for a moment as if deliberating how much he could tellme.
“A few years ago I tried to develop a tincture to counteractmy own… inclinations.”
I lookedat him blankly.
He gavea deep sigh and said, “To try and stop me liking men.”
I had noidea what to make of this and managed to cover my confusionsomewhat by sipping some more water.
“Using my knowledge of the aether I tried to change mypersonality. In the course of its development I accidentally foundit was successful against aetheric poison.”
He’dgiven me something he’d made to try and stop being attracted tomen? How would if affect me? It stopped me dying of course, but…was I still attracted to the fairer sex? I imagined Hazel-eyes, andkissing her soft sweet lips, running my hands through her auburnhair, our hands exploring each other’s bodies.
It wasrather enjoyable.
“It doesn’t seem to have affected me.”
“No, it had no effect on me either.”
“Are you still trying to develop it?”
“No. Not since I discovered the side-effects.”
My bloodran cold.
“Side-effects?”
“I’d resemble Grimaldi’s clown.”
He’dcompletely lost me now.
Seeingmy utter bewilderment he reached past me and picked up a mirror I’dnot seen as it had been lying flat next to the clock. He held it upso I could behold myself.
My darkblond hair was gone. It was now a bright shade of pink. I wasspeechless. I also looked very sweat-stained.
“Imagine me with my beard and hair like that? I’d not be ableto show myself in public. I’d have to shave it all off.”
“But to know it did this,” I shuffled my shoulders vaguelytrying to indicate my new coiffure colour, “You must have had pinkhair for a period of time?”
“I made good use of black boot polish, and it was well beforewe met, Miss Lovelady. I kept wondering whether I should dispose ofthe concoction, but never got round to doing anything about it.Just as well, don’t you think?”
“How long will it last?”
“I’ve no idea. I gave you a rather large dose as your symptomswere far advanced; as your dress and my suit willattest.”
“What about the Department? Surely they must think I’mdead?”
“I’ll just say that it was the power of our love.”
We bothgrimaced at the very idea.
“Really?”
“No, I’ll probably say I built a machine that filtered thepoison out of your blood, or somesuch nonsense.”
“Will I always be this weak?”
“I found that after a few hours I was as right as rain. I didhowever use a lower dose,” he said as if thinking out loud. “Bestget some rest,” he added quickly, avoiding looking at me while hetook his chair back against the wall and sat in it.
“Are there any other side-effects I should knowabout?”
“Not that I’m aware of.”
Sleepwas reclaiming me and I closed
