Armana's Gift

VERA

      Nearly six months as a slave, she was finally making friends with the other females and they were finally opening up to her.

     "Vera," a finch winged slight woman started. She had brown hair and brown eyes, a commoner though here they were all slave. "I was wondering if you would help us clean a few rooms, if you would be so kind. I know it isn't apart of your regular duties but-"

     "Yes!" Vera jumped up from her spot and rushed over to Fern. "I would love to help! I need to get out of this room more often!"

      Zevan had been keeping her from really leaving the slave's areas of the mountain home. He had even banned her from seeing the males, since he didn't want them to draw attention on her by asking for her goddess' blessing. But surely, she thought, he wouldn't get mad if she helped the female slaves. They needed the extra hands because of all the visitors here. She'd heard, Lornak's advisers and his brothers were causing quite the stir. No slave been hurt yet though and she wanted to help her friends.

     "Let's go," Fern smiled. "We'll be doing some unoccupied rooms but we felt the need for an extra pair of hands and were a little worried about asking you. If we were doing any of the visitors rooms, we wouldn't have asked, Priestess, since we all agree with Zevan about keeping you safe."

      She tried not stumble over herself at that and looked to Fern with a frown.

     "Protect me? Zevan wants me locked in our room to protect me?"

     "Of course!" Fern looked about to laugh, and wrapped her arm in Vera's. "You're the only Priest of Priestess we've had in a long time. You just being here has encouraged many of us to start praying to our gods and goddesses again."

      Vera tried to blink back tears. She's brought them something they had lost and that touched her.

     "What is Zevan's story, that makes him so protective over everyone?" Vera asked as they walked to the rooms where the females had already gotten started.

     "No one knows except for a few of the older males. I've never thought to ask, but he's a good leader for us and tries hard to keep us safe."

      Vera nodded. He wasn't just protecting her from being hurt, he was protecting something they had found in her, even if she was untouchable to them all. He was trying to give them something more just by keeping her alive, a daughter in a way to one of their goddesses.

     "Hey you two!" Mizni grinned, waving them in and they began to change sheets, sweep and dust everything. It wasn't back breaking work in one or two rooms but by room five, Vera was getting tired.

     "How many more?" she groaned softly. They were all very quiet when they worked.

     "Three," Fern whispered, "so we're almost done."

      They kept on until the last room, when they heard voices. They all went quiet, biting their lips as they worked, hoping not to be noticed.

      "So, I was telling Lornak that he should just slap that silly mate of his around and be done with."

     "You know that his mate is a white dragon right? She's got the most magic we've seen in thousands of years. She might be smaller and physically weaker, but she would kill us with that magic. He chose her for that," the second voice hissed.

      "Do you smell that?" The first one asked, closer then before.

      "Like there are birds nearby?" The second one chuckled. "Yeah, it's those Avium slaves he has. He likes the bird people for some reason."