[center][h3][color=B0C4DE][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/180415/8766bcbe72dc86096741efaec737debc.png[/img][/color][/h3][/center] [center] [sub] Bride of Keregar [@Legion02]; and sister bride of Nadia [@Vesuvius00][/sub][/center] The numbness from the impact faded into a warm pricking pain just as Keregar’s hand caught Xae’s face. She met his glare, rage flickering in her eyes as the gap between their faces grew short. Her teeth clenched beneath her lips as she willed herself not to break eye contact. Her face was jerked to the side seconds before their faces reached each other. A wet warmth touch her skin as his tongue traced the slap pattern on her face. Her resolve dying, Xae felt her eyes squeezed shut, face twisting as she held her breath, her lungs trapping the flow of air as she kept as still as possible, like a cat being licked by a wolf. Her eyes cracked open again, watching as the drakkan pulled back. [b]”You’re not in Gemina anymore. You’re in Drakka. I won’t tolerate insults like that again.”[/b] Xae couldn’t trust herself to speak after Keregar released her face. Rage coild in her gut, her only solace was that Keregar wouldn’t have reacted so angrily if there wasn’t hint of truth in what she had said. Using the back of her hand, she wiped at her cheek, surprised to find traces of her blood. A smear of crimson was left across her face. Xae’s eyes narrowing as Keregar turned his attention to her sister bride. For whatever reason, he seemed to save his wrath for her. After ordering Nadia to strip from her beautiful dress, he mentioned Sorracks sanctuary. An area designed for one of the many dark gods of Drakka. The god of children and all things that went along with that. Xae tried to imagine the home that Keregar described. She pictured tall log walls with sharp points on the end. Inside, rough buildings and the smell of smoke, little more than camping. Allowing nature in just enough to remind them all it was there. A life exposed. There was a sudden commotion as a drakkan faced the crowd and demanded a bride of his own. Before getting a proper look, she and her sister bride were ushered out into the rain. The journey to their temporary home was wet and cold. Colder than any desert had any right to be. The home of Keregar left a lot to be desired. It was bare. The floor was smooth, worn down by years of use. It gave off the impression of a place just moved in or out of. No sign of someone actually having made the place a home. A soulless place. “[b]Are you two my new mothers?[/b]” The additional voice startled Xae, her eyes narrowed on the young drakken. Xae struggled to process the words for a moment. Although she knew that drakken were born and they must grow up, she never had put much thought into what that process looked like. Always picturing the monsters that drakken were once they were full grown. Taking a second look, she saw Keregar written all over the young drakkan’s face. In the shape of the eyes and nose. The way that the lips curved just so. The boy was much fairer than his father, but that was the only difference . In those features, Xae found her hate getting pinned. [color=B0C4DE]“That’s not how mothers work[/color],” She said, a strain in her voice as she kept the anger she felt buried within. Despite that thought, an annoying voice tried to whisper soothing words about how many mothers this boy had had throughout his life. Despite the voice asking how many had treated the young thing as a monster, her voice remained cold. But she wasn’t about to show kindness towards anything of [i] his.[/i] [hider= TLDR] Xae gets slapped and takes her rage out on K's son [/hider] [center][img] https://fontmeme.com/permalink/180415/1eec6e9701f4270e592208988c670ad7.png [/img][/center] [center] [sub] Bride of [color=5ec4b3]Kagan[/color][@ghastlyInc] and Sister Bride of Adorabella [@eclecticwitch] [/sub] [/center] The wine here was far more dry than anything she kept at home. It left a pleasant, vaguely metallic, taste in her mouth. The type of wine that would pair well with meat and cheese. The lack of food she had the chance to consume today meant that the small amount of liquor was already leaving her with a pleasant warmth in her face. The rest of her still fighting off the chill of the rain. [color=5ec4b3]"I can only assume we'll get the other half of her once we do whatever little request he might have. Or we could just return her."[/color] Bree’s eyes flicked towards Kagan at this, squinting slightly a single, horrible thought shot through her mind [i] [color=E9967A]Return her and ask...for a different one?