Spoiled and Pampered

Writers: Devin, Bree
Date Posted: 30th April 2007

Characters: Royani, Marod
Description: Royani wishes Marod would keep his guilt to himself and stop trying to be nice to her.
Location: Elsewhere on Pern
Date: month 3, day 1 of Turn 4

Royani had given up struggling by the time they arrived at the dingy abandoned cothold just before dawn. She found herself dropped on a dusty, rickety bed with her wrists and ankles still bound, and then ignored as the men went about whatever tasks were important to kidnappers.

Her beautiful gown was covered in dirt and leaves. Her hair kept falling into her face, having obviously escaped from its pins sometime during the night. She was exhausted and sore, and when she lifted her wrists up so she could see them, she was shocked to see that her struggles had rubbed them raw.

And all of that was nothing compared to the overwhelming foolishness she felt whenever she looked at Marod. She'd been tricked by a pretty face and the thought that someone might actually like her for herself instead of what they could get from her father.

She caught a hint of movement out of the corner of her eyes and flinched back when she saw that Marod was approaching her. No one had bothered to remove her gag, so she couldn't do more than make a muffled noise of protest.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he said quietly. Marod leaned closer to inspect her bonds and grunted. "I have some salve for that." He left to retrieve it and came back a minute later holding a small jar. "If I untie your ankles, do you promise not to try anything?"

Royani watched him for a moment before nodding once. Even if she couldn't escape, surely it would be better to have her legs free.

Marod hesitated a moment before reaching down to untie her ankles. He dipped his fingers in the salve and began smearing it on her raw flesh. "We're being paid to take you, not hurt you. You'll be back with your family in a few days." There was no reason she should believe him, especially after he lied to lure her away, but he wanted her to know and maybe it would calm her down.

Her eyes showed her doubt more clearly than words, as did the way she had to struggle not to jerk away from his hands. If she hadn't been so totally unused to discomfort, she might have jerked her legs away from him anyway to keep him from touching her. **I'm so spoiled and pampered I can't even struggle without hurting myself.**

Once he'd finished treating her ankles, he retied her legs firmly, but in a way that would cause her the least amount of discomfort. He moved back and studied her. "If I remove the gag, will you scream?" Not that anyone would hear her out here, but it would certainly annoy Klegen and Boesyn.

She didn't waste any time in shaking her head this time. The cloth was cutting into her cheeks and had some of her hair tied into the back of it.

Marod untied the gag, apologizing when he tugged some of her hair. He scrutinized her face and then reached for the salve. There was some rubbing near the corners of her mouth.

Royani flinched back when he reached out this time, bringing her hands up in front of her face to keep him from touching her. "No," she whispered, afraid anything louder might bring the other two men back. Marod might have tricked her, but he didn't frighten her the same way the other two did.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Marod said, pulling his hand back. "I just want to put some salve on where the gag rubbed you."

"I don't need it," she replied, not meeting his eyes. It was awkward with her hands bound, but she managed to feel along her cheeks carefully. She inhaled sharply when her fingers brushed the tender skin at the corner of her lips, but she dug her teeth into her lower lip to keep from saying anything. **It's just a little sore. Don't be such a child.**

Marod sighed. "At least let me get your wrists, then."

She didn't want him to be nice to her, because it made his betrayal seem that much worse. Her wrists had born the brunt of her struggles, though, so after a moment she extended her arms slowly and let him see the skin left raw by her attempts to free herself.

He frowned as he untied the cloth. "I suppose you wouldn't listen if I told you not to struggle. You're only hurting yourself, and you won't get past us even if you do get yourself untied." Marod applied the salve gently. Her wrists were more damaged than her ankles.

Royani looked away, not wanting him to see her struggling to fight back tears. "Then why can't you just leave me untied?" she asked after a moment, her voice trembling slightly in spite of her attempts to stay calm.

His voice grew softer. "It's not up to me. They want to make sure your secure and can't try to run away. I can leave the gag off, if you stay quiet." The longer he was with her, the more he was regretting taking this job. Shards, she was just a girl! She didn't deserve to be treated like this. But the marks, Marod reminded himself. The marks.

"I'll stay quiet," she promised quickly, her head whipping back to face him. "Please, don't gag me again. Please."

"Ok." He finished treating her wrists and secured them again. "I'll come back in a while with some food. I'll untie you again so you can feed yourself."

"Thank you." They were words of habit, but the minute they left her lips she wished she could take them back. Instead she turned her back on him and tried to find a comfortable position on the lumpy mattress. Maybe a stronger or wiser person would be able to think of a way to escape, but none of Royani's training in how to be a proper lady had prepared her for this. All she could do was close her eyes and pretend she couldn't hear her own terrified heartbeats.

Last updated on the April 30th 2007

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Spoiled and Pampered