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Copyrighting not intended
Eyes scanned the room nervously, the young girl twitching where she stood. A sharp smack to her thighs was her only signal to keep still. She grimaced, having been standing for a good couple of hours, clad in nothing but a thin set of underwear, barely concealing her well endowed form. The heavy collar around her wrist and ankles weighed her down, but she forced herself to keep standing, lest she was beaten once more. A clawed hand reach out to touch her, she whimpered, afraid.
"Hey!" A scratchy voice yelled, smacking the hand away. "No touching the goods"
The fox demon grumbled, muttered curses as he left, but not before giving the girl one last look that sent chills down her spine. Eyes downcast, she stood there as the crowd walked past, leering at her, their gaze radiating lust. She was sightly grateful for her captor, a rat-like demon that scared off anyone that tried to lay their hands upon her, yet she hated him for putting her in the situation she was in.
Looking around, she saw many humans and demons in the same position as herself. Some were younger than she was, and she couldn't help but feel a tinge of disgust at anyone who would put a child up for such horrible pleasures. She could hear the cries of those that had been bought, watching as their new masters dragged them away fr=or whatever tortures they had in store for their newly-purchased slaves
"She's unmarked and untrained? You better not be messing with me." a smooth voice drifted to her ears.
Tearing her eyes from the rest of the slaves, the girl spotted the owner of the voice. A mask obscured any defining detail, but the girl could tell the speaker was female, judging from her voice, her exquisite looking dress and her petite form told the girl that she was young, but looks could be deceiving, especially in this part of the realm.
"Of course! Ojou-sama" The slaver dropped into a sickeningly sweet tone, clearly sucking up to the lady. "Only the best for you."
The masked lady circled the pedestal the slave girl was on, eyeing her up and down, giving the scantily clad girl the shivers. "Koutarou."
A young boy stepped out from the shadows, his dark eyes matching his long dark hair. Around his neck was a collar, a symbol of his slavery, yet he was dressed impeccably, extremely unusual for a slave. He must have garnered enough loyalty to gain such a prestigious looking position. The boy named Koutarou stepped forth, his features wolfish, giving away his heritage as a demon. Sniffing, he moved closer to the girl standing on the pedestal, circling her.
"She's good." he spoke before retreating once more
"Ojou-sama, must you always bring him here?" the rat demon stammered, throwing nervous glances at the wolfboy lurking in the shadows "You know I always give you the highest quality goods."
"Rule one, DON'T trust anyone from this part of town, especially the slavers market." the lady whispered near his ear, sending the slaver into trembles."Tell me, are you hiding something?"
"Hiding? No... Of course not!" he stammered nervously, twiddling his thumbs.
A sharp glare scared him into submission. Whoever this lady was, she must have quite a reputation to garner obedience with just one glare.
"She's cursed, Ojou-sama. Her past few masters have all been killed as they tried to mark her. That is why she has not been marked or trained."
"That explains the price tag" The lady scoffed, finally knowing the reason for the ridiculously low price on an unmarked slave "Cursed or not, we'll take her."
"What?! Ojou-sama!?" the slaver cried out "She's cursed!"
"And you want her off your hands, don't you?"
When the slaver kept silent, she continued, as though reading his mind "Don't worry, keep bringing me the best goods and you'll see me and my money once again."
Koutarou threw a heavy sack towards the slaver before looking at the girl, grabbing her chains" Come."
Meekly, the girl stepped off the pedestal, the light that had been shining on her going out, indicating a completed transaction. She now belonged to this lady, whoever she was. She was led to a long limousine, obediently following the lady inside, the wolf boy behind her. She sat quietly, like she had learnt during her years as a slave. A loud yawn caught her attention, and she turned to see the wolf boy curling up on the limo seat, a tail popping out from his pants twitching lazily. Confused at his appalling behavior, she looked back at her new master, who gazed back at her, ignoring her sleeping wolf boy. The boy must be special if he was allowed to behave in such a manner.
"What's your name?"