[/color] [/i] She tried to make herself feel guilty about the thought. Gems suffered enough without other Gems encouraging the drakken to view them as objects that could be bought, sold and traded at will. Things that could be returned. But if anyone could get Allie here...royalty could. It wasn’t personal. A sudden weight in her hand drew her back as more wine was suddenly added to her glass. [color=5ec4b3]"Try and pace yourself. As I understand it, being drunk generally makes it worse, not better. For first timers specifically."[/color] The vague warmth that had gathered on her face vanished in an instant, leaving a cold dryness in her throat. [i][color=E9967A] I also have to convince him and…I don’t really know him and I know that isn’t something he is interested in talking about right now[/color][/i] The idea of having sex with Kagan wasn’t repulsive, she had had too much time to get used to the idea. But she was sorely regretting not taking up at least one of the offers made to her by male gems before arriving. She had been saving herself, but that person was very far away now. Adorabella took the spot to Kagan’s right, so Bree walked carefully across the room, trying her best to keep the mud off of everything, and took the spot on his left. Bree tucked herself between Kagan’s chest and arm, moving carefully as to not bump either of their wines. Her back resting in the crook of Kagan’s shoulder. She was relieved to find that, after the initial touch of his wet clothing on her skin, the rest of him was warm. [color=E9967A]“I’m not nobility or anything,” [/color] said Bree, taking another sip of her wine. The taste of it was less strong now, her mouth having grown accustomed to its sharpness. “[color=E9967A]My family was a merchant class, they sold a little of everything, mostly properties, but my father was hoping to start working on some trade deals with the south[/color],” That statement was putting it lightly. At some point, the power dynamics started to change, with wealthy families climbing up to become equals of the nobility—like weeds among the flowers--her family among them. They were able to grow their wealth faster than most by keeping the family small, the wealth only ever having been split once by twin brothers. Her great-great-great grandfather and equally great uncle. One married and the other didn’t, when the twin died with no heir, the wealth was placed back together. Even now, years later, her families tree was a single branch straight down to her brother Sadge. She didn’t have any uncles, although her father had mentioned an aunt that had been reaped nearly thirty years before. And two great-aunts who had reaped together nearly sixity. In theory, they could be alive, but she didn’t feel the urge to seek them out. Her father lusted after the idea of marrying her brother to a noble woman for titles and such. But that was the only thing to be gained from such an arraignment. And her families track record for reapings kept many a potential brides leery of such a marriage. Having been to parties that were held at the houses of ‘high society’ her house was nicer. [i] Was nicer [/i]. In all of her dreams of Drakka, she always assumed that her new place would be similar to her hold. Just with uglier houses. “[color=E9967A]I have an older brother, he enjoys the social light[/color],” They both had back home, once their formal education was done, there was little else for rich kids to do. Only his talents and existence started and ended with the waxing and waning of the party. Sadge did look out for her, but she was lucky to be family when it came to him, as those were the only ties that held any value in his eyes. Bree watched Adorabella flit around, drying first Kagan and then herself, much in the same way that Kagan had in the hall before entering the hotel. “[color=E9967A]I almost feel silly,[/color]” said Bree, leaning forward to dusting off a bit of the fine powered, before settling back in her space. “[color=E9967A]Bringing this up now that you spent all that time drying us off. But our husband mentioned something about a bath while we were still in the hallway,”[/color] She was proud of herself for not letting her voice crack. For not losing her nerve at the last second. [i] It’s like sticky wax B--alway best to pull it off quickly, than delay and suffer more, [/i] Mom’s always knew the right thing to say. [hider=Summary] Aubree being a bitch and wanting to sell Adora for her lover. Drinking on an empty stomach. Plot twist, Kagan is the heater. Vague life story. [/hider] -edited on my phone. I’ll fix mistakes when I get home.