Free to Feel [Temporarily (??) Discontinued]

Chapter 11

Heather held onto Mistress and breathed in her sweet and warm scent. This was getting a little better now. He had kind of freaked out when her mother entered her room and tried to chat with him friendly, but now it was getting all better, calmer. Now that he thought about it, her family wasn't bad at all. The two brothers seemingly loved arguing, but they were nice and friendly to him and especially Raven.

Compared to them, it was evident that she was very little for her age. The guy watched her pull on her outside clothes, wondering if it was okay for her to be this height or if she would grow up later on. He knew he wasn't really tall himself, meaning she was probably taking after him.

"Where are you guys going?" Mistress hummed and lay her hand on his head, making the slave narrow his eyes. As long as she was nearby, he always felt at home, he always felt at peace. No matter where they were, she was his home.

"Raven-"

"I-"

Raven and John both shut up and the girl gave the elder boy an enraged glare. He tried to smile to ease the tension in the air, but Raven only scoffed and raised her chin up. Warmth blossomed in the bottom of Heather's stomach. His daughter was talking back to a free. An idiotic thing to do, but man, was she brave!

"I can speak for myself." She hissed and turned away from John, who seemed absolutely lost and maybe a little hurt for a few moments. "I wanted to go outside to get some fresh air. These two-" There was a dismissive nod in the direction of the two brothers that looked so similar to one another. "- suggested to show me around."

The slave with purple hair frowned and tilted his head. He did appreciate his daughter's courage and wish to seem strong and mighty, but wasn't she being... Well... A little too much? The boys didn't seem like they were going to hurt her. It didn't mean that they should be trusted, not at all, but maybe less hostility aimed at them wouldn't hurt?

"That's a great idea." Mistress beamed and nodded, pressing the guy a little tighter to her. "The garden isn't too big, so I doubt you can get lost there, but it is good to know which trees are safe to climb on, and which aren't. You don't want to fall from a branch, believe me."

Raven nodded and opened the door, being the first to step outside. As soon as she did, she immediately ran three of four steps away from the door, trying to put as much distance between herself and the guys. And once again something lit up in the heart of the male slave, the thought that she allowed him to get much closer to her was so pleasant, so sweet. Was she actually becoming accustomed to living with him? To the fact that he wanted nothing more than to touch her? To the idea that he wouldn't hurt her? He beamed at that idea.

Perhaps someday they would be like all those families he always envied.

"The last one is a rotten snail!" John giggled and nudged his brother, then ran out of the house. The latter gasped and pulled on his hat, rushing out after John. Heather's eyes widened when he saw Raven jump away a moment before both guys tumbled into the snow and began fighting with each other.

His muscles tensed up as he saw it all over again. The silk see-through curtains through which the light was shining ominously. The shadows surrounding him, their eyes filled with rage and hatred. The sharp movement coming from one of them - oh how he'd missed that - immediately followed by a tearing pain flashing across his face.

A half-laugh, half-yelp pulled the slave out of the memories of that day. His eyes opened widely as he saw himself standing in a hallway, pulled into the arms of his owner, who was gently playing with his hair. Her parents were both watching the two brothers play around in the snow, whereas Raven preferred to stay far from them, not wanting to get caught in the middle of their fight.