Damara
Chapter 1
She didn't like him. He gave her the creeps. Every time she looked up it always was mistakenly into his eyes. Nathtae clicked her nails together as she settled deeper into her chair. "Kartane, darling, how long did your mother say that she would be?"
He took his eyes off the girl to look at his mother's friend. "She'll be here very soon, I'm sure. She's just finishing up with a...meeting." Damara was confused by the way he said "meeting," but her aunt seemed to understand judging by her knowing smile and chuckle.
The door swung open and Dorothea glided in, her typical devious eyes lit. "Good afternoon, Nathtae. It's always nice to see an old sister of my coven." Nathtae had stood and gave Dorothea an artificial kiss on the cheek. As Dorothea turned her head to accept the kiss, her eyes rested on Damara. "Who's this?"
"Oh, my dead sister's child, Damara. I'm raising her," Nathtae said casually waving her hand at the girl sitting on the sofa.
Damara cast her eyes to the ground under Dorothea's stare. She gave her the creeps too. "I'll have one of the servants show you to your rooms, and I'll see you at dinner later tonight."
"See you then," Nathtae smiled. Dorothea glided out, Nathtae close behind her. Damara started to stand up, keeping her head down, avoiding Kartane's eyes. She slowly moved toward the door, which she nervously realized was blocked by him. Damara looked up and saw his wide grin. She began to back away as Kartane lifted his hand up to brush her cheek. "Don't run away; I'm not gonna hurt you, little mouse. That's what you remind me of, a mouse, with your big brown eyes." He advanced forward. "Wanna play a game of cat and mouse?" His eyes looked like Dorothea's had when Damara had first seen her, and it made her feel like the world was spinning up to meet her. "Come here, little mouse," he said in a sing-song voice.
Her aunt's head popped back into the room. She grabbed Damara's arm. "Don't dawdle, Damara. Hurry up." For once she was glad of her aunt's impatience, as she pulled her past Kartane and out the door. There were many twisting and turning hallways that all looked the same, but the servant seemed to be able to distinguish the difference between. He stopped at two large wooden doors and opened the first, motioning Nathtae in. She entered and turned around to face Damara. "I'm going to freshen up for dinner. Wear something nice. A servant will escort us down when it's time. Until then stay in your room." The door slammed shut and bolted.
The servant motioned her into the room beside her aunt's. Damara shut the door. Her traveling case lay on the bed. She hated dressing up and hated sitting at dinner with her aunt. It was never anybody she knew and they never talked about anything interesting. But she had to go because her aunt said. It's not like she had any friends to have dinner with anyway; her aunt told her what to do and friends were never part of her life. The kitchen ladies were nice, and she liked them. Nathtae always yelled at them though. She guessed that they were sort of her friends. Damara sank down on the bed, and unhooked the latch of her case. She opened up a hidden side compartment that was opal-locked (her birthright jewel) and pulled out a small, worn frame with a picture in it. A tear splattered on the glass protecting the black and white picture. "I love you, mom." Damara delicately put the picture back into its place, and began to dig around for a managable dress. She picked out the dark blue knee-length dress with tight sleeves. After fluffing her long hair, she pulled out her favorite book and laid back on the bed to read. The book was very old and very thick, but it was her third time reading it.
After a hour or so, there was a knock on her door. She quickly hid the book (her aunt didn't like her reading) and called out, "Who is it?" as she began to probe the hallway.
"Open the door, Damara. It's your aunt!"
Damara hurried to the door, and opened it. Nathtae huffed inside. "Who the hell else would it be, Damara?"
The girl pictured Kartane in her mind, but shook her head. "Um...nobody, Aunt Nathtae." She chewed on her nail nervously and waited for more berating. She looked at her aunt; she was dressed very different than she normally was for dinner parties. The skirt she wore was tight and the shirt was cut low, showing her sapphire jewel.
"Our escort is here and we wouldn't want to keep him waiting. I'm going to be busy tonight so when you get tired go to bed and stay in your room," Nathtae said to her neice with an under current of warning. When she said to stay in her room, Damara knew that she meant it.
Turning on her heel Nathtae tromped into the hall and hooked her arm through the escort's leaving Damara to walk behind. Her aunt leered at the escort with his cold expression. "Daemon, how have you been?"she asked in an uncharacteristically giggly and feminine voice.
"Fine," he replied quietly.
"Dorothea said I could have you for tonight," she cooed as she ran her finger up his chest. Damara averted her eyes and instead looked at the stone walls. She had never seen her aunt like this, and didn't want to see anymore. Daemon seemed to be much less enthusiastic than her aunt who layed all over him on the walk to dinner. Nathtae sat next to Dorothea who had a man in tight clothes with a pretty face on the other side of her. Between Damara and her Aunt sat Daemon who still wore the same expression as when she had first seen him.