The girl was confused. Masters assigned their slaves names. Each time she had been bought, she had been given a new name. She had lost track of the last name she had been called.
"Your birth name. Not the stupid ones given by you previous masters."
She kept silent, wondering if she should speak. Feeling her master's eyes on her, she spoke softly "Konoka. Konoe Konoka."
"Konoe? Hah, he did mention you were a royal." The lady laughed, the sound of her laughter surprisingly soothing to her ears "Well Konoka, you better get some rest. We have a long journey ahead of us."
Konoka nodded, but knew she was far from sleepy. She had been thrust into yet another household, and she wondered how harsh her new master would be. Her previous encounters weren't pleasant, and Konoka hated thinking about it. Instead, she stared out the windows of the limo, watching the trees and mountains fly by, lamenting the fact that she would never be free.
Konoka didn't know when she fell asleep, but when she woke, she found herself lying on something incredibly soft. It felt like she was sinking deep into whatever it was. She hadn't felt something so comforting in so long. Which is why she pushed herself up quickly, trying to figure out if she was undergoing some new form of torture. Maybe while she was enjoying it, her new master would destroy that feeling by mercilessly shocking her, or throwing scalding water at her.
To her surprise, all she saw was a normal looking room. Eyes widened. She was in a room, in a bed. Completed with windows and a table and a closet. This had to be a dream.
"Oh..you're awake!" a voice called out to her "You must have been tired! You've been asleep for 2 days!"
Konoka jumped, eyes wide with fear at the foreign voice "Don't worry! We're not here to hurt you! Please calm down!"
Her eyes fell upon a small figure, two in fact, two figures that look extremely similar. Their bright pink hair was tied up in ponytails and they were dressed similarly. For a moment Konoka thought they were a part of the master's family, until she saw their collars. Strange. It had been twice she had seen slaves wearing outfits fit for a well-to-do household. Something did not add up.
"Konoka-san right? I'm Fumika" one of them spoke
"I'm Fuka" the other added in a eerily similar voice "We're glad to see you're awake."
Konoka squirmed under their gaze, frowning. No one had called her using a suffix or by her birth name for many years. It was unsettling.
"Setsuna-sama wishes for you to take a bath before you meet her." Fumika spoke, holding out a set of linen. "The bath is all ready for you"
"Change out of the robes and into this" Fuka pushed a stack of clothes into the stunned girl's hand "The bathroom is just over there."
It was then Konoka realized that she was no longer clad in her underwear, but instead sported a clean robe over her revealing garments. Confused, she stared at the twins blankly, and had to be dragged into the bathroom by the two. Thankfully, they left her alone, telling her that they'll be outside. Konoka took off the robe, shuddering as the cool air hit her bare skin after being so snug in the robe for some time. She peeled off the dirty garments, tossing them in the bin as instructed by the twins.
She hesitated to step into the bath water, afraid that it was a trap. Slowly, she lowered herself into the water, hissing as the warm water came in contact with her bruises and cuts. The feeling soon changed into one of relaxation, the warm water soothing the girl into a trance. It didn't last long, the chattering voices of Fuka and Fumika shaking Konoka from her trance. She momentarily panicked, hurriedly scrubbing herself as clean as she possibly could as quickly as possible, jumping out of the bath. She had taken too long. Her master would not be pleased.
As if she wasn't in enough trouble, her foot caught on the edge, and she fell crashing to the ground noisily.
"Konoka-san?" Fumika called worriedly from outside "Are you alright?"
Dazed, Konoka felt tears well up in her eyes. She had done it. She was going to be punished for taking too long and causing a ruckus. Painfully memories replayed in her mind as she she began to tear up. Ignoring her state of undress, she huddled into a corner, burying her face in her hands, awaiting the cold harsh grip that would drag her to the dungeons.
"Fuka, Fumika, what is going on here." a familiar voice cut in
Konoka tensed. It was her new master. Shaking, she tried to shrink further into a corner, hot tears still flowing. She heard the door open with a slam and she jumped, trembling at what was to come next. With all sorts of thoughts in her mind, Konoka freaked out when she felt hands touching her, trying to push them away.
