Closed Double Double, Toil and Trouble [Verin Rush]

[Redd]

“Good girl...” The words echoed inside of her head and she was reminded of the time that she had spent with her first master. Of the time when she had first shown him her wolf and it had seemed that he was pleased with it… It had, but then he had left, disappeared, left her to starve to death. The words that Verin had spoken, reminded her of the similar words that Elias back then had spoken which wasn’t all that long ago. Two or three seasons at most. Back then, she had felt content with those words, very content. But now? Now she was being reminded that those words no longer brought content to the young wolf, for she was tired of simply exchanging from one set of hands to another. The man removed a key from around his neck and she realized that the collar was not locked yet, but she knew that it was too late to back out of the decision that she had made. For once a wolf had made up their mind, they rarely went back on the decision that they had made. Redd was tempted to do so, but then if she did then she wouldn’t be true to herself and so she simply gritted her teeth together as the man reached towards her.

His hand gripped her jaw and angled her head to the side as the man locked the collar in place around her neck. It was a soft click, one that her sensitive hearing could pick up on. It was a sound that made her want to hang her head, that made her want to throw herself out of the window right then and there as she realized that her life was once again, not her own. Once again, she would have to serve another, to do their bidding even though she wanted to refuse. There was never the stability that she craved for, never the one person that wanted to keep a hold of her for too long for they always left. Verin was no different, for he kept telling her that she financial value to him, whatever financial meant. She drew in a long slow breath as her single hazel eye continued to peer into one of pale blue ones that Verin possessed. He said that she was safe with him, that he would not hurt her and she believed him, to an extent. For he was determined to return her to a master that she felt within her, was already gone.

However, a simple nod of her head was given before her hazel gaze flickered away from the man to view the bed once more. The weight of the silver-plated collar rubbed at her skin slightly, but she paid no mind to it for she was sure that it would never come off. Yes, she had put the collar on by herself and allowed the human to lock it around her neck, but that did not mean that he trusted her. Humans never trusted anyone but themselves. ”Of course, I understand fully that you won’t hurt me unless it is punishment for my… misbehaviour. Even then, it won’t be pain that will be as permanent as a losing an eye.” Even as she spoke these words, she felt that the man before her would keep her safe until he gave her back to Miro. A cause that she felt was a lost one, however, the human would do as he pleased, no matter what she said. A trait that all humans shared or so it seemed, especially when the one telling them such a thing was a kelvic and a slave.

Slowly, she then angled her head so then she could view the man before her, watching him as she tried to interpret anything that he did or said. The man reminded her of Elias in a way. Soft touch with most things, speaking in a firm tone that suggested that the words they spoke were of some importance. The young wolf realized then that they did have their differences as well and she also realized that so did Verin and Venser. For the tells were there, all of them and she wondered if he thought, that she still thought that he was Venser. Verin was much more soft of touch than Venser, his hair was also longer than Venser’s, Verin's eyes were a pale blue rather than that different blue that Venser had and Verin preferred black and grey colours rather than the blue that Venser dressed himself into. The differences were there, she just had to remind herself of them if she wanted to remain some-what sane and not attempt to kill him during the night. ”If you are reassuring me about the fact that you won’t hurt me because you are not Venser, don’t worry, I am aware that you are not your brother.” However difficult it is to remember, she told herself as she glanced back towards the bed.

[Verin Rush]

Once the key was inserted into the lock, Verin was careful to watch the girl’s reaction to her new situation; even the emotions of animals could be betrayed, and the blond was keen to know the workings of the girl’s mind. It was evident that the collar was not something which she wanted to wear, and Verin thought that he could see the end of an internal battle raging on within the slave. He wondered if Redd had ever before been the subject of Hypnotism, if she knew its effects and could recognise what Verin had done to her.

Verin hoped not. He did not want to risk the possibility that his magic-assisted manipulation of the girl would be compromised by her knowledge of what he was doing. Miro, he knew, had strong knowledge of the art, and didn’t rely on a collar to keep Redd in her place. He wondered if he was fighting against the Mage’s much more potent ability. He could never hope to gain her loyalty if that was the case. "I won’t have to if I can return the damned Kelvic to him..."

Returning to his earlier position, his gaze returned to meet the girl’s as she responded to his statement, his promise. Again, he winced at the mention of the eye, and what his spiteful brother had done to her, and this time, he was caught off guard enough that he could do nothing to hide the shudder from the notice of Redd. He had spent much of his life coming up with excuses for his younger brother, and even going as far as to shield him from the pain that their father inflicted upon Venser, but he could find no excuse, no reasoning that would justify the mutilation of the poor creature sitting before him.

