In the city of Vir girls are property, bred and raised to be the perfect wives. To serve and obey and honor the men that rule their city.
Elaia has always been content with her place in society. She is a perfect daughter, and with any luck she'll b...
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------- CASTINE -------
When I wake up the next morning, I groan. I have to meet with Sebastian today for my two month evaluation, or whatever. The only solace I have is in the fact that he's going to tell me I'm still too rebellious. Sure, that means I'll be stuck here longer but the alternative is... much worse. And besides, we're planning on getting out of here anyways so it won't matter.
A pang of guilt rises inside me as my fight with Elaia resurfaces in my mind. I might have been a little cruel. But, I'm not a coward. I'm just trying to survive. She can't blame me for that.
I force myself out of bed, glancing over to Elaia's side of the room. Her bed is empty and already made. I saw her come back in last night, though we didn't say anything to each other. She must have gotten up early.
I take my time getting ready, dreading the events of the day. When I can't milk it any longer, I leave the room, falling into line with the other girls as we head to the cafeteria for breakfast. "You upset Elaia greatly last night," Petunia chirps, coming up beside me.
I take a deep breath, resisting the urge to curse or roll my eyes. "I didn't mean to," I tell her, throwing my hands out. "We got into a fight. It's normal," I add.
Petunia shakes her head, her twin tails flouncing as she does. "Girls should never fight. It's against our nature," she replies in her bubbly voice.
I ball my fingers into fists. "Oh, right. Of course," I reply, unable to hide the sarcasm in my words.
Petunia gives me a pointed look but she doesn't say anything else. She walks ahead, speaking to one of the other girls instead. She's always correcting the 'inappropriate' behavior around here as if it's her job. She's definitely been indoctrinated more than most.
After I've received my tray of food I turn around, searching until I find Elaia in the crowd. She's seated by herself at a table towards the back of the room. With a heavy sigh I walk over to her.
"May I sit with you?" I ask, not wanting to upset her further.
Elaia shrugs. "I can't control what you do," she replies simply before taking a bite of oatmeal.
After an awkward moment, I finally sit across from her. "I'm sorry about our fight last evening," I say gently.
She nods. "I'm sorry too," she agrees calmly, but there's an undertone of bitterness in her words. "But that doesn't change the fact that you're still a coward."
I take a deep breath through my nose to keep from exploding. "I'm not a coward, Elaia. I'm just surviving the only way I know how. Can you really blame me for that?" I ask her, keeping my words low. Francisco wouldn't interfere, but I don't trust the other handlers, and I don't want to get them involved.
Elaia looks up from her bowl, her gaze softening a little. "No, of course not. But you could care about the other girls a little more. I would think someone with your background would care," she replies, pausing to take a sip of her tea. She closes her eyes, submersing herself in the scent and the taste of the tea completely before continuing.