"Hey.. Hey...Shhhh It's okay. It's okay"
A warm feeling enveloped her as she felt the familiar feeling of the robe being draped around her. Two hands coaxed her into an embrace, which she fought violently, but soon gave in, clinging onto the figure's shirt like a lifeline. They sat there for a moment as Konoka continued to sob into whoever was holding her, and for a short moment felt safe. When she had calmed down, she felt herself being lifted up, her eyes closed tightly. Konoka felt the dip of a mattress below her body and bit her lip, all sort of cruel outcomes playing in her mind.
"Fuka, Fumika. Leave us." her master spoke
The twins left quickly without protest, shutting the door behind them. Konoka shuddered, afraid.
"Konoka. Look at me." her master spoke softly, pulling back from her.
Afraid of being disobedient, Konoka lifted her head, tear tracks running down her cheeks as she looked at her master.
Bright worried eyes stared back at her, the dark hair framing the young face that was smiling at her, no longer hidden by the mask. It took a while for Konoka to recognise her, for she looked not much older than Konoka was "Hey. I'm not going to hurt you."
Konoka whimpered slightly, not believing a word. Her master sighed, running her slender fingers through her dark locks. "Konoka, my name is Sakurazaki Setsuna. You're in my mansion."
"You're my new master" Konoka croaked out before bursting into tears "Please don't punish me. I'm sorry. I promise I'll do better. Please don't hurt me... Please..."
"Listen, I'm not going to hurt you, honest" Setsuna spoke, grabbing the frantic girl by her shoulders. "Look, I know things are confusing for you right now, but trust me, I would never hurt you."
Stifling her cries, Konoka stared back at her, eyes wide with confusion.
"Can you trust me. Please." Setsuna smiled gently.
Searching her eyes for signs of malice or deceit, Konoka found none, and hesitantly, she nodded.
"Look, why don't you go finish up your bath and I'll explain things afterwards alright?"
Konoka nodded dumbly, following Setsuna into the bathroom. "Take as long as you need to Konoka. It's probably been a while since you had a bath."
"I..I can't." Konoka mumbled, shaking "Too much time gets you punished."
Setsuna shook her head "Not here. I'm not like your previous masters. Please, take as long as you need to, I'll be right outside."
As Setsuna left, Konoka hesitantly stripped herself of the robes once more, entering the bath again. Slowly, she began to scrub whatever dirt was left on her person, wincing each time her hand rubbed a sore spot on her body. It wasn't long before she was done, her first scrubbing had gotten rid of much of the dirt, but had left her skin red and raw from her frantic attempts to get out quickly. She rinsed off her brown hair, smiling lightly at the lack of grime and dirt.
She picked up the outfit Fuka had given her. It looked like a maid's outfit, but had a more casual feel to it instead of the obligatory servant feel that usually came with a similar outfit. Pulling it on, she saw that it fit her nicely, loose enough for her to grow into healthily, as though it was made just for her. She pulled on the stockings and slipped her feet into the shoes. For the first time in a long time, Konoka saw herself in a mirror, not dressed in rags and covering in dirt, but dressed in clean clothes. Brushing her hair quickly, she stepped out meekly, facing Setsuna as she stood up from the chair she was on.
Now that Konoka wasn't freaking out, she got a good look at the girl that was her new master. Her dark hair was tied up in a side ponytail, the tip just brushing her upper back. Instead of the dress she had worn at the slave market, Setsuna was dressed in a crisp long sleeved shirt and vest coupled with a loose tie. Chains adorned the dark vest, shining brightly under the light. Her pleated skirt ended mid thigh, it too had a chain adorning the left side. Long socks covered her legs, quickly disappearing into boots. She turned red when she saw the damp spot near Setsuna's shoulder, wrinkles mirroring it position on the other side, but the other girl didn't seem to mind.
"Enjoyed your bath?" Setsuna asked with yet another smile, eyes twinkling merrily
Konoka nodded, still distrustful of a lot of things, but grateful for the bath.