He wondered if Ender’s warnings about Miro spoke true, if Miro was corrupting his brother. "No... I will never cause you to come to so much harm, nor will I knowingly suffer another to do similar to you whilst you are in my care, Redd. Of that, you have my word. " Verin’s words, melodic in their quality, seemed to be hitting their intended mark. Djed pooled in his body, caressing his tongue and swarming his eyes as he spoke the words, trying to imprint trust upon the girl.

And it was only now, as he used the Hypnotism, that he realised his motives had changed: before it had been about instilling obedience in order to make his life easier. But that most recent use had been only to set the girl at ease, which he didn’t need to do. He realised that he didn’t want to return the girl to the hands of Miro, where she would most likely be subject to more suffering at the hands of his twin brother.

The girl spoke again, and Verin was pleased at how easily Redd had accepted his magic-lathered words. Though he shifted uncomfortably, for he was about to potentially break that promise already. Smiling tightly at the girl, he pushed himself up onto his feet and strode across the small room and opened his portable poisoncrafting kit, where he pulled out three empty glass vials. "Redd, I need you to understand that what we are about to do is for your protection as well as mine." Walking back towards the collared slave, he reached into his old cloak and pulled out the sheathed tamo daggers.

Pale blue orbs bore into the girl’s warmer, darker, eye as he remained wary of and sudden movements from the girl. He placed the items in his hands on the floor on either side of him and reached for the girl’s left arm. If there was no resistance, he placed it gently in his lap as he shuffled closer. His left hand remained in contact with the girl’s porcelain skin, gently rubbing his thumb in circles along her lower arm as he spoke. He ignored the twinges of pain behind his eyes as she pushed streams of Djed through them, as well as through his fingers , trying to produce an emotional response of calm trust. "This will not hurt, Redd."

Though his touch remained gentle, he shifted his grip so that, if she were to struggle against him, he could restrain her. One-handed, he unsheathed one of the daggers and lifted it, allowing the slave to understand what was about to happen, before he brought the sharp edge of the blade to her skin and pressed down, drawing blood. The blade was immediately replaced by one of the small vials, and he carefully angled the girl’s arm to allow the drops of blood to flow into the vial.

[Redd]

Verin’s words drew Redd’s single gaze and she observed the wince and shudder that her new master had displayed. Although, she wondered as to whether the movements were unwanted movements, for never had she seen him react to any of her words before… Until now. He had been stiff and mostly silent, speaking to her when necessary. It had suited her just fine, for she was sure that from now on, her life would be nothing but misery, not that it hadn’t been before. It’s just now, she didn’t hold any kind of hope that happiness was for her. Once she had said that she didn’t think that happiness was within her reach, but that didn’t stop her from hoping. A foolish hope, echoed her thoughts. Reflection had been brimming within the hazel hue as she remained upon her position of the floor, kneeling as had been the order of Verin. However, the simple shudder of the man had perhaps allowed her to trust him, even if it was just that little bit, for she still held massive reserves. Her masters had a way of leaving her behind and if she wasn’t being left behind, she was being chased away. Such is the life of an outcast beast, she thought as her stiff form relaxed just a little with that thought. The realization that she was nothing more than a beast, had come to her straight after Venser had ripped out her right eye and she had since then, accepted it as fact.

It was then that the man seemed to be back-tracking upon his words as he began to explain to her that what he was about to do, was for both of their protection. Her gaze watched as he walked back towards her, confusion colouring her features for a moment, till he pulled out of his coat what appeared to be two daggers. If she hadn’t been kneeling, she would have reeled backwards with a growl. If she hadn’t of been collared, she would have shifted and sank her teeth into the wrist holding the daggers. If she hadn’t of been so weak from her lack of a constant stream of food, she would have fought back, even in human form. Instead, she angled her head to the right as her top lip pulled back to reveal her sharp teeth, a soft growl rising. Death, was the first thing that came to mind. Redd thought that the man might actually kill her, but then she remembered that he had pulled out a couple of glass things from something on the desk. What was he going to do to her?

Her hazel hue stared into his pale ones and she then watched as he placed the items upon the floor before her and her shoulders sloped downwards. Something was going to happen and chances were, she wasn’t going to like it and although she had gone out to hunt, she was still too weak to fight him. Her form tensed then as he reached out and grasped her left arm. She gently pulled against his grip, but her attempt was only heart-hearted. Was it wrong that every time someone touched me that she immediately thought that pain was going to soon follow? Pain was a constant factor in her life, she couldn’t expect that there would be anything else within her life. If there was ever to be a sudden absence of it, she realized that she wouldn’t know as to what she would do.

