The Queen's Pleasure

The contrition

When Maya woke the next morning, she was cold again. She opened her eyes to see Carina crouched up on the chair. Had she slept there? Of course, she had. Maya wasn't living in a palace that had many beds. The queen could have slept beside her, but Maya knew the queen was feeling guilty. Her actions, her words, and her being here, were proof of it.

Maya had no space to feel any pity for her though. Because she still couldn't wrap her head around what had happened the other day between them. She was still coming to terms with it. But here was the queen, crouched up on her chair, covered in a blanket, so uncomfortable. Her face showed no sign of peace or rest. And Maya didn't know how to feel about it.

She felt bad for what she had said to the queen and she felt like she deserved what the queen did to her. But why was the queen here, why was the queen so hell-bent to make sure she was okay? Guilt. Carina felt guilty.

Maya was very confused about what she was feeling. She told herself she deserved that treatment. So did she deserve this treatment too? That too, from the queen?

Her throat felt dry. She wanted water, but she was a little away from the side of the bed, where she would have been able to reach for the glass. She tried nonetheless, and the stretch of her hand made her muscles burn. She groaned and pulled her hand back. She looked at Carina, she wondered if she should wake her. How could she ask the queen to get her water though? She couldn't. So she tried again.

She finally found the strength to reach for the glass of water beside her bed but by the time she lifted it, she felt a pull in her hand and she dropped the glass, the sound of the glass breaking effectively waking Carina panic-stricken.

"Maya," Carina rushed over, "what is it? Are you okay," she asked, crawling up next to Maya on the bed.

"Sorry, I just wanted water," Maya said.

"Wait," Carina said, only now registering that the sound she heard was of glass breaking on the floor, only now registering that the glass she had left on the stool on the other side of Maya's bed wasn't there.

She rushed over to the kitchen and fetched another glass of water and gave it to Maya. Maya tried to sit up but she couldn't muster all the energy, so she just sat up enough to take the water, and then she took it from Carina's hand.

The queen waited on the bed, sitting on her heels and when Maya was done, she took the glass and held it down on her knees.

"You didn't look comfortable," Maya said, trying not to show any hints of concern, but just stating a fact.

Carina looked down at the bed, not meeting Maya's eyes, "I'm far from someone who deserves comfort now," she said softly.

"Did you sleep okay?" Carina asked, only looking towards Maya's general area now.

Maya nodded.

After a beat of silence, Maya spoke.

"Your majesty," Maya said, "Don't you have to return to the palace?" Maya asked. She didn't like the idea of the queen sleeping in a chair in her house. This was far from what she ever imagined she and the queen to be.

Carina tried not to show the pain in her face when Maya said 'Your majesty' again, but she couldn't help it if it sounded in her voice.

"I must go back this evening," she said, "but I had to ask you..." she started.

"Come back to the palace," she says nervously, her fingers fidgeting with the glass in her hands.

She could see Maya begin to decline, so she spoke quickly.

"Please, Maya, just till you're strong enough to be on your own," she said, now pleading with Maya, her eyes closed like she couldn't bear to see Maya decline her offer.