Hey guys, this is a brand new story with characters I've created myself. This takes place about two hundred years after Page so its about 654. I hope y'all like it. Also, I'd like to thank Jae for giving me inspiration for everything J she constantly is telling me to write more and continue my stories. Well…here it goes.
Disclaimer: All of the characters belong to me but the world of Tortall etcetera do not belong to me, but they belong to the amazing and wonderful writer Tamora Pierce.
Zemora dived out of the grip of the adept Mithran priest as he advanced upon her.
"Come on Zemora, just once more," jeered the unattractive twenty-two year old Adept named Damien as he reached for Zemora's wrist.
" No Damien! How many times do I need to tell you? I'm not with you, you're NOT my boyfriend," said Zemora as she whimpered and cowered into the corner, realizing she had nowhere to run.
" Well that's too bad," sneered Zachary. "Lady Zemora we have an appointment, and we're keeping it."
About an hour later, Damien pushed Zemora out the door as she pulled her hooded cloak over her head and face.
" And that'll teach you a lesson. You're mine, and only mine. No one else can have you Zemora. I swear by the gods we worship; no one," said Zachary as he sneered down at her. Zachary towered over Zemora's five feet two inches at his own six feet five inches.
"Of course Zachary," whispered Zemora as she touched her hand to her nose; it was bleeding.
"Now go," said Zachary. He slammed the door shut and left Zemora to walk very slowly back the convent, nearly half a mile away.
As Zemora slipped into her room, her younger and less experienced friend, Nalani of Veldine looked directly into her face.
"Zemora what happened?" said Nalani as she stood up and ran over to her friend.
Zemora smiled, "Nothing 'lani, don't worry about it."
"But you're eye! It's so swollen and your face…"
"Sshh…" Zemora interrupted. She walked over to the mirror and surveyed the damage done by Damien. Her left eye was swollen and purple, as was her right cheek and bottom lip. Her nose was still bleeding and her face was scratched all over. She looked at her arms, which were covered with bruises made by Damien's strong hands as he held her down on the bed. She put her hands on her abdomen and winced, she was hurt in more ways than one.
"I'll be fine Nalani," said Zemora as she walked to her closet and pulled out a long sleeved, blue silk dress.
"I'll be right back," said Nalani as she walked out the door.
"Don't you dare go get the high priestess Nalani of Veldine!" said Zemora harshly and pulled her cloak over her head and her skirt over her feet.
"I'm not!" said Nalani. "I'm getting Bethany, she can help…"
"No 'lani! I can help myself! Please don't, she'll scold me again for getting into a fight!"
"No Zemora! You're always getting into 'fights' lately since you stopped dating Damien over a month ago! Even before Midwinter festival! You need someone to help you and that's what I intend to do," said Nalani as she stomped down the hall to Bethany's room.
"Bah," sighed Zemora as she sat down upon her bed. She pulled up the hem of her dress and surveyed her inner thighs and bit her lip. Like her arms, her legs had purple, finger marked-made bruises.
"Bethany, she's in here…" said Nalani, just before she gasped her friend's marked legs. Zemora covered her legs with her skirt, but not before Bethany saw the marks on her legs.
"Zemora," said Bethany with pity in her light hazel eyes. "I knew the marks on your face recently were more than just bruises from a fight. Why didn't you tell me?"
Zemora sighed and said, "Think of my family's honor when they find out Beth! What are they going to say?"
" 'Mora, your parents are some of the kindest people in the Eastern Lands, let alone Tortall!"
"Lady Blair and Sir Ryder are the nicest people in the entire realm," added Nalani.
Zemora smiled, "But still, the shame of their daughter; a noble woman raped by a Mithran priest, a commoner at that! And think about what Daniel will say, he'll be so upset."
Nalani gasped," You really were? I thought some man might have just…"
"No," said Zemora as she smiled grimly. "He raped me, Damien did."
Bethany walked over to Zemora and hugged her. "Are you going to be okay?" said Bethany. "Would you like me to heal your wounds and bruises and such? Though I probably shouldn't, so we can show the high priestess…"
"No!" yelled Zemora as she stepped back. "Not now, please heal them Beth. If he tries to do something again I'll go to the High Priestess but now. Please?" \
Bethany sighed, "It's against my better judgment as the prefect for this hall. But if you want to keep it quiet I'll do that as your friend. Well, we might as well begin now." Zemora sat down and Bethany began to heal the gashes and most noticeable bruises and scratches.