"Are you hungry?"
A sharp growl echoed through the room, Konoka turned beet red. She hadn't eaten anything decent in a long while and her last meal was 2 days ago, no wonder her stomach betrayed her at the sound of food.
"Let's go grab something to eat. We'll talk along the way."
Konoka automatically paced herself behind Setsuna as they walked out into the hallway. Setsuna frowned lightly, but said nothing of the girl's behavior, knowing it was the result of many years as a slave.
"How old are you?" Setsuna asked, starting with an easy question.
"I turned 17 last month..i think" Konoka replied quietly.
Setsuna raised an eyebrow at her uncertainty but pressed no further "How long have you been in the system?"
The brown-haired girl thought for a moment, chewing slightly on her lower lip "I was taken when I was 6."
Setsuna stopped short, turning back to her, face twisted in disgust that she was taken at such a young age. The young lady turned back quickly, continuing on. They soon reached the dining room, a long extravagant table sitting in the middle of the room. Setsuna took her place at the head of the table, Fuka and Fumika fussing over her. Konoka stood where she was, unsure of what to do. She had never been allowed into a dining room of any sort, always locked away in a small room or somewhere similar.
"Come on! Don't be shy!" Fuka pulled Konoka over to a chair next to Setsuna, seating her next to the girl.
Konoka stared down at the pristine set of cutlery before her, eyes widening further when a steaming plate of food and a glass of water was set right in front of her. The aroma on its own was mouth-watering enough. It was a simple dish of rice and curry, a bowl of soup on the side. The meat and potatoes seemingly calling out of her from the plate, tempting her. It had been so long since she had eaten a proper meal. Usually she was given stale bread and water for her meals, or if her masters were generous, a lukewarm bowl of gruel that tasted downright disgusting, but much more filling than the bread. She felt the sting in her eyes as she continued to stare at her plate, praying that it wasn't a dream, and that it wouldn't disappear when she touched it. She has had too many dreams like that, and she was afraid.
"What's the matter?" Setsuna's voice snapped her out of her daydream. "Don't like curry?"
"No!" Konoka shook her head fervently "It's just... I haven't eaten something like this in so long, I don't want it to ...disappear."
Konoka turned slightly red, embarrassed by her ridiculous reasoning. Setsuna smiled warmly, placing the cutlery into her shaking hands "Eat. There's more where that came from."
Hesitantly, Konoka dipped her spoon into the food, watching as the curry pooled in the cavity of her spoon, covering the white rice with a golden brown glaze. Lifting the spoon to her lips, Konoka took a slow bite. An explosion of flavor attacked her taste buds, filling her senses with something she hadn't felt in a long time. Tears welled up in her eyes as she hurriedly scarfed down her food hungrily. Setsuna paid no heed to her reaction, calmly eating from her plate.
"I'll show you around the mansion later" Setsuna spoke "I'll introduce you to the others when we see them as well."
Nodding quietly, Konoka finished her meal, cleaning the plate of every last bit of food. She watched as Setsuna finished off her meal as well, hurriedly averting her eyes whenever Setsuna looked in her direction. A shadow dropped down from the ceiling, startling her. The female ninja, leaned down near Setsuna's ear, murmuring quiet words that Konoka couldn't hear, handing the girl a file before disappearing as quick as she had appeared. Setsuna flipped open the file, eyes sparkling with the slight hint of intrigue.
Konoka took fleeting glances at the file in Setsuna's hands, but she did not raise any questions. She just sat there quietly until the sound of Setsuna snapping the file shut caught her attention once more.
"Sorry about that." Setsuna smiled lightly "Lots to do."
Not knowing how she should respond, Konoka nodded, avoiding eye contact. She watched quietly as Setsuna's expression went from intrigued to a frown to a light smirk. Konoka wondered what could possibly elicit such a vast array of emotion from her new master. She had never really seen anything other than a frown and lust from her previous masters, making her current master extremely different, which made Konoka nervous. If Setsuna was as every bit cruel as her previous masters, she would at least know what to expect, but this girl was a complete mystery to the young slave.
