Wind Wielder

Chapter 34 - Monsters in the Mountain

*** Trigger warning: Brief mentions of slavery and abuse.***

Zara didn't sleep well.

At least not at first.

After she had pleasured herself not twice, not thrice, but five fucking times– with the same fingers that had nearly brought Azriel his release– until she had finally been exhausted enough to collapse into sleep. But even sleep was not restful. Not when her mind was plagued with images of him, the sounds of him, the scent of him.

But today was a new day. Today was an important day. And Zara had shit to do.

She had shaved and exfoliated every single part of her body, before deep conditioning her hair and putting the equivalent of two pounds of curl cream in her hair. She opened every single window in her room, letting the winds scour every single scent from her room, as she diffused her curls until they were dry and spinning in perfect ringlets down to her waist.

Zara's bronze skin shone with the reflective body lotion she had covered herself in head to toe, making her skin look soft and glowy. Blood red covered her full lips, and her cheekbones were carved of stone and bronzed. Her emerald eyes were lined in dark smoky kohl and Zara thought just the weight of her stare might kill a male.

And then Zara sat by the window in her robe, and buried deep down within herself.

She was going to the Court of Nightmares today.

By the time Mor arrived, Zara's scented candle had been lit for an hour, and any and all scents from last night had been erased.

Mor was already dressed, adorned in a crimson floor length dress with all kinds of scandalous cut outs and slits and a low neckline. Mor ran an appreciative, analytical eye over Zara's makeup which was similar to her own, before her chocolate eyes caught on Zara's left eye. Mor reached for Zara's makeup brush and commanded. "Close."

Zara did as she bade, and allowed Mor to fix whatever kind of error she had made, Mor's brush was soft against her eyelid.

"Open," Mor ordered, and Zara did so, allowing the female to assess further. She nodded solemnly. "Good. Not bad, Zara."

Zara grinned cheekily, "I had a good teacher."

Mor smiled half heartedly, but it was clear she was subdued, given who they would be seeing today. Zara could practically see the ghost of memories clinging to Mor's heavy shoulders this morning.

Zara's smile faded slightly. She wouldn't be the only one haunted by memories. "You have my dress?"

Mor nodded, and handed a folded piece of fabric no bigger than a napkin over to Zara, who tried not to show any facial leaks. It had been a long time since she had worn a dress like this. She didn't have a single good memory associated with them.

As if already knowing where Zara's mind had gone, Mor rested a hand on Zara's shoulder. "You are a strong female, Zara. No garment or person will ever take that away from you."

Zara bit the inside of her cheek as her throat tightened, but offered Mor a cheeky grin. "I always look good in black, you know."

Mor snorted, before slapping her on the shoulder. "I'll give you a second to change. There's a couple ways to wrap the neckline, so let me know when you've got it on and I'll help you."

Zara nodded, and quickly disappeared into the bathroom to put on the garment. She had already known what to expect, and wore a high waisted black thong underneath.