A Prince of Dathomir (Darth Maul x OC)

Emancipation - Part 1

The next morning she was as sore as anything and tired beyond belief. Blood still clung to her skin, now dried and flaked into the bed below her. The majority of her ripped and bloodied clothes from the night before in a pile on the floor. Zaiya would have to wash and dress if she was to be accompanying this Tesar to wherever he was going. It was then she realised what had woken her. There were people walking around outside and they had drawn too close to her door. She was always hesitant when it came to footsteps. She'd had to learn what sounds belonged to who, what it meant when a door was closed too sharply, what body language indicated about a person's mood. It was sometimes hard to tell, but now, she was able to tell by the way D'Sarr placed his glass on his desk, what kind of day she would have.

Zaiya stood and took her clothing to the bathrooms. No one spoke to her as they saw her enter, fresh cuts over her pale body. The lines of her tattoos that snaked over her hips, down her legs, up her back and along her arms in lines with meanings unknown to the others. The old scars were mostly faded but the new were an angry red across her thighs, arms and torso. She would have to make sure she washed them well today, lest they get infected again. The water was cold, and the soap and rags for washing were harsh, but she had long stopped caring about it. Her fingernails were blue by the end of it and her lips trembled from the shockingly cold water, her hands trembled as she dried herself on a threadbare towel and pulled the new white garments on. Very similar to the previous day's outfit, though without the feathers, thankfully.

Mostly dressed, she returned to her room to finish dressing and dispose of the previous night's clothes. D'Sarr didn't care for her to rewear things. He liked the idea of the fabric to be clean, fresh, untouched... unspoiled. So that he could be the one to mark it, stain it. Be the first to ruin the virgin cloth. It wasn't the only thing. She clamped down on the memories and forced them aside. They would do no good here.

In her room, she was lacing up her boots when she heard footsteps coming her way. Zaiya paused in her movements to concentrate. Soft footfalls, hesitant but a quick pace. Ieya. She tied the lace quickly and stood, opening the door, looking down at the Twi'lek whose hand was raised, about to knock. She jumped on seeing the white haired nightsister and stepped back. Zaiya just stared, expectantly.

"May I enter?" She signed with her hands. Zaiya did not respond other than to step into the room and leave the door open. Ieya entered swiftly and shut the door behind her. The witch waited for an explanation. Ieya turned and with shaking hands she signed. "Nannie said this was for you." From her tunic, pulled out a small gold filigree item, dotted with rubies, intricately designed, yet broken in half... Zaiya's eye widened. How...? She reached out a trembling hand of her own and grasped it. A breath exploded from her as the familiar warm metal touched her gloveless hand. She stared at it in shock, then up to Ieya and back again.

"Nannie found me and had me hide this... the other item was a decoy, in case she had been seen. Clare was following her, but she didn't see Nannie give this to me." The twi'lek signed hesitantly. She dared a peek up at Zaiya's face, surprised to see the shock across it. Carefully, Zaiya took the pendant and slipped the cord over her head, hiding it beneath her clothing, the metal pressing between her breasts against her skin, near her hearts. She looked back at Ieya with more emotion in her expression than the twi'lek had ever seen.

"Thank you." Was all the Nightsister was able to sign, and in an effort to show the depth of her gratitude, reached for the smaller female's hand, and squeezed in both of her own. Ieya had not seen this side of Zaiya before, but broke from her nerves and smiled. It seemed she understood the importance of the broken necklace to the white clad woman. After a moment, Zaiya released the twi'lek and made sure the pendant was hidden, her face smoothing into expressionless calm once more. It was as though nothing happened. Ieya nodded, and hurried off. Zaiya tugged on her gloves and put some changes of clothes into a bag to take with her and left the room to meet with the head of the house.