"Interested?" Setsuna looked overly, a quirky smile on her lips
Konoka shook her head, her face red from embarrassment at being caught staring.
"Know how to read?"
Again, Konoka shook her head, this time much slower. She barely knew enough to read, never receiving any form of education since she had been put into the system. She never had the chance to learn, always busy serving her less than satisfied masters.
"Come. Follow me."
Setsuna snapped the file in her hand shut, standing up from her seat. Hastily, Konoka got up as well, almost tripping on the legs of the chair. She followed Setsuna out into the corridors, the sunlight filtering through the massive windows along the walls, lighting up the interior of the mansion. It wasn't long before they stopped in front of a set of heavy oak doors. They creaked as Setsuna pushed them open, a musty smell hitting Konoka's senses. Crinkling her nose at the smell, Konoka followed Setsuna into the room.
Shelves of books towered over them, and Konoka shuddered every so slightly. She had bad memories associated with books, each one worst than the last. Setsuna set her file on the long wooden table near them, looking around the library.
"Nodoka? Yue?" Setsuna called out, scanning the massive room
There was a small squeak, followed by the sound of something hitting the floor with a thump, then the sound of books clattering the the ground. Konoka watched as Setsuna raised an eyebrow, amused. She followed her gaze to a nearby bookshelf, a small figure timidly emerging from behind.
"Se..Setsuna-sama! Gomenasai! H...How can I help you" the short girl stuttered over her words, shaking nervously.
She sported short purple hair and was dressed similarly to Konoka. Her nervous body language did little to ease Konoka's own fears, instead it only served to cause her more anxiety. Her eyes darted back and forth nervously, peeking out from under her long bangs that partially covered her eyes. She clutched a large book in her hands like it was the most precious thing in the world.
"Nodoka! Are you alright?! What happened!"
Another figure darted out from the opposite direction, long purple hair dancing in the wind. As it stopped near the nervous girl, Konoka realized it was another female, long purple hair reaching her thighs, a worried look on her face. It was clear that the newcomer carried herself with much more confidence and seemed to be in charge of the place.
"AH.. Setsuna-sama! What bring you here today? Another book perhaps?"
"No. Not today." Setsuna shook her head with an amused smile "I want you to help Konoka here with reading and writing."
"Eh?!" Konoka squeaked, eyes widening in surprise
"Konoka? Oh! You're the new girl Setsuna-sama brought it." the long haired girl eyed her up and down "I'm Ayase Yue. And she's Miyazaki Nodoka. Nice to meet you!"
Konoka merely bowed in return, still slightly in disbelief. She still had many doubts regarding her new environment. Confused over the vast difference between this household and the last. Granted she had only been here a couple hours, but being treated so normally was causing her much anxiety. Coupled with the fact that she learned the hard way to never touch books, Konoka was more than hesitant. She didn't trust anyone, not yet.
"Konoka! Are you listening to me?"
Snapping her head up, Konoka jolted from her thoughts, her face turning beet red "Gomenasai."
"Are you feeling alright?" Setsuna questioned quietly, searching for signs of illness
"No. I...I" Konoka stuttered, shaking her head, panicking slightly
"Everything will be fine okay?" Setsuna smiled "You're in good hands. Just calm down. Yue's not going to hurt you."
Quietly, Konoka nodded, taking deep breaths to recover. Setsuna smiled, guiding her over to the table and seating her down. As Setsuna moved away, Konoka unconsciously stopped her, fingers wrapping around Setsuna's wrist. Momentarily shocked by her actions, Konoka froze, unmoving. She retracted her hand in a flash, putting it in her lap. Setsuna moved closer, kneeling down by her side, sighing lightly as Konoka shook her head, eyes squeezed shut in fear. Shouts and yells filled her mind, drowning out everything else. The harsh sounds of a whip rang through her ears and Konoka almost felt the pain radiating through her body.
"Konoka. I need you to trust Yue okay?" Setsuna coaxed gently, thumb gently running over the back of Konoka's hand.