She watched him as he calmly looked around the room. She could feel his anger coming off him in waves. Anger as he watched everyone enter the room. Damara was slightly frightened, not by him, but by his anger. She had never felt anything like it before. As she was watching him she felt a presence of a Warlord sitting down beside her. She glanced over and blanched: it was Kartane. He grinned at her and waved. With an almost inaudible whimper she leaned closer to Daemon on her right. "Kartane sit somewhere else," he said with his smooth voice.
"Why should I?" Kartane asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Because I told you to," the black-jeweled Warlord Prince growled in reply. Something silent was passing between them on a male spear thread that Damara couldn't hear, but she could tell by the changes in Kartane's facial expression. Daemon's never changed except for one smug eyebrow raise and slight grin at the end. Abruptly, Kartane got up and moved to sit on the seat across the table from his mother. Damara turned with a grateful smile to her hero; he was watching her was a curious expression. "Thank you so much. He gives me the creeps," she said quickly. He smiled a little and said, "You're welcome. He gives a lot of people the creeps."
"My name's Damara Larken. What's yours?"
"Daemon Sadi. It's nice to meet you, Damara."
"It's nice to meet you too," Damara smiled for the first time since entering Dorothea's castle.
Her aunt heard them talking and turned to look at what was going on. "Damara, don't slouch. It's very unlady-like. I've taught you better than that," she ordered.
"Yes, Aunt Nathtae," Damara muttered. Her aunt turned her attention to Daemon who resumed his bored expression as she chattered, all smiles and batting eyelashes, about absolutely nothing.
Damara sighed, another boring dinner without anyone to talk to as usual. Dinner consisted of roast beef, potatoes, and green beans. She sat silently after she was done and waited for her aunt to dismiss her, which she knew would be soon.
"Damara, why don't you go upstairs to rest?" She turned to a servant and said, "Would you escourt her to her room?" The girl walked away from the table, following the servant who quickly led her to her room. She pulled out her thick book that she had been reading before dinner and read for a couple hours. She only looked up when she felt her aunt's presence with Daemon in the hallway, then in her aunt's room. She rolled her eyes, hid her book, and blew out the candle she had been reading to. Sleep came soon as she thought about her meeting with Daemon. She had heard bad things about him from women at her aunt's castle, but he seemed really nice. She vowed to get to know him better, as she drifted into dreams.
Chapter 1
She didn't like him. He gave her the creeps. Every time she looked up it always was mistakenly into his eyes. Nathtae clicked her nails together as she settled deeper into her chair. "Kartane, darling, how long did your mother say that she would be?"
He took his eyes off the girl to look at his mother's friend. "She'll be here very soon, I'm sure. She's just finishing up with a...meeting." Damara was confused by the way he said "meeting," but her aunt seemed to understand judging by her knowing smile and chuckle.
The door swung open and Dorothea glided in, her typical devious eyes lit. "Good afternoon, Nathtae. It's always nice to see an old sister of my coven." Nathtae had stood and gave Dorothea an artificial kiss on the cheek. As Dorothea turned her head to accept the kiss, her eyes rested on Damara. "Who's this?"
"Oh, my dead sister's child, Damara. I'm raising her," Nathtae said casually waving her hand at the girl sitting on the sofa.
Damara cast her eyes to the ground under Dorothea's stare. She gave her the creeps too. "I'll have one of the servants show you to your rooms, and I'll see you at dinner later tonight."
"See you then," Nathtae smiled. Dorothea glided out, Nathtae close behind her. Damara started to stand up, keeping her head down, avoiding Kartane's eyes. She slowly moved toward the door, which she nervously realized was blocked by him. Damara looked up and saw his wide grin. She began to back away as Kartane lifted his hand up to brush her cheek. "Don't run away; I'm not gonna hurt you, little mouse. That's what you remind me of, a mouse, with your big brown eyes." He advanced forward. "Wanna play a game of cat and mouse?" His eyes looked like Dorothea's had when Damara had first seen her, and it made her feel like the world was spinning up to meet her. "Come here, little mouse," he said in a sing-song voice.
Her aunt's head popped back into the room. She grabbed Damara's arm. "Don't dawdle, Damara. Hurry up." For once she was glad of her aunt's impatience, as she pulled her past Kartane and out the door. There were many twisting and turning hallways that all looked the same, but the servant seemed to be able to distinguish the difference between. He stopped at two large wooden doors and opened the first, motioning Nathtae in. She entered and turned around to face Damara. "I'm going to freshen up for dinner. Wear something nice. A servant will escort us down when it's time. Until then stay in your room." The door slammed shut and bolted.
