Angela was surprised to see her old friend Patricia at the market place. The two of them were neighbours, and it was always nice to have a friend to call on and exchange the gossip.
"One of my Bound and one of my Hunters died...Now I need replacements."
"That is unfortunate, good thing money is no issue" Angela replied nonchalantly, waiting for what she hoped to be her purchase, to step forward.
"She'll make a perfect Bound."
Angela glanced up at the green eyed girl which was coming towards her.
"No doubt she will. Doesn't look like she'll last a day" Angela said smiling as Patience spoke to her new slave, hiding a small sliver of jealousy. It didn't really matter, after all it was exceedingly rare for a Bound to survive, however it would make it quicker for Patience to get her Hunters back. Angela raised her hand for the bidding of the next girl. Vera, they had said. Patience gave her a quick goodbye before heading back to the entrance. Finally the bidding stopped and Vera was bought before her.
Angela placed the appropriate amount of coins in the slave masters hand, before snapping on the gold wrist band. Like most slave tokens, it could not be removed without the metal being destroyed. Unlike Patience she didn't bother hiding her strict nature.
" You are to call me Miss Edwards, I will give further instructions once we arrive"
Angela herded the girl past the entrance, giving Patricia a slight nod before making her way back home. Unlocking the front door to her elegant house, Angela hustled the girl inside. She led her over to the servant quarters, underneath the rest of the house. A small, barred room with a single bed was all that each slave was given. Vera, since she was new, also had two suits of clothing hung out.
"Right. Take a bath in the servants bathroom, and exchange your current attire with these." Angela pushed the two white dresses into Vera's hands. "I'll expect you ready in around fifteen minutes. I will send one of the other servants to instruct you further"
With that she turned and marched back around the house. She found Tyler cleaning one of her large marble floors.
"Tyler. My new female slave has arrived. You are to wait for her outside the servants quarters. Once she comes out I want her to help you clean the rest of the house. Both of you are to wear clean clothes for tonight, and make sure you are available. Do I make myself clear?"
She wasn't into being tactful about the choosing for tonight. After her feast she would have her Hunters and Bound bought before her. As per usual, the Master, or in her case, Mistress would read out the basic rules before having both the Bound branded. They would be kept in the cell beneath the parlour until dawn the next morning, when they would be released.
Jason watched as Evangeline slowly pushed back a strand of free hair.
"Oh. What nee-needs to be done?"
He pretended not to notice the stutter, seeing she was obviously uncomfortable with it. He looked unhappily at her before finally managing to speak.
"The branding needs to be prepared" he said after a pause. He grimaced. The whole thing was sick. Seeing that the mistress was out of the house, he found himself daring to voice his opinions.
"I just can't stand to think of who'll be next this year" he let out a sigh "It's good enough for us, we're certain not be chosen as Bound...but Tyler? Miss Edwards doesn't have to try to let us know who's being next. As for the girl I have no idea."
He found himself fingering the golden cuff at his wrist, as was his habit when something upset him. The sudden opening of the front door, jerked himself to his senses. He glanced warily at the door to the room himself and Evangeline were in before turning back to her, motioning for them to keep moving. Miss Edwards was not known to be slack with punishments.
He started off towards the parlour. Miss Edwards had had a new cell built underneath it, specifically for the ceremony. It was considered good luck to have better preparations for it, and Miss Edwards had not failed to take advantage of it.
The large metal door, with it's barred windows sent an involuntary shiver through him, but he forced himself to open it in search of the brand. The room was completely bare, with the exception of the box in the corner. A small pile of wood and the brand were to found inside. He started piling up the wood inside the corner, directly under the vent, trying to push away thoughts of what it was for.
Arya stood shaking slightly as each bid was put forward. Eventually it stopped, and the harsh wood of the SOLD sign was forced over head. She was swiftly taken down, and steered by her shoulders towards her new mistress. A mistress she certainly was. The woman before her was evidently wealthy, with long, silky golden hair. It was curled tastefully and framed the ladies face beautifully. A large, tear dropped shape ruby rested at her bear neck, matching the ones in her ears.
Her stunning appearance only added to Arya's worry as she realised that evidently this lady was used to getting what she wanted. Her tattered dress, and hollow cheeks stood out in stark contrast to her new mistress. A sinking feeling went through Arya as the woman's cold blue eyes met her own.
Arya found her gaze frozen in place as she watched the woman look over her purchase. The man behind her finally released her as he noted she was now in the hands of her mistress.
The woman's face broke into a smile. It was so unexpected, Arya found herself relaxing slightly. The smile was so different to what she had seen in those icy eyes, Arya felt perhaps things would be slightly better than she had anticipated.
Arya flinched slightly as the SOLD sign was lifted from around her neck.
"You won't be needing that" Her voice was sweet and inviting and tentatively Arya started to let down her guard, her fearful expression dropping somewhat and revealing her exhaustion. The woman pulled out a small silver chain, with a tiny diamond hanging from the centre. When she made a motion to put it on Arya, the girl almost stepped back in surprise. That was until she saw the small P.J engraved into the clasp. It was only a small glance before the soft snick of the mechanism in the clasp snapped shut. The necklace only reinforced the idea that there was no hope of ever regaining freedom.
"Alright. Let's be getting back. Goodbye Angela"
Arya's head twisted and just managed to get a glimpse of "Angela" before she was herded off to the entrance of the slave market. Behind her, the native American girl was sold, and that was when she was herded off to Angela. Arya managed to give her a weak smile before being marched out of the entrance. The smile held no joy, but a sort of accepting sadness.
When they finally reached the entrance, Arya found a shorter girl waiting with another boy. The girl was evidently a slave too from the necklace around her slim neckline. The young woman had a slim, small build, but seemed to possess a wiry, non direct strength. She also had natural green eyes, and a slightly tanned skin tone. The male was also slightly tanned, but also quite tall. He also didn't look particularly strong, however seeing his age, Arya doubted his weaker appearance held much strength.
Her deep green eyes probed both of them over, before glancing at her mistress. She still had no clue what to call any of them. Not that it mattered. Slaves weren't supposed to talk unless spoken too. She bit her lip. She hated thinking of herself as someone else's belonging, though there was naught to be done about it now.