The stranger noticed straightaway that something unusual happened. She looked withdrawn.
"You look gorgeous in these glasses, Claudia".
Claudia did not answer. Instead, she shivered and looked around her in a bewildered way.
"Do you have a vision, Claudia?", the stranger asked.
Much to his surprise, Claudia answered in what sounded as a strange dialect.
"Who is Claudia? Are you talking to me? My name is Allegonda".
"Are you in some sort of trouble, Allegonda?"
"Trouble? It's an emergency. In what world are you living? Are you aware that the
town has been under siege by Spanish troops for months? Our walls are not very
strong and we are running out of food. They will butcher us if we surrender".
"Allegonda sounds like a Spanish name, or am I mistaken?"
"I am of Spanish origin but I was born and bred in Haarlem. My Spanish blood was
no problem when I grew up. They called me the Spanish Lady, that's all. But since
the recent troubles some people think that I might be a spy. People who know me well
support me. I don't beleive in religions, I beleive in people. I am worried about the war"
"Can you see me, Allegonda?"
"No, I can only hear you. Besides, there is something the matter with my eyes. When
you started speaking to me, all of a sudden there was this strange instrument
attached to my face. Like a crystal veil".
"Can you see anything through the veil, Allegonda?"
"At first I could not see well through the veil but now I have perfect eyesight."
"Where in town are you, Allegonda?"
"I'm sitting on a chair in the alley where I live, near a street called Groot
Heiligland. Can you see me at all?"
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