The servant motioned her into the room beside her aunt's. Damara shut the door. Her traveling case lay on the bed. She hated dressing up and hated sitting at dinner with her aunt. It was never anybody she knew and they never talked about anything interesting. But she had to go because her aunt said. It's not like she had any friends to have dinner with anyway; her aunt told her what to do and friends were never part of her life. The kitchen ladies were nice, and she liked them. Nathtae always yelled at them though. She guessed that they were sort of her friends. Damara sank down on the bed, and unhooked the latch of her case. She opened up a hidden side compartment that was opal-locked (her birthright jewel) and pulled out a small, worn frame with a picture in it. A tear splattered on the glass protecting the black and white picture. "I love you, mom." Damara delicately put the picture back into its place, and began to dig around for a managable dress. She picked out the dark blue knee-length dress with tight sleeves. After fluffing her long hair, she pulled out her favorite book and laid back on the bed to read. The book was very old and very thick, but it was her third time reading it.
After a hour or so, there was a knock on her door. She quickly hid the book (her aunt didn't like her reading) and called out, "Who is it?" as she began to probe the hallway.
"Open the door, Damara. It's your aunt!"
Damara hurried to the door, and opened it. Nathtae huffed inside. "Who the hell else would it be, Damara?"
The girl pictured Kartane in her mind, but shook her head. "Um...nobody, Aunt Nathtae." She chewed on her nail nervously and waited for more berating. She looked at her aunt; she was dressed very different than she normally was for dinner parties. The skirt she wore was tight and the shirt was cut low, showing her sapphire jewel.
"Our escort is here and we wouldn't want to keep him waiting. I'm going to be busy tonight so when you get tired go to bed and stay in your room," Nathtae said to her neice with an under current of warning. When she said to stay in her room, Damara knew that she meant it.
Turning on her heel Nathtae tromped into the hall and hooked her arm through the escort's leaving Damara to walk behind. Her aunt leered at the escort with his cold expression. "Daemon, how have you been?"she asked in an uncharacteristically giggly and feminine voice.
"Fine," he replied quietly.
"Dorothea said I could have you for tonight," she cooed as she ran her finger up his chest. Damara averted her eyes and instead looked at the stone walls. She had never seen her aunt like this, and didn't want to see anymore. Daemon seemed to be much less enthusiastic than her aunt who layed all over him on the walk to dinner. Nathtae sat next to Dorothea who had a man in tight clothes with a pretty face on the other side of her. Between Damara and her Aunt sat Daemon who still wore the same expression as when she had first seen him.
She watched him as he calmly looked around the room. She could feel his anger coming off him in waves. Anger as he watched everyone enter the room. Damara was slightly frightened, not by him, but by his anger. She had never felt anything like it before. As she was watching him she felt a presence of a Warlord sitting down beside her. She glanced over and blanched: it was Kartane. He grinned at her and waved. With an almost inaudible whimper she leaned closer to Daemon on her right. "Kartane sit somewhere else," he said with his smooth voice.
"Why should I?" Kartane asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Because I told you to," the black-jeweled Warlord Prince growled in reply. Something silent was passing between them on a male spear thread that Damara couldn't hear, but she could tell by the changes in Kartane's facial expression. Daemon's never changed except for one smug eyebrow raise and slight grin at the end. Abruptly, Kartane got up and moved to sit on the seat across the table from his mother. Damara turned with a grateful smile to her hero; he was watching her was a curious expression. "Thank you so much. He gives me the creeps," she said quickly. He smiled a little and said, "You're welcome. He gives a lot of people the creeps."
"My name's Damara Larken. What's yours?"
"Daemon Sadi. It's nice to meet you, Damara."
"It's nice to meet you too," Damara smiled for the first time since entering Dorothea's castle.
Her aunt heard them talking and turned to look at what was going on. "Damara, don't slouch. It's very unlady-like. I've taught you better than that," she ordered.
"Yes, Aunt Nathtae," Damara muttered. Her aunt turned her attention to Daemon who resumed his bored expression as she chattered, all smiles and batting eyelashes, about absolutely nothing.
Damara sighed, another boring dinner without anyone to talk to as usual. Dinner consisted of roast beef, potatoes, and green beans. She sat silently after she was done and waited for her aunt to dismiss her, which she knew would be soon.
"Damara, why don't you go upstairs to rest?" She turned to a servant and said, "Would you escourt her to her room?" The girl walked away from the table, following the servant who quickly led her to her room. She pulled out her thick book that she had been reading before dinner and read for a couple hours. She only looked up when she felt her aunt's presence with Daemon in the hallway, then in her aunt's room. She rolled her eyes, hid her book, and blew out the candle she had been reading to. Sleep came soon as she thought about her meeting with Daemon. She had heard bad things about him from women at her aunt's castle, but he seemed really nice. She vowed to get to know him better, as she drifted into dreams.