The next morning Zemora woke up with a pounding headache. She rolled out of bed, put on her slippers and made her way to the closet. She picked out an aquamarine gown with a flowing skirt down to the floor and an embroidered bodice. The sleeves were long and would cover the gashes and bruises on her arms, and the neck was high enough to not attract any attention to her rather large bosom. She didn't want to make a big scene at dawn worship with the Mithrans this morning, for she knew Damien would be there. She sat down in front of her mirror and tried to apply makeup to the bruise around her eye but it didn't seem to work so she gave up and then woke up Nalani. Nalani was the illegitimate daughter of Jacob Byrne Gibran of Veldine. He was not married – he was a bard, a singer who traveled around and that was the reason that Nalani was in the convent. Nalani had the look of a Saren – her skin was ivory colored but she did have the black hair and green eyes that ran in the Veldine line. Her lips were full and red and her chin was stubborn. One could see the fear in her eyes for her friend Zemora.
She could get a man in a second though Zemora. Even if she is illegitimate. In fact, Zemora could get a man in a second herself, but she always denied it. She had long wavy blonde-brown hair that went down to the middle of her back. Her eyes were an aquamarine color that changed shades with her mood – emerald when angry, pale blue when scared, blue-green when flirting and nearly a blue crystal when nervous. Her figure was perfect from her long legs, despite her being only 5"2, to her petit waist and large bosom.
As Nalani got out of bed and got dressed herself, Zemora pulled back the shades on the windows. Outside she saw the ice and snow that somehow told her that it would never be spring again.
She sighed and said, "I hope I don't' see Damien."
"Me too Zemora," said Nalani. "I think everything will be fine though." Nalani stepped out from behind her dressing screen in a pale green muslin gown that had a swoop neck, enough to show Nalani's curves, even though se was fourteen and had just recently had her first period.
Zemora smiled at her friend, Nalani's naivety was something to think about. "I think so too Nalani. I just home that Daniel isn't as upset as I think he might be."
Bethany peered in the door and had overheard what Zemora had just said and said herself, "I think he'll just be worried about you Zemora. And even if he is upset and mad, he does have a reason to be. He'll want to make sure you're okay."
"I know," said Zemora as she pulled her cloak over her head. "I just don't him to get in trouble if he gets into a fight. "
" 'Mora! You should want him to hurt Damien after what he did to you!"
"I know but…" Zemora said as she pulled the hood over her head so it covered her face.
"No buts! Now let's go," said Bethany as she grabbed Zemora's hand and pulled her out the door. The other girls who lived on the hall had lined up and as a prefect, Bethany went up to the front of the line and started to guide everyone down to the temple for worship of the king of the gods, Mithros. As they reached the temple, Zemora saw Daniel and smiled. His hair hand finally grown out to an inch and a half or so since the Mithrans had made him shave his head. Daniel was yet another common born man that Zemora had gotten interested in. He was 5"11 with blonde-brown hair that he had dyed so it was more yellow-blonde. Despite him being a scholar, his arms and stomach were muscular. He had amazing green-brown eyes that could melt any girls' heart. As he saw Zemora he smiled his amazing smile and walked over to talk to her.
"Hey," said Zemora.
"Here you are m'dear." He said as he put his hands to the hood of her cloak. "Why don't you take your hood off?" As he pulled down the hood of her cloak, despite Zemora's attempt to stop him, he gasped; Zemora's bruises had obviously been hidden by the shadow from her cloak and the little sunlight that was in the temple.
"Zemora, what happened?" said Daniel with a worried look in his eyes.
Zemora smiled meekly," That's what I need to talk to you about. Come upstairs to the balcony with me?"
"Of course but Tim and Damien were going up there," Daniel said with a worried look on his face.
"Well then we should probably not go there. What I need to tell you involves Damien," said Zemora as she winced.
"Then we'll go into the catacombs," said Daniel as he reached for Zemora's hand and walked down the stairs with her into the catacombs. He sat her down and said, "So tell me what happened Zemora, please?"
Zemora took a deep breath and said, "Well you know how I was in the cloisters yesterday with you? I was walking back down the hall from you room and Damien cornered me and chased me into the stairwell. He cornered me in the stairwell and put some herb up to my nose so I fainted. Next thing I knew I was in his room and he was on top of me, and he was hitting me. He raped me Daniel, he raped me." Zemora started to sob and put her head down onto his shoulder.
"Are you serious Zemora? He did this to you?" said Daniel as he stroked Zemora's head and she continued to sob into his shoulder. "He's going to pay for his Zemora, he's not going to hurt you again like this, ever."