The brown-haired girl merely withdrew into herself further, shaking, tears falling down her cheeks. It was clear that something had triggered Konoka's breakdown, and it was bad. Setsuna swore under her breath, running a hand through her hair as she realized everything was probably moving too fast for Konoka to properly process. She had yet to digest the fact that she was in a different household ran by different rules and here Setsuna was pushing her into a situation that she didn't seem to want to be in.
Any other master would have left it at that. Ordered Konoka to behave and walk out, and Konoka was waiting for just that. She didn't know what came over her when her hand shot out to grab Setsuna. It was a mistake, and Konoka had panicked, sinking deeper into her flashback.
"I'm sorry. Please stop. It hurts." Konoka whimpered, stuck in her memories, her hands shielding her face as her body curled up instinctively "I won't do it anymore. Don't hit me anymore."
"Yue. Nodoka. I'm sorry." Setsuna apologized, glancing over at the two librarians.
"No worries. We've all been through the same thing" surprisingly, it was Nodoka who spoke, and Yue gave an agreeing nod from her side. "I think she only trusts you, Setsuna-sama."
Giving them another apologetic look, Setsuna lifted Konoka into her arms, effortlessly carrying the shaking girl out the doors. Konoka was malnourished and underweight, making it easier for Setsuna to carry her. Konoka shook, hands grasping onto Setsuna's shirt, her whimpers steadily getting louder. Pushing the door to Konoka's room open, Setsuna gently set the girl down on the bed. However, Konoka refused to let go, still shaking and crying, stuck in her mind.
"Konoka. It's okay. He can't hurt you anymore." Setsuna whispered gently, rubbing circles on the girl's back.
She sat there for a good half hour, whispering comforting words to the distraught girl in her arms, trying to shake her from whatever she was seeing. Konoka must have been pretty deep in, for she was unresponsive to everything. Setsuna was beginning to worry that Konoka would never snap out of it.
"Setsuna-sama?" A quiet voice sniffled in confusion
"K..Konoka!" Setsuna looked down to see red puffy eyes staring back at her "Are you alright? I think you were remembering something bad."
"I'm sorry." Konoka whispered, trying to push herself upright, but failing
"There's nothing to apologize for. Everyone here has gone through something similar." Setsuna got up, laying Konoka onto the bed. "I should apologize for moving so quickly. I didn't realized it was have such an adverse effect on you."
Konoka opened her mouth to protest, but was silenced by Setsuna. "Rest up. I'll check on you later."
Tiredly, Konoka shook her head, afraid. "Don't worry. We'll protect you."
"Don't go." Konoka whispered quietly lowering her eyes, but her body remained tense.
Setsuna nodded, sitting on the edge of the bed. It wasn't long before Konoka nodded off, her hand loosely gripping Setsuna's. Pulling her hand away gently, Setsuna left the room quietly, careful not to wake the sleeping girl.
"You shouldn't get too close to her." a shadow appeared next to her as she shut the door.
"Kaede. I'm treating her no different than the others that I take off the market, no different from the way I treated you when you came in to this household."
The ninja shifted slightly, pressing her lips together with a slight frown. "You'll be hurt."
"You and I both know what it's like to be saved from a nightmare." Setsuna turned to face the taller girl, tilting her head upwards to look at her face "It takes time, and trust. Things that they have been deprived of, things that they have learnt to fear. I want to give them that. I want them to be able to live without constantly fearing everything."
"Why you?" Kaede retorted, a slight hint of anger in her tone "Why don't you ever leave it to Fuka and Fumika, or any of the others here. We're here to help them too."
"I am the master of this mansion." Setsuna replied slowly but firmly, taking a breath "They have to know that they don't have to fear me."
"I don't want you to get hurt." Kaede dropped into a soft tone, resting a hand on Setsuna's shoulder
Placing her hand over Kaede's, Setsuna smiled "I need to do this myself. It..It helps."
Kaede dropped her hand, a soft sigh on her lips, moving in for a gentle hug "Don't get too involved, for your own sake."