Silently, she watched as he placed her arm into his lap and began to rub slow circles across the skin of her lower arm. That very action brought a shudder from the young wolf. She didn’t understand, as to why he was trying to reassure her. His actions indicated that he was trying to relax her, but she was anything but relaxed. How could she be relaxed when he was going to stab her with a dagger? He spoke again and she felt that small amount of trust that she had felt before, return as he told her that it wouldn’t hurt. She knew, however that it would hurt, because daggers hurt, they cut, sliced and stabbed. Verin’s movements were slow, but she cringed deep within herself as he unsheathed one of the daggers and lifted it so then she could see it with her single eye. Then she watched him bring the weapon to press against her skin, drawing blood. She felt pain, although it didn’t hurt as much as she thought it would, neither did she feel the need to wince. Is this because I have gotten used to constantly being in pain? She asked herself as she watched her crimson blood spill into the glass item that Verin held. Redd realized then, that she was always spilling her own blood for her masters and that it wouldn’t change now.

[Verin Rush]

The girl's expression was not one of comfort, particularly when the daggers were revealed to her. Verin's movements were slow, and his eyes never left her face. The first vial was quickly filled with blood, and, he quickly swapped it for a second, tilting the arm further to allow the flow of blood move with a little more speed. Blood was flowing much slower and he wondered what he might be able to do to speed it up. Cutting a deeper incision would only cause more damage to the girl, and pouring water over it would dilute the blood. Given the discover that he and Master Parnell had made, he knew that the water would do worse than dilute the blood - it would probably neutralise the completed Wildleash poison.

He rubbed his thumb over the incision, to try to stop any coagulation of the blood... and it surprised him that it worked. Every so often, he would glance up to check the girl's face. The blades beside him might quickly become weapons for her. "You're doing well, Redd. Stay still, we're almost half way there..." he said as the second vial filled up half of the way. Her eye gave everything away - Redd was close to the edge, and was probably only being held back by the silver collar around his neck and his use of Hypnotism. Shifting, he prepared himself for the possibility that she might snap.

"Good girl..." he said again, an attempt to soothe her as the second vial filled and he placed it next to the first vial quickly before replacing it with the last, empty, vial. Once again he rubbed his thumb quickly and firmly over the cut, removing the dried blood. He kept moving his thumb in circles on the Kelvic's porcelain skin and, though no magic was being used, he hoped that the sentiment was doing something to maintain sense of calm within her.

Finally the three vials were filled, two to the top and the third, four fifths full. The flow of blood had slowed substantially by the end, and Verin had given up, lest he push Redd's patience too far. Holding the third, he gathered the other two in the same hand and stretched to place them on the table, out of reach so that they would not accidentally b pushed over. "Don't move, Redd, I need to clean and secure the wound." Gently, he placed the arm in the girl's own lap and rested he other hand over it, motioning that she should be applying pressure to it. Then he rose and went over to the small basin in his room, where he had clean water from the lake to wash himself. Grabbing a cloth, he soaked it and squeezed and excess liquid out. He also reached over to grab a clean strip of cloth.

Returning to the Kelvic, he lifted her arm and placed it back in his lap before applying pressure with the wet cloth. Working in silence, he cleaned the skin around the wound, though he was careful not to drag it over the actual site, incase he stripped away any dried blood and the heavy bleeding resumed. Dropping the cloth to the grounds he exchanged it for the strip, which he wrapped around Redd's arm a couple of times before tying it off. "Good girl," he repeated those same words again, imbuing magic into them this time as he met the girl's eyes. A stab of pain returned to behind one if his eyes, but he ignored it as he impressed upon Redd just how pleased he was was with her. "I'm very pleased with how well you've done today."

OOCEnd it here or would you like to finish it off with a post?

[Alea Davenport]

Thread Award! Redd: Skills: Investigation +1 Meditation +1 Rhetoric +1 Lores: Anger management: Pacing Verin’s Motives Aren’t Important Verin: Another Temporary Master Spilling Blood for Verin Extras: Possessions Gained: Silver Kelvic Collar Notes: Poor Redd and her abandonment issues! I kept wanting to award some “Angst” xp! Verin Rush: Skills: Rhetoric +1 Hypnotism +3 Medicine +1 Lores: Redd: Damaged by Previous Masters Redd: Feels responsible for Yoona’s enslavement Extras: Ledger Deductions: -20 GM for Silver Kelvic Collar with Key -5 GM for Silver Necklace Possessions Gained: Silver Necklace with Key to Redd's Collar 3 small vials of Redd’s blood Notes: Please remember to edit your request to show that it was graded. Additional Comments: I wanted to give more lores, but so much of your reactions was in your own heads and kept hidden from each other! I hope you both learn to open up to each other a little If you have any questions about the grade, please feel free to PM me and we can discuss it.