Stay

three.

Aaliyah had been more confused in the last twenty four hours than she had in her entire life. It was like she was being bombarded with new information every five to ten minutes. Each update worse than the last.

Warith's comment that he would send for her now made sense. Him saving her made sense. Nadura's rescue made sense. So many things now made sense, but while many questions had been answered, the blow from the answers was arguably worse.

Aaliyah was in a state of shock. She could vaguely hear an incensed Nadura throwing question after question to Samirah who was stuck with the job of informer. The poor girl hadn't been prepared to deliver such news, let alone deal with the aftershock.

To the best of her abilities, Samirah answered Nadura's questions, but Aaliyah could feel her eyes on her.

At some point, Aaliyah found her voice and quietly asked Samirah to leave so she could have some time alone with her friend.

The servant girl hadn't looked so relieved since her first few seconds of arrival. With a polite bow, she left Aaliyah to her many thoughts and Nadura to her many questions.

"This is madness," Nadura paced across the room, hand on her hips. "We are not mail order whores."

Aaliyah winced, the severity of Nadura's words striking something within her. Mistress. The word itself was not unfamiliar. She had been around plenty of those her entire life. Women whose way of life consisted of pleasing whatever man summoned them to their chambers. She never judged them, as many had just been dealt a short stick, but she also did not understand the mentality of some. Over the years, she had seen many of these women take their title of mistress as the equivalent of royalty, allowing the lavish gifts and occasional trips with their client to elevate their sense of self importance. In some cases, these mistresses would become pregnant, securing their status as the mother of a royal's child. And, if they were lucky, the child would be a boy. That was rare, but she had seen it happened. 

What if...

She forced herself to push those thoughts away. She had more important things to worry about.

"But you of all people." She finally found her voice, eyebrows crinkling in confusion. "Why would he choose you?"

"What do you mean?" Aaliyah was surprised by the strength of her voice, but also surprised by Nadura and her insinuation. No, Aaliyah's scar was far from a beauty mark. Highly distracting, and virtually impossible to miss. Her figure though, that was another story. Even she, with her humble nature, was not ignorant to the curves that enticed the men she entertained. Yes, she was slightly larger than many of the other dancers in terms of weight, but the only objections she heard about her body was from the same sex.

Warith saw her perform. He saw her body. Underneath that caustic exterior, Warith was still a man. A man with needs. Needs that, apparently, he found Aaliyah able to satisfy.

Coming to sit on the bed next to her friend, Nadura paused, making sure her words did not cause anymore insult to injury. "What I mean is you are innocent Aaliyah. Nothing about you screams harlot. Of all the women he has access to, why choose the needle in the haystack?"

Aaliyah felt relieved. Her friend had meant no harm and she understood her point.

"Maybe that is the reason." Nadura was quiet, so she continued. "The fact that I am innocent. Some men prefer the naive over the nubile."

"Warith Al Ghul is far more monster than man," Nadura's eyes darkened and her voice low with underlying anger.

Aaliyah could see Nadura was struggling to control herself, and she realized she had to do something before both women found a fate far worse than what had been presented.