I'm back!
With this soppy, slightly authobiografical chapter...a piece of
junk, really.
Edited by my greatest fan, AnGi Kitty!
Chapter 8
Ozzie's Fort - 600 A.D.
Auree put the tray with her breakfast on the table and sat down. She took a sip of warm milk. Someone knocked at the inner door.
«Auree? May I enter?» Flea's voice asked from the corridor.
The fact that her master was waiting for permission was absurd enough. Auree jumped up from the chair, nearly overturning the tray, and hurriedly went to the door.
«Of course, sir»
«Are you well? You've frightened me this night»
«I'm really sorry...I must have cried really loudly if you have heard me from your bedroom...»
«No, I was in the parlour looking for biscuits. Sometimes I wake in the middle of the night suddenly hungry. But...please, eat your breakfast, dear»
«There's just one chair and...»
«I will sit here, on your bed. Don't worry. Well, perhaps talking about what happened could make you feel better. A frighful nightmare?»
Auree looked paler and more tired than usual.
«It wasn't a nightmare. It was...a memory. I...»
She hesitated, wondering if her master really wanted to hear about that. Flea was listening intently, so she went ahead.
«I was dreaming about my old house, the one in which I was born. I had to leave from there when I was eight. It's silly...but I've never managed to get over this. Sometimes I dream about it and always cry...»
«Why had you been forced to leave?» Flea asked gently.
Auree had never talked about her story. She spoke uncertainly at first, but then found her courage and ended up throwing out all the burdens that had weighed on her heart for more than twenty years.
«My father was a drunkard, he didn't work and used to steal my mother's money to go out and drink. One day, she drove him out...she believed we could live better without him...she was a teacher, a good one. But soon she found that her husband hadn't paid the rent for more than a year. And the school asked her to resign»
«A teacher! Now I understand why you speak and behave like an educated girl...I was surprised. Nevertheless, I can't see why the school did dismiss your mother»
«Are you joking? A woman who had left her husband...as a teacher? The entire village revolted against her, it was a scandal»
«But she had a reason...»
«No matter. We had to depart. My mother's life was ruined, she never find another good job again, and...I don't want to speak about her. But do you know what the worst part is? My father died just three years after that. She could have simply waited...and she would have been a respected widow!»
Copious tears were rolling down Auree's cheeks.
«He wasn't a bad person, you know. Just...weak...I don't hate him. But I will never, never forgive him for having deprived me of my house! It was...all my I had...»
Her voice broke.
Flea rose from the bed to approach her. He offered Auree a silky handkerchief, putting a gentle hand on her shaking shoulder, and spoke softly.
«I'm really sorry. I know what it's like, losing everything...»
He sighed.
«I have a similar pastI grew up alone with my mother, exactly like you, until»
«Really? And...your father?»
«Never knew who he was. My mother never spoke about him. She was a powerful magician, but...a bit mad, in a sense. She liked researching strange and new things. One day she tried a dangerous experiment...and failed. I was in the woods that morning, looking for herbs...I heard the explosion from a mile away. I was only ten so I was sent to an orphanage»
Auree looked up at him.
«Oh...it must have been terrible»
He shrugged, smiling.
«It could have been worse if I hadn't already known some magic...but I could defend myself. I remained there for about six months, then Ozzie came. He wanted to find out if I had inherited some of my mother's talent...of course I had! So he brought me here, to study and work for him. He was preparing an army...some deranged project of his. Well, I found Slash already here, practising as a swordsman...and then little Magus fell from the sky. Oh, beware of Slash, he's dangerous...and a sick pervert. Always spying on me hoping to see me undressed. I mean, I was a child! I had to adopt harsh measures: I threw a fireball at him»
«A...fireball?!»
«The first time I tried that spell, and it worked! I missed Slash, but burned down half of the room...he never touched me again»
He giggled mischievously.
«Even if I liked men...and I don't...I wouldn't consider Mr. Blueface worthy of my attention!»
Auree couldn't help laughing between tears.
«So you can smile!» Flea exclaimed, agreeably surprised «You should do it more often, you look beautiful!»
«I'd like to throw fireballs» she admitted.
«Well, it can be useful sometimes...but, believe me, it doesn't solve all your problems in life. Are you feeling better, darling?»
Auree was fidgeting with the handkerchief, not knowing if she could return it now that it was soaked.
«Yes. But you don't have to worry about me, sir»
«Yes, I do! You are under my responsibility! Being a Mystic doesn't mean being uncaring and cruel. Not always, anyway. Unfortunately, there are people like Ozzie and Slash who are inclined to abuse of their power. Haven't you heard about Slash killing dozens of slaves, and in a horrible way? I won't be surprised to see some human get him, sooner or later. It would serve him well. I mean...of course, I can kill people...on a battlefield...It's rather different, don't you agree?»
«Y-yes, sir»
Flea lowered his gaze, clearly embarrassed.
«You know, our races...are enemies...» he feebly added.
Auree nodded vigorously.
«I understand, sir»
«I hope I haven't killed some friend of yours...»
«No, I hadn't any»
He sighed.
«And I was trying to say something comforting!»
«You succeeded»
«I always speak too much. I must go now. You...finish your breakfast! You'll get ill if you don't eat enough!»
He picked up a biscuit from the tray and neared it to Auree's mouth, as to feed her. She hesitated for a little, then bit the biscuit from Flea's hand.
Only in the middle of that night Auree awoke -suddenly realizing that he had told her about his sexual preferences.
***
Well, actually, the booming of a violent storm had awakened her.
What if...what if I went to his room now...saying I'm afraid of thunder? she thought, all curled up under her blankets in a chilly room.
Another kind of girl could have used such a pretext. Not she, although she felt sure her master wouldn't have her turned away. Perhaps he would be pleased instead, seeing her in the middle of that stormy night.
Yes, another kind of girl shouldn't have found herself stuck in such a silly life, in the first place. Another kind of girl shouldn't have been still a virgin -against her will- at the ridiculous age of...well, that wasn't really important, only annoying.
Auree could imagine Flea so effectively she could almost smell his perfume...
Ah, I could open that door and walk through his parlour...enter his bedroom...probably he's sleeping, wearing something white...or black...but surely silk, with laces...his long hair untied and scattered on the pillow, his perfect pretty face relaxed, and...
She knew she shouldn't start to dream. That sort of fancies can be fun when you are just bored or tormented by some rather physical need. But if you are actually in love with a real person who doesn't know -or doesn't care- and you think you will never have him or her...it's painful.
She knew it very well. She had already experienced it. Even Auree had been in love once. She had had the great courage to actually tell him; he had declined, politely but firmly.
She knew that vain longing makes you cry and lose sleep.
But she hadn't been able to refuse herself a new hope. Because from that experience -sad as it had been- she had learnt that being in love was wonderful, despite the risks.
Once you have opened your heart it doesn't want to stay closed anymore.
***
Auree was partly right. Flea was actually wearing a white nightdress with a lot of lace, and had undone his braid. But he wasn't asleep. He was staring in the dark, thinking...of Auree. Because surely the little servant was scared by thunder, she was the kind of girl who would most likely always be afraid of loud noises. The kind of girl who wouldn't like to see him entering her bedroom in the middle of the night, though.
He chuckled.
No matter how much she's wanting me to do something like that...should I really try it, she'd scream and possibly throw a shoe at me...
Of course, Auree would never take any initiative without some strong encouragement. An old-fashioned girl.
Ah...I like her so much.
The storm was subsiding. He closed his eyes, still smiling.